JOTTINGS FROM A TRAVELLER’S JOURNAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume IV, Issue 1100, 15 November 1883, Page 4

JOTTINGS FROM A TRAVELLER’S JOURNAL.

[SMOIAXIiT WRITTEN FOR '* THE ASHBURTON GUARDIAN. ”] CHAPTER XX.—(Continued.) IH Naples—An Affawing Picture—A Feeling op Insecurity—The Aquarium—An Interesting Collection of Marins Curiosities—The Cathedral 6p St Januaries—The Ornate Interior. Those who imagine the climate of Naples to be perpetually serene and bright are egregiously mistaken. The Cain and sleet, at times, are as merciless and disagreeable as at other {daces. For many successive days, in the mentK of March, I found the weather •old, Wet, and inclement. I had planned an excursion to Capri to visit the famous grottoes. But the elements were against me. The waters of the hay instead of being' placid, and blue, like the celestial vault above—as they are generally represented to be in pictures, were troubled and furrowed by white-crested waves. The captain of the steamer who is not deterred by trifling hindrances, shook his head despondingly, as much as to say “It’s no go,” He was reluctantly compelled to forego the accustomed pleasure of 'taking tourists and their fees. The boat could not run.

I hid to make the best of it on shore I sought shelter and consolation by entering the building set apart for the panorama of the destruction of Pompei'. But as far as consolation was concerned the movement was a mistake. It is not consoling to look upon a scene of horrors. The appalling picture made me feel more uncomfortable than I should have felt had I been saturated by the spray of the sea and the descending showers of rain. The panorama prese ted the state of the city, and the terror of the inhabitants at the outbreak of the irruption. It was frightfully suggestive. Thu portentous sgloonri occasioned by dense volumes of 'smoke, only relieved by lurid light from the month of the crater in the distance, descending showers of ashes and masses of incandescent lava, bewildered groups of men, women and children fleeing for their lives, some lingering devotees on the roof of their houses offering sacrifice and making frantic appeals to the gods for help, victims overtaken by the fiery deluge falling in the streets, herds of animals, wild and tame, from the dens of \ |he amphitheatres and the grounds of ordi- • haty habitations, galloping madly towards the sea shore,'Roman gallies in the offing rapidly but cautiously advancing to take on board the human fugetives who had been so fortunate as to reach the beach uninjured by the hot ashes and burning pumice stone—these, and other harrowing incidents which I cannot stay to particularise, but which appeared perfectly natural in connection with the awful calamity and painted with terrible reality—com- - bined to form an awe-inspiring picture of the scene ; and Impressed me with a vivid conception of the actual horrors of the hour when the gay and populous city was on the brink of utter ruin.

As I stood and contemplated the pictorial representation of a past calamity I Omld not help thinking of the possibility of a similar occurrence. I hope Naples may never be overwhelmed in like manner, bat the modern city, like the ancient one, stands in dangerous proximity to the burning mystery. . The region round about may be undermined with unknown volcanic forces, and were I a resident in the neighborhood I should be burdened with a constant feeling of insecurity. The five hundred thousand people who exist in Naples, apparently free from apprehension, are nevertheless living within the ▼ary bounds of an old extinct volcanic crater, and the unpleasant proximity of the fitfully active Vesuvius exposes them to the possibility of some day sharing the late of the inhabitants of Herculaneum and Pompeii. From the Panorama I proceeded to the aquarium, a more pleasing exhibition. It is situated in a delightful locality, a spacious park-like pleasure ground Adorned with tress and statues and fountains. It is one of the principal promenades of Naples. The best approach is by the Largo dell Vittoria,- and the first object'that attracts the visitor is a large antique basin of granite that was found at Peestum. The famous group of statuary known as the Farnese Bull, now in the Museum, which 1 have already described, formerly stood where the basin stands. On another spot is a temple erected to the honor of Virgil; and further on one to commemorate the poet Tasso, and a statue to the memory of the celebrated pianist Thalberg. The aquarium is a building of stone of almost dazzling whiteness and contains a collection of marine curiosities and wcnders of unrivalled excellence. It may be questioned if any superior exhibition of the kind is to be found in any part of the world. That at Brighton may be larger, but‘ in scientific value is inferior. The Aquarium at Naples is a perfect museum of the productions of the Mediterranean Sea. (‘eirntific men come hither from all parts of the world to study the wonders of the deep. It is beyond my province to give anything like a catalogue. I will merelylaay that the collection is as varied as it is interesting, more especially to those who have a taste for ichthyology. From the Aquarium, I went to the Cathedral. It is dedicated to St Januanus. and stands on the site once occupied by a temple of Neptune. The foundations of the building were laid in the year 1272, under the auspices of Charles I, of Anjou, and the edifice Was completed by his grandson Robert in 1314 In 1456 the structure was seriously damaged by an earthquake, but it was restored by Alphonse _ L Like most continental churches it is very ornate; it contains many monuments, statues and paintings. The ceiling of the nave, in particular, is adored with some productions of the old masters, some of them square, others oval' in form. Above the main entrance are the monuments of Charles Ij and Charles Martel and his wife Clementina. The chapel of St Januarius is specially attractive. It has a fine marble faegade, and is enclosed by very elegant brass doors. On each side are lofty columns of marble of a greenish color, and above, the inscription ■Died Janttarwt efame ddlopeste ac Vesuri, igne mlri ope sangiunis erepta Neapolis dmpatrono vindice. I was told that this chapel cost L 225,000. ' It has no leas than eight altars, and is profusely decorated with marble, and gold and pictures. The sacristy contains a variety of precious things—vessels cl gold and silver, for divers sacred uses, enough to make a good show in a goldsmith’s shop, a rare assortment of rich and gaudy sacerdotal vestments, a number of silver busts of patron saints, including one of St Januaris; and above all the bones of one of his hands 1 But the most a-cred relic is concealed in the tabernacle of the high altar, two glass receptacles containing the blood of J3t Januarius, which is said to liquify at certain periods. I presume my readers ace familiar with the story of this miracle, if the clever manipulation by which it is produced may be honored by snob adesignation. It takes place, or is performed, only three times a year—in May, September and December. I am aot acquainted with the reasons for fixing on these periods, but each display is made the occasion of a solemn festival, and thousands of credulous people are atIcacted by the pretended miracle. Underneath the high altar is the shrine of St. JafeOßtiqs, and his tomb, with a kneeling iigore of - Cardinal Oarafa. It has some ▼try ancient columns, and Is adorned with sfemarkably delicate marble carvings. There is « solemn grandeur about this Qsthed as there is about many of the

Roman Catholic Churches, which, in spite of a Protestant dislike of their superstitious appendages, is very impressive. It is impossible to walk about the sacred edifice and contemplate i‘ a massive magni* licence without recognising the strength of the religious feeling and veneration call it superstition if you will—which made the Roman Catholics of the middle ages willing to devote time and treasure without stint to the embellishment of their places of worship. [To be continued.]