l^S STUDIES OF NATURE, 



They would announce to travellers the various pro- 

 vinces of the kingdom : the vine, Burgundy ; the 

 apple tree, Normandy; the mulbery-tree, Dau- 

 phiny ; the olive-tree, Provence. Their ftems 

 loaded with produce, would determine much bet- 

 ter than ftakes furnidied with iron collars, and 

 than the tremendous gibbets of criminal juftice, 

 the limits of each province, and the gently diver- 

 jGiied feignories of Nature. 



It may be objeded, that the crops would be ga- 

 thered by paffengers ; but they hardly ever touch 

 the grapes in the vinej'-ards which fometimes fkirt 

 the highway. Befides, if they were to pick the 

 fruir, what great harm would be done ? When the 

 King of Pruffia ordered the fides of many of the 

 great roads through Pomerania to be planted with 

 fruit-trees, it was infinuated to him that the fruit 

 would be ftolen : " The people," replied he, " at 

 ^' leaft, will profit by it." Our crofs-roads pre- 

 fent, perhaps, ftill more loft ground than the great 

 highways. If it is confidered, that by means of 

 them the communication is kept up between the 

 fmaller cities, towns, villages, hamlets, abbeys, 

 caftles, and even lingle country-houfes ; that feveral 

 of them iflue in the fame place, and that every one 

 niuft have, at leaft, the breaddi of a chariot ; we 

 fliall find the whole fpace which they occupy to 

 be of incredible magnitude. It would be proper 



to 



