New-York tribune., 1905-11-04
ROMANTIC HISTORY.
The Story of an italian Valley and
Sketches of italian Life.

THE CAsENTINo AND ITS sToRX ste Eaa B! By no3a EI2a
Noyes Svo, PIP $50. E. P. Dutton & Co
TWO IN ITALY BY Maud Howe. With Illus Illus
trations from Drawings by Jonn f1Hot'' l1ii0'
pp N4. Little Brown & Co
The Casentino is not only one of the ioVeheSI
valleys in Italy-a shell-shaped nest of beauty
guarded by the majestic Apennines ana nursing
the springs in which Arno has its rise; it is also
the treasury of countless tales and relics OF
medieval romance and tragedy. Here the great
family of the Guidi ruled and fought among
themselves the massive ruins of their ceslIes
and watch towers still frowning from the heights
along the river to testify to their tyranny cruel
ty and greed. Guelf and Ghibelline struggled
here: Florence exercised here her suave diplo-
macy always with the iron hand under the vel
vet glove. Dante dreamed here under the springs
of the Arno, writing thence his letters of eX-
hortation and upbraiding TO the Florentines, and
framing, perhaps those passages Of immortal
verse in which the Guidi were made to suffer the
torments they had incurred in their tempestuous
lives No family we are reminded, is so often
mentioned in his pages as the Guidi OF the
Casentino. Exiled from "the most sweet bosom"
of his beloved city, the poet spent some years IN
the various Guidi castles. Almost unchanged IS
the choir Of the church at San Godenzo' "hele
on a certain day of 1902 Dante signed with the
other Bianchi a contract of alliance Win lne
ITbaldini There is interesting legend con-
nected with the causeway which leads oo"h
from the castled heights of Porciana to the town
of Stia ''It is related that the Florentlnes' en-
oeea bv his denunciation of them in his
epistles from the Casentino, sent an envoy 10
Porciano to demand that the Counts should de-
,i,,ar hin, nm 10 them This Individual on his
NAV nm from Sta, encountered the poet himself
descending and not knowing who he was IN
ouired Of him whether Dante Alghieri were IN
the castle The answer was: When was
there he was At this the envoy continued on
his way satisfied, and the poet hastened out OF
the way of danger"
Many are the dramatic stories associated Win
the great house of the Guidi. Guido. the son OF
the founder of the. family, made hlmsef SO
soundly hated that his people rose ana klllea
hin, and all his house, except one baby son. who
was hidden by his foster mother. Inc chlo
came to manhood set upon revenge, and when
at last he saw the mangled bodies of the muir
derers lying at his feet he is said to have licked
tbeir blood from his sword-whence in medieval
fashion he gained the surname Of the Blooo-
drinlxer" Another feudal chieftain of the mouse
was Count Guido Alberto, who compeIIeo tne
FIorentine Ambassador sent to summon MIN "
appear for some offence before the Slg1lorla u
,,aa1 before him and to swallow the missive, not
forgetting the seal. OF one OF the last Coul''
of JTrbech it is related that one midnight 'when
q shameful orgy in which he had compeiieo al
bis 1assals to take part was at its height, the
castle was suddenly shaken by an awful tnull-
derclap and the devil himself appeared In ter
teo o,,iee and carried off the guilty lord bodily
60 tho midst of the trembling jewellers"
Peter Darnian tells grewsome story OF another
C-o,,nt Guido about whom q certain priest mao d
most fearful vision of iends in Hades pushy
making ready for his lordship Ihey e&pecteu
him in four days from that moment they Ioiu
the Mortified priest, who, waking from lhls
nightmare straightaway described his dream
And on the fourth day the count dieo Inc
c,,,idi of Ronena are credited with the vileness
of inducing one Maestro Adamo TO coun'erIel'
for them the golden horins of the republic
g., ,b,cb crime as we gather from the IN
ferno," he was burned alive, while the 1nsugators
aecaped with slight punishment remarkable
nersonage in the family was the countess 0oila'
the Abbess of Pratovecchio
Sofa was TincaI Tona OF the twelfth century the
female counterpart OF the HP He ND scaTTa6 a sword
4aE o. WI" Ss+"rai staff When making her profession
al the age 91 of bishops and high ecclesiastical
dgnitaries she took the yed ron Jhe aloaT III ant t
maj YOU bishops should put It on me: but with my
oTn aS' Her widowed mother. the Countess In1ila.
SiS5 fo~ her the convent of s Giovanni, which
stiu aCists ar Pratovecchio Il quickly became
Great and powerful community, through the gen
s-orS endoWnlents bestowed upon 1t by the Guldi;
9 ,ba e6bess ruled il and its dependent religious
ST>1Sss and yassaI castles and territories with a
et-[-(g lind She was constantly on horse
- riding from place place surrounded by her
10 administer justice 10 her subjects
Nban she approached one Of her converts the
inns headed by their abbess, would come forth in
,,raceSsion 10 a great distance 10 meet her, ana
MD receive her kneeling humbly upon the
.DroSInd But these yelled votaTles OF renslol
&c. not so meek they appeared and their CON
Scf often called forth the harsh Teproof Of their
superior.
A Guidi castle which is sti in state of rea-
soma hte preservation is that at Poppi. The fres-
cos in many OF its grea. rooms remain and the
traveller shudders at sight Of its underground
dungeons and oubliettes ana of the enormous
stone table on which prisoners were stretched
for torture II is worth noting that III the little
town of Poppi dominated by the castle was
born and died the last victim Of the Inquisition
a Tuscany This was Tonmaso Crudeli, whose
witty tongue and liberal opinions landed him in
nrison IN Florence in 1879 The British Ambas-
saaor made energetic protests. and after a year
or so he WIS reiea sed completely broken down
IN health" That is nearly the last OF the grim
chronicles Of this fair valley OF old Etrur:a-
ueace ard sentleness reign there now in true
Arcadian fashion. The contadini who till It's
eelds and vineyards are described simple.