From nature by J. J. Tobin - TRIESTE
8th. Leaving Planina early this morning, we ascended a very steep hill, at the foot of which the Laibach again rises out of the mountains as it does at Ober-Laibach. The country between Planina and Adelsberg is bleak and barren, and presents nothing interesting. The mountain near the latter small town contains the famous grottos of Adelsberg, formerly thought to be the only spot where that singular animal the Proteus Anguinus was found. Sir Humphry said there was no time for me to visit these grottos now, but he thought that he should pass through Adelsberg again upon his return, and we accordingly drove into Trewalchen, where we passed over another long and steep hill. At Sesana we saw the first olive trees; they much resemble the common willow, but are darker; these and the flat-roofed houses, and a lighter and more airy style of architecture, told us that we were approaching Italy. The country between Sesana and Trieste is wild and bleak, completely covered with broken and waterworn rocks, over which, ages ago, some great current of the ocean must have passed, and thus occasioned their present singular and often fantastic shapes. At the foot of the last hill, which is not steep, we entered the territory of Trieste, and from its summit one of the most magnificent sea views I ever beheld burst upon our sight. Nearly two thousand feet below us lay the wide expanse of the blue Adriatic, its light waves glittering in the sun-beams, occasionally shaded by the intercepting clouds. At the foot of the mountain, and partly concealed by it, appeared Trieste, with its harbour full of vessels, lying on a small promontory. Looking over the town and across the bay the eye embraces the whole hilly coast of Istria, with the towns of Capo d'Istria, Pirano, and others; and promontory is seen beyond promontory till the more distant ones can no longer be distinguished from the waves. The right or opposite coast, stretching down to Venice, is flat, and the last visible point on it is the ancient town of Aquilea; but behind this low and marshy tract the distant Alps of the Friul are seen, covered with eternal snow. After stopping the carriage for some time to admire this magnificent view, we descended the hill by a very winding and steep road. Every thing bespoke the approach to a large and commercial city, and the road was filled with carts and waggons coming and going, loaded with merchandize. In some of them we counted twenty horses, in another twenty-four oxen, with twelve drivers, who made a terrible noise with their mouths as well as their whips to animate their strong and fine beasts during their ascent. A new road is now building which, when finished, will render the great number of cattle now obliged to be used unnecessary. We reached the gate of Trieste about four o'clock, and after driving through some fine wide streets wholly paved with flagstones, and across the Ponterosso, a miserable little bridge, we took up our quarters at the Locanda Grande, in the market-place; but our rooms looked towards the harbour and sea, and immediately beneath them we heard the joyous noise and bustle of the sailors. What a difference between this town and the inland cities of Germany! There all seems dead or asleep, and hardly a living soul is to be seen in the streets; here, on the contrary, all is activity and animation. The representatives of all nations seem assembled here,—Italians, Germans, English, and Americans, with Greeks and Turks in their national dresses, are seen walking through the streets or sitting before the doors of the cafés: this latter applies especially to the Turks, who, in their graceful costume with their long pipes, attract the notice of every stranger unaccustomed to see individuals of this nation.
Leaving Sir Humphry to repose in his room, I took a walk about the town and harbour. The streets are generally broad, well paved, and clean, and the houses are lofty and well built. The harbour is full of small craft, but I saw but one large merchantman, lately arrived from the Brazils. Near the Molo san Carlo, a small pier, lay a steam-boat which was to start the next morning for Venice. To the left of the town, looking towards the sea, and at a considerable distance from the houses, is the Lazaretto, a large and spacious building, close to a basin or dock, in which the vessels lie whilst performing quarantine. After dinner I went with Sir Humphry to the theatre, which is an elegant and lofty building, with five tiers of boxes very tastefully ornamented. The piece performed was an opera, The Arabs in Gaul, but spite of the magnificent decorations and really fine music, Sir Humphry soon became tired, and we returned to our Shakspeare and ecarté. I sleep to-night, for the first time in my life, in the bed-room of an Emperor; a little chamber with only one window in it, and with which, I think, few Emperors of the present day would be content. Above the bed is painted a gorgeous crown and encircling canopy, beneath which, on a small marble tablet, are the following words:—
Locus iste Imperatoris
Josephi Secundi
Habitatio fuit XV Maji.
The year was either never mentioned, or has been rubbed out.
9th. The noise of the sailors and the hum of business—sounds long foreign to my ear—greeted me upon waking this morning, and on looking out of my window I saw a number of people upon the quay below, buying fish from the sailors of some fishing-boats that had just come into the harbour. After breakfast I accompanied Sir Humphry on a visit to the British Consul, Colonel D——, who politely promised to send Sir Humphry a fisherman who could supply him with some living torpedos for his experiments. Sir Humphry afterwards rode out on his pony, George attending him, whilst I took a walk on the hill above the town. I had intended to visit the stalactite grotto at Corneale to-day, as Sir Humphry, who had seen it ten years ago, said it was well worth notice; but on coming away from Colonel D——'s I found that it was too late.
10th. I left Trieste early this morning, with a guide, to visit the grotto. After a three hours' walk over two very long and steep hills, from which however the view over the Adriatic, with numberless white sails flitting across its waves, the two coasts, the harbour with its shipping, the town and the gardens surrounding it planted with cypresses and olives, was magnificent, we reached Corneale, a small and dirty village, and having here provided ourselves with a man carrying a large lamp, and some boys with candles, proceeded over some very rough and stony fields to the grotto. The entrance was not, as I had expected, in the side of a hill, but in the open fields, and surrounded by a wall. Having lighted our lamp and candles, I took off my coat, and we began the descent down some very slight wooden stairs, the steps and railing of which were, as I afterwards found to my cost, not only slippery, but quite rotten from the continual dripping. The entrance, or hall, is a fine lofty dark vault, supported in the middle by one enormous stalactite column. Beyond this the cave becomes narrower, and the numberless stalactites of all sizes present a greater variety of forms than it is possible to describe: immense cauliflowers, trunks of trees, fruits; rounds and ovals of all sizes, from that of a marble to globes of many feet in diameter; pyramids rising up from below, and whose bases are lost in profound darkness; myriads of peaks hanging from the roof, often invisible to the eye, are seen at every step.
These different forms, the deathlike stillness of the cave, the total darkness, except in those points where the guides placed themselves so as to illuminate the most striking objects; deep precipices before and around me, from out of which here and there a single snow white column rose, formed, and still forming, by the water which falls in measured time from the unseen roof; the flickering lights of our candles,—all this, and the thought of where I should roll to were I to slip from the frail steps into one of those dark abysses, produced an indescribable feeling of awe and fear. Descending further into the cavern, we passed by the Lion's head, the Melon, the Death's head, and two magnificent single pillars, the one plain, the other beautifully fluted, both of which upon being struck by the hand emit a loud sonorous sound, that thrills mournfully through the surrounding silence. Beyond these we came to the Waterfall, one of the finest specimens of stalactites in the cavern; other pillars and pyramids, and last of all to the Baldachin, or canopy formed of beautifully fluted hanging stalactites. Beyond this point the cave had not been explored, as the precipices are very dangerous. Even the descent to this spot is not very safe, being often along very narrow slippery paths and rotten stairs, or rather ladders. On my return I sketched different subjects in the cave, and whilst drawing the entrance-hall, incautiously sat upon the wooden hand-rail, when I heard a sudden crack, and felt that I was falling backwards. Not being able to recover myself, I slipped from rock to rock, turning twice head over heels, but without injury, and with perfect presence of mind, although I expected every instant to be dashed over the edge of a precipice. As soon as I felt my fall become slower, I stopped myself with my hands, with my head downwards, and my heels in the air. In this position I remained some minutes, not daring to move a finger, till the guide came down through the rocks with his lamp to my assistance; with his help I regained my feet, and found that I had been lying on the very verge of a smooth rock, beneath which was a dark and impenetrable abyss. My next fall would probably have been into eternity.
After the whirl of my brain had passed away, I found, with the exception of some light bruises, that I had not injured myself, as the rocks were very smooth and round. Having reascended, we left the cave, and I sat for a long time in the fresh air as I felt very sick. The guide and the boy had been exceedingly terrified, and still looked as pale as I think I must have done myself; nor shall I soon forget the shriek they uttered when they saw me falling. After a draught of water that was very refreshing, though from a dirty pool in the field, and paying the man and boys who had been in the grotto with me for upwards of two hours, I returned to Trieste, where the tailor and a good dinner set every thing to rights again.