Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1856-12-11


not pond red with ia, email IN iui ot pam thr
h.rrble episode Of Italian crime aud cruelty IN
VOWED in the fate If the lovely Beatrice tenei. IL
IL doubtful even If the eyenifu life OF Mary
Queen Of Scots, has point OF such fearful 81
traction rs presented in her fate and II l. there
fore no matter OF surprise that the poets should
have seized i, and ooihed il with II .pendor ct
fiction in which the true ncio 'nts have been 90
scured Of lost. This is peculiarly the case with
the represent al ion uf the facts best known To the
general English reader, 'fhe Crncr "' oheiy'
The subject one peculiarly suited ~ ihe per-
Iertod nerai nature of shelley. aud he paae
use of il in strict accordance with the worst lieut.
urpS IF hi- own character An English writer ON
R"me. Dir. Whliesntl. published some yours
ago what l. supposed Ia be the tIu" ST ny ~ Dta
trice Cenc "a translation from an authentic hi--
tnry Of that lovely MARTYR. Speaking OF this &C
cuunt. u recent letter from Rome says
1T j. almost too narrowing I" the fteilhBs 10
he read:bu. 1t represents the heroine AS mn.'cen'
of the crime Of pari icde for which she suffered.
II j. difficult to conceive of such human devil as
Cenci. her unnatural father, i, represented 10
have been; Borga could not mate HIM but
though driven to madness by the suspicion OF his
incrotuous passion, Beatrice was neither denied
nor goaded to murder. In her moral aud physl-
cal endurance nothing OF the miraculous: II
was the njured, exh-perated wifr,her step moth
er, who alone melted the assassination OF the
monster.
Yet the whole family--his wife, two sons and
his daughter executed together, after hav-
ing endured borrid tortures 10 wiring from them
all confession of participation in IA deed which
onc Mt least, of the suffering party was ignorant
of. till arrested on su-pIcloa. So great was the
excitement of the Roman populace against the
condemnation of Beatrice that on her way 10 the
scalfoId three attempts made to rescue her.
On the of the fatal day she sat neditatng
her doom intenty, that for some time she dd
not notice young man who had hribed tn" Jallor
to ,dmit him III the cell for the purpose OF ing
n sketch of her. Her appearance at this moment
is thu, Described: "Bralrice had risen from her
miserable pallet, but unlike the wretched Inmate
Of Il dungeon. res mbed being from brighter
sphere. Her large br wn eyes were of IA liquid
suf,ness. her forehead broad and clear, her coun-
tenance of angelic purity my seriously beautiful
Around her head fold of white muslin had been
carelessly wrapped. from VIII. nee in rich luxuri-
nnce fell her fair and waving hair. Profound sor-
row gave an air Of touching sen,ibility TO her
lovely features" Suddenly turning she discov-
cred stranger seated with pencil and paper i'll
hand looking nesily ut her; II was Guido Re-
al. She demanded who he was, aud what he
did there. The frank young artist told his name
and object, when. after a moments hesitation,
Beatrice replied: "Signor Guido: Your great name
an my sad story may make my 'orrait interest
ing you write ON one of its sides the word limo
cent" Thus was birth given to inspired pic
ture, which, to contemplate, is itself worth vi
1t to Rome; which, when seen, haunts the memo
~ "a a supernatural mystery; as the beautiful
appariton of sublimated suffering"