The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1891-09-26
A MUSEUM OF DEATH.
A PLACE THAT IS FULL OF SEN.
SATloNAL HORROR.

| Chtacomhs OF StCtlN'S Chpttul-nlctorlAl
Tragedies In the Ante Room-Skele.
tons In Full vtew-The Dead standing
In Niches Like statues.
The capital of Sicily -Palermo-which
claims nearly a quarter million people, is not,
upon the whole, very interesting city, al.
though what we in America call very
"Smart' one. IL is slowly drawing the life
| blood from MeSSina, ON the other end OF the
north coast Ii has the average number OF
churches, with their costly spiritual furni.
lures it has handsome views from the hills
that nearly surround it: il has a museum
containing some Of the stone fragments Of an
cient Greece and Rome; but by far its great
est and most unique curiosity is its Museum
of Death. II is situated near one Of the
edges OF the town, and is callod the Capu-
chin catacomhS | said that catacomhs
were generally dull affairs; but this is most
startling exception. do not believe there
is any one place in the world that is SO full
of sensational horror
PICTORIAL TRAGEDIES.
You enter plain hall hung with a multi.
tude of small paintings These are pictorial
Tragedies telling the form in which death
came 20 those within. One pictures duel; |;
another the frightfu stampede of horse
the victim crushed under his heels; another
the poor victims fall from houSetop;
another the fatal bite of serpent still
another portrays death in the shock Of bat
tie. Many are pictured dying quietly in
their BEDS some are floating away from
themselves into the regions of eternal bliss.
used to wonder at the Italian in America
who came to the stonecutter and wanted him
10 engrave upon his little boys tombstone a
picture of the load of hay from which he fell
to his death, but here was the same thing,
only it was Sicilian hay, and done in oil in-
stead of marble.
But this was only the anteroom to the great
assembly room of death A mild innocent
looking barefooted monk led us into a long
corridor, with strong shelves upon each side
arranged not unlike the berths of a
steamer only there were five or six of them
in a tier. Upon these shelves lay in full view
the skeletons of the departed-many Of them
clothed as if they were still living. Some Of
them had white kid gloves upon their hands;
one woman was dressed in pink satin, and
the poor grinning skull wore a white lace
cap. surrounded by a wreath of pink arti-
fetal roses. Two brothers embraced in
death; sometimes a whole family were thus
reunited.
Often there were suspended near the bodies
their photographs while living. There never
could be given to mankind palmer lesson
concerning the vanity of all earthly objects.
The beauty of womanhood smiled within q
few inches of the shrunken bones that formed
its doleful wreckage. Handsome and intel
lectual man faces apologized for the poor,
idiotic looking remains that lay behind them.
A lovely girl of Is and a grand faced old
lady of 50 were among the life and death
contrasts.
THEIR OWN GRIM STATUES.
Many of the dead stood upright in inches
their own grim statues Some bowed their
blighted heads as if in deep reflection; others
were kneeling as if in prayer Sometimes a
group of cronies sat together, as if talking
over old times None but could easily be
found by inquiring friends, for each and
every one bore tablet containing the name
and the date of death. Cardinals in their
faded red robes were there; bishops by the
score, lords and ladies By the hundred, and a
king and queen were not wanting to rule
over this silent and peaceful colony of the
grave.
Through not only one but many of these |
awful corridors our bright faced monk led us !
for there are 5000 guests in the solemn hos
telry. In the middle of the fcors were great |
piles Of coffins, heaped up like luggage at |
railway station. Some of them were win |
dowed with glass and showed plainly their
ghastly occupants; others charitably sealed |
their contents from the eye This commu-
nifty of the dead years is not without its little |
ones; in many places lie the skeletons of
children dressed in dainty baby clothes In |
fact, there is no lesson in the great text book
of mortality that this unique cemetery does
not teach.
AS | emerged once more into the blessed
air and saw live sunbeams dancing around
me it was with an effort that | adjudged my
self still # the living. felt for while like !
an est >d skeleton, and after pounding and
pinching myself to be sure that was all |
there walked away, thanking God that the |
soul and body are two different institutions.
Will Carleton's Sicily Letter in New York |
Star.