1825-1826] Convents at Rome 173 



picturesque, and I think handsome, that they afford con- 

 stant amusement. We want nothing, my dear Mama, but 

 that your strength would have permitted you to come with 

 us ; but when we are resting from our travels our life is much 

 more fatiguing than on the journey, which would never 

 have done for you; even Papa has sometimes been quite 

 fatigued at the end of the day. The English are leaving 

 Rome very fast. Last Sunday there was a very thin con- 

 gregation, and the Vatican, which the first day we went to 

 it was like a gay promenade with the numbers of English, is 

 now left to the Pilgrims and ourselves. We always meet 

 crowds of them, and their simple staring mahogany faces 

 and the gay dresses of the women make a great part of the 

 amusement of going there. They seem to take very much 

 to Elizabeth, having applied to her several times for any 

 information they wanted, and she has had long conversa- 

 tions with some of them. 



On Thursday we were to take the Persianis to Villa 

 Borghese, but it rained and we could only bring them here. 

 But we found not the least difficulty in entertaining them, 

 as we had only the two girls, whom I like very much. Giuli- 

 etta seems to me to have some very heretical notions, at 

 least there are many points of their church rules that she 

 made not the least scruple to disapprove very much, and 

 she said the priests were selfish and thought of nobody but 

 themselves. And her opinion of Convents and Nuns seems 

 very bad; she gave us an account of the dreadful life they 

 lead at the two strictest of the convents. I cannot con- 

 ceive how such horrible places have existed so long. They 

 are called Vivi sepolti, and no name could be so descriptive 

 of them. . . . 



Frank Wedgwood to his sister Fanny. 



DEAB FANNY MAEB, WEDNESDAY, April 27 [1825]. 



I mean to write you a very long letter all about 

 Maer. . . . Peggy is banished to the Moss for biting the 

 hedges, and somebody has built her a snug little hut of 



