The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1900-10-04
ROME's PANTHEON.
King Humbert's IlIustrtous CompRn-
ions and Their splendid sepuI-

chre.
From the London Telegraph.
II has been decided that the mortal re-
mains OF the murdered King % italy shall
be deposited In the Pantheon at Rome. Be
yond doubt the resolution Is a noble and a
rthy one The lus;riCus yicim deserve
no meancr resting place and the ancient
building. whore italy viii give him spIeu-
I'd sepulture. may be said 20 embody aud
TO pefpetuate the entire history or Rome.
from the Caesars 20 the Amadei. Agrippa
reared. tweutY-seKeu wears before Christ,
the wonderful cdlace whc.c kirg TIMBER
tos relies are 10 rrposf yet IL stands
almost unchanged. older than the Christ
ian era. and by turns q vast galidarium Of
the great AErlI paeau baths, temple o.
Mar. and OF Venus a meeting place for
III. Fratrcs ArVales. about whom Hcu2en
writes SO lcarncdly-and in after years
Chrl stan church. given as such hy Phocas
20 Bcuifacc ". % seems 90 have been al
ways called the Pantheou-a temple q
an the gods The wealthy ana artistic
Rome OF Augustus layished uoon the
structure an that arr could bring. OF gold
md silver ply for. Tho Atheniau sculptor
hi. genes adorned 81 With his finest labors
The capitals of rs pillars. lbs portico. We're
AIl Of Syracusan bronze horne up boy mas
sive tubular glrdcrs - the same material
which by the way. were melted down by
Pope Urban VIII 20 make cannon Tor 81.
Angeles emhtasurcs aud the bronze
haidacchiuo 100 81 Peters.
The bronze tiles Of the dome were strip
p-d away and plundered 20 bodeck Con-
atantinoplc. but the Saracens waylaid the
noble loot which now roofs some molder-
ing place ~ the East The columns were
OF white aud cllorod marbles: It's tymoa-
mum glowsd with the battles Of the gods
ana giants. done iu rudy bronze. its in
.erlor was lined with mighty slabs 81 por-
phSry and syenite and alahssfer aud agate.
which. like iis metal NO X We're an ruth
lcssly piilhged age after age. But Agrip-
pas work was Ike d mountain for soil
dity aud endurance. With walls twenty
feet thick Of tufi concrete. faced with
btick. and a roof which was a wonder Of
the worlds mas nry. being constructed
IN one mass OF pumce stone and pozzolana.
the pluudcrc-s could not destroy could
indeed. hardly iuiurc or alter. the stuPcn-
dous and eternal fabric. II comes down 20
modern times very much % IIadrihn and
scverus witnessed o. u not as its magnih-
cont designer hrst creltei the grand tenn
ne Of an tho eods. and no 2 eht Is trangcr
or finer. oven On Rome. than when Tor the
arst time the pilgrim turns aside from the
Corso 60 the Piazza al Ro onda ana be-
holds with what nobicucss n purpose and
material the old Romans housed their del
ties. ana glornad their city with ctifces
which twenty centuries have Jailed to
ruin Nay. the Nc.y gateway through
which al that wos mortal OF the good
ana loyal King Umberto will soon be car
RED Is actually the same as that originally
put up by AEiippa The Pantheon still
uoseeeses lts orig nal doors be wcen two
nutcd pilsstcrs. ard over these an open
.creenwork. an Of bronze. Rome has cer-
tainly good reason 60 holst herself the
immortal city. when Italy can prepare 20
las her latest ruler tu the glorious fame
hrilt before Curistcudom began, with fair
hope that che structure viii stand for .
thousand years 20 come. a. changeless as
Mount Soractc herself. or the Alhan hills
The family mausolCum OF the royal
house OF slvoy and Sardin1-now Of Italy
Ills. We believe In Piedmont az the
81 psrel But King Victor Emmanuel
tn. father ~ the murdered sovereign. and
nrst constitutional monarch of the new
Kingdom. was cutcmhed a. The Pantheon
on hls death az Rome from fever IN ISIS.
Thence forward IT,. ancient temple has
become the natural burial place for the
KINGS ana queens or Italy. and IL was "a
matter cf course that Imherto would be
laid where that great soldier. his father.
vas inferred Already. iudcel, the Panth-
con had been c5nsccrated hy dust which
would cnnoble any locality and any shrine.
When the Emperor phocas presented Il
for Christian church 10 Pope Boniface
~ his holiness rlchrlstcued the building
a. Santa Maria az MArtyres' ana un Ter
that title 10 has been 20 well and carefully
preserved. with such depredhtions as have
been mentioned. The circular interior,