The morning call., 1891-01-04

! owners desire charcoal made. The landlord
secures the telling and cutting of the tree:
ana the carbonaro simply attends to build
| ing and firing the pyres and watching day
and night their smouldering progress. In
this labor the sons share and regular watches
are taken. The logs are stood ON end in
round piles of perhaps eighteen feet in diam
eter. covered and chnked with messy earth
and then fired in central hollow which has
been filled with chips of dry timber, fir
cones, chips from the logs and dead leaves
ana grass. Once well ablaze, this flaming
tunnel is covered with moss and earth. and
the pile is then left to shoulder for five
OF SIX days. When reduced to carbone or
charcoal the carbonaro delivers it to the
owner, packed in sacks, two sacks compris-
Ing doDkey-load, for which he receives
about ten cents. or about 50 for each burn
ing, yielding 40 sacks. At this camp, an
unusually large one, score or more car
poharl were at work; and, as the burning
was 10 be Tor an extended period, some six
OF eight of the carbonari had built temper
aary nuts and removed their entire families
TO the forest.
ihls gave life and pIcturesqueness to the
scene, especially at night A Jew iron cres.
sets had been fastened TO the tree1trnnEs
i anu the crackle and faring of cones and
Anots lent weird colorngs to the motley
sIoups OF women with dazzling teeth and
Eye Eyes, ana men grimy and swarth beyond
faal;nr 80 PUN. could not represS the
ioei'hs that was at my old wanderings
WITH MY GYPSY FRIENDS AGAIN;
ana as the night gathered close its sable
wing over the majestic forest trees above.
anu. anu one by one some strange instrument OF
must music was produced from the shadowy huts,
Mnl,e melody and dancing added their faS-
e Una 10 The wild, strange scene o thou
mann manv leeolleclIons OF days with the Ro-
many swept back on Performances dark
emeu heights. Deeper still grew this feel
fns as was shown to n couch of fir branches
doi steep. lt came not for hours; for in the
seulIe soughlns of the frs, the call OF The
Watchers TO each other, and here and there
o11iouSh Tue camp, suppressed tones of mel
Guy, as those who watched grouped to-
sether ana reassuringly sang low and soft
tne StornellI of Italy, was with my loved
sagabond friends by their witchins camp
hlgS IN my own loved land.
When the morning came after n break
last OF. pan unto, bread fried in olive OIL
ana many a kindly ''addio" and "valev'
from my grlmy hosts, | found my own Way
! pack to Tosi. On such a June morning as
tnat In which | journeyed, the songs of
pirdS, the Eolian music of forest breezes so
oe"itcn one all the way from Tosi. that
suddenly and without warning you are at
the enchanting mountain eerie of Vallom-
DroSa. The spot itself comprises but n few
acres OF lovely meadow, through which runs
"a ohg avenue of stately trees, At the end
JilC ltCHeIleU ana 5TdV
olu buildings. On one side OF the sunny
opening miles and miles of frs rise in
SSerrled ranks to the very top of
fratomagno; on the other, thousands of
CHESTNUT trees glow in their golden foliage.
Behind and above, hosts of sturdy beeches
climb the mountain. There are still stand
ing 10000, planted by the busy priors'
hauuS; Ihe monastery itself is huEeIquad-
IahguIar structure, with spacious inner
c rtHEc Inc ancient church, completely
l i"poeu oi us former treasures of paintings
save an Assumption" by Franceschini, and
tile cupola trescoeS, by Fabriui-stands in
Tue center OF the courts. Its massive square
tower rises grim and lone above the half
deserted buildings. Perhaps a score of folk,
pro- professors, students, signal bureau agents
ana Government fOrestcrs, who act as a sort
OIL mountain police about the sequestered
property, abide here. surly, inhosptable.
ana as II doggedly CONSCIOUS OF the sacrilege
III their pretense of scholastic life. The old
monastery bell still sounds the hours, but it
speaks only to silence and decay. The great
water basins which held the monks
Trout preserves are filled with dead leaves
Inc wOndrous old kitchen, mighty trun-
cared cone, where, swinging from n huge
turnsplt, the oxen once were roasted. is cob
weDDed, cold ana fireleSs. The Mettata,
where an hundred cows were kept, is I'M
tenanted. Paradsino, the ancient hermit
age on the cliff above the monastery, with
us celle, tower and church. are stripped, and
transformed into hay-loft. The half
ruined mill, underneath which rushes the
Plcano, Is deserted and still.
MARVELLOUS INDEED is IT,
That tho Italy of to-day has left one hint of
the old life here. But there is just one. In
the church there is an deliberately carved
silver reiiquary. 1t contains the relics of
San Giovanni. How the one brown bone
which has miraculously escaped decay must
haunt the grave professors Of the ''ColleFio
Fores ale" as Vallombrosa now is called!
One thousand feet higher than where an
cient Vallom brosa stands in its nest-like
valley 5000 feet above the sea rises the fir
crowned summit of PratOmagnO. From this
in all Italy is presented. What wondrons
associations are conjured in contemplation
of the fair, far Casentino Valley with its
boundary beyond, formed by the lofty Ap-
ennines, where are born historic Tiber and
enhancing Arnol Tuscany, home of the
dream-breeding vine and fairest women.
stretches sunnily TO the westward. The
majestic Duomo glitter5 down there in the
center OF the purple vlneyard-checkered
valley Where Florence stands. And far,
faint and magically seen through the passes
OF the uttermost peaks of Carrara CLEANS
speck of sapphire where Sweeus old Med
iierranean's sails.
AS homogeneous as are the present occu-
pancy, uses and association of Valombrosa,
the spirit OF the olden time flames in all one
sees and feels ut the deserted monastery
III eAlio SCAt WHICH now Il Stripping student
makes his cainara da letto, the good monk
Guido originated the modern method of no.
tatlon IN mnsic. In these larger rooms re-
posed at different times the noble forms of
Emperor Conrad IL, Empress Gisela. the
AbbeSs Tia, Countess Ermellina. of San
Pletro lgneo after being triumphant in his
ordeal OF fame, of POpes Victor ii, Alex
ander ii and ", Innocent III, Pascal II al d
Leo lA, of Beato Tesoro Beccarla, the mar
tyr, and that grandest type of all Italian
culture and chlvalry, Lorenzo the Magnifi-
cent Christophane Landini, the celebrated
commentator of Dante, made Vallombrosa
ms haunt The famous bUtanist, Buono
Faggi, Mattio Bandello, Boccacci0's rival
IN letters, and Berni, the brilliant humorist,
all lived and meditated at the hospitabe re-
treat. Dream among its cloisters and groves
us long as you may, ana then go your way
never 10 return. The most priceless associ-
alton that remains to you. as 10 all men who
speak the English tongue, is that Milton
Knew and loved this idylic spot For
months lie was its welcome guest Vallom-
prosa was the fountain of his inspiration.
Here was conceived the plan of great and
enn0Ollng Arthurian epic. That gave place
TO loitler, grander theme whose sublime
motive, imagery and accom- lishment form
the dladem in all that crowns the English
tongue Because Vallombrosa was the fos-
Ter mother Of Paradise Lost" men will
ever bless the sweet old mountain nest.
~eopyfi0hL EDGAR L. wAKKMAN.