The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1874-02-18
Beatrice De'Cenci,
BY ISABEL BLAIR.

BY ISABEL BLAIR.
In the picture gallery of the Ba .berini Pal
ace, at Rome, hangs portrait of a young RI
man girl, painted by Guido. 1t is a beauti-
ful but melancholy face, whose ''south look
OF sweet, sorrowful eyes, and ''touch of pris-
on paleness," reproduced in chrome, are so
frequently seen in parlor and shop window.
For OF all che famous paintings in Rome, none
is better known or more copied than this,
1t derives peculiar interest from the history
OF her whose features it is said to represent
francesca Cenci, the head of the oldes.
and wealthiest families of Rome, was a man
of violent temper, and, in his household, III
tolerably cruel. Two of bis sons were assas-
sinated at his instigation. At length, unable
longer to endure his crueltles and tyranny,
his family appealed to the Pope, Clement
VIII, for protection. The petitions miscar-
ried, and remained, of course unanswered.
On the night OF the 18th of September,
1898, francesca was murdered. He was found
with an enormous nail driven into each of his
eyes,-a mode OF assassination which iDdicat-
ed that at least two persons were engaged in
the work. One of them was finally cap
tured, and upon examination, charged the
wife, son, and the daughter, eeatrice, with
having prompted to the deed. They had,
he testified, put the victim to sleep by adj
| ministering a narcot C draught, and then
had introduced himself and his accomplce
| into Fraucesco's chamber. They we're ar.
rested and imprisoned in the Castle OF st.
Angelo, where they we've. from tiue to time.
as vas the practice during the middle ages,
subjected to the tortures of the rack to force
| them to confess to the crime. As was fire.
| quently the case with the accused, whether
| guilty or not, preferring death to this lin
| gering agony. the mother and brother made
/ csp NJ for tu paa
continued firm in her declarations of inno-
oence. At last anew method OF torture was
devised, to nflict which would make it. nee
| essary to cut off her hair, which is described
as being ''.he most silken, the longest, the
most marvelJus in color ever seem" At this
she turned pale. ''Touch not my head"
she cried LET me Jie without mutilation"
/ zAa1 so sare ber t<csses. she too yielded.
Her beauty, the telief in ner inno-
cence, the courage and firnness she had
shown, had won the sympathy and
compassion of the whole Roman pop
ulace. and the Pope was besiegrd
with petitions to grant her pardon. This he
was nearly persuaded to do when at the trial
her cause was most eloquently pleaded by the
counsel appointed Tor the defense, and it was
shown how probably man so generally dis
liked ami dreaded as Francesca, should have
had enemies outside his own household to
plot against his life. Other murders OF simi-
lar character occurring about this time, how
ever, induced him to refuse pardon, and it -
thought his decision was influenced by tie
considerations that in the event oil their COIL
demnation the pr perty OF the prisoners
would come into the possession OF the church.
They we're therefore publicly execntsd N tie
piazza of the bridge of st. Angelo. Septem:
ber 9th, 1899. All the windows, roofs aid
balcoi,ies in the vicinity were filed with pee
pie assembled to witness the scenr, so great
| inf fnr
heroine uL
The portrait by Guido is said to have been
| painted inst before her execution, and dur
ing her confi1 ement in the prisun. Her sto-
nv has furnished food for many romance,
and has often been reprsst ntRd upon the
stage She is still generally supposed to have
been innocent of connection with the CRIME
and for every one recalling this passage of
history, the picture has strange fascnaticp.
TIMELY HINTS FOR THE SEAsoN.-Ws
find the following in the Country Gentleman:
ST. awbe ries.- Where the beds have not
vet had any covering for protection, it viii
are injured late in the winter than at is
comm -ncement. In order to Obtain practi-
cal knoxledo,.. gu the subject, leave pat a
| the bed exnosed n se.> the difference. Cover
portion with cornstalks 'o'n'y naaa on' anu ni
tney will hold the snow and =. e~s a"inst I the
restrained sweep Of the winds az, .t,,i
plants. Cover another part thinly with
straw, OF which rye is best, and wheat nex,.
nut oat straw Is poor, as It dattens down anil
smothersthe plants when wet. If any kind
OF straw IS put on too thick, it will have tn,
sane enect. linen Cover another portion Of
the bed with evergreen branches. Leave a
portion exposed. Next spring observe tb,
result on the different parts, and you will
know better what to do by another winter.
| Tie effects will be different on different
sorts of the Strawberries, and in dif-
| ierent seasons. Alter experimenting thus
Tor a few years, you will know all about
covering Strawberries in your particular To-
cality. ~
Dwarf Pear Trees. You will find on ex
amlning your dwarf pear trees that thew ara
not probably making as strong a growth a,
may be necessary for their best success and
for the finest fruit. Now is a very suitable
time to enrich the soil over the roots by ap-
plying good top dressing of stable or yarr
manure. Do not heap It in pile at the
foot OF the stem, but spread it broadcast in /,
wide circle, so that the long roots my get the
benefit to their very tips. The rains and
melting snow will dissolve much of the
manure and carry it down into the soil
among the roots, and give the trees new
start. Next spring the part which remain,
on the surface may be lightly spaded in. or il
in an orchard, it may be worked in w,tl,
light plow, cdltivator or harrow
Prime Orchards.-Trees that are hardy
may be pruned IN .midwinter, provided no
large wounds are made. An orchard proper
y and timely attended to will rarely re.
quire the removal of large limb. We often
see recommendations to prune early in sum-
mer because the wounds heal rapidly at that
time. That season may answer, provide
the cutting is very sraringly performed, or
provided the trees stand in very rich soil
and grow with great vigor Bun early sum-
mer pruning always checks the thriftiDess OF
trees; and IT vigor and growth is desired, al
ways prune before the buds begin to swell
either III wuter or very early in spring; aad II
trouble IL likely to occur from the flow of sap,
cover the wounds with plain grating wax,
shel.ac varnish, or mixture of tar and brick
dust or road dust. II the wounds are nade
by winter pruning, the cut surface wiz oe
come so dry in few weeks that eilner VI
| these applications will adhere wen anu sei'e
as perfect protection.
1t often happens that the owner VI IarSe
| orchards cannot find time ~ W suo wois
b;unsolf ond ;s unwilling to leave 1t to a hired
| r,,, ,.ho NAV have no exper ence or judg-
,,an, ;n emitting away The right limbs. To
nhn;ots This difficulty. and to have the work
3ou 3oua 70 his satisfaction, let him take piece
of chalk in bis hand. and going along the
rows. draw chalk line at the base of every
crooked. or crossing, or needless branch, and
let his man follow with the saw and remove
them. In this way he can mark in an hour
all that the man will saw off in day, and
thus save his own valuable tine. Use the
chalk sold tor school blackboards; and If the
trees are tail, insert it in a hole bored in the