Of the secular buildings of Milan, the most noteworthy is the magnificent Brera Palace. for merly a Jesuit college. and now used for the fine arts. with the official name of Palace of Arts and Sciences. (For illustration. see LOAIDARDY, RE NAISSANCE ARCII ITECTURE. I Within its vast pre einets this unique institution includes an academy of art, a choke gallery of paintings of the Bolog,nese and Lombard schools, a line collec tion of casts for modeling purposes, a splendid national library containing about 350,000 vol 11111•s and pamphlets, and a rare collection of manuscripts, medals, and antiquities. 1t has also attached to it an observatory and a botanical garden. The masterpieces of painting here include Raphael's far-famed "Sposalizio." 'Alanteg,na's "Piaa," and Bellini's "Saint Mark." The Brent has been greatly enlarged latterly. and many pictures of high rank have been added to its col lection. One of the features of the national li brary is a room devoted to the editions and autograph writings of Manzoni. Another large library is the Ambrosial] (q.v.). The Itorromeo Palace also has a meritorious collection of paint ings. The Itiseo Poldi-Pezzoli offers tt tine col leetion of paintings, weapons. furniture, porce lain, etc. The .1useo Civics is worthy of men tion for its superb ornithological collection. There is also a permanent art exposition. and Milan now has good scientific collections.
The Palazzo Iteale and the archiepiscopal palace are old. and have some attractive fea ture-a. The fine elaborate Castello di Porta Giovia dates from 1368. and is the castle of Milan. being associated with the city's governmental and historic career. Among the noteworthy new and attractive secular buildings are the Exchange. finished in 1901. the prefecture, and Palace of Justice. Notable features in the city also are the Court of the Marino Palace, the Corinthian Colonnade. the finest relic of Roman times in Milan. and the well-known triumphal arch begun by Napoleon 1. Other conspicuous 71116ne 111111111MentS are the statues of Victor Em manuel 11. and of Covour. Canova's notable statue of Napoleon I.. the huge equestrian statue of Claribahli, an equestrian statue of Napoleon III. in commemoration of 1%lagenta. the monu ment to Leonardo by Magni, the statues of Car dinal Borromeo and Parini. and the monument to Manzoni. The Chnitero :%lonumentale, with its decorative tombs and its elaborate eremation temple. is visited lay all tourists. Milan is famous for its vast Scala Theatre, which was built in 1178 for operas and ballets. It aecom modates 3600 persons, is the centre for music in Italy. The famous Conservatory of :Music is established in the buildings of an an cient monastery.
In recent years many new schools have been built, and the number of day and evening scholars has increased rapidly. Nlilan has an Academy of Science and Literature, a college for girls, and medical, high• and normal schools. The fine poly
technic. dating from 1865. a eommercial academy, an school. a royal astronomieal ob• servatory. an Aeeatlemia di Itelle Arti are other edueational institutions:. There are also a tttu nh'ipal collection. and botanical dens, and theatres. The government of the city is highly efficient, and enormous sums have been expended on puhlio improvements. The giuniu is composed of 111011 of wealth and family conneetions, and also of a number of successful business and profe.4.10)1M1 111011. The new system of sewers empties into the swift cov ered over Seveso, whence the sewage passes to the Adriatic by way of the Po. The city water for domestic purposes conies principally from large artesian wells, and for industrial purposes from the eanals. The different philanthropic organiza tions under the control of the Board of Charities lia‘a. property valued at over $53,000.000, and a yearly income of $L600.000. The Maggiore hos pital is one of the largest in the world. accommo dating 4000 patients. It dates from 1456. It is a splendid brick edifice, part Gothic. part Renais sance. There are deaf and dumb institutions, and institutions for surgical operations and for ail ments of the eyes. Milan has also public dor mitories, soup-kitchens, etc.
Milan is the leading financial city of Italy and possesses vast wealth. It has a chamber of com merce and a stock exchange. It markets large quantities of grain. cheese, butter, eggs, and poul try, and manufactures silk, leather, and woolen goods, stationary engines. locomotives, railway machinery, carriages, furniture, glass and earth enware, and chemical products. A royal mint and a royal tobacco factory are situated here, and there is a corn exchange. it is the centre also of the Italian book trade, deserving to be called the Leipzig of Italy. In modern sculpture likewise it holds a leading rank. Not only are its industries by far the most important. in Italy, but its commerce is very extensive. The Grand Canal connects the navigable Olona with Lake Maggiore and the Ticino. The city is also in canal minima Mention with the Po, and with Lake Como through the Adda. it is an important centre of the national railway system. When the new Simplon Tunnel is opened the already immense traffic with mid-Europe, through the Saint Gotthard, will be heavily inereased. Milan is eonneeted by street railways with the neighbor ing towns of Lombardy. The local system of electric street railways is exeellent, The city owns the lines of this system and shares in its profits; the Edison Company operates the plant. In the last, twenty years of the nineteenth een tury Milan grew more rapidly than any other Italian city. Population. in 1610. 124,000; in 1800, 191,000; in 1881. 321,839; in 1901. 491,460.