The Republican journal., 1901-03-28
CORSICA,
Ind of the. Vendetta, and the Birth.
ne Place of Napoleon.

homely saying to the effect that
and women are like sheep in the
W h;t of following blindly the lead of a
D' ~ uether, and its truth is exemplified
." >, winter by crowds of semi-invalids
.eekers after eternal sunshine, who
W" aos to Algiers and Riviera, passing I'M
wv .,oed this beautiful island, which has
%rmore agreeable climate than either.
ren known globe-trotter recently
ate. know of no such combina-
w.. ot sea and mountains, of the syl-
:. beauty of the north and the rich
of southern forests, no region
.re within so small space nature
,.s SD many different sublime and ex-
.sr-, aspects as she does in Corsica.
Inns. cactus and orange-groves, vine
.s com and cocoanuts, the nobleSt
,. woods in Europe; granite peaks,
Rs md frozen lakes - all these
,-.ell INTO the compass of a days
..r.y Nor are they ranged in regu-
..qtesSion. Here the granite plunges
.5--t- into the sea: there chestnut
srsI- weep up the crags of the cen
~ .u-e 10 the height of six thousand
., The atmosphere aids the scenery.
-.u ~uitused skies have d lucidity
..+guG Athens herself, and the colors
-aI 4ad sea brilliancy which makes
+a pok pale by comparison.
ipaU4ehing Corsica from the west
.ai across the tranquil Mediter-
-,naSu you see from the vessels deck
n+r chaos of mountains with steep,
~-gad SIDES, rising to great elevations,
.rir saw tooth pinnacles towering black
nk against sky of cloudless blue.
Nst9ed more closely through field
,s,s the mountain labyrinth resolves
+s-It INTO three distinct chains, cross
"a. each other diagonally and sending
e spurs and foothills in every direc-
rr From other angles of vision the
angrs seem to radiate from a central
ropt. like SpokeS in a colossal wheel,
.f hub of which is group of stu
qlaoHs peaks, ten thousand feet high,
rrsuded by dark forests and falling
a!es This highest and almost mac
.PssItIe part of the island is a region as
aMimr IN its solitudes and as majestic
adarActer as Alpine Switzerland: and
-isa 4 is a fragment of the Alps,
.5-Gi only by a hundred and fifty
--, om their nearest SHOWS. Spurs
trending down on all sides
rtu Mediterranean, either terminate
mHty in bold promontories at the
.al run far into the waves, leav-
r.. filtered bays between,
>'r Ia the Gulf of Ajacco (pronounc-
ID It's Il spelled A-jat-chol, broad ex-
a4,s 1t water between two lines of
tar-s4Ue cliffs. gradually lowering
d aNmg inward as they advance
IT, dice sea. till met by the Isles San
'Sanguinary Islands, 1t is
1tent harbor, deep and shelter
+ 9 which the navies of the world
lgt ride in safety-but the lonesom-
st 1ykug spot eyes ever beheld. You
-erlte upon what grim vendetta was
D@Ulrhed here in days gone by. to
III. given those pretty islets their
d. name, No villages or hamlets
r -Ia.e-only here and there a soil
.T 'YVer OF lighthouse, pointing
WE finger, while frowning heights
Inc g. black shadows over the sea
'U ulaius, Apparently deserted by
al and beast, you wonder why the
Hlt orSican was banished to st.
--e.a when, if solitary confinement
'as tie object, he might as we'll have
9 rftumed to the land of his birth.
Nattans are fond of comparing their
Ht u the Bay of Venice; but one re-
-nn.eS the other about as a starless
-s.' resembles monday. This is more
a- some vast inlet in the Scottish high
aids or ford in the wilds of Norway.
-e prospect brightens as you near the
la Of the Gulf. Groves and orchards
oil fhe fertile valley of the Gravona;
villas and blooming gardens
stt among the trees; and some curl
s cemeteries, or chapel-tombs, are
'aSsed which excite your deepest inter
al and self-promise to investigate
d5n at nearer range before you are
-aI5 hours older. The inner harbor
lltars to be given over entirely to
@aye fishing craft and private yachts
4acng the flags of every nation under
Vic sun. Nowhere else can such col
fuon Of yachts be seen; and asking
~rzpanation, you are told that because
-N Is the safest harbor in southern
4T'pe- every yachtsman who cruises
VII Mediterranean makes Ajacco bay
'''''7te anchorage, while he HES him
VII overland to all the show-places on
dig ointment. No doubt the twenty
gu lghthouses that are ranged around
@ small circuit of the island-which is
4! about hundred miles long by half
Nlde- add to its popularity among
1ateul navigators.
4e city of Ajacco occupies narrow
''sie Of land, extending some distance
1W Lle bay and tipped by an antiune