THE IMMORTAL CASANOVA

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 118, 21 May 1938, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE IMMORTAL CASANOVA

"U/HO do you think you are> if Casanova?" For; more than 100 years he has been the whole'world's hero in the legend of love. For more than 100 years the romantic talei of his wild escapades—his adventures and his audacious wooings—have been passed ,on from generation to generation. They say it to-day, young girls in love, to tease) their ardent suitors. / He wm i Hercules among men, this Giovanni Camhova. Tall," strong. A fellow who could est well and enjoy life with gusto. Black lashes guarded eyerf that Hashed with love or ..anger, ryes:"that could soothe, arouse to heights of passion or freeze to the depths of 'fearl- ... Vital was "this Casanova, whose memory will.never dfel.' s ;.■'£?. V He swaggered his way throfugh life. Forever talking Sfld /A viefit•ble athlete in love. V'.,. Good-looking? v * ''' Well . . . yesBut it was not his swarthy face—or force—which he employsd when embarking upon his many conquests, He wanted the sympathy of a woman —not her fear/ He wanted her to adore him, to love him for himself. The fate that was in store for Casanova - was not a pleasant one; _ But when th« world k at your:-feet, when adventure' and psssioh are present every day to speed along your life with zest—then, in triumph, the thought of to-morrow does not haunt or harass. "To-morrow V thought Casanova, "to-morrow will never come. Only to-day . . . only this moonlit night. ..." ♦ ♦ * ♦ Mtet him first as a boy of 11 in Venice, where he was born., Blaclc-haired he ie—and a vital little chap. Sitting up in bed in the garret of his schoolmaster's house. By his side combing his haijr sits a pretty 14-year-old girl. She"is the sister of the and this je Casanova's first love. The first love affair of the boy who the prince of lovers and t.hU h «Bettine. But

"®ettine began to lavish her affections. Young Ca«anova felt contemptuous. He broke off his affair with the "unfaithful one." But it was not long before he fell I desperately in love again. The boy-and-girl kisses and shy glances became | the passions that were to send his name through Time as the great indomitable lover. , * ♦ ♦ * There is the story of the Hungarian captain. He spoke German, Czech and Latin, nothing more. , With him was travelling a "young officer" who spoke only French. At least, that .was the story told and j Casanova was suspicious. j - Casanova lost no time. The Hungarian captain" was poor. An exchange would < be better for all - three. And in a 1 luxurious coach bought for the occasion, Casanova carried his Henriette off t < Parma. The "young officer" was a I < woman! I]

Three month/? of superb happiness followed. Not only was Henriette beautiful. She had been carefully educated and she had every accomplishment. Her one fear now was that she would be recognised-in the going on in Parma. So they remained in seclusion, rejoicing in each other's lore, j Recognition did come, however, and she was forced to return to her family. But on parting, one thought was still for her lover; all hie moDcy now spent. She forced a number of gold coins into his hand. And on the window of their room at the Hotel des Balances,'with a diamond he had once given her, she scratched "Henriette will never forget. Ah! Never! Never!" ♦ ♦ * ♦ Casanova once had to escape himself. And that escape of his was one of the most famous in all history. For Jong the Venice police had been watching Casanova. Spies followed him, and they were broad-minded enough. But Casanova was living at the expense of others, principally by what the law considered fraud. He wrote atheistic poems and satires. And the police did not care for it. When his quarters were raided they found "magical books" in his possession, and at last it seemed that they had enough evidence to throw him into prison. He was not tried. He was not even told of the five years' sentence he received. He did not even know the charges. After falling ill, he was allowed to take a' little exercise in the attic I ad joining his cell. There he found a piece of marble and a bolt nearly two feet long.' Using the marble as a grindstone, he fashioned a sharp spike with which he started cutting a hole in the floor under ! his 'bed. His brain worked acutely. He cut hie finger and showed the bloodstains on bis handkerchief to a doctor, saying that the blood had come from his,lungs. The doctor immediately ordered the gaoler not to sweep the room any more, and the hole remained undiscovered. Two days before he had decided to crawl through the hole he had made, the gaoler came with good news. He was to be transferred to another cell which had wihdows givinjr a wonderf.:? v'ew of Venice as far as the Lido:

Through the gaoler lie made contact with a monk named Balbi in the next cell, where there was a library. Together the two conspired to escane together. Balbi cut a hole in his ceiling and covered it with a holy picture. Then on the agreed night, he climbed through, cut his way into Casanova's cell a"nd they escaped together. ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ It was this sort of audacity that won Casanova his dozens of love affairs in every capital of Europe. On® of . these wa* hie love for the beautiful Therese. It wm at An cone that he heard a bJy named Bellinon sing with a beauteous voice. His figure, however, suggested something feminine. His suspicions were confirmed. And the love began to grow and develop. Then he had to etart a journey to Rimini, and the two travelled together. She told him her story, how her name was Therese, how she had diftguised herself as a boy to win her living on the stage. And to Casanova, Therese offered her life. They determined on marriage, but it never took place. Later they' were to meet again in Holland, Therese now with two children and a host of admirers, but her old love not forgotten.

In Holland, Therese had been Mile. Trenti, a famous singer. And when Caeanova came to London, it waa at her house in Soho Square that he first went where she was living as Mme. Cornelius. For 20 years Casanova wandered about from capital to capital. He met people of every kind. He was a knight of the Papal Order of the Golden Spur. He cured a senator of apoplexy and thereby secured hia patronage. And in his clever, cynical memoirs, he does not spare himself. He glories in his own escapades. He sought adventure and found it. But ... Yes, romantie as Casanova's life undoubtedly was through his early years, Fate caught up with the adventurer. June . . . that mon-th of love and romance he had enjoyed so wildly through the years . . . was the month Fate chose for him to die. So many women his arms had encircled. But no woman's arms rested him as he lay on his deathbed. Dissipation had taken its toll. Alone, a spent and weary man of 78 he died in 1798. ' A librarian now in the castle of Count Waldstein at Dux in Bohemia. Friendless. Forgotten. Melancholic. - . . And unmourned.