The Washington herald., 1906-12-02


birth was commensurate with their hon
Orable title.
Il dearly love my faithful little Japa-
nese wife. and my three beautiful chill
dren,' this gentleman conhded to Jack,
and it grieves me TO the heart that my
alliance cannot he legally recognized in
the fatherland. II is insupportable sor-
row that I may not tell the good father
and mother the real reason why ] can
not marry my cousin. Each time 1 re-
turn home. this course is urged upon me.
They would feel that 7 had disgraced
the family name We're they aware Of my
domestic ties in Japan"
Jack and I were constantly unearthing
small life tragedies Ike the above "Ori-
entail spIendor" isn't all real gold Much
Of IL is tarnishabIe tinseL
Our approach 20 Genoa was at the
magic time OF sunset. The superbly sit
u8ted city and the glorious gulf filled
me with rapture. The town. with its
countless villas and palaces, ascends from
Che port in the form Of an amphitheater
toward the hills. out Of the sea Of houses.
several heights. with decorative villas
and gardens. rise In picturesque variety
from the crowded condition Of the town
proper The great hills, almost noun
famous iu dignity. that surround Genoa
iu "a scmi-circIe. are halfway up. COW
cred with brown moss and crowned at
their SUBMITS with imposing fOTtifca-
Jious These. together with the GU y .rg
ports. make Genoa a fortress Of tn FIST
rank
Approaching the city in the late twi-
light. il is the most beautiful sight mag
Unable 60 watch the lights come out one
by one. like stars against the frament.
Those OF the towering fortihcations are
the mariners best guide far out az sea.
The city appears to be built straight up
into the air, the streets hewn out Of
solid rock and the foundation of one
splendid building beginning at another
CLimneys.
All about our steamer. the water was
crowded with merry boat-Ioads Of Italian
singers. The bright-eyed, sauCy-manner-
ed sirens stood upright in the tossing
boats. each with an opened paTasol of
gay color. inverted 20 catch the coin that
rained generously from our decks. Every
singer sang "A different air In throaty,
vibrant voice but the effect was roman
tic in the extreme. and if ever I saw the
art Of Irritation conveyed by gesture,
ewes and voice these Italian girls aC-
complished IT, There was usually hawk
eyed mother crouched in the boats stern
To take care of the coin. and no doubt
the man at the oars was the father or
husband of the singer. The light-hearted
music and the good camraderie expressed
/ In the song put one in exactly the right
mood for Italy. Jack felt il, and so did I.
/ Many OF the embarking passengers had
I Il #..f-.
/ in the more modern part Of the town. /
/ had a leaning toward the British ad-
/ miraTs choice.
Il don't know a thing about IT," the
admiral had said TO me, nut Sir VII
/ liam Pennhyrst told us that when he
came to Genoa ne always went 10
charming old place of entertainment
/ which he has named the 'pOt-hOuse on
/ tthe quay Ii is right in the heart of
| ancient Genoa, and so old that nobody
/ knows when il was built or whose palace
/ IL originally was. Sir William has an
aesthetic taste. andAwe have decided 10
go to his pot-house on the quay
I've never put UP at a 'pot-house,' "
said Jack Let's see what it is like,
and I agreed.
/ 1t was "a real wrench to part with the
/ comforts of the PrinZ Heinrich. and its
/ interesting passengers.
Come out again next year" said the
captain, in goodbye. and go all the
/ way TO China and back again"
/ We gave partial promise, shouldered
/ the hand luggage. procured Italian money
+ from the purser. distributed goodwill
/ among the stewards. and drove away in
/ the soft twilight. Jack had thrown his
! tobacco overheard. so there was little or
/ no trouble with the custom officials.
over cobblestones and through picture
! book streets. we pulled up finally at the
/ 'pot-house.' 1t would be a shame to give
/ us real name, even if I happened to re-
member IL. for Sir Williams title IS much
/ more fetching 1 do believe it was the
/ very oldest building in the oldest pCr-
/ tion Of Genoa, facing the Piazza Carica-
/ mento. which is the terminus Of all the
J tram lines, and overlooking the shipping
/ in the harbor, and the most typically
/ Italian streets scenes conceivable.
/ Everything is built of century-old stone
/ in Genoa. and the "pOt-house' had once
/ been fine palace. the front of which had
/ acquired in the last few centuries an as
| SOrtment Of eXcreseaces that might be
/ likened TO the barnacles on a snip.
/ You could not find the entrance until
/ you penetrated sort of arcade COM
| posed Of booths joined on in layer fash
/ ion 70 the original front OF the hotel
I These tiny emporiums, 10 the number Of
/ twenty or more We're Of every cOnCeiv-
/ able shape and variety. Viewed from cur
/ second story balcony. the roofs of these
i barnacles were extremely ludicrOus and
/ thoroughly dilapidated. They could not
/ have been picturesque anywhere but in
| Italy The interior of the hosiery was
/ a perfect maze of stone. No danger Of
/ its ever burning down. There wasn't so
/ much as a bannisteT-rail made of wood,
/ and the stone stairways were the craziest
/ and most irregular things imaginable,
/ worn in deep hollows from much use.
/ Our great room had an up-hill-and-
/ down-dale floor surface of stone painted
in rich Pompaniian red. The two small