Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1874-04-25
So in Advance.
AN ABSURD NOTION

has long prevailed among some peo-
pie that the ancients were ignorant
OF glass and terra-cotta. If thew
will visit the Naples Museum, they
VIII be undeceived by seeing 4, 900
specimens OF such wares, none of
them less than 1900 years old: there
were luminous, transparent vases of
glass, of the most exquisite form and
finish, with all kinds of frost-work
thereon; and every sort of glassware
below that down to common window
glass and glass bottles. In terra
Gotta, the ancients seemed to have
excelled the moderns in beauty.
ooldness of design and finish. Here
are elegant votive statuetts, and sep
uIehral urns of many designs. embel-
hshed IN bas-relief: here is the am
Phora-oottle, In which ''fne old crus-
ty WINE" was preserved; the money
box IN which the child stored its g;ft
coins; the dishes which held +bo
choice viands at the table: and otbor
elegant terra-cotta articles too nm
merous to mention. In gold and sill
yer ornaments, eorals, and of pre-
elous stones, there is everything to be
found now in first-cIass Paris Jewell
ry-shOp. Taken from the retail sbons
were steelyards, balances, weights
and measures. From a doctor Of
nee was recovered full set of sur-
glca, instruments, including ''pulli-
klns for extracting teeth. and tre-
pans for drilling holes in the sknHs
of patients. There is anv 0non+;+[' -1
OF shoemaker, tailor, carpenter and
blacksmith tools, and indeed. impIe.
ments of almost every present me-
chanical occupation. Taken oI+o-
gether, the collection was a surnr;s-
ing revelation to me, as it has been
to others-shOwing that the ancients
had invented and perfected ten
thousand implements and articles of
common life which we still use with
little Improvement thereon, and
without giving them credit therefor
Returning to Pompeii for another
glance before we took our deDarture
| noticed over the shop doors sions
in large and ornamental letters
painted on the walls, naming the
business carried on. Stone bitebino-
posts for horses were in front of ma
ny of them. On some of the most
frequented streets, the hard traves-
tine rock pavements were deepIv
worn into ruts by the cart wheels
and the sidewalks also were mucb
worn by the tread of human feet
The stalrways of public BUILDINGS
exhibited the same effects of friction
ELECTIoNEERING ADVERTISEMENT
were frequently met with on walls
of houses, painted in red letters, call
ing on the citizens to vote for this
or that person for some ofice-pen-
orally Aldermen, Justices, Sheriff.
Treasurers- perhaps because tbey
paid best, although no salaries were
attached to the first named. One in
scriptlon runs: 'The Scribe Issus re-
quests you to support NJ. c. Vatia
as AdlL. He is worthy and well
qualified" Another, translated.
reads: "Philipus beseeches of Won to
create NJ. Halconius a Deeemvir of
Justice"-Police Magistrate, such as
"Chief-Justice" Banyon used to be.
Many of the Recommendations pro-
eeed from guilds, or unions, which
seems to have been numerous in
POmpeii. Some of the inscriptions
on the walls were lampoons of rival
candidates, with earicatures of their
faces or any personal peculiarity. In
the vestsbule of the High School
the following inscription is scratched
on the smooth stucco of the yellow
wall: "OtiOSts HE L0caGs non est; dis
cede mOUatOT'' is no place for
idlers; let them begone." or some
thing to that effect. Another in
scription is still sharper; it reads:
"A1Et disco, ant discede; daa nenaet
$40 tertja eCedi;" which, freely trans
lated, signifies as follows: ''Study, OF
leave, or take a confounded good
licking" Both inscriptions are evi-
IDENTIFY the work of schoolboys. Love
sentiments and ditties are scratched
ON the walls. One of them reads, in
translation, sHMethe, the slave of Cor
ninia, loves Chrestus with all her
heart. May the Pompeiian Venus
| (the tutelary goddess of the city) be
propitious to both, and may they be
happy together" 1t was probably a
lampoon.
In entering the vestibule of the
House of the Tragic Poet, the first
object which greets the eye is that
of a large, fierce dog preparing to
spring at the intruder. Look again
at the alarming canine, and you see
it is but a device wrought in mosaic
on the pavement, with the inscrip-
ton beneath, "CaUe cdnini''
ware of the dog" some of the finest
fresco-painting found in Pompeii is
in this building. But most of its
treasures have been moved to the
Naples Museum.
Of course l visited the
| VILLA OF DIOAEDE,
and found it to correspond in ap-
pearance very closely With the de-
Scriptions contained in the s'Last
DAYS of Pompeii," by Bulwer,
Around two sides of the building
were the wine-vanlts; and in one Of
the angles were found eighteen sksl.
etons of persons who had sought
refuge there, but were sutfOoated by
the ashes and mud which drifted IN
ON them: and on the wall and foor
can still be traced the shadow-loOk-
| ing outline of their figures where
they Law down and died. When they
were exhumed, a golden necklace
was found encircling the threat of
nne of the skeletons, with the name
of the owner engraved thereon: ,ii-
| Tia de Djomede; gold earrings and
cold bracelets were found on the re-
mains; and lying beside others were
purses containing gold coins. Sever
al skeletons found elsewhere are on
exhibition under glass cases in
building in Pompeii. Some died
with their hands over their mouths,
4 : =. A-aa., ont the ashes One