Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-04-15

Y II NJ &N " 4SSOunSuu II
.SfsESS w. I-N But IL is Archi-
! /kE4tENsgf y old philosopher
'i&R WI LEFT enoug
glory to light up the spot forever.
As look over the fields Cf sod and rub
Dish that we're once the crowded wards OF
Syracuse, would give great deal to
be told dor certain" where he lived,
where Inst coarse ignorant soldier killed
him before he could 1aish his problem
q hope be went on with II in the next
world, and where the Clay casket of sucn
8 Mid was fn.lly laid by. l look OF
en- the sea and know that somewhere
there he burned TIE enemies ships with
his mammoth suH-slass, and hite d them
into dry-dock with fesrfully ingenious
engines; but the exact localion refuses
to be known. OF course, l could hire q
guide for two francs to snow me the pre-
else place; and the same man would at
more or less reasonable rates obtain 8
location for any event chose to mention.
| A square hole in q rock was pointed out
to me IS the great mathematician's tomb;
but know of no Just Cause or reason
why another square hoe In some other
rock nay not be pointed out SIS the same
thing. There Is nothing by which to
| identify the remains," no remains to
J identify, and, IN fact, very little to de-
pend upon anyhow.
This is also the city of Damon and Py-
thias-thCse two more than bosom friends
Of ancient history. Who has not read
about the latter's going Cor Iither stay
| ing) bail for his friend Damon while the
latter went to see his sister married? And
! Dsmon's sudden sud opportuue arrival,
| Just az they were about to take CT P,-
thias'. head? And the Circumstance of
Dionysius being SO impressed with their
brotherly affection that he asked them to
make him the third member of the combi-
nation?
| Judge that the fervent and elusive
friendship of man for man has not died
out heIe entirely, fer l saw the clerk of
our hotel greet several of his male &C.
| quaintEnces with kisses. This fashion OF
masculine mutual osculstion is quite
often met with in Southern Europe sid
looks very odd, not to say disgusting, to
people from the colder climates, nI
have several male friends that l think
great deal Of" said fDe old American
gentleman tC me, "but don't know that
would care to kiss any of 'em and an
sure none OF 'em ever offered to iufi!Ct
the operation on me " Il is hsppily not
fashionable ia cur country, either north
or south, although believe the Dunkards
still follow out the biblical iujucction to
"gFeet enc another with holy kiss"
Ia the northern part Of the old town is
! still pointed out cave said TO be one OF
the famous (sod irfamousl ear-prisons
Of Dionysius. It is large, gloomy c4vi
ty in rock, and the roof slopes up TO .
small opening, at which every sound can
De heard from within. Here the tyrant is
said 20 have stood, listening to such
sounds OF rage or agony as his prisoners
might mske; and hope he heard great
deal Of truth abont himself.
Near by the "prison," end, in fsCt, al
most over it, is the famous Greek out
door theater, with semi circular rows of
seats cut snd hewn out of the solid rock.
This bel g one of the few buildings thst
the destructive nature OF man could not
pull down, is still quite perfect, and gives
US good picture Of that peoples idea OF
place Of amusement.
There are here between forty and ffty
rows Of seats, well preserved, and beauti-
full in their curved outlines. Here also
are the memory-footsteps Of brain wo k
ers who have outlived great many cen
turtles. Here E:chylus sat and saw his
plays performed, and Piudsr listened to
the singing Of bis odes. We are on the
very ground where they did tor rather
the very stones. But the performance is
finished and the audience has gone home
went home more than 1000 years ago
There is nobody here to-day but guide
who has charge of all the old city for fur
Iopna sycuni and Hraoia, f,oo5 1;+.Io
vsrlet of a boy who wants to sell me some
counterfeit ancient coins.
Outside the theatre all Is solitude and
desoletion, except in one place where
half o dozen old women are washing
wheat In 8 running streaRi-the same to |
be ground by 8 horse mill on the spot |
and mSde into mscaroni-ar gle-worms |
of dough. ("But you hat zst word smaca-
roni' IL one of your national lyrics, 1 be- !
leef, anyhow, as little as you do like it."
said bright allan young lady the other |
EVENING"
These women are standing in the cold |
water bare legged, and working patiently |
for few cents per dag. The Oldest one, |
8 poor, wishered old lady of seventy,
gives me handful Of the golden grain,
with courteous gestures worthy of
princess. The few sous 1 bestow upon
her are moe than her whole days salary;
and the other old ladies pursue me with
shrill voices till am out of sight.
The catacom5s Of Syracuse have been
praised as superior in construction TO al
most any others in the world; but cate-
combs, in the main, make rather q dull
show, and produce but q mild, dresry
sort OF q sensation. There are merely
shelves hewn within the rocks, in which
dead people long ago were laid TO rest,
AID from which they have all been torn
There is no way to be sure that shy dead
body will be unmolested for many years
Even Of all the powerful Roman emper-
ors, there is only one whose resting place
the world pretends to know.
We come back to the little island upon
which stands "modern Syracuse'-ii 8
town can be called modern which has
scarcely building in i. less than centu-
ries old. Our gloomy little hotel-"the
best in Sgracusen-looks gloomier and
dirtjer than ever The atrea tl are ss