The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-03-07
THE LAND OF THE CLASSICS.
Five Indianians in heSupcrnal and In
fernal Regions of Homer and Virgil.
Abide in Charon's Boat, and Oysters from the
River Styx-Incident in the Careers Of
BrutuS, Portia, Cicero, POmpey, Nero.

Brutus, Portia, Cicero, Pompey, Nero.
Correspondence of the Indian apoiis Journal
NAPLES, Italy, Feb. Ill I'm back again In
Naples. but my notes are so full In regard TO Sne
region of which Puteoli and Bai9 are the centers
Ehat a volume rather than a letter should be
written to do justice to the subject But do not
fear that l shall infict this upon you.
In my last 1 took you through one OF the tun-
nels left by Roman engineering in this part of
Italy-the tunnel or grotto of Posilipo. Very
coon after emerging from this tunnel we ride over
alevelroad, on either side of which are fields filled
with vineyards. where, as in the day of Virgil. the
vines are trained from the palm and the oak.
only those trees are substituted by the straight
poplars. But beyond, on every side exceptthat of
the sea, we are surrounded by fertile hills and
mountains. Said Strabo, writing of this region
before the Christian era: From this country the
Romans have their choicest wines-the Falerni-
an. Statanian, Calenian and the Surrentinian.
Two of these wines are still famous, and the
yield of these vineyards west of Naples now goes
to France. 1t is not generally known that France
for several years past his imported more wine
buhu su0 oApOfkSs OtrdUO Says IL tAAo oSloh
''they grow on the same ground four
crops in q year, viz: twice grain,
then panic-grass. and lastly salad"
The modern Italians have improved on Strabo's
time, for now five crops a year succeed one
another.
But h~urrying by fields and vim eyards, and the
nlmon trees just beginning TO bloom, our alton
tion is next attracted to an immense circular
building. larger and higher situated than the old
Castle Garden. in New York. This is the "Er-
gastolo," or prison for criminals. -Four centuries
ago it was a vast country residence of Joanna II.
of Naples. This palatial rural building was
of the Anjou family. This present prison,
which looms loftily before us, is not on the main
land, but on the island of Nisida-which, in pre-
historic times, was 8 volcano, ard is an island
which played no mean part in Grecian and
Roman history. Here 1t was that the son of
Lucullus had his villa. and, after the assassina-
sion Of Caesar. Brutus retired to this retreat on
the island of Nisida. Here came Cicero to hold
conference with Brutus on the affairs of state;
snd hither, too, came Portia, of whom once
Brutus. as Shakespeare imagined, said:
You are my true and honorable wife;
AS dear to me as the rudy drops
That visit my sad heart
/ know nothing more mastery and touching
In all Shakespeare than his delipeation of Portia
and Brutus. Catos daughter, she could not help
being a woman of character. and we can under
stand why Brutus should exclaim:
Owe gods!
Render me worthy this noble wifsi
Several of Cicero's letters 20 Atticus are
dated from Nisida. and he draws a
vivid picture of the great republican
much consultation to do on Nisida after the
sragic events at Rome. The fact is, what they
desired was not accomplished by the assassina-
ton of Caesar, but must be finished where the
Macedonia-that Philippi to whose young Chris
tian church St. Paul wrote the well-known epis-
Gle nearly one hundred years after tie events re-
ferred to. Therefore, Brutus, Portia and Cicero
little island of Nisidi. There it was that Brutus
said farewell to his Portia and to his friend Gil
cero. The first (Brutus) went to Phillppi where
the battle was against him, and he preferred
death by his own hand to falling into the power
Of the opposing generals. Octavius afterwards
Augustus Casar) and Mark Antony. Cicero
persisted even before his friend. for as he was re-
Cunning northward after his farewell to Brutus
at Nisida, he had nearly reached his beautiful
Formian villa (about forty miles south of Nisidal,
where he was met by the assassins sent by Mark
Antony. They Immediately slew him. and then
his chopped-off head was taken to Rome and
hung by Antony upon the rostrum where Cicero
had SO often won his forensic honors. Various
estimates have been put upon the character of
Cicero, many believing him weak and
vain, but almost all the ancient writer's of
antiquity have given the highest praise to
Brutus; and there is hardly any
of antiquity when he makes Mark Antony say
10 Octavius:
'"This was the noblest Roman of them all.
AL the conspirators, save only he.
Did that they did in envy of great Cesar;
He, only, in a general honest thought
And common good to all made one of them.
His life was gentle, and the elements
So mixed in him, that Nature might stand up
And say to all the world, This was a mani"
Beyond Nisida the steam-tram brings US to the
sea shore, and then we go all the rest of the
way to Puteoli, the water almost covering the
narrow railway track on one side, while precip-
ltious natural walls OF volcanic tufa are on the
other, except where interrupted by the large
modern bathing establishments. The vast bath
houses (resting on the foundations of ancient
bashs). for the mineral waters that issue from
the volcanic formations, are more like che
ancient Roman baths than are to be found else
where. In the summer time they are full to
oysrfowing. For rheumatism there is nothing
more eficacious than these thermal waters.
But what a glorious expanse of blue water
is before us with the island of Capri like a huge
vessel floating far out at sea. My last visit was
q most enjoyable one because of our American
party of seven, five of whom were from the same
State, and two were c~ongenial people from Bos-
ton. Those whom we claim as Indianians were
Joseph Springer, president of Ohio Falls Car
Company, Jeffersonville; Mr.. and Mrs. Burton
lthe latter better known as Miss Alma Holman,
late professor of modern languages at DePauw
University, a Miss Voss and your correspond
emit. The day was a brilliant, warm south Italy
day. How we looked into the scenes Of old!
There was P~uteoli, q shrunken town of not one
ecore thousand of inhabitants, which had ten
times as many on the landing of