ught to hesitate a moment
in your choice. He promised to write his sentiments to you very fully,
but as he may have neglected to do this, for it is not willingly he
puts pen to paper, I thought it might be agreeable to you to know his
opinion, though I imagine you could hardly entertain any doubt
concerning it."[317]

Professor B. Faujas Saint Fond, Professor of Geology in the Museum of
Natural History at Paris and member of the National Institute of
France, paid a visit to Edinburgh in October or November 1782 in the
course of a tour he made through Scotland, and received many
civilities from Adam Smith, as he mentions in the account of his
travels which he published in 1783. Saint Fond says there was nobody
in Edinburgh he visited more frequently than Smith, and nobody
received him more kindly or studied more to procure for him every
information and amusement Edinburgh could afford. He was struck with
Smith's numerous and, as he says, excellently chosen library. "The
best French authors occupied a distinguished place in his library, for
he was fond of our language." "Though advanced in years, he still
possessed a fine figure; the animation of his countenance was striking
when he spoke of Voltaire." I have already quoted the remark he made
(p. 190).

One evening when the geologist was at tea with him, Smith spoke about
Rousseau also, and spoke of him "with a kind of religious respect."
"Voltaire," he said, "set himself to correct the vices and follies of
mankind by laughing at them, and sometimes by treating them with
severity, but Rousseau conducts the reader to reason and truth by the
attractions of sentiment and the force of conviction. His 'Social
Compact' will one day avenge all the persecutions he suffered."

Smith asked the Professor if he loved music, and on being told that it
was one of his chief delights whenever it was well executed, rejoined,
"I am very glad of it; I shall put you to a proof which will be very
interesting for me, for I shall take you to hear a kind of music of
which it is impossible you can have formed any idea, and it will
afford me great pleasure to know the impression it makes upon you."
The annual bagpipe competition was to take place next day, and
accordingly in the morning Smith came to the Professor's lodgings at
nine o'clock, and they proceeded at ten to a spacious concert-room,
plainly but neatly decorated, which they found already filled with a
numerous assembly of ladies and