Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1872-09-18

| Everybody knows the SAD modern STORY
of Villa Pliniana. Many, many years
ago handsome young rich Milanest
Prince married beautiful, wealthy Mi
lanese Princess. Each belonged to grand
old families; he was Belgioso; she was
Trivulzio. Each were cursed with
genius and we're very gifted. He was
a poet she was a philosopher in petit
coats; maybe if the gift had been re.
versed their future might have been diff
ferent She was possessed of the mad
dest spirit Of adventure, and became a
sort Of Lady Hester Stanhope. She took
over two hundred armed men into Tur-
key in Asia She wandered about for
years among the Arabs. OBce an Arab
chief, who loved her in his wild, jealous
way, crept into her tent and tried to
stab the beautiful mad woman as she
slept. Her daughter, little girl, saved
her mother life.
And what did the young poet-husband
do all this while2 Oh, much worsel He
went to Paris and became the idol of the
salons. The beautiful frail Duchess de
Pc fell madly in love with him, and
one day they fed. She deserted her
husband and two little baby daughters.
Prince Belgioso bought this Villa Plini-
ana, and furnished it in the most superb
style. Such luxury Porcelains, tapes
tries, velvets, carvings-everything that
money and taste could collect were
placed in that villa.
Fourteen years, winter and summer,
the two lived there, the world for
getting, by the world forgot" that is,
forgotten by certain world, but remem-
bered by certain other world who came
TO them-that indulgent world of artists
and the solemn melancholy villa, with
its gorgeous accessories, was like some
vision Of enchantment to these visitors.
The host and hostess were beautiful in
person and singularly gifted.
"Ah, Signora," said the old boatman
of our villa to me the other day, when
he was rowing me alone, when the
Duchess went to mass at Malvosio no
one looked at the altar or said their
prayers; we all looked at her two splen-
did eyes
Fourteen years, winter and summer
long while for such love to last Its
ending was as sorrowful and tragic as
was beftting to such a crime as theirs,
but very rarely do such sins bring their
punishments so forcibly before the world
for all to witness. At the end of four
teen years, Prince Belgioso became con
scious of terrible fact. The woman
for whom he had sacrificed so much, and
his best, best friend-his bosom friend
were betraying biml Secretly they
we're lovers, and shortly after the Ouch
ess left him as she had her husband and
children fourteen years before, for a
younger lover. With a cruelty that only
such a woman could devise, she went to
a villa the Prince had given her at Nal
yosio, directly opposite the Pliniana.
For two years she and her young inam-
orata held high fiesta insultiDgly in the
very face of her old lover. The Prince
Belgioso never rallied; he remained at
the Villa Pliuiana during the two years,
never left it, and just drank him
self mad. AT the end Of two years
be was a raying maniac, was placed
in mad-house and died Then
came her punishment, Her young
lover deserted her. he married
handsome young Milsnese Of high
rank and wealth, and is now ''potente
signoro, with villas at the other end Of
the lake and palaces at Milan. The
Duchess de P-is still living at the
Malvosio villa, q solitary woman. One
Of our party saw her last Sunday at the
village chapel of Malvosio. She is a
tall, thin, hollow-eheeked woman of