174 TRAVELLING MEMORANDUMS. 0£l. 12, 



ftances of this zriTembly to me, faid, " O ! fir, we wept 

 *' for joy to fee fuch a meeting, and at the fame time 

 *' a prince among ur." 



When we fet out from this place, on our route to 

 Av'ignot:, we paid half a poil of additional hire for a 

 fmall deviation to fee the famous Pont dc Gardes. — 

 This is a cuftomary exaction — though not unexception- 

 able, it is more tolerable than the monarchical foolery of 

 a '^pojle royalc -," tliat is, double hire at every ftage where 

 the king has any palace or refidence — as if an exorbitant 

 impolition was a token of honour to their king. 

 Av'igfion. 



17th May 1787, arrived -^t Avignon. — My worthy 



acquaintance INlr F h had refidcd here for a con- 



fider;:ble time. — He gave me feveral letters-of recom- 

 mendation, particularly one to Chevalier Paris, who 

 has retired to this place, as many French perfons of 

 quality do, to repair the damages of early dilhpation, 

 and learn to live with elegant oeconomy. For this vir- • 

 tue French people of faihion are diftinguilbed, and I 

 found him a very remarkable and agreeable example of 

 it. 



I can find no particular book which gives a proper or 

 fatisfaftory defcription, and hiflory of this fine country. 

 There are tranfient flcetches of it in fome of the books 

 of travels I have referred to. The life of Petrarc/j, lately 

 publilhed in French, is very amufing, and contains fome 

 illuflrations of its ancient hiflory, and ftate. — The in- 

 habitants of this beautiful and fertile territory, though 

 in the heaft of France, and fubje(Sl: to the Pope, enjoy 

 a great meafure of liberty, fecmity, and eafe — They 

 complain only of too much celefialtical power , yet it 

 certainly is not fo oppreffive as in otlier fituations. — 

 The great and well governed cities of Marfiilles, LyonSf 

 and N'lfinesy have fo engrofled all capital articles of 

 trade and manufadtures, that the people here, though 

 in a very advantageous iltuation, have not been able to 

 acquire, or maintain any confiderabic Ihare of either. 



