New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-12-11

RIOR- Being the True Story OF Gao T.
Added the Life OF His Son. Cosimo I.
Grand Duke of TUSCANY a STUDY IL
Heredity BY Christopher Hare With
photosravure frontispiece and sixteen
other illustrations. SVo, PIP. S4J
Charles ScrihnerS Sons.
This book has good title. It's central
| figure was above all things creature OF
romance. one Of those portentous types
whose adventures go appropriately
enough into epic verse. The next best
| form for biographer to choose in deal
ing with their exploits is just such a. form
as is employed by the lady who calls
| herself Christopher Hare She tells the
| story of Giovanni Dele Bande Mere more
| or less in historical wise, but also with
the touches characteristic of the novelist,
| She dramatizes his career, portrays MN
as a hero and sketches him in his family
life with a certain freedom that adds at
| nlnsphere to fact.
This young sprig OF the House Of Me-
dici was the son Of that amazing Cater
ina Sforza who. having in her VEINS the
blood of C1aleazzo of Milan, proved her-
| self worthy of his despotic line She IL
was who married Girolamo kiario and
ruled with him the city and domain or
Forli, bestowed upon them by his uncle
Pope SiXtus ". Her defence OF her
rights after her husbands murder is one
of the lurid legends OF the Renaissance.
| She married again twice. her third hus-
band being d Medicf. Once more she
| was made widow. hut this time the
| Iioness had her whelp to fight for ana
she looms steadily beside Christopher
Hares young hero. the obvious source or
his militant traits. How militant these
were You perceive even In his childhood'
when he seizes a volfhound by the
throat and fights IT without trace OF
fear He despsed books; he wanted
horses 20 break in. rivers to swim across,
something 10 hunt and kill. and the
sheer lust of fighting drove him to con
slant battle with all the boys on the es-
tate who would dare to face him. This
Young barbarian would obey no one but
his mother, he wore out his learned tu-
tors as later he vas to wear out his
c,lira sses and his words There is, by
the WAY. Il piquant interest in the fact
that at this time. when he vas about
seven there was a notion in his family
| Of putting him in the care Of Michael An
! geIo. As his biographer says, il is not
| surprising that the master declined the
| honor He vas still lad when ratertna
! died and Of course. he got even more
! ont Of hand
! Giovanni Dele Rande Mere uas. from
hill
/ cog Il mere slutton of war, Yet he was
not by any means " unsyTnpathetic type,
| You read az him riding through the pot
| terv market With his huntsnen and
| hounds. smashing all the pots and pans
that he could reach, but besides paying
| for the V-reckage he excited the adn1ird-
/ ton IF his contemporaries by his sheer
! wildness and Coura ge There was some
! thing n1agnificently gallant about him.
| Early in his career as fighter he made
one or those transfers from one side to
! the other which his hiographer has con-
stantly to record. They We're the nat
| uraI moves I" be made by 4. soldier in
that tangled time. and in this case par
| ticularly he resented the accusation Of
| reasons for leaving the banner of the
| Emperor for that of the French King,
and thus he gave the lie to his accusers:
by the trumpeter of the Sire I.autrec. 1
| have heard that there are people who ac-
| rrSe NE of a crime N joining the service
| Of the Most Christian King because | was
| bound - the Sacred Ma ieSty Of Caesar.
therefore make II known 10 every person
who is my equal in rank and who asserts
that ! have done wrong that ] had any
obligation whatsoever. OF faith or Of pay
with the Majesty Of Cesar. that he has
bed and lies often IS he says il. and wilt
IL. as plany times rs he repeats it and
this | Will maintain with arms in my liza nd
every time that have occasion to do 50.
There You have the fiery nature Of
the man and his good faith. We cannot
follow him through all his wars. big and
little. through the battles and skirmishes