The Italian Sketch-Book Transl

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: 17 MILAN. THE CATHEDRAL. There are certain landscapes and buildings in the world which have been so often represented in paintings and engravings, as well as described in books, that every one feels as if the reality, when first viewed, must present itself to him as a familiar scene. To this class the...
More Description

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: 17 MILAN. THE CATHEDRAL. There are certain landscapes and buildings in the world which have been so often represented in paintings and engravings, as well as described in books, that every one feels as if the reality, when first viewed, must present itself to him as a familiar scene. To this class the cathedral of Milan may certainly be said to belong. We went out early the first morning after our arrival, with the intention of reaching the cathedral in time for mass; but the charm of wandering about a strange city for the first time so beguiled us, that instead of going directly to our proposed destination, we explored first one street, then another, and paused to examine this shop-window and that advertisement, until a vivid image of the whole city had become impressed upon our minds. The character of Milan, as it appeared to me on that morning (an impression which longer acquaintance only served to confirm), is that of tranquil, modern gentility, such as one sees in a German capital. Neither business nor traffic seems to be carried on in the streets, which may be said to be both clean and quiet, when the masses of human beings with which they are filled are taken into consideration. In the principal streets most of the houses are large and stately, with a court in the centre. These mansions are kept in good order; the windows which look towards the street are closed with curtains; but now and then we caught a passing glimpse of the interior, and saw handsome women standing on the balconies which overlook the courts, or engaged in their domestic avocations; whilst well-dressed servants were hurrying to and fro busied in their daily work. These closed windows, however, im- parted a dull aspect to the town: an impression which was heightened by the great stillnes...