472 CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. 



who have visited the tomb have been subject, and which does away 

 with half the satisfaction of the pilgrimage. We drank some water 

 from the spring, received a bouquet of the Napoleon geranium from the 

 little girls, and returned to the cottage, which we found crowded with 

 Dutch officers, who were devouring the widow's eatables as if deter- 

 mined to have the worth of their money ; from their great appetites 

 she told us she anticipated but little profit. Scarcely had they finished 

 eating, when their pipes were put in requisition, and a cloud of smoke 

 not only filled the apartment, but issued in all directions from its doors 

 and windows. I have seldom seen so little regard paid to the comfort 

 of others, or so little respect shown to the resting-place of the mighty 

 dead, as by these officers. 



After satisfying the claims of the widow, and disposing of certain 

 relics obtained through her as marks of special favour, we departed for 

 Long wood, about two miles further on. The road is good and nearly 

 level, running along the top of a barren ridge ; on our way we passed 

 the " Tap-room," immediately opposite to which was the dwelling of 

 the Count Bertrand. The horizon is visible from the road, both to 

 the north and east ; and on either side the eye wanders beneath into 

 the deep and inaccessible gullies, from which their gloomy and 

 uninviting character have obtained the appropriate name of the 

 Devil's Gorge, &c. 



The day on which we paid this visit was called by the inhabitants 

 a fine one, but we thought the air damp and chilly, and were glad to 

 draw our cloaks closely around us. We soon reached the gate, and 

 were stopped until we paid the usual fee of two shillings sterling for 

 each person. The house is at present leased by the government to a 

 Captain Mason, a retired army officer, for one hundred and fifty 

 pounds per annum, and by his order the entrance fee is demanded 

 before the gate is opened. Mr. Carrol pointed out to us the sites of 

 the camps of observation, and other spots in the neighbourhood, in- 

 teresting from associations connected with the residence of Napoleon. 

 As we drove towards the house, every thing wore a neglected look, 

 to all appearance intentional. 



The vignette gives a correct representation of Longwood, which is 

 now but little better than a barn ; the glass of the windows is broken, 

 and the outward walls much disfigured. The door at which visiters 

 are admitted is covered with a small latticed veranda, and leads into 

 what is called the billiard-room, although it seems much too small 

 ever to have been used for that purpose ; its walls are covered with 



