d. Almost the first object to attract the attention of the
traveller on emerging from the railroad depot is the statue of Columbus
in a broad open space. It was erected so late as 1862, and stands upon a
pedestal ornamented with ships' prows. At the feet of the statue kneels
the figure of America, the whole monument being of white marble, and
surrounded by allegorical figures in a sitting posture, representing
Religion, Geography, Force, and Wisdom.

There are many noble public institutions in Genoa, noticeable among
which is the general hospital and the asylum for the poor, as it is
called, capable of sheltering sixteen hundred people. The Deaf and Dumb
Asylum and the Hospital for the Insane are the best organized in Italy.
The Public Library contains some hundred and twenty thousand bound
volumes, and is open for free use at all suitable hours. There is also
an Academy of Fine Arts, with an admirable collection of paintings and
sculpture: many of the examples are from the hands of the old masters.

The Cathedral of St. Lorenzo is richly worthy of our attention. Among
the curiosities to be seen within its walls are the two urns said to
contain the ashes of St. John the Baptist, which are paraded with
religious pomp through the streets of the city once a year. They are
said to have been brought from the city of Myrrha in Lycia, in the year
1097. There is also exhibited here an emerald dish, which is an object
of great veneration with the Genoese, and which is said to have held the
Paschal Lamb at the Last Supper. It was captured from the Saracens, in
the year 1101, at the storming of Cesarea.

From elevated points in and about Genoa most charming and extended views
of the Mediterranean are enjoyed. It is not the tranquil and lake-like
expanse which inexperience would believe it to be, but is capable of
nearly as fierce commotion as the angry waves of the Atlantic itself. It
is still navigated very much as it was of old by the Greeks, the
Phoenicians, and the Romans. The mariners still hug the shore, and at
every unfavorable change of weather run into the nearest safe anchorage.
Thus most of the coasting-vessels are under one hundred tons'
measurement, and are of a model which will permit of their being beached
upon the shelving shore in an emergency. It seems to be generally
believed that this sea is tideless, but it is not the case; it feels
the same lunar influence which affects the ocean, though in a less
degree. T