quired of one another. "were you present to

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day at the afternoon Mass at three o'clock?" And I have often heard them thus denominate

Vespers.

Great alarm had been excited by the Pope's known hostility to ladies,-whom he had refused to admit into his private chapel, or to receive at all except in his garden,-and by his presumed intention of not reserving places for foreigners, to the exclusion of his own subjects. Under the administration of Cardinal Gonsalvi* seats were in every church set apart for the English; while the Romans were unable to witness the offices of their religion. I have

* Cardinal Gonsalvi died during my stay at Rome. On the day after his death I passed, with a great crowd, through many rooms of his palace where Masses were celebrating, to one in which the body was raised on a state bed. The features of the face still indicated a strong mind. The body was clothed in the dress of a Cardinal. I observed, stamped on the soles of the shoes, which were evidently new, the shopprice 5 sic transit, &c. : The administration of Cardinal

Gonsalvi is, however, much regretted at Rome.

+At that time Pasquino alluded to this preference in the following manner, "Where are you going ?" he demanded of a Roman friend. To the Sistine chapel, to hear the miserere,' was the reply. "Why," said Pasquino, "you know that you

therefore scarcely ever met with a native who had seen the ceremonies of Holy week; while I am assured that the English then took the liberty of carrying into the places partitioned off for them, cold meat, fowls, and bread, which they eat during the time the offices were performing; throwing the bones and waste pieces on the floors of the churches.

These matters were, this year, arranged more justly; and tickets of admission were indiscriminately given to Romans and foreigners: the latter of whom behaved more decently than their reported wont. I shall now transcribe to you, day by day, the account given in the "Diario "Romano" or religious almanack—of the ceremonies to be performed in Holy week: and, after each day, affix my remarks on so much of them as I have seen.

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April 11th, Palm Sunday. Station at S. "Gio. in Laterano. Papal chapel in the Apost. "Pal., a Card. Priest sings Mass, the High "Pontiff gives bened., and distribut. of Palms "with procession through the Sala Regia—royal "hall.-After Vespers, the Cardinal Chief Peni

"will not be admitted." Oh! but I have made myself a

'heretic.'

"tentiary awaits in S. Gio. in Laterano to hear "confessions."

"S. Leone I. Pope, his body is in S. Pietro "in Vat."

In all the ceremonies the place of the Pope is, this year, supplied by a Cardinal; his Holiness being too ill to officiate in any of the functions. He has indeed scarcely ever been able to quit his apartment since my arrival at Rome: he once, it is true, gave his benediction from the window of his palace, but, from some misunderstanding, few assembled to receive it.

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"14th, Holy Wednesday. Stat. at S. Maria Maggiore, where the Card. Chief Peniten"tiary awaits after dinner"-that is in the afternoon "to hear confessions. At 22 o'clock"about four-" the office of Tenebræ is sung in "the Chap. of the Apost. Pal. and in the other "churches. At S. Pietro in Vat. after the office "of Tenebræ, there are shewn the great relics "of the Lance, Cross, and Volto Santo, and the 66 same is done several times to-morrow and Good Friday. Ss. Tiburgio, Valeriano, and Massimo 66 m. at S. Cecilia in Trastevere. S. Abbondio "Confessor, chaplain of the Basilica of S. Pietro."

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On this day, therefore, at 22 o'clock, I heard

the famous miserere sung, during Tenebræ, in the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican. Tickets of admiswere given to ladies, and a part of the chapel is partitioned off for them. All men got in as far as they could, while a space was set apart for those whom their dress entitled to such distinction. Here, during the whole of the office, I waited with impatience till the miserere mei Deus should commence. What had I not heard of this

In

psalm of the gradual extincion of the tapers; of the figures of Michael Angelo's famous Last Judgment frowning from the walls, as the shades of night slowly overspread the sanctuary; of the voices of angel's suddenly bursting forth in responsive concert with those of mortals! this manner had my expectation and imagination been excited. The candles were indeed put out as is usual at Tenebræ; so far there was nothing extraordinary. Darkness came on and, I must own it, made me rather drowsy; but I criticised the distorted figures of M. Angelo, and roused, or rather contained, my indignation at the inappreciating stupidity which has fixed, against this painting, a large silken canopy, which, rising to the height of some feet above the altar, stretches horizontally over it, and hides even that part of

the a fresco which is immediately above it. But the same want of taste is to be found in all countries: the Chapter of Exeter caused a fine perspective view of the church to be painted on the interior east end of their Cathedral; and then, as if wishing to destroy the possible illusion, engraved the Ten Commandments in the center of the perspective !

At length the Miserere began; the musicians. were in an enclosed balcony above me: the singing at first appeared fine, but I soon found the composition monotonous: the only merit of the performance is the admirable concert in which they sing. But how can a number of voices of this sort be heard with pleasure by those endowed with any sentiments of humanity? How merited is the just reproach of Byron ;— "it is curious that it should be the Pope and "the Sultan who are the chief encouragers of this "branch of trade-women being prohibited as "singers at S. Peter's, and not deemed trust"worthy as guardians of the haram." I had before heard this sort of music: every Sunday, in one of the chapels at St. Peter's, vespers, are performed-some of the "third sex" assisting: the Basilica is then the rendezvous of all the