Since my letter
to _The Catholic Times_, which appeared in the issue of December
24, it has been pointed out to me that it would be well if I
could procure a written attestation of the priest who gave Extreme
Unction to the late Sir Richard Burton. I am authorized by
Monseigneur Sterk to place in the hands of your Eminence the
enclosed manuscript, written by Monseigneur Martelani, who is
now Prebendary of the Cathedral here. As an intimate friend of
the Burtons, I beg to say that everything said about the life of
the Burtons at this place in the 'true' life has been written by
dictation, and, furthermore, that I could name the authoress's
informant, which makes the book worthless for those who know the
source from which the authoress has gathered her information--the
same source which has made Lady Burton's life hideous from the
day of her husband's death to the time she left this place.
As regards those who claim to have known all about Sir Richard
Burton--'They knew the man well,'etc.--allow me to point out
that the exoteric subtleties of his character were only exceeded
by the esoteric; and to what an extent this is true is only known
to those who were at the same time his friends and his wife's
intimate friends, of whom there are several here beside myself.
My position at the Villa Gosslett was perhaps a little exceptional.
Pages:
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358