Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-03-02
MONTE CRISTO.
An Inspection of a Prison Made Famous
" Durrlaa

by Dumas.
Across the beautiful bay from tie CITY
an hour or such matter, SAYS Nasbv in
a Marseilles letter to the Toledo Blade. is
the famous lie DIFF, on which is the
famous State prison which Dumas made
famous by his immortal romance of
Monte Cristo. Everybody knows the
foundation of the novel. Edmond Dantes,
young master of a vessel sailing from
Marseilles and betrothed to Mercedes,
falls into a trap laid by a powerful lover
of the girl, and is accused of conveying
letters from the Emperor Napoleon, then
confined at Elba, to his partisans at Mar
settles. He is entirely innocent, but his
accuser is powerful in the government,
and poor Dantes is torn from the arms
of his love and hurried to the Castle
DIFF. The young sailor was immured
here for years, and had gwen up all hope
of ever again seeing the outside world
when one day he was surprised to hear a
scratching noise on the other side of the
wall OF his dungeon. He answered it,
and found that it came from an old able
who had also been confined in the prison
for years, and who was digging a hole
through the wall, rot knowing or caring
what the result might BE. A few DAYS
sufficed to widen the aperture so that
they could converse, and the result was
the able, who was well-nigh gone with
years, cOnfided to Dantes the secret of the
Isle of Monte CristO, near Naples, where
fabulous wealth was concealed.
The able Immediately expired, and
Dantes determined TO make bold stroke
for liberty. The custom was to enveloD
dead bodies in a sack and throw them
over the precipice into the sea at night.
Dantes pulled the corpse of the dead alb
be into his cell through the opening and
envelOped himself in the sack, secreting
knife about his person. The two soldiers
came at the proper hour, carried the sup
posed able, but really the living Dantes.
to the precipice ard threw it over. The
moment he struck the water Dantes liber-
ated himself with his knife and swan to
a rock in the Observation-Disclosures are
plenty Of them-and escaped by a miracle.
As everywhere else, the people now in
charge OF the island and the disused pri-
son have made the most of the celebrity
that Dumas great work gave the place.
They have selected two Dungeons as the
Identical ones occupied by the able and
Dantes. They dug the hole between them,
and you are shown the cells and the OPEN
ing as though the great novel was a his
torical fact instead of the revelation Of the
most wonderful rOmancer France has yet
produced.
However, it might have happened; the
island is simply a rock in the sea, its
summit crowned with prison as hOrri-
bic as one could imagine. There are cells
below cells. There are dungeons into
which the rays of the blessed sun never
penetrate. There are others through
which all the light there ever is is what
may cone thrOug n narrow slit in the
thick walls, and it is so situated that es-
cape any other way than suggested by
Dumas would be impossible.
AS 1t was used as a prison of state dur
ing the old regime, and by the Republic
atterWard, a great many tragedies have
taken place within its walls, which still
show mementOes. Mirabeau was confined
here for long time, brother of the King
of Poland was here for twenty years, till
death relieved him, detained" as the
records say, "by request Of the King"
The brother was probably troublesome,
and Kings were in the habit of Obliging
each other in this way. He was safe
enough here.
Now 1t is entirely unused, the place be-
ing III the guardianship of a dozen in
valid soldiers and an old woman with
handsome daughter, who make IA living
by exhibiting the place and retailing the
lies that others have invented. They nave
cut the great story of Dumas down to
very fine point, and they have photographs
of the good old able and Dantes, and an
engraving of the escape, all of which YOU
are urged tOpaTchase. Whether you in
vest in illustrations OF the fertile brain OF
Dumas or not, you must drink II bottle OF
very bad Wine or beer, and you must
likewise disburse a franc or two for their
services. This, however, is the best use
the h0ary old record of crime was ever
hut to,