Here Greece had laid at
the feet of Rome her conqueror, the accumulated art treasures of ages.
Here Leo could have keenest delight, where he moved among the noblest
examples of antique sculpture, which filled the galleries and chambers of
the Vatican and Capitol. Most of the night he lay awake, planning how he
could in so short a time exhibit to his American friends Rome and her
wealth of art. At breakfast he said, "A whole day is needed to inspect
the Forum Romanum, a day each, for the Capitoline Hill, the Appian Way,
and many other historic localities in this seven-hilled city."
Leo, acting as guide, took his party to the Pincian Hill near the
northern wall, a fashionable resort with fine boulevards and frequent
band music. From the summit, he pointed out the yellow Tiber, which winds
for seventeen miles to the sea. The larger part of modern Rome lies on
the left bank of the Tiber, and covers three historic hills. Towering
above the tops of the buildings are the domes and spires of nearly four
hundred churches of which the dome of St. Peter's is the most imposing.
In sight beyond are the Capitol, the ruins of the Colosseum, and ancient
tombs along the Appian Way. To the west on the Palatine Hill are the
ruins of the palace of the Caesars, and outside the walls, on the broad
Campagna, are the remains of several aqueducts converging on the city,
some of which, restored, are in use to-day.
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