and walked off.  We left him to wait for an hour, to grow very cold and very valiant the more it grew past the hour of appointment.  We were figuring all the poor creature’s huddle of thoughts, and confused hopes of victory or fame, of his unfinished pictures, or his situation upon bouncing into the next world.  You will think us strange creatures; but ’twas a pleasant sight, as we knew the poor painter was safe.  I have thought of it since, and am inclined to believe that nothing but two English could have been capable of such a jaunt.  I remember, ’twas reported in London, that the plague was at a house in the city, and all the town went to see it.

I have this instant received your letter.  Lord!  I am glad I thought of those parallel passages, since it made you translate them.  ’Tis excessively near the original; and yet, I don’t know, ’tis very easy too.—­It snows here a little to-night, but it never lies but on the mountains.  Adieu!

Yours ever.

P.S.—­What is the history of the theatres this winter?

HERCULANEUM—­SEARCH SHOULD BE MADE FOR OTHER SUBMERGED CITIES—­QUOTATIONS FROM STATIUS.

TO RICHARD WEST, ESQ.

NAPLES, June 14, 1740, N.S.

Dear West,—­One hates writing descriptions that are to be found in every book of travels; but we have seen something to-day that I am sure you never read of, and perhaps never heard of.  Have you ever heard of a subterraneous town? a whole Roman town, with all its edifices, remaining under ground?  Don’t fancy the inhabitants buried it there to save it from the Goths:  they were buried with it themselves; which is a caution we are not told that they ever took.  You remember in Titus’s time there were several cities destroyed by an eruption of Vesuvius, attended with an earthquake.  Well, this was one of them, not very considerable, and then called Herculaneum.  Above it has since been built Portici, about three miles from Naples, where the King has a villa.  This underground city is perhaps one of the noblest curiosities that ever has been discovered.  It was found out by chance, about a year and half ago.  They began digging, they found statues; they dug further, they found more.  Since that they have made a very considerable progress, and find continually.  You may walk the compass of a mile; but by the misfortune of the modern town being overhead, they are obliged to proceed with great caution, lest they destroy both one and t’other.  By this occasion the path is very narrow, just wide enough and high enough for one man to walk upright.  They have hollowed, as they found it easiest to work, and have carried their streets not exactly where were the ancient ones, but sometimes before houses, sometimes through them.  You would imagine that all the fabrics were crushed together; on the contrary, except some columns, they have found all the edifices standing upright in their proper situation.  There is one inside of a temple quite perfect, with the middle