Page:A Picture-book without Pictures and Other Stories (1848).djvu/115



Last night I looked down upon a city in China,—said the Moon. My beams illumined the long naked walls which form the streets; here and there, to be sure, is a door, but it is closed, because the Chinese troubled not themselves about the world outside. Impenetrable Venetian shutters covered the windows of the houses behind the walls; from the temple alone light shone faintly through the window-glass. I looked in—looked in upon the brilliant splendor; from floor to ceiling was covered with pictures in strong colors and rich gilding, which represented the works of the gods on earth. Their statues themselves stood in every niche, but mostly concealed by brilliant dra-