rmation on the
subject. The shades of ignorance, sloth, and stupidity, are
impenetrable. Almost every word of the Patois may still be found in the
Italian, Spanish, and French languages, with a small change in the
pronunciation. Cavallo, signifying a horse in Italian and Spanish is
called cavao; maison, the French word for a house, is changed into
maion; aqua, which means water in Spanish, the Nissards call daigua. To
express, what a slop is here! they say acco fa lac aqui, which is a
sentence composed of two Italian words, one French, and one Spanish.
This is nearly the proportion in which these three languages will be
found mingled in the Patois of Nice; which, with some variation,
extends over all Provence, Languedoc, and Gascony. I will now treat you
with two or three stanzas of a canzon, or hymn, in this language, to
the Virgin Mary, which was lately printed at Nice.

1

Vierge, maire de Dieu,
Nuostro buono avocado,
Embel car uvostre sieu,
En Fenestro adourado,
Jeu vous saludi,
E demandi en socours;
E sense autre preludi,
Canti lous uvostre honours.

Virgin, mother of God,
our good advocate,
With your dear son,
In Fenestro adored,
I salute you,
And ask his assistance;
And without further prelude,
I sing your honours.

[Fenestro is the name of a place in this neighbourhood, where there is
a supposed miraculous sanctuary, or chapel, of the Virgin Mary.]

2.

Qu'ario de Paradis!
Que maesta divine!
Salamon es d'advis,
Giugiar de uvostro mino;
Vous dis plus bello:
E lou dis ben soven
De toutoi lei femello,
E non s'engano ren.

What air of Paradise!
What majesty divine!
Solomon is of opinion,
To judge of your appearance;
Says you are the fairest
And it is often said
Of all females,
And we are not all deceived.

3.

Qu'ario de Paradis!
Que maesta divine!
La bellezzo eblovis;
La bonta l'ueigl raffino.
Sias couronado;
Tenes lou monde en man
Sus del trono assettado,
Riges lou avostre enfan.

What air of Paradise!
What majesty divine!
The beauty dazzles;
The goodness purifies the eye:
You are crowned:
You hold the world in your hand:
Seated on the throne,
You support your child.

You see I have not chosen this canzon for the beauty and elegance of
thought and expression; but give it you as the only printed specimen I
could find of the modern Provencal. If you have any curiosity to be