Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1905-05-12

n PRISON IMMORTALIzED BY DUMAS ]
b BUILT ON ROCKY ISLAND-TERRI.
4 BILE DUNGEONS IN WHICH FA.
A NOUS MEN WERE INCAR
n CERATED AMERICAN
L TRAVELLER TELLsOF
z INJUSTICE AND
q CRUEL PUNISH
3 MENT
& j. E Jenner gives q description o
q the castle made famous by Alexande
Dumas in his novel of Monte CristO.
a "Who has not read the Count o
q Monte Cristo' and formed an opiniol
B "a to its possibilities had my doubt
& regarding its truthfulness, for the ter
n rbe tale seems to appear exaggerated
aud impossible, bnt | am now con
viuced that Dumas has intended tt
1 place before US fairly accurate pic
j ture of the grewsome prison of bygon'
. days.
During my travels in South France
while stopping at Marseilles, bad al
opportunity to join small party on g
steamer plying between the city and 6
group of islands in the Mediterranean
sea belonging to France. The small
est of this group, solid rock, not more
than quarter of a mile in circumfer
ence, rising almost upright out of the
! water and accessible only on one side
by steps hewn into the rock, is known
as the Pie DIFF.
"On this rock is built the celebrated
prison or castle which Dumas has i'm
mortalized in his Monte Cristo.'
1.-The keep or dungeon was construct
ed in 1929 by King Francis l, to impri-
son his captives after the victorious
battles with his adversary, the duke of
Bourbon and subsequently used for
centuries by the later kings as state
prison. 1t was known at that time as
the 'Bastile of che South
WAS LIKE A FORTRESS.
THE outside walls are fifteen feet
thick. In the middle is small open
court sufficient to give light to the en-
| frances of fourteen encircling cells,
which are divided by partition walls
ten feet thick, and can be entered
only by one small opening from the in
ner court.
Directly opposite the entrance to
fha ~ 10 ~ all \, ioh saI
by Edmund Dantes, made famous by
Alexander Dumas as the hero-the
Count of Monte Cristo.' Dantes and
the Able Faria, who was sentenced by
order of the pope as conspirator,
each passed sixteen years of their lives
in these cells.
The suffering of these aud 9th er
unhappy prisoners who were confined
here must have been horrible. The |
cells lack air and light. The walls, |
ceiling and floor are of solid stone, and |
escape was utterly impossible. it being |
a verltable sepulcher.
I'm going through the prison one
feels that from behind these walls you |
hear the cry of suffering-the last |
breath and rattle of those who died in |
despair.
LIST OF POLITICAL OFFENDERS.
''All of the other cells are labeled |
with the names of the most prominent |
prisoners who had been incarcerated |
therein. Among these were:
"Bernardot, rich trader. who had |
been arrested on suspicion of having |
designs against Cardinal Richelieu. |
He resolved to die of starvation and |
for eleven days efused to eat or drink. |
With piece of charcoal be wrote on
the wall the torture which he endured. |
lie died on the twelfth day.
John Paul, a sailor, for slapping
his commander, died in 1873. after 81
years of captivity.
''Marquise De Lavalette. minister of
finance under Louis WILL, for disloyal- |
ty to the king.
1.-The brothers Serres, for assisting in
was condemned to death by Louis XIV.
tor refusing to uncover his head or
bend his knees while in the presence
Of his king.
ALBERT Campo, for having publish
ed the secret of prison which he had
discovered.
Paul and Louis Martel. imprisoned
for life on suspicion of murder.
"Boissow, religious fanatic, who
made an attempt upon the life of
Protestant nObleman.
"Lajolas, for an attempt to assas-
sinate Consul Napoleon before h. be-
came emperor.
prince Casimir, brother of Ladislas
VII, king of Poland, imprisoned by
Napoleon |. on having betrayed the
| French and serving the Spanish.
Louis Philippe D'Orleans, father of
King Louis Philippe, for siding with
The revolutionists in 1898.
"Mirabeau, for general insubordina-
| tiOAs Auo
| tory writings against the royalists.
=. "Chevalier De Ballesteros, consul
| from Spain at Bayonne, imprisoned by
order of Napoleon l. for opposing and
interfering with the introduction of
the Napoleonic law codes.
| IMPRISONED WITHOUT TRIAL.
1
tical prisoners sentenced during and
| Immediately before the revolution of
| 1888, when it was possible for the lead
ers to order the arrest and imprsOn-
| m ent of any citizen without trial and
upon pure suspicion or 'trumped up