Adolfo Rossi (1857-1921) was a figure of relevance in the Italy of the XIX century. Native of the province of Rovigo, in the region of Veneto, aself-taught person, he was first a poor emigrant to the USA who became a journalist and combatant at the end of the century, hired by the most important newspapers; then, he was an itinerant inspector at the Commissariato Generale dell'Emigrazione (1902) and, finally, he was a diplomat in the Americas (from 1908) charged with duties in the Ministero italiano degli Esteri. He was the author of memorable journalistic reportages about social events and about the misery of the life in the peninsular campaign. Meanwhile, his harsh missives from Eritrea led to his expulsion from the colony a few days before the disastrous defeat of Adwa (1896). The texts he wrote about the state of the Italian emigration in Brazil, South Africa, the USA and Argentina 'precise, dramatic, almost photographic, absolutely real texts' caused a sensation and contributed to change the migration policy of the authorities of Rome. The text aims to recover a leading figure of journalist and scholar, owner of an incredibly modern writing and of a rare intellectual honesty, free of political conditions and ideological prejudices, the person who describes an 'Italia della vergogna' 'expression that frequently appears in his writings' that many, often, try not to see.