Signora Barbini has found me an an Italian master - Sig. Formier who is to come and spend two hours with me every day and we are to read Corticelli's rules & manners. The feast of St. Nicolas - who is held in high veneration in Venice - the bells are ringing merrily - promenaded in the Public gardens. The Riva Schiavoni and Piazza San Marco - a fine day all Venice seem to have turned out to enjoy themselves-

Went last evening to a concert given by members of the Casino in the saloon of the grand Theatre Fenice. A reunion of the most fashionable society, of Venice - a full attendance of ladies - in full toilette - and appeared to good advantage, for the Venetian fair are yet as Titian painted them three centuries ago - stout, well made & full bosomed. The music was by the artists of the theatre San Benedetto - and over at 12 o clock, met the sip-norina at the door of our palace - fa freddo, non ze vero signor. Simos says I let pass very good opportunities, but I don't see he makes much better progress with his Greek fair ones.

This day passed in visiting the Arsenal & dock yards of Venice. As this ancient republic was once the first naval power in the world, so were in proportion its ship building establishments, and consist of shops & forges, rope walk of doric columns - foundries - large buildings for construction & hauling out & repairing gallies & ships of war without number and occupying a space three miles in circumference.

The model room is very interesting as there are vessels of every sort in miniature, of the most remote times to the modern steamer - the Bucentaur or barge of ceremony a most gorgeous affair in which the doge accompanied by the senators performed the ceremony of espousing the Adriatic - the model, rich in sculpture and gilding cost 80,000 francs. In the armory, are curious antique arms and instruments of torture - found in the Ducal palace at the revolution - and a curious screen of the Doge. Applied to madame the Doguress as a guard to her chastity, how such an iron instrument could be applied for that rurrose would be best known by married men - neither Mr. Simos nor myself could at all understand the matter.

The entrance to the arsenal is classic and in good taste - there is the Athenian colossal lion brought from the Piraeus by Morosini - venerable for its antiquity. The arsenal of Venice, once the scene of activity and enterprise with its thousands of workmen, is now scarcely occupied by a few Keepers and workmen in all perhaps not exceeding 300. The rope walk along formerly employed seven hundred -

A bright, clear morning, the air mild and temperate as the month of May - in company with Mr. Simos, Bouba & Rische. Hired an open gondola and four rowers to carry us to the islands of Malamocco & Pellestrina - eighteen miles distant for 12 lire - to see the gigantic walls constructed the last century for the defense of the lagoon & city of Venice against the encroaches of the sea. These islands are long narrow slips of land that extend along the coast - between three and ten miles below the city is an entrance between them, and the deepest of the three entrances to Venice, and through which all large vessels come it is called the port of Malamocco, and from here along a narrow channel proceed to the city.

We met a large dutch brig in the channel which was being towed by oared boats - it would seem the commerce of Venice cannot afford to employ steam tugs. The succeeding island Pallestrina along which we rowed is thickly populated by fishermen and seafaring people - at the extremity, where we landed it is very narrow and here the sea threatened to break through when the remedy was applied by building these large sea walls commenced in 1738 called Murazzi and built of large squared stones brought from the adjoining coast of Istria at great labour and expense, and bound together with mortar & pozzolana - they extend three Italian miles in length


(breadth of mason work about. 30 ft.)
(height of back wall - about 20 ft)

We walked along the top of the wall and had a view of the island and port of Chioggia that lay to the south us - were glad to leave Pallestrina, for immediately on landing were beset with women and children, beggars, who did not cease to torment us during the hour we remained on the island - nearly dark when we landed from the Gondola on the steps of the steps of the Suropa -

Crossed the grande canal to the church della Saluta where there was a ceremony of depositing military flag - a beautiful church and erected on the retirement of the plague from Venice in and promenaded in the Piazza San Marco - a large concourse of fashionables.

In the evening at the opera at Benedetti, got lost in coming to my rooms. One must serve an apprenticeship to know these labyrinths of streets -

Called on Mr. Holme, the American consul. The letters I have received from America quite satisfactory. Mr. Valentine who I believe to be the partner of Mr. Holme, offers to lend me two volumes of Venetian history in English. From my rooms to the place St. Mark seven minutes walk, have to cross seven bridges. Walked along the front of the city along the shore called the Riva Sciarone to the entrance of the Arsenal, where stands the colossal lion, of the Athenians, and that formerly adorned the entrance of the Piraeus -

Rose this morning somewhat better - drank warm Tea - Signora Barbini - my kindly paid me a visit - a very sensible woman, and shall take every opportunity of cultivating her acquaintance - have taken her rooms for a month at 140 Austrian lires - they are pleasantly situated on the Grand Canal and in sight of the Bridge of the Rialto. At 11 o clock - Mons. Simos and Stephano called on me - went together to visit the church Dei Frari a magnificent structure by the architect Nicola Pisano - near a small side alter are deposited the remains of the immortal Titian - who died in the time of plagues and has no monument. An old woman on her knees at the alter pointed out to me the spot - where is simply cut on the stone - "Here lie the remains of Titian Veccellio the emulator of Zeuxis and Apelles."

The church is immensely rich in statuary and paintings - there are monuments of Several Doges - that of the Doge Pesaro - supported on colossal figures of negro men is an extensive and costly pile. Next to it is the monument lately erected to the memory of Canova - a copy of one the sculptor himself constructed in Vienna to the memory of Maria Terese in the Augustine church-close to the Frari is the Scuola di San Rocco - which is highly praised for its architecture, and internally covered with the works of Tintoretto.

The day rather cloudy, and time has somewhat bedimmed the works of the great Venetian painter - felt much better after the exercise of the day - but ate little or nothing -

The academy delle Belle Arti occupied our attention today - the saloons of which contain the works of the great masters of painting that mark the Venetian School among the first in the art. The first saloon is rich in the productions of Palma, Bonifacio, Tintoretto, Contarini, Pordenone, - and the assumption of the blessed virgin, which my guide book says - La copia de suoi pregi si palesa da se. Two other large rooms are called the Sale Nove are filled with the works of Paul Veronese [see photo below, source: google images], Bellini, etc. and a work called the chef d'oeuvre of Titian the Martyadorn of St. Peter, the design of which is remarkably bold, and correct. At the hour of three the galleries are closed, so left, intending to see the remainder another day - from the steps of the academy embarked on a Gondola and landed in the door of the Europa. At dinner partook of oysters in the shell which towards evening made me quite unwell - a violent headache and chills - retired early to my new rooms in the palace Gardzone bathed feet in warm water and went to bed -