Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1906-06-21

! Rome, June l9.-After years of ne.
! gotiation, arrangements have been
concluded by which an option has
been secured on the house in Piazza
di Spragna in Rome, where the poet
John Keats lived and died, This
| house Is at the foot of the picturesque
Spanish steps, which lead to the Vile
Medici and. like it, are owned py
France. 1t is now in a fair way Of
being preserved forever as a memori.
al, not only OF Keats, but OF his friend
and elegiSt Shelly, who was buriel
near him in the old Protestant Gene.
terry of Rome. The plan OF the pro-
motors Of the project, which has been
well kept from publicity in America,
aims at a complete library of the yar-
Gus editions of the poems and letters
OF the two great Englishmen, together
with all the obtaina5le criticisms of
their work, with original portraits,
! photographs OF places and people as.
ISOLATED with them. 1t is further
planned that the trustees of the house
shall exercise perpetual guardianship
over the graves of the poets, as the
Older part of the cemetery in which
Keats is buried has been threatened
with lnroads and the actual removal
OF his grave was once prevented only
by the intervention OF Queen Victoria.
A movement to buy and preserve
the house OF Keats and to establish in
1t memorial library OF the works of
MIN and of Percy Shelley, was sent on
loot IN 1908 by eight American writ
ers, then in Rome; informal commit.
tees were organized in that city, in
England and in the United States, and
a fund OF private subscriptions
amounting TO $1,000, representing
five hundred contributors, has been
raised and deposited at Plowden'
Bank in Rome. The difficulties in the
way OF obtaining an option on the
i property have seemed at times IN.
! superable. But an option on the
i house for eight months has Just been
signed, the committees making an al.
vance payment of 5000 francs on total
purchase price of 100000 francs
(about $2l,000)-a considerable con.
cession on the part of the owner. The
Italian transfer tax of about 5000
francs will be further addition to the
cost, unless it shall be RENTED by
\ legislative act in view of the interna.
tional and public aspect of the enter
prise.
The list of subscribers includes the
most distinguished names in the liter
airy and political worlds OF England
and America. While the rentals Of
the floors of the house which Keats
and Shelley did not occupy are ex.
pected to be sufficient for the mainte.
nance OF the memorial, the committees
desire to raise by future subscrip.
TONS, during the eight months life of
the option, not the remainder of the
purchase money but enough to provide
an ample endowment fund. Owners
OF editions and memorials of the poets
are TO be invited to contribute or be.
queath them to the library
The following letters to Mr. r. II.
Johnson, Secretary of the American
commission, show that the interna.
uonal comfy of the project has re.
ceived distinguished recognition.
Washington, January 5, 1906.
My dear Mr.. Johnson:
AS you know | am greatly inter
ested in the project to buy and pre-
serve as a memorial the house in
Rome in which Keats died. a project
which was first called to my atten.
ton by John Hay, who felt the live
Hest sympathy for IT. The associa.
tions Of the building are such as to
make 1t peculiarly fitting that il
should be purchased and that therein
should be established a permanent
memorial in honor of Keats and
Shelley. am glad that the movement
to establish this memorial, both in the
form of memorial library and in the
form of providing for the perpetual
care Of the graves of the poets, should
have been set on foot by our country
men.
| Sincerely yours,
|