The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1881-01-06
"ROME."
Col. SanfOrd's Lecture Last Evening.

Packed, almost like herring in a
box, was the audience that filled the
spacious new Court House last eve
ming to hear the popular lecturer,
Col. Sanford, who had so charmed
the people the previous evening with
his lecture on "Japan and China"
Impatient and restless was the crowd
to have the lecture begin, and when,
finally, he appeared on the rostrum,
a storm of applause, long and loud,
greeted him, after which you could
have heard pin drop, SO intense
was the interest as the gifted speaker
proceeded with his glowing recital
of well told story. With Col.
Sanford the auditors journeyed to the
gates of the Holy city, and it seemed
actually walked with him along its
historic streets, and through the
many places of interest with which
that city abounds. Going with him
up narrow street, swarming with
beggars cooking garlics, leeks, on
ions and other highly favored vege-
tables, which filled the air with many
a scent of which the city of Cologne
would not be very proud to have
charged up to her sweet scent ac-
count. He gave the beggars a cent
and in return received more scents
than ever were found in the loft of
a boarding shanty. Through this
narrow and well scented street he
plodded, in search of st. Peters fa-
nous Cathedral, thinking the while
that he had, by some mistake, got
into an alley or by-lane, until he
came to the noble pile, St. Peters,
whose fame as church edifice and
masterpiece of architecture, challen-
ges the world. Stepping across the
threshold we enter st. Peters with
Col. Sanford, and are with him sur
prised at the smallness of the church.
A minister from Baltimore ap-
preached the Colonel and appreciat-
ing his thoughts, at once commenced
to "take in" the rustic traveller, by
asking him questions as to the di-
mensions of the room they were
in. Colonel Sanford guessed the
room was 36 feet high, when in re-
ality it was III feet; that it was 60
PAGES long, when an actual pacing of
its length surprised him with count
of 228 PAGES. A marble statue that
he thought to be about six feet high
and on the head of which he at
tempted to place his hand, he found
by actual trial, it was with the great
est difficulty that he succeeded in
reaching its arm pits.
The description of the paintings
and other works of art, in this noble
building, were given with an elo-
quence which claimed the attention
of the enraptured audience.
st. Peters church was 100 years
in building and could not be dupli-
Gated to-day for $60,OO0,OOO of our
money. Rome, he said, was a small
city of about 100000 inhabitants,
with an ever ending round of objects
of interest to the traveller. After
seeing a few streets in cities like
New York, Chicago, Harrisburg and
Ridgway, a person would go away
satisfied, not SO with Rome, in which
place weeks could be spent with
never failing interest. Under Rome
60 miles of catacombs, Or, in fact, a
huge grave yard, was visited by the
Col. who related how cheerful
person felt to have the light go ont
in darkness, while the entertaining
guide would tell cheerful stories of
travellers who had lost their way in
the labyrinth of streets, and perished
in a most nntimely manner. With
him we visited the COLISEUM whose
eaatino aapacity ;c On 0n0 naoYIo