A curious echo

Wednesday, February 17th., Hotel Miramar, Genoa.

Pisa. Duomo in the morning. As Ash Wednesday, service going on. Large audience of choirboys and ecoliers and a few schoolgirls and old people. Many guests of various ranks. The parson began to preach, got up full speed in about twenty seconds, and then never paused or even hesitated for a word for about half an hour. Then he sat down and wiped his face, and then, still sitting, talked to the congregation about a collection. When you were close by he was perfectly audible. twenty yards off you distinctly heard two voices, and still further off you heard three or four voices, a babel of voices, all furiously arguing or wrangling. It was a most curious echo effect.

Hotel Miramar, Genoa

Arrived at Genoa at 6, on time, soon after a stormy sunset. Hotel there far fuller than we had ever seen it before. I finished Macaulay on "The Wars of the Spanish Succession", and began "Pilgrim's Progress", which promises well.