504 
comparative table of the ancient and 
modern divisions: 
Ancient divisionec Modern ditto, 
2 
co eS : « . 
& § § Captaincy of Golding 1 Circle of Golding 
we 2 a 
= oa Veta 
= 4 Ba-enpots 
2 2 Fickum So =——— Tuckum 
v is 
N-Bo The district of Pilten, or the bishopric of Cour- 
land, in Cour and Proper, 
Captaincy of Mittau 6 Mittau 
7 Bauske 
a & Frederichstadt 
9 3 acob:tadt. 
Semigallia 
Seelburg < = 
Courland, situated between the 56th 
and 58th degrees of north Jatitude, en- 
joys a salubrious air, but is subject to 
frequent and sudden changes of heat and 
cold. Gales of wind are common; yet 
the men are robust, and arrive at a good 
ald age. The aspect of the country 
is agreeably diversified with hill and dale, 
forests of pines, and groves of oak, 
The soil, with the exception of the 
neighbourhood of Windau and Golding, 
ts ofa rich loamy clay. The cultivation 
of flax succeeds the best. Corn is not 
sown till the month of June, but eight 
weeks is sufficient to bring it to perfec- 
tion. The meadows are, for the most 
part, under water during the winter. 
They say, that the slime left by the 
waters contributes to their richness; 
owing te this opinion, the inhabitants, for 
three years successively, drain the 
marshes, and sow them with summer 
grain for three yeais after: they let in 
the waters, and stock them with fish. 
The forests abound with game, the sea 
and rivers with fish; there are marble 
quarries, and iron and coal-mines, but 
they are not worked: on the coast are 
found quantities of amber. 
Courland exports wheat, barley, oats, 
timber for building, hemp, flax, pot-ash, 
hides, farsy feathers, salt and smoked 
meat, wax, honey, rosin, tallow, amber, 
beer, and malt-spirits; but it is to be ob- 
served, that many of these articles come 
principally from the other provinces of 
the intertor of the Russian empire: pot- 
ash, for mstance, from Lithuania; hides 
from Pleskow; and furs froin Siberia. 
It appears that establishments of in- 
dustry are reduced to very little. Au- 
thors make mention of only one iron 
and one cupper-foundery; even the most 
necessary trades are often wanting in the 
towns; the villages, however, have a to’ 
lerable appearaice: much more clean- 
liness prevails m the inns than in Po- 
land. Beds are to be found in them, a 
- Account of the Duchy of Courtland. 
[Jan. ¥, 
luxury rarely to be met with among the 
lower order of the Poles. 
Mlittau is the capital of the country, 
and was formerly the residence of the 
Duke; the Lettonians call it Felgawa. In 
1795 it contained 12,350 inhabitants, of 
whom 5,120 were Germans, 3,546 Let- 
tonians, 1,200 Jews, 243 Russians, &c. 
This city is of a vreat extent, but contains 
— its walls a vast number of gardens 
and vacant spaces of ground.* The new 
castle, close to the city, is by far teo 
magnificent a structure for so small a 
state. There is a Gymnasium, with a 
library, and an astronomical observa= 
tory. ; 
Libav, containing about 5,000 souls, 
possesses a roadstead and a shallow har- 
bour; about 260 or 270 vessels generally 
enter, one year with another. Not 
long since, the importations amounted te 
the value of 931,551 rubles; the ex- 
ports, on the contrary, amounted to 
2,028,520 rubles ; but the city of Libau 
gives no favourable idea either of the 
riches or industry of its inhabitants. 
Windau, although possessing but about 
900 inhabitants, carries on a consider~ 
able trade. Golding, a town of 1,000 
inhabitants, has very important fisheries 
in the river Windau. Jacobstadt, @ 
small town on the Dwina, is one of the 
principal residences of those idlers who 
lead the dancing bears over Europe: 
these artists have here a sort of aca- 
demy. 
The Jake of Sauken 1s situated in the 
parish of Jacobstadt. The natives pre= 
tend that it owes its origin to a convul- 
sion of the earth, and a sinking in of the ~ 
space which swallowed up all the vi- 
cinity with its inhabitauts. What gives 
a colour to this opinion is, that very fre- 
quently in the fishermen’s nets are found 
pieces of wood, which seem to have bes. 
longed to some buildings. 
Betore we take our leave of Courland, 
we must notice the promontory of Do- 
mesnes, which is between the gulf of 
Livonia and the Baltic Sea ; it forms the 
north point of Courland ; it isa bank of - 
sand and rocks, very dangerous for ves-_ 
sels bound to Riga: it was the northern 
point of the territories of Poland before | 
the dismemberment. 
zs 
Shee 
The political constitution of the Duchy 
_of Courland, hore a great resemblance to 
* Since famous spy being the residence of 
Loyis XVIII. who, however, was crueily 
obliged to quit even that asylum, Visine 
is ie that 
