ing in Rome or in any Etruscan city. It indicates a still higher
antiquity; while the brick foundations remind us of the fame which the
Etruscans and particularly the people of Veii had acquired on account
of their skill in works of terra cotta. The famous Quadriga or brick
chariot which adorned the pediment of the great temple of Jupiter on
the Capitol at Rome was made at Veii, and was a remarkable proof of
the superiority of its people in this species of art. Indeed the name
of Veii is supposed to have been derived from its skill in the
manufacture of terra cotta chariots. The old gateway through which we
passed out of the wood was probably the principal entrance into the
city, and the one over which Tolumnius King of Veii appeared, standing
on the wall, during the famous siege when he was challenged to mortal
combat by Cornelius Cossus, as graphically described by Livy.

Beneath this gate there is a remarkable tunnel called the Ponte Sodo,
bored in the volcanic rock for the passage of the river. It is not,
however, visible from this point. You require to descend the steep
banks of the river to see it; and a very extraordinary excavation it
is, two hundred and forty feet long, sixteen feet wide, and twenty
feet high. It was doubtless made to prevent the evil effects of winter
floods by the inhabitants of Veii, who had considerable skill in such
engineering works. The river sometimes fills the tunnel to the very
roof, leaving behind trunks and branches of trees firmly wedged in the
clefts of the rock in the inside. It was extremely interesting to
stand on this spot and see before me this wonderful Etruscan work, and
to lave my hands in the waters of the Formello, which, under the
classical name of the Cremera, was prominently associated with early
Roman history. It would be difficult to find a lovelier dimple in the
fair face of mother earth than the valley through which the Formello
flows. Precipitous cliffs rose from the bed of the river opposite to
me, enriched with all the hues that volcanic rock assumes under the
influences of the weather and the garniture of moss and lichen. A
perfect tangle of vegetation crowned their tops and fringed their
sides; the dark unchanging verdure of the evergreen oak and ivy
contrasting beautifully with the tender autumn-like tints in which the
varied spring foliage of the brushwood appeared. Bright flowers and
gay blossoms grew in every crevice and nook. The shallow river flowed
at