Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1883-08-16

gemmed sky, with Vesuvius gloomy in
the distance.
Naples has few buildings that viii
bear special description. Its castles are
strongly fortified. Its churches are
many-over 800 in number, but in the
main they are devoid of architectural in
terest. The cathedral is the depository
of the sacred vial, containing the blood
of the Saviour. 1t is in the Neapolitan
churches that one finds not the chaste
and beautiful madonnas of snowy raj
ment, not historical paintings, but stat
ues without grace, their bodies decked
with precious stones and dirty satins.
Surely, the people are realistic in their
religion. The royal palace at Naples is
vast, but unattractive.
But we will not linger among these,
but pass to the national museum, of Ma
Piles. This really contains all that
makes Naples so worthy of visit. In
the picture galleries are works of the
Italian masters. The gems of the col
lection are in two rooms. Here we find
the famous holy family of Raphael, the
two mothers are bending over the
infant John, the youthful madonna in
striking contrast to Elizabeth; Joseph as
usual is standing in the background
Here, too, is a voluptuous Diana, 'ssor-
rowing Magdalene, . and other pictures
Of Rubens. But the picture gallery is
not the attraction of the museum;
neither are the halls of staluary, nor the
hall of Egyptian antiquities, and collec-
ton of Italian coins, 200 in number.
The pride of the museum is the colIec-
ton from Pompeii and Hercalaneum.
These collections show the everyday
life of a people who lived eighteen hun
dred years ago, who in the flood tide of
their prosperity upon earth were blotted
from the earth. Fortunately for us, the
thing That destroyed also preserved, and
we of the present can learn the minutest
detail of these townsville favorite re-
treat OF the Romans of the wealthiest
classes. Herculaneum and Pompeii
We're destroyed by the same terrible
eruption i'll the 10th year of the Chris
tan era. One was buried by hot
streams of mud, the other by hot masses
of ashes, showers of scoria and pumice
stone. Hence, Herculaneum is exca-
waited but slowly, while Pompeii, al
though buried by successive eruptions
to the depth of twenty feet or more, is
easily excavated, the labor being equal
to removing mass of dirt twenty feet
thick and two miles in circumference.
Only one-half is now excavated. The
work is carried on by the government,
about 81, 600 being appropriated annu-
ally fol- this purpose. Nearly every
thing movable, of value, is transferred
at once to the museum of Naples.
Hence, a visit to Pompeii should be pre-
ceded by u visit to the museum.
A few minutes sufliced to assure us of
the luxurious tastes of the old Romans
of the first century. Statuary in ex-
quisite workmanship, is Scattered
throughout the rooms; floors worked in
Mosaic designs. / found myself Won
dering as | walked over these floors if
the little children playing on them eigh-
teen centuries ago, traced with heirfing-
ers the visible figures displayed here.
The walls in the rooms at Pompeii were
gorgeous with their tints. red and blue,
copied from their blue skies and beauti-
full sunsets. Upon these walls were
architectural drawings, fruit drawings,
&c. Securely buried during all the
long centuries they have lost but little
of their lustre, which the painters of
the present day cannot initiate.
Usually ruin is carefully removed
piece by piece, cemented together again
as it was, and sent to Naples. The
Pompcian ladies must have revealed in
personal adornments, Judging by the
great number found-bracelets, golden
ornaments, rich canoes, and cook
ing utensils of all kinds, such as
an American housewife would not
know how to use; hand-lamps which
may have belonged to the foolish
virgins; bits of precious wood and
cloths, rags, balls of iron, = all
preserved as they were by ashes, as
were the fruit-jars, beans, rice, figs,
&c. They had hens in Pompeii, as egg
shells testify. Loaves of bread and cake
are found in Pompeian ovens scarcely
baked. On one of the loaves was
stamped the name of the baker, 1900
years ago-Quintus Cramus Here
are his loaves but where is Quintus
Cramus? Passing on to visit to Pom
peii and its precincts the speaker said:
Entering one of the queer Italian cars
we find ourselves moving eastward.
Occasionally we pass some pretty villa,
then a little store-house with fiat roof
and filthy beyond description. If we
involuntarily turn our heads aside in
disgust we are sure to see some point of
the beautiful bay, and all unpleasant
impressions are swept away. Poppies
grow everywhere width the fields.
We soon stop at a station, Herculaneum.
In vain we look for the town or city Of
Herculaneum. The train moves ON and
soon reaches the walls of Pompeii.*
Along the walls of Pompeii were some
dwellings-the only signs of life in the
vicinity. Toward one of these we
pressed our way, we entered and found
ourselves in long low room, filed with
Italians drinking and playing. After
many delays and much sinking of heart
we secured guides, consisting of tooth
less old woman, who ambled along be-
fore us In the dusty road mumbling
broken French, and also a lusty bare
headed and barefooted youth of twenty
one, who carried our hand baggage.
And all this time the shades of night
were falling fast At last we came to
q hotel, so forbidding externally that
we were loath to enter. Once ross
the threshold we found ourselves in
coy English rooms. Indeed, when an
Englishman with his pretty young wife
joined our party we hardly could believe
we were on Italian soil.
The city lies on the side of noun
tain and was very compactly built the
circumference being about two miles
The walls, of which there are two, are
twenty-five tc thirty feet apart, and
are composed of huge blocks of lava
and limestone, while the intervening
space is filled with earth. The inner
wall is not so big as the outer being
but fifteen to twenty feet In entering
YOU pass through tunnel through
both walls and intervening space. The
streets are narrow-only twelve to fiji
teen feet wide, pavements included. At
the corners stepping-stones are placed
this feature is not found in other
Italian cities but the same thing is
found in our own southern cities, Balti-
more especially. The streets are paved
admirably with lava.
In many streets wagon ruts are cut
deep into the pavement. II would seem
as il the wagons never turned out and
hence never met. Owing to the fact
that Pompeii was once partially des-
troyed by an eruption in GO b. c., the
buildings are different, having been
built between 60 b. G. and 10 A.
d.. the date of the last eruption.
1t would seem, too, as if the former
..,.,,,atinra would harn hean n warm