which have been already collected in the temple of Theseus and in the Acropolis.

From the tranquil excitement of these noble objects we returned reluctantly to the noise and confusion of our Bavarian table-d'hôte.

CHAPTER VII.

ATIENS.-NEW PALACE-AREIOPAGUS.-BALL.

[6TH FEBRUARY.]

LONG before daybreak we were roused from our slumbers, which, from the exercise of the day, were generally tolerably sound, by bands of music parading the streets, and peals of artillery. At nine o'clock the king passed along the street in front of our hotel, which was lined with troops, on his way to the church, where service was to be performed preparatorily to the great ceremony of laying the foundation of the new palace.

This the tickets had announced would commence at ten o clock, A.M., and accordingly by that hour we presented ourselves

on the platform raised for the more favoured spectators, and were immediately admitted within a place railed off from the rest of the scaffolding. The kingly personages of Greece and Bavaria were punctual, and their coming was announced by fresh thunders of artillery, while a squadron of lancers galloped down to clear the ground. First in the procession came the venerable bishop of Attica, in full canonicals, of which, however, the mitre formed no part, attended by a numerous body of clergy, and they were followed by the king's personal attendants and aides-decamp, among whom were many of the heroes of modern Greece. The two kings next advanced, and were received with cheering, of which the hurras of the English spectators formed by far the loudest and most energetic part. They returned the greeting with bows, and the ceremony commenced with the chanting of a hymn by the priests in a low monotonous

tone: a chapter of the New Testament was then read, and followed by other devotional exercises; during the whole of which the assembly stood uncovered; and as it was under a burning sun, we were not sorry when the service was over, and the king of Greece made a signal for us to resume our hats. Now there was a-no doubt simulated discussion between the Royal and other principal personages, as to who should lay the stone: at last the Greek mo narch led his father forward with a little gentle violence, and putting the trowel in his hand, proclaimed him to be the founder of the palace; an honour justly due to him, not merely on the score of seniority,—if it be true, as we were informed, that he had given his son 100,000 florins towards its construction. Various speeches having been made by the Greek officials—to us, I am sorry to confess, unintelligible—the kings retired amidst fresh volleys, and the ceremony was over.

On their retiring, the Greek mob rushed in an enthusiastic manner to view the spot where the stone was placed, but were rudely repulsed by the swords of the military, and we heard them muttering, as they retreated, Bapßapa, taking care to mark the r, which in their pronunciation is only wanted to make the Bavarians, barbarians. This struck us as a relic of the haughty spirit of their ancestors, and as no good omen for the Barbarian dynasty.

After the show, we resumed, and completed our inspection of antiquities. First was the Temple of the Winds, or Tower of Andronicus, the only remarkable edifice we had not yet seen: on the frieze are figures representing eight winds, perfect except the faces, which the Turks invariably mutilated from religious feelings. The building itself also is in excellent preservation, with the dial marks distinctly visible on its four southern sides. In the interior was a water-clock to show