country, intersected in many parts by canals); to Ostend in five hours; to Lille in five and a half; and the whole distance from Ostend to the Rhine at Cologne in about thirteen hours. The direct route from Calais to Cologne by Mons, Namur, and Liege (without making the detour by Brussels), is now practicable in about the same time.

Antwerp has an antique and rather sombre appearance; the houses are built in the old Flemish style, with their gables fronting the street. At the corner of several of the streets the figure of the Virgin and Infant may be seen, as in Italian towns. The quays along the Scheldt are broad and handsome; several basins for the repairing of shipping communicate with the river. Many of the women wear rich black silk scarfs, termed camelots, to cover their head and shoulders, over which the camelot descends in the mantilla fashion. This costume has been continued since the time of the Spanish occupation of the Netherlands. It is, however, now very much superseded by French fashions, and is mostly confined to old or middle-aged ladies.

The principal object of interest to the passing traveller is the cathedral, one of the finest specimens of Gothic architecture extant, which, however, is not seen to advantage, on account of shops and other erections being built up against it. In the interior, the large picture of the Descent from the Cross, a chef d'œuvre of Rubens, will immediately attract attention; and the Elevation of the Cross, by the same artist, which, however, is inferior to the former. From the summit of the building an extensive panorama is displayed to the

view, of the town, the course of the Scheldt, Brussels, Ghent, and other towns. The citadel, and the position occupied by the French during the siege, are likewise best seen from this point. The museum contains but few superior pictures.

Ghent has a population of 84,000 persons, but is not a place calculated for the residence of English families, though a day or two might be passed in viewing its churches, collection of pictures, and theatre, which is one of the finest in Europe.

At Bruges, which has 40,000 inhabitants, there are about 200 resident English. Two or three of the churches are worth visiting; but the town has a dull aspect, and the only inducement to select it for a residence is cheapness of living.

The sea passage from Antwerp to London is very little more than that from Ostend, as there is five or six hours' navigation of the river. The departure is usually at noon, as there is no occasion to wait for tide, as at Ostend and other ports.

Ostend is but a dull place, though generally full of visiters in the sea-bathing season. The usual promenade is the jetty, which is continued for a considerable distance along the shore.

The aspect of the country between Brussels and Lille is interesting, being agreeably diversified with woods, cultivated lands, and neat farms. Being the frontier town of France, it is strongly fortified, and is also important in a commercial point of view. The population amounts to 60,000 inhabitants. The princi pal square, in the ancient style of architecture, presents a striking appearance. Lille contains, however, little

to delay the passing traveller. Beyond, and on the line to Dunkirk (whence a steamer goes once a week to London), is Capel, a neat little town, placed on the hill of the same name, which commands a most exten. sive prospect of the plains of Belgium, Flanders, and Picardy. In clear weather may be seen from this elevation, besides innumerable villages, the towns of Ostend, Bruges, Courtray, Lille, St. Omer, and Dunkirk, together with the sea; and in the extreme distance,

"That pale, that white-faced shore,

Whose foot spurns back the ocean's roaring tides,'
And coops from other lands her islanders."

St. Omer is a strong town, with about 20,000 inhabitants. The streets have a triste and deserted appearance. It presents no other advantage for a sojourn beyond cheapness of living, on which account there are a few English residents. The environs of Calais are flat, and totally devoid of interest. The town was formerly termed an universal inn, from its bustling aspect, caused by the frequent arrivals and departures, in the days of comparatively long sea passages, to other ports. The communications having been of late so greatly facilitated, Calais suffered a great deal from the competition. Since, however, it has been placed in connexion by railroad with the rest of France, Belgium, and Germany, it is still preferred by those who object to a long trajet, and has in some measure superseded Ostend, Antwerp, and Rotterdam. There are a few resident English for the same reason as at St. Omer; but to the generality of travellers

Calais offers, at the present day, no more inducement for delaying their departure than it did in former times, most people following the example of one of Ariosto's heroes, when on his embassy from the camp of Charlemagne to England, who, we are told,

APPENDIX.

1.-OBSERVATIONS ON THE INFLUENCE OF CLIMATE, AND ESPECIALLY OF ITALIAN CLIMATES.

THE great influence exerted by different localities on the human race, could not fail to be remarked from the earliest periods; and it has accordingly been repeatedly commented upon by philosophers and physicians, from Hippocrates to our own times. The agency of climate, however, as calculated to remedy disordered states of health, has not, except in some special cases, been sufficiently highly estimated in this country, notwithstanding the subject is one of the most important to which the attention of the medical practitioner could be directed.

Every one will have observed the striking difference in various classes of the community, according to the quality of the air they breathe, and the nature of their avocations. What, for instance, can be more marked than the contrast which is presented by the inhabitants of a marshy plain, with the dwellers upon the mountains by which that plain is enclosed? or than that which exists between agriculturists, sportsmen, and others, who take active exercise, and are constantly changing the air, and the pallid countenances and deficient muscular energy exhibited by those inhabitants of a metropolis, or of a large manufacturing town, who, during the greater part of the day, inhale the close and vitiated atmosphere of workshops and counting