The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1892-07-01
A NARROW ESCAPE.
A Precious Statue of Dante Came Near
Being Burned by Mistake.

A Precious statue OF DahIe Oanne near
Being Burned by Mistake.
II must tell you, said a young
woman, 'how / added to the gayety
of Europe when ! was over. At
Florence l bought, as everybody
does, a bust of Dante. done in won
derfully clear and beautiful marble
1t cost one dollar, but looked twenty
dollars at least, and was consequent
ly precious as bargain, besides
being interesting as possession.
.'From that time on, however,
Dante was source of great anxiety
to me. / did him up in fine hand
kerchiefs, taking especial care of his
exquisite nose, and wrapping the
cloth clad bust in paper packed it
always in the center of the trunk.
We journeyed to Rome and Naples,
back to Rome, and finally halted at
Milan, passing a Sunday there /
thought this good opportunity to
overhaul my trunk, destroy letters,
ETC., and-unrolled Dante to see if
he were all together.
II took the paper parcel out of my
trunk, and putting it one side went
about the task of looking over let
ters and papers, gathering the litter
when / was done into single bundle,
which / wrapped in paper and also
put aside. Later rang for the maid
to take this away, and, as she spoke
no English and l no Italian, illus
trated the burning process to which
] wished it subjected by jumping on
chair and waving the parcel over
the electric light, finally consigning
it by signs, disdainfully, to the four
winds of heaven. Evidently some
what mystiied, but docile, the maid
took the parcel ard withdrew. I
continued my work of Strengthening,
bat was soon interrupted by knock.
It was the clerk of the hotel. who
spoke English feebly.
GLOW did madam wish the things
to burn that the maid hasg
"'Oh, any way that you can,' ]
! answered carelessly.
with spirit, perhapsa' suggested
the clerk
"'Oh, no, in a CRATE or stove; any
way that they can be destroyed
Madam wish to quite destroy
everything2 he repeated, and l no
ticed curious tinge of reproach in
bis voice.
"'Quite; no good; burn them all
up, I replied, and he went away
Half an hour afterward l sat
down with my precious Dante parcel
to look him over. To my consterna-
ton ! found he was not in it. It
was the rubbish bundle / held, and
Dante had been sent away to be
burned.
II did not ring this time nor wait
for an Italian elevator, but rushed
down to the office myself. The clerk
1 had just seen was not there; an
other one heard my story calmly.
cit is well, he said; madam may
retire to her room and all shall be
arranged
Against this stone wall of repose
my perturbation had no effect, and l
retired to my room, taking my ex-
citcment with me. Ten, fifteen,
twenty minutes passed; then the
maid appeared, smiling deliberately,
a futter of handkerchiefs in one
hand and Dante complete in the
other. She gesticulated and jab-
bered with enthusiasm, pressing
Dante to her breast, from which /
| gathered that it would take more
| than the command of vandal
American signora to make a Milan
csc chambermaid injure hair of
Dante's marble head OF course the
first cost of the bust had to be added
| to in proportion to the width of the
maids smile, but my husband
| laughed and said / did well to get off
SO easily, trying to make me believe
that If in Florence, the city of Dante,
had ordered him quite destroyed,
burned up, would certainly have
been mobbed. Her Point of View
| ir New York Times.