Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1909-01-14
Sicily ard tke 5iicilians



lpeasan! has dog and gun, although
There is no game This equ Dment may
be partly due % the trad.ti terror
of the brigand. who is more merciless
THAN the Saracen and who never hest
Itates TO kill if he sees an immediate
Iproft from murder. Doubt IS the bri-
gand is less Of a real danger than
formerly but the influence Of the past
remains.
Palermo.
Palermo, the beautiful city of Sicily
proper. beautifully situated on the
northern shore, is surrounded by a
fertile plain and partly inclosed by
lofty hills. 1t IS an important seaport
and commercial center. visited BY
ships of many nations. The commerce
of the ely is stead Iy increasing. SUI
mach sulphur, wine. oranges and lem
Ions are largely exported. The 6arbor
presents an animated scene. Palermo
is also one Of the popular show-places
Of Europe, being the Sicilian city most
visited by tourists. With it's many
spires, domes, and towers, it presents
an imposing picture as it is approached
/ rom he gulf. The Via V.ttoro Eman-
uele and Via Macquede, the principal
streets intersect each other at right
angles, dividing the city into four
parts, and near the center is the
Quattro Cante, an cc.agonaI space
lined with numerous buildings in var
GUS styles of Grecian architecture and
adorned with many statues. A beau
| tiful walk is afforded by the Marina,
| or, officially, FOro UmbertO, a quay
extending to the south from the Porta
Felice along the sea, commanding
/ fine views toward the south as far as
/ the Monte CataIfano and, to the north.
/ of the beautiful Mt PellegrinO IN
/ summer the COrsO of the fashionable
world takes place here in the alter
neon. By no means to be overlooked
! Giuseppe, the church Of San Salvatore
! La Martorana and other churches, the
royal palace, the observatory. the
archieDiscOpal palace. the national
museum and picture-g gallery. the com
munal library, the national library,
the university, the barracks arsenal,
courts Of justice, theaters and hOspi-
tails. On the southeast side of thu
/ town, the royal palace rises on a
slight eminence. The nucleus of the
building is Saracenic but additions
land many alterations have been made.
The central tower with its po.n5ed
arches is an interesting relic Of Nor
man times. Within the palace court
is The CapeIIa Palatina, built before
1882, i'm the Arab :c-NOrm9n style
With its mosaic decorations. # is a
perfect gem of medieval art, perhaps
the most beautiful palace-chapel in
the world, The mOsaics, with which
the walls are entirely covered are O.
glass on a golden ground and radiant
] with oriental splendOr
The ca hedral, or church of the
AssuEta like so many Sicilian build
ings, shows the influence of various
conquerors and succeeding architect
uraI ideals. 1t was built IN 1925 by
EngIishman, on the site of a more an
Client church which had been CON
yerted into a mosque ard subsequently,
reCOnvertcd into a Chr stan place o.
worship. The broad gable was added
in 1850 to the south pOrticO and the
door dates from 1928. The west ia
cade, with principal portal and the
two towers. erected in 1300-1359 is
particularly fine. The lower part of
the old campaniIe, connected with the
cathedral by two graceful arches.
dates from the 12,h century, although
restored in modern tines. In 1881
1901 the church was disfgured by the
add tion of a dome, constructed by
Fernando Fuga Of Florence, in spite OF
the remOnstranCes of the Sicilians
Taormina and Catalina.
After leaving Messina, on a rail
road journey down the eastern coast
the first important place TO be reached
is Taormina. The country traverseC
has a Japanese look at the right time
of the year, patches Of Towering al
mend trees rival ng in beauty the pinl
cherry blossoms of Dia Nippon. Blu
the prevailing color of Sicily, like tina
OF Calabria. across the whirling strait
is gray, a dull, Light gray. This comes
from the gnar'ed old olive trees from
which the people get the best part O.
their living and the best of the greens
{ is from the greas watery eucalyptus