quarantine laws. In order to guard against this, every traveller is obliged to take with him a guardiano, or police officer, in pay of the Corfu magistrate, whose care it is to see that the rules are observed, and to report accordingly on your return. The views, the scenery, the sights which you meet with, are very interesting on a first survey, but scarcely induce one, unless for purposes of sport, to repeat a visit to them. However, for the sake of air and recreation, very many times I have gone over to these places in Albania, and visited the pashas who reside either at Butrinto or Murta. The ascent of San Salvador is another object which one is glad to avail oneself of of a fine day in Corfu. This is effected by taking the circuitous paths which surround the mountain, commencing from the base at the north side of the island, and winding through olive-groves up to the centre, where the face of the soil becomes barren and uncultured, and where the rocks are less frequently separated by patches of earth. Then the ascent becomes steep, and in the clefts of the rocks are seen planted, as it were naturally, violets, whose flowers spring in profusion-flowers of the deepest shade and the most delicious perfume. When you come to a part about one thousand feet from the summit, all traces of vegetation disappear; nothing but rough stones meet the eye. At the summit is a large convent, totally deserted-the cells for the monks to reside in, the refectory, the kitchen, the large bell in the belfry, and the whole establishment without a soul to take care of it. We commenced the ascent of the mountain at half-past six A.M., and did not reach this convent until half-past one P.M. The coming down was certainly much easier, and we took the side of the mountain which lay to the west of the island. We passed a village where we were able to get some bread and wine, those staple commodities in Ionian fare, and, after resting there about an hour and a half, we went downwards towards Ipso, which village was opposite the harbour where our boat was moored. We did not reach it until six in the afternoon. Through the crags and causeways by the grassy valleys, and so down to the olive groves at the base, the descent seemed almost precipitous. My companions, who had kept ahead of me during the whole of the day, were so very much fatigued at its close that they were unable to take anything to eat. I certainly found my appetite very good. We embarked in our yacht at Ipso, and reached Corfu the same night. The drives to Paleo Castruzzi, a distance of eighteen miles from the citadel of Corfu, conduct one through the prettiest part of the island to the shore on the opposite side of it, through the Val di Rupa, a plain which lies in the centre of the island, and which, in the season, is famous for snipe; the ground swampy in the centre of it. After passing this the country becomes more hilly, and the hills, being covered with olive-trees, have a fresh and verdant appearance. Several pretty villages are passed, the houses of which are small, rural, and neat. In the wine-houses the Greeks are invariably congregated at morra, which they play with their fingers, throwing these out instantaneously upon a man's calling out a certain number, and the knack of which game seems to be the quickness with which you can throw out the number of fingers previous to the opponent's uttering the number. If he says the wrong number, he loses, and vice versa. Simple as seems the game, they vociferate and gesticulate most violently in playing it, and bet large sums upon the event. We passed one very picturesque village situated on a spur of land overlooking a wood, and turning to the left, we went by a winding road which ended in the gate leading to the convent and chapel of Paleo Castrizzi. Adjacent to the convent and chapel are some nice summer residences, where some of the resident families in Corfu, during the heat of the summer months, frequently come and live. On the opposite side of the convent from the one which one approaches from Corfu, is a very rocky shore, and the Adriatic extends further than the eye can reach from the western aspect of the chapel. The Greek chapel is ornamented with large paintings in a grotesque and barbarous style, and one of them near the ceiling, in fresco, is of the Last Judgment. No statue is ever seen in one of these Greek buildings, but paintings or frescoes abound; and I was myself a witness to the reverence which is held by the Greeks to a picture of the Virgin, as on one occasion, before a court of justice, a Greek was examined, and, on taking his oath, he kissed a picture of the Virgin Mary, which was fastened to the panel of the wall near the judge's seat. The priest who administered the oath made him hold the Bible in his hand while he repeated the words of it to him, and he then finished the form to be observed by kissing the picture instead of the book. In visiting Panta Leone, I found that although the distance was fully eighteen miles from the citadel of Corfu, still, as the road lay through a line of country well shaded for the most part, the most agreeable way of proceeding was to walk thither with a companion who did not mind the fatigue. I mentioned it to one who loved these long rambles, and we agreed, therefore, to set off one day in July. Beneath the shade of the olive groves which lay on each side of the road we did not feel the intense heat of the sun, and we were very lightly dressed-a light calicojacket, white trousers, and a broad hat to keep off the glare, were the equipments most suited for this pedestrian excursion. The olive, though most prolific of leaves and thick with its numerous branches, has a dead, dull colour of green, which is unvaried during the whole year. small grasshoppers, in countless myriads, The shrill cicalas, people of the pine, The perpetually chirp and keep moving through its branches. After going for about three miles through the groves, we came to a line of country planted with grapes-vineyards of purple, yellow, grey, amber-coloured grapes-lying in thousands of clusters from the vinestems, some of them rolling on the ground, some bowing down with their weight the elastic stems of the vine plant, some displaying in rich luxuriance, as it were to be painted, their glowing colours in the sun. One might have gathered hampers full of them, and they would never have been missed from the multitudinous profusion with which this natural grapery was stocked. Our time was too precious to allow us to linger long amongst the vineyards, but we proceeded onwards to a small hamlet which is famed as being the residence of the "Bella Villani,” a rustic Greek beauty, whom we saw seated in the verandah of her house and exchanged some words with in Italian. She certainly was a beauty of that dazzling character which one sometimes sees here-her eyes dark as it is possible to conceive them-her features faultless, and particularly the nose and mouth-short upper lip. Her hair was braided thickly in large plaits, which she circled round her head. She spoke in the Venetian dialect, a patois of the Italian which is universal throughout the Greek islands, and in which a great number of the plays of Goldoni are written. The frequency of the diphthongs which occur in it makes it sound softer, but greatly deteriorates the distinctness of the Italian words. We proceeded onwards to where the road was much elevated, and, after we had reached a distance of about ten miles from Corfu, we saw the low grounds of the extensive Val di Rupa, lying stretched out at our left like a large plan or map. We had this for about three miles, and then came to a vast amphitheatre formed by mountainous heights, through the centre of which we descended, and proceeded for about two miles, till we reached the place which is kept for the reception of parties visiting Panta Leone. There were two or three small cottages in a valley, and near them a fountain, and before this fountain was a large flat rock, which had been shaped out like a round table. This was meant for parties to dine at. This, however, was only useful for those who brought their collations with them, but we, not being so provided, were obliged soon to leave the spot and trust to what we should procure at a small house of refreshment on our way back, which lay about half way between Panta Leone and Corfu; so, as the distance was long, we retraced our steps, and it was nearly six o'clock in the evening when we reached the small albergo. Here we met an Italian doctor who had resided for some time in the neighbourhood, and who talked in the most enthusiastic praise of his native country, and abused the French. He had that violent enthusiasm of manner which one frequently sees with foreigners. There are great numbers of doctors throughout the Ionian Islands, and they procure a diploma with so much ease, that I am told by medical people the probationary work which they have to go through, as compared with that which our students undergo, is quite a farce. After our dinner we had to speed our way back to Corfu. Much as has been written of old by Homer, and sung of late by Moore, relating to the evenings in Greece, I think there is no object in nature which can compare as to loveliness with a Greek sunset. We had the fullest perfection of one shedding its glorious tints over the summer landscape this evening. Lo giorno se n' andava e l'aer bruno Toglieva gli animai che sono 'n terra The "rosy flood of twilight sky" beaming over the waving fields of gran turco-the balmy breath of the myrtle flowers in full bloom now, and at the hour of sunset exhaling their most delicious fragrance-the softness and serenity of the air-were all, I think, such as I never saw equalled in any climate that I have ever been in. Certainly for beautiful and picturesque scenery Corfu is the most delightful of all the islands, but the remains of classical buildings you must look for elsewhere; and in none of the islands are more of them to be met than in Cephalonia. There are four ancient cities, called Samos, Kranii, Palé, and Proné. Of the two first, the large Cyclopean remains would make them well worthy of a visit to any antiquary who had time to leave England for that purpose. Samos lies immediately opposite the island of Ithaca. On the shore, in the low land, are some halls which are floored with the tesselated marble so much in use in former times; on a mountain, which looks over this shore, is a stupendous wall, built of enormous stones of Cyclopean dimensions, and which I should think it would baffle the art of man to disjoin. Some of the largest stones were twelve feet by fourteen; other smaller relics lie at some distance from these, but this colossal wall stands out high in the objects seen from a distance, and must be of very great antiquity. The ruins of Kranii are at a distance of about two miles from Argostoli, opposite which place is a large bay, which is completely surrounded by the shore except at the north side. It is deep near the entrance, as also opposite the towns of Argostoli and Lixuri; but further on to the land side it diminishes into a shallow marsh, which is spanned by a broad wooden bridge leading across from the wharf at Argostoli to the mountain range, which lies at the opposite side of the bay. Now at the side which lies innermost, or where the marsh is lowest, are seen the few scattered ruins of the ancient city of Kranii. Here, however, from the size of the stones which formed the buildings, one can easily perceive how large the ancient city must have been-how strong the bitumen or cement which kept the stones together, and which have stood the test of so many earthquakes, and the wear and tear of so many centuries. The earthquakes are of such frequent occurrence, that during eight months that I resided in Cephalonia there had been six of them. The weeds, the long grass, the creepers, and shrubs of indigenous growth, had covered over or shot through the ruined walls and buildings. There is certainly no object more lonely and mournful than a deserted and ruined city. The present town of Lixuri is built near the site of the ancient Palé, and this, I suppose, may account for so few relics of the latter city being now apparent; in fact, there is barely enough left to attest the locality being the same as that of the city mentioned in the history of Thucydides. From the depth of the water opposite, the situation must have been favourable for commerce. The fourth city, called Proné, is one of the capitals of the districts into which the island was divided, and which, being four in number, caused it to be called Tetrapolis. This ancient city lay in the most remote and secluded part of the island, on the opposite side from Argostoli. The wild mountains, the valleys covered with shrubs, the tops of cliffs thickly planted with the vines, and the rugged aspect of nature in this part of the island, makes it replete with grand features of scenery; but such are of a gloomy character. The remains of the ancient city of Proné have nothing very remarkable in them. 2 L VOL. XLVI. FRENCH AND ENGLISH FEMALE DRESS. I HAVE been living abroad some years, chiefly in France, making, however, occasional visits to the land of my birth, which visits have been so strictly devoted to my family and friends that minor objects were unheeded. I had, nevertheless, a notion that a great and general improvement was going on in all things, especially in female attire. This opinion was unshaken by the curious specimens of British females seen in Paris; they came, I considered, from some of our remotest provinces, where fashion and taste were unknown, and they would, I deemed, have been as out of character in Hyde Park as in the gardens of the Tuileries. Thus have I accounted for their strange apparel to my Parisian friends; and knowing that all travellers like to go as far from home as possible, my opinion was not unreasonable. On the occasion of my present visit, October, 1859, I see with dismay that the "caricatures," as the French called them, I had observed in Paris were not exceptional cases. In London and Brighton my eye rests with astonishment on the tasteless finery of my countrywomen. I see gaudy, tawdry bonnets, of no form at all, made up of tumbled gauze or lace, mixed up with, and kept together by, all sorts of trimming. The shape, where there is one, is that of a skull-cap, with a graceless projection behind, and indefinite additions in front. The rest of the dress is in keeping with the head; and fitness is so little studied, that I have seen cloth cloaks on a sultry day, and lace mantles when wind and rain kept me in-doors. This state of things is not the worst of the matter. I find a notion gaining ground that an English lady's dress is "perfect," "quiet," "neat," "distingué," while all that is flashy and showy is denounced as "French." Now the reverse of this is the fact. The false notions in England on this subject have arisen, I presume, thus: There is a class of women whose chief aim is to attract attention. These persons bring discredit on French fashions, but such fashions as theirs are not general in Paris; nor could I say with certainty where they have their origin, unless it be the Temple, from whence proceeds a large ascending scale of taste, ending in the Rue de la Paix. In these shops no Parisian of distinction condescends to cast a glance. The style of dress of the French lady on foot is of the quietest and most unpretending order. If flowers are worn, they are few, and seldom outside the bonnet. That bonnet, simple as it is, was manufactured in a place unknown to the stranger, and unattainable to the female of limited means. In winter the gown is so universally black, that when I have caught sight of a colour I was almost sure I saw a foreigner, and was seldom mistaken. A French woman's purpose is to dress according to her rank, means, circumstances, and beauty. I say the last advisedly, for no woman, perhaps, is without some personal charm, did she not disfigure herself by dress. As rich materials are not to be obtained by all women of birth, the Parisian, in this case, will adopt some simple, tasteful style, which |