The four Corners abroad

by Amy Ella Blanchard

"Will there be a moon?" asked Nan abruptly just before they reached the car which would take them to their destination.

Miss Helen laughed. "Are you dreaming, Nan? It isn't night."

Nan laughed, too. "I was thinking of the Coliseum. The guide-book says it is best seen at moonlight, and I was wondering if we would have a chance to do that."

"I think we shall, but not till the latter part of our stay."

"As long as we get it in, that will be all right."

Arriving at the point from which the Forum could be best viewed from above, the four stood looking toward it silently, each impressed by the sight of the historic columns, the triumphal arches, the ruined temples.

"To think," murmured Miss Helen, "that it is comparatively but a short time ago that all this was buried under rubbish, that it was a spot which for a long time was practically hidden from view until the nineteenth century."

"Why was that, Miss Helen?" asked Jo.

"Because in warring against paganism the temples were destroyed, the stones were carried away to build into churches and castles, and the very name Forum was forgotten. You can read all about it in Baedeker, my dear," said Miss Helen with a smile at Jo's look of admiration at her knowledge.