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and that the wolves had multiplied in the surrounding country, since the Revolution, in consequence of the destruction of forests in other parts of France. We are also informed that, beyond Bar, the landscape takes an aspect different from that of Champagne; and that Loraine is marked by a continual succession of hills and vallies, covered with so many miserable villages that the city of Nancy is hailed with uncommon joy. On passing the Sarre at Sarreburg, and entering Alsace, the traveller is struck with the view of the lofty mountains before him, and with the jargon of the populace; and M. DEPPING laughs at the people of Saverne, who employ a watchman to sing throughout the night bad verses in old German, and wake the inhabitants every hour to let them know that they may sleep in safety. To Strasburg, as a city of importance, more than usual attention is paid. Here the cathedral is classed very properly among the most distinguished specimens of Gothic architecture; and its spire, from its extreme elevation, being 445 feet high, is represented as a conductor (paratonnerie) which secures the city from the effects of lightning. If, however, this spire has saved the houses of the inhabitants, by attracting the electric fluid, it has thus in three or four instances occasioned the timbers of the roof of the church itself to take fire, and even to melt the lead which covers it. The singular mechanism of the clock belonging to this cathedral is not overlooked: but it is stated to be now out of order; and, though a clock-maker has offered to repair it for 30,000 francs, (1250l.) a want of money or at want of confidence in the mechanic has hitherto prevented the execution of this necessary work. The market of Strasburg surprizes the traveller by the abundance of fish and game which, among other articles of provisions, it exhibits.

The village of Kehl, where Beaumarchais formed an establishment for printing the works of Voltaire and Rousseau, is also visited; and next Carlsruhe, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Baden. This city is reported to be one of the most regularly built in Germany; and M. Weinbrenner, the directorgeneral of buildings, is applauded for having contributed by his talents to its present beauty. The Catholic church which he has just finished is said to be such a chef-d'œuvre, that, were the Greeks to arise from their graves, they would take it to be a temple of Jupiter or of Apollo. It is a rotundo, which admits the light only by a cupola at the top.' M. DEPPING, however, as an antiquary, ought to have known that the Greeks never constructed their temples in a circular form; and that a dome, like the Pantheon at Rome, lighted by an aperture at the top, has no example in true Grecian architecture. Carlsruhe is said to possess many distinguished artists; and among them M. Halden

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M. Haldenwang is particularly mentioned as an eminent engraver of landscapes, who has furnished beautiful plates for the Musée Français of Robillard. His pupil, M. Frommel, also exhibited from his port-folio picturesque views of the valley of Murg, which is remarkable for situation and manufactures; and which, in the summer-season, is visited as well by the Badois as by strangers. Before the traveller quits this capital, he compliments the Badois on their strong attachment to their royal family; and, as he passes the last town belonging to the Grand Duchy, (Pforzheim,) he records an act of patriotic devotion by four hundred of its citizens, who, in 1622, under the command of Deimling, the Leonidas of Germany, displayed valour and devotion not inferior to that of the three hundred Spartans at the pass of Thermopylæ.

When he enters the kingdom of Wirtemberg, M. Depping's attention is drawn to the orchards and vineyards which attest the fertility of Suabia. Fruit-trees, he observes, line the road; terraces, planted with vines, rise one above another to the tops of the hills, which face to the south; and thirty or forty of these terraces may often be counted from the bottom to the summit of the hills, which at a distance resemble a gigantic flight of stairs. Thus passing continually between vineyards, orchards, and well-cultivated fields, the present traveller arrives at Stutgard, the capital of the kingdom; which he has fully described, not forgetting the collection of Bibles which constitute the chief riches of the royal library. Ulm, the last town belonging to the King of Wirtemberg, and which unhappily has not been able to recover itself from the disasters of the late war, is reported to be celebrated in the Almanac des Gourmands, or Epicure's Calendar, for its shell-snails, and sugared bread. Another circumstance marks the city of Ulm; here vineyards terminate, and hop-grounds are seen to occupy their place.

Augsburg, the next city at which the traveller arrives, is denominated the city of towers, because the churches, the gates, and the walls, are surmounted with them.' More regard, however, is paid to Munich, the capital of Bavaria, the most striking features of which are amply displayed. Its situation, its public and private buildings, its institutions, its treasures of literature, science, and the arts, together with the habits and amusements of the people, all pass in review. Speaking of the latter, M. DEPPING offers a remark which merits the notice of Englishmen. It is often lamented that England is not a wineproducing country: but the common people have no reason to regret this circumstance, since it is observed of the inhabitants. of Munich that they obtain an excellent malt-beverage at a low price, which renders their situation superior to the people

in

in countries where the vine is cultivated, whose only drink is most detestable wine. If, however, the bourgeoisie of Munich resemble John Bull in their predilection for good malt-liquor, they differ from him toto coelo in their mode of observing Sunday; which, especially at the Carnival season, is a day of the greatest levity and dissipation.

The people of Munich are less distinguished by a taste for the arts than by their love of diversions and good living. Particularly during the Carnival, this city presents a continual succession of fêtes and pleasures. A statement of the amusements which are to take place every day is published; and on the Sundays of the Carnival they have what is called The Academy of Masks, a diversion peculiar to this city, which takes place at the principal theatre. No one can be admitted without a mask, or at least without a part of the face being masked; and some persons, availing themselves of this latitude in the order, appear with merely a mask over their noses. Not only is the body of the theatre splendidly illuminated, but every range of boxes. The pit is made level with the stage: though at the end a small space is left for the performance of lively pantomimes, the characters of which are always Harlequin and Columbine, Cassander and Giles. The loves of Harlequin and Columbine, the tricks, the disguises, and address of Harlequin, and the traps which Cassander and Giles lay for them, constitute the substance of the piece: but the incidents are much varied, and succeed each other with great rapidity. This species of representation, which appears to have been transplanted from Italy into Bavaria, we need not wish more perfect; yet it is not the fashion at Munich to give it much attention, only the middling classes and children being attracted by the scene. Other people either walk about or place themselves at the card-tables. The royal family are almost always present on these evenings, and make a party at cards for an hour or two. A stranger must be surprized at seeing the King, the Queen, and the Princes sitting in the midst of their subjects, who enjoy their amusements, in the royal presence, without constraint. As a means of diverting themselves, and at the same time of turning matters to a good account, at the hall of entrance is a kind of lottery in behalf of the poor; the tickets are sold at a moderate price: but there is only one prize to a hundred blanks. This lottery promotes also the national industry, since all the prizes consist of articles manufactured in the country, as neck-handkerchiefs, gloves, silver-spoons, &c.'.

Such is the mode of spending Sunday at Munich; and, when the Protestant learns also that the people of this Catholic city have the dansomanie on them, he may suspect that religion is more in their heels than in their heads.

After M. DEPPING had examined the palaces, theatres, museums, and all the curiosities which the capital of Bavaria

* The old man and the clown, we presume.

includes,

includes, he resolved on returning through Swisserland to Paris; and a detail is presented of his route through Lindau, on the lake of Constance, and Bregenz, in the Voralberg, to Rheineck, the first town in Swisserland, after having crossed the Rhine. It is needless to say that the scenery of this romantic country furnishes matter for remark: but the traveller does not fatigue by his picturesque descriptions. Arriving at Saint-Gal, its antient monastery obtains due notice; and the reader is informed that Saint-Gal was an Irish missionary who, with St. Colomb and other priests, visited the Swiss at a time when they were plunged in barbarism, bringing to them the lights of religion and civilization.'

Zurich is compared to a miserably looking house surrounded by a beautiful park; yet it is observed of this city that its ugliness cannot destroy the picturesque effect of its situation; and that science, literature, and the arts, are cultivated in it with so much assiduity, that no place, in proportion to its population, contains such a number of learned men. The report made of the ladies, though it begins with a compliment to their beauty, terminates to their prejudice, when the traveller adds; as soon as they open their mouths, and display their frightful teeth, (a scourge common to the environs of the lake of Geneva, and supposed to be caused by drinking its water,) the effect produced by their angelic figure is destroyed.' From Zurich, M. DEPPING proceeded to Bâle, and, by the chain of mountains which unites the Jura to the Vosges, to Vesoul, and thence by Langres and Troyes to Paris. We are not informed of the space of time consumed in this tour, and the writer has not adverted to subjects of natural history: but his remarks display an observant and discriminating mind, and travellers who follow his route may profit by his pages.

ART. IX. Voyage Historique, &c.; i. e. An Historical and Picturesque Journey performed in the Netherlands and neighbouring Departments during 1811, 1812, and 1813. By M. PAQUET SYPHORIEN. With a Map and Twenty-three Wood Cuts. 8vo. 2 Vols. pp. 340. Paris. 1813.

THE

HE loss of Belgium is perhaps the most serious blow sustained by France in the long catalogue of her distresses since the ill-fated invasion of Russia; because the adjacency of the country, the familiarity of the inhabitants with the French language, and, above all, their want of attachment to any of the great powers in Europe, pointed out the Netherlands as not only the richest but the most easily incorporated of the territories which had been over-run since the Revolution.

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Italy is separated from France by immense mountains; and the country beyond the Rhine is possessed by a spirited and manly race, who regard their Gallic neighbours as the sworn enemies of the German name. Moreover, the possession of Belgium implied the dependence of Holland; so that, whether we consider extent of wealth or population, we find that the countries watered by the Scheldt, the Maese, and the Moselle, rank among those of which the separation from France is an object of first-rate importance.

The publication before us, however, contains no political disquisitions, and consists of a very plain statement of the observations made by the writer during at by the writer during a tour through the Netherlands; in company with a young painter, whose attention was, of course, more occupied by the beauty of the scenery than by moral or philosophical reflections. The chief error of the writer consists in the use of inflated epithets, and in resorting to ornament and amplification when the language of sober narrative would be much more applicable. Of this fault we meet with an example in the introduction; where, instead of telling us in a few words the object of the tour, M. SYPHORIEN goes back to the days of the Romans for the sake of finding a topic of magnificent encomium in the valour of the Gauls and Belgæ. This episode is followed by an historical notice of what every body knows to have been the state of the Netherlands under the dominion of Spain and Austria; after which we are presented with a very convenient assertion on the part of a traveller, namely, that he had been unable to find a single good book of travels in the Belgique. By way of supplying this blank, he set out in 1811 on a progress through that country, and now communicates to the public the fruit of his labours.

Brussels has become a place of such attraction for our countrymen, that any notice of it by a recent traveller cannot fail

to be a matter of some interest:

On approaching Brussels from Louvain, the road leads along a delightful valley, watered by the river Senne, which runs through the city. The fertile heights which close this smiling valley at both sides, and which terminate at the river by a very gradual slope, are so happily varied as to present around the city a succession of elevations of the most delightful aspect. On one side, we have dales intersected by rivulets; on another, slopes more or less inclined, with summits arable throughout; and levels possessing fertility without too much uniformity. The city is placed in the middle of this delightful country, and is inferior to few places in Europe in extent and magnificence of buildings; while it is second to none in the important considerations of salubrity, of variety, and of quantity in its supply of water, and in the mildness of its temperature. It

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