We stopped at a villa belonging to the Grand Duke called _II Pratolino_,
seven miles distant from Florence. Here is to be seen the famous statue
representing the genius of the Appennines. The Villa is unfurnished and out
of repair and the garden and grounds are neglected: it is a great pity, for
it is a fine building and in a beautiful position. The celebrated Bianca
Capello, a Venetian by birth, and mistress of Francesco II de' Medici,
Grand Duke of Tuscany, used to reside here.


FLORENCE, 27th August.

I am extremely well pleased with my accommodations at the hotel where I am
lodged. Mme Hembert, the proprietor, was once _femme de chambre_ to the
Empress Joséphine; she is an excellent woman and a very attentive hostess,
and I recommend her hotel to all those travellers who visit Florence and do
not care to incur the expence of Schneider's. There is an excellent and
well served _table d'hôte_ at two o'clock, wine at discretion, for which,
and for my bedroom, I pay seven _paoli_ per day. This hotel has the
advantage of being in a very central situation. It is close to the _Piazza
del Gran Duca_, the post-office, the _Palazzo Vecchio_, the Bureaux of
Government, the celebrated Gallery of Sculpture and Painting and to the
Arno. It is only 300 yards from the _Piazza del Duomo_, where the Cathedral
stands, and 600 yards from the principal theatre _Della Pergola_ on the one
side; while on the other side, after crossing the _Ponte Vecchio_, stands
the _Palazzo Pitti_, the residence of the Grand Duke, at a distance of
seven or 800 yards.

The _Piazza del Gran Duca_ is very striking to the eye of the northern
traveller; the statues of the Gods in white marble in the open air would
make him fancy himself in Athens in the olden time. The following statues