Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-09-01
By
c.N.& A.M'WuLIAMSON

speak made a note of Dionysius' Ear and
the Greek and Roman theaters. and already
she had bought photograph OF a strange,
Dante-esque den in the rocks which re-
Sembled HadeS and was called PARADISE
She planned an excursion up the little river
Anapo to see the papyrus and the, deep
blue pool of jeweled rish at the source; and
there were various drives and walks which,
she thought, would keep her at the Villa
Polti at least week. But, on my part,
was equally determined that she should
not stop an hour over the two days l had
grudgingly allotted her. Not that WASH L
interested in Siracusa; I was, intensely, but
l was and am a good deal more inter-
ested in her and the carrying out or my
own secret plans which can best be &C
complished with the aid of a sympathetic
mother. 1 wanted to reach Taormina as
soon as possible, as to be on the spot
when the mater arrives. Naturally DID
not openly oppose the will of a mere Brown
against that of Browns mistress l mere
ly limited that there was said to be good
deal of white dust in Siracusa, and that
it was hot. l also mentioned, inadvertent-
ly, that in some of the hotels there were
mice. 1t was a blow to hear that Miss
Randolph liked mice: but there was en-
couragement in Aunt Mary's OH of hor-
ror: and l lived in hope.
In order not to waste moment, turned
the car aside on the way to SiracuSa, and
drove along white road between olive
clad hills to the ancient Greek stronghold
of Fort Euryelus, which once guarded the
western extremity of that great table
land which was the splendid city of Sra
cusa. You, who know your Thucydides
better than l do, are probably well up In
all the thrilling events which took place
there four hundred years before Christ;
but the Goddess depended largely upon my
lips for bread-crumbs of knowledge, and
her awed interest in the perfectly pre-
served magazines for food, the subter-
ranean galleries, and the secret sallyport
betrayed to the enemy by traitor, was
pretty to see From tower of piled
stones 1 pointed away toward Etna with
Taormina at its feet and said, There
there lies the beauty-spot of Sicily" Thus
l got In my entering wedge.
1t was o'clock when we finally reached
Siracusa. but 1 took my lady and her aunt
for a glimpse of Arethusa's fountain in
the town before driving them into perhaps
the most wonderful garden in the world
the double garden of the Villa Polti. 1t
is double because the heights, on a level
with the white balconied hotel, bloom with
flowers and billow with waving olive trees;
while down below, far below, lie the
haunted quarries, starry now in their trag-
ic shadows with the golden spheres Of
oranges. The latomia forms subter-
ranean garden; when the brilliant flower
beds above are scntilating with monday
heat, down there under the orange trees
with their white blossoms. it is always
cool and dim, with green light like
garden under the sea.
The quarry is deep, with sheer white
walls overgrown with ivy and purple bou-
ganvillia. 1t is of enormous extent, wind
ing irregularly. crossed here and there with
a slight bridge, and the hotel stands on
the very edge. Far away lies Siracusa. a
streak of pearl against the deep indigo OF
the sea. We went down into the latomia
and wandered into it's most secret places.
But when we came upon pile of skulls
Aunt Mary beat retreat. The ghosts of
the tortured Greeks haunted the place,
she vowed, and lest she should be lost in
| the labyrinth of the quarry, she had to
l thn Of n lie
| Next day we did most of the things that
! Miss Randolph had set her heart on, but
| not all. My alluring picture OF Taormina
| consoed her for what she had to miss,
| and she consented to be torn away on
| the following morning.
Our drive today has been a scamper
| through Paradise. The road we took wound
through orange groves, the sea lay yllt-
| tering below US, mountains towering above
each hilltop crested with ruin which
had crumbled to decay when the world
| was young. My Goddess said that She
had never known how much truer than
history mythology was until this magic
| morning. Why, we saw the stones thai
! POlyphemus threw after Ulysses. and the
| scene of Acis love, and always before us
| beckoning us on, was the white lowering
| cone of Etna.
| At last we struck the little station o!
Giardini on the coast the nearest to Taor.
| nina, which lies some hundreds of feet
| above high shoulder OF the noun
| tains An exquisite road, engineered IL
| gradual curves, winds upward along the
| mountain breast. and as usual the Napier
| took it at an easy ten miles an hour ant
| could have done 1t faster If l had let her
| The view grew fairer and fairer as W.
| mounted and the coast line disclosed It
self to north and south. In some three
| miles were at the gate of the town
| Taormina is practically a long, stralgh
| street. at one end the Timeo, at the othe
the San Domenico 1t is simply Stellar
village. with it's Norman fountain and 1T
| crumbling palaces, but with history ina
| goes back to Greece in it's prime. Allow
| rises on a splendid height the old Cas-
tello; further miami and higher still, Il
| the wild village of Mola peeping over TIL
edge of precipice that overhangs IN
| valley. Twenty miles away floats thu
stately cone of Etna. 1t is a place of en-
trancing beauty, and the gem of 1t all Il
the ancient Greek theater l suppose tina
nowhere in the world have nature ant
the noblest art that ever adorned the earil
combined in a more perfect picture.
The resting-place chosen by Miss Ran
dolph is not out of that picture, but par
| of 1t. For five hundred years it was
monastery How we'll those good oil
monks knew how to do themselves! The,
! laid out fairy garden on gracious head
land above the sea, overlooking a PIANO
rama the most beautiful in Sicily. The
| planted it thick with orange and lemo
trees and flowers as sweet bloomed Il
Eden Now the monks are banished, pu
| the garden remains, and their old HON
| with it's lovely cloisters, it's long, dir
| corridors paneled with painted saints, 1t
tiled rooms and deep-set windows) open
hospitable doors to strangers.
. Aunt Mary is delighted with the 81
Domenico, because real live prince
, her landlord. Even the Goddess says tina
. | it makes her feel more than ever that sh
is living in a fairy story. Now, if only tn
fairy godmother will come along tomol
| row, and waving her wand over Brown
! | transform him into a worther hero of tina
/ story, and soften the heart of the prI
| cess Do you think it will be so? In An
, | event. 1t has done me good to write yo
| this If all goes well I'll wire. ! don
: | think there's much sleep for me tonigh
AS soon as there's a chance that the mate
, | can have arrived l shall go down to SAINT
! | Margherita, Sir Evelyn Haines' place, an
r | have 1t out with her.
| Your somewhat distracted but faithf,
| friend JACK