these things, he must have laughed with the multitude, as he did in the
House of Lords, though he had not understood it, and must have seen how
inimitably the talents of these men were formed, to excite so much mirth
and delight, even to a heavy _unpolished_ English audience.




LETTER XLVII.


From _St. George_ to _Macon_ is five leagues. Nothing on earth can be
more beautiful than the face of this country, far and near. The road
lies over a vast and fertile plain, not far distant from the banks of
the _Soane_ on one side, and adorned with mountains equally fertile, and
beautiful, on the other. It is very singular, that all the cows of this
part of the country are white, or of a light dun colour, and the dress
of all the _Maconoise_ peasants as different from any other province in
France, as that of the Turkish habit; I mean the women's dress, for I
perceived no difference among the men, but that they are greater clowns,
than any other French peasants. The women wear a broad bone lace ruff
about their necks, and a narrow edging of the same sort round their
caps, which are in the form of the charity girls' caps in England; but
as they must not bind them on with any kind of ribband, they look rather
_laid upon_ their heads, than _dressed upon them_; their gowns are of a
very coarse light brown woollen cloth, made extremely short-waisted, and
full of high and thick plaits over the hips, the sleeves are rather
large, and turned up with some gaudy coloured silk; upon the shoulders
are sewed several pieces of worsted livery lace, which seem to go quite
under their arms, in the same manner as is sometimes put to children to