The sun., 1891-05-17
NAPOLEON,s ISLAND.
Scenes ana Memories or the Corsica OF To
dnr-Thc short. Lived Rosapnrtcs.

LONDON. May 5.-Our ideas OF Corsica nre.
am afraid. bassed By tho dramatist and tho
novelist Wo think OF II as IL il represented to
us in the adventures 81 tho brothers De Fran
chi. jus now revived at the Lyceum by Irving.
or through the medium OF Merim6e's uictur-
eaIue Colombia: therefore We associate tho
Wild Nedi errnnsau Island with Nendettas.
savage passions. and more savage lov,a Less
terrifying but not less picturesque are the de-
scriptions given by hlphonse Dnudet in the
"Le,tres do mon Moulin" written afier an, nd
Ing several weeks in the lighthouse OF Mezzo
Mare with no other COMPANION than tho aged
custodian.of the isolated building. and the se-
ductive pictures OF landscape and verdure OF
GUY do Maurassant In "Une vie." But II is
well known that both dramatst and novelist
afe gifted with Glorined vision which tho Or
binary tourist does net possess. and tho lack
oil which pos ,ibly accounts for the divergence
OF impressions: the iormer are more vivid and
D. etical, tho latter perhaps The more to be de-
pended uron.
1t Is not without roget that the traveller Of
to-day has 10 relinqulsh corta.n preconcoived
ideas and to ronounce his faith In tho lcgend-
pry Corsican vendetta: lie bushes when he
finds the nativo smiling somewhat ironically
at any illusions to their hereditary and sam
culinary family feuds. and, II tho truth must be
that the conflicts which most en.ross the In
habitsnts IRE the establishment of II battle OF
flowers" after tho Nice AMI Monte Carlo stylo
while tleir jealous emulation is centred on u
pacific exhibition whore. besides tho rural and
agricultural PRODUCTS OF the island. nre to be
seen specimens OF rough or manufactured
marble. granite. and purphyry. old p.eors OF
furniture. carved wo d.. curious courds and
richly chased weapons.
The climate OF Corsica 10 simply porfcct: the
soft air 10 laden with spicy. aromatic odors
and made vlvifying BY the iodine exhslations
OF rioh marine nora; the long stretches OF
sandy beach are stesrel iu warm sunshine:
the back ground Of mountains has the luminous
Gteen tints OF tho Crock hillsides. Existence
In those seagirt latitudes sinks to o blissful
Incidence: strife. bloodshed, fery passions.
and wild revenge are absolutely incompatible
with this dreamy lRnguor. and the chief inter-
est OF tho lazy hours becomes tho recurrence
Gainsy fsh, The most deiicste ,eser aookoa.
pin. like the rocks aud blue like the skies.
II ntSy
best dnri4G tho short span between tho list
with the luscious myrtle berries. Honey
in SHor and re anng the slight bitter
delicious y! RUNE Of wild towers the broccio.
tho national white cheese, OF a sweet peculiar
flavor huge lines. preserved in sugar. and a |
yhe brand u Santa Lucia 81 Taiiane WAS such
leon l.. that she would drink no other wine
and bad some sent to r TO Paris.
Oy sag ,hs
apparent r. the Green Island" At Aiaseio
square he. towers amid his brothers in the |
d the CATHEDRAL they show tho basin t.,at heid
sthho thho Sstsr @ for MS baptism aud in tho old house
SSrn ans I
By whtch be escaped to the harbor one night
be ss that he was
4 iLsis ,woFss 4 the Iiorarssi His H.
stands erect at the Hotel de Vile in q red ssid-
Royal
Jerome on a ship. Incien abstractedy drenm-
nG under u tres. By a tragical antithesis the
Napoleon dead, and the contrast elween these
,ilent Witnesses OF distant past is pninfully
bright adjoinlne t6oroueh are. ' " WV
AS long as the traveller fingers In the cities
ssg
'lanca with all Italian towns, and flavor Of a
m2dern and general clyiIiza-
rales into the heart OF the county that he be-
I'm e. GS
md md sIpe%Enatqral I % phentoms which seem to
nS sireSms. and the sombre en- mountain deiiies.
The western coast. jagged. ssrrated. and wild.
rs s seo sspS
&c history or 8 link With dead past /: Bal de-
drset co oiony and retailing The bastard % ala.
snf E sssGSs sape rs: lssa b1 ssa %
marked with It's passage Ills curious little
y the Yandals. the Byzantines. the Lombnrd-.
he saraoens api the Genoese. and not tho
Ion Is that It has eradualy assiml latsd its
without iGsinS the Gistne1ve t5as
How Is it. then. that'the Bonapartes born
slapd oI Corsica have ali carried the germs Of
atal and incurable disease? Why did they die
az the os
died At the age Of So; Napoleon at
2; his three sisters were under go. and ono
'ne lived. The Duo de- Rsich stadt disappear.
and s. nons rsachod s hsIs old sss
ne 4. spectSlifts have explained this 6y declar
hatfe temperament, and that 1t ie well known
nat the dread evil takes its full development
bout the nftisth year. Napoleon. who had
'lt the 1rst attacks Of the cancer In tho stom-
oh at st Helena In 1913. and endured intoler.
bic pain till his death. Lucien sucoumbed to /
he same disease; so did the beautiful Pauline
sauharDAls and the Qneen OF Naples, Caro-
no. Those members Of the imperial family
no eseaped the worst CYL were victims OF
out Of the blood. which carried on alike
erome In 1850 and his son. Prince Napoleon.
;st month: he was the last surviving nephew q
II has hecn alleged by some that tho old Z
ouse at Ajacco was unhealthy that the sub: !
ar5Sr az permitted piasmas to hlter into the
ape and worked deadly harm on, the inhabi-
lnts. but 1t seems moro probable that the
!, c, compensatlon which does n9t allow the !
uirs unusual powers withop. impoyeriahing
le body, and that they paid the inevitable | '
his appears nll the moro probable as the pom:
latiQn Of the leland is remarkably strong and
salthy; tho rough. uneducatod mon are we'll
l!lt and hardy. the women 1.-THE. graceful, |
"a active mono show any trace OF national z