National Republican., 1883-03-12
THE CARNIVAL IN ROME.
The Dangers Of Travel Through the Streets
During the Days Of Revelry.
The Attention Attracted by the American
Minister'S Party.
Sights and Scenes in the Streets and at the Grand
Mask Ball
The Rights of the NIob--Tho NIoccoIetto-
The Bouquets.I


Is past and gone, but to those who travelled
far and long to see this thoroughly Latin
institution II was both disappointment and
a surprise as we'll; for most of the gayety and
merriment was inaugurated and carried out by
strangers, and all the brutality and carousing
that marred IL was sdirectlytraceable to the dis
contented Italians with socialistic tendencies
On the last day of the corso IL was positively
dangerous to be in the line of carriages or on
foot, the only safe retreat being the balconies.
When the mob below seemed to jest the
word was always bitter and not fit for
ears polite. Luckily the credulous strangers
never knew this, but smiled in return with
an unsophisticated air truly refreshing. The
flowers with which the throng was pelted
hardly deserved the appellation, and were
nothing more than weeds gathe' ! out in the
fields tied around the first co ,enient stick,
and launched at any luckless beholdor, often
leaving cruel and ugly bruises to tell of the
foolish encounter. Sometimes carriage load
of ardent and gallant youths had provided
more acceptable ammunition in the shape of
rare exotics and superb bon bons, but the
alert gamin generally secured them as booty,
and tho next moment were industriously
selling them in the next square, while the
disappointed inamorata looked down ruefully
from the balcony's height to the no less discon-
solate admirer; nevertheless, q white hand
~
lished q sort of sentimental telegraphy, which,
perhaps, answered as well the purpose of the
little god in this display Of loves tactics. The
confetti days were the most boisterous, and
most exasperatiug, too, for it's no joke to
have your eyes filed with little balls of lime
and flour, not to speak of fine broadcloth and
elegant silks, sharing the rack and ruin; as
for u tall hat, that was quite impossible. Woe
to the luckless wight who attempted to wear
one; he was jeered at, and made the target
from one end of the long street to the other,
and spite of the dignity he felt in the
proud possession of fine clothes, before he
had endured the pelting many moments
he was running for dear life, with very much
such scared look as Guiteau used to wear
when he shot through the jeering crowd and
bounded into the prison van. Verify, hu-
man nature often makes ludicrous exhibi-
tion. Sometimes 1t was stray John Bull,
guide book in hand, Lwho got caught in the
vortex. How quick he forgot that Britannia
rules and that Britons never will be slaves
When at last he made good his escape all the
cockney oaths he ever heard could not ex-
press his indignation at the piratical Romans,
while those worthy citizens shrieked them
selves hoarse with laughter in which l am
bound to say the American cousins Joined
with evident relish.
Along the Via Corso balconies prevail
no matter what the style of architecture, and
so, as a natural consequence, with the
bright colored hangings used as decorations,
1t was very easy to transform the staid and
narrow street into something that looked like
great open bazar. The largest and best bal
cony had been rented by Mr.. Astor, the
American minister, to be used exclusively by
those whom he chose toinvite. As the invita-
tions were issued for the entire eleven days Of
the carnival, 1T is easy to conceive that this
particular location became the most attractive,
and received unusual attention, inasmuch as
beautiful American women were always to be
seen there; their bright and smiling faces in
variably drew the crowd. The queen was
only one day on her loggia, and the horse
racing-an old Roman pastime-was entirely
omitted. This was considered n downright
slight, and the noble mob felt cheated out
of its rights the Italian privileges of revenge
was brought into requisition, and there were
many attempts to incite mobs, which the
police were on the lookout for, and as
promptly put down as possible; still eleven
men were stabbed, some fatally, not to speak
of sundry encounters that were discreetly
treated as private and personal.
The Roman pOpulace is much as il was in the
time of the great Cesar intellectual, restless,
and aggressive, 1t must be amused and occupied !;
being artistic spectacular entertainments
please most. How well the Catholic church
knew this The great pageantries of the
church are done with now, because there is
an eternal conflict between church and state,
and the citizen is sullen and morose, he hardly
knows why, but something, is lacking. The
government has no leader-no one
man knows, or cares to know, the people.
Those who have influence are busy destroying
picturesque ruins those land marks of an
cient Roman history, and replacing them
with modern abortions, constructed as care
lessly as the shoddy American architect
would dictate, while before this generation is
past and gone the interest of this wonderful
city can only be realized through books and
u.tntt. fail f..l 80. ~ II
vandalism works double harm to Italy, de-
stroying her revenue in both ways-so- called
public improvements absorb money in untold
sums, while these remnants offormer centuries
bring the traveller with his gold from the
world over.
Some here predicted that the days of the
carnival were also numbered; but this time
tine programme was certainly carried out.
The long professions of fanciful groups, the
huge animals, and great birds of prehistoric
periods, which some tanciful artist in the
weird gloom of his attic must have evolved
from his oertull brain, paraded soemnly.
Bacchus, in very tight tights, sat upon a mon
ster cask of wine and drank the health of all
the beautiful of Rome, reeling from side
to side, and receiving the doubtful COM
pliments of the crowd that surged
around his car, clad in motley colors and
decked in fantastic ornaments, while the
flashing dark eyes and glttering white teeth
acavalcade of Spanish mobiles, followed by wild
Iingras and still wilder Arabs, gave touch
and glow of both Spain and Afrca's long
stretch of desert.
There was a great car load of girls, gotten up
as violettes and marguerettes, out of c0mpli-
men to the queen, and there was an out-at-
elbow and draggled-tailed procession of camp
followers with more than one Pistol, leeks
and all, close following some adventurous
Prince Hal a poor broken down hack horse did
double duty and carried two, while noble
DOgberries rode in proud consciousness and
seemed to say, with the immortal bard, an
two men horseback, one must needs ride
behind" Mixed in this strange incongruity
were handsome carriages, mostly filled by
eager and extravagant Americans, who had
paid an exorbitant price to ride in the corso,
and be able to write home how many bou-
quets they had received.
Many bruise they got from badly aimed
missile; but as they fancied they We're having
a good time, 1t was salve to the wound, no
doubt, or better still, if they could fancy
some stray prince had thrown the weeds, it
would prove, indeed, q veritable balm in
Gilead.
However, the greatest feature of it all was
the masque ball, or veglione, as it
is called; eight of these peculiar
entertainments were given alternately at the
Costansie, Humberto, and Politama Romano
theaters, two of which fell upon Sunday even
ings altogether the most elegant were those
at the Costansji theater; the house itself
being superb in all its appointments, as well
as very large. Here always the great beau
monde collected about midnight. 1t was said