CHAPTER X

Journey from Florence to Rome--Sienna--Radicofani--Bolsena--Montefiascone
wine--Viterbo--Baccano--The Roman Campagna--The papal _douane_--Monuments
and Museums in Rome--Intolerance of the Catholic Christians--The Tiber and
the bridges--Character of the Romans--The _Palassi_ and _Ville_--Canova's
atelier--Theatricals--An execution in Rome.


September----, 1816.

I made an agreement with a _vetturino_ to take me to Rome for three _louis
d'or_ and to be _spesato_. In the carriage were two other passengers, viz.,
a Neapolitan lady, the wife of a Colonel in the Neapolitan service, and a
young Roman, the son of the _Barigello_ or _Capo degli Sbirri_ at Rome. We
issued from the _Porta Romana_ at 6 o'clock a.m. the 3d September.

The road winds thro' a valley, and has a gentle ascent nearly the whole way
to Poggibonsi, where we brought to the first night. The soil hereabouts is
far from fertile, but every inch of it is put to profit. The olive tree is
very frequent and several farms and villages are to be met with. The next
day we arrived at 12 o'clock at Sienna. The approach to Sienna is announced
by a quantity of olive trees. The situation of this city being on an
elevation, makes it cold and bleak. We remained here three hours, so that I
had time to visit some of the places worthy of remark in this venerable
city, which is handsome and very solidly built, but has rather a sombre