CHAPTER I.

ARRIVAL A T ATHENS.

On the first of November, 1837, we left the harbour of Boston; and after a voyage of more than sixty days, interrupted only by a short and pleasant stay of two weeks in the beautiful island of Malta, we were allowed to add to other delights, the pleasure of seeing our long voyage at an end; of finding ourselves among the islands,

"Which, seen from far Colona's height,

Makes glad the heart that hails the sight."

In the afternoon of the sixth of January, 1838, we had the island of Salamis before us,-Egina to the left, and the broken and varied coast of Attica to the right. We were near enough to the island of Ægina to enjoy a passing view of the temple of the Panhellenian Jupiter; but the light southerly wind, which had been blowing in the early part of the day, had veiled the more distant objects of the coast in a mist, which served to heighten our interest, by giving full scope to our imaginations. We were on the look-out for wonders; and some

of us were so far excited with the mere idea of being in sight of Attica, that a ruined wind-mill was mistaken for the "Athenian's grave"-the tomb of Themistocles!

It was late in the afternoon when the port of the Piræus opened before us, and we had barely time to see our way through the narrow entrance of this singular but beautiful basin, before we were overtaken by the evening shades. The port of the Piræus is so locked in by the rocky skirts of Munichia and Mount Egaleos, that, in approaching it, we saw the tall masts of the ships in the port long before we could see how we were to add our Alexandros to their number; and we were not a little surprised and delighted, when a single turn brought us into the port, which stood before us like a revealed mystery. The passage, or space between the two moles, though full sixty yards wide, and deep enough for the largest vessels, appeared exceedingly narrow; and as our ship approached the entrance, we all gathered on the prow, in order to watch its passage through these artificial Symplegadies.

The moles on each side of the entrance are above water, and though there is but little doubt that they belong to the old fortifications, the towers by which they were once surmounted have disappeared, and have given place to the light-houses of the port. Formerly the Piræus consisted of three ports, one within another, viz.: the port of Zea,

the Aphrodisium, and, the innermost of all, the port of Cantharus. It is highly probable that they were all fortified, and so formed as to be easily closed against an enemy; but the only remains of the old fortifications, are the two moles which guarded the principal, or outward, entrance of the port. The innermost of the three inclosures, which is said to have served as the arsenal of the Athenians, was, in process of time, partially filled, and the present government has thought fit to close it entirely. The other two ports, however, have suffered but little, and they both form the present port of the Piræus,-which, though by no means as spacious as other ports in the kingdom of Greece, is certainly one of the safest, and has water enough not only "for vessels as large as frigates," but for the largest men-of-war.

It being too late to go to Athens, we had to remain on board the Alexandros, and amuse ourselves either in making preparations for the event which had been so long anticipated, or in walking up and down the deck, and enjoying a scene which was in perfect contrast with the land on the other side of the Atlantic. The season had advanced into the very heart of winter, since we had left the ice-bound coast of America; and we had reason to believe that our friends on the other side of the waters were bending with idolatrous devotion over their domestic altars, i. e. their firesides and their stoves. Yet at this season, and in this hour, we

were not only without fire, but promenading in the open air, and enjoying the mild seas and serene heavens of a land and a clime where extremes seem to be unknown, or passing short-"where every season smiles."

It was nearly midnight when I retired to my berth; but no effort could put an end "to my waking dreams," and I was only relieved by the bustle and the stir which commenced with the dawn of the day. To our captain and the men of our ship were added some few officers of the port, and a dozen or two of Greek boatmen, every one of whom had a hundred things to say and a thousand questions to ask. Fifty Greek tongues were thus brought into immediate contact, and the result they produced was like the sound of many waters -a perfect Niagara! The arrival of a Greek ship, direct from America, was by no means an every-day event; and our being on board added another element of interest and speculation: the object of my mission, my title, and even my salary! became the objects of their idle curiosity.

As soon as we reached the shore we engaged a hack, and started without delay for Athens. We had scarcely disentangled ourselves from the streets of the Piræus, and the low heights to the northeast of it, when the plain of Athens, with its olive groves and its mountains, with its glories of art and of nature, unrolled themselves to our view. Our attention was, for a while, arrested by the

dark olive grove, which contains 80,000 trees, and also by the public road, which winds its way through groves and vineyards to the city of the "blue eyed goddess." But the farther we progressed into the plain, the more we began to admire its chief characteristics-the more we were impressed by its mountain barriers. "As the city of Athens," says Mr. Wordsworth, "was both protected from external aggression, and also connected with the sea, by means of its long walls, as they were called, which stretched from the town to its harbour, so was the plain of Athens defended from invasion, and maintained its connection with the coast by its own long walls—that is, by its mountain bulwarks, namely, by Parnes and Ægaleos to the west, and by Pentelicus and Hymettus on the east; and thus, the hand of nature had effected for the plain, what was done for the capital of Attica by the genius of Cimon and of Pericles."

Parallel with Mount Hymettus, and at no great distance from it, runs that light and graceful chain of rocks which forms so beautiful a feature in the scenery, and at the same time separates the valley of Illissus from the plain of the Cephissus. The continuation of this chain is exceedingly irregular. In one part it sinks on a level with the valley; in another it rises in precipitous and lofty masses. The highest peak is Mount Anchesmus; but the most abrupt and the most inaccessible is the Acropolis