The large number of mosaics and inscriptions found in Die prove
conclusively that in Roman times it was a favourite place of residence;
and, so far as situation goes, it is not difficult to understand how
this should have been the case. But in the condition in which the town
found itself in the pitiless heat of August 1864, the only question for
an English visitor was whether he could live through the time it was
absolutely necessary to spend there. The poste arrived, as has been
said, an hour and a half after its time; and the sole occupant of the
coupe, who had lived on fruit and gooseberry syrup, and three penny
worth of sweet cake at Crest, since a seven-o'clock breakfast, had wiled
away the last hour by inventing choice bills of fare for the meditated
supper. When the lumbering vehicle stopped in the main street of Die,
which is here something under seven yards wide, an elderly woman stepped
out from the dim crowd, with an uncovered tallow candle in her hand, and
asked if there was anyone for the hotel. The unwonted 'yes' seemed to
create some surprise; but she led the way promptly to her hotel,
diplomatically meeting the rapid volley of questions respecting supper
with an unpromising silence, and the first sight of the house itself
dispelled for ever all hope.
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