Page:Mexico, picturesque, political, progressive.djvu/88

86 stone, the domes covered with burnished tiles of pale or brilliant color, the fretted and soaring shafts of belfry and tower, set like mosaics against the sapphire sky, are revelations to the artistic sense. The interiors rarely carry out the promise of the exteriors. A crudity of color in the glaring decorations makes itself felt within, which is dissipated by the largeness and glow of the outside atmosphere. In many cases some false canon of art has caused the original stone carving of the walls to be covered by wretched prettinesses of stucco; but the revival of better taste is beginning to demand a return to the earlier purity of design. Silver railings and candelabra about the sanctuaries, rare tapestries, and paintings by the old Spanish masters, enrich many; but their effect is often spoiled by the immediate neighborhood of poor and tawdry ornamentation. Still, with all its incongruities, the ensemble is forcible and picturesque. The high altar rises always under the great central dome. Connected with it by a wide central aisle is the choir-room, placed in the nave between two great organs, rich in carven woods, and screens of wrought metal. A dim light filters down from small windows, set high