You will now no doubt expect me to give some account of the theatres.  At the Pergola, which is a large and splendid theatre, I have seen two operas; the one, L’Italiana in Algieri, which I saw before at Milan last year; the other, the Barbieri di Seviglia by Rossini, which afforded to my ears the most delightful musical feast they ever enjoyed.  The cavatina Una voce poco fa gave me inconceivable delight.  The Ballo was of a very splendid description and from a subject taken from the Oriental history entitled Macbet Sultan of Delhi.  How the Mogul Sultan came to have the name of Macbet I know not.  On the plafond of the Pergola is an allegorical painting representing the restored Kings of Europe replaced on their thrones by Valor and Justice.  The decorations at this theatre are not quite so splendid as those of the Scala at Milan, but living horses and military evolutions seem to be annexed to every historical Ballo.  Horses indeed appear to be an indispensable ingredient in the Balli in the large cities of Italy.

In the Teatro Cocomera, comedies are performed, and very generally those of the inexhaustible Goldoni.  I saw the Bugiardo very fairly performed at this theatre.  The story is nearly the same as that of our piece, The Liar, which is I believe imitated from Le Menteur of Corneille.  The actor who did the Liar was a very good one.  The actresses screamed too much and were rather coarse.  Another night at the theatre I saw a piece call’d II furioso, a comedie larmoyante which was interesting and well given; but the voice of the prompter was occasionally too loud.  Tragedies are very seldom played; the language of Alfieri could never, I will not say be given with effect, but even conceived by the modern actors.  It would be like a tragedy of Sophocles performed by boys at school.  There is another reason too why these tragedies are not given; they abound too much in republican and patriotic sentiments to be grateful to the ears of the Princes who reign in Italy, all of whom being of foreign extraction and unshackled by constitutions, come under the denomination of those beings called by Greeks [Greek:  Turannoi], I use this word in its Greek sense.  Of the Tuscan Government it is but justice to say that from the days of Leopold to the present day it was and is a mild, just and paternal government, more so perhaps than any in Europe; and the only one that can any way reconcile one altogether to those lines of Pope: 

  For forms of Government let fools contest;
  Whate’er is best administer’d is best.[83]