my heart, where it still reposes; where it
will lie when that heart has ceased to beat and this frame has returned
to the dust from which it was taken."

We passed through the little north doorway to the outer world. Far away
the snow-capped Pyrenees rose heavenwards like a celestial vision. In
the plain the silvery river ran its winding course listening to the
love-songs of the reeds and rushes. Near us was the lovely octagon
tower, shorn of its spire. Without the ancient walls we traced the
remains of the citadel; and within them the yet more ancient churches of
San Pedro and its desecrated companion.

"Let us go down to them," said Anselmo: "examine the wonderful little
cloisters and make the acquaintance of Miguel the carpenter. He seems to
care little that where now is heard the fret of saw and swish of plane,
once rose voices of priests at worship and faint whispers of the
confessional."

It was a rough descent, but a singularly interesting scene. We found
ourselves in narrow streets with ancient houses whose windows were
guarded by splendid ironwork. Last night the watchmen had paced and
cried the hour, awakening the echoes, summoning the silent shadows with
their lanterns. To-day there was no sense of mystery about streets and
houses; daylight loves to disillusion. We had to content ourselves with
quaint gables and old-world outlines. Behind us was one of the ancient
gateways strong and massive, leading directly into the precincts of the
cathedral. Framed through its archway we saw a portion of the vast
flight of steps crowned by the uninteresting west front. It was one of
the very best, most old-world bits of Gerona, and within a small circle
were antiquities and outlines that would have furnished an artist with
work for half his days.

Upon all this we turned our backs as we went towards San Pedro. Here
everything is in opposition to the cathedral; the exterior of this
Benedictine church is its glory. Rounding a corner we are in full view
of the beautiful west Norman doorway with its delicately wrought carving
and fern-leaf capitals. Above the doorway is a very effective cornice
and above that an admirable rose window: altogether a rare example of
the Italian Romanesque. The whole church is very striking, with its fine
octagonal tower and Norman apses built into the old town walls. Just
beyond the tower a gateway leads to the citadel and open country beyond.
A church existed here as early as the tenth cent