a lofty spire, but a thunder storm, many years since, bear it down with lightning, and burnt a considerable part of the edifice. Few cities have suffered more than this by the ravages of war; most of its civil and sacred buildings have been at one period or another damaged or destroyed by cannon, the ruins of which still remain. My intelligent friend informed" me that this city was celebrated for the great beauty of its female inhabitants, and that before the French took possession of it the electoral court threw a`brilliant lustre over the palace, which was unrivalled by any city on the Rhine for its gaiety, elegance, and splendour; characteristics which have been impaired, but far from annihilated. It contains colleges, lyceums, a theatre, and ball and concert rooms, all of which continue to be well attended. Mayence, from its having been always considered as one of the great bulwarks of Germany, suffered most dreadfully in the last war.

Volumes have been written upon the superior pretension of Mayence to the original invention of the art of printing, and to transfer the honours of the discovery from Lawrence Coster, of Haarlem, to John Guttenburg, a citizen of this place.

The extremity of the bridge towards Cassel, and all the ramparts and redoubts of the town, which are very strongly fortified, were occupied by French soldiers. With two German gentlemen and a Dutch officer, I sat off for Frankfort, distant eight stunder or hours, or four German miles, under a scorching sun, which did not seem to have any effect upon a large party of monks and priests, and followers bearing the host, who were walking bareheaded in procession to a monastery which we had just passed, near which I left the carriage to make a sketch of Mayence, upon a projecting bank of the river Maine, where I bade -adieu to the Rhine. Our road lay through an avenue of walnut, apple, and pear trees, loaded with fruit, to which passengers helped themselves whenever inch

nation disposed them to do so; and part of the Hock heim hills, covered with the renowned vineyards, which produce wine that in England is called old hock.

The suburbs of Frankfort are very delightful, and after passing over a draw-bridge, and through a deep gate-way, we entered the city, the streets of which were crowded and full of gaiety and bustle, in consesequence of the great autumnal fair which was holding there. All the best inns were brim-full, and with great difficulty the Dutch officer and myself procured a miserable double-bedded room, at an inferior inn, filled with petty merchants and their families, whom the spirit of traffic had led to this celebrated mart, and was half choaked up with cases and boxes containing their merchandize. This town swarms with French soldiers, about thirty of whom slept in rooms adjoining to ours, where they deported themselves with great order. In Germany, as in Holland, time is taken by the forelock, and at six o'clock the stiefelputzer, or boot-cleaner, knocked at the door, followed by the chambermaid with a composition of frankincense and other gums of a pyramidal shape, and about an inch high, much used in Germany, called a Râucher-kerz for perfuming rooms, which she placed upon our candlestick and left smoaking. This city, which was till lately imperial, is one of the most ancient towns in Germany, and has several handsome streets and noble buildings: it is particularly celebrat ed for the splendour of its hotels, which are reported to be the most magnificent in Europe, particularly those called the Rothen Haus or Red-house, and the Rorniskchen Kaiser or Roman Emperor, where the king of Prussia lodged when he visited this town; and the Darmstadter Hof, in which Marshal Augerau and his suite resided whilst I was at Frankfort: so crowded was the city, that it was with great difficulty and some interest I procured apartments at the Weiden-hof, or Willow-court, a second rate inn, but of

great magnitude. The principal houses are built of rod and white stone: the cassino, to which I was admitted by a card of introduction from one of the principal bankers, is very elegant. There are also several other clubs and assembly rooms. The theatre is spacious and very handsome, the performers were good, and the band is large and select, Opposite to the theatre is a mall, formed by several rows of trees, which in the evening is much frequented. A grand discharge of cannon ore morning announced the ceremony of the members of the senate and the colleges being about to assemble in the Römer, or town-hall, to complete the investing the prince primate with the Sovereignty of the city, the keys having been delivered up before the representative of the prince, under a similar discharge of artillery, agreeable to certain provisions contained in the act of the Rhenish confederation.

Curiosity induced me to visit the place of this meeting, which is a very large and ancient Gothic pile, situated in a narrow street. The ceremony of the installation of the prince primate was over in a very short time; the mob, which was a small one, soon dispersed; and scarcely any one mentioned the matter three days afterwards.

The cathedral church of St. Bartholomew, which belongs to the catholics, is another venerable relic of antiquity: it is reported to have been built by Pepin, king of France, in 756, enriched by Charlemagie, and plundered by Lewis, of Bavaria, on account of its chapter adhering to the pope. Strange to relate, although the coronation of the emperor used to take place in it, there is not one object within its walls, either of sacred splendour, or monumental celebrity, worthy of notice. In the year 1792, when the French entered this city as conquerors, their commanding officers went with great military pomp to this cathedral; where, being attended by the senators, the commander in chief closed an address by ex

claiming, "Under the roof of this venerable temple have not many of you witnessed the coronation of the emperor of the Romans?" to which no answer was given. "I demand a reply to my question;" exclaimed the general with some warmth; "yes" was faintly answered; "then," replied he, "you will never see him more in this place." This prophecy issued from an oracle which possessed the means of consummating its prediction.

I was pleased with the fair, although it fell far short of my expectation; the principal booths which were erected near the Römer, and also parallel with the river Maine, formed a very agreeable and sprightly street, entirely covered with canvas awnings: here all sorts of goods, the productions of various parts of the globe, were exposed to sale; and here were also several booksellers' stalls, where the most eminent works are sold, folded in sheets, for the purchase of lesser merchants in the trade. I was informed that the fair had wasted almost to nothing, in consequence of the various injuries it has sustained from the war, and the severe policy of Buonaparte respecting the introduction of English manufacture, very little of which was to be found at this mart.

An excursion to the beautiful and elegant little sovereign town of Offenbach, about five English miles from Frankfort, enabled me to admire the great progress which the Germans have made in the tasteful art of carriage building. In a very large depot of carriages there, I saw several which would have been distinguished for their lightness and beauty in London. There are several other fabrics, viz. of jewellery, pocket-books, tobacco, toys, &c. The society of this place, where the prince who bears its name has a little court, is very refined and accomplished. The suburbs of Frankfort are formed of beautiful and romantic walks and vineyards, enlivened by handsome country-houses On the road near the entrance to the west, adjoining the spledid chateau of Mr. Beatham, the celebrated banker, at whose town-house the present king of

Prussia became enamoured with his queen, is a mo. nument composed of a helmet, a lion's skin, and em. blems of war, in bronze, made out of the cannon taken by the king of Prussia from the French at Mayence, mounted upon a stone pedestal, rising from an artificial rock, upon which are inscriptions commemorative of its having been raised by Prince Williamstadt to the memory of the gallant Prince of HessePhillipsthal and three hundred brave Hessians, who perished on this spot, when the French were obliged to evacute the town in the year 1792. The French had taken quiet possession of it a few months before, under the command of General Newinger and Colonel Houchard, when they levied two millions of florins upon pain of military execution on the opu lent classes of the inhabitants. The most distinguished personage in Frankfort was Mareschal Augerau, whom I frequently met. The heroic valour and skill which he displayed in the campaigns of Italy, particularly at the battle of Arcole and before Mantua, and afterwards in Germany, will render his name illustrious in the military annals of France: he is a highly polished and accomplished gentleman, and was equally admired and esteemed by the inhabitants of Franckfort: he lived in a style becoming his dignity, without ostentation, and was upon all occasions very accessible.

Linglebach, the celebrated painter, was born here, in 1625. His subjects were fairs, mountebanks, sea prospects, naval engagements, and landscapes, in which he eminently excelled. In company with my two friends from whom I parted at Rotterdam, and who rejoined me here, I set off for Darmstadt, about eighteen English miles from Frankfort. We crossed a noble bridge over the Maine, and passed through.a considerable, and fortified town, called Saxenhausen. Our road, which was sandy, was for a considerablə way lined with luxuriant nursery-grounds and vine yards. About four miles from Frankfort, we passed plain oaken post, about six feet high, upon which,