tile plain, upon the Bouzeoize: at the foot of Mont-Afrique, is of an oval form, and has some handsome houses and wide streets; it stands on a calcareous soil, about three leagues from the Saone; and its situation between Chalons, Dijon, and Autun, is well suited for inland trade. Of the castle nothing but ruins remain. The church of St. Peter is the handsomest; but the most remarkable edifice is the magnificent hospital, founded in 1443, by Nicholas Rollin, chancellor to Philip, Duke of Burgundy, of whom Louis XI of France used to say, «It is but an act of justice in him, who has made so many poor, to build an hospital to lodge them in. » The court of this house presents some remains of Gothic architecture, which have a picturesque effect. It does honour to the inhabitants of Beaune, that this asylum of sickness and misfortune is kept in a very good state of repair, and that they pride themselves upon it as an institution of great importance.

The animosity of the Athenians against the Thebans was not greater than that of the inhabitants of Dijon against those of Beaune. The Dijonese will have it, that the very air of the country has a stupifying effect; and they vie with each other in ascribing the most ridiculous bulls and simplicities to the good folks of Beaune.

Is there any real foundation for this opinion of the great simplicity of the Beaunese? we must own, that having heard so much of it, and read the hundreds of nai-

vetés and blunders told of them, it was difficult to divest ourselves of prejudice; and during the time we were in the town, there occurred nothing calculated entirely to remove this prejudice : it seemed as if no one gave a proper answer to the questions put to them. But our stay was too short to enable us to form a correct opinion and we will not follow the example of a certain fellowcountry man, who wrote in his journal, that at Blois all the women were carrotty and peevish, though he had seen only the hostess of the inn where he put up.

But even admitting that the Beaunese in general have little wit, and a sluggish imagination, this rule is not without an exception; and they may cite with pride the names of some very eminent men to, whom their town has given birth- and particularly M. Monge, to whom we owe so many discoveries in physics, chemistry, and geometry.

There are some fine walks at Beaune, particularly that of the fountain of Aique. Its trade, in excellent wine, is very considerable; and it has manufactures of woollen and cloth, and some quarries in its environs. Population, 8500.

Passing the celebrated vineyards of Pomard and Volnay, and several small villages, we arrive at Chagny, a small town on the left bank of the Heune, which has a great trade in fine wines. Here is also a cloth manufactory. Hence, nothing worthy of remark occurs till we reach Chalons, which, with

the route to Lyons, we have already described, at page 57.

འའའ་

CHAPTER II.

Description of Lyons and its Environs.Excursions to Chambery and Grenoble.Description of Grenoble.-Voyage down the Rhone, from Lyons to Avignon.—Description of Vienne, Orange, Avignon, etc. Excursions to Vaucluse, Carpentras, Cavaillon, etc.

Eight principal roads, and two great rivers, meet at Lyons, and thus facilitate the communications on every side. At the spot where the two great roads from Paris meet, a circular place was formed, in 1783, in the midst of which was erected an obelisk called the pyramid of peace. On the table of the pedestal, towards the town, was this inscription:

Ludovico XVI utriusque orbis pacificatori.

This obelisk is surrounded by curb-stones, connected together by strong iron chains. The place is 470 feet in circumference, and is planted with limes, with stone benches in the intervals.

This monument was erected on occasion of the peace of 1783, under the intendance of M. de Flesselles, the last provost of Paris, who was massacred there by the populace, on the ever-memorable day of the 14th of July, 1789.

H.

:

This town is surrounded by four great faubourgs that of Vaise, on the road to Paris; Croix-Rousse, on the right bank of the Rhone, and at the foot of the mount St. Sebastian; St. Just, or St. Irénée, on the road to Monbrison; and the Guillotière, which is on the other side of the Rhone, towards Dauphiny.

Two considerable rivers traverse or border Lyons in its whole length. The Saone, the stream of which is very slow, washes the foot of the mountain Fourvière, on the lower part of which is a considerable quarter of the town, and it forms, from the faubourg of Vaise to that of St. Irénée, a very remarkable bend.

The Rhone, which is very rapid, and almost in a strait line, separates the town from the promenade of Bretteaux, and from the faubourg La Guillotière, and unites with the Saone at the southern extremity of Lyons, and below the Allée Perrache. The most extensive and most populous part of the town lies between these two rivers.

The town is commanded by two mountains; that of Fourvière, which is on the right bank of the Saone, and on which Lyons was originally built; and the mountain of St. Sebas tian, which rises to the north of the town, between the Rhone and the Saone.

Most of the streets are narrow, and bordered with footpaths, not broad enough for two persons to go abreast; but the quays on the rivers are beautiful, and that of the Rhone is one of the most magnificent in the world.

The squares and public walks announce, by

their grandeur, the opulence of the inhabitants. The most remarkable are, the place where the two roads from Paris meet, the new quay of the Rhone, the Place des Terreaux, that of Belcour, and the Promenade des Bret

teaux.

Lyons is celebrated for its antiquity, its vast commerce, its opulence, and its misfortunes. The bustle on the quays and in the streets, the multitude of houses, the shops and warehouses crowded together, would almost make one believe we were again in Paris, or in a second capital of France.

From the place of the Pyramid, where the two roads from Paris meet, we enter the long narrow rue de Vaise, which runs between the Saone on the left, and the hill of Fourvieres on the right. This hill, which appears from time to time above the row of houses fixed against its base, presents a variety of rural spots, which quite delighted me the first time I entered Lyons on this side. Long strips of vines, meadows shaded with fruit-trees, groves intersected with picturesque rocks and verdant hollows, together with pretty little country seats interspersed in the various sinuosities of this enchanting landscape-all together is truly romantic, and has a wonderful effect at the gates and almost in the interior of a great

town.

The Soane and the mountain seem hardly to leave place for a narrow road between them; nevertheless two rows of houses were constructed on it, which, of a narrow road,