Are such arrangements worthy of a public institution? Why are there not a few rooms fitted up at the expense of government for the poor? Why cannot they have a plain hot meal once in the day for a moderate price? The poor surely suffer enough by not being able to earn anything for so long a time, without being deprived of their hard earnings in such a shameful manner!
On the second day the court-yard was opened, and we were permitted to walk about in an inclosed space a hundred and fifty paces wide, on the sea-shore. The view was very beautiful; the whole of the Cyclades lay before us: small, mountainous islands, mostly uninhabited and covered over with woods. Probably they were formerly a part of the mainland, and were separated by some violent convulsion of nature.
On the fourth day our range was extended, we were allowed to walk as far as the hills surrounding the lazaretto under the care of a guard. The remains of a temple stand upon these hills, fragments of a wall, and a very much decayed column. The latter, which consisted of a single piece of stone, was fluted, and, judging from the circumference, had been very high. These ruins are said to be those of the remarkably fine temple of Jupiter.
21st October. This was the day we were set at liberty. We had ordered a small vessel the evening before which was to take us to Athens early in the morning. But my fellow-travellers would insist upon first celebrating their freedom at a tavern, and from this reason it was 11 o’clock before we started. I availed myself of this time to look about the town and its environs. It is very small and contains no handsome buildings. The only remains of antiquity which I found were traces of the floor of a room in Mosaic work of coloured stones. From what I could see of the island of Ægina, it appeared extremely barren and naked, and it does not show any indications of having been once a flourishing seat of art and commerce.
Ægina is a Greek island, about two square miles in extent, it was formerly a separate state, and is said to have received the name of Ægina from the daughter of Æsop. It is supposed that the first money of Greece was coined in this island.
Our passage to the Piræus occupied a long time. There was not a breath of wind, and the sailors were obliged to row; we did not land at our destination until nearly 8 in the evening. We were first visited by the health-officer, who read through the certificates which we brought from the quarantine very leisurely. There was unfortunately nobody among us who was inclined to make it more understandable to him by a few drachmas. Of course we could not neglect going to the police-office; but it was already closed, in consequence of which we dare not leave the town. I went into a large fine-looking coffee-house to look for night quarters. I was conducted to a room in which half of the window-panes were broken. The attendant said this was of no consequence, it was only necessary to close the shutters. In other respects the room looked very well but I had scarcely laid down on the bed when certain animals compelled me to take to flight. I laid down upon the sofa, which was no better. Lastly, I tried an easy chair, in which I passed the night, not in the most agreeable position.
I had already been told in Ægina of the great dirtiness and number of vermin prevalent in the Piræan inns, and had been warned against passing a night there; but what was to be done? for we could not venture to leave the town without permission of the police.
22nd October. The distance of the harbour of the Piræus from Athens is thirteen stadia, or six English miles. The road leads through olive-plantations and between barren hills. The Acropolis remains continually in sight; the town of Athens does not appear till afterwards. I had intended to remain eight days in Athens, in order to see all the monuments and remarkable places of the town and environs leisurely; but I had scarcely got out of the carriage when I heard the news of the breaking out of the Vienna revolution of October.
I had heard of the Paris revolution of the 24th February while in Bombay; that of March in Germany, at Baghdad; and the other political disturbances while at Tebris, Tiflis, and other places. No news had astonished me so much in my whole life as that from Vienna. My comfortable, peace-loving Austrians, and an overthrow of the government! I thought the statement so doubtful, that I could not give full credit to the verbal information of the Resident at Baghdad; he was obliged to show it to me in black and white in the newspaper to convince me. The affair of March so delighted and inspirited me that I felt proud of being an Austrian. The later occurrences of May, however, cooled my enthusiasm; and that of the 6th of October completely filled me with sadness and dejection. No overthrow of a state ever began so promisingly. It would have stood alone in history if the people had gone on in the spirit of the March movement; and then to end in such a way! I was so grieved and upset by the result of the 6th of October, that I lost all enjoyment of everything. Moreover, I knew my friends were in Vienna, and I had heard nothing from them. I should have hastened there immediately if there had been an opportunity of doing so; but I was obliged to wait till the next day, as the steamer did not start till then. I made arrangements to go by it, and then took a cicerone to show me all the objects of interest in the town, more for diversion than pleasure.
My fate had been very unfortunate; twelve days I had patiently endured being shut up in the lazaretto at Ægina, in order to be able to see the classic country, and now I was so anxious to leave it that I had neither rest nor peace.