| Show P PALACE A L A C 17 4 TO HO HOTEL TEL 0 EW CAREER FOR FORMER BEAU HOME OF EMPRESS magri magn f cent bu id ng on the island of corfu once occue ed by eliza teth of a has ben B en sold to live in a palice pance once the resi rest dence of an em demress ress is not an which comes conies often to the torn tout 1st and no doubt the amer can travel er r in his foreign jaunts will only too eagerly aall himself of the privilege of stopping at the magnificent palace Achil lelon on the island of corfu where the late empress of austria lived for several years in la s s but melancholy seclusion this pal ace built at a cost of a has just been purchased by a swiss SIs ger man syndicate which aich will convert it into a hotel and sani sant arlum the sale of this magnificent pd ace brings to mini many strange memories of the murdered woman A doen years ago she was the most pathetic of the prominent figures in europe follow ing the tragic a suicide of her son the crown prince rudolph her majesty failed rapidly in mind and body until she became a wreck of her former beautiful self A terrible restlessness possessed her towards the end of her ber life she could not stay tor for long in any one place constantly moving 1 about from tyrol to corfu from corfu to switzerland and from vienna to venice but at Achil leion she seemed to find most consolation tor for her many sorrows A greek who rho served the empress as reader in these lonely years has left an account of her life in this great white palace by the blue sea the empress it is said liged to roam about quite alone on the seashore talking to fishing folk and peasants she met there she sut suf greatly from insomnia and was often seen walking on the terraces outside the palaces long before daan dav n like a beautiful ghost in the pale morning when the empress left the palace for the last time in 1890 she felt that she would never see the place again n with rith tears in her ees she said to a friend something in my heart tells me that I 1 shall never come to this beautiful spot again it was only a few weeks later that the deml embress ress was murdered by a half halt crazed fanatic who called himself an amr chist hist as she was about to board a t steamer at geneva the palace which is of pure white marble lids has a fine situation on thi th i A columns and statuary on one side of the palace east coast of corfu which is the most northerly of the ionian island in the adriatic the building was designed by the famous italian archi hect S carito there are rooms and a chapel in an effort to hide her grief in magnificence the em press spared no expense to beautify the place the grounds are especially splendid being planted with some 25 rose trees altogether it is one of the most beautiful residence among the many magnificent place in southern europe |
