And assuredly he would have carried out this scheme, if time enough had been at his disposal, or if the special purpose of his visit to Carrara had permitted.

I one day heard him lament bitterly that he had not done so.

Well, then, after quarrying and selecting the blocks which he deemed sufficient, he had them brought to the sea, and left a man of his to ship them off.

He returned to Rome, and having stopped some days in Florence on the way, when he arrived there, he found that part of the marble had already reached the Ripa.

There he had them disembarked, and carried to the Piazza of S.Peter's behind S.Caterina, where he kept his lodging, close to the corridor connecting the Palace with the Castle of S.Angelo.The quantity of stone was enormous, so that, when it was all spread out upon the square, it stirred amazement in the minds of most folk, but joy in the Pope's.