_Salerno and the sulky Driver.--Paestum and its Temples.--A great
Sensation.--An unpleasant Predicament.--Is the Driver a Traitor?--Is
he in League with Bandits?--Arguments about the Situation, and
what each thought about it._
After a very pleasant drive through a country as beautiful as it
had been ever since they left Naples, the party reached Salerno,
where they passed the night. Salerno is a lovely place, situated
at the extremity of a bay, like Naples, of which it may be called
a miniature. It is protected from the wind by the high hills that
encircle it, and its delicious climate makes it a great resort for
invalids. But formerly Salerno had a different character, and one
far more prominent in the eyes of the world. Salerno has a history
full of events of the most varied and stirring character. Fought
for by Greek, and Roman, and German, and Saracen, and Norman, its
streets have witnessed the march of hundreds of warlike arrays,
and it has known every extreme of good or evil fortune. Two things
make. Salerno full of interest to the traveller who loves the past.
One is, its position as a seat of learning daring the middle ages.
Here once arose the greatest school of medicine in, the world, the
chairs of which were thrown open, to Jewish and Arabian professors,
who at that time far outstripped the students of the Christian
world in scientific attainments. The other thing is, that here the
great pope, Gregory VII., found refuge, after his long struggle,
and, flying from Rome, obtained rest here among the friendly Normans,
for it was in Salerno that he uttered those memorable dying words
of his: "I have loved righteousness, and hated iniquity, and
therefore I die in exile."
Here at Salerno they had a slight misunderstanding with their
driver. He insisted on getting more pay. As they had already made
a full contract with him, this demand seemed like an imposition,
and was rejected by the whole of them. The driver grew furiously
excited, gesticulated vehemently, stamped, his feet, rolled his
eyes, struck his fists together, and uttered language which sounded
like Italian oaths, though they could not make it out. Uncle Moses
seemed a little appalled at his vehement, and was inclined to
yield to his demands for the sake of peace; but the boys would
not listen to this for a moment. After watching the raging
Italian till they were tired, Frank at length started to his
feet, and in a peremptory tone ordered him out of the room. The
Italian was so unprepared for this decisive conduct on the part
of one who appeared to be but a boy, that he stopped short in
the midst of a most eloquent tirade against them, in which he
was threatening to denounce them to the authorities for sacrilege;
and having stopped, he stared at Frank, and seemed unable to go
on once more. Frank now repeated his orders, accompanying them
with a threat that he would call in the police. At this the
driver's brow lowered into a sullen scowl, and muttering some
expressions of rage and vengeance, he left the room.
The boys chatted a little about the mutiny of the driver, as they
called it, but soon dismissed the thought from their minds.
After passing the night at Salerno, they prepared, on the following
morning, to continue their journey. Early in the day, the driver
made his appearance. He was quiet, and not communicative, and much
changed from his former self. Frank addressed a few remarks to
him, but perceiving that he was sulky, he gave up all attempts to
appease his wrath. In fact, he began to think that it might, perhaps,
have been as well to comply with his request, for the request for
more money had been based upon his recent rescue of them from the
hands of the mob at Sorrento. Had the driver made his request a
little more meekly, and not presented it with such an assertion of
right, there is no doubt that they would have cheerfully given what
he asked. But his tone excited their resentment; and afterwards,
when the driver chose to lose his temper and scold them, they were
more determined than ever to refuse. Had he appeared at this time
with his former good-natured expression, and had he shown any signs
of compunction for his insolent behavior, there is no doubt that
they would have brought up the subject of their own accord, and
promised him as handsome a sum as his exploit deserved. But his
continued sulks prevented them from introducing the subject, and
so they concluded to defer it to some other time, when he might be
restored to himself.
They now drove along the road en route for Paestum. At first they
drove along the sea-shore, but after a few miles the road turned
off into the country. All around them were fields, which were
covered with flocks and herds, while in the distance were hills
that were clothed with vineyards and olive groves, that adorned
their sloping declivities with mantles of dark green and light. In
the country, on either side, they also saw some indications of
Italian life, which excited strong feelings of repugnance within
them; for here and there, in many places, women were toiling in
the fields just as the men, with heavy hoes, or with ploughs, or
with harrows. In some places it was even worse, for they saw women
laboring in the fields, while the men lolled on the fences, or sat
smoking under the shade of some tree. The implements of labor used
excited their surprise. The hoes were as ponderous, as clumsy, and
as heavy as pickaxes; the ploughs were miserably awkward things--a
straight pole with a straight wooden share, which was sometimes,
though by no means always, pointed with iron. These ploughs were
worked in various ways, being sometimes pulled by donkeys, sometimes
by oxen, and on one memorable occasion a donkey and a woman pulled
the plough, while a man, who may have been the woman's husband,
guided it through the furrow.
The road was a good one, and was at first well travelled. They met
soldiers, and priests, and peasants. They met droves of oxen, and
wine carts, and large herds of those peculiar hairless pigs which
are common to this country. As they drove on farther, the travel
diminished, and at length the country seemed more lonely. It was
still fertile, and covered with luxuriant vegetation on every side;
but the signs of human habitation decreased, until at length they
ceased. The reason of this lies in the unhealthy character of the
country, which, like many places in Italy, is subject to malaria,
and is shunned by the people. This is the nature of the country
which lies around ancient Paestum; and though the fields are
cultivated, yet the cultivators live at a distance upon the slopes
of the mountains.
At about midday they arrived at Paestum. Here they descended from
the carriage, and giving instruction to the driver to remain at
this place until they should return, they started off to explore
the ruined city. It had been their intention to make use of the
driver as guide, to show them the objects of interest in the town;
but his long-continued sulks drove this from their minds, and they
concluded to trust to themselves and their guide-books. The carriage
was drawn up on the side of the road, not far from where there
stood an archway, still entire, which once formed one of the gates
of Paestum.
Towards this they directed their steps. The gateway was formed of
large blocks of stone laid upon each other without cement, and by
their great size they had resisted the ravages of time. On either
side of this could be seen the foundation stones of the city walls,
which have fallen or have been removed in the course of ages. But
the circuit of the walls can be traced by the fragments that yet
remain, and from this circuit the size of the city may be judged.
Beyond the gates and in the enclosure of the walls are some majestic
and world-famed ruins, some of which are little else than masses
of rubbish, while others are so well preserved, that they might
now be used for the purpose to which they were originally devoted.
There are the remains of a theatre and of an amphitheatre, which,
however, are confused heaps, and some public edifices in the same
condition. The foundations of some private houses may also be
seen. But the most noted and most interesting of the remains of
Paestum are its two Temples and Basilica--edifices whose origin
reaches back to the depths of an immemorial antiquity, but which
still remain in a state of preservation so perfect as to be almost
incredible. For these edifices are as old, at least, as Homer, and
were probably in existence before his day. Phoenician sailors or
merchants may have set eyes on these temples, who also saw the
Temple of Solomon at its completion. They existed in the age of
the Pharaohs, and rival in antiquity, in massive grandeur, and in
perfect preservation, the Pyramids of Egypt. In the age of imperial
Rome, and even of republican Rome, these temples were ancient, and
the Emperor Augustus visited them, and regarded them as remains of
venerable antiquity.
Of these three edifices, the most majestic, and probably the most
ancient, is the one which is called the Temple of Neptune. The
stone of which it is built, is found in the neighborhood still,
and presents a most singular appearance. At a distance it appears
very rough and full of holes, like cork. A closer examination shows
that it is really composed of innumerable fragments of wood,
compressed together in a vast, solid mass, and petrified. The
stone is exceedingly hard and durable. The blocks of this stone
out of which this temple, and the others also, are built, are of
such enormous size, that they can only be compared to those immense
masses that were heaped up to form the Pyramids of Egypt and the
Temples of Karnak. Piled up here upon one another without cement,
they have defied the ravages of time.
The Temple of Neptune is approached by three immense steps, which
extend around every side of it. It is about two hundred feet in
length, and eighty in breadth, while on every side there is a row
of enormous columns of the Doric order, thirty-six in number. They
are all fluted, and have an aspect of severe and massive grandeur
that is unequalled in any other temple. Above these columns rise
an enormous Doric frieze and cornice, the height of which is equal
to half the height of the columns; and these proportions give such
vastness to the mass above, that it heightens the sublime effect.
The columns, which extend round the Temple, are thirty feet high,
and seven feet in diameter at the base. Inside, the pavement is
well preserved; and, though the altar is gone, yet the place where
it stood can easily be seen. There is no roof above, and probably
never was any; for many of the vast edifices of antiquity were open
to the sky--a circumstance which made the task of the architect
much easier, since it relieved him of the necessity of sustaining
a vast weight in the air, and also of the equal difficulty of
lighting the interiors of his buildings. From within the temple
enclosures, as from within the theatres and amphitheatres, the blue
sky could be seen overhead, while the too fervid rays of a
midsummer sun, or the storms of winter, could be warded off from
those within by means of an awning thrown over the open roof,
and stretched on cables.
Near the Temple of Neptune is another, which is called the Temple
of Ceres. It is neither so large nor so grand as the former, but
it possesses more elegance and beauty. It is about a hundred feet
long and fifty feet wide. Like its companion, it is surrounded
on all sides by a colonnade, six pillars being in the front, six
in the rear, and twelve on either side. The altar here is gone,
but its foundations remain. Various signs show a greater degree
of splendor in the interior adornment of this temple, especially
the fact that the pavement was mosaic work. There is reason to
suppose that this temple was turned into a Christian church some
time in the fourth century. Such a transformation as this was
common enough throughout the Roman empire during that great
triumph of Christianity which took place under Constantine, and
after him, so that in this, case there need be little room for
doubt as to the truth of the statement.
Not far from this is the third of the great edifices of Paestum.
It is about as large as the Temple of Neptune, being nearly two
hundred feet long, and about eighty feet wide. Like the others, it
is surrounded by a colonnade, but the architecture is less massive
than that of the first temple. Of these columns, nine are in front,
nine in the rear, and sixteen are on either side, making fifty in
all. In this edifice there are no signs whatever of an altar; and
this circumstance has led to the belief that it was not a temple
at all, but a court of law. Accordingly, it is called the Basilica,
which term was used by the Romans to indicate a place used for
public trials. Inside, the pavement yet remains, and there are the
remains of a row of columns which once passed along the middle of
the building from front to rear, dividing it into two parts.
Of all the three, the Temple of Neptune is the grandest, the best
preserved, and the most famous. But the others are fit companions,
and the giant forms of these mighty relics of hoary antiquity,
unsurpassed by any other edifice, rise before the traveller, exciting
within him emotions of reverential awe.
The party visited all these various objects of interest, and at
length returned to the gate. They had spent about two hours in
their Purvey of Paestum, and had seen all that there was to be
seen; and now nothing more remained but to return as soon as
possible, and spend that night at Salerno. They had seen nothing
of the driver since they left him, and they accounted for this on
the ground that he was still maintaining himself in his gigantic
sulk, and brooding over his wrongs; and they thought that if he
chose to make a fool of himself, they would allow him to do so as
long as it was agreeable to him.
With these thoughts they approached the gateway. As they drew
near, they were surprised to find that there were no signs of the
carriage. The view was open and unobstructed. Here and there mounds
or fragments of stone arose in the place where once had been the
wall of the city of Paestum, and before them was the simple arch
of the massive gateway, but no carriage or horses were visible.
This excited their surprise, and also their alarm. They remembered
that the sullen mood of the driver made him quite capable of playing
off some malicious trick upon them, and they recalled, also, his
threats of the evening before. Could he have chosen this way to put
his threats into execution? It seemed, indeed, very much like it.
Still, there was one hope left. It was just possible that the carriage
had been drawn up more under the arch, so that it was hidden from
view. As this was the last hope that was left them, they hurried
forth to put an end to their suspense as soon as possible. Nearer
and nearer they came.
At last they reached the arch.
They rushed through it, and beyond it.
There was nothing there!
No carriage! No horses! No driver!
At this they all stopped, and stared at one another in silent
consternation.
"He's gone," cried Clive. "He's left us here--to get back the best
way we can."
"He swore last night," said David, "that he'd pay us up; and this
is the way he's done it."
"Yes," said Bob; "he's been sulky all day. He's been concocting
some plan."
"I don't see what good it'll do him," said Frank.
"He'll lose his fare. We won't pay him."
"O. he'll give up that for the pleasure of revenge," said Clive.
"Wal, wal, wal," cried Uncle Moses, looking all around with a face
of dark and doleful perplexity. "This here doos beat all I ever
seen in all my life. An now, what upon airth we can do--I'm sure
I can't tell."
"Whatever we do," said Frank, "it won't do to wait here. It's too
late now."
"Perhaps he hasn't run off at all," said David, who always was
inclined to believe the best of people. "Perhaps he has driven up
the road, and intends to return."
Frank shook his head.
"No," cried he. "I believe the scoundrel has left us. We paid him
half of his fare at Sorrento; the rest was to be paid at Naples;
but he has thrown that up, in order to have the pleasure of being
revenged on us. And where he's gone to now is a mystery to me."
"O, I dare say he's driven off to Naples."
"Perhaps so. But he may intend something more. I've heard that
there are brigands about here."
"Brigands!"
"Yes. And I shouldn't wonder if he has gone off with the intention
of bringing some of them here to pay their respects to us. He may
have started off immediately after we left him; and, if so, he's
had two hours already--time enough, as I think, to do a good deal
of mischief."
"Brigands!" cried Uncle Moses, in a voice of horror. He stared
wildly around, and then looked, with moistened eyes, upon the boys.
"O, boys," he sighed, "why did we ever ventoor out so far in this
here I-talian land, or why did we ever come to Italy at all?
Brigands! It's what I've allus dreaded, an allus expected, ever
sence I fust sot foot on this benighted strand. I ben a feelin it
in my bones all day. I felt it a comin over me yesterday, when the
mob chased us; but now--our hour hev come!"
"Nonsense, Uncle Moses!" cried Frank, in a hearty, joyous voice.
"What's the use of giving up in that fashion? Cheer up. We'll be
all right yet."