such scenery we arrived at Paleocastrizza, a distance of sixteen miles from the capital, and over good military roads. Paleocastrizza was, no doubt, as its name imports, an ancient fortress strongly situated on an isolated rock impending over the sea. A convent of the middle ages had replaced the ancient works, and the edifice was now half convent-half barrack, occupied by a few monks and the convalescent invalids of the garrison, sent here to recover their strength.

So much has already been said about scenery, that instead of entering into a description of the beauties which each of our little tours in Corfu developed, it must suffice to say, that even in the opinion of those who have had opportunities of comparing it with other countries more celebrated for the picturesque-Corfu is one of the loveliest spots in the world, with the greatest variety of scene that can be conceived in so small a space; so here shall be an end

of scene-painting-else the views from the windows of the convent are well worthy. the finest touches of either pencil or pen.

Having lunched here, we were anxious to return to the town, as we were invited to a ball at the Count Bulgari's, one of the first of the Ionian nobility, which of course we were desirous of seeing, as a specimen of the native society. We went at the proper hour, and there found, to our surprise and regret, that, although the fête was given by a Greek, very few Greek ladies were to be seen, and still fewer danced. The scene was, however, gay, from the variety of costume, Greek, Albanian, British naval and military uniforms, and plain evening dresses like our own; and the dancing was kept up with spirit by our own countrywomen.

Our drive next morning was to the Pass of Pantaleone, the highest point of the road which crosses the mountain chain that divides the island from east to west.

E

It is the only road to, and affords a fine view over, the northern division of Corfu and the other islet which claims the merit of being Ulysses' Sail, on the vague and improbable supposition that the capital of Alcinous was situated on that side.

The Pass of Garoune, which we visited the day after, commands in a like manner the southern points, and is also very striking; and when these three stations have been visited, the traveller has obtained a pretty general idea of the interior of Cor

cyra.

One night we went to the Opera, which was obviously open to many criticisms, but seemed on the whole very tolerable for the Ionian Islands.

The carnival had now commenced, but it was too early to see its full festivity, which does not reach its height till the nearer approach of Lent. The Corcyran masquerades may well be expected to be grotesque, when their executions are so.

A few weeks before our arrival a man had been hanged for murder, and one who was an eye-witness described it as a peculiarly disgusting sight; the executioner was dressed in a party-coloured suit of red and blue, with a mask of the same colours, with one huge Cyclopean eye in the centre, resembling nothing so much as the clown in a Christmas pantomime: thus, to our English ideas at least, mixing up horror with mummery;—but perhaps, after all, the party-coloured executioner may look as awful in the eyes of the Corcyrans, as if he were dressed in sables, and that his mask had two eyes.

76

CHAPTER V.

PATRAS.-PARNASSUS.-DELPHI.-CORINTH.-COASTING VOYAGE ROUND SALAMIS,

[30TH JANUARY TO 3RD FEBRUARY.]

EIGHT days was the limit allotted by the departure of the packet for our stay at Corfu; and at the end of that time, we were again paddling down through the Ithaca Channel. On the 30th Januarytwenty-seven days from leaving Englandwe landed in Greece itself, at the town of Patras, in the Morea; and found ourselves amongst a people, whose spoken language, though we were not unacquainted with classical Greek, we could not-owing to the difference of our pronunciation—at all understand. On this subject, I shall make a few observations by-and-by. We