All was sovereign pomp blended with death.

An icy, penetrating chill fell from the walls.
With a discreet smile the _attache_ owned that the embassy was frozen in winter and baked in summer.

The only part of the building which was at all lively and pleasant was the first storey, overlooking the Tiber, which the ambassador himself occupied.

From the gallery there, containing the famous frescoes of Annibale Caracci, one can see the Janiculum, the Corsini gardens, and the Acqua Paola above San Pietro in Montorio.

Then, after a vast drawing-room comes the study, peaceful and pleasant, and enlivened by sunshine.