From Thomas Archer Hirst   Octr 10th 1858

address | Signor Battelle | 113 Via Felice | Rome | via Marseilles | Oct^r 10^th 1858

My dear John

I arrived at Rome about ten days ago¹ thus concluding as interesting a tour as I ever made in my life. Besides natural beauties, which Italy shares with other countries without surpassing them, Italy as every body knows is peculiarly distinguished by its richness in historical associations and for its fine art collections. As to the latter I got my own peculiar pleasure and instruction from them. I did not look upon them with an artists eye I did not study their execution or details, but I looked upon them as I would upon a poem solely to appropriate as far as possible the conception. I have no doubt that in my journal I have pronounced to be beautiful what an artist would consider inferior, and vice versa. But in picture galleries as well as in the streets and country I was continually made aware that I was extracting a very small portion only of the interest latent in every object around me. I was made to regret daily my want of familiarity with classical history, for here more than in any other country every Town, River Hill and valley has a representative as well as an intrinsic interest. I resolved to remedy this grave defect in my education as much as my leisure time in Italy would permit. For this purpose I have devoted myself almost exclusively to the first centuries of the Christian Era during the time I have been in Rome I have procured a concise well written history of Rome² which I read in the Evening whilst in the day time I stroll through the scenes of the actions described and surround myself with the likenesses in Marble of the actors themselves. In this manner Rome possesses an interest for me greater than I anticipated, and the most wonderful of all Histories becomes illustrated and in a certain sense realized.

After leaving you in that sunny valley of Saas³ I strode away and reached Mattmark⁴ at about the same time as you would reach Visp.⁵ Next morning we started at four O clock and were on the Summit of the Pass before seven. The air was clear and fresh Monte Rosa⁶ was close to us and visible from top to base. Its massive form and steep rugged rocky slopes contrasting with the whitest purest snow formed as magnificent a sight as I have ever seen. On the other side the whole panoramic of the Oberland⁷ was revealed to us, the Jungfrau⁸ in the background. We reached Macugnaga⁹ at 9 A.M. and after a hearty breakfast I set off as fresh as ever down the lovely Italian valley of Anzasca¹⁰ and reached Vogogna¹¹ on the Simplon Road¹² by night fall. There was a good days work! All this time my heavy luggage had been carried by porters at a great expence to me. I saw clearly enough that I must use diligences¹³ and railways for the rest of my journey—in fact the only fault I can find with the tour just completed is that it has furnished me with too few opportunities for physical exercise. Nothing agrees worse with my constitution than coaches, Railways and Steamers. I spent a couple of days on the lakes of Maggiore and Como,¹⁴ and in the town of Como¹⁵ I did not fail to visit with a students veneration, the statue of the great Volta.¹⁶ He stands there a noble figure at the head of the loveliest lake, his left hand resting on the memorable ‘pile’.¹⁷ I spent three or four days in Milan,¹⁸ where I made the acquaintance of one of the ablest and most promising of Italian mathematicians Brioschi.¹⁹ I confess I was a little pleased to find myself at once known & welcomed in that strange land on presenting my card. My next halting place, for a day only, was Verona the City of the Capulets and Montagues.²⁰ It was out of respect to Shakespear²¹ that I visited the quaint old town and I tried my best to believe that the washing trough they shewed me had in reality contained Juliets fair form.²² Venice²³ more than fulfilled my expectations which had been accumulating since childhood. Amongst all cities I have seen this one, with canals for streets, destitute of wheeled carriages and quadrupeds larger than dogs, is unique. It was like realizing a page of the Arabian nights²⁴ to find myself on my arrival at night put into a black gondola and made to glide noiselessly and swiftly along the dark canal on whose banks I could just discern the marble palaces of the Doges.²⁵ With wonderful grace and precision the gondolier with his single oar caused the little bark²⁶ to glide along dark narrow canals where there appeared to be no room for his oar. At length we landed and following him along narrow passages darker even than the canal we had left, he ushered me suddenly into the magnificent square of S^t Mark’s,²⁷ brilliantly lighted and full of gaily dressed people promenading to the music of a fine band. I was at first bewildered and it was only by degrees that the beauty of the scene revealed itself. The magnificent square with marble pavement, as large as the Palais Royal²⁸ and infinitely more picturesque, the rich oriental looking church of S^t Marks²⁹ at one end, the graceful towering Campanile,³⁰ and above all the black blue sky studded with brilliant stars formed a concert room such as I had never seen before. From Venice I returned to Padua³¹ and there struck off southwards. Between Padua and Ferrara³² I crossed the Po³³ which forms the division between Austrian and Papal territory. I shall not soon forget it for having neglected to get a visé³⁴ from his ambassador his sacred majesty the Pope³⁵ caused me to be arrested, to descend from the Diligence forfeit my fare, and remain his prisoner for 24 hours at a dirty village on the River’s bank. After undergoing this chastisement and paying sufficiently, a permission to enter his Holiness’ dominions was granted to me. At Bologna³⁶ I only stopped half a day but I saw Galvani’s³⁷ house on which there is this inscription (in Italian of course) | ‘It was in this house; his temporary residence, that Louis Galvani on the 1^st of September 1786 discovered in dead frogs animal electricity—the source of wonder to all centuries.’

I passed over the Appenines,³⁸ I am sorry to say, cooped up in the interior of a diligence the rain falling in torrents most of the time and clouds hiding every vestige of scenery. Next Florence³⁹ where I next stopped I was greatly pleased, there and in its lovely neighbourhood I spent more than a week. I will not attempt to extract from my journal any of the numerous accounts of the effects its pictures and statues had upon me suffice it to say that I seriously studied many of them & not without profit. Often at moonlight I have gazed at the beautiful cathedral⁴⁰ standing on the spot, now called ‘Sasso di Danti’,⁴¹ where habitually the Divine Poet⁴² used to sit and contemplate. Guide books even go so far as to say that the architectural beauties of the cathedral formed the subject of his contemplations it is more probable, however, that he found its vicinity appropriate to thoughts that roamed far beyond the walls of his native town into Hell itself.⁴³ Galileo⁴⁴ too lived here, the Grand Duke of Tuscany has erected a beautiful little tribune⁴⁵—a kind of Chapel—to him. Inside there is a worthy statue of the fine old fellow around are preserved religiously many relics of him compasses, telescopes lenses &c &c and above all the forefinger of his right hand The flesh has long since departed but the skeleton and even the nail is still there.

From Venice I went to Pisa⁴⁶ where I remained another day. I expected to meet there with more reminiscences of Galileo than I found I booked my full, however, at the leaning tower⁴⁷ and a curious object it is: The italian leaning towers, and there are many, embody of course some thought as do all other artificial works. I should like to know more of the thought or motive which lies at the bottom of these towers built intentionally non-vertical. This tower at Pisa gives a tumble-down look to everything around it, the Cathedral and Babtistery⁴⁸ close to it appear to be leaning also. In this cathedral which is a very fine one I sat for a long time watching the oscillations of the lamps suspended from the ceiling The same lamps were swinging to and fro on that memorable morning when Galileo came to pray and when one of them, the guides pretend to know which one, revealed to the young philosopher the secret of its isochronism.⁴⁹ I embarked at Leghorn⁵⁰ for Civita Vecchia⁵¹ and thus made my first voyage on the classic, tideless sea⁵² about which I have dreamed as a boy. I should be very glad to be able to enter into its beauties but to tell the truth I saw little of them for I was not quite well.

I have now brought this skeleton of my tour up to my arrival in Rome what I have been doing since I have already told you. I know well than when once my Equally Attracting Bodies⁵³ have laid hold of me there will be small chance more for Roman History and Antiquities so I am making the most of the last few days. I have got pleasant lodgings and I have furnished them with a Piano for I anticipate being thrown on my own resources for relaxation more here than I was in Paris. The comet⁵⁴ has been and still is a magnificent object here, every night I watch it from the balcony before my window which is on the third story. A few nights ago whilst gazing at it I saw another sight entirely new to me, I do not know what value others more accustomed to search the heavens may attach to my observation but at any rate I will describe it on a separate sheet⁵⁵ for you to make use of as you think fit.⁵⁶ Write to me soon and tell me what other hazardous things you have done since we parted. Did you go up M. Blanc?⁵⁷

The story you told me in Saas as you might expect interested me deeply and had formed the subject of many a long meditation since; you promised me to keep me informed with the sequel whatever might be its nature⁵⁸

Yours affectionately | Tom

RI MS JT/1/H/242