Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1902-06-26
REV. Mr.. BURK'S LETTERS.
NOVEL SCENES ON ENTERING THE BAY
OF NAPLES.
THE PICTURESQUE ITALIAN cITY-LIFE
AND MANNERS OF THE PEoPLE-sIGHT-
sEEING-THE AQUARIUM-sAN MARITIME
FIRST SUNDAY IN EUROPE.

AND MANNERS OF THE PEoPLE-sIGHT-
sEEING-THE AQUARIUM-sAN MARITIME
FIRST SUNDAY IN EUROPE.
From Norristown Daily Herald, May 2s.l
The disappointment at not seeing Glib
raltar in daylight had its compensation in
the conditions under which we entered the
Bay of Naples. A calm sea and bright sky
revealed each feature of the lovely picture,
and we will long remember Ischia's heights,
gloriously towering over the sea, and then,
beyond the bay, the city, and, to the right,
the darker mass of Vesuvius
The "Hohenzollern" did not dock at
Naples, so passengers and baggage were
transferred by tenders and lighters. We
were fortunate to be in the first boat, which
was not overcrowded, and SO we could en-
Joy the novel scenes around us. We had
expected beggars, but were surprised to
find they did not wait for our landing, the
more energetic ones meeting the vessel in
the harbor.
In the long wait for our trunks we had
an opportunity to see something of the life
and manners of the Italians. We were in
the midst of motley crowd of porters
custom officers soldiers, sailors, beggars,
sightseers, ETC., and the shouts and gesticu-
lations of the porters often seemed to prom
Use bloodshed, but always ended in good
humor, reminding one of the old saying
"His bark is worse than his bite. In the
few days spent here we have seen, closely
too, the life of the people. There is dire
poverty, but also great industry and a large
measure of happiness. In many of the
narrow streets through which we have
walked we have seen single rooms serving
the threefold use of home, factory and
store Away from the hotels and usual
paths of the pleasure seeker there is very
little begging, and while wines are sold
everywhere we have not seen case of
drunkenness. Gambling is a besetting sin
of the people, allowed and even encouraged
by the State. Indeed it might be called a
racial instinct, so long has it been prac-
tice, as testified by many passage in the
classics confirmed by the remains from
Pompeii.
We have found Naples to be most
interesting city and very picturesque. Built
as it is on the low sea shore and lofty hills
the streets are often in steps, up which the
sheep, horses and COWS must go to reach the
stables or to perform their duties. There
are no milk men, so far as we can see, but
the COWS and goats are MIXED at the door.
Whether this practice is due to the laziness
of sellers OF milk or to the demands of the
buyer for milk without adulteration, do
not know.
The horses are very SMALL but of won
derful endurance, and their harness is as
gay as brass and silyer-plate can make it.
Each driver seems to endeavor to Guido his
competitor in elaborate works in metal
ornament. The loads which are drawn
must be seen to be believed.
The drivers are very enjoyable, and after
hours spent in the museums make restful
change. One drive took us through the
grotto of Posilippo, tunnel half mile
long made by the Romans centuries ago,
bur since enlarged. Ia it we passed two
companies of Italian soldiers, as well as
focks of goats, donkey carts, drays and
pedestrians. The feeble light of the lamps
Is yelled by the clouds of dust, and the
corridor of stone echoes the cries of the
drives, making the trip weird experience.
Above the entrance of the grotto is the
supposed site of Virgil's tomb, and from it
there is one of the best views of the city
and bay
Our sightseeing in Naples was begun
Ny O. fAolo w VhC hH WllCu was Ill
the beautiful park along the bay, and not
far from the hotel. had planned to see
the New York Aquarium first in order to
make comparison between the two, but
was prevented from doing so. That in
Naples is considered the finest in the world,
and it would indeed be difficult to surpass
it. The Mediterranean is rich with the
treasures of the deep in animal and vege-
fol q Ii nd frnr Il 81
the curios and beautiful creatures which
find their home in the tanks of Naples.
These tanks are admirably arranged and
lighted, SO that one can carefully study the
nature and habits of these children of the
sea- The coloring of some of the fish was
that of the rainbow, and we were delighted
with the grace and beauty of some varieties
of fish which we had not seen before, and
these were in strong contrast to the hideous
octapus, which, by the way, is eaten in
Naples. To look into the tanks containing
the corals and sea anemones, was like look
ing into lovely garden, gay with many
colored flowers.
AS the life in the streets of Naples and in
the waters of the Aquarium represented the
life of the present, SO the great National
Museum and the Monastery of San MARITIME
Suttuu lOl ullC lllc Va Uuc DtSu, duu W bll6Iu
we turned with keen interest. So large are
the collections in the Museum that we de-
voted considerable time to them. Those of
ancient bronzes and glass are unexcelled,
while the relics from Pompeii and Hercu-
laneum form collection which is entirely
unique. To merely mention the most
interesting things would prolong these
notes beyond my limits of space or yours of
patience. Let US suffice to say that we
saw in marble and bronze that which artists
for centuries have accepted as models.
One must speak of the collection from
Pompeii more fully. From these large
and varied collections we could picture the
life Of the far off time when Christianity
was just beginning its conquest of the
world. On the wall was a gong from the
buried city, and as / struck it and listened
to its tones, that time seemed nearer, its
people more real, than when l say 1900
years ago. And so it was as we examined
the jewels and trinkets, stoves and water
heaters, hinges and knockers, fountains and
vaces, tables and couches, mosaics from the
floor and frescoes from the wall Even the
food was representatives. of bread,
grains of various kinds, nuts, etc. We
were impressed by the love of the beauti-
full which all the work revealed The
cooking utensils were graceful in shape and
often richly ornamented, and the weights of
the scales were not mere masses, but
figures. animals, men and women, as the
fancy dictated.
The Monastery of San MARITIME was
reached after very long drive, or rather
climb, for the road was nearly always up
hill. 1t overlooks the city of Naples,
which lies far below. We went out on a
little balcony from which the monks could
look down upon the world in very little
sense. And such view 1t was late in
the afternoon then, when bay and city,
hillsides and Handicapped Vesuvius were
all ablaze. Below were the fertile vine
yard and well-tilled garden Of the Monas-
terry, and up from the busy city came the
sweet tones of the church bells which told
that the days work was almost done for
many of its weary toilers.
The old monastery, begun in 1925, is
now the property of the State, and is used
as museum. But our chief interest was
in the monastery itself, despite the attrac-
tions of the collections which it contains.
Outside was the usual din of drivers and Of
the sellers of trinkets, but once within the
outer courtyard all was quiet and peace.
After passing through number of rooms
containing collections connected with the
history of the Italian State, we went down
a narrow passage and out into the beautiful
cloisters. The columns of white marble,