"I think they would," said Rollo, "if they understood it all as well."
"They could not be easily made to believe, I suppose," said Mr. George, "that such an immense structure, all of iron, could have been made, and launched, and then navigated all over the world just by the power of the maze of iron beams and wheels, and machinery, which they would see in ruins in the hold."
"Uncle George," said Rollo, "what curious bricks the Romans used!"
So saying, Rollo pointed to the bricks in a mass of masonry near where they were standing. These bricks, like all those that were used in the construction of the building, were very flat. They were a great deal longer and a great deal wider than our bricks, and were yet not much more than half as thick. This gave them a very thin and flat appearance. Instead of being red, too, they were of a yellow color.
These bricks had not originally been used for outside works, but only for filling in the solid parts of the walls, and for forming the arches. But the stones with which the brick masonry had been covered and concealed having been removed, the bricks were of course in many places brought to view.
After looking about for some time, Rollo found a brick with two letters stamped upon it. It was evident that the letters had been stamped upon the clay in the making of the brick, while it was yet soft. The letters were P. D.
"Look, uncle George!" said Rollo; "look at those letters! What do you suppose they mean?"
"That is very curious," said Mr. George; and so saying he proceeded to examine the letters very closely.
"They were evidently stamped upon the brick," he said, "when it was soft. Perhaps they are the initials of the maker's name."
"I mean to look and see if all the bricks are stamped so," said Rollo.