au plus beau jour;" for here she seems to keep holiday all the
year round. To stand upon my balcony, looking out upon the sunshine
and the glorious bay; the blue sea, and the pure skies--and to feel
that indefinite sensation of excitement, that _superflu de vie_,
quickening every pulse and thrilling through every nerve, is a
pleasure peculiar to this climate, where the mere consciousness of
existence is happiness enough. Then evening comes on, lighted by a
moon and starry heavens, whose softness, richness, and splendour, are
not to be conceived by those who have lived always in the vapoury
atmosphere of England--dear England! I love, like an Englishwoman, its
fireside enjoyments, and home-felt delights: an English drawing-room,
with all its luxurious comforts--carpets and hearth-rugs, curtains let
down, sofas wheeled round, and a group of family faces round a blazing
fire, is a delightful picture; but for the languid frame, and the sick
heart, give me this pure elastic air, "redolent of spring;" this
reviving sunshine and all the witchery of these deep blue skies!--

* * * * *

Numbers of people set off post-haste from Rome to see the eruption of
Mount Vesuvius, and arrived here Wednesday and Thursday; just time
enough to be too late. Among them our Roman friend Frattino, who has
afforded me more amusement than all our other acquaintance together,
and deserves a niche in my gallery of characters.

Frattino is a young Englishman, who, if he were in England, would
probably be pursuing his studies at Eton or Oxford, for he is scarce
past the age of boyhood; but having been abroad since he was twelve
years old, and early plunged into active and dissipated life, he is an
accomplished man of fashion, and of the world, with as many airs and
caprices as a spoiled child. He is by far the most _beautiful_
creature of his sex I ever saw; so like the Antinous, that at Rome he
went by that name. The exquisite regularity of his features, the
graceful air of his head, his _antique_ curls, the faultless
proportions of his elegant figure, make him a _thing_ to be gazed on,
as one looks at a statue. Then he possesses talents, wit, taste, and
information: the most polished and captivating manners, where he
wishes to attract,--high honour and generosity, where women are not
concerned,--and all the advantages attending on rank and wealth: but
under this fascinating exterior, I suspect our Frattino to be a ve