In the neighborhood of Nice the hills are cut and seamed with
remarkable gorges, among which are found deep holes known as
“star wells.” They are so called because of the belief that from
their bottoms stars can be seen even in daylight. These abysses
have been formed by the action of water. It is, often, only when
looking up out of the deeps of our own humiliation that we can
see the stars of hope shining in the sky.
(1846)