New-York tribune., 1899-12-11
THE CHATEAU DIFF.
THE PRISON OF DUMAs's FAMOUS Ro-
NANCE AS IT EXISTS TO-DAY.

THE PRISON OF DUMAss FAMOUS Ro-
NANCE AS IT EXISTS TO-DAY
A correspondent Of the Paris Temps VINO
attended the recent festival In Marseiiies Coln-
nenorating the twenty-five hundreth annlVer-
COW, of the foundation of the city visited the
Chateau DIFF and made some interesting IN
vestigations of the prison where Dumass Count
of Monte Cristo was confined boat makes
three trims a day to the island-one indication
n, how widely Dumas Is still read. The boat
was full and everybody maintained the serious
demeanor proper on a pilgrimage. the Trip
takes about half an hour. The castle. situated
on an slet about eight hundred yards In cir
conference entirely surrounds it with It's wall
IL is heavy structure. with short, thlchse'
towers and square donjon, yet there is GER
tain beauty in the color OF its stones even III
its massive conformation. 1t was never used
as anything but a State prison, southern
Bastille. Francis in 1924 laid the first stone
He was through personal experience a connols-
seur in prisons.
The cells open into a small. gloomy inside
court. Many have no windows; some are merely
low dungeons. below the level Of the ground
Three larger and more cheerful ones on the
second story have contained famous prison
ers: the Man in the Iron Mask, who was
transferred in 1856 to the island Of st. Mar
guerite; Philippe Egalite, father OF Louis Phll-
ippe. who was beheaded on November d.
1888 and Mira abeau. by virtue of a lettre de
cachet obtained by his father But these places
are not the ones that attract the crowds OF VS.
itors They all direct their steps first to dun
geon on the first floor. dreadful of appearance
with an iron bound door, a grled peephoie
bolt weighing dozen pounds. Enter this door
and you in chamber, dry out gloomy
lighted nv one little lamp. Written outside 1t
are these words Cell Of the Able Faria' eX-
peled from Rome in 1911. confined in the
Chateau diff as a consprator died in lSZ9
It is nevertheless only ante-chamber Fa-
ria's cell is in kind Of recess, where man can
hardly stand and where no ray of light pene-
trates In this cell can be seen the hole dug by
tho Ahbe to communicate with DantAss! Yes. II
really exists this hole. What Southern genius
dug If? II is not known but IL Is there, un-
failing proof Of the power Of a popular books
illusion Of reality Through this hole Dantes's
cell can be dnly seen. and in glamour or
mystery the more terrifying because the door
has been walled up and no one can enter.
According to serious archaeological lnvestl-
gators there were really prisoners confined IN
this dreadful hole, among them one named ber-
nadot a rich merchant of Marseilles. arrested on
the charge of speaking Ill Of Cardinal Rlcheheu
and left there TO die of hunger. Jean Faui'
sailor who had struck his commanding omCei
died there in the tower in 1Il9, after thlrty-ohe
years Of captivity. 1t was doubtless the s'orS
Of these men, literally buried alive, that inspired
Dumas To-day for the whole world the Chateau
DIFF is the prison Of Faria and Dantes' ana tiie
inscriptions are there to certify 10 then eN'''
ence An italian visitor some years ago KISSED
,ha stones NJ these dungeons and wept copously.
The correspondent embarked for the nlaihiai'u'
Tho oontain of the boat pointed out to him tiny
,s,o+ st,cLre IN out OF the sea-a mass Of rocks,
wave beaten and tragic in aspect
.1,iho,,,er " he said "where Dantes first landed
after his escape"