CHAPTER XVIII. THE CRADLE AND THE THRONE OF ROME. The Palatine and the Domus Aurea-Present Appearance-The Capitol-Its Destruction-Its Restoration-Temple of Jupiter -Its Influence and Utility-Present Buildings-Forum Romanum -Julian Forum-Augustan Forum-Forum of Nerva-Forum of Trajan-Fora Venalia-Temple of Peace-Flavian Amphitheatre. A STORMY night on the Mediterranean, with something more than our equitable share of sea-sickness, and we are again at Civita Vecchia the despicable; where we are doomed to spend twenty-four hours, in no very neat hotel, at no very moderate charges. The next morning—bills rendu, baggage plombé, passports visé, sundry paoli paid to waiters, facchini, commissionaires, and custom-house officials, besides a dollar to the ever-needy American consul, and all our carlini and baiocchi to the importunate lazzaroni-at precisely past thirty minutes half nine,' as our Italian host most intelligibly expressed it—we were en route by vettura for Rome; and about eight in the evening we greeted our friend, His Holiness, again in the Capital of the Christian World;' not Pio Nono the livery servant, who once upon a time, in some degree of excitement, went by diligence on an important errand to Gaeta; but a very placid and amiable Pio Nono, who stands upon a pedestal in one corner of our little parlour, smiling benevolently upon the forestieri, and fearless of insurrection from the faithful. All hail, thrice reverend Rome! however impoverished by the rapacity of thy priesthood, and degraded by the tyranny of superstition, yet consecrated by the memory of the good, the sepulchres of the great, and the struggles of the brave! To all true souls, thou must ever be venerable and sacred! An inexpressible solemnity reigns upon thy seven hills, and the spirits of sages, heroes, and martyrs hover over the wrecks of thy perished glory! And now for a leisurely survey of all that is impressive in the mouldering relics of the Rome that was; and whatever is grand, gorgeous, or beautiful, in the Rome that flourishes upon her tomb. Let us first to the ancient nucleus, the Palatine and the Capitoline Hills, the cradle and the throne of empire. The humbler structures reared by Romulus gave place to the palace of the Cæsars; and the eminence which had borne a city was found too small for the residence of a single man. The buildings erected by Augustus were enlarged and beautified by Tiberius and Caligula. Then came Nero with his Domus Aurea, which extended over the neighbouring Colean; and covered the intervening valley. To this structure the world has never seen a parallel. Its rooms were lined with gold and mother-ofpearl, adorned with a profusion of sparkling gems. The ceiling of the dining-saloons was formed of ivory panels, so contrived as to scatter flowers and shower perfumes upon the guests. The principal banquetting-hall revolved upon itself, representing the revolutions of the firmament. The baths were supplied with salt water from the sea, and mineral water from the Aqua Albula. In the vestibule of the palace stood the colossal statue of the Emperor, a hundred and twenty feet high. There were three porticoes, each a mile in length, and supported by three rows of lofty pillars. The garden contained lakes and fountains, groves and vineyards, herds of cattle, enclosures of wild beasts, and clusters of buildings resembling towns. Here the luxurious fiend found himself lodged almost like a man.' But he fell, and went to his own place.' Vespasian and Titus demolished that part of the palace which extended beyond the Palatine. Domitian enlarged and decorated it, and Septimius Severus added the magnificent Septizonium. This consisted of seven porticoes, supported by pillars of the finest marble, and rising one above another, in the form of a pyramid, to a prodigious elevation. In consequence of its great solidity and strength, it survived the disasters of the city, and suffered less during the triumph of barbarism than most other public edifices of ancient Rome. Three stories remained entire at so late a period as the reign of Sixtus Quintus, who took its pillars to adorn the basilica of Saint Peter, and demolished the rest of the building. Alas! all the monuments of Roman power and splendour, so dear to the artist, the historian, and the antiquary, depend upon the will of an arbitrary sovereign; and that will is influenced too often by interest, ambition, vanity, or superstition. Such rapacity is a crime against all ages and all generations; depriving the past of the trophies of its genius, and the title-deeds of its fame; the present, of the noblest objects of curiosity, and the strongest motives to exertion; the future of the most admirable masterpieces of art, and the most perfect models for imitation. To guard against the repetition of such depredations, must be the desire of every man of genius, the duty of every man in authority, and the common interest of the whole civilized world. The palace of the Cæsars is now a heap of ruins, nearly two miles in circuit, of which it is impossible even to make out the plan. Its area is covered with a rich soil, from fifteen to thirty feet deep, in which potatoes, artichokes, and cauliflowers flourish with great luxuriance. There are two villas upon the top, and a prosperous convent. I have walked around its base, and over its gardens, and through its crumbling arches and subterranean corridors, till its mournful spirit took possession of my soul, and I could have wept for the fall of the imperial glory. On the southern and western sides of the hill are immense fragments—some of huge rectangular blocks, pointing to the times of the Republic; and others of opus reticulatum, indicating their imperial origin-all overgrown with weeds and briers, amidst which the wild hare makes her home, and the serpent and the lizard sun themselves without fear. Deep under ground, at the northern angle of the eminence, looking towards the forum and the capitol, is a set of vast arches, now occupied as a stable; in passing through which I came near being torn to pieces by a furious dog, and eaten up by fleas. About a century and a half ago, an immense hall was uncovered, which had long lain concealed beneath its own ruins; but its pillars, statues, mosaics, and precious marbles were immediately removed by the Farnese family, who owned the soil, to enrich their galleries and beautify their palaces. The Capitoline was originally a precipitous hill, covered with a dense grove of trees; and from the very foundation of Rome, regarded with awe and veneration as the abode of celestial powers. 'Some god they knew-what god they could not tell Did there amid the sacred horror dwell: The Arcadians called him Jove, and said they saw This superstition doubtless led to the subsequent glorious destination of the place. Romulus consecrated it by erecting the Temple of Jupiter Feretrius; and the kings, consuls, and emperors added structures of a solidity and magnificence which, says Tacitus, the wealth of succeeding ages might adorn, but could not increase. Thus it became both a fortress, frowning defiance on the foes of Rome; and a sanctuary, crowded with altars and temples, the repository of the fatal oracles, and the seat of the tutelar deities of the Empire. Twice the buildings were destroyed by fire; first in the civil wars between Marius and Sylla, and afterwards in the dreadful contest between the partisans of Vitellius and Vespasian. Tacitus deplores this event as 'the most lamentable and most disgraceful calamity that ever happened to the Roman people. But the Capitol rose once more from its ashes, more splendid and majestic than ever; and received from the munificence of Vespasian, and of his son Domitian, its last and richest embellishments. On its two extremities stood the Temples of Jupiter Feretrius and Jupiter Custos, flanked by those of Fortune and Fides, and of other inferior divinities. In the centre, crowning the majestic pyramid, rose, high over all, the residence of Jupiter Capitolinus, the guardian of the Empire, on a hundred steps, supported by a hundred pillars, adorned with all the refinements of art, and blazing with the plunder of the world. Within the splendid fane, with Juno on his left and Minerva on his right, sat the Thunderer on a throne of gold, grasping the lightning in one hand, and with the other wielding the sceptre of universal dominion. The walls glittered with jewelled crowns and various weapons of war -the offerings of emperors and conquerors-the spoils of vanquished and subjugated nations. The portals flamed with gems and gold; and pediment, niches, and roof teemed with the costliest treasures. The building was covered with bronze, the mere gilding of which amounted to the enormous sum of fifteen millions of dollars-an item which, perhaps more readily than any other, suggests the incalculable wealth of this Throne of Empire and Religion. Hither the consuls were conducted by the senate, to assume the military dress, and implore the favour of the gods, before they marched to battle. Hither the victorious generals used to repair in triumph, to present the spoils and royal captives they had taken, and offer hecatombs to "Tarpeian Jove.' Here, in case of danger and distress, the senate assembled, and the magistrates convened, to deliberate in the presence and under the immediate influence of the tutelar gods of Rome. Here the laws were exhibited to public inspection, as if under the sanction of the divinity; and here also they were deposited, as if intrusted to his guardian care. Manlius, as long as he could extend his arm, and fix the attention of the people upon the Capitol which he had saved, suspended his fatal sentence. Caius Gracchus melted the hearts of his audience, when he pointed to the Capitol, and asked, with all the emphasis of despair, whether he could hope to find an asylum in that sanctuary whose pavement still streamed with the blood of his brother. Scipio Africanus, when accused by an envious faction, and obliged to appear before the people as a criminal, instead of answering the charge, turned to the Capitol, and invited the assembly to accompany him to the Temple of Jupiter, and give thanks to the gods for the defeat of the Carthaginian invader. And to the Capitol Cicero turned his hands and his eyes when he closed his first oration against Catiline with that noble address to Jupiter, presiding there over the destinies of the Empire, and dooming its enemies to destruction. Such was the solemn interest of this consecrated eminence, the awe which it inspired in the Roman mind, and the influence which it exerted over the populace, that the poets, orators, and historians of Rome are constantly referring to the Capitol as the most sacred locality in the world, and ap |