"Is this great church named for St. Peter whom we read about in the Bible?" asked Molly.
"Yes," answered her father. "And he is supposed to be buried under this beautiful altar. See, there is an old bronze statue of him on the side of that pillar."
"And look! A woman is lifting up her baby to kiss the foot of the statue!" exclaimed May. "Why is she doing that, father?"
"She wants to show her honor and love for St. Peter. And she wants to teach her child to honor him, too," said her father. "One of the great bronze toes is nearly worn away, so many people have kissed it. Now are you ready to do something almost as hard as climbing a mountain?"
"Of course we are! We are ready for anything. What is it, father?"
"Follow me and you will soon find out."
Then they all passed through a small door on one side of the great church and began to go up some broad, winding stairs. They climbed up and up and up, until it seemed as if they could not climb any higher.
"Would you rather have come up these stairs on a donkey?" asked their father at last.
"Oh, dear! I don't know," said Molly, laughing. "I guess the Capri donkeys could come up here all right, but I think I'd rather be on my own feet. A donkey might get tired and lie down, or turn around and go back."
"Well, here is a resting place for us," said her father. "We have climbed as far as the base of the great dome. We can walk around the gallery now and look down into the church where we stood only a little while ago."