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N° VI. gives an idea of the town, with the adjacent mountains. (Vide the references to theplates, where a further explanation is annexed.)

On leaving Nantua , in order to continue my journey, I followed the banks of the same lakefor about a mile farther. The high road regularly continues, for that distance, close to its edge,imperceptibly accompanying the masanderings of the water, which receives an additional beautyfrom being shaded the whole way by a number of trees. It then enters a narrow valley, whichleads to St. Germain le Joux, having on the right the small river of Charris, which conducts toanother lake, named Silan.

The beautiful situation of this lake serves to make it most enchautingly romantic; placed, asit were, in' the midst of stupendous mountains, in great part covered with furze, brambles andverdure. One rural and delightful little village adorns its banks; while a number of corn and oilmills, besides tanneries and cloth manufactories, are seen at no great distance, which both en-liven this apparently solitary spot (its direct situation being literally a cul-de-sac ), giving it a strongresemblance to the enchanting lakes of Switzerland , and likewise greatly conduce to the prosperityand happiness of the people. Desirous of conveying a faint idea of this charming spot, I have,in N° VII. given a view of the lake and village of Charris.

From the village of St Germain le Joux, which takes its name from its proximity to the moun-tains of Jura, or Joux, I directed my course towards CMtillon. Following a tract, for a dozenmiles at least, nearly in a continued ascent, sometimes along the windings of a solitary valley, atother times across the elevated summit of a hill or the abrupt sides of a mountain, I at last arrivedat that isolated village, where I shall not attempt to detain my reader, but immediately proceedto where the Rhone loses itself—generally called La Perte du Rhone.

As soon as I had passed Chatillon, I descended a steep and rugged declivity for about an hourand a half, which brought me to Belle-garde, a hamlet situate in a small plain, forming a centralpoint of union to a number of valleys which terminate in that spot; then approaching the abruptbanks of the Valserene, a torrent that passes through the valley of Chesery, I soon gained a sightof the Rhone, which I had quitted at Lyons, and crossed the Valserene on a high stone bridgethere thrown over this torrent, which is indeed terrific ; for its thick muddy waters, rapidly sweep-ing enormous fragments as they roll along, have dug, through the calcareous strata of the lateralmountains, a bed of such an astonishing depth, that to look from the centre of the bridge almostmakes the spectator dizzy.

This depth may be accounted for from the incessant friction of the variety of matter, hurriedby the rapidity of the current, over strata which have not acquired any great degree of solidity.

Taking then an easterly direction, I immediately entered another contracted valley, formed by themountains of Credo, which defend it on the north, and by the ramifications of the Vouaches onthe south. The bed and current of the Rhone occupying the bottom of this valley, the roadrapidly ascends the sides of the steep rocks of the Credo, or rather of the hills which serve as thefirst steps towards them.

The summits of these hills appear to be wholly formed of heterogeneous matter, in which arefound imbedded different species of marine fossils ; whereas their bases are composed of hard cal-careous stone, of a thick stratum, and finer-grained than the upper, without any trace whatever offossils. I therefore conceive, from having, since that time, had an opportunity of revisiting thesame spot, in order to investigate the matter more fully, that those hills must have been, in greatpart, formed of fragments detached from the lateral mountains; for, besides displaying here andthere wide strata of argillaceous earth, pierres roulies, or pebbles, and a fine-grained species ofsand-stone, placed in some evident and determinate order, in other places these same bodies arefound promiscuously mixed together, in a perfect state of confusion, without order and coherence.

The famous Perte du Rhdne effecting itself at the basis of those hills, the road, or path, whichleads to it, is oftentimes so slippery as to render it difficult of access. Here, likewise, among therubbish and fragments torn from the lateral rocks, are the children of Coussy (a hamlet seated on thesummit of the same hills) employed in searching for sulphureous pyrites, or fire-stones, and cornuaAmmonis / besides a variety of petrified shells, which they collect with care, and offer to travellersof every description, in hopes of gaining a scanty pittance.

Let it however be remarked, that I do not suppose the whole of those fossils to belong entirelyto the lateral mountains which border the Rhone; on the contrary, I firmly believe them to have