Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1870-05-06
SIGHTS ABOUT NAPLES.


the Museum. We went through the mag
nificent Picture and Staturry Galleries,
and thence into the Egyptian Room"
The Neapolitans have arranged their
Mummies for inspection. SO rs to make
them rs repulsivc as possible. The linen
wraps were cut in sections, and the whole
of the black "cadaoro" exposed with the
hole through which the embalming fluid
was injected and the superiuous matter
removed from the body. Then they have
heads perched around with their black
lips drawn back from tho teeth in hor-
rible grin. that has lasted for thousands
OF years Although | Ihave seen hundreds
of Mummics before, have never seen
any that seemed so horribly sarcastic upon
all sublumary matters, rs these fellows;
they seemed TO have no idea Of proving
the truth Of the remark, "duaL thou art
and unto dust, &cn From the Egyptian
We went into the "Pompiean" room. and
looked 1T the people who were surprised
by the ashes of Vesuyius, ono day. about
eighteen hundred years ago. and since
that time have been lying stark and stiff
in the same positions they were in when
the ashes coveredthem up. From thence
we visited tho "Catacombs. lsrge roOmy
corridors and walls cut in the solid rock
or "Tuin." All along the passages were
the burial inches, and all of them had been
occupied and then desecrated, the bones
lying all around in every conceivable form
and shnpe. In one part of the Catacombs
WAS II chamber, in which the Pagans used
to sacrifice an odd dozen or two Of
Christians, whenever they felt piously III
clincd. Occasionally We would come to
! heaps of bones on the floor OF the corridors,
from which deaths heads would look out
in that peculiar "smilng way" they have
The effect Of the grisley bones in the dark
passages of the Catacombs, illuminated
by tho little taper Of our suporanuated
guide. was to me quite striking, and as
tossed up skull. and it fell with dull
'rhud," upon the ground. wondered TO
whom it belonged, and whether the spirit
which once animated that tenement of
clay," would reclaim it again. when
"Gabiel," shal. announce the reunion Of
''mind and matter" Ny craving for
horrors was fed, rather than appeased by
my interview with the old Egyptian. the
later Pompeian. and still later. Christian
dead men ;and so visited the old Campo
Santo" This place consists OF series OF
pits, 800 in number, the top, of which are
covered with stone tagging, a trap door
u yard square. being fitted in the centre
of each. One OF these traps is removed
each day in the year, and all the poor
people who die in the city of Naples on
that day. arc brought To that pit and
thrown in, after which. the trap is re.
placed for year. As we rode up. there
was q man ahead with hand cart, on
which was painted skull and cross, and
bones" and other cnlivening advertise.
mcnts. He pulled away Mt it brarcly,
but il seems to be hard work for him,
ascending the hill, at which we did not
wonder when wa found his cargo to con-
sist of three grown PERSONS and six
children, and he alone acting ~ hcarse.
horse, bearer and mourner When we
entered Campo Santo there were about
one hundred dirty Neapoltan' setting
about. evidently in Il state of expectancy.
Toothlcss old women were in few
eases. telling their beads at some Of the
freshly sealed slabs, but most of the crowd
we're evidently waiting for their daily
entertainment, and. meanwhile, lousy
women picked tho "crccpers" from the
heads of lousy children, and lousy young
girls with dirty bare feet and legs,
scratched their heads Of magnificent hair.
and gossipped in III, corners. Al length
2 or 3 OF the hcarsc handcarts were pushed
up TO the slab to be liftsd. and the crowd
collected around while blear-eyed Of
fetal in red vest. dirty velveteen coat,
rugged a lever and fulcrum and hooked
chains TO cyebots i'll the slab for lifting it.
This "Red vest" made great deal Of
noise directing The lazy men who took the
coffins from the zinc-lined handcarts. and
from the inches in the walls where they
had been placed during the day, and drew
them indifferently upon the pavement.
The collins were Zinc-lincd and iron
bound, and had been used every day for
years. Red vest made the crowd stand
aside for the "Signori," and we were
placed close to the slab, which WAS raised
and pivoted to one side.
The Pit was about 25 feet deep. dark,
Shiny, and loathsome, from which arose
u musty indescribablc odor-- result
Of a years decay. At the bottom, was a
pile of bones barely dscernablc. A Cub
Priest" and dirty boy now came ont of
a chapel, the first carrying small swab,
and the other dish. that looked like an
old fashioned silver-plated sugar bowl,
with all The plating worn off. The priest
then kissed very filthy, yellow scarf,
hung it around his neck. and proceeded
to sprinkle the handcarls and the coffins
lying about the pavement, muttering his
prayers, as he did so. The swab was not
very effective as sprinkler, and very
little "huly water" was thrown from it,