_Paris, November 23, 1801._
Yesterday being the day appointed for the opening of the session of
the Legislative Body, I was invited by a member to accompany him
thither, in order to witness their proceedings. No one can be
admitted without a ticket; and by the last constitution it is
decreed, that not more than two hundred strangers are to be present
at the sittings. The gallery allotted for the accommodation of the
public, is small, even in proportion to that number, and, in general,
extremely crowded. My friend, aware of this circumstance, did me the
favour to introduce me into the body of the hall, where I was seated
very conveniently, both for seeing and hearing, near the _tribune_,
to the left of the President.
This hall was built for the Council of Five Hundred, on the site of
the grand apartments of the _Palais Bourbon_. Since the accession of
the consular government, it has been appropriated to the sittings of
the Legislative Body, on which account the palace has taken their
name, and over the principal entrance is inscribed, in embossed
characters of gilt bronze: