UNTRAVELLED ITALY.*
NOTWITHSTANDING the vast number of tourists who yearly visit the Italian peninsula, and even diverge from the beaten track to make excursions in different directions, how few are there to whom Apulia, the Abruzzi, Basilicata, and Calabria are more than names, or who can conjure up anything like a clear idea, of the tract of country of which these are the principal divisions? Mr. Hare makes a liberal estimate when he says there are probably not two hundred living who have explored a region which offers such rich treasures to the archreologist and the painter, and we can, to a certain extent, understand the diffidence with which he puts forth a guide-book to cities which, though presenting features of more than common interest, seem to be within the reach of only the most energetic and enduring of travel- lers. As he says himself, the vastness and ugliness of the districts to be traversed, the bareness and filth of the inns, the rough- ness of the natives, the terror of earthquakes, the insecurity of the roads from brigands, and the far more serious risk of malaria or typhoid fever from the bad water, have hitherto frightened strangers away from the southern parts of Italy ; and although these evils are each year lessening, it cannot yet be said to be either pleasurable or prudent to linger much along the line of route from Naples to Sicily, though a Mom. into Apulia can be made with less danger and less discomfort.
-Under these circumstances, it is pleasant to have set before us by means of Mr. Hare's excellent word-painting the many classic and mediaaval buildings with which these districts abound, especially as these antiquarian subjects are every now and then agreeably enlivened by sketches of romantic scenery and curious aspects of ancient and modern life, although the latter give us, in many instances, a sad insight into the miser- able condition of a population ground down by taxation, and a prey to every kind of oppression which can be perpetrated in the name of justice, or carried out under the pretext of ancient usage, the great increase of taxes under the Sardinian rule being a fact upon which the author dwells very strongly.
On the first part of the book, treating of the country between Rome and Naples, and of the latter city and its environs, it is un- necessary to dwell, the whole region being tolerably well known to travellers. It is the author's plan to follow the main lines of rail- way, indicating the best points of divergence, and the means of reaching more remote points of interest ; therefore, after describ- ing La Cava, Sorrento, Amalfi, Salerno, Paestum, and some of the ancient cities of Campania, be goes back to the Marches of Ancona, and takes us down the pleasant coast-line which ends at Otranto, and afterwards over the dreary tract of country leading to Reggio, where matters are so contrived by the Italian railway authorities that the halts are invariably made, without the least apparent necessity, precisely in those spots where there is absolutely nothing to see. Coming southwards from Ancona, having on the left the sparkling waters of the Adriatic, with their gay fishing-boats, and on the right a line of hills crested with picturesque old towns, we find at Pescara a short line of railway leading into the heart of ttte Abruzzi, passing through Chieti, called from its brightness "the Naples," and ending at Aquila, "the Rome," of the three provinces. More interesting, • Cities of Southern Italy and Sicily. By Augustus J. C. Hare. London: Emit!). Elder, and Co. perhaps, however, than either is Solmona, the birthplace of Ovid, "a perfectly medizeval city, grandly situated on an isolated platform, crowned by many towers, and backed by snowy mountains," with its picturesque aqueduct and beautiful remains of Gothic edifices. From Solmona, too, a walk of a couple of miles takes one to the strange hermitage of Monte Marrone, whose occupant, afterwards Pope Celestine V., was so suddenly summoned to be crowned at Aquila and to ascend the pontifical throne ; and excursions may also be made in summer-time to Castel di Sangro and Isernia, both of which places are situated in romantic spots, and contain various objects of interest. From Aquila, which well deserves a visit, a good pedestrian can reach the home of the Cenci, "that savage rock, the Castle of Petrella ;" and the wild scenery may make it worth his while to do so, even if he have no sentimental sympathy with the very mythical woes of Shelley's heroine. From Solmona, again, but still only in summer weather, the tourist may reach the beautiful Lago di Scanno, with the wonderfully picturesque little town of the same name, where the costume of the women is remark- ably striking. This charming spot will be more approachable when the railway to Avezzano and Sora is completed.
With regard to Apulia, we find a considerable discrepancy between Mr. Hare's introductory remarks, in which he speaks of the rapid improvement of the inns, and what he says when he treats in detail of Puglia Piana and Puglia Petrosa, and tells us that it is a part of Italy which is behindhand in civilisation to a degree which will only be credible to those who have tried it, the filth of the railway stations being indescribable, and the food procurable at the buffets simply uneatable. The wide northern plains are still, as in ancient times, famous for the rearing of sheep, which are "guarded by milk-white dogs, as in- telligent as they are fierce ;" but it is in the mountain region that the traveller will find most objects of interest, and he is recom- mended to choose Foggia as a centre for excursions, one of which should be to Melfi and Monte Voltore, in the Basilicata. From Trani a pleasant drive of three hours takes one to Castel del Monte, the favourite palace of Frederick II., which is still in almost perfect preservation. Bari, with its two great churches, Bitonto, with its noble cathedral, Otranto and its picturesque castle, all come under review ; but Taranto, the island town, will be more attractive to many visitors, not merely from its striking position, but on account of its singular inner harbour, or Mare Picciolo, celebrated from the most ancient times for its fisheries. Ninety- three varieties of fish and a hundred and fifty kinds of shells and echini are here produced, amongst them the silk-bearing ponna marina; and there is a hill entirely composed of the shells of the Mures &awaits and Murex brandaris, used in making the purple dye, for after that of Tyre the purple of Tarentum was considered the best. Oysters and mussels are farmed at Taranto, the latter being grown upon ropes, which when festooned with shells are drawn up and carried to the market, where many another curious sight meets the eye.
Only determined and hardy archaeologists will care, we are told, to explore the sites of once famous cities in Magna Graecia, and so deadly is the malaria in the greater part of this country that it would be the merest foolhardiness to linger in it. A single night spent at Cotrone will certainly result in illness, and yet this place was once so salubrious that "more healthy than Crotona " had passed into a by-word, its women being accounted the most beautiful and its men the strongest in Magna Graecia. But Reggio, with its orange groves, its magnificent views of Sicily and Etna, and its charming pictures of all kinds, is a delight- ful retreat ; and in twenty minutes one can be landed at Messina, from whence, notwithstanding the exaggerated re- ports of brigandage, it is easy to reach Taormina, Syracuse, Girgenti, and Palermo, and one can, even without much difficulty, get to Segeste, Selinunto, and Cefala, and thus visit all that is most worth seeing in what Mr. Hare aptly terms a very ugly island, with a few exquisitely beautiful spots in it, unless, indeed, the ascent of Etna be contemplated. Th s of course, is usually made at night, during one of the fsll moons of summer or early autumn, but the extreme cold, which often causes violent sickness, deters many persons from attempting it, although the grand view from the summit affords ample repayment for the suffering. The wonder- ful Latontice of Syracuse, great caverns in the lime- stone rock nearly 100 feet deep, and several acres in extent, now filled with fruit-trees and flowering shrubs, radiant with loveliness even at Christmas, should be seen by all; as also the very curious catacombs called the "Grotto di San Giovanni," which are laid out on the plan of a city, and full of tombs, although nothing is really known as to their origin. Though many of the passages are in ruins, they are still practic- able for an extent of several miles, and so vast are they that many lives have been lost in attempting to explore them.
It may not be known to many that Sicily is the only European country where the papyrus is to be found. Its tall yellow plumes grow side by side with beautiful oleanders and palma Cristi in the little river Pisma, the ancient Cyane, until its masses become so compact that a boat can hardly make its way up to the broad pool of transparent water into which Pluto changed the daring nymph who tried to prevent him from carry- ing off Proserpine, and the scene is one of great beauty. Palermo, however, is the loveliest spot in Sicily, some do not fear to say that it is positively unrivalled in point of natural attractions ; but we mast leave our readers to find out for themselves how much is contained in Mr. Hare's pleasant pages, we have but indicated in a general manner the contents of his useful book.
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