The record-union., 1897-07-04

OF Wnat Is TO become OF the NliId bOr-
ghese .and all its treasures of art. Ever
since the bankruptcy Of the Borghese
family in 1892 the owners, the Govern
ment and the creditors have been at
odd over the settlement of the estate.
Now it is announced that the Italian
Government is to pay 6,OOO,O0O francs,
about 81 ,200,0 900, for the pictures. and
statuary in. the museum, while the City
of Rome viii pay 100000 francs, or
about 5000, 600 for the great villa and
park which the museum occupies.
This settlement is of the utmost in
tefest, not only to Rome, but to lovers
of art the world over who desire to
see collections kept together in their
proper place and wish to preserve from
destruction one of the few remaining
and perhaps the finest of the old Ro-
man villas built by the Popes The
Villa Ludovisi which Gregory XIV. left
means for his nephew to build, is now
cut up into building lots. disfgured
with apartment houses and trolley cars
which would shame Harlem. and little
beyond the old Casino. of the Aurora,
now the home of the American School,
remains. On the other side of Rome
the Doria-Pamffli, which Olympia NAL
tortion during the reign of her brother
in-law, Innocent X, is preserved in all
its beauties, and at intervals thrown
open to the Romans by the Genoese
Dorias, who, through marriage, inher-
tied the Pamfili property.
Like it, the Villa Borghese was held
by wealthy family, who allowed the
public access to the grounds and so
from modern changes. But when the
pressure came for money it almost
shared the fate of the Villa Ludovisi,
and doubtless would have done SO had
the italian Government not fnterfered
Much fault has been found with the
Sardinians, as their enemies call them
for changing the old face of Rome
and for ruthless destruction in the
gnise of Improvement, but certainly it
has not been more careless than the
old famihes-wle complain of its rule.
True3 it spoiled the Farnesina Garden
in STRENGTHENING the [Tiber and it has
supplanted the green slopes of the river
with retaining Walls, but it has i'm
proved the health of Rome and made
the city safe place to visit in sum-
mer. 1t could not prevent Prince Piom-
bino from selling the Villa Ludovisi
to a bank for 5000, 600 francs. But it
cid. not hesitate to interfere with the
Colonnas when, in spite of their Papaf
ana princely fame, they were about to
sell for building lots the garden which
Martin Y. constructed for his family
more than four centuries ago. In the
garden We're some classical remains
which gave q pretext. for its. preserya-
ton as national monument So now
the Government comes forward to as
sert the claim of public interest as
against private. need. ~ t
The ARQrghese misfortunes are not
due, many suppose, to the change of
government and. the new times. but
TO reckless speculation. The present
generation have had wealth, ample
even for richer country than ItaIy
But falling in the attempt to make
more, they We're preparing to disperse
their paintings and dispose of their
land Luckily the State had a claim
on both, which, While not strong
enough to cut off property rights, was
strong enough to prevent the dispo-
uon of those rights. AS for the pic
lures, it had only to apply the same
rule as in other cases to prevent their
being sold abroad and it was only to
foreign collectors that they could have
been sold to advantage The general
law. of the kingdom forbidding the ex-
port of valuable antiques alone saves
1t from being denuded in it's poverty
AS for the land, the Roman people
had q claim which went back to the
foundation of the villa, at the begin
ming of the sixteenth century. Pope
Paul V, Camille Borghese. had the
grounds laid out in cooperation with
his nephew, Cardinal Scipio Borghese
for the benefit of the people of Rome"
as 1t was recorded The reason for
this beneicence is said to have been
public indignation over the use bv the
Pope of confiseated property for the
benefit of his family. Confiscation of
the goods af wealthy criminals was a.
fayorite device for increasing revenues
in those days. A few years before
Clement VIII. executed Beatrice Cencf
and all but one member OF. her family
for the murder of her father. the
wretch whose crimes had found pardon
at court for a price, and took possess.
sion. of the estates, part of which went
10 ms relatives, the Barberini. and was
the ground on which Urban VIII. built
the palace of that name So when
Faul v wanted to bestow a villa on his
family from the, proceeds of confsca-
ton he conciliated public sentiment nv
building it for the occupation Of bis
nephew and the benefit of the peonle
The, people have had the free use of
1t for several days each week.
The park. which consists of q 1aroa
tract of rolling meadow and woodland
exhibits in perfection the unsurpassed
beauty of Italian landscape art. II has
little of the formal gardening of the
smaller Villa Medici, nothing of the
geometricaI treatment of Versailles
nor of the oyer-ela borate naturalness of
most American parks. 1t more nearly
resembles a great English estate. where
In nature is left much to herself. with
just enough. attention to subdue Wild
ness WITHOUT directing her either to
prettiness or grotesqGeneSs. But added
TO this perfectly free and easy land
scape of meadow, lex tree and stone
pine, with here. and there an avenue of
cypress, aggressively artificial in any
place but Italy, are mossgrown foun-
talns and marble columns. and arches
time stained and. s 6E seped, TIL thes-rare
no longer individual eqea tions, but part
OF the earth ITSELF = $40 s
Ihese are. the meadows in which
Miriam and Donatello are made to
walk and dance by Hawthorne in The
Marble Faun." They lie just along the
city WaH-adjoining the Pineian Gardens,
whe1se~ae fashionable Rome tfrongs
in the afternoon TO See TtsgIf. On any
day when the GROUNDS are open. people
of every class may be seen making their
Ray through thn Porto ,7a1 poro1o IA