or Laon, or the more ruinous
walls of the town of Conway in Wales, yet they present a pleasing
spectacle, arising partly from the regularity of the forms themselves,
and partly from the association with which they are connected.

From Valenciennes to Mons, the country is still flat, though the
cultivation and the aspect of the scene is somewhat varied from what had
been exhibited by the districts of French Flanders, through which we had
previously passed. It lies lower, and appears more subject to
inundation: Ditches appear at intervals, filled with water, and
extensive meadows are to be seen, covered with rank and luxuriant grass.
The cultivation of grain and green crops is less frequent, and in their
stead, vast tracks of rich pasture cover the face of the country. Much
wood is to be seen on all sides, often of great dimensions; and the
population appears still as great as before. The villages succeed one
another so fast, as almost to form a continued street; and the
numberless spires which rise over the woods in every direction, prove
that this number of inhabitants extends over the whole country. The
cottages still continue neat and comfortable; not picturesque to a
painter's eye, but exhibiting the more delightful appearance of
individual prosperity. Their beauty is much increased by the quantity
of wood, or the variety of fruit-trees, with which the villages are
interspersed. There are many coal-pits in this country, and a great deal
of carriage of this valuable mineral on the principal roads. They
present a scene of infinitely more bustle and activity than the richest
parts of France. We met a great number of waggons, harnessed and
equipped like those in England; and the numbers of carriages reminded
us, in some degree, of the extraordinary appearance, in this respect,
which the approach to our own capital presents; a state of things widely
different from the desolate _chaussees_ which the interior of France
exhibits. Every thing in the small towns and villages bore the marks of
activity, industry, and increasing prosperity. We passed with much
interest over the celebrated field of battle of Jemappe, where the
remains of Austrian redoubts are still visible.

Mons, the frontier town of Austrian Flanders, was once a place of great
strength, and underwent a dreadful siege during the wars of the Duke of
Marlborough; but its ramparts are now dismantled, according to the
ruinous policy of Joseph II. The square in the