FRANCE. 259 



fon. I have, at this time, above fourteen hun- 

 dred acres improved, and under profitable 

 arable crops, or elfe in meadow, good paf- 

 ture, or new plantations : I have every year 

 added fomething to my buildings, and re- 

 gularly increafed the cottages in the village ; 

 fo that I have at prefent a very fine farm in 

 hand, which, if I was to flop new works, 

 would yield me a regular clear income of7ool. 

 a year, which would, in this retirement, and 

 with the affiftance of necefTaries from the 

 farm, enable me to live in much greater 

 elegance than ever I enjoyed in my diflipa- 

 tion at Paris, when I was running through a 

 fortune, inftead of faving one. But fo 

 eager are we both in the work of improve- 

 ment, and changing the face of the country, 

 that we agree to fpend the whole of that re- 

 ceipt in frefh works. All our deductions 

 have only been a fmall expence in orna- 

 menting a rural fpot on the banks of the 

 river, where we fometimes dine in fultry 

 weather, and which my Cecilia mail mow 

 you. In all your travels, I believe, you 

 never yet met with a couple of people that 

 poflefled more happinefs than we have done 

 S 2 fince 



