4

HINTS of OCCURRENCES, &c.

I {hall fay no more of them; but haften to the banks of the Rhine, where the views contained in the prefent Collec-tion were taken.

The fir ft place we arrived at on the Rhine was Baftil; which we entered on the firft of July: my health was thenvery indifferent, and I began to defpair of finding any benefit from my tour. The morning after our arrival, weenquired for a table de hote. We were informed there was a very excellent one; and that dinner was always ontable at twelve o’clock. We employed ourfelves, the intermediate time, in (trolling about the town, and feleCtingobjects on which I might amufe myfelf during our (lay at Baftil. Having taken fufficicnt exercife to prepare our ap-petites for dinner, and the hour of twelve being very near, we returned to the inn: but to our great mortification,we were told that the company at the table de hote had dined. On enquiring the caufe of our difappointment,the waiter apologized for having omitted to inform us, that the clocks of Baftil were always an hour before time. Weconfoled ourfelves with ordering a feparate dinner, and determined to profit the next day by our better information.Various caufes are affigned for the adherence of the people of Baftil to this fingular praCtice. Out of thefe I lhallfele6t that which is mod credible, and give it as dated by Mr. Coxe, in his fenfible and judicious (ketches ofSwitzerland.

“ It is well known,” fays he, u that the choirs of cathedrals and churches are conftruCted towards the eaft; that of“ Baftil declines fomewhat from this direction, and the fun-dial which is placed on the outfide of the choir, and by“ which the town clocks are regulated, partakes of this declination; a circumftance which, according to the cele-u brated Bermouli, occafions a variation from the true time of above five and forty minutes. But whatever may

have been the original of this whimfical cuftom, the inhabitants of Baftil are fo ftrongly attached to it, that as“ often as it has been propofed in the fovereign council to have their clocks properly regulated, the motion has“ conftantly been rejected: in reality, the people would think their liberties invaded, if their clocks were to go like“ thofe of the reft of the world. A few years fince it was fecretly agreed upon by fome of the leading men of theu town, to have the fun-dial moved half a minute a day, until the ftiadow (liould imperceptibly point to the true hour.c< This expedient was accordingly put in practice, and the town clock had already loft near three-quarters of an66 hour, when an accident difcovered the plot; and the magiftrates were compelled to place the fun-dial in the fame66 pofition it (food before, and to have the town clock regulated by it as ufual.”

My nephew took care on the following day to fet my watch by the Baftil clocks; and I obferved, during the reftof our tour, that he regulated his own by whatever clock the hour of dinner was to be announced. We were punCtualat the table de hote, and whilft we partook of a good dinner, were entertained by a very tolerable band of mufic.

A collection