to contend against the sentiment of friendship: three men belonging to two families worked in one vineyard; a quarrel arises; the discharge of a musket kills one of two cousins upon the spot. The survivor, obliged to revenge his death, fires at the murderer; but the ball ill-directed, breaks a limb of his antagonist, and leaves him. alive: touched with compassion, he completes not his revenge upon the wounded man, but takes the third musket, which is yet charged, goes into the village, and kills one of his children. The quarrel was thus terminated, and peace ratified the very next day. Antecedent to the revolution, to involve women in these wars of kindred was a thing unheard of among the Corsicans: a man would have been ashamed to have slain a woman with whom he had no connection either by marriage or by blood. Women used to carry messages from their husbands, their fathers, their brothers, and their sons: they marched ART. LX. before them, visited suspected places, reconnoitred the enemy's posts, carried proposals; and, in short, went every where without danger, screened by the contempt in which they were held. But now all is changed! The doctrine of the equality of sexes fills up the measure of cruelty to the Corsican: the sister, the mother, the wife of the enemy, are no longer inferior to the enemy himself. In virtue of this equality, the massacre of them is legitimate warfare. Thus does it too often happen, that the abstractions of rash and imprudent moralists make a false and dangerous impression on the minds of those who receive them." P. 76. We can dwell no longer on the dis gusting features of Corsican savages: they who are desirous of further infor, mation respecting their manners and customs, will consult the original, Memoirs of the Bastile: translated from the French Registers, Records, and other authentic Documents found in the Archives of the Castle at the Time of its Surrender, on the 4th of July, 1789; and published under the Sanction of the National Assembly of France. Interspersed with Andutes of the most remarkable Prisoners who have been confined in that Fortress; particularly that Person usually styled, the Man in the Ivon Mask. By FRANCIS GIBSON, Esq. F. S. A. 8vo. pp. 140. "HAVING lately met with a work," says Mr. Gibson in his preface, "pub. lished by authority of the national assembly of France, giving an account of the surrender of the Bastile, totally different from those hitherto received as genuine, I thought it highly worthy of a translation. Its title is the Bastile unveiled; or a recital of authentic pieces, useful in forming its history, &c. &c." The first fifty pages contain all the his tory of the Bastile, and the narrative of its demolition; the rest of the pamphlet is devoted to anecdotes of the prisoners who have at different times been confined there. Not having seen the original, we are not able to compare notes, but are inclined to think that Mr. Gibson has occasionally incorporated with the text, an observation of his own. We shall state, in a few words, the principal circumstances in which this account differs from those which have been generally circulated. The first and most important one, respects the character of M. de Launay, the governor, who seems to have been falsely accused of having decoyed a great number of citizens into the inner court, and after drawing up the bridge behind, of having ordered the garrison to fire upon them. This charge is resisted on the testimony of some of the surviving invalid soldiers who composed the garrison of the Bastile. About a quarter of an hour after M. de la Rosiere and the first deputies from the city had quitted the Bastile, the garrison was a good deal surprised at the approach of a vast crowd of people, armed with musquets, sabres, swords, and hatchets, vociferating surrender the castle,' and down with the troops.' Melting with the sympathies of humanity, "we spoke to them," say these unprejudiced evidences--all honourable men" in the mildest manner possible, endeavouring to make them sensible of their danger, and requesting them to retire." In vain: the crowd penetrating to the great draw-bridge endeavoured to seize it, and at the same time poured a full discharge of musquetry upon the garrison, who were now reduced to the necessity of returning the fire. But we are not come to the jet of the business; about an hour afterwards, an immense crowd of armed citizens planted a flag in the court de l'Orme. A small number of the multitude re-. mained to guard this flag, and the rest advancing, desired the garrison not to fire, as they were deputies from the city and wished to speak with the governor. Under an assurance of safety, the depu ties entered by the wicket into the court of the passage: here they remained about ten minutes, without offering to advance to speak with the governor. There is something strikingly singular in this, as their personal safety was assured. The deputies retired to the court de l'Orme, where they remained in consultation about a quarter of an hour, and then went away! As soon as they were gone, the people came in crowds to the attack of the second draw-bridge: the subaltern officers upon the towers, urged them to desist, but they were deaf to entreaty. The conduct of M. de Launay was called in question on the event which followed: he chose to infer from the tumultuous and increasing violence of the crowd, that those who had presented themselves at the gates, could not be the real deputies from the city, and on this hasty inference gave the word to fire. The people, however, were not decoyed into the inner court: De Launay paid with his head the penalty of his temerity; and if the distinction here made will relieve his character by a single shade, so let it be. How much the governor merited this well-meant solicitude in his favour, may be estimated by the following anecdote, illustrative of the mighty vengeance which he meditated in the hour of defeat. "We ought not here to pass over the names of Ferrand and Bequard, who rescued the city of Paris from the most terrible of disasters. About four in the afternoon, the governor, strongly solicited by the subaltern officers to surrender the Bastile, seeing that, for want of provisions, he could not long hold out, seized a match from one of the cannoneers in the inner court, with intent to set fire to the powder contained in the tower la Liberté, which he had inevitably done, and blown the castle, the suburbs of St. Anthony, with every contiguous building into the air, had not these two subaltern officers prevented his design, by presenting their bayonets and compelling him to retire. Ferrand repulsed the governor at the door of the magazine, and Bequard acted in the same manner at the entrance of the tower la Liberté." The next circumstance, in which this account differs from those in circulation, is the manner in which the fortress was delivered up. These invalids of the garrison, jealous of their honour as sol. diers, defy any one to prove that the last breach was made, and therefore pride themselves not a little in asserting, that the Bastile was not taken by storm. idle nicety of distinction: A Swiss offi cer addressed the people through a loop hole, and demanded permission to retire with the honours of war, which was refused him: he then wrote out a capitulation, concluding in these terms a "We are in possession of 2000lbs. of powder, and will blow up the castle and the whole quarter if you refuse us those conditions." The answer to this was, "Lower the bridge and no harm shall happen to you" in consequence of this, the gate was opened and the bridge was lowered; and these valiant invalids flatter themselves, and would fain make us believe that the fortress which they had the honour to defend, was not taken by storm truly! That the popular fury could not be restrained, is much to be lamented, but surely not much to be wondered at. The last circumstance which we have to mention is, that M. de Lolme, the major, was not slain while defending the fortress, but was murdered after its surrender by the ferocious multitude at the Place de Greve. The anecdotes of the "Man in the iron mask" are such, as we have seen in different narratives before. The com piler leans to the opinion, that this mysterious personage was the twin brother of Louis XIV. Mr. Gibbon's Disser tation on this subject, inclines us rather to believe that he was the offspring of an amour between cardinal Mazarin and Anne of Austria. who have been confined in the Bastile, The anecdotes of remarkable prisoners occupy a large and very interesting portion of these pages. Those of the comte de Panades, in particular, form a curious historical memoir, exhibiting at once the hostile temper of the old French government, and the weakness by which it was restrained. A plan of the Bastile is annexed, together with two miserable engravings, one representing the fortress in all its glory, and the other exhibiting the at tack on the 14th of July, 1789. ART. LXI. Paris Delineated, from the French of Mercier; including a Description of the principal Edifices and Curiosities of that Metropolis. 8vo. 2 vols. about 10) pages each. IT is surely singular that the Tableau de Paris of Mercier, a work so full of anecdotes, so full of information, should have been locked up in its original language for so many years, and that it should not have been exhibited before the English public till many of the manners and customs which it delineates have been changed; till many of the prejudices which it attacks have vanish ed; and till many of the idle fashions and amusements which it satirizes have passed away. But so it is; at least we know of no other translation than this which is now on the table before us. The original work, which was published about ten years ago, occupies twelve volumes; the present, therefore, it is obvious, can only be a selection; and the editor informs us in his preface, that the principal object has been to adapt it as much as possible to the present times. "Buildings which have been destroyed, or customs which have been abolished since the revolution, it was proper to omit, and where any remarks are retained which are appli cable to the old regime, it was because they contained some useful or interesting information which was worthy of being remembered." Notwithstanding this insinuation, that although some portion of the present selection refers to the state of society anterior to the revolution, yet that more is applicable to the present state of Paris, he who expects to view in these pages a picture of modern manners in that me tropolis, will be greatly disappointed. Indeed, as M. Mercier has published a Nouveau Tableau de Paris, descriptive of the state of that city since the revolu tion, and as that work has been translated into English, we do not see in what respect the insinuation we have alluded to can be considered as at all recommendatory. So multiplied are the mirrors which reflect the shifting scenes of the present day, that an additional one, of whatever lustre and intrinsic excellence, has less value than one which preserves to us the representation of scenes which have no longer an existence, and which afford by their contrast, to those which have succeeded them, a subject of the most interesting and serious contempla tion. On this account we should have been glad to have seen, not a selection merely, but a complete translation of the original work. That convulsion of nature by which Pompeii and Herculaneum were overthrown and buried in the earth, was not greater in degree than that mighty. moral, and political convulsion which has destroyed the ancient laws and customs of a numerous and a polished people. At some distant period, perhaps, relics which shall have been rescued from the desolation produced by the one, may be as highly prized as those are which have been dug from the subterranean ruins occasioned by the other. If we had room to extract twenty chapters from these volumes, the task would be easy; but it is difficult to select a solitary one with judgment. Since however, there will be some of our readers who have never seen the original, we must offer them a specimen which, perhaps, it may be as well to take at random. PALAIS ROYAL. "An unique point on the globe---visit London, Amsterdam, Madrid, Vienna, you will see nothing similar to it. A prisoner might there beguile the sense of captivity, unmindful of his liberty, till after the lapse of several years. It is precisely the spot which Plato would have assigned the captive, in order to retain him without a jailor, and without violence, by the voluntary chains of pleasure; it is called the capital of Paris, and the contmodities of the whole world are found there. A young man of twenty, with fifty thousand livres per annum, will be unable to quit this fairy scene; he will become a Rinaldo in the palace of Armida, and if the Italian hero lost in the bewitching labyrinths of the enchantress his time and almost his glory, our young man will also here lose his honour, and, perhaps, his fortune; here alone will he feel enjoyment; other scenes will appear tasteless and insipid. This enchanting abode is a small luxurious city inclosed within a greater; it is the temple of voluptuousness, in which every thing respires delight, and where dazzling vices have ever the heart can wish, or fancy suggest, is every vestige of modesty. Whathere realized. The serious and the gay, the learned and the frivolous, will here recognize the objects of their pursuit. Physiologists, banished poets, chemists, anatomists, linguists, read their courses. Women, who have renounced the pedantic gravity which distinguished the dames of the old hotel Rambouillet, sport with the sciences, which serve them for playthings, and amuse them as much as their spaniel or paroquet. "In the capital of the Chinese empire there is a comic fair, which consists, of a miniature representation of cities in the space of a quarter of a league; all the trades, noises, entrances, exits, and even the rogueries of them, are imitated by a crowd of actors-one is a merchant,-another an artisan, this is a soldier, that an officer, the shops are opened, their contents displayed-purchasers appear one quarter is for silk, another for cloth, a third for porcelain, a fourth for varnish-clothes, furniture, female ornaments are exhibited, with books for the inquisitive and learned-there are inns and taverns, whence issue hawkers salesmen pull your sleeve and teaze you to buy, contention ensues, the archer arrests the disputants, who are taken before the judge, and condemned to the bastinado. In executing this pleasant sentence the actor is slightly touched, and the pretended culprit imitates the plaintive cries of a sufferer, to the infinite diversion of the spectators. The pickpocket is not forgotten, he is permitted to exercise his adroitness at the expence of the byestander; the whole city is, in short, imitated, and the emperor is confounded with his subjects. The idea of this picturesque fair appears so fanciful, that I would fain suggest the introduction of a panorama of the good city of Paris at Petersburgh. It would afford an opportunity of presenting to a great sovereign, and to a nation for whom it would possess the attraction of novelty, the faithful image of a far-famed and far distant capital. Imagine the laughter which would be excited at Moscow, Madrid, and Vienna, by the costume of the Parisians; the confusion of all orders of people, the variety of colours, the immense multitude, would form a scene not unworthy the pen of a new Lucian. Nor should the markets be omitted-what could be more diverting than the sight of those waves of men of all ranks, sizes, and complexions! Conceive a Volanges acting the lieutenant de police, and Dugazou personating the prevost des mar chands; other comedians should play the sheriffs, the life guard, the inspector, the commissary, the spy, and if to these were added the embarrassments of the streets, the ludicrous effect would be complete. The fête should close with a somewhat of theatrical spectacle! Paris being under a rainy sky, a copious shower should descend on the people, which would lead to a display of the fiacres; the coachman with a grave mustachio should figure with the coachman in a spruce frock; chaises, coaches, carts, and drays might intermingle, and the general confusion or dismay, would produce a fund of merriment to the mischief-loving spectators. The Romans had their saturnalia; a fete of a similar nature could not fail to amuse the Parisians, and might eventually correct many of their absurdities. "The Palais-Royal is admirably calculated for the scene of action here described: it contains within itself an inexhaustible universe of pleasure and luxury. When Lucullus, the vanquisher of Tigranes and of Mithridates, the conqueror of Pontus and Armenia, the disciple of Epicurus, the imitator of Sardanapalus; that Lucullus, who in the hall of Apollo welcomed Pompey and Cicero to feasts in which Asiatic luxury was surpassed; though the empire was at his beck, and the land and water laid under contribution, yet could not even Lucullus himself have procured his illustrious guests the enjoyinents to be purchased by a young modern prodigal in the Palais-Royal, wha combines at his splendid table a greater sum of pleasurable sensations, than in the most flourishing epoch of Roman greatness had been called into existence." Painters can embody imaginary beings. and represent substantial ones; they can give colour and expression, but here their art is at an end; they cannot give motion. From the short extract which we have just given, it will be seen that M. Mercier's art begins, where the paint-. er's fails him; he exhibits Paris, as it and shade, he superadds to every object were in a camera obscura: besides light which he represents, life and motion. A neat and well executed plan of Paris, is annexed to this work. ART. LXII. A Relation of several Circumstances which occurred in the Province of Lower Normandy, during the Revolution, and under the Governments of Robespierre and the Directory; commencing in the Year 1789, down to the Year 1800. With a Detail of the Confinement and Sufferings of the Author; together with an Account of the Manners and rural Customs of the Inhabitants of that Part of the Country called the Bocage, in Lower Normandy; with the Treatment of their Cattle, Nature of Soil, Cultivation and Harvesting of their Crops, domestic Management, &c. By GEORGE GREENE, Svo. pp. 306. THE author of these pages was driven by the loss of his fortune, to seek a maintenance for a large family in France. He was recommended by Lord Adam Gordon, to his Serene Highness the Prince of Monaco, who was looking out for a land-steward, and in this capacity Mr. Greene engaged himself. The prince's castle was situated in the town of Torigny, and his estate in the neighbourhood consisted of large territorial domains, extensive forests, and fee-farm rents: here Mr. Greene was employed to introduce the English husbandry, so much of it at least as would suit the nature of the soil, and the circumstances of the estate, which it was his object to improve. The period at which he commenced his operations was extremely critical; it was the summer of 1789, that memorable summer which witnessed the destruction of the Bastile. The spirit of insurrection had gone abroad, and the turbulence of the lower classes of people was growing every day more and more ungovernable; the high price of corn was a plea for their loud mur murs; the property of the nobility began to be invaded, and their persons insulted. Two singular instances of the effects of ignorance united to jealousy, which occurred at this time, are here related: In the month of April, Mr. Greene folded some stock upon a piece of wheat; the populace immediately exclaimed that his highness, fearful that he should not have it in his power to keep from them the corn when it was ripe, had engaged an Englishman, at a very great expence, to come over and destroy it while it was in vegetation. On seeing a chimney made in the middle of the hay-stacks, their murmurs broke out afresh: perhaps, said some of them, it is for a depot of arms; and nothing could convince them to the contrary, till they saw the roof covered over with thatch! The prince's castle was at length converted into a maison d'arrêt, and Mr. Greene and his family were unwilling inmates: however they lived very jollily; Though we are three hundred and sixty prisoners, we appear but like one great family, so much union reigns throughout the whole.” In another letter Mr. Greene says, that their month's captivity had in no degree diminished the flow of animal spirits among the female prisoners; indeed their constant patience and composure under the deprivation of accustomed comforts, their courage in cases of danger, their silent unrepining submission under pressing misfortune, and their general equanimity, must have imparted consolation and cheerfulness to the most desponding prisoner, and must impress every man with the love and admiration of that sex which is capable of shedding so bright a lustre over life, as to dispel even the gloom of captivity. The innocent amusements which were at first allowed, are at length prohibited; some galling restriction is every day enforced, and as we proceed in the narrative, some murderous mandate issued. "The carts are now made (July 10) for the transporting many of the prisoners of this house to the fatal tribunal at Paris. They stand in a court just under our windows, ready to take their death-devoted passengers. The list of proscriptions, on which the names of sixty of our unfortunate companions are inscribed, is handing about within our walls. The day before yesterday, at about five o'clock in the afternoon, some of the prisoners had left their rooms to enjoy in the court a little fresh air; they had hardly made two turns, when the officer of the guard presented himself, and gave orders to the centinel to fire upon thein if they did not retire immediately." A few days afterwards the death of the monster Robespierre was announced in the prison with the liveliest joy: the liberation of the prisoners rapidly fol lewed, and that of Mr. Greene and his family at last. This gleam, however, was transient; the reign of the directory was a counterpart to that of the bloody was confined in the citadel of St. Lo, tyranny which preceded it. Mr. Greene and obtained his final liberation on the return of Bonaparte. He is returned to England, impoverished by the expences of his long and distressful imprisonments, and publishes this narrative to obtain some support for himself and family. At the conclusion of the narrative, is culture and peasantry, as it was before an account of the state of French agri. the revolution. ART. LXIII. A new Itinerary of France; or, correct Delineation of all the great and cross Roads throughout the 103 Departments of the French Republic. Also, the existing Laws respecting Posting. An exact List of all the Places where Post-Horses are stationed. The respective Distances of such Places. The Departure and Arrival of the Mails. Time of High-water at the Sca Ports. And an Explanation of their |