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Charity boxes are placed at the doors, for receiving contributions to complete the work. Ranges of enormous pillars, consisting of fasces, divide the aisles, and support the vaulted roof. A series of handsome chapels line one of the walls; but the other is in a rude state, looking more like a store-house than a church. The baptistry is a little tabernacle, occupying one of the aisles. In the decorations of the interior, many specimens of bad taste offend the eye.

In one of the aisles a curious article, somewhat resembling a balloon, or a theatrical cloud, in which spirits travel "from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven," attracted our attention, and our old cicerone, who has reached the age of 75, with few marks of decrepitude, was called on for an explanation. More garrulous than infirm, he told us a long story, the substance of which was as follows:-Once on a time St. Ambrose, in traversing the streets of Rome, saw a carpenter using a nail, which was instantly recognized to be one of the several hundred from the Cross. It was bought for a trifle, as the workman was unconscious of its peculiar value. But no sooner had the saint set out to cross the Campagna, than all the bells in the city began to ring. The Pope and his Cardinals met in conclave; the people were in an uproar; and an army of ecclesiastics pursued the holy fugitive to Milan, for the purpose of recovering the sacred relic. Here

it was agreed that the nail should be thrown up by St. Ambrose, and if it stuck to the roof, it was to be deposited in the temple; but if it fell to the pavement, it was to be returned to Rome. Gravitation was sadly against the chance of the holy man; but what has philosophy to do with miracles? The nail was attracted upward, like Mahomet's coffin, and clung to the ceiling. An ecclesiastical, instead of theatrical, cloud was fashioned, in which the dignitaries of the church ascended to bring down the relic, which is now deposited in the centre of a golden sun, illuminating the high altar; and if any profane hand chances to touch it, the pious are thrown into fits of torture, and give vent to their agony in convulsive screams. In commemoration of this miraculous event, the priests go up once a year as far towards heaven as the Gothic roof will permit, in the machine which called forth this marvellous tale.

But greater wonders than the nail of St. Ambrose were disclosed to our view, in the crypt of the Cathedral. The tomb of San Carlo Borromeo, the patron of Milan and its

vicinity, was opened to our dazzled sight, by no other magic than a fee of four francs. Such a spectacle was worth what it cost, being cheaper than a box-ticket in the Scala. A young priest lighted his flambeau, and bade us follow him into the nether world, proclaiming the "procul, O procul este profani!” as a sort of riot act to the tatterdemalions, who cut short their devotions, and gathered round the hatch-way, anxious to take a peep at the saint through the iron grates, without paying the shot.

Old Borromeo, who was Cardinal and Archbishop in 1577, as appears from a monument behind the high altar, has a richer shrine than the Delphic god or Capitoline Jove could ever boast. A vestibule, adorned with Grecian columns of the rarest marbles, leads to the holy of holies, which is a superb octagonal apartment. Its walls are lined with tapestry, wrought in threads of gold and Tyrian purple. Quenching his torch, lighting three candles, crossing himself, and muttering a brief prayer, the ghostly showman drew the crimson curtains, which conceal the sarcophagus from vulgar eyes. The coffin is of massive silver embossed with gold. Its front is let down with screws, disclosing another sarcophagus of crystal, the panes of which are set in a golden frame, studded with the purest gems. Italian ecclesiastics always take care, that relics shall be seen through a medium, producing a sufficient number of refractions and reflections, The body of the saint is stretched out, wrapped in gorgeous robes, with sandals upon his feet and white gloves upon his hands, decked with rings of topaz and diamond. His head still wears the mitre, and above it is suspended a tiara, glittering with brilliants, and richer than ever sparkled upon a regal brow. His crosier, more suitable for an imperial sceptre than a pastoral staff, lies at his side. His face resembles

an Egyptian mummy. The eye cannot distinguish by candle-light, whether it is flesh, wax, or wood. From the lid of the sarcophagus hang clusters of gold rings, studded with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and other precious gems-offerings from princely devotees. Several of them are from England and other remote countries. There is one present of a curious description. It is a child of massive gold, swaddled in the Roman manner, and looking like a little mummy, or idol. It was offered by Beatrice, Archduchess of Modena, as a fac-simile of one of her own noble infants. From the tomb we were conducted to the Sacristy, where

all the treasures, plate, and relics of the church, consisting of golden chalices, crosses, crowns crosiers, mitres, and other ornaments of the most costly descriptions, were displayed for our inspection. Here are two statues, one of San Carlo, and the other of St. Ambrose, of immense value, composed entirely of gold and silver. Their fingers, as usual, are loaded with rings. Busts of Apostles and Saints, wrought from the precious metals, throng the sanctuary, the riches of which are boundless. Among other curiosities, are relics of the Virgin's robe and veil, consisting of little patches of lace and gingham, hung upon the branches of a metallic tree, as splendid as that, whence Æneas plucked the enchanted twig:

Discolor unde auri per ramos aura refulsit.

It is singular that these treasures have escaped pillage, amidst all the wars and revolutions, conquests and confiscations, to which Milan has been subjected, by foreign nations. The Monday after our arrival was the last day of the Pope's Jubilee at Milan. It was kept holier than the Christian Sabbath, which preceded it. The shops were all shut and the theatres closed. At an early hour, the ancient banner of St. Ambrose, bearing his image wrought in tapestry, was displayed at the front door of the Duomo, and a band of buglemen in red coats, summoned the church militant to the ceremonies of the festa. They were followed by guards of armed soldiery, who pushed the women aside with their bayonets, in marching up the aisles, to join the Cardinal and priesthood in their sacerdotal robes at the altar. As the only means of securing a passage, we fell into the procession, and were probably taken for "persons of distinction." Mass was celebrated to the sound of the trumpet, and the usual quantity of incense was burned.

After the conclusion of ceremonies at the Cathedral, the innumerable multitude moved off in solemn pomp, to the church of St. Ambrogio, in a distant part of the city. Bullion enough was hoisted, in the shape of crucifixes and standards, to purchase a kingdom. Such a spectacle afforded us very little novelty or pleasure, except that it furnished an opportunity of seeing the whole population of Milan and the surrounding country, assembled in their holyday dresses. The Milanese peasantry are less soft and delicate in their manners, as well as less splendid in their costumes, than

those in the south of Italy. They begin to partake of the coarser features and ruder habits of the north. Both sexes drink brandy, and instances of intoxication are not unfrequent. Many of the women of the higher classes are extremely beautiful; symmetrical in their forms, dignified and graceful in their manners, and uniting taste with richness in dress. We saw several with their hair frizzled and powdered, in the fashion of the last century.

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We walked through the subterranean passage, leading from the Cathedral to the Archbishop's Palace. more than a twilight dimness, and the rumbling of carriages along one of the principal streets, was heard above our heads. The wall at the end of the covered way bears the following inscription: "Donne non passino per questa strada”—females must not travel this road. Such a prohibition, which was aimed at those who were in the habit of availing themselves of the obscurity of the avenue, has only served to make it the more frequented, and the injunction seems to be wholly neglected. In groping through its mazes, we

met crowds of women.

The Palace of the Viceroy, consisting of a centre and two wings, fronts upon the piazza del Duomo. It is occu pied by Ranieri, Archduke of Austria, who resides here the greater part of the year, but had gone to Vienna at the time of our visit, probably to receive his orders from the Aulic Council. We found an immense waste of vacant and unfurnished apartments, like those in the regal palaces about St. Mark's, at Venice. Some of them are neatly finished in the French style, having been prepared for the residence of Napoleon and Eugene Beauharnois.

In one end of the basement of the Palace are deposited all the moveable memorials of Napoleon, swept from the saloons and heaped together as rubbish, on the ascendency of the present dynasty. Gallic eagles, Cupids, and winged lions of St. Mark nestle in confusion, among the score of heads of the Emperor by different artists. Much the finest of the group is a semi-colossal bust by Canova, which is said to be one of the most correct likenesses of Bonaparte ever taken. His temples are more hollow, and his nose more prominent, than in the ordinary representations of his face. The bust of Canova himself stands by the side of his immortal subject; and in the general outlines of the two heads, there is a strong resemblance.

LETTER XC.

MILAN CONTINUED-FORUM OF NAPOLEON-CASTLE-CAMPUS MARTIUS-AMPHITHEATRE-ARCH OF THE SIMPLON-GATE OF MARENGO-CORSO-PUBLIC GARDEN-MILITARY ACADEMY -HOSPITALS-AMBROSIAN LIBRARY-GALLERY-FRESCO OF THE LAST SUPPER-THE BRERA-ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS.

October, 1826.-One of the most prominent features in the topography of Milan, is the Campus Martius, with its surrounding structures. It is a green open plain, three or four miles in circumference, lying in the northern part of the city. One section of it is donominated the Forum of Napoleon, forming the parade, under the walls of the castle. It is intersected by walks and planted with young trees. Bonaparte intended to surround it with ranges of palaces, and to open a broad avenue thence in a direct line to the Cathedral. The Citadel rises between this forum, in embryo, and the Field of Mars. It is a monstrous pile, enclosing three spacious courts, crowded with Austrian troops. The corps of lancers were seen upon parade. They are armed with long spears, in the style of Cossacks. There is nothing in the architecture, furniture, or associations of this Castle, that can interest the visitant.

On the east of the Campus Martius, is the great Amphitheatre, constructed under the auspices of Napoleon. A superb gate, supported by Grecian pillars, and enriched with representations of chariot races in bas-relief, leads to the arena. On the western wall, stands a stately pavilion, with a splendid portico and colonnade in front. The amphitheatre is strictly classical in its form and construction, resembling similar works among the old Romans, to which it is scarcely inferior in size and substantial masonry. Its dimensions are something like 600 feet in length, and 400 in breadth. arena is surrounded by a wall of granite, and the seats are composed of immense blocks of the same material, rising to the height of perhaps forty feet. A mound, sufficiently wide for a walk, covered with green turf, and shaded with trees, forms the parapet, and presents a circle of rich foliage. At

The

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