A TRIP TO ITALY.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13682, 26 August 1908, Page 6

A TRIP TO ITALY.

St. Mary's schoolroom was well-filled lact evening for the first of a scries of illustrated lectures by the Veil. Archdeacon Harder, ill aid of St. (Marys Guild. By means of fine lantern pictures ;uid lively descriptions from personal acquaintance with the scenes and objects pictured, the A.rchdettcon took the whole company with him on a visit to-Northern Italy, and in the brief space of an hour and a half 'showed them, and by his excellent recital made them familiar with, more of the sights of Venice and of other cities, than one could have compassed in the flesh in a day and a half, even if possessed of Aladdin's means of transport. The peculiar foundations of Venice, the city jn the sea, her beautiful architecture, remarkable water-streets with their gondolas and gondoliers, and her interesting early history, illustrated by beautifully clear lantern tlid-cs, furnished in the Archdeacon's hands a most interesting and instructive entertainment. Then from. Venice the audience were taken to Pisa, famous for its leaning toiver, alid the cathedral where Galileo discovered the principle of the clock pendulum, and several notable pictures were shown and described in connection with this city. ;'• Sienna, somewhat out of the tourist line, was visited, some- fine buildings there were shown, and a- description ■• given of Sienna's annual municipal horse race, the most reniarkable "event" of the kind to be seen anywhere. The last . place to whicli the audience was carried was Perugia, the centre of the artistic relics of a mysterious race, the Etruscans, whose civilisation was old before Rome was founded, whose language has not yet been interpreted. Interesting information was giveu regarding Italian sculpture, in connection with views of a cemetery at Pica, and a still inore. interesting account if the fuueral monuments of Etruscans. Interspersed among the scenic views were numerous coloured photographs of paintings by the Old Masters, and these were well calculated to inspire, in those who had seen none of them, respect for the very high esteem in which the works of the early Italian painters is held.At the close of the lecture Mr K. C. Tennent proposed a vote of (hanks, whicli was carried by hearty applaue. The next lecture of the series will bo given on September 15th, its subject Egypt.