284 
edifice, or 4 civil inftitution, mu fill be 
eftimated much inferior to that of Sara- 
sofla or Grenada, in Spain, or even that 
of Bourdeaux. Before the Revolution, 
the adminif&rators of this hofpital, as well 
as the Hotel- Dieu, enjoyed the prerogative 
of adopting infants, and of having the 
fame rights as the true fathers; this is 
perhaps the only remains of the ancient 
adoption, which was practifed- in the 
earlier ages of the world, by the cere- 
mony of * paffing the perfon adopt- 
ed throvgh his aflumed mother’s {hift. 
The hofpiral, called Hotel-Dieu, is a 
very ancient building, faid to be ereéted 
by Childebert and Ulwogotha, his queen, 
about the year 540; but has fince been 
greatly altered and repaired in 1708, by 
Delaronce. The imterior confills of a 
large infirmary, built on the defign of 
that at Milan, and difpofed in the form 
of a Greek crofs, of nearly 560 feet long, 
in which the patients are placed according 
to their fex, and the nature of their dif- 
eafes. The middle of this great crofs is 
covered with a flapelefs and difpropor- 
tionate dome. There are befides a quarter 
for the children expofed, another for thofe 
adopted, and a fpacious, airy building on 
the fide of the Rhone for convalefcents. 
The convents of the Cordeliers and Au- 
guftins have been every where dilapidated. 
‘That of the Cordeliers at prefent confifts 
of the majeftic ruins of a Gothic fruéture, 
of a fingle nave extremely long, with all 
its chapels and ailes entirely levelled, its 
docrs and windows built up; and, infiead 
of refounding to the deep-toned organ, 
and the faluiations to St. Bonaventure, 
now re-echoes to the harmony of affes and 
mules, with which it is frequently well 
fupplied. The Chapel cf Contalons which 
adjoined this church ftill remains habita- 
ble: its bare and rugged wails, once co- 
vered with elegantly {cuiptured wood, are 
now hung with pieces of old tapeftry to 
qualify it a little for faying mafs. Among 
the ruins are feen fome fhattered remains 
of bas-reliefs, admirably executed on wood, 
the fate of which one muit needs regret, 
though they, l.ke all other French preduc- 
tions, are {poi'ed by excefs of ornaments, 
which every where, and in all ages, mark 
the meretricious tafie of the French. The 
paintings that were in this chapel are faid 
to have been the beft in France, among 
which were feveral by Rubens and cther 
Italian mafiers, but which made no better 
* See Tacitus and Polybius. 
Sketches of the prefent State of Lyons. 
[Nov. 15” 
bonfire* than thofe of the vileft dauber.. 
The Church of Si. Peter ftill remains tole. 
rably perfett, and is efteemed one of the. 
moft ancient in Lyons. Itis an extreme- - 
ly rude Gothic building, which forms part F 
of the fquaredesTerreaux, in which isthe.” 
celebrated Guildhall, or Hécel de Ville. 
The principal facade fronts the fquare, is 
modern, and compofed of a confuied mix- 
ture of Doric and Corinthian pilafters, def- 
titute of all proportion, and producing a. 
rifible effect upon an edifice, the body of. 
which is Gothic. The Hotel de Ville has , 
been diveited of almoft all its fatues and 
inicriptions ; yet {till enough remains te 
prove it only a large, vulgar, and taftelefs. ~ 
pule of building, veinly called the firt in, 
Europe, afier Amfterdam. The extor- Cs 
tions of the archbifhops in the thirteenth. 
century taught them’ the neceflity of. hav- 
lng a town-houie; but ic was not until 
1647 that this ftru€ture was commenced. 
It is a long {quare fabric, with two: ~ 
wings from each end, extending about goo: 
feet, and which are terminated in a kind 
of garden. The principal fagade is with _ 
out any order of architecture, and is» 
bounded by two. fquare pavilions fur- 
mounted with a kind of dome of no-great 
beauiy. The portal is fupported by twa ) 
Tonic columns of red marble, with bafes and ; 
capitals in white, which havea moft formal 
and ridiculous effe&t. Over this portal is a 
vulgar {quare tower terminating in a eupo-- 
Ja and ball. On entering, a grand vetti- 
bule prefents, itfelf, ornamented with a 
great many inicriptions on both. fides, 
mott of which are now not legible. From 
this veftibule is ‘een the garden, or rather 
a few fcattered and neglected fhrubs,— 
which form part of the court between the 
two wings that extend almoft to the bor- 
ders of the Rhene, but not far enough to 
enjoy a profpect of it. Thefe great difpro- 
porifonaie wings, which are fo dark and 
fombre, poflefs neither taite nor atility to 
render them by any means tolerable, 
The windews are lof in rudely maffive 
pediments ; and the effet of the whole 
building is neither the ftrength of a pri- 
* Several anzcdotes are told -as an amuie- 
ment, refpecting the manner of treating thofe 
paintings, that would difgrace the chara@ter 
of the moft barbarous nation on earth. Bes 
fore committng fome-of the fne& female 
portraits to the flames, they fabbed them 
through in aifferent parts, and offered them 
many other indignities; which decency for- 7 
bids to relate. it is*to be regretted, that the’ <3 
worft of thefe fcenes would be again performed __ ¢ 
on the flighte temptation, ; t 
; fon, 
