in the proper season, game--pease, cauliflowers, and asparagus, almost
the whole year round. The sparkling Champagne then goes round, and
French wit, French vivacity, and French gallantry, are seen in
perfection. There is certainly nothing in England equal to the French
supper. It is usually served in a saloon, but the company make no
hesitation, in the intervals of conversation and of eating, to visit
every room in the house. Every room is accordingly lighted and prepared
for this purpose; the beds thrust into cupboards and corners, and the
whole house rendered a splendid promenade, most brilliantly lighted with
glass chandeliers and lustres. This blaze of light is further increased
by reflection from the large glasses and mirrors which are found in
every room. In England, the glasses are pitiful to a degree. In France,
even in the inns, they reach in one undivided plate from the top of the
room to the bottom. The French furniture moreover is infinitely more
magnificent than in England. Curtains, chair-covers, &c. are all of
silk, and the chairs fashioned according to the designs of artists. The
French music too, such as attends on their parties, exceeds that of
England; in a few words, a party in France is a spectacle; it is
arranged with art; and where there is much art, there will always be
some taste.

In the neighbourhood of Lyons are numerous chateaus, most delightfully
situated, with lawns, pleasure-grounds, gardens, and green-houses, in
the English taste. In the summer season, public breakfasts are almost
daily given by one or other of the possessors. Marquees are then erected
on the lawn, and all the military bands in the town attend. The day is
consumed in dancing, which is often protracted so late in the night, as
almost to trespass on the day following. These kind of parties are
perhaps too favourable for intrigue, to suit English or American
manners, but they are certainly delightful in a degree, and recall to
one's fancy the images of poetry.

The French ladies, as I believe I have before mentioned, are fond of
habiting themselves as harvesters: they frequently visit the farmers
thus _incog._ and hire themselves for the day. Though the farmer knows
them, it is the established custom that he should favour the sport by
pretending ignorance, and treating them in every respect as if they were
what they seemed. This is another means of indulging that general
disposition to gallantry which characterizes a Fren