The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1910-08-18
Montpelier In
Sunny France
An English Lady Writes The Mirror
Special Letter Giving Her
Impressions OF France.

Montpelier is one of the typically
old French towns which has not be-
come modernized. 1t is situated on
a pleateau and has some 10000 in
habitants. At the highest part of
the town there is a tower W b c b
guards the reservoir of the to n.
This tower is called the Peryon. 1t
resembles a maesoleum from the dis
tance and in front of it large square
is planted out with lovely, shady,
chestnut trees, under which are many
benches and seats here and there.
In the center of this ground is stat
tue of the patron-saint of Montpelier
Saint Roche. All around the Peryon
is a stone parapet and from here, on
clear, fine days, one can see the beau
tiful blue-green Mediterranean shim-
mering in the distance. Montpelier
is only eleven kilometers d i s n t
from the Mediterranean. From the
Peryon one gets splendid view Of
the town and surrounding country.
To the South on the distant hori-
zon is b e Mediterranean-to the
North, East and West are Cevenne
mountains. They are not so very
high and are covered over with a
kind of white stone which m k s
them appear as snow-clad. There
general appearance is very barren,
having merely scanty growth of hardy
shrubs growing here and there among
the boulders of white rock. The
Cevennes abound in wild boars, vip-
ers and scorpions and are very jugged
and ragged in appearance. The low
country adjacent to the Cevennes is
extremely flatand uninteresting, there
being nothing but miles and miles OF
vineyards.
All over the South of France the
vine is cultivated and is the chief in
dustry. The rearing of silk worms
also forms considerable part of the
industry in the South. Every body
who has any money also has vine.
yards. 1t is undoubtedly a paying
industry judging by the enormous
quantity of wine consumed annually
in France.
The houses are not prettily bull
and are all tiled with apeculiar dull
brown tile mixed with others of rec
and white. 1t gives the roofs th'
appearance of broken pottery. Their
are no villas near Montpelier, nearl.
all the houses being built in u g y
high fats, the one just like the other
There are also practically no garden
at the rear of the houses es-never an.
in front and ually tiny law
or green about the size of pocke
handkerchief, which all the familie
living in the same block use! Th
streets are very narrow and cobble'
at the same time filthy. All kind
of rubbish are allowed to lie about fo
days before being removed, but it j
nothing strange and corresponds wit
all the smaller towns in the Sout
and one might also say the people
Strange as it may seem, but never
theless obvious to the most casua
observer, the people, that is the peas
ants, are unclean in habits and al
pearance. The Ere N b, like th
Germans, are none too fond Of soa
and water. They seldom bathe an
are satisfied with one washing a da.
The drainage is very oldfashione
and very few houses have prope
sewerage. When you do find hous
with a bathroom and bath-tub it
generally used to keep buck e ts {
coal in or all the soiled clothes. {
course, these remarks apply to tt
peasant homes, the local fruit me-
chants or venders, but nine times OF
of ten you will find conditions sue
as above mentioned. 1t is only thoi
who have been to England or hay
been Influenced by English custom
and manners that attempt to improy
their prehistoric ways of living an
eating. The code of honor and mora