New-York daily tribune., 1843-09-28
THE TRFH UNE.
Letters frem Italy. No. XIX.
Tue CAPITOL AND VATICAN.
oEeiga Correspondence of the n Y Tribace

able objects pus in one letter. bet am going lEto
no description Of galleries. wish to mention
Two or three Thugs only in each. To-day went
10 the Capitol, and aiicr having traVersed the
length Of the Corso | came to a noble flight OF
steps that brought me to The top o. the Cep!,o-
line hill. The buildings on It were designed by
Michael Angelo They stand in the form Of
parallelogram, with the main flight Of steps at
one end. At the bottom OF the steps is the Old
Roman milestone that marked the first mile OF
the Appian way At the top are two statues oil
Castor and Pollux standing beside their horses
In The centre Of TIE parallellogram stands the
bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, the
only one that has been handed down from anti
guilty. It is considered the finest equestrian
statue n existence. Il was once covered with
gold, and spots Of the gliding still! remain. The
enthusiastic love Of Michael Angelo for it is well
Known When it stood in font of the Lateran
!, was an important object amid the festivities
that celebrated Rienzi's elevation to tie rank Of
Tribune Amid the rejoicings Of that melnora-
bic day, wine was made to run out of one nosirl
and water out Of the other. The building al the
farther end is the "PALAcE OF THE SENATOR'S
inrs, Scc.--many of tho deepest interest. Among
others, the bronze wolf" the thunder stricken
nurse of Rome"--about which SO much has been
written and so much controversy expended IN
vain From all that can be gathered, it is doubt
less the one to which Cicero more than once allu-
ded That wolf was once struck with lightning
in the Capitol, and one leg of this has evidently
been partly melted away in a similar manner
Said Cicero, in one of his memorable attacks on
Catalinc, 9" Tactus est illc etiam qu hanc urbem
condidit Romulus quem inauratum in Capotoo
parvum atquc lactantem uberibus lupins inhi-
antem fuisse meministisn - This, too, one of the
objects of deepest reverence, had the Gods smit-
ten, as an evidence of their anger. In the pal.
ace is the famous "dying gladiator" This is
one Of those few statues was not disappointed
In AS looked upon that manly dying form, and
caught the mingled expression of pain and sorrow
on his noble face, could not refrain from tears.
am vcxcd at the discussions Of antiguarians
about this statue. | care not whether it be a
fancy piece, or slave, or Gallo herald, or a
dying gladiator There he lies dying-dyng
from wound foe has given him-dying too
innocent. His whole expression tells of man
who fought from necessity, not will. There is no
anger in it, but the reverse; none of the fierce
passions that kindle in the human face when foe
meets foe. The whole couutenancc is beyond
expression uourniu The eve utters his despair,
telling in thrilling accents that the last hope of
life is given up-tho slightly wrlnklcd brow and
yielding lip speak his pain, willie the cloted hair
tells Of the long and exhausting fight before he
fell. Every limb of the noble form speaks Of the
terrible excrtion it has put forth in the struggle
for life. And then over all tho face is that
dreamy expression that shows the heart is far
away amid other scenes. How natural he lies
upon his arm, gradually sinking lower and lower
as the big drops" oozc from the fountain of life
thought of Byron as stood beside 1t, and of
the intense feeling with which he gazed upon It.
His stanzas are the most literally correct dcscrp-
ton ever written. He has hit every expression Of
the figure, and when the f" inhuman shout" rung
ever the arena to his victor, you know
He heard it bu, ne needed not-his eyes
Were with his heart. and tha; was Tar away,
He rocked not of the life lie lost nor prize,
Bu. where his rude hut b. the Danube lay,
There his yourc baTbarians sl at play.
There their Dacian mother-he ;heir love,
Rutchered make Roman holiday
All this rushed with his blood
That figure and expression are fixed in my men,
ory like those of one who died years ago and left
me but half world behind.
With one long stride step into the Vatican, as
the papal palace, museum, &c. that JOIN St Pc
tiers, are called. Here is LAGOON, ;hatncn nave
poe,izcd, as we'll the dying gladiator, and yet
1t pleases me not. havea feeling OF horror ii is
true in looking upon it. and that is all. l have
no deep sympathy for LAGOON himself. Master
critics have long ago settled the perfection Of
the work. There is life and force in it. The I
little child with one foot raised to press down the
folds OF the serpent that are tighten;7g around !
the other leg, Is terribly true and hie-like. Bu1
the whole expression Of I.aocoon s that of |
weak man, utterly overcome with tcyror-mas.
tered more completely by fear than strong.
minded man ever can be. There seems no re-
sistancc left II the man, and you feel that such
character never could die decently While | ad.
ni.ed the work, could no, love The group On
the gladator's face such utter terror never could
be written. The terrific sights that could write
such fear on his features Go not exist. will no,
attempt to take you through the Vatican. This
FIRST time I roamcd through 1t without guide,
book or question. The Apollo Belvidere and
LAGOON could not mistake, neither did wish
any one to tell me when came TO the Transfgu-
fssion. And yet went away vcxcd and irritated.
Ny utter inability 10 see half as it ought 10 be
Seen, prevented my enjoying any thing. Again
and again strollcd throug its iulnense balls,
| can only sayiti forest o .statuary, and ought