St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-06-18

DccOne ODilterateu. LII is HotOriOuS
fact that means of preservation are the
most readily taken where the cause of
might best be served by de-
cay. The mosaic pavements of some of
the houses are very beautiful, and
though the roofs are lacking, the entire
internal arrangement of the dwellings
is readily seen. After inspecting the
many relics treasured in the Museum at
Naples, the visitor to the disentombed |
city eomprehends quite thoroughly the
modes of life pursued by the Pompeian
people. A museum at Pompeii also
contains many interesting objects, in
Guiding casts of some of the bodies bu-
ried with the city. So perfect did the
ashes and mud preserve the shape of
the human forms, that when the figures
are reproduced in plaster by pouring
that material into the mould, even the
station in life of the person may be told
by the texture and fashion of the cloth
ing. Pompeii, it must be known, per-
ished from showers of ashes and mud,
not from the burning lava as did Her
culaneum. The material is removed
without any great difficulty, and is car
ried away in baskets to some dumping
ground by men, women and children.
CAPRI AND SORRENTO.
An excursion by steamer to Capri
and Sorrento occupied one of the days
of our visit. 1t was a perfect day, and
we enjoyed new and glorious views of
the Bay and its lovely shore. Capri is
an island at the outer boundary of the
Bay, some 20 miles from Naples. For
eleven years, beginning A. D. 26, the
Emperor Tiberius lived there in great
magnificence, and the island is now
strewn with the ruins of the beautiful
buildings he erected. We entered the
famous Blue GrottO in little boats, the
opening being so small that the passen-
gers had to lie in the bottom of the
boats, or stoop very low to avoid strik-
ing their heads. Once within the por-
tai the visitor seems transported to
fairy land. The cavern is broad and
high, and everything has cerulean
hue, the water is very clear and very
blue, and when agitated corruscates
and dances in new forms of beauty. The
strangest sight of all was when bath
er disported himself in the water, div
ing and swimming about in the azure
We landed at Capri amid group of
bare-legged Italian girls, who impor-
tuned us to buy coral ornaments or to
ride on the dOnkeys they led. The in
vestment of lire twenty cents) result
ed in pocket full of cOrals or almost
any desired amount of donkey riding.
After dinner at the Hotel du Louvre
and de Tiberio, which by the way is
kept by Mr.. Stanford, an Englishman,
we returned to Naples, stopping on the
way at Sorrento, which is very pictur-
esquely situated on PERCEPTIONS rock
by the shore. 1 would like to write
more of this excursion, and much else
about our pleasant sojOurn in Naples,
but must desist.
PISA AND ITS SIGHTS,
On leaving Naples we returned to
Rome for an extra day or two, and then
sped on to Pisa. The sights of this an
cient town are few and are grouped to-
gether so that a short visit suffices for q
visit to them all. We arrived at night
stopped at the Hotel Minerve, and dur.
ing the next forenoon had ample time
for our sightseeing. After driving
through the city we went first to the
Cathedral, large and beautiful edifice
of white marble, built eight centuries
ago. The interior embellishments arc
exceedingly fine, and include some
beautiful paintings. The Baptistery is
circular building, also of marble, of q
little later date. 1t contains some fine
carvings, and also possesses a remarka
BILE echo. The Campanile is the famou
Leaning Tower, the pictures of which
are familiar to'every school boy. 1t
height is 179 feet, and it stands no les
than thirteen feet out Of the perpendic
ular. This deviation from an uprigh
position is productive of peculiar sen
sation when one ascends the stairs tina
lead around the inside. The tower wa
built so long ago (between 1l74 ant
1850 that it is not known whether til,
popularity in it's construction was in
territorial or not. The general belief
however, is that the walls on enc sid,
settled in the early years of its con
struction, and that the work was thel
carried forward in accordance with tn
accidental deviation from an uprigh
position. The view from the top is yer,
fine. In the rear of the Cathedral an,
Baptistery is the Campo Santo, buri
al place founded nearly seven hundre,
years ago, and containing many beau
tiful monuments. These are in serie
of aIcades, which also contain some in
teresting old frescoes. Fifty-thre
ship-lOads of earth from Mount Calva
ry were originally brought here in orde
that the dead might repose in hol.
ground.
GENOA.
From Pisa we jOurneyed to Geno
over railway that runs along tn
Mediterranean shore, and through a
almost continuous line of tunnels. Th
distance is 1041 miles, and there are n