New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-10-12
H1LTAN JOURNEYS.
Notes Of a NaiUe Tra0eller.

Jams IL With Illustrations from photographs
Octave, pp. xiv. Sss. Houghton. Miffin q Co.
Mr.. Williams opens his book with remark of
sncontestable sapience. Central Italy. he says.
lis the most interesting country in the world
1t IS But this being the case, we wish that
writers like Mr.. Williams had more respect Tor
81 than to make it the subject of pages OF en-
.husiastic commonplace. This author feels that
the region he has traversed has been neglected
by travellers and that the literature of the sub
sect is In need OF such comprehensive book
as he has attempted TO write. 1t has been neg
;ected less than he thinks. and if its literature
has not been vastly expanded. it has been, per-
naps for the reason that some OF those best
qualified 70 write about the wonderful hill towns
of Italy have realized in time the enormous diff
fculty Of the task. Mr.. Williams has no hesita-
ton about saying what he has TO say. He has
discovered Italy. He has discovered, for ex-
ample. that in viterbo-whch he quantity de-
scribes as nesting" in the centre Of a broad
plain--the people have adopted modern
clothes" and he proceeds with the utmost nal
veto to write kind OF giorifed guideboOk to
the country.
IT is not simply his style that is distressing,
though a writer capable OF stating that the eye
IS "capavated" by the tremendous rose win
cow at OTvieto is certainly hard to read What
IS positively exasperating about book Ike this
IS cts disclosure OF the authors failure to see
Italy as It should be seen If the traveller is to
write a book about II that shall be worth while.
no man has a right to print observations on
siena who can. in cold blood. set down words
like these: ''She presents the appearance on her
main street OF a city like Florence or Genoa, or
Milan. rather than that OF a hill town. I soon
realized that here must not look for the pict-
he he mad lint in,
the larger cities-for the art Of the Renaissance:
although there few picturesque bits in the
town. ana considerable Gothic. medieval palace
architecture" And 50 on. II there is one hill
town in Italy with picturesque physiognomy
81 is Siena- We are not surprised. after Mr.
williams's innocent revelation Of his failure to
this. and his inimtsble remark that 1T
would take half day TO examine the countless
treasures OF art that the Duono contains" to
find that he has nothing to tell US about Sena
which might not just as well be looked up in
13aedelzer. This comment. indeed. may be passed
upon his book as a whole. and when one con-
sice-s what the authors opportunities have
been. ones disappointment is positively bitter
his very chapter headings should have been
Inspiring TO him He has been not simply TO
Viterbo and Siena and Perugia. but to places
Ike Nolterra and Caprarola. which lie off the
beaten track: he has been to Urbino. and we
are GLAD to find him saying that one can nevar
forget his first walk about its hillsides but in
spite Of his enjoyment OF his experience he
has succeeded in doing what we had thought
Impossible, he has written dull pages on one of
the most enhancing themes in all Italy Why
do people Go this sort Of thing? We can readily
understand Mr. williams's situation. I'D TO a
certain point He has been very happy on his
travels. and no one could have had the pleasure
In them that he has Enthusiastically had without
a more or less intelligent sympathy for Italian
scenes. The temptation, in the circumstances.
TO pat ones impressions into words is no doubt
irresistible. But why print them and publish
them? There is something sacred In the beauty
OF Italy TO those who love her well: there is a
grandeur in her past, there is a melancholy
charm in her present. which it is wrong TO vio-
late by idle inconsequences in print OF late
there has been altogether too much mere bool,
making on the subject. and IT ought to be
stopped II is for this reason that we have
written with some severity about Mr.. wIlliams's
well meant publication II is a pretty volume
containing many good Illustrations from photo
graphs But the only books about Italy that
should be permitted to the light are those of
writers like Montgomery Carmichael. say. who