César-François de Saussure Quotes

Englishmen look on death in quite a different light to what other nations do, and are not afraid of it. As I have mentioned elsewhere, most criminals may be seen going with wonderful courage and fortitude to the gallows. I have also remarked that the passions of this nation are extremely strong and violent; they cannot bear failure, and customs and example are, I think, a great incitement to them.

Let us visit the Monument, which is not far off. This is a pyramid, or more properly a column, raised by order of Parliament at the exact spot where the terrible fire of 1666 broke out, by which about two-thirds of the City was destroyed. This column of Portland stone is fluted in the Doric style, and is two hundred feet high. ... On one side of the pedestal is a fine bas-relief representing the Fire of London; on the other three sides are inscriptions. The first, in Latin, relates the history of the fire; the second, also in Latin, gives an account of what has been done to rebuild the city; and the third, in English, accuses the Roman Catholics of being the authors of this terrible conflagration in the hope of destroying the Protestant religion together with liberty, and of introducing Popery and slavery in its stead. When James II, who was a zealous Roman Catholic, ascended the throne he caused this inscription to be erased; but shortly afterwards William III, his son-in-law, who succeeded him, ordered this inscription to be engraved deeper than before.

One may say that there is cruelty and even ferocity in some of the pastimes of the people. Occasionally dogs are made to fight, and sometimes men belabour each other with wicker staves, or kill cocks with blows from a club.

I daresay it would interest you to hear of the style and the way Englishmen usually dress. They do not trouble themselves about dress, but leave that to their womenfolk. When the people see a well-dressed person in the streets, especially if he is wearing a braided coat, a plume in his hat, or his hair tied in a bow, he will, without doubt, be called "French dog" twenty times perhaps before he reaches his destination. This name is the most common, and evidently, according to popular idea, the greatest and most forcible insult that can be given to any man, and it is applied indifferently to all foreigners, French or otherwise. Englishmen are usually very plainly dressed, they scarcely ever wear gold on their clothes; they wear little coats called "frocks," without facings and without pleats, with a short cape above. Almost all wear small, round wigs, plain hats, and carry canes in their hands, but no swords. Their cloth and linen are of the best and finest. You will see rich merchants and gentlemen thus dressed, and sometimes even noblemen of high rank, especially in the morning, walking through the filthy and muddy streets.

The term gentleman is usually given to any well-dressed person wearing a sword.

England undoubtedly is, in my opinion, the most happily governed country in the world. She is governed by a King whose power is limited by wise and prudent laws, and by Parliament, this being composed of lords spiritual and temporal in one house and of the people's deputies in the other. The King cannot levy any new taxes, neither can he abolish privileges or make new laws without the consent of Parliament. He cannot order the imprisonment or execution of any individual, neither can he confiscate lands or property—all this according to the laws of the kingdom. The King may, on the other hand, and without consulting Parliament, declare war and make peace, send ambassadors to foreign courts, and call together meetings of Parliament.

These two parties are so opposed to each other that nothing but a real miracle could cause them to become united. Many causes contribute to this animosity, and none more than the antipathy that exists between the Anglicans and the Presbyterians, together with other Nonconformists. The latter are Whigs, and so great is their fear lest a Roman Catholic monarch powerful enough to annihilate the tolerance recognised by the laws should ascend the throne, that they uphold the Whigs with all their might. Zealous Anglicans, on the other hand, are Tories, and look upon the laws of toleration as a means by which the Presbyterians are so strengthened as possibly at some future date to place the established religion and rites in danger.

They are most kind-hearted and compassionate, but they think they are more so than any other nation, hence the term "good-natured," which is not found outside England. Generally speaking, English people are not servile, and are not capable of baseness to obtain notoriety. ... The Englishman in general is not made for court; he is too fond of his liberty and is too sincere and artless, and he is not a flatterer. He detests trouble and restraints to such a degree that he lives according to his own taste and ideas, and does not consider that fashion is to be followed with servility. There are some people who keep so apart from fashion that in any other country they would be considered singularly odd and perhaps something more; but in this country people are above caring what is thought of them, and do not trouble themselves about other people's opinions.

...we were shown the chapel where the kings of England are crowned, and called on that account the Royal Chapel. In this part of the Abbey there are also the tombs of some former kings without any ornament or statues, but with Latin epitaphs. On that of Edward I there is a sword more than seven or eight feet in length, and a shield of enormous size. We were told they were the weapons used by that king, but they looked like the weapons of Goliath. In this same chapel we saw a very ancient chair made of wood and gilt, on which the kings of England are crowned. On the day of the great ceremony this chair is covered with crimson velvet. A large stone is firmly set under the seat of this venerable chair, and we are assured that it is the same stone the patriarch Jacob slept on when he dreamed his famous dream. You must own you did not expect me to find such a relic as this in a Protestant church. However, nothing is truer, and this stone is kept with the greatest care, having been taken from the Scots by the English several centuries ago.

You can imagine nothing more beautiful than the banks of the Thames; on either side are charming country houses and many pretty towns and villages, the principal being Sheerness, Gravesend, and Greenwich; in the latter place is a magnificent hospital for seamen.

The Lord Mayor's Day is a great holiday in the City. The populace on that day is particularly insolent and rowdy, turning into lawless freedom the great liberty it enjoys. At these times it is almost dangerous for an honest man, and more particularly for a foreigner, if at all well dressed, to walk in the streets, for he runs a great risk of being insulted by the vulgar populace, which is the most cursed brood in existence. He is sure of not only being jeered at and being bespattered with mud, but as likely as not dead dogs and cats will be thrown at him, for the mob makes a provision beforehand of these playthings, so that they may amuse themselves with them on the great day. If the stranger were to get angry, his treatment would be all the worse. The best thing to be done on these occasions is not to run the risk of mixing with the crowd; but, should you desire to do so from curiosity, you had better dress yourself as simply as possible in the English fashion, and trust to pass unnoticed.

Commerce is considered to be England's strength, and care has been taken not to drive away anyone who contributes to build it up. Jews therefore are protected by laws, and are even granted certain privileges. They are not forced to bear a distinctive mark, as is the case in many countries.

Would you believe it, though water is to be had in abundance in London, and of fairly good quality, absolutely none is drunk? The lower classes, even the paupers, do not know what it is to quench their thirst with water. In this country nothing but beer is drunk, and it is made in several quantities. Small beer is what everyone drinks when thirsty. ... It is said that more grain is consumed in England for making beer than for making bread.

At the end of the Strand is a fine large gate called Temple Bar, having four statues in niches. This gate is the first of the City, and when any proclamation has to be made of peace or of war, of the death of a king or of the accession of his successor to the throne, the Herald-at-Arms and his officers find the gate closed; they knock at it thrice, and my Lord Mayor, who is on the other side with his aldermen, inquires, "Who is there?" The officers of the King make answer that they are ordered to proclaim such and such a thing, my lord permitting. The Lord Mayor then consults his aldermen as to whether they can consent or not, and as you may believe, the answer is never in the negative.

The populace has other amusements and very rude ones, such as throwing dead dogs and cats and mud at passers-by on certain festival days. Another amusement which is very inconvenient to passers-by is football. For this game a leather ball filled with air is used, and is kicked about with the feet. In cold weather you sometimes see a score of rascals in the streets kicking at a ball, and they will break panes of glass and smash the windows of coaches, and also knock you down without the slightest compunction; on the contrary, they will roar with laughter.