the thirst of a VAMPYRE!
________________________________________________________________
EXTRACT OF A LETTER,
CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT
OF
LORD BYRON'S RESIDENCE
IN THE
ISLAND OF MITYLENE. ________________________________________________________________
ACCOUNT
OF
LORD BYRON'S RESIDENCE, &c. ______________
"The world was all before him, where to choose his place of rest, and Providence his guide."
IN Sailing through the Grecian Archipelago, on board one of hisMajesty's vessels, in the year 1812, we put into the harbour ofMitylene, in the island of that name. The beauty of this place, andthe certain supply of cattle and vegetables always to be had there,induce many British vessels to visit it--both men of war andmerchantmen; and though it lies rather out of the track for shipsbound to Smyrna, its bounties amply repay for the deviation of avoyage. We landed; as usual, at the bottom of the bay, and whilst themen were employed in watering, and the purser bargaining for cattlewith the natives, the clergyman and myself took a ramble to the cavecalled Homer's School, and other places, where we had been before. Onthe brow of Mount Ida (a small monticule so named) we met with andengaged a young Greek as our guide, who told us he had come from Sciowith an English lord, who left the island four days previous to ourarrival in his felucca. "He engaged me as a pilot," said the Greek,"and would have taken me with him; but I did not choose to quitMitylene, where I am likely to get married. He was an odd, but a verygood man. The cottage over the hill, facing the river, belongs to him,and he has left an old man in charge of it: he gave Dominick, thewine-trader, six hundred zechines for it, (about L250 Englishcurrency,) and has resided there about fourteen months, though notconstantly; for he sails in his felucca very often to the differentislands."
This account excited our curiosity very much, and we lost no time inhastening to the house where our countryman had resided. We werekindly received by an old man, who conducted us over the mansion. Itconsisted of four apartments on the ground-floor--an entrance hall, adrawing-room, a sitting parlour, and a bed-room, with a spaciouscloset annexed. They were all simply decorated: plain green-stainedwalls, marble tables on either side, a large myrtle in the centre, anda small fountain beneath, which could be made to play through thebranches by moving a spring fixed in the side of a small bronze Venusin a leaning posture; a large couch or sofa completed the furniture.In the hall stood half a dozen English cane chairs, and an emptybook-case: there were no mirrors, nor a single painting. Thebedchamber had merely a large mattress spread on the floor, with twostuffed cotton quilts and a pillow--the common bed throughout Greece.In the sitting-room we observed a marble recess, formerly, the old mantold us, filled with books and papers, which were then in a largeseaman's chest in the closet: it was open, but we did not thinkourselves justified in examining the contents. On the tablet of therecess lay Voltaire's, Shakspeare's, Boileau's, and Rousseau's workscomplete; Volney's Ruins of Empires; Zimmerman, in the Germanlanguage; Klopstock's Messiah; Kotzebue's novels; Schiller's play ofthe Robbers; Milton's Paradise Lost, an Italian edition, printed atParma in 1810; several small pamphlets from the Greek press atConstantinople, much torn, but no English book of any description.Most of these books were filled with marginal notes, written with apencil, in Italian and Latin. The Messiah was literally scribbled allover, and marked with slips of paper, on which also were remarks.
The old man said: "The lord had been reading these books the eveningbefore he sailed, and forgot to place them with the others; but,"said he, "there they must lie until his return; for he is soparticular, that were I to move one thing without orders, he wouldfrown upon me for a week together; he is otherways very good. I oncedid him a service; and I have the produce of this farm for the troubleof taking care of it, except twenty zechines which I pay to an agedArmenian who resides in a small cottage in the wood, and whom the lordbrought here from Adrianople; I don't know for what reason."
The appearance of the house externally was pleasing. The portico infront was fifty paces long and fourteen broad, and the fluted marblepillars with black plinths and fret-work cornices, (as it is nowcustomary in Grecian architecture,) were considerably higher than theroof. The roof, surrounded by a light stone balustrade, was covered bya fine Turkey carpet, beneath an awning of strong coarse linen. Mostof the house-tops are thus furnished, as upon them the Greeks passtheir evenings in smoking, drinking light wines, such as "lachrymachristi," eating fruit, and enjoying the evening breeze.
On the left hand as we entered the house, a small streamlet glidedaway, grapes, oranges and limes were clustering together on itsborders, and under the shade of two large myrtle bushes, a marble seatwith an ornamental wooden back was placed, on which we were told, thelord passed many of his evenings and nights till twelve o'clock,reading, writing, and talking to himself. "I suppose," said the oldman, "praying" for he was very devout, "and always attended our churchtwice a week, besides Sundays."
The view from this seat was what may be termed "a bird's-eye view."A line of rich vineyards led the eye to Mount Calcla, covered witholive and myrtle trees in bloom, and on the summit of which an ancientGreek temple appeared in majestic decay. A small stream issuing fromthe ruins descended in broken cascades, until it was lost in the woodsnear the mountain's base. The sea smooth as glass, and an horizonunshadowed by a single cloud, terminates the view in front; and alittle on the left, through a vista of lofty chesnut and palm-trees,several small islands were distinctly observed, studding the lightblue wave with spots of emerald green. I seldom enjoyed a view morethan I did this; but our enquiries were fruitless as to the name ofthe person who had resided in this romantic solitude: none knew hisname but Dominick, his banker, who had gone to Candia. "The Armenian,"said our conductor, "could tell, but I am sure he will not,"--"Andcannot you tell, old friend?" said I--"If I can," said he, "I darenot." We had not time to visit the Armenian, but on our return to thetown we learnt several particulars of the isolated lord. He hadportioned eight young girls when he was last upon the island, and evendanced with them at the nuptial feast. He gave a cow to one man,horses to others, and cotton and silk to the girls who live by weavingthese articles. He also bought a new boat for a fisherman who had losthis own in a gale, and he often gave Greek Testaments to the poorchildren. In short, he appeared to us, from all we collected, to havebeen a very eccentric and benevolent character. One circumstance welearnt, which our old friend at the cottage thought proper not todisclose. He had a most beautiful daughter, with whom the lord wasoften seen walking on the sea-shore, and he had bought her apiano-forte, and taught her himself the use of it.
Such was the information with which we departed from the peaceful isleof Mitylene; our imaginations all on the rack, guessing who thisrambler in Greece could be. He had money it was evident: he hadphilanthropy of disposition, and all those eccentricities which markpeculiar genius. Arrived at Palermo, all our doubts were dispelled.Falling in company with Mr. FOSTER, the architect, a pupil of WYATT'S,who had been travelling in Egypt and Greece, "The individual," saidhe, "about whom you are so anxious, is Lord Byron; I met him in mytravels on the island of Tenedos, and I also visited him at Mitylene."We had never then heard of his lordship's fame, as we had been someyears from home; but "Childe Harolde" being put into our hands werecognized the recluse of Calcla in every page. Deeply did we regretnot having been more curious in our researches at the cottage, but weconsoled ourselves with the idea of returning to Mitylene on somefuture day; but to me that day will never return. I make thisstatement, believing it not quite uninteresting, and in justice to hislordship's good name, which has been grossly slandered. He has beendescribed as of an
unfeeling disposition, averse to associating withhuman nature, or contributing in any way to sooth its sorrows, or addto its pleasures. The fact is directly the reverse, as may be plainlygathered from these little anecdotes. All the finer feelings of theheart, so elegantly depicted in his lordship's poems, seem to havetheir seat in his bosom. Tenderness, sympathy, and charity appear toguide all his actions: and his courting the repose of solitude is anadditional reason for marking him as a being on whose heart Religionhath set her seal, and over whose head Benevolence hath thrown hermantle. No man can read the preceding pleasing "traits" withoutfeeling proud of him as a countryman. With respect to his loves orpleasures, I do not assume a right to give an opinion. Reports areever to be received
The Vampyre; a Tale Page 9
