The South of France-East Half Part 23

_Sights._--The Amphitheatre, the Maison Carree, and the Roman Baths.

_Cab Stands_ are found at the station, at the Amphitheatre, and at the Maison Carree. Cab carrying 4, 2 frs. per hour.

A straight, wide, and handsome avenue extends from the station to the Esplanade; having in the centre a large fountain with four marble colossal statues by Pradier round the base, representing the Rhone, the Gardon, and the fountain nymphs of Nemausa and Ura. On the top of the pedestal is a larger statue, also by Pradier, representing Nimes, with its face towards the station. Behind it are the Palais de Justice and the Amphitheatre, and to the left the church of St. Perpetua.

The great sight in Nimes is the Roman +Amphitheatre+, the most perfect extant. In form it is elliptical, of which the great axis measures 437 ft., and the lesser 433 ft., and the height 70 ft. Around the building are two tiers of arcades, each tier having 60 arches, and all the arches being separated from each other by a Roman Doric column. Above runs an attic, from which project the consoles on which the beams that sustained the awning rested. Within each arcade, on the ground-floor and on the upper story, runs a corridor round the building, the upper one being roofed with stone slabs 18 ft. long, reaching from side to side. There were four entrances, one facing each of the cardinal points of the compa.s.s. The interior contained 32 rows of seats in 4 zones, capable of accommodating from 18,000 to 20,000 spectators. The lowest zone corresponded to the dress circle, the others to the galleries. The present entrance is from the western side, fee 50 c., opposite No. 8 Place des Arenes. The stair that leads up to the top is under the fifth arch west. No description can express the sensation experienced from contemplating this vast Roman structure from the highest tier or from the edge of the outside wall. At the same time it must be remembered that there are no railings, and that an inadvertent step might have serious consequences. The date of the building is uncertain. t.i.tus, Adrian, and Antoninus Pius have each been conjectured to have been the founder. The Visigoths converted it into a fortress, the Castrum Arenarum, occupied by the Saracens at the beginning of the 8th cent., till driven from France by the armies Charles of Martel; died in 715.

On the N. side of the amphitheatre is the Boulevard St. Antoine, with, on the left hand or W. side, the Palais des Beaux Arts, including the Public Library, containing 60,000 vols.; the Archaeological Museum, containing many interesting articles, chiefly Roman, found in the neighbourhood; and the Picture Gallery, containing, among other pictures, a Magdalene by Guido; A Holy Family, a Head of John the Baptist, and a portrait of himself, by t.i.tian; A Head of a Girl and a Return from Hunting, by Rubens; Portraits of Vanloo and of his mother, by himself; Cromwell regarding Charles I. laid out in his coffin, by Paul Delaroche, his chef d'uvre; "Nero and a Sorceress experimenting on a slave with the poison they were preparing for Britannicus," by Javier Sigalon; An old woman, by Greuze; also works by Gerard Dow, Claude Lorrain, Metzu, Ostade, Paul Potter, Ruysdael, Van den Welde, and Wouvermans.

At the N. end of this Boulevard is the church of St. Paul, with frescoes on gold and blue grounds by H. and P. Flandrin.

[Headnote: LA MAISON CARReE. CATHEDRAL.]

Beyond are the Theatre and the Bourse, and opposite them +La Maison Carree+, a beautiful specimen of a Roman temple, probably part of the Forum, with which it was connected by colonnades extending east and west. It is 75 ft. long, 39 wide, and 39 high, and is supposed to have been erected in the time of Antoninus Pius. It stands on a platform, and is encompa.s.sed by a quadrilateral peristyle of 30 Roman-Corinthian columns surmounted by a plain architrave, scroll frieze, sculptured dentils, and a fluted cornice. All the columns are attached, excepting the ten which support the pediment. In the area within the railing are mutilated statues and fragments of Roman columns.

Eastward, in the centre of the old town, is the Cathedral St. Castor, built in the 11th cent., but nearly rebuilt in subsequent times. The most venerable portion is the facade, constructed of large blocks of stone. A delicately-cut frieze, representing scenes from Genesis, extends under the roof. The eaves of the pediment are supported by brackets with acanthus leaves. The table of the third altar, right hand, in the interior, is sculptured in much the same style as the exterior frieze.

[Headnote: ROMAN BATHS. TOURMAGNE. FORT.]

N.W. from the Maison Carree is the Public Garden, adorned with vases and statues among shrubs and flowers, overshadowed by tall elm and plane trees. To the left are the remains of a temple or fane (called the temple of Diana), dedicated to the Nymphs, built B.C. 24, of huge carefully-hewn blocks of sandstone, and reduced to its present state in 1577. The little of the ornamental work that remains is very much mutilated. Opposite the temple, protected from the troublesome winds of Nimes, are the +Roman Baths+, about 12 ft. below the level of the gardens, the vaulting being supported on small columns, over which rise open stone bal.u.s.trades. Adjoining is the copious spring that supplies them, as placid but somewhat larger than the Fontaine of Vaucluse (p. 65).

From the fountain a road leads up the wooded slopes of Mont Cavalier to an octagonal structure called the +Tourmagne+, 90 ft. high, erected before the Roman invasion, and supposed to have been a tomb. It was originally filled with rubble, which was excavated in the 16th cent. in search of treasure. The winding staircase of 140 steps was added in 1843. The view from the top is extensive. Fee, 30 cents.

Eastward from the Tourmagne is the Fort, built by Louis XIV., now the town prison. On the western side of the fort are the remains of the reservoir, _castellum divisorium_, which received the water brought by the ca.n.a.l from the aqueduct of the Pont-du-Gard. This ca.n.a.l still brings water to the town reservoir, on the opposite or east side of the fort.

In the year of Rome 788 a strong wall was built round Nimes, 7 ft. high, pierced with 10 gates; of which there still remain two; the Porte d'Auguste, originally fronting the road to Rome, now at the E. end of the Temple Protestant, and the Porte de France at the extremity of the Rue Carreterie. (See plan.)

The ancient name of Nimes is Nemausus, one of the cities of Gallia Narbonensis, and the capital of the Volcae Arecomici. As early as the reign of Augustus it was a "colonia," and possessed in the days of Strabo the "+Jus Latii+," and therefore was independent of the Roman governors. Its most notable product then was cheese, which was exported to Rome; now it is raw silk, for which it is the princ.i.p.al emporium in the south of France. The wines of Nimes are in repute in Paris, particularly the Costiere and the St. Gilles, called also Vin de Remede.

Both deteriorate after the sixth year in bottle. Nicot, who introduced tobacco into France, and Guizot, the minister of Louis Philippe, were born at Nimes.

[Headnote: PONT-DU-GARD.]

13 miles from Nimes is the +Pont-du-Gard+, built by the Romans in the reign of Augustus as part of the aqueduct, 25 m. long, which, from the neighbourhood of Uzes (page 99), brought the waters of the Eure and Airan to the reservoir beside the fort, of which only vestiges now remain. This "Pont," which spans the valley or banks of the river Gardon, consists of three rows of arches, whose total height above the bed of the river is 156 ft. The two lower stories are formed of hewn stones, placed together without the aid of any cement; but the mason work underneath the channel of the third or top story is of rough stones cemented, by which all filtration was prevented. The first or lowest row consists of six arches, with a span of 60 ft. each, except the largest, which has 75 ft. The second row consists of eleven arches of the same dimensions as the first, and the third of 35 arches of 15 ft. span.

A stair from the right bank of the river leads up to the watercourse above the topmost tier of arches. In the striking boldness of its design this bridge exhibits a decided improvement and superiority over all the other Roman aqueducts. The arches are wider, and the piers in proportion lighter, and had the same principle been extended so as to have formed it of one single row from top to bottom, it would have equalled in the skill and disposition of its materials the more judicious and more elegant structures of modern times (see Roquefavour, p. 77). Take ticket to Pont-du-Gard Station. But if with luggage, and on the way to Avignon, take ticket to Remoulins, where leave the luggage, and take another ticket to the Pont-du-Gard, which having visited, walk back to Remoulins station, where take ticket for Pont Avignon (see under Avignon, p. 64).

79 m. S.E. from Nimes by rail is +Ma.r.s.eilles+ (p. 111), pa.s.sing Tarascon, 17 m. (p. 66), and Arles, 25 m. (p. 68).

[Headnote: VIGAN.]

NiMES TO MILLAU BY VIGAN.

See Map, p. 26.

58 m. N.W. by rail from Nimes is Vigan, whence coach 43 m. W., 9 hrs., to Millau, on the line to Paris by Rodez. There are no towns of importance on this line, though some parts, especially towards Vigan, are very picturesque. 27 m. from Vigan, and 31 from Nimes, is Quissac, pop. 1800, junction with line to Lezan, 9 m. N., and thence 4 m. E.

to Mas des Gard, on the Nimes and Alais line. 9 m. W. from Lezan is St. Hippolyte-Le-Fort, pop. 4500, on the sluggish Vidourle. From this the line goes westward by La Cadiere to Ganges, 9 m. from Vigan, on the Herault, 595 ft. above the sea, pop. 5000, H. Croix Blanche, omnibus at station. The most pleasant town on the line. 2 m. farther is Jumene, 682 ft. above the sea, pop. 3000, with coal and iron mines.

4 m. from Vigan, at Le Pont, 666 ft. above the sea, the line crosses the Herault, and entering the picturesque valley of the Arre follows the course of that river to Vigan, pop. 6000. _Inns:_ Voyageurs; Cheval Blanc; both in the "Place," near the statue of the Chevalier d'a.s.sas, born at Vigan in 1733, and "Mort glorieus.e.m.e.nt a Clastercamp a 27 ans." Vigan on the Arre, an affluent of the Herault, is 860 ft.

above the sea, in a hollow between steep mountains, with terraces of vineyards, olive, mulberry, fig, and chestnut trees to nearly their summits. The town consists of narrow, crooked, badly-paved streets.

The hospital was founded in 1190. In the promenade near the post office are some old chestnut trees, disfigured with knots. In the neighbourhood are several coal-pits, worked, however, with difficulty, on account of the water they contain. Nearly a mile westward is the Fontaine Isis, the source of the water-supply of the town. Beside it are the cold sulphureous springs of Cauvalat.

[Headnote: VALLERAUGUE.]

Coach daily to +Valleraugue+, _Inn:_ Aresque, 14 m. N., in a very picturesque region, on the Herault, in a deep wooded valley between the Aigoual mountains towards the N., and the Esperon mountains towards the S. The princ.i.p.al source of the Herault is a little higher, towards the W., at Sereyrede. From Valleraugue the ascent is made in about 2 hours of Mt. Aulas, 4665 ft. above the sea, the culminating point of the Esperon, commanding a magnificent view. The source of the Dourbie is just a little to the S. of Valleraugue, and of the Tarn to the N., but on the other side of the Aigoual. Excellent fis.h.i.+ng, botanising, and geologising in this neighbourhood.

[Headnote: LARZAC.]

+Le Vigan to Millau+, 43 m. W. by diligence, 9 hrs. The first village the coach pa.s.ses is Molieres, on a hill above the road, with coal-mines. From this the road ascends to the villages of Esparron, 5 m., and Arre, 6 m., from Vigan. A little higher up the coach leaves by a tunnel the valley of the Arre, and enters that of the Vis, with the village Alzon, 12 m. from Vigan, pop. 900. _Inn:_ the Souterraine, the best on the road. After a pretty steep ascent of 7 m.

the coach arrives at Sauclieres, pop. 2200, _Inn:_ H. du Nord, producing excellent pork, cheese, and potatoes. The coach from this ascends the southern side of the Lenglas mountains, covered with vineyards, olive and mulberry trees, and farther up forests of chestnut trees. From the other side of the ridge it descends to the valley of the Dourbie, in which is St. Jean du Bruel, pop. 2000, _Inn:_ Commerce, 23 m. from Vigan and 20 from Millau. The coach having traversed the valley of the Dourbie, full of chestnut trees, reaches Nant, pop. 2000, a poor village, on an eminence, 16 m. from Millau.

Shortly afterwards the diligence crosses the monotonous tableland of +Larzac+, 2790 ft. above the sea, and arrives at the village of La Cavalerie, with some small dolmens. 7 m. W. is Millau, on the line to Paris by Rodez.

[Map: The Rhone & Savoy with the Pa.s.ses from France into Italy]

[Headnote: TEMPERATURE. VEGETATION.]

THE RIVIERA.

HOTELS, PRODUCTIONS, AND CLIMATE.

[Ill.u.s.tration: thermometer]

The Riviera is a strip of land extending 323 miles along the coast of the Mediterranean at the foot of the Maritime Alps and their off-shoots.

It is usually divided into two portions--the Riviera from Hyeres to Genoa, 203 miles long; and the Riviera from Genoa to Leghorn, 112 miles long. The milder and more frequented of the two is the former--the Western Riviera--which has been subjected to most careful and minute meteorological observations, and the various stations cla.s.sified according to their supposed degree of temperature. Yet in the whole 203 miles the difference may be said to be imperceptible. No one station in all its parts is alike, the parts of each station differing more from each other than the stations themselves. Yet each station has some peculiarity which suits some people more than others; this peculiarity being more often accidental and social--such as the people met with, the lodgings, the general surroundings, and many other little things which exercise a more powerful influence upon the health and well-being of the mind and body than the mere fractional difference of temperature. None of the protecting mountains of any of the stations are sufficiently high, precipitous, and united to ward off the cold winds when the higher mountains behind are covered with snow. All the ridges have deep indentations through which the cold air, as well as the streams, descends to the plain. Hence no station is exempt from cold winds, and all delicate persons must ever be on their guard against them--the more sunny and beautiful the day, especially in early spring, the greater is the danger. All the stations suffer also, more or less, from the famous +Mistral+, a north-west wind, which in winter on the Riviera feels like a north-west wind on a sunny summer day in Scotland. The mean winter temperature (November, December, and January) of Hyeres, considered the coolest of the winter stations, is 47.4 Fahr., and of San Remo, considered the mildest, 48.89 Fahr. The coldest months are December and January. With February the temperature commences to rise progressively.

Throughout the entire region bright and dusty weather is the rule, cloudy and wet weather the exception. "In December wild flowers are rare till after Christmas, when the long-bracted orchid, the purple anemone, and the violet make their appearance. These by the end of January have become abundant, and are quickly followed in February by crocuses, primroses, and pretty blue hepaticas. Meanwhile the star-anemones are springing up in the olive-woods, with periwinkles and rich red anemones.

In March the hillsides are fragrant with thyme, lavender, and the Mediterranean heath, to which April adds cistuses, helianthemums, convolvuli, serapiases, and gladioli." --_H. S. Roberton_. There is a much less quant.i.ty of wild flowers now than formerly. The date-palm flourishes in the open air. Capital walking-sticks are made of the midrib of the leaf. Among the trees which fructify freely are the orange, lemon, and citron trees, the pepper tree (_Schinus molle_), the camphor tree (_Ligustrum ovalifolium_), the locust tree (_Ceratona siliqua_), the Tree Veronica, the magnolia, and different species of the Eucalyptus or gum tree and of the true Acacia. In marshy places the common bamboo (_Arundo donax_) attains a great height; while the _Sedum dasyphyllum_, the aloe, and the Opuntium or p.r.i.c.kly-pear, clothe the dry rocky banks with verdure. The most important tree commercially is the olive, which occupies the lower part of the mountains and immense tracts in the valleys. The higher elevations are divided among the cork tree (_Quercus suber_), the Maritime, Aleppo, and umbrella pines, and the chestnut tree. The j.a.panese medlar (_Eriobotrya j.a.ponica_) is common in the orchards, flowers in December, and ripens its fruit in May. With the exception of the orange, lemon, and cherry, all the other orchard trees ripen their fruit too late for the winter resident.

On the Riviera generally, but especially in Hyeres, St. Raphael, Gra.s.se, and Menton, board and lodging in good hotels can be had for 8s. or 9s.

per day, which includes coffee or tea in the morning, and a substantial meat breakfast and dinner, with country wine (vin ordinaire) to both. In some boarding-houses (Pensions) the price per day is as low as 6s. If two are together, especially two ladies or a gentleman and his wife, an excellent plan is to take a furnished room, which, with a south exposure and good furniture, ought to cost about 2 per month. They can easily prepare their own breakfast, and they can get their dinner sent to them.

If the party be numerous, apartments should be taken, which vary from 2 to 30 per month. For the season, from October to May, furnished apartments are let at prices varying from 18 to 100. As a general rule it is best to alight at some hotel, and, while on the spot, to select either the pension or apartments, as no description can give an adequate idea of the state of the drains nor of the people of the house.

A maid-servant costs nearly 1 per month, a cook about one-half more, but they are not easily managed. Fluids are sold by the litre, equal to nearly a quart of four (not six) to the gallon. Solids are sold by the kilogramme, or, as it is generally called, the kilo, equal to 2 lbs.

3 oz.

[Headnote: COST OF LIVING. FISH. VEGETABLES.]

Bread is about the same price as in England. The best beef and mutton cost from 1s. 10d. to 2s. the kilo. A good chicken 2s. 6d. Eggs when at their dearest cost 1d. each. Excellent milk costs 4d. the litre. The best b.u.t.ter 3s. 2d. to 3s. 6d. the kilo. Of French cheese there are a great many kinds, all very good. Among the best are the Roquefort and the fromage bleu, both resembling Stilton, and cost from 2s. 6d. to 3s.

6d. the kilo. Fish are dearer than in England. The best caught off the coast are: the Rouget or Red Mullet, the Dorade or Bream, the Loup or Ba.s.s, the Sardine, and the Anchovy. The Gray Mullet, the Gurnard (Grondin), the John Dory (Doree Commune), the Whiting (Merlan), and the Conger are very fair. The sole, turbot, tunny, and mackerel are inferior to those caught in the ocean. The cuttle-fish is also eaten. Good vegetables can be had all through the winter, such as carrots, leeks, celery, cabbage, cauliflower, peas, lettuce, spinage, sorrel, and artichokes. The cardon (_Cynara cardunculus_) and salsifis (_Tragopogon porrifolius_) are often served up at dinner in the hotels. The cardon tastes like celery, but the salsifis has a bitter flavour. The potatoes are of good quality, but often spoilt in the cooking. In all the stations are English clergymen, physicians, apothecaries, bankers, bakers, and grocers.

[Headnote: ADVANTAGES.]

Before commencing to treat in detail the different stations of the Riviera, "some of the general advantages of the invalid's life in this region must be noticed. The chief of these is the amount of suns.h.i.+ne which he enjoys for weeks and even months together, when the sun often rises in a cloudless sky, s.h.i.+nes for several hours with a brightness and warmth surpa.s.sing that of the British summer, and then sinks without a cloud behind the secondary ranges of the Maritime Alps, displaying in his setting the beautiful and varied succession of tints which characterise that glorious phenomenon of the refraction of light, a southern sunset; when he imparts to the rugged mountains a softness of outline and a brilliancy of colouring which defy description. In the early stages of phthisis, and especially when the patient is young and active-minded, struck down by overwork or sudden exposure, this cheering influence is most beneficial. It is of great importance that, while taking the needful care of himself, he should not degenerate at an early age into a hopeless valetudinarian, especially as an every-day increasing ma.s.s of evidence warrants us in believing that under the influence of medicine and climate a large number of these patients gradually recover their health and lead useful lives, and, with due care, lives of no inconsiderable duration. Patients should never neglect to consult a doctor on their first arrival, as his experience and advice with regard to lodgings, food, etc., are of great value, and may often prevent them from falling into bad hands, or settling in unhealthy localities." To these remarks of Dr. Williams may be added, that patients should bring with them a letter from their physician describing their case and the treatment he thinks should be adopted.

The best time for walking and driving is between 9 and 12, as then there is rarely either wind or dust. For invalids requiring quiet sunny walks there are no stations on the whole coast so suitable as Hyeres and Bordighera.

[Headnote: SEA-BATHING. DOCTORS' FEES.]

_Sea-bathing_ on the Riviera may be continued with advantage by many during the greater part of the winter season. As the rise and fall of the tide are so trifling, the beach is always in a fit state for the bather. The water of the Mediterranean is more highly mineralised than that of the ocean. It contains about 41 per cent of common salt.