Here is width and space, but no _trottoir_; and the
buildings are as incongruous as can well be imagined, whether as to
height, color, projection, or material. Most of them, and indeed most in
the city, are merely of lath and plaster, the timbers uncovered and
painted red or black, the plaster frequently coated with small grey
slates laid one over another, like the weather-tiles in Sussex. Their
general form is very tall and very narrow, which adds to the singularity
of their appearance; but mixed with these are others of white brick or
stone, and really handsome, or, it might be said, elegant. The contrast,
however, which they form only makes their neighbors look the more
shabby, while they themselves derive from the association an air of
meanness. The merchants usually meet upon a small open plot, situated
opposite to the quay, inclosed with palisades and fronted with trees.
This is their exchange in fine weather; but adjoining is a handsome
building, called _La Bourse a couvert_, or _Le Consulte_, to which
recourse is always had in case of rain.
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