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far from being admirers of Rousseau, were
candid enough to acknowledge, that this
desirable change had been effected by his
writings.
It is a well known maxim, that prophets
iind reformers have no honour in their Own
country^ and history has confirmed the
truth of this maximj when limited to the
life-time of the individuals; but after their
death, those cities which persecuted them
with the most violence while living, were
the first to erect statiies Or temples to their
memory, after their death. The honour
Rousseau received from his native city,
during his life time, was of a mixed kind ;
he was admired by a large portion of his
countrymen^ but he was held in abhorrence
by those aristocratical families, who afterwards
destroyed the liberties of their country,
by calling in the aid of foreign troops,
and who governed the city several years,
under the protection of an army of strangers.
A few years after Geneva had thus lost her
liberty, she became a part of the French
republic. At this period a statue was
erected to Rousseau, on the spot which is
now the Jardin des Plantes, and a public
dinner, to honour his memory, was given
to the children of the poorer citizens once
a year. They brought their plates and
knives and forks with them, and partook
of the repast, seated on the grass, around
the statue of their supposed benefactor.
When Geneva once more recovered her
independence, the dinner was discontinued,
and the statue was removed. The populace
were by no means pleased at this, and
it happened that on the evening of the day
on which the statue was removed, a brilliant
meteor passed over the city and exploded.
This they supposed to be the
spirit of Jean Jaques, glaring with fiery
indignation for the dishonour done to his
memory. One of the centinels on the
ramparts, near whom it appeared to pass,
fainted away with fear under this impression,
and was found prostrate, in a state of
insensibility.
From the circumstance of families oc-
cuîpymg only one story in a house, and
having no garden or outlet whatever, their
domestic conveniences are much abridged ;
and perhaps to this cause may be chiefly
ascribed the former general custom of sending
out the children to nurse, and the occasional
instances of it which now take
E 2