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me, but should be happy to see me at his
house : he was writing a history of Auvergne.
1 accepted the invitation, and
found him in bed : his conversation was
very animated and full of anecdote : his
own pursuits were history and antiquities.
On departing, he pressed me, with much
courtesy, to consider his library as my own
while I remained at Clermont.
The Abbé Lacoste, Professor of Natural
Philosophy in the Royal College at Clermont,
has a large collection of valuable
specimens from Auvergne. He has written
a natural liistory of Auvergne, and several
tracts on agriculture, &c. Though now
far advanced in life, he retains some remains
of his former fire and gaiety. He
called regularly every evening, to enquire
the course of my excursions. On retiring,
we had always a most ceremonious contest
in the corridor : the old gentleman objecting,
with fifty bows, to my accompanying
him down stairs ; and though he had taken
leave of Mrs. R with all due form but an
instant before, he never failed to finish a
most profound reverence with “ Présentez
mes respects à Madame." This overcharo-ed
CITY OF CLERMONT.
politesse of the old school was a severe
trial to my gravity.
There were about 4000 cavalry at Clermont
: they received orders to proceed
towards Spain when we were there. One
day I dined with some of the officers: they
did not seem to approve of a war with
Spain, but they said the French soldiers
think but little about the object of the war,
when the enemy is before them ; and in
case a war took place, they calculated much
on the assistance o f those traitors, [coquins,)
many of whom, in every country, were
ready to join the invaders, for their own
interest. Some of the measures of the
French government which appeared arbitrary
were alluded to, and one of the
officers remarked, that such acts were indications,
not of the strength, but of the
weakness of a government. Both the
officers and privates were strong soldierlike
looking men, and well equipped. The
price of the table d’hote was three francs,
with an unlimited quantity of very good
wine, which I observed the officers did not
spare.
A considerable quantity of coarse woollens
and serges, and also of ribbands and silk