cliffs of France, whither we were going, had their effect. The sight set us a talking of the probability of the junction of Great Britain formerly with the Continent. The sameness of the soil, and other geological phenomena, and the proximity, seemed to make a junction likely; the vast length of the British channel, and the wide German Ocean approaching so near, render a separation from the first as natural. In short, whether this part of the channel was once an isthmus, and Albion a peninsula, or not, will ever be a doubtful speculation. We have nothing but conjectural reasons, and these appear to be as strong on the one side as the other.
Two very bonny lasses, with a fine child, ascended at the same time with us, but still nearer the precipice. I begged them, for Heaven's sake, not to go so near. They laughed, and went still nearer; and sat down almost on the very edge of the tremendous precipice, which, even at the distance we were standing, made us shudder. Goodbye, my poor dears, said I to them; I shall see you no more. They gave me some jocular reply. Such is the effect of custom.
Went up to the citadel. Not allowed to enter. A nice-looking woman and her husband on the drawbridge. She seemed quite frightened. On raising my eyes, I soon found the cause of her terror. They were going to fire the evening gun from the rampart. The picture was truly fine. The poor female was crouching down on the bridge, though the gun was full twelve feet above her, and stopping her ears; and the artillery men were standing in order by it, waiting till the sun, who was now going down, should sink under the hill. We were at unequal distances, watching the hand that held the lighted match. This was applied. The height seemed to shake under us. The thunder ran round the hills for some time, and returned again. The varied and pleasing form of these winding heights, with their picturesque ornaments,—the glens between them, which put me in mind of some of the glens of the Grampians, though in miniature,—and the brilliant tints which the sun had left behind him, received such an addition from this simple and familiar incident, that Dr B., who seemed to possess a very moderate share of view- hunting enthusiasm, exclaimed, 'Tis truly grand and beautiful. I felt the justness of the observation home, and I echoed it with the most cordial assent.
As we marched off, highly delighted with this short evening view-hunt, we were assailed by a host of native enemies. These were hornets. I did not mind them, and they soon left me. But Dr B. was quite alarmed. In vain I advised him to let them alone. The more he laboured to chase these buzzers away, the more furious and numerous did they return to the attack. I have frequently found these insects near cannon and ordnance depots. I do not know why.
While we sat at tea, a little valetudinarian Jew, whom they called Moses, offered his services in the money-changing line. He said he followed this business merely for the sake of a little amusing employment. He charged a penny more for his Louises (of twenty francs) than I had paid in London, or 16s. 4d. He wanted very much to tempt me to part with some of the slips of paper I had received from Hammersley, for French gold,—no doubt by way of amusement also. But in vain he offered me a douceur, as I meant to keep my paper till I got to Paris. He loitered in the coffee-room, and again and again he attempted to bribe me to part with it. Pho! thought I, as I sipt my tea; and is the theory of our bullion committee come to this in practice. The notes of the Bank of England, alone, are now from eight to ten millions more than when this learned body, far above the prejudices of metal- money times no doubt, were theorizing; and yet here is a Jew (for the sake of mere amusement, it is granted) offers me more gold for my paper money, than even its mint price warrants. His urgency, also, certainly looks very much like his considering paper really more valuable than gold. 'Tis a pity that facts will still be giving the negation flat to certain favourite theories. We shall, however, reach something like good sense on money at length, perhaps. I say good, and not common sense; for the common sense on the subject of money, as on many others, has a good deal of that negative kind of sense in it, which is styled nonsense.
All this, it is to be noticed, I thought, and not said. From some remark that had fallen from Dr B. I perceived he was an adherent of the metal money
