754 



ANNUAL IlEGISTER, 1804 



with which Ihemaniaot' anciglibour- 

 ing country appeared desirous of 

 overwhelming our kingdorn, was 

 spreading abroad, he resisted its ef- 

 forts v/ilK all his might. In times 

 of scarcity he materially alleviated 

 the distresses of the neighbouring 

 poor by the importation of grain. 

 If he had foibles, let (hem be buried 

 in his grave, and let the first who is 

 without, draw them from thence to his 

 dispraise. To sum up the general 

 tharac'ter of Mr. Pennant in few 

 •words, he was a ma;J of uprightcon- 

 dudl and the most unshaken integri- 

 ty, uniting to a good head that va- 

 luable counter part so often wanting, 

 an excellent heart. 



The Streets of Paris described; or 

 Sketches of the Habits and Man- 

 ners of the latccr Orders of Pari- 

 sians ; contained in Letters to a 

 jMdijy 1)1/ the celebrated Dramatist 

 Koizebue. 



My dear friend. 



The proverb, " Tell mc what 

 company you keep, and 1 will tell 

 you what yon are," is, perhaps, li- 

 able to many exceptions ; for only 

 Tery independent men are at liberty 

 to choose their company: I should 

 like to pro})ose another proverbial 

 saying, " Tell me how your room 

 looks, and I will tell you what kind 

 of man you are." These two ex- 

 ceptions may sometimes belie the 

 rule ; but, upon the whole, I chal- 

 lenge every reader to look about 

 among his acquaintance, wheth«r 

 the appearance of tlie room does not 

 frequently resemble the character of 

 its inhabitant ? 



You ask me, why this introduc- 

 tion ? My answer is, we arc now 

 In Paris. The capital is, as it were. 



the room of a nation ; and if I sttc*- 

 ceed in making you a little better 

 acq-.iainted with modern Paris, f 

 am also of opinion, I shall have 

 partly portrayed the French nation. 

 Please to favour me with your 

 arm ! For what ? To take a walk 

 through the streets of Paris in this 

 fine autumnal weather. You will 

 not be sorry for it. No foreigner 

 should neglc6t such a walk ; for the 

 quays, boulevards, &c. present the 

 most entertaining spedlacle from 

 morning till night. As often as the 

 weather permitted, I rambled about 

 on foot, stopped wherever a little 

 crowd was gathering; I looked, 

 I listened, gai)ed too, if you please, 

 amused myself like a prince, and 

 often picked up a grain of experi- 

 ence to deposit in my memory. 



Behold in one place a wheel of 

 fortune made of glass ; arc you not 

 surprised? Here extremes meet; 

 one of thftmost enlightened nations 

 of Europe, seems likewise to be the 

 most superstitious. At the corner.? 

 of every street, you find cnnning 

 people, who in every possible man- 

 ner allure passengers, to announce 

 to them, infallibly, what numbers 

 will be prizes in the next drawingof 

 the numerous French lotteries ; and 

 such a prophet has always a. crowded 

 circle about him. This dirty wheel 

 of fortune has a hole on the top ; 

 the ragged fellow who stands behind 

 it, has made a kind of an instru- 

 ment of the back bone of a goose, 

 which he applies to the hole with 

 great gravity, and almost without 

 moving his lips imitates the speak- 

 ing of Punch, which sounds exaftly 

 as if some little demon were sitting 

 in the wheel, and addressing the 

 aiulitors. If the curious draw near, 

 the goose's bone suddenly jumps otF 

 the hole, and the ghostly yoice in- 

 J ¥it€» 



