The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-01-21
THE ABODE OF LOST SOULS
STRANGE PoSraUMOUs THEORY
OF THE ASTRONOMERS, DONATE.

ian Hermit of the Sespe California;
Mountains-Is the He'll of Dante tx
plsined Upon the hypothesis of
Cometary Circuits through spacsp
From The San Francisco Examiner.
High up in a canyon OF the Sesps mount
aims, in Ventura county, lives the strangest
hermit Of whom there is authentic record.
The gentlest Of men in purpose and de-
meanor, he lives as do the beasts Of the
wilderness. A cave is his habitation, and
| roots aud berries and the Small deer" of
the forest his food. His apparel is rudely
fashioned Of coarse begging. lined with the
skins of rabbits and squirrels. To the com
monest decenoies of life he is as utter a
| stranger as the grizzly. His unkempt bair
hangs in mats about his face and neck; his
beard sEays to his knees, and his nails are
bent and twisted claws. Suspended from
his waist by thong bangles ahorn-handled
knife, the blade worn TO a mere ske wer.
This simple utensil serves two purposes-it
oarves the carcasses ofsuch small game as
the hermit may trap, and with It he sharp
ems the charred sticks by means of which he
traces terminable figures and symbols that
bespeak his occupation. For this extraor-
Ny discovery of him was wholly acci-
dental. A mouutaineer had given me some
linking OF the existence of "crRzy man
somewhere back in the range" bus was
| looking for other game, when my pursuit
led me TO a cave at the top of an almost in>
accessible canon. Pushing aside q ragged
curtain of patched baggfng and canvas,
was amazed to see aimed ct my head the
brass barrel and eye piece of 8 large tele-
| scope. Entering the cave, my astonish-
ment was increased by the spectacle of as
motley collection of oddities as ever
graced the study of an astroloEer. A crew
ice near the top of the cavern let in the
light upon walls covered with skins and the
articulated skeletons of small animals,
charts pegged in place by rough sticks an
astrolobe, quadrant ana some fragments
| of colored maps of the consultations. The
Great Bear and the Lesser Bear danced
before me in starry outline, while Cassiopeia
stretched out the torn flap of an arm pitt
eouslY as if for help. As l gRzed, marvel
ing, st the ourlandish furniture of the
queer abode the curtain at the entrance was
lifted and | stood face 20 face with the
hermit.
felt hastily for my knife, having left my
rife outside, but became aware In an in
slant that the eyes which were fixed upon
me bore no hostility. fastened to explain
my intrusion. Ny words were apparently
unintelligible to the uncouth creature who
watched me intently. Presently in iargon
Of mixed English and Italian he uttered
what understood 60 be mild reproach for
my Intrusion. / endeavored to explain.
Ny stammering anxiety TO make him IN
derstand me appeared 70 excite his sym
patty, and presently we hit upon q pdtois
that served my purpose and established Q
nlodus loqWendi. The hermit gave
me TO understand TINT was the only bu-
man being with whom he had spoken in
eight years. and that my contact gave him
pain; that he hoped | would not betray his
Eiding-plaoe nor repeat my visit l assured
him Of my good will and earnest desire TO
respect his wishes. Thereupon he thawed
out a little and. upon my producing my
flask, unbent completely. My visit was
protrRcted into the second day. So good a
use did make of my time that am now
enabled, with my strange hosts consent, 10
give you a brief outline OF the story of his
life, and to reveal a secret that will startle
the scientific world.
The data upon which this revelation is
| made were in The shape Of notes written In
Italian upon fragments of a yellow and
musty scrap book. Translated into English
at length they would fill twenty pages of the
E:cdminer. The following brief summary
will tell the story:
Pietro ArIata first saw the light sixty
three years ago in a small house in the
suburbs of Palermo, Sicily. His earliest
plsymates were the cats that Turk under
the walls of the Cspuchin conventional
convent underneath which lie the famous
catacombs IN which are piled the desiccated
carcRsses OF ], 600 years OF Sicilian aristoc-
racy. Like his feline companions Pietro
was permitted the freedom Of the convent
grounds and became the familiar and pet
OF one of the silent brothers. Relaxing the
! rigid rule Of the convent the warm-hearted
monk taught Pietro his letters, and finding
him apt at figures gave him the snattering
of arithmetic and geometry that efterward
marked the bent of his career. A maternal
uncle assumed the expense Of educating him
and Pletro was sent 20 the Uni
versity' Of Bologna. There be dis
tinguished himself in proficiency in the
higher mathematics and achieved profess
sorship.' In 1864 he was appointed TO petty
place In the new observatory IF Arcetri and
made the acquaintance OF the famous
Giovanni Battista Donati. This acquaint-
ance ripened into q frienship which con-
tinued uninterruptedly until the death Of
the great astronomer in 1873. A year
after the demise OF his loved friend and
master. Arlata became the victim of a pas
sion which, owing TO the perady OF a
woman, ended disastrously for the hopes
and prospects of the young professor, and
sent him an exile 70 the forests OF Califcr<
MIA.
Ii was in October, 1858, that ,Arlata be-
came the depositary Of the secret which for
more than thirty years has been locked in
his bosom. During the early June Of that
year his master, Donati, had discovered the
famous comet, which immortslized MS
name, and Arlata had rendered valuable
assistance In the nbstruse and complicated
calculations by which IL was attempted 10
determine the celestial visitors orbit. Early
aud late the great DonatI and mis- assistant
worked, and the younger man noticed that
the intense application seemed to be wear
ing more perceptibly than usual upon the
strength of his friend and master. Ordi-
narily @ man Of infinite capacity for accu-
rate work, his calculations had been awry
mo, than once, and his distracted manner
indicated mental disturbance more power
full than that caused by the problem of the
cometSry orbit. On two occasions Arlata
bad spoken Of this. but the director evaded
his questions with an assumption OF gayety.
AT last, however, the mental burden became
too heavy TO bear, and the secret burst its
bonds. / Twill let the translated memoranda
of the hermit, Arlsta. tell the story:
1t was O'Clock on the morning OF the 4th Of
October when message from the director sum
moned me TO his room. he sat at his desk COR
| suming black coffee. He was CHASTITY pale. |
requested me TO sit down, apologiZing for inter-
rupting my work. Alter some hesitation he
burst out: Dante was right. He was in
] mir