amica affezionatissima
CATERINA BON-BRENZONI.

The "Carme" spoken of in the above letter form a long poem on modern
astronomy, entitled "I Cieli," (published by Vallardi. Milan: 1853).
The opening lines contain the following address to Mrs.
Somerville,--doubtless a genuine description of the author's feelings on
first meeting the simple-mannered lady whose intellectual greatness she
had long learned to appreciate:--

Donna, quel giorno ch' io ti vidi in prima,
Dimmi, hai Tu scorto sul mio volto i segni
Dell' anima commossa?--Hai Tu veduto
Come trepida innanzi io ti venia,
E come reverenza e maraviglia
Tenean sospesa sull' indocil labbro
La parola mal certa?--Ah! dimmi, hai scorto
Come fur vinte dall' affetto allora
Che t'udii favellar soave e piana,
Coll' angelica voce e l'umiltade,
Che a' suoi piu cari sapienza insegna?--
Questa, io dicea tra me, questa e Colei,
Di che le mille volte udito ho il nome
Venerato suonar tra i piu famosi?
Questa e Colei che negli eterei spazj
Segue il cammin degli astri, e ne misura
Peso, moto, distanza, orbita e luce?

* * * * *

Another record of our visit to Cola is in a letter of my mother to my
brother.

MRS. SOMERVILLE TO W. GREIG, ESQ.

TURIN, _4th Dec., 1849_.

MY DEAREST WORONZOW,

We arrived here all well the day before yesterday, after a fair but
bitterly cold journey, bright sunshine and keen frost, and to-day we
have a fall of snow.... It was a great disappointment not finding
letters here, and I fear many have been lost on both sides, though
we took care not to touch on political events, as all letters are
opened by the Austrian police in Lombardy. We spent five weeks with
our friends the Miniscalchis very agreeably, and received every mark
of kindness and hospitality. They only live at Verona during the
winter, and we found them in their country house at Cola situated on
a height overlooking the Lago di Garda, with the snowy Alps on the
opposite side of the lake. The view from their grounds is so fine
that I was tempted to paint once more. They took us to see all the
places in the neighbourhood; often a sad sight, from having been the
seat of war and siege. The villages are burnt and the churches in
ruin. But the people are repai