autumn and the beginning of winter violent rains frequently fall; but, in the intervals between the rains, October and November may be regarded as the pleasantest months in the year. In December, January, and February, the weather is generally fine; but after February the wind called the bise or mistral is very frequent. It is a strong north or northeast wind, generally accompanied with a clear sky, and not unfrequently with snow. It is sometimes so violent on the mountains as to blow a man off his horse. It seldom lasts longer than three days at a time; but when felt it seems to pierce through the whole system. About Avignon the winters are rendered by it most distressingly cold; and the olive-trees sometimes perish to their very roots. Some parts of the coast of Provence, as about Toulon and Hières, are still milder than the neighborhood of Marseilles and Aix; but the northern and more mountainous parts of this province often experience very severe weather in winter. The vast swarms of flies and musquitoes in the summer months must be ranked among the chief inconveniences of the southern provinces.

The climate of France naturally divides itself into four zones, according to the vegetable produce which each affords. The most northern zone considerably resembles England, in vegetation and climate. The second differs from the preceding chiefly in exhibiting here and there a few vineyards. Fields of maize begin to make their appearance in the third; and the fourth is distinguished from all the former by the intermixture of olives and mulberries with corn, vines, and maize. Coucy, ten miles north of Soissons; Clermont, in the Beauvaissis; Beaumont, in Maine; and Herbignac, in Britany, mark the dividing line between vines and no vines. The separating line between maize and no maize is first seen on the western side of the kingdom, in going from Angoumois and entering Poitou, at Verac near Ruffec; and is met with in crossing Lorraine, between Nancy and Luneville. These lines are not parallel to the degrees of latitude; but proceed in an oblique line from southwest to northeast, parallel to each other. The line which is formed by the vines is nearly unbroken; but that formed by the maize, in the central part of France, proceeds no further north than the south of the Limousin. The line of olives is also pretty nearly in the same oblique direction from northeast to southwest. It passes through Carcassone, near the Spanish frontier, and Montelimart, upon the Rhone, south of Lyons. Hence Mr. Young concludes that the eastern parts of France indicate by their productions two and a half degrees latitude of more heat than the western-a generalization somewhat erroneous. The surface of France rises gradually toward the east, and has consequently a lower mean temperature on the eastern side than on the western; and the heat is more unequally distributed in the seasons, the winter being more vigorous, the summer more ardent. Hence the eastern provinces are better fitted for the culture of such plants as, being annual like maize, or losing their leaves like the vine, totally escape the severity of winter. The western side of France, on the other hand, is better suited to the growth of such plants as are injured by cold: as the kermes-oak, the cork-tree, and the fig-tree. We shall now proceed to describe some of the most remarkable cities of France; and first, Paris.

PARIS is the metropolis of France, and one of the largest and richest cities of Europe. It is situated in a valley, on both banks of the Seine. The river crosses it from east to west, dividing it into two nearly equal parts; it then divides itself into two branches, which again unite, after forming three considerable islands. The communication between the banks of the river and the islands is effected by a great number of bridges, many of which are remarkable for the beauty of their construction, and join the quays, which are intended rather for ornament than for business. The environs do not exhibit much variety. Instead of gardens, parks, and countryseats, Paris, on several sides, presents large tracts of unenclosed cornfields. The stream of life in the great streets, crowd of wagons, carriages, and horsemen, is not so great as in the neighborhood of London. Most of the streets, however, are wide, airy, watered by numerous fountains, and full of magnificent hotels and shops. The finest approach to Paris is by St. Germain, a broad, straight street, lined with lofty buildings, leading from Neuilly to the city, where the view is terminated by the Arc de l'Etoile, which stands on an elevation; from this to the charming Champ Elysées extends a walk about a mile and a half in length, planted with fine elms, and lined on both sides with handsome houses and beautiful gardens. The next objects are the Tuilleries, with its gardens and statues; the Seine, with its bridges and quays; and the Place Vendôme, with its triumphal column. The circuit of the city, as

marked by a wall raised in 1787, to prevent smuggling, is fourteen miles, its greatest breadth three miles, its greatest length above five. The original soil on which Paris is built, is a marly gypsum, and a great portion of the southern part of the city is built over the immense quarries which form the catacombs.

Previous, however, to entering into a lengthened detail of the public edifices and institutions which grace this distinguished city, we must proceed to give a brief description of its foundation and gradual increase from an inconsiderable village to its present rank and political importance among the cities of civilized Europe. Paris evidently owes its foundation to the means of defence afforded in early ages by the insular position of the spots now called the Cité and Isle of St. Louis. It was small but strong, when, under the name of Lutetia, it offered a temporary resistance to a Roman detachment sent against it by Cæsar. The Romans, after they had taken the city, made important improvements in the fortifications, erected an aqueduct, and the public building called Thermæ, from its warm baths. But it remained in comparative obscurity until the reign of Julian, who erected a splendid palace during his stay in the town. Its advantageous situation soon made it a place of great trade. In 486 the Franks conquered it, and made it the capital of their kingdom. It was considerably improved by Charlemagne, who instituted the schools, from which, at a later period, sprung the university. After Hugh Capet, count of Paris, the first king of the third race, ascended the throne in 987, Paris remained the residence of the kings until Louis XIV., whom the Fronde had driven from the capital in 1649, made Versailles the royal residence. Hugh Capet resided in the Palais de Justice. The place increased, and was divided into four quarters. Under Louis le Gros, not more than above twelve francs of taxes were collected monthly at the northern gate, in the neighborhood of the present street St. Martin. ln 1165, Bishop Maurice de Sully nearly completed the cathedral of Notre Dame, as it is still to be seen; and in the same century the Templars built their palace on the square, where at present is the Market du Temple. In 1190, Philip Augustus, who had caused Paris to be paved, ordered a third enlargement, and divided the city into eight quarters or divisions. Until that period it had but three gates; then it received fifteen. In the thirteenth century St. Louis founded the hospital of the Quinze Vingts for the blind, and a number of convents. After the abolition of the order of Templars, in 1312, Philip the Fair, in 1314, caused the grand-master, Molay, and several knights, to be burned in the Place Dauphiné, so called, at least, before the revolution of 1830. Under Philip of Valois, Paris contained 150,000 inhabitants; but the black death, so called, which ravaged Europe about the middle of the fourteenth century, destroyed more than half the inhabitants. About this time, the Hôtel de Ville, on the Place de Grève, was commenced; and in 1367, the fourth enlargement of Paris took place under Charles V. Until that time, Paris had only two bridges, one toward the north, Le Pont au Change; the other toward the south, Le Petit Pont. In 1378, the third, Le Pont St. Michael, opposite the present street Laharpe, was built. The fourth bridge, called Pont Notre Dame, was erected soon after. In 1418, Paris was visited by famine and pestilence, by which 100,000 persons perished in three months.

In 1420, Paris was taken by the English, who retained it for some years, but they were finally expelled by Charles VII., and shortly after, the city suffered so severely from plague and famine, that it was almost depopulated. In the succeeding reign, Paris was greatly improved and extended. The foundation of the royal college was laid by Francis I., who also erected a magnificent palace on the site of the old towers of the Louvre. Streets were formed in different parts of the city, and several splendid churches were erected in this reign. The Grecian orders of architecture were now, for the first time, introduced into the edifices of Paris, and the interior of the public buildings were adorned with sculpture, and the paintings of the Italian school. Under Louis XIV. was effected the great improvement of levelling the Boulevards or great circular mound, filling up the moat, and planting the whole with beautiful rows of trees. Versailles, however, was still the chief care of the Bourbons; and Paris received only slow and partial embellishments, until the revolution, when Napoleon, zealous to make the French nation the ruling power of Europe, and Paris the capital of the world, collected together the finest portions of both modern and ancient art, partly as trophies of his own victorious arms, and partly from a desire to render the capital of France as distinguished for the magnificence of its arts and architecture, as it was for its science and learning. He freed the

bridges and banks of the Seine from the embarrassment and deformity of the old houses, by which they were still crowded, built magnificent quays and wharfs, and erected several bridges, which are remarkable for their beauty. He also provided public fountains, which were abundantly supplied with water. The people, not merely of Paris, but of the whole kingdom, are indebted to him for those spacious markets, so admirably arranged for the sale of every kind of produce, for public stores, which surprise by their vastness, and astonish by their architectural grandeur. He erected several abattoirs beyond the city walls, and thus relieved the inhabitants of Paris from the inconvenient and dangerous presence of herds of cattle, and the revolting spectacle of blood. He cleared the Place du Carousel, between the Louvre and the Tuilleries, of its obstructions, and adorned it with a triumphal arch; and completed the Louvre, filled its gallery with sculptures and paintings, and built a second gallery from the adjacent angle, so as to complete the square of the vast area of the Carousel, and the junction of the Louvre with the Tuilleries. Many of the public improvements which were commenced by Bonaparte, but left unfinished, have since been carried on; many were completed after the restoration of the Bourbon family to the throne of France, and during the reign of Louis Philippe.

A history of Paris is, to a considerable degree, a history of France, so much has this city, during the last centuries, concentrated in itself all the vital action of France. This has had several good and many evil consequences; and true liberty, the lifeblood which should animate all parts of the body politic, can not be domesticated in France until the departments and provincial towns have resumed their proper importance. The preponderance of Paris over all France, not only in a political sense, but in literature, arts, customs, &c., is immense, and was most strikingly manifested during the revolution of the last century.

On the 31st of March, 1814, the taking of Paris concluded the campaign of the allies against Napoleon. The congress of Chatillon had been broken up. Thirty thousand men, under Marmont, Mortier, and Compans, with 150 cannons, occupied the fortified heights before Paris, in a semicircle, from Charenton and Nogent on the Marne to Neuilly on the Seine. By degrees, 120,000 men were brought against them. With the break of day on the 30th, the battle began. After an obstinate struggle, the allies succeeded in taking the heights of Belleville; the village Lavillette was taken by assault, while other troops advanced through Neuilly on the Marne, and Nogent sur Marne toward Vincennes, where the bridge of Charenton was taken by assault, and where 150 é èves of the veterinary school of Alfort died a heroic death. Blücher, at the same time, drew near, passing through St. Denis, and Montmartre was taken by assault at three o'clock in the afternoon. Marmont, in the meantime, had proposed an armistice to General Schwartzenberg, which was concluded at three o'clock. At six o'clock, Counts Nesselrode, Orloff, and Paar went to Paris, where the conditions of surrender were concluded on the 31st, at two o'clock in the morning. The corps of Marmont and Mortier were to leave Paris at seven o'clock, and hostilities were not to begin before nine o'clock. The city was recommended to the mercy of the allies. The victory of Paris cost the latter 9,000 men; the French lost 4,000 besides the prisoners, and more than one hundred cannons. The troops of the allies were kept under strict discipline. The French made loud complaints of outrages, and though it is impossible that so large an army should take possession of a hostile city without some cases of violence, the behavior of the armies must be allowed to have been very strictly regulated, particularly if compared with that of the French armies in Vienna, Berlin, and other great cities, where cruelty was added to injury. The French even went so far as to complain bitterly of the allies for taking the works of art which Napoleon had carried from their: countries.

When Napoleon returned to Paris in 1815, and lost the battle of Waterloo, Da-voust received the command of about 60,000 men for the defence of Paris. It was difficult to attack the city, as formerly, from the north and east, because the heights and villages were fortified, and well supplied with artillery. The British, therefore, remained before these lines, and the Prussians passed over the Seine to attack Paris from Versailles. The city is weakest on this side, and might also be forced to surrender by cutting off all the supplies of provisions which come from Normandy.. On June 30, 1815, therefore, the first and third Prussian corps marched to St. Germain; the fourth remained in its former position until the arrival of the English ;: and on July 2, the third corps marched though Versailles to Plessis Piquet, the first

through Vaucresson to Sèvres and Meudon; the fourth, which was to act as a reserve, was placed at Versailles. The enemy had been driven back at Sèvres and Plessis Piquet, as far as Vaugirard and Montrouge, and had occupied Issy. A council of war, held at Paris, almost unanimously determined that Paris was untenable; but in order to make a last attempt, Vandamme advanced on the morning of the 3d, with 10,000 men, and attacked Issy. He was repulsed after several hours' fighting, and the surrender of Paris was resolved on. The capitulation was concluded at St. Cloud on the same day. The French army was to leave Paris within three days, and cross the Loire within eight days; Montmartre was to be surrendered July 5, and all the barriers on the 6th. July 7, the Prussian army entered the barrier of the military school, and part of the English army that of St. Denis. Louis XVIII. arrived the next day.

The next great political event of which the city of Paris became the theatre, was the revolution of 1830, which ended in the dethronement of Charles X. and the elevation of Louis Philippe I. to the throne of France. During that short and memorable revolution, the greatest part of the street lamps were broken; 4055 barricades thrown up with great rapidity, consisting of the pavement torn up for the purpose, of coaches and other vehicles, trees, &c.; 3,125,000 paving-stones were dislodged, and the paving the streets again cost 250,000 francs. We shall speak of this hereafter.

We may, in the first instance, enumerate the principal ecclesiastical edifices. The cathedral of Notre Dame occupies the southeast corner of the small island in the Seine, called the Isle de la Cité, or the Isle du Palais, and is consequently almost in the centre of Paris. It is a Gothic building, venerable for its antiquity, and also, in its architectural character not destitute either of grandeur or beauty, although it can not be ranked, upon the whole, among the happiest specimens of the style to which it belongs. The site of the church of Nôtre Dame appears to have been devoted to sacred purposes from very early times. In making some excavations under the choir, in March, 1711, there were found, at the depth of fifteen feet below the surface, nine stones, bearing inscriptions and figures in bas-relief, which seemed to have originally formed an altar, dedicated conjointly to Esus, or Eus (the Celtic god of battle and slaughter), to Jupiter, Vulcan, Castor, and Pollux. From the circumstance of ashes and incense being still found in the hole where the fire had been placed, it was inferred that the altar had stood on the same spot where its ruins were discovered. It is probable, however, that it stood in the open air; for there is no reason to believe that any pagan temple was ever erected within the bounds of this islet. These sacred edifices among the ancient Gauls were, for the most part, placed outside the towns; and this seems clearly to have been the case with those at Paris. The first Christian church which Paris possessed was erected on or close to the site of the present cathedral. Its date is assigned to about the year 375, in the reign of Valentinian I. This church was dedicated to St. Stephen, and it was for a long time the only one in the city. About the year 522, Childebert I., the son of Clovis, erected another close beside it, which he dedicated to the Virgin. The present cathedral may be considered as uniting these two churches, cov. ering as it does nearly the whole space which they formerly occupied. It was begun to be built, according to some accounts, about the year 1010, in the reign of Robert II., surnamed the Devout, the son and successor of Hugh Capet; while others refer it to the time of Robert's great-great-grandson, Louis VII. or the Young, in the year 1160. It is most probable, however, that it was not really commenced till after the accession of Louis's celebrated son and successor, Philip II., usually called Philip Augustus, who occupied the throne from 1180 to 1223. The work was carried on with the extreme deliberation common in those times, in the case of structures which were intended for the utmost possible duration; and it was not quite finished till the close of the reign of Philip VI., or about the middle of the fourteenth century.

The principal front of the cathedral of Nôtre Dame is the west. It consists of three portals, surmounted by a pillared gallery, over which again are a great central and two side windows, from which the principal light for the body of the church is derived. Over the windows is another gallery, supported by columns, from the extremities of which rise two towers, 204 feet in height, but more remarkable for solidity than elegance. The architecture of this front is altogether of a very florid description, and presents many grotesque ornaments. Originally, a flight of thirteen