Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-10-24
"SAVED." "
Rv-THE' COUNTESS OF MUNSTER.

"Ahi La bella signorinai pallidettal stancal poverinai"
 These words were addressed to mo years | ago by the padrona of Aotel, which my mother and had just reached, after long and fatiguing night journey; and trivial as them may appear, I remember them dis tinctly, as we'll as every other circumstance that occurred during the eventtul four-and- twenty hours which succeeded our arrival at the Hotel d'Oro, in Florence, on the 17th September, 1S4-.
 My lately widowed mother and myself (a girl of ID had been travelling in Italy for months, after an aimless, cratic fashion; for she, poor soul, was endeavoring, through | change of scene and fatigue of body, to deaden the memory of her grief: and we had started the night before from A., to avoid the heat of day journey, arriving in | the early morning at the Hotel d'Oro, an inn posing building situated on the banks of the Arno, and formerly a palace of the Este and Borgia families, whose quaint mono grams and devices ornamented its walls, | both within and without
 We were conducted to our apartments by the pretty padrona, and as we wearily passed through the magnificent vestibulo and as cended the broad marble staircase, l was curiously reminded (my nerves being proba-  had seen in child's story book, of Q pretty l little girl with long hair, who Is mounting stair leading to q hanging gallery, so exactly liko the one before us, that as we came to all abrupt turn, I positively stopped and shud- | dered, expecting to be met las in the picture) by cruel faced, velvet footed panther, which was waiting round the corner, with open mouth and glaring eye, to spring upon its unsuspecting yictim A silly, childish story, no doubt, but just one of those which would cling to ones memory.
 The visitors apartments on the first piano of the Hotel d'Oro opened upon the hanging gallery, and we were conducted to ours through doorway concealed by a heavy piece of tapestry.
 ''Is the signor, satisfedF' asked the pa drona, as with pardonable pride she threw open the door of a spacious and beautiful salone, which owned French windows, open ing upon delightfully."- roomy balcony.
 "Oh, yes," answered my mother wearily; 'but pray take us at once to our sleeping rooms, for we are very tired"
 Tho padrona took the hint. and led us to two rooms Heading out of the salone and into each other), which were beautifully fur nished, but one was so small that l indig- nantly exclaimed, Mammal I really can't sleep in a box!-and in this heat, tool"
 'Have you any other room you could give Lady Murielf p my mother asked the pardrona, who reflected for moment and then said:
 1T have, signora. It belongs to 0 suite of rooms prepared for the Russian Princess Lipetska and her sick son and attendants, whom we expect in a few hours; but the doc tor, who engaged them, desired us to shut up three or four of the bedrooms, as there were too many; so Lady Muriel's maid could sleep there also-close to her-just across the gal lery"
 My mother said, If you are sure you have a right to give her these rooms, that will do perfectly So all being satisfactorily ar ranged, l betook myself to my apartment, accompanied by the padrona; but when first I entered it, my spirits (generally daring to Q faulD went down to zero. The room was SC large! So gloomy! The walls were hung with dingy tapestry, which trembled and Tapped each time door was shut, or that one walked across the room; making the gro tesque and hideous figures represented upon it, seemingly instinct with life and with an agony of eagernesS to leap from the walls, and proffer me a dreadful welcome! The bed, too, was far from reassuring in its ghost like grandeur. It was a carved oak
 -four poster" an ivory and ebony crucifx was nailed at its head, the curtains were dark green velvet, and plunes of feathers waved at each corner of the canopy, be- ing constantly stirred by mysterious gusts of air, and emitting q rustling sound suggestive of dead leaves-melan- choly ill the extreme. Added to all this I counted five doors in the room, and tho pa drona, noticing my uneasy glances toward
 them, assured me they were locked, proving
 her words by pushing and pulling them vio-
 lently while turning the handles, at the same time talking volubly In Italian. I was of course obliged, after the good lady's exer- tions, to profess myself satisfied, and she was just leaving the room when the bell which hung in the courtyard began to ring,
 and the padrona, running with apologies to my balcony, which overhung the grand en-
 trance, called out hastily:
 Lady Muriella Vede! Ecco la princi
 pessa ed il principe guardal" and then hur- ried down stairs. I ran and looked out, and true enough the Russians had arrived, hours before they were expected, and with much curiosity watched them as they alighted There were several clumsy vehicles, each , drawn by three horses, the princess and her , lady occupying the first The princess was . helped out of her carriage by two footmer | the exact counterpart of each otherl, having greasy Kalmuc faces, flat noses and eyes q le chinoise, and she seemed tall and finely 7 formed with a clear, pale complexion, tawny colored hair and eyelashes (the latter being
 unusually thick and long), and she walked
 with singular dignity as she entered tho VI hotel.
 The occupants of the second vehicle G sort of invalid carriage) greatly interested q me- First a priest, with lowering face ant . shovel hat, and who had seemingly descended . from one of the carriages at the rear, en . tered the bed carriage, and proceeded to hant . out bag, some pillows and fur rug; the1 ,, giving sign to the footmen, they scrambled
 up the carriage steps like performing mon
 keys, and slowly and carefully drew forth tn ', long, lanky legs of a boy of about 16, who's T shoulders and head were supported by seri f ous looking young man, who I subsequentl.
 learned was an English doctor. The youni 6 prince seemed very i'll, for he never spoke no . moved, and took no notice of any one. I've O eager to see his face, but both doctor am :, priest were determined he should not be ez z, posed to the vulgar gaze, for bis cap wa ,' pulled over his eyes, and his figure was en ', veloped in large shawl; but'as be was bein V disengaged from the carriage, his head fel a backward, and bis cap slipped off, and in hi IF anxiety to catch it, one of the servants CT 1T tangled his foot in the shawl. dragging IF completely off; and although the priest hastil 4 | o,,A Inc