The beautiful building next to the Ice Railway environed an excellent
imitation _en miniature_ of the magnificent _Cathedral of St. Peter_ in
Rome, its size being one-sixteenth of the original. When viewing this
model, the elaborate papal throne, and the Vatican Guards in the exact
uniform of the pope's attendants, one might imagine to have been conveyed
into _la bella Italia_ by the agency of a magic wand.
Promenading more eastward, we found ourselves _vis-a-vis_ the _Moorish
Palace_, a fine reproduction of Saracenic architecture, the famous
Alhambra in Granada, Spain.
The attractions exhibited in the interior of this structure could, indeed,
bear a comparison with those offered in a realm of enchantment. The
optical illusions, produced by ingeniously arranged mirrors, were a
pleasing surprise to the visitor. Luxuriant palms decorating the
labyrinthian garden appeared to be endless in number--casting their shade
over hundreds of life-like figures in gaudy costumes. Each of these groups
in wax, was multiplied again and again in the perspective of mirrors.
Entering the palace, the visitor was unable to shake off the feeling of
perplexity caused by the extraordinary spectacles to be witnessed within
its walls.
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