by anything of Fra Angelico's, while in plastic qualities in the modeling of the heads and flesh-they are far beyond the suggestions of any of his contemporaries or predecessors. Orcagna, as we have seen, designed the mo saics for the façade of the duomo of Orvieto, but they have long been replaced by more modern work, and even the designs have perished, for I could find no trace of them in the archives of the cathedral. NOTES BY TIMOTHY COLE, ENGRAVER. RCAGNA'S fresco of the "Last Judgment," from which the detail of the kneeling figure of the Virgin is taken, is represented above and on the sides of the window of the Strozzi Chapel in the north transept of the Church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence. Above is seen the Son of Man in glory, half of his figure visible above the clouds, that portion surrounded by light almond or heart-aureole, from which radiate sharper beams. His head is crowned with the celestial diadem, and encircled by a golden nimbus in which appears the figure of the Cross. His aspect is full of majesty and grave almost to sadness, as with his left hand he condemns the wicked, turning softly from them with a glance and action befitting the words "Depart from me." His right hand is less consciously extended in blessing towards the good. The fresco thence extends downward on each side of the window, terminating at the dado, and is symmetrical in its distribution, side answering to side. Issuing from the clouds on each side below Christ are his attendant angels sounding the trumpet of the dead and exhibiting the emblems of the crucifixion - three on each side. Below these are seated the apostles upon the clouds, six on each side in two rows of three each: preceding the group on the left of Christ is John the Baptist, kneeling in adoration; and in like attitude preceding the group on the right of Christ is the Virgin,― the subject of the engraving, her countenance full of veneration and as though inspired. Underneath these groups, and separated by the thick bright cloud on which the apostles sit, is shown the "Resurrection," which occupies the lower portion of the fresco. The condemned represent the rich and powerful wicked ones of the earth, and are made up of kings and emperors, popes and cardinals, princes and princesses, arch heretics, false prophets, and the like. Among the blessed on the right hand of Christ are kings and princes, popes and cardinals, martyrs and saints, and the poor of this world, rich in faith, among whom the head of Dante in profile appears unmistakable, his hands together as in prayer, looking up towards the Virgin. How beautiful is the action of her hands, and what an unconscious expression of purity there is about her countenance! The peculiar adjustment of the veil over the chin and forehead and about the neck seems to be a favorite fashion with Orcagna. Fra Angelico sometimes uses the same costume. The background to the Virgin is a deep blue. THE detail of the group of women is from Orcagna's fresco of "Paradise," which adorns the entire western W. J. Stillman. wall of the same chapel. It measures about twentysix feet wide by about thirty-three feet high, not including the frescoed border or frame which runs around it. The top is arched and terminates at the ceiling of the chapel. It is disposed into three divisions, running from top to bottom, which are filled in the following manner: In the upper portion of the central division (which measures seven and a half feet wide) are seated Christ and the Virgin Mary side by side-the Virgin upon the right hand of Christ- upon a magnificent throne. They are colossal in size, being about three times larger than the other figures about them. This occupies about fifteen feet down of the middle division. Underneath this and down for about ten feet is a clear space in the center of which are two angels upon the clouds. One is playing upon a viol and the other is in an attitude of adoration looking up towards the throne. Below this is the company of the redeemed men and women in the dress of the times— from which the detail is taken. The divisions on each side of this central one are filled from top to bottom with the saints and angels of heaven, twelve rows each and seven in a row, an angel and a saint alternately, but the two lower rows on each side are of female saints only. Most of them are distinguishable by the emblems which they bear. In front of the lower row of the right-hand division an angel is seen leading a woman to join the central group of the redeemed, who seem to be about forming into a stately dance. These figures measure about five and a half feet high. The figures become larger as they near the top, and approach the colossal forms of Christ and the Virgin. The coloring is a delightful play of cool gray tones, enlivened here and there with sweet clear bits, the whole delicate and unobtrusive and yet gay in its tints, with shimmerings of golden halos around the heads of the saints, which are engraved in rays radiating from the center. A finer wall-decoration could not well be conceived. Wonderful and magnificent as this is, it is not the thing that would appeal to the ordinary tourist, who, unfortunately, has no time to lose, and gets not a glimmer of its beauty. One must come prepared to see it in a calm state of mind and ready to devote at least two hours to it. The morning light is the best, for then the sun shines upon the opposite wall and reflects a pleasant glow over all. The attitudes of the figures are graceful; they have a noble bearing and a quiet dignity, and their faces are sweet and refined, expressing in some instances a glow of subdued rapture. SAMOA: THE ISLES OF THE NAVIGATORS. The group is made up of three large islands, Savaii, Upolu, and Tutuila, and of five others of inferior size, Manuua, Oloosenga, Ofu, Manono, Apolima, making a total area of about three thousand square miles, and containing at the present date not over forty thousand inhabitants, although at one time it is said to have been peopled by over fifty thousand souls. The position of these islands has been known since 1722, when the Dutch navigator Roggewein visited the Pacific with his three ships; but his explorations in this particular group were of little importance. Nothing was definitely known of them until the renowned French QUEENSLAND USTRALIA The American steamers of the Oceanic line running monthly between San Francisco, Auckland (New Zealand) and Sydney, Australia, call en route at Honolulu in the Sandwich Islands, situated a little over two thousand miles in a south-westerly direction from California. Leaving Honolulu, the steamers continue in much the same course for a distance of twenty-two hundred miles before reaching the Samoan group of islands, which are in the direct line of the steamer's route. navigators Bougainville and La Pérouse visited them, the former in 1768 and the latter in 1787. It was Bougainville who, observing the skill of the natives in paddling canoes, aptly gave to the group the name of the "Isles of the Navigators." During La Pérouse's visit to Samoa an unfortunate occurrence took place on board the ship Astrolabe. While some natives were inspecting the vessel an accidental discharge of firearms caused the death of a native. The savages were so provoked that a few days after the accident they attacked a boat-load of sailors, among whom were the Comte de Langle and M. de Lamanon, a naturalist who accompanied the expedition, and massacred almost the whole crew. On account of this ferocious act the natives were supposed to be generally cruel and warlike, and they were accordingly feared and avoided until about 1830, when the London Missionary Society established a mission among them, and found them to be a gentle and peaceable race, with few if any atrocious acts of violence such as were characteristic of cannibalistic Fiji. This mission continues in operation up to this time, and has accomplished much good for the people. The steamers of the Oceanic line pass through the group but do not stop, merely "slowing down" off the western end of the island of Tutuila sufficiently to transfer the European and American mails to the small cutter which is used for the purpose of transporting to Apia the monthly mail matter. Savaii, the westernmost and largest of the group, is some forty miles long by twenty in width, and is unmistakably of volcanic origin. It is ridged with lofty, cloud-encircled mountains, which are covered with a mantle of dense rich tropical foliage, giving to them an evenness of outline and a softness which delight the eye of the new-comer. Ten miles to the eastward of Savaii is the beautiful island of Upolu, perhaps the most important of the group, having an area of five hundred and sixty square miles, diversified by mountain peaks three thousand feet high, volcanic caverns of symmetrical shapes, plateaus of remarkable fertility, and many valleys of exceeding beauty. The volcanic fires having been extinct perhaps for many centuries, the three craters on Upolu have been curiously changed into lakes of great depth and beauty, unknown except to those bold enough and strong enough to climb the rugged mountain trails through a trackless growth of tropical foliage. The seat of government, Apia, a town of fifteen hundred inhabitants, is situated about the bay of the same name, on the northwestern side of Upolu. Here the various ruling monarchs have from time immemorial lived, ruled, and held their court. The bay is an incomplete semicircle in form, extending from Matautu point on the east to Mulunuu, a low point of land stretching away to the westward over a distance of two miles. The ever busy coral insects have thrown up a barrier reef, ex U. S. CONSULATE AT APIA Kenyon Coy after photograph- 1889. SAMOAN SISTERS OF CHARITY. tending from point to point, which receives and dissipates the huge swells of the Pacific, whereby under ordinary conditions of the weather protection is secured to ships at anchor in the bay. During certain seasons of the year, however, when hurricanes prevail, the anchorage becomes unsafe. In Apia the California redwood cottages of the foreigners built along the thoroughfares, which extend parallel with the outlines of the beach from Matautu to Mulunuu, are surrounded with flowers and tropical plants. One of the old landmarks by which ships steer their course into the harbor is the Catholic mission church, situated near the center of the town, built entirely of coral blocks cut from reefs near by, and inclosed within a wall of the same material. Half a mile distant, on a hill in the rear of the church, stand a college and a chapel belonging to the same Church, in which native men are educated for missionary purposes. The mission also possesses a convent school for the education and training of Samoan girls. Some of the native women renounce the world, take the same vows and assume the same garb as their white sisters, and devote their lives to acts of charity and mercy. Continuing forty miles to the eastward, we come to Tutuila, a mountainous island nearly a hundred miles in circumference and containing eight thousand inhabitants. The interior of Tutuila is so rugged and the jungle is so dense that it is seldom visited by the natives. There are comparatively few inland villages, most of the inhabitants living in proximity to the sea. On the south side of Tutuila is the entrance to the magnificent harbor of Pago-Pago. The natural beauty and grandeur of this bay are extensively known throughout all Polynesia. Being land-locked, and bounded by mountains on one side and a perpendicular wall of solid rock fifteen hundred feet in height on another, it affords the safest refuge to ships of all sizes during the hurricane season. It was conceded to the United States by King Malietoa in the treaty of 1872, for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a coaling station for ships of war, and for a number of years past the United States naval vessels cruising in the South seas have drawn their supply of coal from this place. Sixty miles to the eastward of Tutuila we find what is generally known as the Manuua group, which comprises Oloosenga, Manuua, and Ofu. These |