Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1892-06-25

that occupation saves you from greater
evils.
Ii is really very wonderful, when you
cons ider the smaiiness Uf their house, the
great quantity of art treasures to be found
IN this small CT '. All The beautiful
myths OF the antique walls, suggesting a
life of ease and charming leisure, and
strange to say, there has not been found
any traces of poverty. Some autiquarians
have thought that the exreme poor have
been excluded from particular quarter of
the city not yet excavated The classic
subjects, treated Of in their VOL paintings;
and the mere mention of their valuable
objects of art would Eli counas Of a news
paper. The endless diversity Of shapes
and decorations of the vases, candeiabra,
tripods, pedestais, musical instruments,
money chests. lamps, bronze water vessels,
tunnels, locks, gongs, even to their ivory
tbeater tickets-not TO speak of their
gems and artistic brorz, statues-noth.
ing too small or In too com non US to ex
empt it from artistic tye.,t 4.ent, in shape
and decoration.
The passing visitor, douJt.ese, has a
very slight conception Of the difficulties
encountered in making the excavations
which we're begun in 1884 The discovery
of statues. and bronze utensils by the
peasant, attracted the attention OF the king
of Naples who caused excavations to be
made There have been three separate
systems employed. The first and simplest,
under the Bourbons, was TO hollow out the
soil and extricate the object, then refill.
ing the oriice. In this way the museum
acquired d valuable collection, but Pom
pei was destroyed The second was IN
der Murat, king of Naples, during Ma
poeon's reign in France, aud his wife
G roline, Nspoeon's younges. sister, at
that time the most extensive excavations
were carried on, employing 400 or 500
men. Under tnls sec tud $, lem the work
was started IN many pla at once, the
l4b1rers advancing one ,,Uer the other
following the line ef streets on the ground
level, they attached the mass OF ashes and
pumice stone tlom below, the conse
quences was that upper part of the HOUSES
fell IN among tue rubbish, ; gnor Fror-
ELI has started third system that now
has been found to be very
regularly laid out-the streets being IN
regular lines crossing each Other rectangu-
larly--so instead of following the streets
on the ground level, he marks out the
squares and indicates the subterreuean
streets from the surface, and then mas the
soil taken off and carried away. | did
not understand the origin o the nomen,
clature of their streeJs, but was much
amused by the suggestive appropriate
NJ So OF having a street named the Street
of the Twelve Gods and then one
called Ab0ondarzt Or street OF abnD-
dance.
The buildings, streets. etc, we're all on
such iIIputlan order Jrar W. found the
Forum quite imposing H. b. p being over
500 feet IN length aud more tran 100 feet
wide. This might be locked Tor in the
natural order Of things. / suppose the
Pompsiian could not curry him
SELF and become obvious vi wife and
children in HIS evening newspaper, out
must 20 to the Forum TO get his politics
by word of mouth - but even here are 10
70 be found statues, or the remains, fer
Lnere are twenty bases still there, the four
having insert puOn@ are az exception to
the general classical rule -betnv dedicated
81 the officials or ne cHy. Six streets
here. The whole area is SUI
by stone pilafs-and it is SUP
pO, ed by some that there were gates at Que
time "a the vest side VI the Forum,
just across the treet, IS the site of the
'nmple OF Venus, 1t Is approached by a
fl ghu Of steps, in front Of which stands
IN altar with an DESCRIPTION OF he donors,
some Of the town tiic,dis. Behind the
court are the chambers for the priests
These rooms are adorned with paintings;
hl. - af IN A
in company with others, were found here,
some nave called il the temple Of Venus,
otuors Apollo. out as Bllwer, in his Last
Days OF Pompell, calls lJ temple Of
Venus, feel safe IN following such noted
authority. Ga the north ST he Forum is
a temple to Juya, on the vest a temple to
Mercury, on the south, the tribunal,
or meeting place Of the town council. so
it is PLAIN to be seen that The Pompeiian
took mis- religion and politics mixed.
The most interesting street to me was
the Street of the H0mbs; first, because it
was cxcayated by the unfortunate Mlrat,
whose career for romantic interest can
hardly be approached by any character IN
lotion. In early life be was reduced to the
position of waiter IN a cafe; then, under
Nauole0n BOpaparte, was made a general |
II the empire; married Caroline Bonaparte.
and was created King Of n pies.
TINS street of the tomos runs through |
he most beautiful part Of Pompeii, and !
was formerly the great military road to |
Naples 1t has also another int crest apart |
rom the usual street, derived from the |
customs Of tine Romans Of burying their |
lead along their most beautiful highway |
Ind the remains OF many interesting |
ombs are still standing but we did not |
stop to examine them but pas. on to the |
fille Diomedes-oD this same street-but |
tut of the city proper, more on the |
uourOs We We're more particularly in |
crested in the vaults underneath the !
main building of this house, because so |
many bodies has been found tnere--today |
nothing more was to be seen than a row Of |
jars that had probably been
.sr j TOR wine. The ashes nad all been re-
moved, and our footsteps reverber4ted |
hroug1 the empty place with hollow
ound, breaking the ehostly silence al
most like an iutrui ion.
The sun which had shone so brightly
when we entered this fois ken city began
q, ba 1yarp4st yr5f alg-ls. and tEarn ,,-,-