young’s TRAVELS IN FRANCE.
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pollards for training vines. Reach Dofenzano in the dark. What my religious com-panion did with herfelf, 1 know not; I fupped alone, thanking God fhe had not the eyesof the Bergamafque fair. In the night, I thought the noife of water was different fromthat of a II ream, and opening the windows in the morning, found it the waves of a finelake. The Lago di Garda was out of my recolledlion.-- 15 miles.
The 21 ft. Coaft the lake, with good views of it for feveral miles. From Brefcia toVerona , but efpecially to Defenzano, I believe there are fifty croffes by the fide of theroad for deaths. When a perfon is murdered they fet up a crofs for the good of hisfoul. They had better inftitute a police for that of his body. What a fcandal to a go-vernment are fuch proofs of their negligence! yet that of Venice is called a wife one.Impaffable roads, towns unlighted, and a full harveft of affaflinations ; with men count-ing their beads, and women croffing themfelves, are the chief figns of wifdom l have yetfeen. Arrive at Verona in time to deliver a letter to Signore Cagniola, aftronomer andfecretary of the Agrarian Society : this muff be a pretty inftitution, a fociety of farmers,with an aftronomer for their fecretary. He introduced me at the coffee houfe of thePiazza to fonie lovers of agriculture; and made an appointment with the prefident of thefociety for to-morrow.-25 miles.
The 22d. Ill luck: the prefident is obliged to go into the country ; and he thinksme, I fuppofe, like Italian theorifts, tied to a town. Signore Cagniola directed his fer-vant to ihew me to the houfe of Signore Michael Angelo Locatelli, to whom he hadnamed the objedt of my journey laft night. I found this gentleman, who is engaged incommerce, but who has two farms in his hands, ready to converfe with me on the fub-jedl of my enquiries ; of Signore Cagniola, I faw or heard no more. I felt myfelf un-comfortable at Verona , till 1 had feen the amphitheatre, which is in truth a noble remainof antiquity, folid and magnificent enough yet to laft perhaps fome thoufands of years;that of Nifmes, cluttered up with houfes, muft not be named with this. As I flood onthe verge of this noble building, 1 could not but contemplate in idea, the innumerablecrouds of people who had been fpedtators of the fcenes exhibited in it: the refledtionwas attended with what is to me a melancholy impreflion—the utter oblivion in whichfuch hofts are now loft! time has fwept their memories from the earth —has left themno traces in the records of mankind ; yet here were wit and beauty, wealth and power;
the vibrations of hope and fear; the agitations of exertion and enterprize-all buried
in the filenee of feventeen hundred years ’ — I read the works of fo few poets, that 1 knownot if the idea of fuch oblivion have been to them as melancholy as it is to me; if fo,they have doubtlefs given energy to the fentiment, by the force and beauty of their ex--preflions.
The 23d. This morning, I took a cicerone to attend me to view churches and palaces,an uncomfortable method, but when a traveller has one principal purfuit, fuch fecondaryobjedts muft give way. The great fault here, as every where elle, is being carried totoo many things. Nothing ftrikes more at Verona than the works of an architedl,whofe name is little known in England, San. Michael Michieli; they are of diftinguifhedmerit, and muft pleafe every eye. The chapel of the Pellegrini family, in the Bernardine-church, and the rotunda of St. Georgio, are beautiful edifices. There is fomething Angu-lar in the Palazzo Bevilaqua, an idea which might have been copied with more fuccefs,than many others that have been repeated often. The Palazzo di Configlio is Ampleand elegant, and prefents one of the mod pleafing examples of an arcade, for a ftreet orfquare. The theatre is large, but nothing after Milan. My expences at Brefcia, and atVerona are, dinner 3 pauls, fupper 2, chamber 2; which at 5c!. Englilh, are 2s. ud..a-day ; and as I have rooms not at all bad, good beds, and am as well ferved at the mealsas I require, it is remarkably cheap. The