château heretofore belongmg to the bishops, which commands tl,e cit,. from its elevated
situation.
T1ÙS town is celebrated, in history, as the place of the interview, in 1275, between the
pontif, Gregory X. and Rodolphus I. king of the Romans, who had previously refused
to proceed to Rome to be consecrated ; as also for the council, held in 1448, to ratify
the abdication of Amadeus VIII. duke of Savoy, then pope, under the name of Felix V.
who voluntarily resigned the pontificate for the purpose of terminating a schism in the
church of Rome, and afterwards retired to enjoy a peaceahie and tranquil life in the
monastery of RipaiUe in Savoy, a spot contiguous to the lake, leaving the tiara to
Nicolas V. who was acknowledged the lawful pope.
Lausanne, as well as most of the capital cities and towns in Switzerland, contains
within its walls abundant helps to philosophic and elegant study, which are to be had,
as at Geneva, gratis, the professors of their academy being in like manner paid by the
state. This public institution, which is now under the jurisdiction of the senate of
Berne, was founded in 1537, soon after the Reformation, and consists of several professors
in theology, Greek, Hebrew, philosophy, mathematics, belles-lettres, civil-law,
and medicine, and has produced many eminent men, both in literature and the sciences.
Nor must we omit to mention, that this academical institution provides exhibitions, or
annual pensions, for forty-five indigent scholars, to support and enable them to go
through their course of study.
The public library, though less considerable than that of Geneva, has many valuable
and scarce books, manuscripts, &c. Here are also several literary cabinets,
where, for a very moderate subscription, admission is easily gained,
The principal buildings are the hospitals, which are extremely well regulated, and the
cathedral, originally dedicated to the Virgin, an edifice well worth attention, both
from the magnitude and highly-finished execution of the work, from its being esteemed
the most complete of the kind in Switzerland, and from its containing various marble
monuments and Gothic inscriptions. The town-hall and arsenal are "fine structures ;
and many of the private houses also are handsome and well finished.
The site of the town is so extremely irregular, that it includes within its walls three
hills of no inconsiderable height, which render the streets uneven, and on a continual
ascent and descent. The one which stands at the north side of the town is called
la Cité, that towards the south U Bourg, and the third, at the west, le 3.uartier de
St. Laurent. These hills are formed of sand-stone, nearly similar to that found in the
neighbourhood of Geneva; though, from having more coherency, and being less subject
to exfoliation, than the Geneva stone, it is deemed preferable for building. The colour
is a greyish blue, and cement calcareous, nevertheless containing several particles of
mica and argillaceous earth.
The surrounding country about Lausanne is as beautiful as language can describe ;
but the scene which will most please the benevolent philosopher, is the genuine appearance
of prosperity, content, and cheerfulness, among the inhabitants themselves, arising
from their civil codes and institutions being calculated for the benefit of the governed;
for, if happiness be considered as the result of a tranquil and easy mind, where should
that blessing be found, if not in a country where the comforts of life are easily obtained,
and where the laws indiscriminately protect natives and foreigners, the poor as the rich,
and the unlettered rustic equally with the man of erudition?
The air of Lausanne being esteemed salubrious, the society delightful, and the articles
of the first necessity extremely moderate, though at present much dearer than they
•were some years back, this city is resorted to by strangers, who not only make it their
residence during the summer, but send hither their children, from various parts of
Europe, to complete their education. It speaks in favour of this place, that the celebrated
Mr. Gibbon chose it as his favourite residence, to complete his valuable work on
the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire j and what I have advanced above may
have induced him to give Lausanne the preference.
Some excellent books have been printed at Lausanne, and there is some business
done in jewelery and plate; but, on the whole, its trade is inconsiderable, nor do Uie
principal inhabitants discover any wish to engage in mercantile pursuits.
Before I leave this city, I must recommend the view from the summit of the hill
where the signal is placed, which, from its extreme height, commands a vast tract of
country; and also explain the origin and utility of the vast number of signals seen all
over Switzerland,
The Swiss call signaiLX, or signals (in German koch<oachten), piles of wood and
heaps of straw, placed on the top of their highest hills, at certain distances from
each other, with a hut, or kind of corps-de-garde. The care of attending each of
these, in time of war, is frequently entrusted to a piquet of soldiers, who, at the
approach of the enemy, or any other danger, set fire to the wood by night, and the