60 
Cefar of Shakefpeare has been lately play- 
ed at our theatre, arranged for our ftage, 
by M.ScHLeGeEL. After this piece it is 
inteded to’ perform William Teil, a new 
tragedy, by M. SCHILLER.” 
In digging the canal from Arles to the 
‘Tower of Boue, near Avignon (fourth of 
France), a confiderable number of an- 
tiques have been lately difcovered. — 
There has, likewife, been found in the 
Tricaftin a fuperb tomb, although with- 
out any infcription: it contained all the 
hozGhold furniture of the defund&, con- 
fifting in a number of very interefting ar-. 
ticles. In particular, there are feveral 
imirrors, joined to objects, the ufe of which 
is unknown. ‘The deceafed was a wo- 
man, and probably a Péryze or a Lais, 
for every thing was full of difgutting cb- 
{ceni'ies. 
Degradation of the ancient Abbey de St. 
Medard.— ‘The principal church of the 
abbey was already in part pulled down, 
when Ciiizen GeLIN, a tanner, bought 
it of the frit purchafers ; but he has de- 
molifhed the remainder, as well as the 
cloifier, the architecture of which an- 
nounced a high antiquity. The fubterra- 
mean places that were under the great 
altar ftul fubfift. The folidity of their 
confruétion is admirable, and they pro- 
bably owe their prefervation to their being 
well calculated to ferve as a foundation for 
a large building to be erected for the pur- 
potes of the tannery. ‘They are fuch as 
they appear reprefented in the Voyage Pzt- 
tere/que de France, excepting that the two 
ftatues of kings that were to be feen at 
the two fides, have been defiroyed; that 
the middle vault, wherein was the tomb 
of St. Medard, is filled with cafks; and, 
that on the left, wherein was the tomb of 
Clotaire I. with all the geer belonging to 
the fiables. As to the chapel, on the 
right, which forms a part of thofe fame 
fubterianeans, it has been converted into 
a fiable for the horfes of the proprietor, 
who, when requeiied to give orders that 
the ornaments of the columns, the niches, 
&c. might not be mutilated, replied, that 
he bad himielf much refpeét fer antiquity. 
There fill exifis a part of the palace of 
“the kings of the firft race, which the 
owner is determined to pull down. No 
{mail pains has been taken to prevail up- 
on him not to defircy thoie venerable re- 
mains, but he coniinues inflexible. He has 
allowed an artili, however, to defign what 
yemains of the ruins, and even te copy 
from the wall of the prifon of Louis le De- 
banwaire, the characters engraved, as is 
faid, with his own hand. ‘This prifon is 
Literary and Philofopbical Intelligence. 
[Auguft 1; 
fo gloomy, that a light was requifite to 
diftinguifh the charaéters, of which the 
little that is legible ftrongly indicates ex- 
preffions of grief. The fituation of this 
dungeon is horrible; for although the ” 
privy conftruéted there fhews that the pri- 
foner was not to go out at any time, itis 
neverihelefs fo f{mall, that whether he 
was laid down or flanding upright, it was 
impoffible for him not to refpire the me- 
phitic cdour. ‘This dungeon is at the bot- 
tom of a tower, which makes a part of 
the palace of the kings of the firft race 
above-mentioned. (From the Magazin 
Encyclopedique.) 
M. Mecua.n has written from Spaia 
to the National Inftitute of France, to in- 
form the fociety, that they might depend 
upon the fuccefs of his labours relative 
to the admeafurement of the arch of the 
meridian, taken between the 5th and the 
39th degrees of latitude; but that he 
could not as yet afcertain at what precife 
time they would be rerminated. 
In the late public fitting of the Athen- 
zum of Poittiers, Citizen JOoUYNEAU. 
DrsLoces prefented to the aflembly an 
old bock, printed at Poictiers in the year 
1585, which proves that long before 
Richelet; a Poiétevin had conceived the 
idca of a Dictionary of Rhymes, and had 
executed the fame with much ability. 
The author of this work was named Prerre 
le Gaynard. His book is iwtitled — 
“© Promptuaire duniffon, ordonné et dif- 
pose metkociquement, pour tous ceux qué 
weulent promotement compofer en Vers - 
Francois,’ &c.3 or, ** A Manual of fimi- 
lar Endings, difpofed in methodical Or- 
der, and calcuiated for the Ule of all fuch 
as wilh to compofe readily in French 
Verfe.’—In the fame fitting, Citizen 
BoNCENNE proncunced a diicourfe on 
the origin of French poetry, which he 
attributes to William IX. Count of Poie- 
tou. : 
A correfpondent of the Magazin Ency- 
clopedique, in a letter to the editor, where- 
in be gives an account of a late excur- 
fion of his to Poitiers, obferves, that this 
city is well known to be rich in antiqui- 
ties. He particularly admired the vaft 
ruins of a Roman amphitheatre, provided 
with aqueduéis intended to convey water, 
and caiculated to exercife in naval com- 
bats thoie Piécnes, whofe nautical talents 
were fo celebrated in the time of Calar. 
The arena of this monument (the writer. 
of the letter is here fpeaking) is much 
lefs known than it deferves to be, was 
soo feet in length, by 250 in breadth. 
Only half of it is, at prefent, laid open 5 
2 the 
