The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-02-14

IN cengratulating this country upon
its peace when in the far East the
dogs of war are being loosed, Col
lier's Weekly tells very good story,
which 1T uses as a simtlitude of our
present position. 1t concerned very
small child, year or two old, who had
never in all its short life slept in a dark
room. One night the child woke in ut
ter darkness, and was of course terri
fed, until finding that it could move
about and use it's limbs, called out re-
assuringly, "Baby's all right" So the
editor of Golfers seems to think that,
no matter how dark the clouds become
In the Orient, the United States is all
right. Although definite reports of the
whereabouts Of our interesting war
correspondents is not now known, it
is presumable that all those who have
hot sailed are sailing, among whom is
doubtless DiclIey Davis, with a good
supply of fresh shirt waists. Joking
iside, Mr.. Davis letters from the front
live years ago, during our war with
Spain, were among the best that reach
ed us in the public prints, and his book,
which was collection Of letters he had
written from the TransvaaI, in which
he recorded his change Of belief from
a sympathiZer with the English side
of that contest to the conviction that
the Beers had just cause, was a man.
ly performance, which, if it lost him
friends in London, certainly won for
him the respect of many of the Ameri-
can people. So. if Mr.. Davis goes to
this war, we will be given some pic
tureSque accounts of what is sure to
be a picturesque struggle. From Jack
London, also, who is there, we may ex-
peet some interesting news
Those persons, and there are many,
who have regarded Lueretia Borgia as
the feminine embodiment of all that
was evil, will be interested In a book
published by the Appletens, entitled
''Lucretia Borgia," translated from
German edition of an Italian work by
Ferdinand Gregorovius, which IS an at
tempt at rehabilitation of the character
of the famous woman. The author
claims to have had access to many pri-
waite papers preserved from Lueretia's
day, and, after reading his plea, one is
inclined to believe that Lucretia was a
slandered and much maHgned woman.
The writer does not try to make her
out a saint, but does believe that she
was not any worse than her surround
GRAFTON the circumstances Of her birth,
the wickedness of the papal court at
which she was brought up, that it was
surprising she was no worse One could
hardly expect her to be good, but that
she murdered and poisoned recklessIy
one cannot believe after reading this
partial vindication. In summing UP
her life, the writer says:
THE original SourceS from, which +ha
material for this book has been derived
would place the reader in a position to
form his own opinion regarding Lucre-
tia Borgia, and his view would approx
innate a correct one. or at least would
be nearer correct than the common
conception Of this woman
History is merely a world Judgment
based upon the law of causality.
Many of the characters Of history
would regard their portraits in books
as wholly distorted and would smile at
the opinion formed Of them. Lucretfa
Borg1a might correspond with the one
derived from the documents of her
time, which show her as an amiabIe.
gentle, thoughtless and unfortunate
woman. Her nlisfortunes in life were
due in part to a fate for which she was
In no way responsible, and, after her
death, III the opinion which was form
ed regarding her character. The brand
which had been set upon her forehead
was removed by herself when she be-
came Duchess of Ferrara, but on her
death 1t reappeared. How soon this
happened is shown by what the Revere
In Urb1nO said of her. In the year 1899
1T was arranged that Guidobaldo H.
should marry Gfulfa Varano, although
he himself wished to marry certain
OrSini His father directed his atten-
ton to the unequal alliance into which
princes were prone to enter, and among
others to that Of Ferrara who, he said
had married Lucretia Borgia, woman
'of the sort which everybody knows"
"Gufdobaldo acquiesced in this view
and replied that he knew he had a ia
Their who would never compel him to
take a wife like Lucretia Borgia, tone
as bad as she and of so MANY disren-
sion grew and Lucretfa became the
type of all feminine depravfty until
finally Victor Hugo, IN his drama, and
Donizetti, in his opera, placed her upon
the stage in that character" Accord
inS to the records of FerraIa, where
Lucretia spent the latter part of her
life an died, she was charitable. pious
and much beloved In spite Of the book.
however, Lucretia has been too long
identified with evil for us to lose our
horror of her SO quickly. But as in our
prisons we have women who have been
guilty OF poisoning ana murder, we
should at least admit that even In this
age Of civilization there are women as
bad at the Inflated Borgia.
"The Art of Cross Examinat lions"
recently issued by the Macmillan COM
pany, is written by Francis L. Well
man. He is the son of William A.
Wellman, a banker OF prominence in
Boston. Mr.. WelIman, the writer, was
graduated from Harvard in 1876, and
later from the Boston Law school He
has always been identified with the
law and has Iectured extensively on
topics connected with that profession.
In 1883 he was admitted to the bar in
New York, and later was appointed
cOrporatinn counsel for that CITY Liz