CHAP. VI.MONTPELLIER.
We left Toulouse in the afternoon, and travelling during the whole night, reached Narbonne on the following day for dinner; at nine o’clock in the evening we halted for a short time at Beziers, where we were left, under cover from a heavy rain, in a kind of stable-yard, while our conducteur transacted some business in the town. After this we again proceeded throughout the night, and at day-break arrived in sight of the Mediterranean Sea, afterward reaching Montpellier about ten o’clock.
On leaving the coach, I accompanied a gentleman with whom I had been acquainted at Toulouse, and who had been a fellow-traveller on the present occasion, to his lodgings in this town; but on his arrival, he met with the following disappointment. During his absence, on legal business, he had permitted some friends to occupy his rooms, one of whom happened to die in his best chamber. Now it is customary in France, on such an occasion, to burn the bedding and other furniture, and in case of this happening in lodgings, the friendsof the deceased are expected to pay for them; the charge, in the present instance, was eight hundred francs, and the furniture had not been replaced; my friend, therefore, was induced to provide himself with fresh rooms: formerly this was not the only tax upon the property of a foreigner who died in France, for by thedroit d’Aubaine, which has only been abolished since the return of LouisXVIII., his whole property became confiscated to the King, under the erroneous idea that it must have been acquired in his dominions.
For the first three days, I lived with this gentleman at his lodgings, having however my sleeping-room at the Hotel de Midi; after which time, I had the good fortune to place myself in the family of Madame the Countess de M⸺, who occupied a noble mansion, agreeably situated near the town, replete with every convenience, and comprising beautiful gardens, embellished with terrace walks, fountains, and abosquet, where, to my surprise, the nightingale sang all day long. For some reason or other, Madame found it convenient to dispose of a part of her house; one portion was occupied by two French officers with their families, and another by a Russian officer. The suites of apartments were, however, perfectly distinct, and there was little intercourse between the above and her own family, which inhabited the betterpart of the house, and consisted of herself, two daughters, and a relative, M. de C⸺.
I was exceedingly happy in this family, and with the friend who accompanied me from Toulouse, made various excursions into the surrounding neighbourhood; we particularly enjoyed the walks on the banks of the river and lake, where the air was much cooler and more agreeable, than on the road, at this time becoming dusty and troublesome. The scenery, about two or three miles from the city, is said to be romantically beautiful. On our return, we used, occasionally, to take a warm bath, which was peculiarly refreshing, and with respect to which, I noticed a luxury, which I had never before remarked,—namely, a clean sheet thrown over the surface of the bath, which you descend into, and are enveloped in.
There are also some delightful public walks about the town, as the Perût, whence is a view of the Mediterranean, and Cevennes mountains; the esplanade; and the botanic gardens. The city is also surrounded by boulevards, of which I was able to make the tour in forty minutes. The markets at Montpellier are well supplied with meats and fish of all kinds; with poultry, vegetables, and fruits in abundance. Thevin ordinaireof the country, is termed vin de St. George, which is good, and full bodied, and sold from the caskas low as five or six sous the full quart bottle, although, after bottling and refining, the wine merchant charges twenty sous for a small wine quart. There is, however, another sort, termed vin de Lednon, which is lighter, but highly flavoured, and consequently more estimated, selling at thirty sous the bottle. A variety of other wines may also be procured.
Montpellier has a theatre, to which it is singular that the officers in the garrison here, are obliged to subscribe, whether they attend it or not; besides the above, there are a great variety of other amusements.
Madame de M⸺, and her eldest daughter, went one evening to a ball given by general B⸺, where the young lady had the fortune to make a conquest of an officer, with whom she danced; on the following day he paid her a visit, and shortly after made his proposals in form, which were accepted; after this, according to the custom of that part of the country, he was considered as one of the family, which was an additional pleasure to me, as he was a sensible gentleman-like companion. The marriage, however, did not take place until after my departure from Montpellier.
This love affair leads me to relate an affecting, romantic, and even tragical incident, which occurredin the family of Madame M⸺, during my residence with her.
Her youngest daughter, Clementine, was a lovely girl, about seventeen years of age; but, alas! it is impossible that I can do justice to charms which it was forbidden me to behold! A young gentleman one day walking accidently near the house, observed this interesting girl leading a goat, tied with a string, over a rising ground, near the bosquet; struck with her beauty and simplicity, his imagination took fire, and a passion the most ardent possessed his soul; his constant delight was to wander near the spot which contained the object of his affections, and amply was he repaid, when he could thus steal a glimpse of her beloved form. But he was soon compelled to tear himself away to prosecute his studies in Paris; her image pursued him, and dwelt incessantly within his mind; and he returned to Montpellier with unabated affection. The diffidence so characteristic of pure and ingenuous love, prevented him, for a time, from declaring his passion; at length, however, he summoned sufficient resolution to demand an interview with the countess, but as he refused to send up his name and object, she declined seeing him; in a while he repeated the call, declaring that he had something particular to communicate, but still refusing to givehis name; the countess consequently again refused to see him, but sent Clementine to inquire the nature of his business.
Those who know how to love, may imagine his sensations, on finding the object of his ardent passion, thus unexpectedly placed before him; his perturbation amounted to a stupid confusion; he was incapable of utterance; and the unconscious maid left him without receiving the least explanation. His only consolation was now to repeat his wanderings around her habitation. One night I was myself alarmed by the sound of footsteps under my window, and for some time laboured under the impression, that an attempt was making upon the house. It was the unfortunate lover; who frequently spent whole nights around the spot, where he first saw his adored mistress.
On the morning of the 24th of June, I was disturbed from my sleep, by the sound of many persons talking in the house and garden, in a manner which convinced me that something dreadful had occurred; I immediately hurried on my clothes, and hastened to ascertain the cause, when, on opening the door of my room, which led into the hall, Mademoiselle de M⸺ instantly advanced towards me in tears, exclaiming, in the most pitiful tone, that a gentleman had killed himselfin the garden, and then proceeding with the following relation: That her mother having risen early for the purpose of bathing, while the bath was in preparation, had walked into the garden in company with M. de C⸺, who was just returned from a party in the town, with whom he had been passing the preceding night; that, at this juncture, they saw through some bushes, a gentleman sitting on the grass, and whom she was on the point of approaching to accost, when he rose up, took out a large knife, and plunged it into his breast. M. de C⸺ immediately sprang across the path, exclaiming, “Mon Dieu! Mon ami, why have you done this!” The only reply from the unfortunate man was, “Clementine! Clementine!” The countess ran to procure assistance, and the whole house was soon in confusion. The most sympathizing inquiries were made into the motives for committing so rash a deed, when, exhausted with loss of blood, he exclaimed, “Ah! Clementine! for you I die! I feel you can never be mine, nor can I live without you!” He was now conveyed to a neighbouring house; a surgeon and the police officers soon arrived; the former reported, that the knife had been turned aside by a rib, but that he was in imminent danger. The police officer then proceeded in his duty, emptying his pockets, and conveyingtheir contents to the Bureau. A letter was found, directed to Madame de M⸺, with another enclosed for Clementine, and I was informed they were both written with very great propriety, and expressive of his unhappy passion.
I quitted Montpellier a week after this event, at which time, the unfortunate lover continued in a hopeless state.
Both as sources of amusement and instruction, I frequently attended the lectures on chemistry, mineralogy, and botany, at the college, and had reason to feel gratified by the general attention paid me, both by the professors and students. Montpellier appears a most desirable situation for prosecuting a course of study, as it abounds with excellent public lectures, literary societies, and good libraries. In short, it must be an agreeable winter’s residence under any circumstances,—to those who wish to be gay, it offers a continual routine of balls, plays, and other amusements, public as well as private; and the valetudinarian will find as pure air, and agreeable walks and rides, as he can desire.
The time I had allotted for my residence at this delightful place, was now drawing to a close, and having provided a fresh supply of Herries and Farquhar’s notes, from my punctual and obliging bankers in London, I prepared to proceed to Aixin Provence, where I proposed to bathe for the remainder of the summer, staying a few days only at Nismes, on my way.
I shall avail myself of this opportunity of recommending to travellers the superior advantages of Herries and Farquhar’s notes, in preference to letters of credit, and which I cannot do better than state in their own words.
“The object of this plan is to supply travellers with money, whenever they may require it, without there being any necessity of determining the route beforehand. For this purpose, a correspondence is established with all the principal places of Europe. The traveller is furnished with a general letter or order, addressed to the different agents of the house, which letter, while it serves to identify him, gives a claim to any attention or good offices he may stand in need of.”
A variety of clear and explicit arrangements are made, to facilitate the immediate supplies of the traveller, whenever he may need them; and excellent precautions adopted, to prevent forgeries, impositions, and the extravagant expenses, commissions, and discounts, which attend the negotiation of bills on merchants’ houses.