In
Which Case I Might Have Found The Sea Too Rough, And The Weather
Too Cold For A Voyage Of One Hundred And Thirty-Five Miles In An
Open Boat.
Having therefore provided myself with a proper pass, signed and
sealed by our consul, as well as with letters
Of recommendation
from him to the English consuls at Genoa and Leghorn, a
precaution which I would advise all travellers to take, in case
of meeting with accidents on the road, we went on board about ten
in the morning, stopped about half an hour at a friend's country-house
in the bay of St. Hospice, and about noon entered the
harbour of Monaco, where the patron was obliged to pay toll,
according to the regulation which I have explained in a former
letter. This small town, containing about eight or nine hundred
souls, besides the garrison, is built on a rock which projects
into the sea, and makes a very romantic appearance. The prince's
palace stands in the most conspicuous part, with a walk of trees
before it. The apartments are elegantly furnished, and adorned
with some good pictures. The fortifications are in good repair,
and the place is garrisoned by two French battalions. The present
prince of Monaco is a Frenchman, son of the duke Matignon who
married the heiress of Monaco, whose name was Grimaldi. The
harbour is well sheltered from the wind; but has not water
sufficient to admit vessels of any great burthen. Towards the
north, the king of Sardinia's territories extend to within a mile
of the gate; but the prince of Monaco can go upon his own ground
along shore about five or six miles to the eastward, as far as
Menton, another small town, which also belongs to him, and is
situated on the seaside. His revenues are computed at a million
of French livres, amounting to something more than forty thousand
pounds sterling: but, the principality of Monaco, consisting of
three small towns, and an inconsiderable tract of barren rock, is
not worth above seven thousand a year; the rest arises from his
French estate. This consists partly of the dutchy of Matignon,
and partly of the dutchy of Valentinois, which last was given to
the ancestors of this prince of Monaco, in the year 1640, by the
French king, to make up the loss of some lands in the kingdom of
Naples, which were confiscated when he expelled the Spanish
garrison from Monaco, and threw himself into the arms of France:
so that he is duke of Valentinois as well as of Matignon, in that
kingdom. He lives almost constantly in France; and has taken the
name and arms of Grimaldi.
The Genoese territories begin at Ventimiglia, another town lying
on the coast, at the distance of twenty miles from Nice, a
circumstance from which it borrows the name. Having passed the
towns of Monaco, Menton, Ventimiglia, and several other places of
less consequence that lie along this coast, we turned the point
of St. Martin with a favourable breeze, and might have proceeded
twenty miles further before night: but the women began to be
sick, as well as afraid at the roughness of the water; Mr. R - was
so discomposed, that he privately desired the patron to put
ashore at St. Remo, on pretence that we should not find a
tolerable auberge in any other place between this and Noli, which
was at the distance of forty miles. We accordingly landed, and
were conducted to the poste, which our gondeliere assured us was
the best auberge in the whole Riviera of Genoa. We ascended by a
dark, narrow, steep stair, into a kind of public room, with a
long table and benches, so dirty and miserable, that it would
disgrace the worst hedge ale-house in England. Not a soul
appeared to receive us. This is a ceremony one must not expect to
meet with in France; far less in Italy. Our patron going into the
kitchen, asked a servant if the company could have lodging in the
house; and was answered, "he could not tell: the patron was not
at home." When he desired to know where the patron was, the other
answered, "he was gone to take the air." E andato a passeggiare.
In the mean time, we were obliged to sit in the common room among
watermen and muleteers. At length the landlord arrived, and gave
us to understand, that he could accommodate us with chambers. In
that where I lay, there was just room for two beds, without
curtains or bedstead, an old rotten table covered with dried
figs, and a couple of crazy chairs. The walls had been once
white-washed: but were now hung with cobwebs, and speckled with
dirt of all sorts; and I believe the brick-floor had not been
swept for half a century. We supped in an outward room suitable
in all respects to the chamber, and fared villainously. The
provision was very ill-dressed, and served up in the most
slovenly manner. You must not expect cleanliness or conveniency
of any kind in this country. For this accommodation I payed as
much as if I had been elegantly entertained in the best auberge
of France or Italy.
Next day, the wind was so high that we could not prosecute our
voyage, so that we were obliged to pass other four and twenty
hours in this comfortable situation. Luckily Mr. R - found two
acquaintances in the place; one a Franciscan monk, a jolly
fellow; and the other a maestro di capella, who sent a spinnet to
the inn, and entertained us agreeably with his voice and
performance, in both of which accomplishments he excelled. The
padre was very good humoured, and favoured us with a letter of
recommendation to a friend of his, a professor in the university
of Pisa. You would laugh to see the hyperbolical terms in which
he mentioned your humble servant; but Italy is the native country
of hyperbole.
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