Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1909-1915, 1910-07-29
The Taking Of the Castle
A Historical Tale Of Lake Como
By LOUISE B. CUMMINGS j..
Copyright. 1910. by American Press
Association.

towering some SOO feet above the wa
ter, Is rock on the summit of which
Is the ruin Of the Castle of Musso. In
the early part of the sixteenth cen
tury young man named Clan Gia-
como Medici. afterward called "the
Medici," became ambitious to possess
this fortress. At sixteen he had com
mitted a murder. and when later be
was offered the stronghold on Lake
Como as price for assassinating As.
TORE Visconti he readily consented
Meanwhile the duke, having become
himself afraid of the Medici, laid a
plan for putting him. too. out Of his
way. He gave him the official docu-
ments comforting upon him the rock
on Lake Como and sent him to take
possession. He was also made the
bearer Of a sealed letter to the com
mandant Becoming suspicious Of the
contents Of the letter, he opened it
and found that it contained an order
to arrest the bearer and put him to
death secretly Giacomo DESTROYED the
letter and as soon as he had taken DOS
session of the fortress paid the men
who were there to go away and re,
placed them by his own adherents.
The new possessor of Musso made it
1mpregnable, mounting cannon on its
battlements that commanded the lake
He established custom house" and
kept his revenue officers busy inter-
cepting vessels and levying dues upon
their cargoes. In this way he pros
pered, and his power enabled him to
appropriate much of the neighboring
territory.
The Emperor Charles V. of Spain
then had foothold in northern Italy.
and his representative in that region.
Villaterelo. thought that he should pos
sess himself of Musso for his imperial
master, thus ending the Medici's pira-
cies. Villaterelo had in prison man
named Sardo. whom be determined to
utilize in this work. He told Sardo
that if he would go to the Medici as a
spy and concoct plan by which the
fortress of Musso might be delivered
into the Spanish hands he should re.
ceive free pardon from the emperor
Sardo accepted the mission and de.
parted for its accomplishment In due
time he returned with the information
that on a certain day the Medici
would leave Musso for Bormio In or
der to take the famous baths there. A
few soldiers only would remain in the
fortress, and these. Sardo said. he had
bribed to open the gates to the Span
iards.
Villaterelo and his spy then com.
pleted plan supplementary to what
had already been accomplished Boats
filed with armed men were to be
rOwed under cover Of the darkness to
the foot of the rock on which Musso
stood. The force was to climb to the
fortress, and when it was in their pos
session cannon was to be fired as a
signal to that effect. sailing vessel
following the expedition was then to
return to Villaterelo with the news.
On the appointed night, it having
been ascertained that the Medici had
really left Musso. the little feet start
ed from the town Of Lecco, on an arm
Of Lake Como, called Lake Lecco, I'M
der command of Villaterelos brother
On reaching Musso they debarked and
began the ascent. Approaching the
summit, they gave preconcerted sig.
nal and, moving over a narrow pass,
were one by one admitted within the
gates.
On the bosom of the lake below the
commander of the dispatch ship lis
tened for the sound Of the signal gun
that was to announce the canui,
Suddenly boom from above nr"Ne
upon the still night air. On the wings
Of the wind the little ship sailed S'r; h
ward to Lecco. where Villaterelo was
feverishly awaiting the result of the
expedition AS soon as the welcome
news was communicated to him he sci
sail himself to take possession of bis
newly acquired fortress.
Let us take up the thread of the
story with the Medici's part in it. Or
the day he was to have gone to Bormit
he ostentatiously left his stronghold
with large proportion Of his mel
and quantity Of baggage as If for {
long journey. But he had not gon.
far before he returned by an unfre
quented path and re-entered his castle
doubtless through subterranean pas
sage hewn in the rock under the noun
tain: portion of which is still dis
cernible. When the first of Villate
relo's soldiers emerged from, the mar
row passage which led to; the gatewa!
and stood within the battlements b.
was silently dispatched. The mex
man then entered and met the sam
fate. Thus the whole Of the invadin,
force was killed. no man KNOWN,
what had happened to the one VIII
had gone before him. When the las
man had been killed the Medici him
self fred the signal gun.
Meanwhile the possessor Of Muss
had caused the lake to be guarded b,
boats. with chains swung between
them under water, with the intention
of cutting off Villaterelo's feet. Blu
the Spaniard had not reached thi