Gand, or _Ghent_, is the capital of Flanders, and is one of the greatest
cities in Europe as to extent; it is seven miles in circumference. It is
situated on the Scheldt and Lys, which are here joined by two smaller
rivers, which with numerous canals intersect the city, and form upwards
of twenty islands, that are united by above 100 bridges. No position can
be conceived more favourable for trade than this. But Gand is greatly
fallen from the once splendid situation she held amongst the cities of
Europe, and although superior to either Brussels or Antwerp in point of
appearance, its population is now inferior to those cities, being
reduced to 58,000: a very inconsiderable number for a city of such
extent. Gand is celebrated as the birthplace of the Emperor Charles the
Fifth. It exhibited at different periods proofs of his attachment to a
place of which he boasted being a citizen, and of the severity with
which he punished the revolt of its inhabitants. In more ancient times
Gand produced another character of political importance, _d'Arteville_,
a brewer, whose influence in this city (then one of the first in Europe)
made King Edward the Third of England solicitous for his friendship; and
history informs us, that one of his sons, at the head of 60,000 Gantois,
carried on a war against his sovereign.
Here was concluded the celebrated treaty in 1516, called the
Pacification of Gand; and it may in future times be famous for the
conclusion of a treaty between England and America.
Charles the Fifth comparing the extent of Paris with that of this city,
is said to have remarked, "_qu'il auroit mis tout Paris dans Gand_;"
and, except Paris, and perhaps Cologne, it is the largest city I have
seen on the Continent. Many of the canals have some appearance of trade.
I observed many very extensive bleach-greens beyond the ancient ditches
and works which surround the city. The walls along the canal of _la
Coussure_ are the most frequented by the inhabitants.
The cathedral is a handsome structure, and contains some beautiful
carving. The church of St. Michael is also a noble and venerable
edifice. There are many other handsome churches amongst the number which
the city contains, and I do not recollect ever to have been in a place
where there are such a number and variety of _chimes_.
The town-house is an extremely large and handsome building, in the
ancient taste, as indeed are most of those in the Netherlands. The city
contains many elegant private houses. The streets are remarkably clean
and spacious, but the want of an adequate population is very
perceptible. Here is a good public library, and the Botanic Garden is
considered as the best in the Netherlands. The prison built by the
Empress Maria Teresa is well worthy of a visit; and the stranger cannot
fail of being struck with the extreme activity and industry which
prevails within its walls. Every thing seems conducted much in the same
manner, of which I had occasion to notice the advantages at Vilvorde.
There is a theatre; but those who have lately arrived from Brussels or
Lisle will not be much struck with the merits of the performers. From
Gand to Ostend and Dunkirk there are no public conveyances, except along
the canals. This mode of travelling I was not inclined to adopt; and
hearing that the road by Lisle, although thirty miles longer, passed
through a finer country, I determined to proceed that way. I did not
hear a favourable account of _Ostend_; and, notwithstanding the peace,
above a third of the houses were said to be untenanted. Bruges has
neither river nor fountain, but abundance of stagnant canals and
reservoirs. The word _Bourse_, as designating the place where merchants
assemble to transact business, had its first origin from a house at
Bruges, then belonging to the family of _Van der Bourse_, opposite to
which the merchants of the city used to meet daily. As the road between
Ghent and Lisle did not claim any minute survey, and as I had been
satisfied with the trial I had before made of a diligence in their
country, I engaged a place for Lille for the next morning.
I was awakened, long before daybreak, by the noise of packing in the
carriages in the yard, and by the vociferations of several Frenchmen in
the house, who seemed to exert their lungs more than the occasion
required. I was not sorry to see them set off in a different carriage
from that in which I was to proceed, as their extreme noise would have
been tiresome. I had not to complain that my companions made an
unnecessary _depense de parole_. They were, I believe, all Flemish. One
of them prided himself on being able to speak a little English, which he
said he could read perfectly, and pulled from his pocket "The Vicar of
Wakefield," which, he assured me, he admired extremely. I have, on many
occasions, in Germany, been in company with persons who were more
desirous of beginning a conversation in English, than able afterwards to
continue it; but in general I have found that the English make less
allowance for the want of proficiency of foreigners in their language
than foreigners do for our ignorance of theirs. On one occasion, at a
_table d'hote_, a person who sat near me pointed out a gentleman at some
distance, and observed that it would be impossible to please him more
than by giving him an opportunity of speaking English, as he valued
himself much on his knowledge of that language. He was not long without
finding the opportunity he sought for, but not the approbation which he
had probably expected.
But to return to the diligence. The rest of the passengers being
lethargic after dinner, an elderly lady and I had the conversation to
ourselves. She complained frequently of her _poor bonnet_, which, from
its _extraordinary elevation_ (having to all appearance antiquity to
boast of) was frequently forced in contact with the top of the carriage
by the roughness of the pavement. I told her, I had heard that the
bonnets at Paris had been much reduced in point of height, and that
perhaps something between the French and English fashions would in time
be generally worn. But although she had to complain of the
inconvenience arising from the unnecessarily large dimensions of her
headdress, she expressed a hope that no such reduction might take
place, as the English bonnets were in her opinion so extremely
unbecoming, that she should much regret any bias in the French ladies
towards such an innovation.
The pavement on which we travelled was rendered very necessary by the
weight of the carriages, which would soon make the road impassable. The
country resembled the rest of Flanders. I observed a greater number of
sportsmen than I had yet seen, well provided with dogs, ranging a
country which is too thickly inhabited to abound in game; and I have
seldom seen a district where there are fewer birds of any kind. Courtray
is a large and handsome town. Here I observed some large dogs employed
in drawing small carts, a custom very general in Holland. The town-house
bears an inscription, indicating that it was erected _by the senate and
people of Courtray_; a style lately used by all the cities of Germany
which depended on the empire, however inconsiderable they had become in
the course of years. There are many beggars here although the town and
neighbourhood exhibits more industry than I had observed since I left
Antwerp.
At Courtray and Menin the garrisons are English, and a little beyond the
last named place we entered France. The _boundary stone_ was pointed out
to me as curious, from having escaped unnoticed during the revolutionary
times, as it bears the royal arms of France on one side and those of
Austria on the other, and after a series of eventful years, it serves
again to point out the ancient and legitimate limits of France. We were
detained above an hour at the custom-house, as the diligence was heavily
laden and all merchandise, as well as the baggage of the passengers, was
examined with minute attention.
The tax was however only on the patience, the purse not being diminished
by any claim from the officers, who were extremely civil in assisting to
arrange what their search had convinced them not to be illegal. Our
passports were not demanded until we reached the out-posts of Lille, and
we were not long detained, as every thing was satisfactory. I was told
that a few days before, two English travellers not being provided with
sufficient passports, were taken out of the diligence and conveyed under
an escort into Lille, where they were next day recommended to return to
England, and provide themselves with proper passports.
Lille is the capital of French Flanders, and the chief place in the
department _du Nord_; it is one of the handsomest and best built cities
of France, as well as the strongest fortified. The _citadel_ especially,
is considered as the _chef d'oeuvre_ of the celebrated _Vauban_, this
place having been one of the most important fortresses on this side of
France; it has again become so, although far removed from that line
which an insatiable ambition would have established as the boundary of
France; and which included nations not desirous of the union. The
population of Lille is estimated at 61,500. It contains many
manufactories, which a period of tranquillity will probably restore to
their ancient prosperity. Many of the streets here reminded me of Paris.
The cathedral is a handsome building, as are also the exchange, the
theatre, and the porte royale. The barracks are large and spacious; and
there being generally a large garrison, the _theatre_ is well attended
and the performers superior to those in most provincial towns. I was
told by a gentleman who has resided here for some time, that there are
few towns in France which exceed this in point of agreeable society. He
had two letters of introduction on his arrival and found no difficulty
in enlarging the circle of his acquaintance. He added, that many English
had settled here for the sake of economy; and it certainly is cheaper
than most of the great towns of Belgium.
I had much reason to be satisfied that I took this road to Calais,
instead of going by the canals, as the country was much diversified, and
the _view from Cassel_ was one of the most striking and extensive that I
had ever seen. Notwithstanding that the month of November is not
calculated for seeing a country to advantage, some of the richest and
best cultivated provinces of France and Flanders are discovered from
this commanding situation. The scene is bounded on one side by the sea
and on the other by the mountains of Hainault. Those who are acquainted
with the country assert that from Cassel you can see thirty towns or
considerable villages, of which seventeen are fortified. Cassel itself
is by no means remarkable; it was at one time a place of great strength,
but its fortifications have gone to decay, although its situation must
always render it a strong position. After a considerable descent on
leaving Cassel, we arrived in the plain, which extends to the coast,
with but little variation. It is fertile in corn and produces hops.
There are several rich pastures and a tolerable proportion of wood. This
day we travelled entirely in the department _du Nord_, where the roads
are much attended to. I observed a few country houses and a château of
General _Vandamme_.
Berg is a considerable town, but badly situated; the country from thence
to Dunkirk is a flat and marshy plain, resembling those extensive
tracts which occupy a large proportion of the counties of Cambridge and
Lincoln. It abounds with canals and drains, which in some places are
higher than the fields, but this uninteresting district feeds large
herds of cattle, and is in many parts well cultivated. One of the chief
canals leading to Dunkirk runs parallel with the road for a great
distance, its banks are planted with trees, which have a stunted
appearance, owing probably to their proximity to the sea. I observed on
the canal several boats laden with the produce of the country, as well
as the stage boats. Dunkirk is well built, and the streets being
spacious it makes a favourable impression on the mind of the traveller,
who is perhaps more liable to the force of a first impression than most
others. Some of the churches and public buildings are handsome and the
number of inhabitants is estimated at 22,000. Its name is said to
originate from a church built here by the Duns in 646, and in Flemish
its name signifies the _church of the Duns_. There is much similarity
between many words in the English and Flemish, but the latter cannot
claim the praise of agreeableness.
It is endeavoured by a proclamation of the _Prince Sovereign_ to restore
the _Flemish language_ in all public acts and pleadings at law, to the
exclusion of the French, which during the union of Belgium with France,
was alone allowed to be used, and pains were taken that in all schools
the French language only should be taught. But it is a difficult task,
to overcome the partiality of a people for their ancient dialect, and
the Flemish language is still used by the lower classes even in those
parts of Flanders which have been united for above a century to France.
At this day the difference between the two nations is not altogether
done away.
The scheme of again uniting Belgium and the left bank of the Rhine to
France, is here perpetually introduced. The French talk of the oppressed
state of the Belgians, and of the vast number of _ordinary_,
_extraordinary_, and _indirect_ imposts to which they are subject, and
conclude that they must wish to become again the subjects of France, as
if they would by that means escape taxation. That they would rather be
subject to the _mild government of Louis XVIII_. than to the _oppressive
tyranny of Buonaparte_, I can easily conceive; but is it unnatural that
they should be desirous of existing as an independent nation, under a
government of their own? Yet were it ascertained beyond dispute, that
the wishes of the Belgians are such as the French represent them, surely
the general interests of Europe, and the preservation of that balance of
power so essential to its permanent tranquillity, would forbid the
further extension of France, which might again reassume that
preponderance which it has cost the other powers so much to reduce. I
am, however, inclined to think, that the wishes of the Belgians are not
such as they are represented; but the French _knowing a little, presume
a good deal, and so jump to a conclusion_.
The merchants here seem to expect that their city will obtain the
privileges of a _free port_, which have been lately granted to
Marseilles, but upon what grounds their hopes are founded, I did not
distinctly understand.
Dunkirk was at one period subject to England; being taken in 1658, it
continued an English garrison until sold by that needy monarch Charles
the Second, to Louis the Fourteenth, in 1662. The odium of this
transaction was one of the causes of the disgrace of that great
statesman, Lord Clarendon, and a house which he was then building,
obtained the popular appellation of _Dunkirk House_. In the possession
of so enterprising and ambitious a sovereign as Louis, Dunkirk became so
formidable by its fortifications, that the demolition of them was deemed
essential to the interests of England, and was accordingly insisted on
by the Treaty of Utrecht, 1713; but by the treaty of 1783, the article
against its being fortified was annulled, and although several works
have been constructed since that period, it has by no means re-assumed
its former strength. From Dunkirk, I proceeded to Gravelines, which,
although inconsiderable as a town, is strong as a fortress, since the
flat country which surrounds it may be laid under water to a great
extent on the approach of an enemy. The market-place is spacious, but
overgrown with weeds. I observed that it still bears the name of the
_Place de la Liberté_, and a street which communicates with it is
designated _Rue de l'Egalité_.
The title of the market-place is more applicable to the present than to
the former state of France; that of the street cannot long exist in any
country, for the maxim tells us, "_that all men are by nature unequal_,"
and the attempt to render them equal has been often compared, in point
of absurdity, to the labours of _Procrustes_. _An equal right to
justice_ is all the _equality_ that can subsist in civilized society,
consistent with the _liberty_, _property_, and _personal security_, of
individuals, which would be perpetually violated by a system, to
preserve which, it would be requisite continually to take from the
acquisitions of the industrious, to give to the idle and the profligate.
It is possible that the experience of the last twenty years may not have
produced as full a conviction as might have been expected on the minds
of the French; but it cannot be supposed to have been altogether
unheeded by them.
I found at Gravelines a diligence, which I think the cheapest land
conveyance I ever met with. It runs from Dunkirk to Calais (about
twenty-five English miles) for three francs. It carries six passengers,
and performs the journey in about five or six hours. It is the _spirit
of opposition_ which has so advantageously for the public reduced the
price, which used to be double, and which will probably, in a little
time, rise one franc more.
The country between Gravelines and Calais is as uninteresting as can be
conceived. The ground is shewn where Edward III. of England had his camp
during the memorable siege of Calais. This town continued to be
possessed by England until the reign of Queen Mary, (being the last
place in France _proper_ which remained of the numerous territories once
possessed by England), and its loss is said to have greatly afflicted
her Majesty. The fortifications of Calais are kept in tolerably good
repair. I found that for three days previous to my arrival no vessel had
been able to sail, owing to the contrary winds and the violent agitation
of the sea. Two vessels had been wrecked by these storms, but nearly all
the crews were saved. In the evening I visited the theatre, and was
sorry to observe, that a sentiment introduced into the performance
expressive of satisfaction at the peace between France and England,
excited much disapprobation from the officers present. The _jealousy
which prevails against the English in France is very striking_, after
the cordiality with which they are received in Germany. It seems to be
the Englishman's _purse alone_ that commands a certain interested
assiduity, which they take care shall be _amply_ remunerated.
The port of Calais presented no appearance of activity, the transports
which filled it on my first arrival having long disappeared. After being
detained one day, I was glad to hear a bustle in the hotel at an early
hour next morning, and perceiving that the wind had become more
favourable for England, I hastened on board the packet, in which my
landlord had engaged me a place; the price I found was now reduced to
half a guinea. I had procured the day before a _sufferance_ for the
embarkation of myself and baggage. Our captain and crew were French, and
the vessel was not in the neatest order.
Two other packets sailed at the same time, but arrived in Dover before
us. All were full of passengers, owing to the weather having been long
unfavourable for sailing. We had on board forty-six passengers, amongst
whom were several _Frenchmen_, who again gave me occasion to remark the
loquacity of their nation; and they only agreed with La Fontaine in the
former part of the line, where he says, "_Il est bon de parler, et
meilleur de se taire_;" _'Tis good to speak, but better to be silent._
Our passage was extremely rough; but after twelve hours sailing, we
entered the port of Dover, and I felt great pleasure in finding myself
again in a country, which had only risen still higher in my estimation,
from the comparison I had been enabled to form between it and the other
countries I had visited.