ng
that struck their attention was the extreme narrowness of the
streets. There was only room for one carriage to pass at a time.
The sidewalks were a foot higher than the carriage-way. There were
crossing-stones that stood high above the pavement. The sidewalks
were paved with brick, and the carriage-way with lava blocks, which
were very neatly joined together. Clive took a piece of brick as
a relic, and David broke off a fragment from one of the
crossing-stones for the same purpose.

They soon came to a ruined edifice, which Michael Angelo called
the Basilica. It was two hundred feet in length, and seventy in
width. At one end still remained the Tribunal or Seat of Justice,
seven feet above the pavement; and all around the walls were
columns formed of brick, covered with plaster. The boys picked off
some of the plaster as relics.

Leaving this, they went on and came to another ruined edifice,
which Michael Angelo called the Temple of Venus. It was built
round a courtyard, with porticos. Here David and Clive obtained
some more relics.

Beyond this was an open square surrounded by pillars, of which only
the lower parts remained. This was the Forum Civile; and beyond
this stood the Temple of Jupiter, which they visited without finding
anything that was particularly interesting. After this Michael
Angelo took them to a place which he said was the Public Bakery.
Here they saw millstones, ovens, water-vessels, and some other
articles of which they could not guess the use. Not far away were
some bakers' shops. In these shops loaves of bread were found by
the diggers. Of course they were burned to charcoal; but they
retained their original shape, and showed marks upon them which
were probably intended to indicate the bakery from which they came.
Heaps of corn were also found.

Going down the street where these were situated, they came to one
of the gates of the city. Beside this was a niche in the wall,
used as a sentry-box, upon which, all the party gazed with a profound
interest; for in that sentry-box those who disentombed the city
found a skeleton, in the armor and with the equipment of a Roman
soldier. Evidently the sentry had died at his post.

They took a good look at the walls here, which they found to be
about twenty-five feet high, and formed of huge stones, that were
joined together without cement. The gates had evidently been double.

Passing through this gate, they found themselves outside the city,
in