young’s TRAVELS IN FRANCE.

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fpirits of the militia, in order to enable themfelves to lecure the government on its newfoundation irreverfibly ?

The 14th. Plots! plots!—the Marquis La Fayette , lad night, took two hundredprifoners in the Champs Elyfees , out of eleven hundred that were collected. They hadpowder and ball but no mufquets. Who ? and what are they ? is the queftion ; butan anfwer is not fo eafily to be had. Brigands, according to fome accounts, thathave collected in Paris for no good purpofe; people from VerlaiHes by others ; Ger-mans by a third: but every one would make you believe, they are an appendix to aplot laid for a counter-revolution. Reports are fo various and contradictory, that nodependence is to be placed on them ; nor credit given to one-tenth of what is afferted.It is fingular, and has been much commented on, that La Fayette would not trull hisHanding troops, as they may be called, that is the eight thoufand regularly paid, and ofwhom the French guards form a confiderable portion, but he took, for the expedition,the bourgeoife only; which has elated the latter as much as it has difgulled the former.The moment feems big with events ; there is an anxiety, an expectation, an uncertainty,and fufpence that is vifible in every eye one meets ; and even the belt informed people,and the lealt liable to be led away by popular reports, are not a little alarmed at the ap-prehenfion of fome unknown attempt that may be made to refeue the King, and over-turn the National Affembly. Many perfons are of opinion, that it would not be diffi-cult to take the King, Oueen, and Dauphin away, without endangering them, for whichattempt the Thuilleries is particularly well fituated, provided a body of troops, of fuf-ficient force, were in readmefs to receive them. I11 fuch a cafe, there would be a civilwar, which, perhaps, would end in defpotifm, whatever party came off victorious ; con-fequently fuch an attempt, or plan, could not originate in any bofom from true patrio-tifm. If I have a fair opportunity to pafs much of my time in good company at Paris ,

I have alfo no final 1 trouble in turning over books, MSS. and papers, which I cannotfee in England : this employs many hours a day, with what I borrow from the night,in making notes. I have procured alfo fome public records, the copying of whichdemands time. He who willies to give a good account of fuch a kingdom as France ,inuft be indefatigable in the fearch of materials; for let him collect with all the carepoffible, yet when lie comes to fit down coolly to the examination and arrangement, willfind, that much has been put into his hands, of no real confequence, and more, poffi-bly, that is abfolutely ufelefs.

The 1 ith- To the Palais Royal , to view the pictures of the Duke of Orleans, whichI had tried once or twice before to do in vain. The collection is known to be veryrich in pieces of the Dutch and Fleinilh mailers; fome finifiied with all the exquiliteattention which that fchool gave to minute exprefilon. But it is a genre little interell-ing, when the works of the great Italian artiils are at hand : of thefe the collection isone of the firlt in the world : Raphael, Hanibal Carracci, Titian , Dominichino, Cor-reggio, and Paul Veronefe. The firlt picture in the collection, and one of the fineltthat ever came from the eafel, is that of the three Maries, and the dead Chrilt, by H.Carracci; the powers of expreffion cannot go further. There is the St. John of Ra-phael, the fame picture as thofe of Florence and Bologna ; and an inimitable Virgin andChild, by the fame great mailer. A Venus bathing, and a Magdalen, bv Titian . Lu-cretia, by Andrea del Sarto. Leda, by Paul Veronefe, and alfo by Tintoretto . Marsand Venus, and feveral others, by Paul Veronefe. The naked figure of a woman, byBonieu, a French painter, now living, a pleating piece. Seme noble pictures, by Pouf-fin and Le Seur. The apartments mud difappoint every one :—I did not fee one goodroom, and all inferior to the rank and immenfe fortune of the poffeffor, certainly the

firlt