lection of Roman and Egyptian antiquities in this palace is unsur passed. One might pass months and months in the examination of the numerous objects in the Vatican, and finally give up in despair.

Rome also abounds in many private palaces of great note, some of which contain rare paintings, statuary, etc. All are accessible, and their owners seem to take pride in exhibiting them to the world. Many of these elegant mansions, once the abode of luxury and wealth, are now vacant, and their occupants banished in foreign lands. Rome, like Florence, was too weak to govern herself, and consequently fell into the hands of a foreign power. The French are in possession of the city, which was once the mistress of the world. A regiment of Swiss guards are hired to protect the person of the Pope, whose political influence is on the decline. The people want a republic, and they are only waiting for an opportunity to renew hostilities.

LETTER THIRTY-FOUR.

ROME, Italy.

The Pope in state on the Corso-American Chapel in Rome The Forum, Pantheon, Coliseum, and other ancient remains-Drive on the Appian Way-Excursions in the neighborhood of Rome.

"While stands the Coliseum, Rome shall stand;
When falls the Coliseum, Rome shall fall;
And when Rome falls, the world."

BEFORE entering into the precincts of the "city of the dead," about which so many learned disquisitions have been recorded, and so many orations delivered, I must describe to you briefly a procession on the Corso, and festival at the church of San Carlo, in which the Pope, his Cardinals, and the Senators of Rome participated. Such gala-days are not unfrequent in the Holy City, and consequently create very little excitement among the citizens; while the stranger from a far country, unused to such display and ceremony, is all alive to see and learn the modus operandi. Hearing that this festival was to take place at a certain hour, we walked from our hotel to the Corso, through which the procession was to pass. The street on either side was lined with the French soldiery, and the balconies,

ornamented with yellow curtains, were occupied by well-dressed females, with flowers in their hands, as an offering to his Holiness. In a few minutes after our arrival, the Swiss Guards, dressed in a uniform introduced by Michael Angelo, and similar in appearance to the coat of many colors made by Israel in his old age for his son Joseph, made their appearance at one end of the long street, followed by a numerous train of carriages filled with the Pope, his Cardinals, the Senators and the High Priests of the city. The carriage containing his Holiness was exceedingly elegant, drawn by six spirited black horses, and mounted with six outriders. As it moved slowly along the Corso, the soldiery laid down their arms, every person fell upon his knees, and the Pope with the mystic sign of his finger, bowing first to the right and then to the left, created a scene at once solemn and impressive. Arrived at the church of San Carlo, he was taken out of his carriage, placed in a large arm-chair, and carried through the different aisles on the shoulders of his Cardinals, followed by a procession of priests, bearing torches, incense, etc. Two priests, holding in their hands enormous fans, made out of peacocks' feathers, walked on either side of the chair, and the females present were all dressed in black, and veiled so closely that it was impossible for the closest observer to obtain a furtive glance at their hidden faces. To go through the details of the ceremony would be uninteresting to you; suffice to say, that it occupied about three hours, and it is only one out of more than one hundred festivals that take place every year in the Eternal City.

After the conclusion of the various forms alluded to, the Pope repaired to the Vatican, and we to the American Legation, where we listened to an excellent sermon, delivered by a gentleman from the State of Michigan. Fifteen or twenty Amèricans were present, making one feel as if he were at home listening to the doctrines of divine wisdom from the lips of some familiar friend. The chapel is attached to the Legation, and is supported by voluntary contribution. It is the first and only Protestant church ever established in Rome -a privilege granted by the Pope to our present Chargé d'Affaires on account of the interest taken by him in the revolution of 1849, and the high regard entertained by the Pope for the people and government of the United States.

For the antiquarian, fond of searching out and deciphering ancient

inscriptions; for the architect, who desires to see the highest achievements in his art; for the historian, who wishes to chronicle the mighty works of the past; for the artist, who wishes to catch inspiration from the living pictures of the old masters; and for the poet, who wishes to infuse into his verse the spirit of bygone ages, let him visit the Eternal City. Here they will find a field rich in all that is calculated to inspire the creative mind. Before going beyond the walls of the present city, there is much to see in the way of antiquities that I have not heretofore alluded to. The Pantheon still stands in a perfect state, and occupied as a church. It is situated in the herb-market, a small dirty piazza, rarely frequented at the present day, except by the lowest people. We have had no opportunity of examining the interior of the rotunda, on account of the water which was at times two or three feet deep on the pavement, from the overflow of the Tiber. The portico, which is composed of sixteen Corinthian columns of oriental granite, with capitals and bases of Greek marble, has been admitted by most writers to be beyond criticism, and indeed the entire structure fully merits the description given by Byron in his Childe Harold:

Simple, erect, severe, austere, sublime,

Shrine of all saints and temple of all gods,

From Jove to Jesus-spared and blessed by time,
Looking tranquillity, while falls and nods

Arch, empire, each thing round thee, and man plods

His way through thorns-glorious dome!

Shalt thou not last? Time's scythe and tyrants' rods
Shiver upon thee-sanctuary and home

Of art and piety-Pantheon! Pride of Rome."

Not far from this stately structure is the Dogana di Terra, or Roman custom-house, formerly the Temple of Antoninus Pius. Eleven columns of Greek marble in the Corinthian style still adorn the front of the edifice, but are much injured by time and the action of fire. Just beyond, at the foot of the Quirinal, are the remains of the celebrated Forum of Trajan, and the unrivalled column, which still stands the pride of Rome in the midst of its ruins. Most of the Forum was buried many feet under the surface, but the excavations of recent years have brought to light many beautiful specimens of architecture that would otherwise have been lost to the world. The

fragments of many columns, made of Egyptian granite, still occupy their original position, and convey to the mind some idea of the extent and magnificence of the building that was once the pride of Rome. The space occupied by the ruins is now inclosed with a wooden fence, used by the washerwomen in the neighborhood for drying clothes upon. The square is built up badly, and quite as uninviting as the region round about the Pantheon. Ascending the Quirinal from the Forum, we went into the gardens of the Colonna Palace, which are remarkable for several pine trees of enormous size, and the massive fragments of a building, supposed to be the Temple of the Sun. Passing the Palace of the Pope and the celebrated fountain in the piazza on the summit of the Quirinal, we proceeded to the Viminal, upon which are the remains of the Bath of Diocletian, said to have covered many acres. The ruins of this structure are now apparent in a portion of a circuit of brick wall, in an immense hall converted into a church, called St. Maria of the Angles, and other large brick walls and arches used for different purposes. Some of the pillars of the hall still remain in their original position. We counted eight made of Egyptian granite which measured fifty feet in height, and five feet through. Every thing evinces what great amount of labor was bestowed by the ancients upon their baths. Many objects of interest are to be seen in this neighborhood, such as the barracks of Diocletian, the garden of Sallust, the Porta Salina, through which the Sabine women entered, and the Villa of Albano, celebrated for its gardens and great collection of rare statuary and paintings.

The most prominent objects of curiosity in the way of antiquities, occupy but a small space in and near the Capitoline and Aventine Hills. Just back of the Capitol is the celebrated Roman Forum, occupying the valley formed by the two hills. The floor of the ancient edifice is about twenty feet below the surface of the earth, but has been mostly excavated, and is now plainly seen. Fourteen columns are still standing, and the Arch of Septimus Severus is almost perfect. We descended into the prison near the Forum, in which St. Paul and St. Peter are said to have been confined; drank of the water out of the well in the centre of the dungeon; placed our hands in the print made on the wall by the head of St. Peter, when smitten by the soldier, and saw the hole through which he made his miracu

lous escape. The dungeon is about thirty feet under ground, and the entrance is occupied as a chapel, to which hundreds resort daily for the purpose of prayer. On the summit of the Aventine are the remains of the Palace of the Cæsars. The brick arches are used for stables, and the space occupied by the palace is now covered over with a garden of vegetables. Just beyond we passed through the arch of Titus, and the ruined temple of Venus, to the great Coliseum, which is without question the most stupendous ruin in the world. Most things, as seen through the writings of travellers, and the highly telescopic medium of popular report, usually fall short of one's expectations; but the Coliseum is, in truth, far ahead of any description that I have ever read; it cannot be exaggerated, but, on the contrary, richly merits all the high eulogiums bestowed upon it in ancient and modern times. It is not so perfect as the one at Verona, as much of the stone has been taken away and used for build ing the palaces of modern Rome. This unhallowed demolition, I am happy to say, has been prohibited, and Pope Pius IX. deserves much praise for his restorations here and elsewhere. Only two thirds of the original structure now remain, which is amply sufficient to verify the truth of the lines quoted in the commencement of this letter. It is built of large blocks of travertine, brick work, and tufa; the Corinthian, Doric and Ionic orders prevail, and its shape, as usual, is elliptical. The arena, which was once the scene of gladiatorial spectacles, now contains the peaceful cross, promising for every kiss an indulgence of two hundred days, and fourteen statues of our Lord's Passion are arranged around it. A Franciscan monk preaches in the arena every Friday, and who that has ever listened to divine service in the Coliseum can fail to remember the solemn impressions created upon his mind on such an occasion ?

Leaving this wonderful monument of ancient Rome, we procured a carriage and drove out on the Appian Way, which is not only interesting of itself, but passes through miles of ruined tombs and broken walls, that are full of historical recollections. The Baths of Caracalla first attracted our attention. They are situated on the eastern slopes of the Aventine, and are the most perfect of all the Roman therma, and with the exception of the Coliseum, are the most extensive ruins in Italy. They occupy an area not less than one mile in circuit, and give one a more correct idea of the extent