The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1880-08-12
A Sicilian Palace.


The house we were in was one of
those baronial palaces built in the fif-
teenth century, when many of the
feudal nobility left the turreted castles
on their estates, and established them
selves in the cities, where they enjoyed
the first honors. 1t had descended bv
inheritance to our host, and to all ap-
pearance it had never been altered
from its original construction and fur
nisbing, except in a very few articles
of furniture which replaced those that
had decayed. 1t was square building
of about seventy feet front, built of SOL
id blocks of porous yellow stone that
had become brown by age.
1t had small square in front, with a
number of low, crumbling, miserable
old houses, leaning one against the
other, and few poor shops in the
basement; an old apOthecary displayed
in his window a variety of very cd
Sicilian majolica pots with salves of all
sorts, and there was a small cafe, with
blue and white awning over the door,
and two or three small tables and
chairs outside under it. These houses,
in days gone by, had sheltered the re-
tanners of the feudal lord; but now
they were rented, and occupied By a
very common class of the population.
This contrast of a superb palace sur
rounded by poor tenements is most pc
culiar and characteristic of Italian
towns, especially the small ones, and
those out of the way of modern influ-
ence, reminding one of the times when
they were built--times of caste and
privileges; of immense wealth among
the few at the expense of the poverty
and degradation of the many; of a
proud feudatory lord, eXacting and
enjoying the fruits of the labor of
thousands of vassals over whom he
held sway as sovereign master.
The front entrance formed an arch
way which led to an interior court
yard, in the center of which stood q
very old granite fountain, with wide
basins for horses to drink out of By
hereditary custom it was also used as a
public dispenser of water to all the poor
of the neighborhood, whose ragged chill
dren were constantly coming in and out
to fill their earthern jars. The whole
basement of the palace opening into
this interior court yard, which in feud-
al times received the armed retainers
and their horses, the granaries and
kitchens, was now turned into stables
and carriage houses, the washing and
cleaning of which was done in the
courtyard itself, near the fountain,
making it scene of hustle and dirt,
rather unpleasant to one not used to it.
On the right of the archway of the
entrance was a marble staircase lead
ing to the family apartments, or quGrtO
mobile. In the hall were several doors
leading to them, the rooms being all
on the same floor, opening one into the
other. Our bed-chamber was of very
peculiar construction: it was divided
in two by an alcove in the middle, hay
ing on each side a paneled door lead
ing into two dressing-rOOms, both the
alcOve and dressing-roOms opening into
the back of the chamber, which had a
space as large as the front, with two
windows looking out into the courtyard,
and containing wardrobeS and chest of
drawers. The front part had two bal
comics over the square, and was quantity
furnished with old rocco furniture very
much worn; the floor was paved with
glazed tiles and had no carpet, except
an Oriental rug here and there. The
rooms were furnished in the style of
the sixteenth century; they were high
studded, with fresco paintings of myth
subjects, now almost faded by
age and dampness; high paneled doors
of white and gold, the white turned to
a dusty gray, and the gold to dark yell
low; there we're old portraits of knights
and magistrates, ancestors of our host,
and an air of antiquity about everything
that was very charming to us.-AtLGntic
MOnthiM