CHAPTER X.
THE VATICAN.
On the day when Rollo went with Charles and Allie to see the TarpeianRock, the reader will perhaps recollect that Mr. George was engaged atthe reading room in reading the American papers which had that morningarrived. When Rollo returned from his excursion, he found that Mr.George had not got home, and he accordingly concluded to go to thereading room and see if he could find him.
This reading room is attached to an English bookstore and library, andis a great place of resort for visitors at Rome. It is situated at theend of the Piazza di Spagna, which is one of the principal and mostfrequented public squares in Rome. This square contains several of thechief hotels, and a great many shops. The bookstore of Piale is thegeneral centre of news and intelligence for all English and Americanvisitors. Here people come to make inquiries for their friends, forthere is a register kept at the library with the names of all theEnglish and American visitors in Rome recorded in it, and the addressesof the hotels or private houses where they are lodging. Here all sortsof notices are posted up, such as advertisements of things lost orfound, of parties forming for excursions, of couriers wanting places orfamilies wanting couriers, of paintings for sale, carriages for sale orfor hire,--and all such things.
Piale's establishment contains a number of different rooms. The firstthat Rollo entered on arriving at the place was the bookstore. This wasa small room. There was a desk at one end, where a clerk was sitting.There were shelves filled with books all around the room, and a largetable in the centre, which was also covered with books arranged in tiersone above the other in a sloping direction. There were several doorsleading off from this apartment, one of which led to a room where acirculating library was kept, and another to the reading room.
When Rollo entered the bookstore, he saw several groups of visitorsthere. There were two or three ladies looking over the books on theshelves. There was a group of gentlemen standing near the desk, talkingtogether, with a paper in their hands which seemed to contain a list ofnames. Just as Rollo entered, a carriage drove up to the door, and twoladies dismounted from it and came in. Rollo's attention was firstattracted to these two ladies. One of them, on entering, accosted theclerk, and asked to look at the register. The clerk immediately gave thetwo ladies seats at a side table, where there was a large book full ofnames and addresses. The ladies sat down, and began to look over thebook. They had just arrived from Naples, and they wished to know whatfriends and acquaintances of theirs there were in town.
Rollo began to examine the books on the table, or counter, in the middleof the room, and while doing so he happened to pass near the gentlementhat were looking at the paper.
"We want twelve," said one of the gentlemen, "and we have got onlynine."
"Yes," said the other, "we want three more. It must be that there are agreat many in town who would like to go, if we could only find themout."
Rollo's attention was immediately arrested by these words. It wasobvious that the gentlemen were forming a party to go somewhere, or tosee something, and he felt quite confident that his uncle George wouldlike to join them.
"At any rate," said he to himself, "_I_ should like to go, wherever itis."
So Rollo summoned courage to accost the persons who were consultingtogether, and to ask them if they wished to find some gentlemen to makeup a party.
"Gentlemen or ladies either," said one of them, "no matter which. We aremaking up a party to go and see the statues in the Vatican by torchlight."
When Rollo heard the words "torch light," his interest in the proposedparty was greatly increased, and he said he had no doubt that his unclewould like to go.
"I am very sure he would like to go," said Rollo, "and to take me."
"Very well," said one of the gentlemen, "that will make two. And we onlywant three. Where is your uncle?"
"He is in the reading room," said Rollo. "Wait a moment, and I'll callhim."
"That's right," said the gentleman. "Tell him it will cost us a scudoand a half apiece."
So Rollo, taking out half a paul from his pocket,--that being the priceof admission to the reading room for a single day,--and giving it to theclerk at the desk, opened a door by the side of the desk, and passedinto the reading room. Instead of being only one reading room, however,he found that there were two, with an open door leading from one to theother. There were a great number of very comfortable sofas and armchairs all about these rooms, and great tables in the middle of themcovered with newspapers and magazines. The walls of both rooms werecompletely covered with paintings of all sizes, most of which had beenleft there for sale. There were a great many gentlemen sitting aroundthe tables and upon the sofas, reading. Among them Rollo soon found Mr.George. He had established himself in a comfortable arm chair, near agreat window that looked out upon the square. But he was obliged to keepthe curtain down, on account of the beggars outside, that gave him nopeace as long as they could see him.
"Uncle George," said Rollo, "here are some gentlemen who want to make upa party to go and see something by torch light, and I thought thatperhaps you and I would like to join it."
"Where is it that they are going?" asked Mr. George--"to the Vatican?"
"Yes," said Rollo, "it is the Vatican. A scudo and a half apiece."
"Very well," said Mr. George. "I should like to go. Where are thegentlemen?"
"They are out here in the bookstore. Come out and I will show them toyou."
So Mr. George laid down his paper, and followed Rollo out into thebookstore. Rollo led the way to the place where the gentlemen werestanding, and then introduced his uncle, in a distinct and audiblevoice, thus,--
"This is my uncle, gentlemen, Mr. George Holiday."
The gentlemen greeted Mr. Holiday in a very polite manner, and informedhim of their plan, and that they wanted three more names to make up thenecessary number for a party.
And here I ought to say in explanation, that what is called the"Vatican" is a vast collection of very magnificent and imposingbuildings,--consisting of palaces, chapels, halls, galleries, and thelike, almost without number,--and it is filled with paintings,sculptures, manuscripts, books, jewels, gems, and other curiosities andtreasures of incalculable value. It is situated in close proximity tothe great Church of St. Peter's--the largest and most gorgeous church inthe world. Indeed, the church and the palaces form, as it were, one vastarchitectural pile, which is of almost inconceivable magnificence andgrandeur.
The various edifices which compose the Vatican were several centuries inbuilding, and the immense magnitude and extent of the edifice, and theexhaustless wealth of the treasures of art deposited there, astonishevery beholder. The buildings are so extensive that they require eightgrand staircases and two hundred smaller ones to gain access to thedifferent stories. There are twenty open courts and over four thousanddifferent rooms. Some of these rooms are galleries nearly a quarter of amile long, and are filled on each side with sculptures and statuary, orother works of art, from end to end. The length of these galleries isnot, however, out of proportion to other parts of the structure. Thechurch of St. Peter's, including the portico, is considerably _more_than a quarter of a mile long.
Now, among the treasures of the Vatican are an immense number of ancientstatues which were dug up, in the middle ages, in and around Rome; andsome of these sculptures are the most celebrated works of art in theworld. They are arranged with great care in a great number of beautifulchambers and halls, and are visited during the daytime by thousands ofpeople that have come to Rome from every part of the world. The picturegalleries, the collection of ancient curiosities, and the library roomscontaining the books and manuscripts, are also in the same manner thrownopen, and they are thronged with visitors almost all the time. Theseapartments are so numerous and so extensive that in one day a person cando little else than to walk through them, and give one general gaze ofbewildering wonder at the whole scene. And a very long walk it is, I canassure you. At one time, when I set out from the painting rooms, (w
hichare far in the interior of the buildings,) with a party of friends,intending to go out, in order to go home, we walked steadily on at ourordinary pace, without stopping, or deviating from our way, and we foundthat it took us twenty minutes to get out to our carriage!
In addition to these visits made during the day, small parties aresometimes formed to visit the galleries of statuary by night. It isfound that the illumination of a torch, by the strong contrasts of lightand shade which it produces, brings out the expression of the statues ina very striking manner, so as to produce sometimes a most wonderfuleffect.
It is, however, somewhat expensive to exhibit these statues by torchlight, partly on account of the cost of the torches, and partly onaccount of the attendants that are required. The cost is nearly twentydollars. It is accordingly customary to make up a party, whenever anevening visit to the Vatican is proposed, in order to divide theexpense. The number that can see the statues to advantage in theseevening visits is from twelve to fifteen. A party of twelve issufficient to pay the expense at the rate of a scudo and a half foreach person.[7]
[Footnote 7: The scudo is the Roman dollar. It is worth considerablymore than the American dollar.]
It was such a plan as this that the gentlemen were forming, whose partyMr. George and Rollo were now proposing to join.
The gentlemen had been much pleased with Rollo's appearance and demeanorwhen he accosted them, and they were now still more pleased, when theysaw Mr. George, to find that he was a young gentleman, of about theirown age, and that he was so prepossessing in his countenance and in hisair and manner. Mr. George readily agreed to join the party. They askedhim if he knew of any body else that he thought would like to go. Heinquired whether there were to be any ladies in the party. They saidthat there were to be several. "Then," said Mr. George, "I will beresponsible for the twelfth place. I am quite sure that I can find someperson that would like to go.
"And suppose I find more than one?" said Mr. George.
"That will do no harm," replied the gentlemen. "We can have from twelveto fifteen in the party."
"Then I will take the three places," said Mr. George, "and I will paymy proportion now. Which of you gentlemen acts as treasurer?"
One of the three gentlemen said that he had undertaken to collect andpay over the money, but he added that it was not necessary for Mr.George to pay at that time. Mr. George, however, preferred to do so, andhe accordingly took out his purse and paid his four scudi and a half,which was the amount due for three persons. The gentlemen seemed to bequite pleased to find that their party was thus made up, and they toldMr. George that since he had taken and paid for the three remainingplaces, he might bring with him any number of persons that he pleased,so long as he did not make the party more than fifteen in all. It wasagreed, too, that the party was to rendezvous that evening, at eighto'clock, at the foot of the grand staircase, leading from the portico ofSt. Peter's up to the principal court of the Vatican.
Mr. George, as soon as he went home, sent Rollo to Mrs. Beekman's roomto inform her of the proposed party, and to ask her if she would like tojoin it.
"And may I invite Allie too?" asked Rollo.
"Yes," said Mr. George, "and Charles. Though I don't think they willwish to go, for such children generally feel very little interest instatues."
It is true that young persons, like Charles and Allie, generally feellittle interest in sculptures and statuary; but, on the other hand, theyfeel a very great interest in torch light, and both Charles and Alliewere exceedingly eager to join the party. It was finally agreed that allthree should go. It was arranged that Mr. George and Rollo were to callfor them at seven o'clock. Mr. Beekman was engaged to dine that eveningwith a party of gentlemen, and so he was left out of the accountaltogether.
At seven o'clock, accordingly, Mr. George and Rollo called at Mrs.Beekman's rooms, and a few minutes afterwards they all went togetherdown to the door of the hotel, where Mr. George beckoned to the coachmanof one of the carriages that stood in the square.
The whole party entered the carriage, after Mr. George had made hisbargain with the coachman, and immediately set off. They rode for somedistance along a pretty straight road, and then came to a bridge, whichwas opposite to a great round castle. They went over this bridge, andthen turning to the left, under the walls of the castle, they went ontowards the Vatican.
"We shall arrive there some time before the hour," said Mr. George; "butI thought it was better to be too early than too late."
"Yes," replied Mrs. Beekman, "we can amuse ourselves half an hour inrambling about the colonnades and porticos of St. Peter's."
In front of St. Peter's there is an immense area, enclosed on each sideby a magnificent semicircular colonnade. There are four rows of loftycolumns in this colonnade, with a carriage way in the centre betweenthem. The space enclosed between these colonnades is called the_piazza_,[A] and it is adorned with fountains and colossal statues, andon days of public festivities and celebrations, it is filled with animmense concourse of people. It is large enough to contain a great manythousands.
[8][Footnote 8: A Pronounced _piatza_.]
When Mr. George and his party arrived, they dismissed the carriage andbegan to walk to and fro under the colonnade and about the piazza. Thetime passed away very rapidly; and at length, a few minutes beforeeight, the other carriages began to come. All the persons who belongedto the party were anxious to arrive in time, for they were afraid that,if they were too late, the others would have gone into the Vatican,where, the building being so immense, it might be very difficult to findthem.
Accordingly, before the clock struck eight, all the party were assembledat the entrance door.
The entrance opened from a vast covered gallery, which formed one of theapproaches to St. Peter's, between the end of the colonnade and the mainfront of the building. There were several Swiss sentinels on guard here.They were dressed in what seemed to Rollo a very fantastic garb. In afew minutes the men who were to accompany the party through thegalleries appeared. One of them carried a great number of very longcandles under his arm. Another had a long pole with a socket at the topof it, and a semicircular screen of tin on one side, to screen the lightof the candles from the eyes of the visitors, and to throw it upon thestatues. When all was ready, these torch bearers moved on, and werefollowed by the whole party up the great staircase which led to thegalleries of the Vatican.
After going upward and onward for some time, they came at length to theentrance of one of the long galleries of sculpture. Here the torchbearers stopped and began to prepare their torches. They cut the longcandles in two, so as to make pieces about eighteen inches long. Takingsix or eight of these pieces, they placed them together like a bundle ofsticks, and tied them, and then crowded the ends together into thesocket upon the end of the pole. This socket was made large enough toreceive them. They then lighted the wicks, and thus they had a largenumber of candles all burning together as one.
The screen, which I have already spoken of, covered this blaze of lightupon one side, so as to keep it from shining upon the faces of thecompany.
Thus provided the torch bearers went on, and the company followed them.Of course, there is only time in the two hours usually appropriated tothis exhibition to show a comparatively small number of the statues. Thetorch bearers accordingly selected such as they thought were mostimportant to be seen, and they passed rapidly on from one to another ofthese, omitting all the others. When they approached a statue which theywere going to exhibit, they would hold the torch up near the face of itin such a manner as to throw a strong light upon the features, and sobring out the expression in a striking manner. The screen shielded theeyes of the company from the direct rays of the flame, and yet there wassufficient light reflected from the marble walls of the gallery, andfrom the beautiful white surfaces of the statues arranged along them, toenable the company to discern each other very distinctly, and to see allthe objects around them.
The company passed in this manner through one of the
long galleries,stopping here and there to look at the great masterpieces of ancientart, and then they entered into a series of comparatively smallerchambers and halls. Rollo was exceedingly interested in the exhibition,and in all the attendant circumstances of it; but he could not tellwhether Allie was pleased or not. She seemed bewildered and struck dumbwith amazement at the strange aspect of the scenes and spectacles whichwere continually presented to view. The immense extent and the gorgeousmagnificence of the galleries and halls, the countless multitude ofstatues, and the almost spectral appearance which they assumed when thetorch bearers threw the bright light of the torch upon their cold marblefaces, all impressed her with a solemn awe, which seemed so entirely tosubdue and silence her, that Rollo could not tell how she felt, or whatshe thought of the strange spectacle which he had brought her to see.
After about an hour, the first set of candles that had been put into thesocket of the torch pole were burned down, and then the torch bearerssupplied their places with another set formed by the remaining halves ofthe candles which they had cut in two. These lasted another hour. Bythat time the company had seen all the most striking and celebratedstatues in the principal halls and galleries. They had been making asort of circuit through the palace in passing through these rooms, andnow came out very near the entrance door, where they had come in. Herethe torch bearers left them, and went away with their apparatus to thepart of the building where they belonged, while the company, descendingthe grand staircase, came out into one of the porticos of the church,and issuing from the portico they found carriages in waiting upon thepiazza, and ready to convey them home. Mr. George and his party reachedtheir hotel about nine o'clock, all very much pleased with the spectaclewhich they had witnessed.