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trees. The opposite division has, from a vain and puerile 

 affectation of republican names, been styled the Champ de 

 Mars ; and is dedicated to the same purposes as its ancient 

 prototype. 



*' The town is flanked on both sides by lines. That on 

 the left runs down from the rocky base of the Montagne de 

 decouverte as far as the road to Moka : and the plain from 

 that point to Fort-Blanc, is defended by three redoubts which 

 support each other. On the east flank, a strong line extends 

 from the Fanfaron battery across the road to Pampelmousse, 

 and terminates in a small redoubt on the crest of one of the 

 ridges that branch out from the Pouce Mountain. It is, 

 however, but fair to add, that these lines and redoubts 

 are in a state of complete dilapidation. The admirable 

 finesse of the enemy was never more clearly displayed than 

 in contriving to spread abroad such exaggerated statements of 

 the strength and resources of this island; and could be 

 matched only by the indolence or apathy of our Govern- 

 ment that gave implicit credit to these reports, and acted on 

 them, without having taken any previous steps to verify them. 

 It was an amusing spectacle to the citizens of Port-Louis, 

 who crowded down to the shore to see whole ship-loads of 

 pioneers' tools, and scaling-ladders, landed from the fleet after 

 the town had surrendered. Scaling-ladders to storm an open 

 town ! And the measure of our follies would not be com- 

 plete, unless we had made this public display of them. I 

 heard it seriously disputed, at the table of one of our officers 

 of rank, whether with the force destined for this expedition 

 we should be able to take the island. It was our host's 

 opinion that if we did succeed, it would cost us a thousand 

 men at the least. Our actual loss amounted to about fifty, 

 and the greater part of it was the result of a panic among our 

 own troops the night before the town surrendered. 



" It was in the lonely and secluded recess formed by two 

 branches of the Pouce Mountain behind Port-Louis, that 

 St. Pierre laid the scene of his interesting story of ' Paul and 

 Virginia.' Contrary, however, to his most solemn affirmation, 

 the Colonists deny that the beings ever existed whose mis- 



