The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-09
HERMIT FOUNDED
TINY REPUBLIC IN
MIDDLE OF ITALY
San Marino Is Oldest State
in Europe and One of
the Smallest

| Adriatic strand turned his gaze toward
| the mounta ms inland as refuge. He
was San N1arino, "a pious monk of the
| fourth century, and a native of Dali
malta. The systematic persecution of the
Christians by the Emperor Decius in the
third century had been followed by the
blow struck when Diocletian issued an
| edict of great severity in Sn3 San Marino,
who was a deacon in orders, and his
companion, San Leo. determined to cling
to their faith, and fled. ~
! His going forth presaged the founding
of the mountain republic which yet bears
his name, the oldest state in Europe, and
one of the smallest in the world. Its
| territory, in fact, comprises only 81
square miles, and its population is 10000.
Although 1t is entirely surrounded by the
kingdom of Italy, it's hardy people still
maintain their independence.
i The story of the coming of the young
monk to the mountain fastness is attrac-
lively told in new book by Virginia w.
Johnson, entitled 1.-Two Quaint Repub-
| lics'
| San Marino was not man of the mill
tant fiber of st. Paul or of the monk
| Telemachus, who joulneyed from the east
to Rome in order to protest against the
cruel butchery of the gladatorial COM
bats, only to be thrown to the wild
beats himself. He seems to have been
of the type of the Oriental hermits who
sought cave above the desert when
| Egypt had thousands of men and women
recluses, says the Kansas City Star,
With his cloak of goat skin hiding a
| hair shirt to remind him constantly of
| the weakness of the flesh, he crossed the
| Rubicon as did Caesar, at Rimini, and
| climbed with his companion into the re-
| gion which was to bear his name through
the years. He sought refuge beyond the
/ valley of the F'lume, on the steep rock of
Montalbo, in a grotto hidden by bram-
| bles and sheltered from the wind. Traces
| of the hermits retreat in stains of smoke
and fire are still pointed out on the lime
| stone of the peak above. A meadow
| stretches at the base of the rock and is
| known as the saints garden, where Ivy,
| laurel, carnations and the herbs of the
| anchorite bloom, associated with count
/ less traditions.
| The most quaint of these nursery tales
| is that of the useful donkey devoured by
bear. San Marino hastened to the scene
/ and strapped the donkey's burden on the
amazed bruin, compelling 1t to fulfill the
task.
| Evil rumors followed the harassed good
man in his flight. Enemi es he had left
| behind In Rimini bribed a woman to as
sert that she was the wife of the saint.
| Her name, Athleta, is suggestive of q
circus as one of the supple limbed aero
bats depicted on Greek vases.
] This bold creature even followed San
| Marino into the wilderness, where he for
t.fied himself from her wiles with fasting
| and prayer. Athleta, so the legend goes
| was foiled by the providential appearance
| of wild beasts and apparitions of the
evil one. and finally returned to the city
leaving him in peace.
Solitude Is Disturbed
i But his solitude was again to be dis
| turbed. In a. villa not far from the her
mitage the Roman matron Felicia, witt
| her two sons, was sojourning for the au
tumn. EVIL tongues spread scandal to his
discredit and he came to be regarded as
| a dangerous neighbor.
! Forth rode one of these sons, In al
| the pride of a member of the imperia
| guard, to rid. the land of the mysterious
dweller amid the rocks. AS he came
upon the good San Marino he fitted an
arrow to his bow, the weapon used by
the Romans in hunting. The youths arm
remained extended. paralyzed and rigid
| In terror he returned to his mother
home. CONSERVATION Immediately fel
upon the household. The stranger was
evidently a sorcerer and had smitten the
| lad who would have slain him. In her
distress Felicia sent messengers to the
/ hermit and besought him to come to the
afflicted one and cure him.
That visit of San Marino to the villa
| OF the Roman matron was memorable
AS he approached he ordered the statues
of the gods to be cast down from their
! inches. Apollo, as the diety of health,
fell, never to rise again. No more in.
cense was, burned before the Lares and
Penates of the atrium.
| San Marino restored the paralyzed arn
and out of gratitude Felicia became con-
serted and was baptized. She bestowed
! Mt. Titan, with other property, ON the
holy man. The fame of his cure spread
and brought many followers He could nc
longer remain In solitude and founded q
little community. His fellow refugee, Sar
Leo, withdrew to the height still bearing
his name. where he lived in monastic
asoeticlsm.
| Many guests gathered around San Ma
rino's supper table now. After the work
| of the day, women, children and mer
broke their fast while the host discoursed
to them on the duties of life Each year
the community grew AS 1T felt the neeo
of more territory for It's fccks, II de.
veloped the honorable, If timid and un
usual. fashion of buying bit of land
from powerful neighbor instead OF
| seizing it in some fray
The site of the good woman, Felicia 3,
home is still shown as occupied by a CON
vent, where miracles are believed to oc-
cur even now. The spring with which
San Marino baptized still possesses mag
ical virtues as cure for fevers
One tale has it that the missionary
married the widow Felicia. But that
would seem to have eddied forth on a
gust of wind from the unrepentant town
of Rimini. 1t failed to rob the holy man
of a widespread reputation of sanctity.
which increased after his death.
His tomb became shrine of pilgrim
age, and his name is preserved to history
by tho iSnla tinn Of tbo