VENICE.

As I sat in one of the balconies of the hotel, the calm waters of the great canal of Venice rippling against the bridge of the Rialto immediately before me, I thought of the Dandoli, the Foscari, the Giustiniani, the Morosini, and other great and powerful men, who once lived in those old massive palaces, reclining in the lap of luxury, surrounded by Asiatic splendour, and armed with power. But now, when I turn my eyes towards those buildings, they are deserted by their lords. The successors of that ambitious aristocracy, who built mansions suited to the fierce grandeur of their free and elevated minds, are now degraded, and these palaces are the abodes of strangers or menials, who seem lost in the magnificence of such splendid halls. Venice, the city from whose story Shakespeare chose the subject of some of his plays, is no longer brilliant and flourishing. It bears evident traces of premature decay. The life is gone; its once gay inhabitants are dwindled into the abject subjects of a foreign prince. The empty gloomy-looking gondolas, the half-deserted quays, bridges, and streets of the once famed "city of the waters," all indicate that slavery, want, and oppression, have usurped the place of freedom, riches, and power.

SINCLAIR'S AUTUMN IN ITALY.

The Rialto-if no more were included under this name than the single arch across the canal, the congregation of merchants before whom Antonio used to rate Shylock must have been a small one; nor could Pierre well have chosen a worse place for "his evening walk of meditation." The fact is, however, the little island which formed the cradle of Venice, where the first church was built by the fugitives from the persecution of Attila, was called Riva-alta, or Rialto. Here too was the exchange where the merchants met. In process of time, the bridge leading to this island was called the Rialto, and has at last become the sole proprietor of the name.

DIARY OF AN INVALID.

MERCHANT OF VENICE.

ACT II. SCENE VIII.

The Great Canal with the RIALTO at VENICE.

Salar.

SALARINO and SOLANIO.

Why, man, I saw Bassanio under sail;

With him is Gratiano gone along;

And in their ship, I am sure, Lorenzo is not.

Solan. The villain Jew with outcries raised the duke;

Who went with him to search Bassanio's ship.

Salar. He came too late, the ship was under sail :

But there the duke was given to understand,
That in a gondola were seen together

Lorenzo and his amorous Jessica :

Besides, Antonio certified the duke,

They were not with Bassanio in his ship.

In a gondola were seen together

Loren und ris amori us essica.

MEHCHANT OF VENICE ACT & SCENE &