Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-01-22

not as from nome; Tor Nature has
given 1t to us as an inn to rest in, not
as dwelling place. o glorious day,
when l shall leave this base multitude
and go to the divine council and COM
pany OF souls!"
Roman Art.
Let us take a walk in the Forum.
This Is Rome at her best: hardly
Athens herself could boast so many
masterpieces of architecture In so small
space. Here at the entrance Is a
miniature Temple of Vesta. charming
In its circular colonnade. Farther on
to the right is an absurd Temple of
the Deified Julius Caesar: here men
come to offer sacrifices to the shade
OF the mighty conqueror. who smiled
IN skeptic scorn as he played Pontifex
Maximus to the gods. To the left Is
triumphal arch erected for Augustus;
one of the most characteristic of
Roman structures, herald OF long line
of limitations on many continents
Still farther on. two great "basilicas,"
or royal halls, built by Caesar and
Augustus for the transaction of the
multiplying business of the state: note
in each of them a row OF windows Just
below the roof Ca "clerestory'O. letting
in light without heat into the great
spaces within. Between these two
buildings and the Senate house is the
old Forum. with its splendid rostrum.
or speakers platform, at its head: on
these flagstoneS there has been much
history. Back Of the platform rises the
arch of Septimius Severus. destined to
survive despite its crudity for two thou
sand years. And then at our left a
handsome Temple OF Saturn. on our
right the Temple OF Concord. and on
the peak of the Capitoline Hill the
majestic Temple of Jove
Much of this is imitation. as most
art in its beginnings must be. The
colonnade and architrave have been
taken, of course. from Greece. But the
imitation is not slavish; here. for ex-
ample. is the first European use Of the
arch and the vault: from these stern
simpliflcations will grow the glory OF
the Gothic cathedrals. And see those
slender Corinthian columns on the
Temple of Castor and -Pollux: they
date from ABA B. c.: they will be de-
stroyed. but they will be restored. and
the twentieth century traveller will find
them the loveliest thing in Rome.
The wealth of the empire increases
and new buildings are added yearly 70
the old-the Forum of Caesar. the Fo-
rum OF Augustus. VeSpasian's Forum OF
Peace. and the largest and finest OF
them all. the Forum of Trajan. adorned
with that lofty Column OF Trajan. on
which Roman sculptors have carved in
papyrus. the tale of his wanderings and
victories. And here is the great Pan
theon C"home of all the gods'). begun
by Augustus Gen. Agrippa and CON-
pleted by Hadrian. It's roof dares TO
innovate upon the fiat or triangular
plan OF the Greeks: it rests upon an
immense vault and stretches l40 feet
across in one of the greatest domes In
the world. That dome is of one piece
made of concrete poured into q vast
wooden mold: when the frame is
removed the concrete dome will stand
without a crack or a flaw. apparently
forever.
Go farther still: Here is the Arch OF
| Titus, audaciouSly combining Ionic and
Corinthian capitals. and here Is the
towering Arch of Constantine. OF In
the distance are the great Baths OF
Caracalla and Diocletian. among the
/ largest structures ever reared. and sig
nificant for their use of the barrel cor
tunneD vault. Down in the plain Is
VespaSian's Colosseum. the largest am
phitheater on earth. seating $4,000 peo-
I pie. rising in circular symmetry tier on
Tier toward the sky. and destined IN the
DAYS of It's ruins to provide stones for q
thousand dwellings In Rome.
There by the Tiber Is Hadrian's i'm
mense tomb, which viii later BE- known
as the CASTILLO SAINT Angelo. will be-
come the prison of Benyenuto Cellini
and lesser men. and will stand. shorr
OF its ancient marble covering. for many
centuries. Far away In the provinceS-irl
Asia. Greece and Africa. in Spain and
France and Britain--other masterpieces
Of Roman architecture viii rise. the
Temple OF Jupiter Olympus rebuilt al
Athens by Hadrian. the Temple of the
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