elves fearlessly in their slender
gondolas to tempests; and their skill is so great that they turn with
incredible rapidity in the narrowest canals, cross each other, follow,
and pass each other incessantly, without ever having an accident.

I found myself in a position to judge of the skill of these hardy
mariners the day after our visit to the arsenal. His Majesty was
conducted through the lagoons as far as the fortified gate of Mala-Mocca,
and the gondoliers gave as he returned a boat-race and tournament on the
water. On that day there was also a special representation at the grand
theater, and the whole city was illuminated. In fact, one might think
that there is a continual fete and general illumination in Venice; the
custom being to spend the greater part of the night in business or
pleasure, and the streets are as brilliant and as full of people as in
Paris at four o'clock in the afternoon. The shops, especially those of
the square of Saint Mark, are brilliantly lighted, and crowds fill the
small decorated pavilions where coffee, ices, and refreshments of all
kinds are sold.

The Emperor did not adopt the Venetian mode of life, however, and retired
at the same hour as in Paris; and when he did not pass the day working
with his ministers, rode in a gondola through the lagoons, or visited the
principal establishments and public buildings of Venice; and I thus saw,
in company with his Majesty, the church of Saint Mark, and the ancient
palace of the Doge.

The church of Saint Mark has five entrances, superbly decorated with
marble columns; the gates are of bronze and beautifully carved. Above
the middle door were formerly the four famous bronze horses, which the
Emperor carried to Paris to ornament the Arch of Triumph on the Place du
Carrousel. The tower is separated from the church by a small square,
from the midst of which it rises to a height of more than three hundred
feet. It is ascended by an inclined platform without steps, which is
very convenient; and on arriving at the summit the most magnificent
panorama is spread out before you, Venice with its innumerable islands
covered with palaces, churches, and buildings, and extending at a
distance into the sea; also the immense dike, sixty feet broad, several
fathoms deep, and built of great blocks of stone, which enormous work
surrounds Venice and all its islands, and defends it against the rising
of the sea.

The Venetians have the greatest admiration for the