San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1878-08-31

two Forums, the Bourse, the Stabian
Baths, the Tragedy Theater and the
Comedy Theater are all vast in their
proportions. The Amphitheater was
capable of seating an audience OF 10000,
and both the theaters were larger than
Ford's Opera House and the Academy
of Music combined. The two forums
were very large, the Civil Forum and
aduncts occupying as much space as
two squares at Eutaw Place; while the
Bourse, or Stock Board, was twice as
large as the hall occupied by the Stock
Board of Baltimore. In fact, here are
all the evidences of great and import
ant city of unbounded wealth, and aim
ing to rival Rome. The Forum was
ornamented on three sides by broad
colorado of Grecian- Doric architecture.
The Senate Chamber and lBasilica was
220 feet long and so broad. In a vault
under its stairway used for prisoners
awaiting trial were found two skeletons
with their ankles manacled. The Pan
theon had also been most elegant
structure, having been used as a resi-
dence for the Augustuses, as we'll as for
religious purposes. The ruins OF the
house of Venus and Mars are distin-
guished for well of pure water, said to
possess medical qualities, not at all
affected by the changes it has under
gone. In the Temple OF Isis there is
also well about twelve feet deep, down
which can be seen rapidly rushing
stream of water. 1t is the coolest and
best water we have tasted in Italy.
The wine shops seem to have been
very numerous, with marble counters,
in which were built up large earthen-
ware jars, each capable of holding a
haE barrel of wine. The counters are
generally square, with an opening in
the center where the vender stood and
dipped out the wine as called for. There
are two undoubted restaurants or cook
shops, where articles were cooked and
sold across the counter. There is also
butcher-shop, with marble block; a
barber-shop, with stone block in the
center, on which the Pompeians sat to
be shaved. Signs on the walls indicate
that other shops were those of marble
workers or mosaic artists. A goat on
the wall indicates milk-shop or dairy;
two men carrying large jug indicated
a wine-shop; two men fighting indicat-
ed gladiatorial school; man whip
ping boy, hoisted on another's back,
indicated IL schoolmaster, and checkers
denoted the door-post of the publican.
The ruins of a drinking saloon have nu-
merous small apartments in the rear,
which served as drinking-rooms. One
g H. non%os~ol fo
of the public festivals of the day. The
shop itself contained furnace, steps
for displaying the glasses and marble
counter, which still exhibits stains of
the liquor or marks of the glasses. The
figure of Mercury was painted on vari-
Gus parts of the house, and some of the
walls are covered with proper names
scratched by the customers upon the
plastering.
The house of the surgeon was found
well supplied with surgical instruments
of forty different varieties. The public
bake-house has four stone mills in it.
The oven stands in perfect condition,
being precisely in the style of the ovens
of the present day, and was full of loaves
of bread when opened, some of which
are in the museum at Naples and some
of them in the museum at the gate. 1t
has four stone mills in it for grinding
grain.
The house of Sallust was the most
magnificent of the private residences
within the walls. 1t seems to have at
tached to it real prototype of the ORR
entail harem, and was most deliberately
decorated. In one of these rooms was
found the skeleton of a young female,
supposed to be that of the fair being
who was enshrined in this retreat with
so much privacy and magnifcence.
She had four rings on one of her hands,
set with engraved stones, five gold
bracelets, two earrings, and thirty-two
pieces of money were found lying near
her. Close at hand were found the
skeletons of three other females, sup
posed to have been her slaves.
The villa of Diomede, Immediately
outside the walls, judging from the ru-
ms left, must have been an extensive and
magnificent establishment, decorated in
the highest style of art and embellished
with statuary, paintings, fountains,
bathing-rooms and gardens. Beneath
the portico, and below the level of the
gardens, was the wine cellar, long
archway not less than 100 feet in length.
A long row of wine jars, encrusted in
lava, each about four feet high, stands
in this vault. On the night of the erup-
ton the owner appears to have lost the
love of kindred in his effort to save his
own life, for his skeleton was found,
and that of an attendant, near the
garden-gate, the one still holding in
his bony grasp the key of the villa,
while the other was carrying purse
containing 100 gold and silver coins,
and some silver vases. While thus en-