and is out of comparison more respected than his predecessor, notwithstanding the important services which General Brune rendered to the republic. The French troops, which do not exceed at present eight thousand men, receive their pay from, and are wholly maintained by, the Batavian government. The pay of a French soldier is difficult to ascertain, because it varies according to circumstances, the nature of the service on which he is employed, the quarters he inhabits, and the provisions with which he is supplied; but the average of his daily pay is from six pence to ten pence. The delicacy of the subject prevented me from enquiring, of the persons best able to give me information, what pay is allowed to the superior officers; but I learnt with considerable surprise from an officer of high rank, that the third military station in the republic produces only a revenue of six hundred florins a month to the person who holds it[1], and yet is accounted a very desirable command[2]. Economy<references>
