Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1888-02-12
A POET In FLORENCE.
VILLGARLBTON WRITES ABOUTTHB BELLE
OF ITALIAN CITIES.
The Daughter Of Rissols- Story Of the Msticis' and
How They Made Florence Grsat-The Quar-
rsntian Library - Dante, Virgil
and facitus.
Tspscial Correspondence

before Italy was master OF the world lhey
were mart of the material which the great
robber-kingdom on seven hillsdrew hastily
around itself at the very beginning OF It's
career.
But at this time Florence, DOW Belle Of
the Italian cities, was nothing but a valley.
A little town called Fiesole, three miles
north of here, was n of the great cities
of old Tuscany. 1t is o a miserable
though interesting little hamlet, foil Of
Door people who make fans n baskets
out of plated straw, and sell them 10
visitors, or fill the air with their lamenta-
tons. These poor remnants OF q once
lordly city crowd around you and whine
their way into ~sympathies and pockets
with an industry that would be hlgniy
commendable in any respectable pursuit.
Fiesole is the father of Florence. 1t
stands upon a high hill a natural fortress
as do most of the old Etruscan towns.
The more modern city Of Florence relied
for its defence upon walls OF stone and
flesh. and was built in the valley upon
both sides of the river Arno. 1t was es-
tablished by the Romans, and shared
their fortunes until the grand old empire
fell apart. Then 1t shifted for itself, and
with a great deal of sturd ness, although
often torn right and left by contendiDg fac
tons, and yexed with foreign wars.
Finally, an old banker, named Giovanni
de- Medici, became so rich that his fortune
OF ershadowed every other in Florence. One
of his sons, named Cosimo, used the i'm
meuse amounts of money that were LETT
him to a better purpose than buying yachts
and supporting a number OF last horses.
He encouraged the brains of his contem-
poraries, and founded the great Laurentian
Library, at one Of the queer decks OF which
we are now sitting. The library looks like
the interior Of an old Protestant meeting
house, and is full of pews-in which the
visitor can sit and rea 7 or examine the lit
erary wealth that is here. The books do
stand in cases; they are laid upon
shelves down In front of the seats, to which
they are securely chained.
What wonder that they are placed in tet-
tiers? They have no doubt tempted many
times q violation of the eighth command
ment. In the presence of this library l
should think an autograph-cOllector would
feel his hands tingle till they affected the
fuuny-kone at the elbows. Here are sew
eral thousand manuscripts OF authors who
are dead and gone, ap9 can never be writ
ten TO for their Autographs and any little
sentiment which they may choose to add,
etc. Letters from Dante, verses from VIr-
gil, pages OF history from TacituS, are all
shown me as | sit here. The pen is not
only mightier than the sword, but its
marks remain thousands Of yearslOnger..
As we step out iutO an adjacent small
courtyard, the c~lOister of an adjoining
church, overgrown with trees and vines,
we are met by c cat-by two ats by
three-iour-and We count not less than
sixteen iurIed quadrupeds before leaving
the place, all looking amiable, contented,
and fat-one or two immense veterans
limping about as if fairly gouty with high
living How they came here cannot say,
but am informed that many years ago some
one founded a sort of cat orphan asylum IN
this c~loisteT, aud it became the habit
of the citizens of Florence to
bring unavailable ielines here and leave
them, instead of inflictiog them slyly on
their neighbOIs, "a some people do 10
America. The custom has continued, aud
folks whCss charity runs to cats, feed them
from tine to time. The janitor of the
place denied the whole story, but | sns-
pected that it might be because he was
afraid | WAS intending to bring some more
that night to add to the already large col
lection. At all events, there were the
cats, sixteen in sight, and | have no doubt
many mere concealed under bushes and
walls. | may say here that no one sleeps
near this place except some dead people,
who are hurried in the cloisters.
One of the grandsOns of CosimO de
Medici was Lorenzo the Magnificent
he died in 1892, the same year that Col
umbus, Il native of the neighbOring town
OF Genoa, discovered America. He left a
powerful hut very wicked city, over which
he had ruled wisely and bene6cently. At
this time the great preacher priest, SayOn-
arola, was at the head OF the monastery OF
ST. Mark, whittier we will now walk, as
it is only two or three blocks north
east Of the library. 1t has been sup
pressed" that is, its property has been
seized to help pay the expenses of the Gov
erument. 1t is now a museum, but still
contains the library and cells of the old
monks, adorned with angel-pictures by
that dreamer-artist Fra Angelica. The
tiny bedroom and study Of Savouarola are
among the most intensely interesting places
in Florence. He was a sort of spiritual
Demosthenes; his elcquence could sway
audiences as summon breeZeS do
the grass and grain. His hearers
were numbered by tens Of thou
sand. People came from all parts of Italy
to hear him tell them how wicked they
were. For a while he carried everything
his OVID, and, he thought, Gods way.
But the chronic sinners were too many Tor
him, and he was at last hung in Que of tho
public squares, and cremated on the spot.
His memory is now considered as that of
= martyr. and the museum monastery
forms really n temple to his fame. His
clothes, his chair, his desk, and some of
his handwriting are all preserved in
the little room. His picture, which hangs
upon the wall, shows a homely, rug
ged face, with low forehead, strong Roman
nose much like that of the present Bope),
and eyes that could pierce like dsggers or
melt with love. His mournful story haunts
the streets of Florence to this day, and the
beautiful city will never cease grieving
that she murdered him. He has no grave
TO honor, for his very ashes were thrown
into the river. But he has q monument in
one of the streets; and in hall of the old
monastery is chart containing the u
of several monks of his order; and his "
is nearly obliterated by the kisses of wor-
shippers.
Let us now drive to another historic
mile stone OF Flcrence-the church Of St.
MiDiato-upon a hill south of Florence, as
Fiescle is north. Here are the remains of
some Notifications which Michael Angelo
constructed in 1929, and with which the
city was held against the enemy for eleven
months against the enemy. The grim old
artist was naturally as much warrior as
painter, and enjoyed a fight as we'll as the
figure of a blessed angel. His grand brow
and broken nose were symbols of his min
gled ideality and aggressiveness.
From this mill can De seen one of the
most beautiful pictures that God and man
have painted in partnership. A city of q