Mr Addison.
G. Kneller
Mr. POPE's Literary Correspondence.
VOLUME the FOURTH.
With LETTERS, &c.
To,
and
From,
Mr. ADDISON.
Bishop ATTERBURY.
Bishop BARLOW.
Bishop FLEETWOOD.
Bishop SMALRIDGE.
Sir BERKELEY LUCY.
King HENRY VIII. to ANNE BOLEYN.
To which are added, MUSCOVIAN LETTERS.
LONDON:
Printed for E. CURLL, at
Pope
's-
Head,
in
Rose-Street, Covent-Garden,
M.DCC.XXXVI.
TO THE
SIFTERS.
A Pack of Wretches so mean, that they went on so silly an Errand, as to
sift Mr.
CURLL, as Mr.
Pope
in his Narrative informs the Public.
S INCE the Publication of the THIRD
Volume
of our
Literary Correspondence,
I have not been pestered with the Impertinence of
Brocade,
or
Tim. Lancet,
or any of your
Gang.
However, to redeem your Character, in some Measure, from its present Contempt, I will send ye on a much more reputable Embassy than Mr.
Pope
has done, in constituting ye his Examiners, (an Employ only fit for that Chin-dropping, driveling, cowardly Scribler of the BASTARD, S*****) by making a faithful Report to the Public of the Contents of this FOURTH
Volume.
YE are first to observe, that as the
Jesuits
deduce their Original from St. IGNATIUS LOYALA, in like Manner, is Mr. POPE the Founder of this Scheme of
Literary Correspondence.
YE are next to assure all Persons, who are so kind as to give you Audience, that to prevent the least Suspicion of Spuriosity, they may see every Letter I have ever printed of Mr.
Pope
's, in his
Own Hand-Writing,
not copied either from
Twickenham,
or,
Dover-Street
MSS. as Mr.
Minshul
the late Librarian will, in Justice to me, assert.
This Volume opens, with the Promised Collection of
Historical Letters,
from the
Revolution,
1688, to the Year, 1730.
Next follow Original Letters of Bishop
Barlow,
Bishop
Fleetwood,
Bishop
Atterbury,
his Character by Bishop
Smalridge,
and a Defence of the
Newtonian
Philosophy, by Mr. Secretary
Addison;
all which will subsist by their own Immortal Merit.
A
Love-Scene
from
Rome
succeeds, being the Original Letters which passed between King HENRY VIII. and
Anne Boleyn,
with some Notes thereon; Addressed to Mr.
Pope.
Some of his own Pieces bring up the Rear, and the
Lettres Moscovites,
compleat this Volume.
E. CURLL.
POSTSCRIPT.
Pray, with my
Respects
to Mr. POPE, tell him I am sorry that
Ill Health, Ill Humour, Ill Weather, and the Want of a Coach,
should all conspire to prevent his paying that Visit to LUCRETIA,
A noted Cast-off-Punk, of his pious
Saint-John.
Mrs.
Griffith,
alias
Butler,
alias
Lucretia Lindo,
who has several Letters of Mr.
Pope
's not worth Printing.
which she lately expected from Him; and, tho' she will not by any Means admit of the Term
Affectionate,
he may subscribe Himself her
humble
Servant.
The Lady is eloped from her last Lodging, but
He
may hear of his
Deary
at the
Old Place.
She hopes the Picture will please, now the Painter has re-touched it.
'Tis strange! that still our Bard the
Truth
will shun,
For
Wrong
is
Wrong,
where-ever it be done.
Adv.
from
Hor.
Historical Letters.
LETTER I.
June 30. 1688.
SIR,
YOU see the Upshot of the
Information
against the BISHOPS; his Majesty was in the Camp at
Hounslow,
the Soldiers huzza'd at the News, as loudly as the Mob at
Westminster-Hall.
Mob! did I say? It was a Multitude of Nobility, Gentry and Citizens of the best Note. The King was terribly chagrin'd; he ask'd what Noise was that? They told him, Nothing, but the Soldiers rejoicing at the Acquittal of the Bishops. Do you call that Nothing, says he?
Lord Chief Justice.
Wright
is an excellent Chief; the Most Christian King might find him a very useful Magistrate in
Languedoc,
at this Time. The Command of a Province in
Turkey
would admirably suit his Genius. The Forms of the Law of
England
were a great Restraint upon his Zeal; the Spirit of Tyranny in his Office, and Adulation towards his Prince (which generally go together) had such an Ascendant over him, that he broke thro' all Decency; he could not converse with Mr. Justice
Powell
upon the Points of Law, without mal-treating him: He has such an Aversion to poor Sir
B. Shower,
and had at the same Time so little Command of his Temper, that he insulted him, tho' he was for the Prosecution. This arbitrary Behaviour of great Magistrates in silencing Counsel, whose Faces they do not like, is of greater Consequence to the Public than People generally seem to apprehend: But a fitter Opportunity of treating the Man ill could hardly be chosen; for the Generality of the Audience were prejudic'd against him, on Account of the Service he was engaged in, and were therefore prepared to approve of all the ill Usage that could be offer'd to him: On the other hand, the King had little Occasion for him, for the Sollicitor-General was a Minion, as scurrilous as
Billingsgate,
as prostitute and impudent as
Drury-Lane.
When this Tryal is printed, I hope the odious Colours that the principal Characters will appear in, both at the Bar and on the Bench, will have a good Effect on the Gentlemen of the Profession for the growing Generation, as young
Spartans
were taught to hate Drunkenness by seeing the odious Effects of it upon their Slaves. If Judges and Statesmen would only examine themselves by the Faults of those who stand condemned in History, and ask Questions like these; Am I
Hubert de Burgo?
Am I
Tresilian?
Am I
Sejanus?
Am I
Villers?
Am I guilty of the Crime for which this Man's Memory is justly hated? I say, were Men thus to reflect, they would forget the Tip-Staves, the Trainbearer and Collar of
SS.
the Coronet and the Blue Ribbon: They would not bear being branded Villains to Posterity; and if true Philanthropy and Patriotism could not enter into every Breast, there would at least be an Appearance of them, Men would learn to be affable, benign, Lovers of Justice, or to seem so; there would be that Resemblance of the Virtues, that Mankind would be deceived and satisfied. Don't tell me of a Man's Eminence in his Profession, or the high Post he fills in the State; his Learning and Knowledge of the World have not enlarged his Mind; he is still a little poor Wretch, if he does not remember what a small Part he makes among the Current of Ages. He looks about him, and fancies the present Scene the only one of great Importance, that Time has produc'd; and, three to one, esteems himself the most considerable Character exhibited in it. Where was this Man bred? Is he ignorant what a Racket the School-Boys make with
Alexander,
and
Caesar,
and
Sylla;
with
Cato
and
Brutus,
and
Aristides?
But enough of this. I suppose we shall have the Tryal printed in a Month: In the mean while I send you Part of what Mr.
Somers
said; he was Junior Counsel for the Bishops; he was very brief, is much applauded for that little he did say, but I suppose will not suddenly be made a Judge, nor King's Counsel neither. The Heat of Mens Minds at the Trial was violent on all Sides.
The Sollicitor-General.
Williams
did not scruple to say, that if the Bishops were commanded to do any Thing against their Consciences, they should have acquiesced till the Meeting of the Parliament, they should not have petitioned. And this vile immodest Assertion was received with sufficient Indecency: People hiss'd at him for that and for something else in his Speech, as you would at a very bad Play. Mr. Justice
Powell
's Zeal, on the other Side, was so eager to settle the Point, that the Petition was no Libel, that he did not stick to affirm to the Jury, that it could not be a Libel, unless it were false: But this, I fear, is false Doctrine in our Law, tho' 'tis to be wish'd it were true: I only mention it, to shew you what a Ferment the World is in. Upon the Whole, 'tis thought by some of the wisest and most loyal People in the Kingdom, that we have but a dismal Prospect before us. 'Tis evident, that if the Grand Monarch don't effectually interpose and pinch the
Dutch,
the Prince of
Orange
will speedily invade the Kingdom. If he should succeed, what loyal Breast can bear to think the Consequences? Will he come here, like a Hero in Romance, only to mind other Peoples Business, and then be gone again? I tremble to reflect what is to become of sacred Majesty, to recollect the shocking Fates of imprison'd
English
Kings, our
Edward, Richard,
and the Royal Martyr, his Adage was verified in them all. On the other hand, what if the Prince should be prevented, or be defeated? What Protestant Soul is not shaken, in the midst of all its Loyalty, to think of the Wonders that may be wrought both in Religion and Liberty, by the Gentlemen at
Hounslow.
'Tis true, the Majority of them are Protestants at present, and many of their Officers are Men of Quality and Fortune (I am sorry, for the King's sake, I can only say Majority) but 'tis as true, that if there be not Papists and Soliders of Fortune enough in
England,
there are in
Scotland
and
Ireland,
to shift out the Protestants and Men of Worth; and then if the Cause of the Bishops or of
Magdalen-College
should be brought before them, they will do Business in a Stile yet more concise than
Wright
and
Allybone,
or
Jefferies
and the Bishop of
Chester
can pretend to. But should their Establishment be in Consequence of an Invasion and of a Victory obtain'd against the Invader, then may we expect to see a standing Army made Part of the Constitution. Whenever that happens, Parliaments can't be long-liv'd. The Soldier will never starve while the Housholder has any Thing to eat. How happy should we be, if the King would content himself with 100 or 1000 Masses a-Day for the Good of his own Soul, and permit his good Subjects to go to the Devil, if they liked: But we are come to this miserable Option,
The King or the People must be ruin'd;
and the Wonder is,
The King himself makes the
Dilemma. I forgot to tell you, that Serjeant
Pemberton
in his Argument took Occasion to mention Popery, and boldly said,
'twas the very worst of all Religions.
LETTER II.
Sept. 6. 1688.
I Agree with you, that Kings might benefit by reading History with Attention, as much as their Ministers and Judges, perhaps they might much more, as the Sphere they move in is higher. I wish ours had observ'd in the Life of his Grandfather
Henry
IV. of
France,
Father of Queen
Henrietta-Maria,
Wise of King
Charles
I.
Henry
the Great, or
Davila
's History of the
Holy League,
that the wisest Hugonot in
France
advis'd the King to turn Papist, or give up all Thoughts of the Crown: The Parallel is natural. The very Palace of
Whitehall,
his Father's Statue at
Charing-Cross,
ought to be effectual Memento's of the Rage of a jealous People, who fear at once for Religion and Property. If once our zealous
London
Herd break loose, not all the Magic in the
Roman
Missal will be able to charm them, not all the Thunder in the
Vatican
to frighten them: And 'tis believed,
Pope
Innocent
XI.
that
Jupiter
would be a pleased Spectator of the Broil.
The military Gentlemen are the only useful Folks on such Emergencies, and they will hardly be persuaded to destroy their own Religion. There must be a Reform first, and a Recruit from
Scotland
and
Ireland.
Indeed if a King of
England
were only to desire to enslave his People, an Army would make the Game sure: No Matter how, or on what Occasion they came together, they naturally resolve to continue together; for that is their very Life and Existence: Like Bodies in the animal World, they endeavour their own Preservation, and that is by the Destruction of the Rights of Mankind; Food as proper for them, as Grass for Oxen; having neither Liberty nor Property themselves, they readily concur to destroy them in others; that is only levelling; but it ends better still for them; for when they have enslaved the People, they are rewarded with the easiest Chains, the uppermost Rank among Slaves, and often find out their own Strength, and please themselves in chopping and changing their Masters. I can't be particular on a sudden; but I believe
Rome
and
Constantinople
afford forty or fifty Instances to this Purpose.
But we have at present, Religion mixed with our Politics, and that puts us out of all Danger; for who doubts the Religion of an Army? Perhaps every one does not apprehend it; but seriously, Armies sometimes have Religion. When
Henry
III. of
France
was murder'd in his Camp, his great Successor lost two Thirds of the Army in a Month, by Desertion, because of his Difference in Religion, tho' they all ador'd him for many Royal Virtues. Who denies Religion, such as it was, to our
British
Armies of Covenanters? There was indeed one Army of
Roman
Catholicks in the last War in
Ireland,
who prefer'd their Loyalty to one of the Tenets of their Religion: The Pope's Nuncio excommunicated the Earl of
Clanrickard
and his Adherents for continuing steady in their Allegiance to King
Charles;
and the Earl of
Clanrickard,
at the Head of his Army, excommunicated the Pope's Nuncio by Beat of Drum. But as to our own Army, let its Religion be what it will, I wish the King had Impressions somewhat weaker than he has of Church-of
-England
-Loyalty. Some overweening Doctors have persuaded him, that we are all Saints, but when we are brought to a severe Test, the most of us will be found mere frail Sinners. I wish those divine Gentlemen had mixed a moderate Proportion of human Prudence with their politic Theology, that Principles might not be strain'd till they break. His Confessors should consider what an unkingly, an ungenerous Conclusion they inculcate.
The Principles of the Church of
England
oblige
her Sons to endure every Thing, therefore we will bruise them with a Rod of Iron.
Are such Men fit to rule Kingdoms? are they sit to govern a Grammar-School?
LETTER III.
Octob. 26. 1688.
THE too near Neighbourhood of
Holland
has thrown our Administration into a violent Ague; the hot Fit and the cold quickly succeed each other. Publick Justice is in a fluctuating Condition, it depends on the Winds and Weather, like the Rate of Insurance of Ships on their Voyages. By the Proceedings of the High-Commission-Court, we know which Way the Wind blows; 'tis a mere Barometer, with this Difference from the common Experiment with
Mercury,
that the Credit and Power of that Court rise high with a Westerly Wind or a Storm; an Easterly Gale sinks them down to nothing.
An old Gentleman, a Friend of mine, determin'd to mount in Armour for his Majesty, when first he heard of this Invasion; he has an inveterate Enmity to the Whigs, for cutting down his Timber in the Days of Sequestration: But indeed this last low, little Shuffling, between Grace and Oppression, has brought him to have a very mean Opinion of the Royal Candour and Integrity, as well as of the Wisdom and Honesty of the Counsellors: And now my Friend is resolved to wait the Event of Affairs in a whole Skin; an Alteration which I strongly suspect to have happen'd to many! and even to some of the military People. The Instability of our Councils is a sure Symptom of a languishing Cause: A Soul by Turns so temerarious and pusillanimous, as on every little Opportunity to fly out into Acts of Wrong, and on every little Check shamefully to cry,
Peccavi:
Such a soul is only fit to animate the worst of Tyrants. I think 'twas
Caligula
that would run and hide under the Bed when it thunder'd, but could piss on the Statues of the Gods when he thought the Danger was over; and it was he too, that wish'd the People of
Rome
had but one Neck, that he might destroy them at a Stroke. Surely the Ministers design to pervert People from their Loyalty; they could never else give such manifest Occasion for Defection. A Verbose
Frenchman
told the Cardinal
de Richlieu,
that God might rest the Government of the whole World on the Cardinal's Wisdom: If this Compliment were true, our Country might afford a tolerable Contrast; for we have got Statesmen equal to the Task, if the Almighty in his Wrath should resolve to destroy the World by the Pravity of human Councils. But he that brings Good out of Evil, is yet able to save us.
LETTER IV.
Novemb. 2. 1688.
I Don't wonder you should suspect me to be almost a Whig, for 'tis most certain, I can't persuade myself to draw a Sword to destroy my Religion and Liberty: And yet I wish a Temper could be found to save both Prince and People. It is true, that there are Dangers to be apprehended from the Invader, and that must be the Case let who will draw the Sword for us. I also agree with you, that there is no natural Connection between Popery and Slavery; that the Design of imposing both at once on this Nation is only accidental; that a Protestant Prince may forge Chains for his People as well as a Popish one; that Protestant
Danes
are Slaves, and Popish
Switzers
Freemen: But thus stands our particular Case, Our Prince has avow'd a Design to govern without Law; the Invader disclaims that odious Project: We are certain of our Ruin on the one Hand, we have some reasonable Hopes of escaping on the other.
It would not be easy for the Invader immediately to become absolute: That would depend upon a Standing-Army. The Power he brings won't be sufficient to effect his principal Enterprize without a large Concurrence of
Englishmen;
and the Officers will be generally People of Families who will hardly on a sudden concur with Foreigners to enslave themselves: And I think the Prince's Hands will be too full of Enemies both at home and abroad, to hazard the Loss of his new Friends as soon as he has got them, and to provoke the same People who invited him in, to turn him out again. No Ministers that he can employ will suddenly give such Advice. Even Ministers don't love Standing-Armies; don't desire to see their Prince above Law, unless they have had time enough to commit Crimes that make them afraid of Law, and glad of the Refuge of an arbitrary Protection: they approve of, and advance an absolute Power to protect them, only in Proportion to their own Necessities. A Man who has acquir'd a good Fortune, naturally wishes to secure his Property in it, and to transmit that Property safe to his Posterity: Nothing but the Terrors that attend on Guilt can alter that Desire, and they indeed can alter it. If he knows that his injur'd Country has had Cause to demand Vengeance upon him, he verifies the Devil's Observation,
All that a Man hath will he give for his Life.
LETTER V.
Decemb. 5. 1688.
WE have it from the best Authority, that,
When a Man's Works please the Lord, he maketh his Enemies to be at Peace with him.
Since this is so, 'tis plain the King's Works have not pleased the Lord; for his Servants, his intimate Confidants, his very Children have deserted him. From the Highest to the Lowest! the Prince and Princess of
Denmark,
the Lord
Churchill,
the Magistrates, the very Footmen and common Soldiers shift for themselves, and avoid his ruin'd Fortune.
The Royal Sovereign's sinking; the very Rats, as by Instinct, have quit it.
The Prince of
Orange
must devise a Motto more expressive of Success, than,
Veni, Vidi, Vici;
for he has got a potent Kingdom without striking a Stroke. And yet a Thousand of these Instances can't make weak Princes wise. Had ours been less happy on the first Day of his Reign, he might perhaps have escaped his Errors and Misfortunes. His Purse was full, his People rich, his Revenue so large that it hardly requir'd an Addition to maintain a great Army: His Nobility and Gentry, his Clergy and Universities, his Counties and Boroughs, professed their Loyalty in the most affectonate Terms; and yet in less than four Years time to use them all so ill, that Affection or Loyalty to him should hardly be found in the whole Nation! 'Tis prodigious!
H—,
who is particularly pleased with this Turn of Affairs, says that
Waller
prophesied it in his Poem on the Marriage of the Prince and Princess of
Orange,
he points out these Lines for that Purpose.
Ten thousand Thanks the Nation owes
To him who does protect us all;
For while he thus his Niece bestows,
About our Isle he builds a Wall,
Stronger than that which
Athens
had,
By th'Oracle's Advice, of Wood:
Had theirs been such as
Charles
has made,
Their mighty State till now had stood.
But if
Waller
prophesied, he prophesied unwittingly, like
Caiaphas
the High Priest, or perhaps like
Virgil
in his
Pollio,
for he was too devoted to the Court, and had too little Pain for his Country, to dream of what has happen'd at this Day.
LETTER VI.
Decemb. 13. 1688.
I Don't suppose that the Country is in perfect Tranquillity: Our Tumults in Town certainly equal those at
Constantinople
when they depose their Sultans. I should not like, at present, to be mistaken for a Papist, much less for a Jesuit in the Streets of
London.
We must never more pretend to be a civilized People, nor call the
Asiaticks,
nor
Africans,
Barbarous. 'Tis a Reproach to the Nation, that no Method is found to restrain the Licence of the raging Multitude. Not content with hunting the Priests and Friars, and demolishing their Popish Countrymen, they have violated the Law of Nations, the Character of Ambassadors has not been sacred to them.
If one could be a mere Spectator of their Pranks, (without any Concern for the Reputation of our Country) they have been exhibiting a Farce to us, ridiculous enough in Conscience; they have by Mistake fallen upon their best Friend the
Spanish
Ambassador, as Sir
Martin Marr-all
often does upon his trusty Servant
Warner.
They little know how devoted the
Don
is to their Party. There are also great Numbers among them who rise to pillage, and would be glad to plunder the Rich of both Parties.
It is wonderful, that those who are most deeply concerned, were the last in the Kingdom to foresee these Calamities. Surely Men are infatuated on these Occasions. We hardly find in History a weak Prince who foresees his own Ruin a Month beforehand: Nay, they are generally more secure near the
Crisis
of their Fate than ever they were before, as if
Solomon
's Observation were constantly to be verified,
Pride cometh before Destruction, and an haughty Spirit before a Fall.
LETTER VII.
February 9th, 1688-9.
JActa est Alea,
We have drawn the Sword and thrown away the Scabbard: We have put it out of our Power to retreat. Some thought that in Consequence of laying aside the King, the Birth of the Young Gentleman would naturally have been the next Enquiry; and indeed if he had been left in the Kingdom, it could not easily have been avoided. But I suppose his Friends thought the Air of
London
bad for his Health; for if you look into the Bills of Mortality, you will find, that abundance of Children drop off under two Years of Age. Now since he is gone, if the late King's Abdication (I think that is the Word) be right, it will be also right to reject the Youth tho' his Birth should be ever so Royal; for will not he have Education and
The Words in the Vote of Abdication.
Advice from Priests and Jesuits, and other wicked Persons of the Church of Rome?
Not that the History of the Warming-Pan is wholly to be lost; Men of different Complexions are capable of different Reasonings and different Faiths. One Man may renounce him for being the Son of King
James,
and another for not being so.
This new Word Abdicate has occasioned a great Display of Learning on the Debate of the Vote. It seems our own Law (which says,
the King can do no Wrong
) was too modest to supply a Word proper for the present Purpose, so that the Civilians were so kind as to lend us this Term of Art. I believe I shall be able to send you the whole Debate in a little Time; I shall therefore for the present only obviate a Mistake, which some Gentlemen have fallen into; as if by the Word, Abdicate, the King's Flight were only intended. It would have been too severe to deprive him of his Crown for flying, when it was not safe for him to stay: And I am well informed that it stands in the Vote neither to mean his Flight, nor any express Declaration of his; but it will be best understood by comparing Mr.
Somers
's Explanation of it with the Vote itself.
A Man,
says he,
may Abdicate a Thing when he does an Act which is inconsistent with the retaining it, tho' there be not an express Renunciation.
Calvin
's Lexic: Juridic: (Generum Abdicat, qui sponsam Repudiat) he that divorces his Wife, abdicates his Son-in-Law.
I transcribe the Vote for you, lest you should not have it by you.
Resolved, That King
James
the Second, having endeavoured to subvert the Constitution of the Kingdom, by breaking the Original Contract between King and People; and by the Advice of Jesuits and other wicked Persons having violated the fundamental Law, and withdrawn himself
out of the Kingdom, hath Abdicated the Government, and that the Throne is thereby Vacant.
The other Vote for filling the Throne (which sets the Prince on it as well as the Princess, the executive Power to be in him) is something like
Harry
the Seventh's Accession, or rather stronger and more explicite; for his Pretensions to an Hereditary Right were well known, but he thought it prudent to leave the Matter complicated.
There is nothing new in this whole Transaction, nor more wonderful than what has happened heretofore in many other Kingdoms. On such violent Concussions new Families have sometimes sprung up, and sometimes Democracies. Great Earthquakes change the Courses of Rivers, level Mountains and raise the Vallies.
LETTER VIII.
THey tell us Wonders here of the
English
Colony of
Londonderry
in
Ireland,
they fight and strave like the ancient
Saguntines.
They deserve our early Care of them; for if we have done right, I am sure they cannot be in the Wrong: Their Grievances and their Dangers were much more importunate than our own. I thought every Thing degenerated which was carried into that Country: It seems I am mistaken; or perhaps Oppression, which makes a wise Man Mad, can also make a Coward Valiant. I fear we are generally too partial to our own Home, and injuriously so with Regard to our Neighbours. A true-bred
English
Squire believes his Countrymen to be more powerful, more valiant, more wealthy, more numerous, more polite, more learned, more wise, not ouly than any other Nation, but than all the Nations on the Face of the Earth put together: If we could look on other Countries with an impartial Eye, we might see, that they have Numbers of People, and Sources of Wealth, and that they can either think or fight as well as ourselves. The old Aldermen in all our Country-Boroughs have learned from
Baker
's Chronicle the Successes of our
Edwards
and our
Henries
against
France:
They also know enough of our Story to tell us that
Scotland
was not with us in those Days, and that
Ireland
was of no Benefit to us; but they forget, that the best Provinces of modern
France
were then under Princes of their own, mortal Enemies to that Crown; they do not perceive the intestine Disorders which made Way for the
English
Arms; Nor how easy it was for a Neighbouring Prince who had their Royal Blood in his Veins to make Parties among a People of his own Religion, and how impossible that Piece of Policy has been rendered by the Reformation: Modern
France
has at least twenty Millions of People, and the whole
British
Empire not half that Number. The like Alteration has been produced in
Spain,
long since our Black Prince made a Figure on that Part of the Continent. That Country, of many Kingdoms, is become one, So that tho our ancient Kings in the Holy War may have been as great and powerful as any of their Neighbours; yet we have Reason to suspect, that not even the Access of
Scotland
under the same Allegiance with us, nor the Growth of
Ireland
in People, in Civility, and in Wealth, have been able to make us keep Pace with the vast Increase of Power in the Crowns of
France
and
Spain
since the Times I mentioned. And Heaven only knows what
Scotland
will do now
If we expect to be of Importance in
Europe,
ought we not to make a Coalition with those who are both of our own Blood and our own Religion, and not force them by Hardships into a Spirit of Faction?
Cromwell
in one of his Parliaments rejected many Boroughs, and increased the Number of Representatives for Counties: I have been told the late Lord
Clarendon
used to say,
That this was an Amendment to be wished for in better
TIMES.
Oliver
brought the Representatives of the Three Kingdoms to sit in one Parliament: Is not this also an Alteration to be wished for at all Times? It is a Proposition which indeed ought to be an Axiom in our Politicks, that these Kingdoms can never make a great and happy Empire, whilst the constituent Parts envy the Prosperity of each other, whilst the Stronger oppresses the Weaker, and the Weaker is tempted to wish for an Opportunity to chuse a milder Lord, or even to set up for an Independency; which we must never think a Thing impossible, because in the last Century our Great-Grandfathers saw Seven little Districts break loose from the other Ten (the whole being but a small Part of a mighty Empire) and set up for themselves with such swift Success, as in the same Generation to beat their old Soveraign off the Ocean; and in the present Century have not our Fathers seen the Revolt of
Portugal
from the same extended Empire, tho
Portugal
is a Country, neither spacious, populous, nor warlike; not defended from
Spain
by the Dangers of boisterous Seas, nor by the Difficulties of
Alps
or
Appenines.
The People of
Ireland
cannot be supposed ignorant of their own Story; and indeed it is hard to find out, what has made them Slaves? or to be considered as a conquered People? especially if it be true, that at least Nine Tenths of the Land-Estate in that Kingdom is at present in the conquerors Hands; and that this present War will probably make the like Division of the other Tenth, and this by the Aid and Arms of the
English
Protestants of
Ireland.
Do
Englishmen
become Slaves by Conquering? These are Restrained Provincial-Politicks. Let us shew that a limited Monarchy can increase and thrive as well as an absolute one. Let us only rival Foreigners; but let us not depress one Country, Province, or Member of our own Empire, in Hopes to raise another. I suppose if the Common-Council of
London
could make Laws for all
England,
we should have all the Manufactures of all the different Cities and Counties restrained to the Freemen of
London
only, and only to be carried on within the Sound of
Bow-bell: Norwich
or
Taunton
might probably take as great a Liking to the Woollen Manufacture, and
Birmingham
to the Monopoly of Hard-Ware. What Pity it is that such hopeful Schemes are not carried into Execution! How rich would they render the Nation! How powerful the Prince in Proportion to the other Kings of
Europe!
How securely we should engross our Manufactures without any Danger of being under-sold by our Neighbours! Tho' we have no Occasion to extend the Limits of the
British
Empire, yet, we should pursue such Maxims as will make it flourish, for Nature has done her Part for us. Our Situation tells us that we have no Business on the Continent; that if
France
or
Spain
should make a Present to us of a Dozen strong Towns in
Flanders,
they would not be worth the Keeping, and we should only have Occasion to resolve into what Hands to put them. The common Experience of every Trader will tell us, that our Manufactures must be made cheap, if we would sell cheap; and that if our Neighbours can under-sell us, we may leave off Trade. We ought always to remember that the Woollen Manufacture came from
Flanders,
and the Silk from
France,
to
England,
and both by the Means of Oppression, no Matter whether Religious or Political (tho I think
Grotius
insists that the
Netherlands
fought for Liberty, not for Religion) it should therefore be our Care, that, in guarding against a Rival in Trade, we do not mistake our Mark; and that when we suppress the
Irish
whose whole Profits center with us, and add to our Power, we do not advance the
French,
and strengthen the Hands of our most dangerous, our Hereditary Enemy. It would indeed be a grateful Return for the Present which they have wisely made us within these last twenty Years of a large Numbers of their industrious Artizans; but, I believe, the most scrupulous
English
Casuist will be content to remain in their Debt on this Account.
I shall not at present undertake to shew the Probability that, letting
Ireland
into a full Trade and into an Union too, would inrich and aggrandize this Kingdom: I fear you would believe I had taken too many Paradoxes on my Hands at once; but if I find you can digest Part of the Doctrines already advanced, I shall take another Opportunity to shew that the true Scheme of National Trade is, to disperse the Multitude of Working-Hands thro the cheapest Provinces, and that then you will have
Gold as Brass, and Silver as Stones in the Streets
of your Metropolis. I would attempt to prove, that nothing but a flourishing Trade, supported by wise Treaties, brought
Jerusalem
to that happy Condition in the Days of
Solomon:
He raised great but not heavy Taxes, for his Wisdom had brought such a Balance of Trade to his Kingdom, that his People were well able to bear them; they never murmured at them till they got a weak Man for their King, who expected to reap what he had not sown; and I do not read (tho
Jerusalem
was the Seat of Empire, and
Solomon
was of the Tribe of
Judah
) that there was any Difference made to the Prejudice of the Commerce of the rest of the Tribes. I could wish to give you a Sketch of the
British
Isles united in one Interest and one Parliament, then might we hope for the Dominion of all the Isles of the Bay of
Mexico
and of the Ocean. A Dominion more open for us to acquire, and more easy to retain, than any the most inconsiderable Part of the Continent of
Europe.
There is one Thing to be lamented in our Management of Foreign Acquisitions. We get an uselels Access of Land, at a great Expence of our People. We hardly ever make a new Subject; we do not naturalize and conciliate the Minds of the Natives where we come. And we have been in all Ages in the same Temper: We were near five hundred Years reducing
Ireland:
We sent Soldiers thither, and gave them Land: They did not, indeed, settle methodically in great Numbers and make populous Colonies; but they built Castles every where in the Country; made Alliances with the Natives, and degenerated by thousands, so that the Task of reclaiming degenerate
English
was formerly more difficult than that of civilizing the Natives. And the Losses which
England
sustained from Age to Age by this bad Policy have been so large and so frequent, that perhaps it might be affirmed with Truth, that more
Englishmen
have from Time to Time been sent into
Ireland
than the present Number of its Inhabitants amount to. Had we sent regular Colonies thither, and transplanted good Numbers of their Natives (especially their Children) into the several Counties of
England,
we should soon have found it a profitable Undertaking. This was the Method of
Assyria
and
Rome
too, and now is only practiced by the
Turk:
He takes from
Christians
great Numbers of Children, and makes them the most bigotted
Musselmen:
They recruit his Armies, and indeed without this Policy, it were impossible he should have
Mahometan
Subjects: Such has been the Profusion of Blood in the
Turkish
Wars, and so numerous are the
Christians
within those Dominions.
I have sometimes thought it bad Oeconomy, that our
East-India
and
African
Companies do not by Degrees buy up and educate some hundreds of the Children of the Natives where their Settlements are, and breed them Christians and Soldiers from Father to Son. It is a fond Partiality to fancy they would have less Faith or less Courage than those who are sent from hence: I am persuaded they would have the Advantage in both Respects; they might easily know more Religion and less Vice than the People who generally take those Journies; would better endure the Climates; and as for Courage and Military Skill, these are chiefly to be acquired: The Nations have had and lost them in their Turns. The Proprietors in these Companies are more than Tenants for Life; their Stock goes to their Executors; and if the Companies Estate advances in Value, so does every Share of each Proprietor: This ought to encourage them to provide for the future. Nor would it be found a grievous Burthen on the common Stock to execute such a Scheme: Food being cheap, and but little Rayment necessary in all the Settlements, the Expence might be defrayed by the Labour of the Children, except the prime Cost of purchasing them.
The Earl of
Shaftesbury
is allowed to have been the great Wheel of Affairs, and has certainly contributed to bring about this Revolution as much as Queen
Maria D'Este
or King
William
the Third; but whether in the Spirit of
Rome
or
Geneva
is a nice Question. Perhaps he was in
utrumque paratus,
and (as cunning Gamesters practice) when he found he had made his Bets on the wrong Side, was wise enough to move off betimes. He now affects to be thought innocent of all the Blunders, and lawless Acts of Power in the last Reign; to have advised against them, but constantly to have been overruled by the
Italian
and Spiritual Counsels co-inciding with his Master's Bigottry.—
Credat Judaeus Apella.
Can he who bowed his Knee to
Baal,
who gave up his Redeemer for Idolatry to please his Prince, be supposed incapable of giving up his Country into the Bargain?
He stands at present under the Proscription of both Monarchs; but which is in
iest,
which in
earnest,
as News-Mongers say,
we must leave to Time to discover.
Our
Henry
the Seventh used to make a stalking Horse of Mother Church, and excommunicated his best Friends at St.
Paul
's-
Cross,
when by his Command they offered their Service to
Perkin Warbeck
on purpose to betray him. It is possible that the Earl may have precipitated his Master's Measures with a Design to bring about the Revolution; it is possible he may have on the contrary endeavoured to prevent the dangerous Steps which have been taken; but he can never be justifyed in either Light. He ought to have withdrawn from the Scene of Iniquity, and not to have acted one of the most considerable Parts in it. When Lord Chancellor
Finch
was commanded to put the great Seal to my Lord
Danby
's Pardon, he represented it as Illegal, and surrendered the Seal. This should be the Behaviour of all honest Men on the like Occasion. Nor had his Master (who was a Man of fine Understanding) the worse Opinion of his Chancellor.
Whatever Figure our Earl may happen to make hereafter; we should remember, that a good Judge of Life has made it a Precept of Wisdom to wonder at nothing.
Nil admirari prope res est una.
HOR.
And indeed human Nature is so fickle, Fortune so Sportive, and the World has already seen so much Variety; that if we are moderately read in History,
There is nothing can happen, to deserve our Admiration.
The Military Gentlemen have been under a Parliamentary Inspection. They have (as was very natural to them) brought upon us some of the crying Evils which afflicted the worst Part of the Reign of King
Charles
the 1
st.
and this in spite of the Bill of Rights.
We provide and pay for them all, but the Colonel robs the inferior Officer, the inferior Officer robs the common Soldier, and the common Soldier must of Course extort free Quarter upon the unarmed Countryman. They subtract the Soldier's Pay, and send him to demand Subsistence-Money from his Landlord. I suppose these People have got these pretty Notions in
Flander;
by conversing with out
German
Allies, this free-Quarter with a new Name, the very Bane of the Empire, and what must in Process of Time establish the Dominion of
France
over the greatest Part of
Germany.
Those Princes look on free Quarters as a more compendious Method of maintaining an Army than regular Payments; and instead of taking a Part of the Farmer's Wealth, they suffer him to be robbed of All.
The
French,
and even the
Turks,
tho' they waste an Enemy's Country with Fire and Sword, yet govern their Subjects with a milder Sway. Hence it is that the People who have first experienced the
German,
and afterwards either of the other two Soveraigns, seldom care to return to their old Allegiance. And yet the
Parliament
cannot see this. Tyranny has surely a great Mixture of Folly or Madness in its Composition.
There are some of our Colonels who rob an Officer under Colour of Cloathing him: They oblige him to take his Cloaths from whom and at what Rate they please; suppose at twenty Pounds what is worth twelve at most. As if there was any Difference between robbing a Man, and forcing him to buy at your own Price. The Officer thus plundered, naturally seeks to reimburse himself.—
Torva Leaena Lupum sequitur, Lupus ipse Capellam.
The King has broke one of the Colonels for it. And if one single Reason did not interpose, I could be content that a King of
England
were as Absolute as the Grand Signior over the Officers of his Army or Revenue. I am not afraid that he would be at a Loss for want of Colonels or Commissioners, Captains or Collectors. They would only be more tender of transgressing with an Halter about their Necks, than they are now, when the greatest Punishment that can befal them is, to be turned out of Employment. A Punishment which some of them may find it worth their While to undergo.
The Objection against such a Regulation is only this, that Officers who were to live under such Absolute Power would be apt to obey without Reserve; and that blind Obedience might become fatal to the Liberties of their Country. Since then the Crown is not to be trusted with doing summary Justice, I think it would be well if the Parliament took it into their own Hands; and had a standing Committee for that Purpose, in which no Officer should sit.
It were to be wished that every Field-Officer and Captain too had a better Revenue in Land than the annual Value of his Commission; and even then, I would exclude him from Parliament and Parliamentary Elections, because he should not have it in his Power to burthen the Subjects to fill his own Pockets. But we have many Soldiers of Fortune in great Posts, who take large Strides to raise Families at once. What Wonder then to see a Country pillaged by Free-Quarter? A Regiment cheated of its Cloathing? or fraudulent Bargains driven for Bread or Forage? when the Profit of a single Contract, may be greater than the Value of the Post that may be lost by it.
The publick Business (1694) has been at a Stand while we have been opening a new Scene, tracing the secret Methods which are sometimes pursued in procuring Bills to pass in Parliament. It seems the
East India
Company have been placing Sums in proper Hands. The Speaker and Mr.
Hungerford
are expelled, the Speaker's Bribe was one thousand Pounds, Mr.
Hungerford
's but poor thirty Guineas. Surely he thought, he was taking a Fee in
Westminster-Hall!
it is unhappy for us that such Instances are found in our Senate.
Venalis Populus, Venalis Curia Patrum,
was the State of
Rome
sinking into Slavery; it is a Symptom of a distempered Constitution, and threatens our Destruction, if we do not aid ourselves with brisk Remedies. It casts the severest Blemish on the Age we live in, that even a reasonable Bill shall meet with Rubs, and perhaps miscarry, if it do not purchase its Passage.
I believe it was never doubted, but the Corruption of Bribery alone, has always been sufficient to ruin any free People among whom it grew predominant; unless you will chuse to say, that it never came alone. It is attended with false Friendship, Breach of Faith, Perjury, neglect of the publick Interest, insatiable Avarice, publick Poverty, private Wealth, boundless Luxury, endless Extortion, Fraud in all Offices, Rapine and Oppression in all the Provinces. It is no Wonder in such a Situation that the People should wish for a Change of any Sort, for like a sick Person in grievous bodily Pain, they flatter themselves that any Alteration must happen for the better.
And yet to get rid of this Army of Monsters, I never can think it necessary to have Recourse to
Lycurgus
's Scheme, to banish Gold and Silver, and leave no better Money than Iron. This Expedient might suit a Tract of Land about the Size of one of our Counties, inhabited by ten or twenty thousand Families who lived upon their Labour and the Fruits of their own Soil; but the World is not thus divided at this Day. We could not set forth a
British
Fleet on such a Fund, to keep what we have got abroad, or even to maintain us in Possession of our Home.
We need only go to
Holland
to observe that a People may love Money very well, without having an Opportunity to sell Justice or their Country. There will always be found a sufficient Number of honest Men to serve the State, if you reduce the Value of the great Employments Ninety
per Cent,
from Thousands to Hundreds
per Ann.
A good Man will only desire to be indemnified as to the Expences of his Attendance (Moderate Expences I mean). Thus may the most considerable Offices be filled with the worthiest Patriots unrivalled by the Mercenaries. But instead of reducing great Employments to the Value of a competent Subsistence for the Possessors; we can shew a single Post, which half a Dozen People may enjoy at once, and every one of them make a Fortune by it.
The exorbitant Grants (1695/6) which have been made to some Favourites have justly roused the Spirit of the Commons of
England.
The Earl of
Portland
particularly has so far exceeded all Bounds of Modesty, that he has got little less than the Principality of
Wales,
and the Lands and Lordships that should support the Heir-Apparent of
England,
are given to this Lord. The House has this Day unanimously addressed against this Grant, and had a gracious Answer, that it should be resumed. They came into this Temper chiefly in Consequence of an incomparable Speech which Mr.
Price
the Lawyer made on the Occasion: It has that Eloquence and strong reasoning in it, which are worthy the Character of a Man of Learning and Understanding, and that bold Freedom which becomes an
English Patriot
in his Place in Parliament. When great Men obtain Grants like these, it is well they do not ask the Kingdom also. I send you an Extract of Mr.
Price
's Speech,
viz.
This Petition,
says he,
tho' subscribed only by a few Hands has the Approbation of many Thousands who are not influenced by their own Interest, but act for the Honour of the Crown and Welfare of the
British
Nation.
If I could conceive how the Glory and Grandeur of
England
is, or can be upheld by a poor landless Crown, and a miserable necessitous People, I might then be easily persuaded to believe, that his Majesty is well advised to grant away all the Revenues of the Crown; and that his Government will thereby be well secured, and his People best protected, when they have little or nothing left; but I am sure they are not
English,
but foreign Politicians, who can revere the King and yet hate his People The Kings of
England
always reign best, when they have the Affections of their Subjects of which they are secure when the People are sensible, the King is entirely in their Interest, and loves the
English
Soil as well as the People's Money.
I must needs confess that my Thoughts are troubled with strange Apprehensions of our deplorable State: We are in a Confederacy in War; and some of those Confederates our Enemies in Trade, tho' planted amongst us, some in the King's Council; some in the Army; and the Common Traders have possessed themselves of the Outskirts of this great City. We find some of them Naturalized and others made Denizens; In every Parliament we find Endeavours for a general Naturalization, and that warmly sollicited from Court.
We see our good Coin all gone, and our Confederates openly coining
Dutch
Money of a base Alloy for us. We see most Places of Power and Profit given to Foreigners. We see our Confederates in Conjunction with the
Scots
to ruin our
English
Trade. We see the Revenues of the Crown daily given away to one or other, who make Sale of them, and transmit their Estates elsewhere. We do not find any of them buy Lands or Estates amongst us; but what they can get from us they secure in their own Country. How can we hope for happy Days in
England,
when This great Lord, and the Other, Foreigners (tho' Naturalized) are in the
English
and also in the
Dutch
Councils? If these Strangers (tho' now Confederates) should be of different Interests (as most plainly they are in Point of Trade) to which Interest is it to be supposed those great Foreign Counsellors and Favourites would adhere? So that I foresee, that when we are reduced to extreme Poverty (as now we are very near it) we are to be supplanted by our Neighbours, and become a Colony to the
Dutch.
I shall make no severe Remarks on this great Man, for his Greatness makes us Little, and will make the Crown both poor and precarious; and when GOD shall please to send us a Prince of
Wales,
he may have such a Present of a Crown made him as a Pope did to King
John,
who was Sur-named
Sans-Terre,
and was by his Father, King
Henry
the second, made Lord of
Ireland:
Which Grant was confirmed by the Pope, who sent him a Crown of Peacock's Feathers, in Derision of his Power, and the Poverty of his Revenue.
I would have us to consider that we are
Englishmen,
and must (like good Patriots) stand by our Country, and not suffer it to become tributary to Strangers. We have rejoiced that we have beat out of this Kingdom Popery and Slavery, and do now with as great Joy entertain Socinianism and Poverty, and yet we see our Properties daily given away, and our Liberties must soon follow.
I desire Redress rather than Punishment; therefore I shall neither move for an Impeachment against this noble Lord, nor for the Banishment of Him; but shall only beg that he may have no Power over us, nor we any Dependance upon Him.
Then he concluded with a Motion for the Address.
March
24, 1698-9.
I remember it was always your Opinion and mine, that Liberty might be in Danger as much under a
Protestant
Prince as under a
Papist.
It seems the collective Wisdom of the Nation is of the same Judgment, for they have resolved to send the Red Coats to learn the Arts of Peace in all the Counties and Boroughs of the Kingdom. They make them in Effect free of all Corporations, and have resolved that seven thousand Men here, and twelve thousand in
Ireland
are a sufficient Land Force. The Courtiers had a large Field to expatiate in, concerning the embroiled Condition of
Europe
abroad (notwithstanding the new Peace,) and the dangerous extensive Disaffection at Home: But the Genius of
England
has prevailed. We are not now to be Slaves. His Majesty, under whose Auspices we have learned to mortgage the Kingdom, is graciously pleased to suffer us to see a Possibility of redeeming it. The
Dutch
Guards stuck much with Him, but they must also be gone. He is too wise a Prince not to know that the Casuistry upon the Titles of contending Pretenders to the Crown is but a Trifle in the Consideration of the Multitude; it surmounts their Theory. The true Ground and Reason of Loyalty or Disaffection in the Populace is nothing else but the Sense of their own present Happiness or Misery; and let who will reign, he can never have the Affections of a People whom he burthens with Taxes to pay for the Insurance of their own Slavery. A Prince perhaps may have his Option, whether he will govern a People by Force, or found his Authority upon their Affections: He has no Need of (and, I am much mistaken if he can have) Both.
The Courtiers have been very loud upon the Topick of our Obligation to the King, for the Benefits we have received from him, and in particular, for this last Act of Condescention: For my Part, it gives me the Spleen to hear such Stuff. Surely these Men would make us believe that we were born the Slaves of some Eastern Monarch, that we enjoy our Liberties by a Gift revocable at Pleasure, and that they are not our Birth-right and Inheritance. Men who advance Notions of this Tendency deserve the Gibbet equally with
Garnet
the Jesuit and
Oliver Cromwell;
as being equally Traitors to their Country.
The King indeed ran the Risque of conducting our Efforts for Liberty and Religion; we have succeeded, we have paid the Expence of the Undertaking, and raised him to the Throne for his Pains. What is more to be done? I hope I am a very good Protestant, but I am sure I never did design to truck away all other Rights of an
Englishman
for a Deliverance only from King
James
's Ecclesiastical Tyranny. Were our other Rights extinguished, our Religion would be also precarious;
Orthodox
with
Constantine,
and
Arian
with
Constantius.
Such a Deliverance would be Protestantism with a Witness. It would bring us under a very lively Description of biggotted Madness, which I shall not attempt to translate, but here transcribe to save you the Trouble of turning to it.
Jupiter, ingentes qui das, adimisque Dolores,
Mater ait Pueri menses jam quinque cubantis,
Frigida si Puerum Quartana reliquerit; illo
Manè Die, quo tu indicis jejunia, nudus
In Tiberi stabit. Casus Medicusve levârit
Aegrum in praecipiti, mater delira necabit
In gelidâ fixum Ripâ, febrimque reducet.
Quonam Malo mentem concussa? Timore Deorum.
We are at last (1701) come to the several Resolutions, which I send you inclosed, about setling the Succession to the Crown; a Point of the utmost importance to these Kingdoms, and of no small Moment even to the most considerable Powers in
Europe. France, Spain,
the
Empire
and
Holland
are most particularly attentive to this critical Step; for I believe it is by this Time well understood that the two late Kings were duped into the Measures of
France,
and had no Concern to preserve the Balance of Power in
Europe.
The Duchess of
Savoy
is as importunate to have her Birth-right considered at this Juncture, as the Duke's Minister was fulsome in his Compliment upon the Revolution; yet surely they must have then foreseen their Pretensions would be prejudiced by that grand Event. We have thrown the Popish Pedigrees out of the Question: You see we do not meddle with the Prince's Birth; if it could be proved supposititious, that would not remove our Difficulties: We insist on the Security of our Religion as well as our Laws; we have seen how weak the Bonds of Duty, of Promises and of Oaths are upon a Popish Prince, and therefore we cannot scruple to exclude a Multitude of the Descendants of King
Charles
the 1st, in Favour of his Sister's Children. It is indeed a Wonder that this Work was not begun and persected many Years ago, for the Occasion was little less than at present, except the Chance of the Duke of
Gloucester
's Life.
I fear you will observe some Cobweb-Nets, or Ropes of Sand in our Restrictions upon the Successors: We say he shall not go out of the Kingdom without Consent of Parliament. If he should not meet with Parliaments kind enough to consent
Gratis,
and his Inclinations be very strong for a Tour abroad, he may learn to buy Leave perhaps, once for all by getting the Clause repealed: And (which is worse!) Corruptions of all kinds are in their Effects very like Fornication; it frequently happens that Women
sin
the first Time without a Design to make a Practice of it; their Desires draw them in only (as they imagine) to gratify themselves
pro illâ vice;
but the like Appetite recurs on fresh Occasions; frequent Acts grow into a Habit; and the same Person who felt a quick Compunction for the first Fault, now thinks it a Fault no longer, and is insensible of Remorse and Shame. And indeed I think that Restriction a very idle one. Is it to be feared, that the Elector of
Hanover
(to put the Case stronger than that of the Dowager Duchess) could attempt to make his Electorate the Seat of the
British
Empire; could he think himself safe in the Possession of the Crown if he were to fall upon so ridiculous a Project? A Prince of Common-Sense has no Occasion for this Restriction; and if we had a Fool so absurd, it were no Matter what became of him. A brave, a wise, a good King may have Occasions to go abroad, highly beneficial in their Consequences to this Kingdom; and I think we may believe, without taking any Security for it, that
England
will continue the Seat of Empire till it falls under the Sway of a Soveraign who has another Dominion at least equal to it.
But that Article which seems of most Importance in Favour of
England
(and which would be truly valuable if it were possible duly to fulfil and obseve it) will be found either
unjust
or
impossible
in the Execution. It is that which provides—We shall not involve ourselves in the Quarrels or Defence of the Dominions on the Continent, which may belong to the Successor. With all due Loyalty to his Majesty and Deference to the Princess
Anne
and her Hopes of Issue; let us suppose an Elector of
Hanover
on the Throne of
Great-Britain,
and that he may have Occasion to quarrel for the Rights of these Kingdoms with any of his great Neighbours on the Continent; as suppose the
Swede,
the
Dane,
the
Pole,
the
Prussian,
the
Saxon,
or the
Austrian;
Will they take a Bull by the Horns? Will they attack him where he is strongest, and chuse to fit out Fleets to dispute it with
England
on the Seas, where they are certain to be worsted? Will they not rather with Fifty thousand Men come against his Ten thousand, and overwhelm
Brunswick
as a Reprizal on the King of
Great-Britain?
If this should at any Time be the Case, would it be generous, would it be just and honest to suffer it? Would not our Coolness on such an Occasion, tempt or provoke even a righteous Prince to make Treaties, not quite so much to our Advantage as they ought to be, for Fear of causing his innocent Dominion on the Continent to bear our Iniquities, to be the Scape-Goat of his Island-Empire?
I believe nobody can doubt, that the fine Webs of Politicks may be so intricately woven, and the Affairs of
Europe
so much embarassed, that private Gentlemen will prove but very indifferent Judges to determine this Question,
viz.
Whether it be only Knight-Errantry, or Necessary Justice in this Kingdom at such or such a Time to be at the Expence of protecting the Electorate? or to know what is the true Foundation of the Present Quarrel?
We should remember that notwithstanding all our Precautions on this Head, the Power of making War and Peace will still reside in the Crown. It is true the Right of giving Money is in the Commons, and they may refuse to provide for the Wantouness of Ambition. I shall not presume to call the Separation of these Powers,
of raising Armies
and
of raising Money,
a Solecism in our Constitution; nor say where I would have them reside, if to be reposed in one Constituent-part of the Legislature; but thus much I may observe (because
Charles
II. tho' an indolent Prince, gave us a flagrant Proof of it in the
Dutch
Fleet at
Chatham
) that if our King makes War without Money; not he, but we are to be the Sufferers, and shall then find this Truth,—
delirant Reges, plectuntur Achivi.
I must make one further Observation of an Hardship the Electorate might endure for the Sake of
Great-Britain.
Contrary to the Decisions of all the Schoolmen and Casuists, it is settled as a Principle in the Law of Nations by the Practice of modern Politicians and their Masters; that, if your Neighbour is too powerful, it is a just Cause of making War upon him. Now perhaps there is hardly at this Day a little Prince in all
Germany,
who would not exert himself in Defence of the Electorate as it stands alone: But for the Reason given, the Question would be widely different if the same Territory were only a small Part of the Dominions of an
English
King; they would then perhaps consider the Balance of Power in a new Light; and the more jealous our Neighbours were grown of the Conjunction, the more should we be concerned in Honour and common Sense to defend so near an Ally, and to supply the Want of all other Confederates.
I would not be understood on the whole to say, that
England
would be the happier for such an Access of Dominion on the Continent under the same Prince. I think quite otherwise; and heartily wish that we would, in Time, attempt the only Means to obviate all Difficulties. We might try to get it established by a Law in the Empire, and certainly make it Part of the Act of Succession here, that this Crown devolving on the Duke of
Brunswick,
his Duchy and Electorate should
co instante
divest out of him in Favour of some Protestant of his Family. I am not at all apprehensive of his rejecting the Crown on these Terms; but if they be not previously made a Condition of the Succession, it will be idle and unreasonable to expect a Compliment of that Importance afterwards. Now is our Time while we have in our own Hands a Value abundantly more than equivalent to give for it. It will be too late to make Bargains after we have made a Present of that Equivalent.
But perhaps the Mistakes of this Age may be cured by Design or Chance in some future Generation. A Prince may leave only Female Issue to inherit the Throne, and then the
German
Dominion would go to collateral Males, or it may be conquered: And in the then subsequent Generation this Kingdom will regret the Loss of it, as little as we now do that of
Bohemia
an hundred Years ago, and of better Countries on the Continent which formerly paid Obedience to our Kings, and which were but ill defended at the severe Expence of Deluges of
English
Blood and Treasure.
These remote Speculations will probably be Realities with our Grand-Children, they will be in earnest about them, and to their Care I leave them: For perhaps it is a general Happiness that many of us cannot have our Turns in the Disposal of the World. Tho' I might mean very well, and might fancy myself a Judge of Affairs, yet to the Cost of my Fellow-Creatures I might in the Event be found as miserable a Bungler as — or the Farmer in the Fable who obtained of
Jupiter
Leave to regulate the Weather within his own Grounds; but had not Knowledge enough of the secret Springs of Action in the vegetable World to balance the Powers committed to his Care: Heat and Cold, Moist and Dry were too many for him. The politick World, like the natural, is composed of
Discordia semina rerum;
and it requires great Penetration, successfully to observe their Operations.
LETTER IX.
LAST
Sunday
the great Soul of our Soveraign quitted its decayed Tenement. Had it been lodged in a Mansion firm as itself, the World would have quickly seen new Instances of its Vigour. He continued his usual Hunting till within four or five Days before his Death: His Enemies give out that he died of an Hurt received by a Fall from his Horse; the Horse is of a
Sorrel
Colour, and the
Jacobites
drink his Health devoutly, under that Denomination.
The following Satire is handed about:
Illustrious
Steed!
who should the
Zodiac
grace,
To thee the
Lyon
and the
Bull
give Place:
Blest be the Dam that fed Thee, blest the Earth
Which first receiv'd Thee, and first gave the Birth:
Did wrong'd
Hibernia,
to revenge her Slain,
Produce Thee; or, unhappy
Fenwick
's Strain,
Or
Glencoe
's barbarously butcher'd Clax?
Where'er Thou art, be Thou for ever blest,
And spend the Remnant of thy Days in Rest;
No servile use thy noble Limbs profane,
No Weight thy Back, no Curb thy Mouth restrain;
No more be Thou, no more Mankind a Slave,
But Both enjoy
that
Liberty you gave.
It is true, the King had a Fall, and broke his Collar Bone: But this was not the Cause of his Death. His Exit about this time was unavoidable, had he not fallen at all; his Lungs were emaciated and inflamed, and nothing but
Medea
's Kettle could have been of Service to him.
He has left us under the Conduct of a Woman, at the Beginning of a War, probably the most raging and extensive that
Europe
has felt within these hundred Years: And under the Protection of a Woman, about a Century ago, we happily sustained the most dangerous Shock that has been attempted to our Prejudice within these six hundred Years.
I wish the
Dutch
and
Germans
would make good their Frontiers, with the Assistance of the other Allies on the Continent, and that we might furnish our whole Quota in Value upon the Seas, where our most natural Strength lies, and where we shall, I doubt not, be more than an Overmatch for
France,
if our Friends behave as they ought to do upon
Terra Firma.
These would in Consequence leave us in full Possession of the Maritime Empire; for we being at the Pains of destroying the
French
Naval Force, would at the same time have the Satisfaction to see the
Dutch
Ships of War neglected, and go to Ruin.
But it is too probable we shall partake in the Glory or Shame of what is to be executed by Land; the Military Men, and the young Nobility, and Gentry, who desire to be so, will all make their strongest Interest to have a great Army, and to carry on this War upon the Plan of the last; and if we prove victorious, we (I mean the Nation in general) shall get Glory and Poverty by it, while a few great Officers, and Persons concerned in Cloathing,
&c.
make their Fortunes.
There is no need of the Spirit of Prophecy, to foretel that the Nation must in this Case be beggared, in Favour of
Holland,
and of those very Parts of
Flanders, France,
or
Germany,
which may become the Seat of War. This was our Case in the last
Irish
War; which, however, was unavoidable. We poured in more Money upon them than ever that Nation saw before, which is now coming back by the Sale of the Forfeitures. It was not indeed of very long Continuance, therefore we did not greatly feel it, till we added a
Flemish
Account to it; and then, with the Assistance also of
Dutch
Clippers of our Coin, we found ourselves almost in a Condition to shut up Shop. The
King
has left a motley Ministry; a Change is expected in Favour of the
Tories.
But you shall never find any in the Sincerity with which
I am, &c.
London,
March 10th, 1701.
LETTER X.
Feb. 15, 1703.
I AM persuaded you have great Satisfaction in the News of the
Queen
's Gift of the First Fruits and Tenths to the poor Clergy, as it is a strong Proof of her Zeal for our Established Religion. The
Roman
Emperors who persecuted Christianity before the Days of
Julian
the Apostate,
occiderunt Presbyteros;
but he, in Appearance more moderate, tho' in Truth wilier and more malicious than his Predecessors,
occidit Presbyterium.
He spoiled the Churchmen of their Means of Living, and by this Method had well nigh destroyed the Priesthood, Starving is doubtless as effectual a Form for Death to assume, as any other, and perhaps one of the most terrible Forms it can assume.
The
Queen
's Piety on this Occasion is the Contrast of
Julian
's Malice; there is nothing wanting to compleat the Merit of the Design, but to substitute the Word Restitution, instead of Bounty or Donation: However, it must be acknowledged, that there was much to be said to justify the Right of the Crown to this Branch of Church-Revenues, which King
Henry
VIII. laid his Hands on; for this Revenue had been for Ages enjoyed by the
Pope,
as Head of the Church, therefore thevesting it in the Crown, was but a natural Consequence of our throwing off the usurped Supremacy of
Rome.
What farther enhances the Merit of this Gift, is the present Exigency of Publick Affairs: It is done at a Juncture when the Crown is not in a giving Condition. It is to be hoped that late Posterity who shall enjoy the Benefit of it, will revere the Memory of the pious Donor; and that our succeeding Monarchs may be excited by this laudable Example, to raise up the drooping Head of the
English
Church, plundered and covered with Rags by an unbelieving Prince, and his sacrilegious Creatures, under the Veil of Reformation. A Prince more dangerous to the Christian Religion, than
Julian
or
Attila,
because
he communed with it in the House of God, as a Friend.
His Title of Defender of the Faith gave him an Opportunity to destroy his Charge, that Church, which is always in the Condition of a Minor.
I am here induced to lament the Avarice of Ecclesiasticks, who when they had an ample Dominion over the Minds of Men, grasped at too great a Share of the good Things of this World; they were not content with a competent Income; they thought their Power, their Revenues, their Number could never be sufficiently augmented. These Maxims, joined to their Vows of Celibacy, which took in both Sexes, and their Care to conceal their Shame when they broke these Vows, rendered them Enemies to Society, to Human Nature. And as Reformations are too apt to run into an Extream, opposite to the Evil designed to be remedied, the Church of
England
has dearly paid for the Avarice of that of
Rome:
Men knowing that the Church had obtained too much, easily took up a Notion that they could not leave her too little. They knew that the Monks in dark Ages, had importuned from the Fears of intimidated dying Sinners, unreasonable Grants of great Estates, and along with these, the Reforming Generation made no Scruple to rob the Church of its Natural Inheritance, which it had enjoyed from the Piety of purest Times, in Imitation of a Pattern given by God himself, when he condescended to compile a Body of Laws both Civil and Ecclesiastical for the Government of his chosen People.
The Land which had been given by superstitious Penitents, to found or endow the Nurseries of Religious Idleness, were perhaps very properly resumed in Favour of the Crown, rather than of the Heirs of the Donors; for had they been restored to the latter, it would have produced such infinite Confusion among the Claimants, as probably would have redounded less to their Benefit and the Nation's, than the Method which was taken. But does it also follow, that there could be a Difficulty to ascertain the right Owners of the Parochial Tithes, which were found in the Hands of the Monasteries? It was easy to know that the Monasteries had taken them from the Parish-Priests, and by worse Means, if possible, than their Influence over the staggering Resolutions of dying Men. They robbed the secular Clergy with a strong Hand, by the Aid of the usurped arbitrary Power of the See of
Rome,
which was wrought upon by Money to interpose in Favour of the Regulars; not without an Eye to some political Maxims, little less than Treasonable; for the Allegiance of the Subject was divided, by that Solecism in Politicks,
imperium in
imperio;
and frequent Experience told us, that the Regulars knew no Soveraign but the
Pope.
These Sufferings of the Parochial Clergy were not a Reason, at the Reformation, why they should not be restored to their own.
Indeed if it shall happen that the Christian Temper of Posterity one way or other shall bring back the Tithes, or an Equivalent for them, to the Church, I should never wish that it might be endowed with great Estates in Lands into the Bargain. My only Desire is, that Religion may not suffer by making the Clergy contemptible, who will always be held in Contempt, if they are obliged to live in Poverty.
In the mean while there might be some other Expedients found out, that would contribute to place them in a comfortable Condition to attend their great Charge, the Care of Souls. There are too many Parishes in
England,
both in City and Country: It is true, there are some Parishes too large, which ought to be divided; but there are a great many more too small, which would be better united: Two or three insufficient Provisions for so many Pastors of little and ill attended Flocks, may amount to a competent Maintainance for one able Minister, who may do his Duty with Satisfaction to a decent Congregation.
Perhaps also it is not now necessary that the Revenues of Colleges should be as ample as formerly for the Education of Youth, when the Nation is overstocked with Learning already, and there are not Benefices sufficient to receive the Men who have gone thro' the Course of their Academical Studies. I could therefore rejoice that we had fewer People educated on Charity to fill the Church; not at all dreading the Want of a Supply from those of better Fortunes, if we could contrive to advance the Benefices to a reasonable Value; which would be much furthered by taking away some Superfluities of Schools and Colleges, and bestowing them in the Endowment of the Church, where they are most wanted. I am far from thinking it for the Benefit of Religion or of the Nation, to diminish the Number of Professors or Fellows in either University. It will always be necessary to the Permanency of sound Learning, that there should be a considerable Number of Men of good Parts and Education maintained at full Leisure to attend their Studies in every Branch of Literature. But will this also prove that there is a National Advantage in bringing forward yearly, at the publick Expence, an hundred Persons to the Degree of Batchelor of Arts, who know not afterwards which Way to turn themselves, and have Reason to wish, that instead of reading
Ramus
and
Aristotle,
they had been taught to throw the Shuttle, or hold the Plough of their Fore-Fathers.
A poor Man may be as honest as a rich one, but it is not generally so easy to tempt the latter into mean and scandalous Actions. The Necessities of some of the lowest of the Clergy, are apt to lead them into Mistakes that cause a Clamour against the very Priesthood, and do a real Disservice to Religion. And yet these meanest of the People
(who seek the Priest's Office, that they may eat a Piece of Bread)
are immediately ready to fancy themselves Gentlemen, and that their Families are also advanced in Blood and Degree. Hence it happens in their Oeconomy, that during the Father's Life-time, the Son is bred at a Free-school, undoubtedly designed to be a Bishop at least; the Father drops off, and then the poor Youth is glad to find Employment as a Drawer in a Tavern, or perhaps to wear a Livery, and it is well if no worse happens. As for the Daughter, she learns to dance, and play on Musical Instruments; and because she is a Gentlewoman, she scorns to do the Offices of a Country Housewife at home, or to go to Market along with the Wives and Daughters of the Neighbouring Farmers. Her Education is like that which the unhappy Gentry of
Georgia
are said to give their Daughters to fit them for the Seraglios of the
Turkish
and
Persian
Grandees, and the Event is often worse, if possible. The best Prospect after such an Education, is an honest Servitude.
Which of the Bishops (if he has not made himself remarkable for Moroseness) is not daily pestered with Ecclesiastical Beggars, the pretended or real Widows and Orphans of indigent Clergymen, besides Crouds of indigent Clergymen themselves. I do not observe these Facts, as believing it improper for Clergymen to marry; but being of Opinion, that those of them who marry and cannot save any thing for their Families, should at least teach them to endure and work thro' that low State of Life they are born to: And I also consider it as a Reason for augmenting the Value, tho' we should considerably diminish the Number, of Benefices in
England.
I rejoice as an
Englishman
that our Clergy are rather ten thousand than an hundred thousand: There are the fewer idle Hands in the Nation, compared with its
Popish
Neighbours, therefore our Wealth is the greater.
I rejoice also that these ten thousand are not restrained from Marriage: For, this single Advantage will in a few Generations spread the
Protestant
Religion over
Europe,
by our gradual Increase of People and the Decrease of the
Papists;
unless the Almighty, for his own secret Purposes, shall send some more Kings to reign in
Protestant
Kingdoms, like the present King of
Sweden.
Were it not that
Cromwell
(in too great Haste to settle that miserable Kingdom of
Ireland
) gave vast Multitudes of the Natives to the
Spaniard;
and that the late Revolution, and some Laws which followed it relating to Religion, and others concerning Trade, have sent great Numbers of the same People to
France
(all which have been replaced by the Natives of
Great Britain,
besides our large Export to our
American
Colonies)
France
and
Spain
before this must have felt more sensibly, how burthensome their Religion is to the State: And these our
British
Islands would have grown up by this Time as populous as the
United Netherlands.
It cannot be pretended that the taking away the Funds from the Scholarships, and Exhibitions in the Free-Schools and the Universities, to apply them to the Augmentation of poor Livings, can work an Injury to any one; it is true, that whoever is in Possession of an Income of that Nature, ought to enjoy his legal Estate in it; but on the Vacancy, (no Individual having a Right) the Publick may well and justly apply it to the most laudable Purpose; and I believe it is hardly a Question in our Age and Country, which is the more eligible Species of Charity, (the Education of poor Scholars, or Maintainance of poor Ecclesiasticks with Cure of Souls?) To this I may add, that many of the Estates which are in that unnecessary Method of Charity, were for a like Reason taken from another useless People and given to the present Possessors; whose Number is now become a Nuisance to the Nation.
I would also propose that my Lords the Bishops would contribute to the Dignity and Sanctity of the Priesthood, by approaching nearer to an Equality of Revenue among themselves, with such Moderation, that on the one Hand each might have sufficient to enable him with Decency to attend his Service in Parliament; and on the other, that their Behaviour there might not be so frequently suspected by the Laity, as it has formerly been, as if they were too ready to obey the Nod of a Minister of State; and to hope to deserve a sudden Promotion to a tenfold Revenue; to take a speedy Flight from the Dreary Mountains of
Snowdon,
to the warm old snug Palace of
Lambeth.
What think you, Sir, would not Two thousand Pounds a Year be a decent Income for a Bishop? (some of them might have something more allotted to them, as my Lord of
London,
and others, who have most Occasion to reside often in Town, or in other expensive Parts of the Kingdom) and would not Three thousand Pounds each be a tolerable Income for our two Metropolitans? The rest of the Episcopal Revenues might be applied to the Support of their inferior Bretheren: And without a Bill to prevent Translations (a Bill which honest Men have sometimes been tempted to wish for) we might live to see a certain Bench filled with Patriots, and this without enduring that absurd Inconvenience which an Act against Translations would introduce. For, under such a Law, if the Prince should have it in his View to advance to the Summit of Church Preferment, the most deserving Priest in
England;
when the worst Diocese becomes vacant, he must not promote him, because under such a Law it would put a Negative upon his farther Advancement; so that a Man of the most cnosummate Merit, might after many Years Expectation, die a private and poor Parson, because he was designed to be Archbishop of
Canterbury.
But this long Letter, will pass with you for one of my Resveries; especially my last Scheme: For nothing like it can ever be executed, unless the Temporal Lords should in some future Age happen to think as I do, and attend in Parliament with Diligence, to accomplish an Alteration.
LETTER XI.
July 29th, 1706.
SIR,
THE Union is at length as good as concluded; it was hard, or rather impossible, to settle the Terms of it to every body's liking, but the grand Design was always desirable to the Unprejudiced of both Nations, and our late Blunders have made it more necessary to us than ever it was.
Edinburgh
will doubtless suffer by the Loss of the Parliament there, and of the Resort of their Nobility; but in the main, the Kingdom must grow richer upon being let into the
English
Trade, instead of their late wretched Condition, without any valuable Branch of Commerce, or any rational Prospect of obtaining one. They are now to be Members of a flourishing Empire; an Empire, safer and happier
(sua si bona nôrit)
than the greatest on the Continent; because in its Natural (its Naval) Strength, it is much more powerful than any of its Neighbours.
Scotland
used to be the Pensioner of
France,
used to ravage two or three of our Northern Counties, to burn our Houses, and run away with our Cattle; and often felt the Severity of our Reprizals. But, in one Generation, that Border will grow enamoured with the Arts of Peace, and such of their great Men as love Pensions, may haply enjoy them with less Hazard than of old, without the Danger of seeing their Country destroyed by Fire and Sword, as a Reward for their mercenary Politicks. As for our Parts, it is no Trifle to remove for ever the Probability of being attacked in the Rear by Enemies far from being despicable in Point of Bravery, and not to be despised because of their Poverty; for their Poverty contributed to create our Danger. That Poverty and that Bravery will for the future exalt our Hopes, instead of creating our Fears. Our People on this Side
Tweed,
may well be spared, to ply the Loom and Hammer, while the Heroes of
Cathness
and
Sutherland,
—
Disdaining servile Labours, bear the Musket,
The glorious Musket, and enjoy their Leisure;
Nor unrewarded bear it, but the meed
Of six good Pence
per Diem,
Wealth not known
To their great Ancestors, they glad receive,
And hail Flock Beds, Wheat Bread, and
Cheshire
Cheese:
And bless that League which show'rs these Blessings down.
We have some very worthy Men among us, who are much disgusted at the Care that is taken of the Kirk; the Preservation of which is a sundamental Article. They alledge that
Episcopacy
was unfairly outed, and that the Majority of the Nobility and Gentry of that Kingdom would, if they could, restore it at this Day. But the Preservation of the Kirk is at present a Condition without which no Union can be had; the Populace will not yet part with the
Mess Johns.
That must be expected in a cooler Season, and then the fundamental Article will be a Cobweb. It is absurd to attempt to make irrevocable Laws for Posterity; every Generation must of Necessity have a Right to chuse for itself. This ridiculous Notion of immutable Laws, was however a Maxim in Law among the
Medes
and
Persians.
Observe the Consequence: Their Emperor To-day promulges an IMMUTABLE Edict to destroy all the
Jews,
and on the Morrow sends forth another, that they may take Arms for their Defence, and that all his loving Subjects shall assist them. Can any common Lawyer or Civilian deny, that there will be in the united Legislature of
Great-Britain
an unlimited Power over the whole Body, and every Part of it; or, that they will have sufficient Authority to repeal any Law which either of the divided Kingdoms made. What the
Sultan
is in
Turky,
and the
Mogul
in
India,
the Parliament of
Great-Britain
must necessarily be, in the Plenitude of its Power.
Another Complaint among us is, that the Members which
Scotland
furnishes to both Houses, amount to a tenth or a twelfth of the Parliament, tho' they are not to pay above a thirtieth of the Taxes of the united Kingdom: I do not fear being suspected as a Partizan for the
Scots,
when I declare, that I believe this to be still very equal; for tho' we leave them an open Trade, yet the Profits of that will be swallowed in the Rents of all their best Estates, and must center in
London
and
Middlesex.
It will be well enough if the publick Money raised among them suffices to answer all the publick Demands there: Their great Men will live here, and in a Generation or two will become mere
Englishmen.
There is one Omission in the Articles of this Union, with regard to the Perpetuity of the
Scots
Peerage. There are no new Peers to be made there, and they are always to send sixteen to Parliament, by Election. I believe their Number is pretty large at present, suppose one hundred and fifty; but these will gradually decrease, and be extinguished by one Accident or other, for there are no perpetual Successions, no Bishops among them. I lately observed this to a very intelligent Gentleman of that Nation: He looked on it as a remote Evil,
For,
says he,
most of the Peerages there, are inheritable by the Daughters, when Sons fail;
I allowed this for a Reason why Peerages should not easily be extinguished; but I am convinced, that thus they will more readily decrease by Unity of Possession, occasioned by Marriages both among their own Nobility and ours, which will have a quicker Effect than the Extinction of the Male-Lines by the Course of Nature, separate Maintenance, and Venery. Almost as often as a
Scots
Coronet devolves upon a Female, it will consolidate that Peerage with some other, so that in Effect there is a
Scots
Peerage merged for ever.
There is another Way left open to diminish their Number, for tho' a
Scots
Peer must not be made an
English
one, yet his Son or Brother may; and thus upon the Fall of one Life, there will be one Peer less on their List. So it is likely they will hardly have sixteen Lords left in an hundred Years. I have not been informed whether this Omission was by Mistake, but it is really of little or no Consequence. Since
Scots
are capable of being made Peers of
Great-Britain,
it matters not from what Castles, Towns or Villages they take their Titles, nor whether North or South of
Tweed:
It will only sound a little absurd to Posterity, that the same Person who may be called to Parliament as Lord of
Hammersmith,
shall be refused Admittance as Duke of
Edinburgh.
For the rest, the Locality of Titles happens not to be material, for if this Kingdom preserves its Constitution, Posterity shall always find most of its largest Fortunes and greatest Men, in the House of Peers of
Great-Britain:
But if, for Our Sins or Theirs, our Posterity shall bow the Knee before a Tyrant, after the Manner of the Nations round about us, and the Houses of Parliament in a Venal Generation concur to murder the Constitution, it is a Matter of no Sort of Importance who shall be the Parricides.
We might be content that the Numbers both of their Lords and Commons to sit in the United-Parliament were to be double or treble those agreed on. Thus we should have more of their Wealth drawn hither, and our Constitution would be safer from the Attempts of the Crown, as it would be harder to manage or gratify so great a Number. This is what we ought to attend to on all Occasions. I design to make my Grandsons learn it along with their Prayers and their Creed, That the
Liberties of England can only be destroyed by a Standing Army of her own Sons; and that Parliamentary Bribery is the most proper Method to obtain such an Army.
And yet it is strange, that Men can sell themselves and Posterities for an Estate at Will! You shall find in some foreign Countries a Man of Two Thousand Pounds a Year of Inhertance, who for so small a Bribe as an Office or Pension of Five Hundred Pounds a Year, during Pleasure, shall give his Vote for a Law, which in its Consequence renders his Inheritance as precarious as the Pension. Is this being wise in our Generation? is this to be justified even by the Wisdom of the Children of this World?
What Age, what Kingdom can shew an immediate Sucession of three good absolute Monarchs? or in what Country have Liberty, Corruption and a Standing Army gone Hand in Hand for forty Years together? It is an idle Imagination to suppose, that when a King designs to rule by his Will, he must do as the
Danes
did, discard his States, and rely upon his Troops. That is indeed the shortest Way, but not the safest. When
Augustus
had established himself against all Opposers, he did not covet a great Army, he chose to keep a packed Senate in Pay; he gulled the People with an Appearance of Liberty, and the Administration of his Government was gentle: But
Rome
was ruined, it lost its Liberty, and was as effectually enslaved under him, as under
Nero
or
Domitian.
Mollia vincla pati jussit, at vincula passa est;
Purpureum cultu insolito venerata Tyrannum.
Thus while with Clemency
Augustus
reign'd,
The Monarch was ador'd, the city chain'd.
But tho' this be the safest Method for a Prince to take, who desires to be absolute, yet it is the most burthensome to the People. Their Pension-Senate is a more extravagant Charge upon them, than a great Army would be. If I were to live in an Age and Country where the Representatives of the People had sold them to the Prince for Places and Pensions, and given him a Military Force to ensure the Purchase; I would concur in and promote a Petition, that the Prince might assume the Legislative Authority, exclusive of such prostitute Representatives: and I think it is evident, that in such a Case, whether a Prince were good or bad, a Wise Man or a Fool, the People could more easily pay for the Wants or the Wantonness of the Monarch alone, than for those and the Wages of several hundreds of Parricides into the Bargain.
Nor is a People the safer from such Attempts, for having a Ruler of their own chusing. The ambitious Man, when he has climbed all the Rounds of the Ladder of Authority, turns his Back to it, and scorns the base Degrees by which he rose. In all mixed Governments, each constituent Part must be eternally on its Guard. The Prince can easily take Care of his Prerogative, because, being but one, he can always be true to, and consistent with himself. His Individuality gives him those Advantages, and the
Prae-existent
Temptation of Ambition, that Spur to make use of them, that he ought never to be trusted with more than his own Rights, if the Subjects would hold theirs. I transcribe for you the Picture of a vigorous Prince, riding a Nation after he had defeated its Enemies.
Cervus, equum, pugnâ melior communibus herbis
Pellebat, donec minor in certamine longo
Imploravit opes hominis; frenumque recepit:
Sed postquam victor violens discessit ab hoste,
Non equitem dorso, non frenum depulit ore.
Since I am grown a little pedantick upon the Subject of Slavery, I will put you in Mind of the ridiculous, the miserable Figure which a Mock-Senate makes: You have two beautiful Sketches of such Assembles in
Juvenal,
proper to excite your Laughter and Indignation. In one you have the Prime Minister destroyed at once, on his Master's Letter; the World agrees in an Opinion,
Sejanus
was guilty, but Justice would expect some Proof of it:
Tiberuis
had too loyal a Senate to wait for any Evidence: their Tyrant signified his Pleasure; and that served for Demonstration to
that very Senate
which had voted Statues to
that very Prime Minister.
The other Scene is the merry one, where they take into Consideration the over-grown
Turbet:
Nothing can be more fantastick than the blind Haranguer making a florid Speech in Praise of it, and unfortunately turning his Face from it to the contrary Side of the Room, in order to point out and descant upon its Beauties. Such are the
Ardua Negotia Imperii
proper to be laid before a Parliament of Slaves. Such are the
Arcana
fit for them to debate on.
LETTER XII.
Mar. 20, 1710-11
IF Victory has not made us or our Allies too insolent, it is impossible that the great Folks at
Gertruydenburgh
should fail to settle the Repose of
Europe.
But if we over-value ourselves, and under-rate our Grand Enemy, we shall find that he is an absolute Prince, and a proud one too, and rather than stoop too low, he will give us an Opportunity to buy more Laurels at too dear a Rate; to purchase more costly Hangings for
Westminster-Hall.
But we have fought enough for Glory, and for Profit too; for we may make good Bargains now, if we think fit (after our surprizing Successes) to make Peace Sword in Hand.
The D— of
M—
has been rewarded for his glorious Victories in this War in a most extraordinary Manner, as indeed he deserved; but Envy will not let him injoy his Honours in Peace, it is the usual Fate of superlative Merit,
Comperit invidiam supremo fine domari.
To be raised by the Smiles of their Prince above their Equals, happens to several Favourites in every Court, in every Generation: But for a
British
Subject, a Protestant, to have a Fief, a Principality of the
Empire
conferred on him, by a
Roman Catholick
Emperor of
Germany,
and not only to be promoted to the highest Honours by his Soveraign that are in her Power to bestow, but also to have his transcendent Merit proclaimed by the united Voice of the Legislature, and transcendently rewarded by an ample Recital of his famous Exploits, and by the Gift of a Princely Revenue, and Royal Manor to him, with an unusual Limitation of those, and of his Honours, in Favour of his Posterity; these, I say, are Circumstances of human Grandeur which few Subjects in many Ages will be seen to attain to: A Pinacle above which a Man of rational Desires would not endeavour to soar.
All the little Sallies of Satire against him will be buried in Oblivion, when the Statute that recites his Victories, and intails a Royal Inheritance to reward them, shall record his Glory to late Posterity. There is nothing wanting to compleat his Character, but this, that he shall be as willing to let his Country enjoy the Fruits of his Victories, as he has been able to gain them; that he shew himself as grateful to
England,
as She has been to him; that he may judge a Princely Fortune (a Fortune unrivalled by any other Subject) to be sufficient for him and his Family; and that he may not desire to make a Trade of War, because he profits by it, tho' at the same time it consumes whole Nations, and his Mother
Great Britain
among the rest.
LETTER XIII.
April, 13, 1710.
YOU rightly observe, that this hotheaded Priest has cost both Houses more Time and Trouble than his Head is worth. What matters it if he has been too peremptory in the Pulpit, on a Subject he might better have let alone. Some Parts of his Sermons are little better than Nonsense, but the general Doctrine may be supported by the Authority of all our most eminent Divines, and corresponds with that Maxim in Law, that
the King can do no Wrong.
I think the Doctor and his Prosecutors have split on the same Rock; an extraordinary Case, like the Revolution, is quite out of the ordinary Rules of Law, and not defined among the general Learning of the Casuists concerning the Obedience of Subjects to their Soveraign. The Doctor ought not to have drawn the Revolution into the Debate, nor ought we to fancy, that the Maxims of the Laws of God, of Nature, and of the Land, are changed by that extraordinary Occasion and Event. Tho' I am persuaded the same Tenet has been taught ever since our Reformation, yet this Gentleman's Manner of teaching it is indiscreet; and his Warmth has been singular several Years ago.
Defoe,
in his
Hymn to the Pillory,
has long since justly celebrated the Doctor's intemperate Zeal against the Dissenters; (I think
Defoe
had been then exalted for writing
The shortest Way with the Dissenters
) He wishes, that all who merit equal Punishment might stand there along with him; and then descending to Particulars, says he,
There wou'd the fam'd
Sachev'rel
stand,
With Trumpet of Sedition in his Hand,
Sounding the first Crusado in the Land.
He from a
Church-of-England
Pulpit first,
All his Dissenting Brethren curst,
Doom'd them to Satan, for a Prey,
And first found out
The shortest Way.
But the Consequence of this mighty Eclat is, that most People are apt to consider a Sentence against this Preacher, (not as a Condemnation of this Temerity by instancing the Revolution upon an improper Occasion, and of his unwarrantable pronouncing Damnation against the Dissenters, but) as an Establishment of the Discretionary Resistance of the Subject, and as a Degradation of Kingly Power in
England,
to the Condition of the Consular in
Rome,
controled by the Senate, Tribunes, and People; and all this, by a solemn Judgement of the Lords, at the Demand of the Commons.
Our Political Penmen, who swarm in every Age, will not fail hereafter to magnify every Mistake, every Slip, in every Administration; and even to call Virtue, Vice; Sweet, Bitter; and Good, Evil.
Algernon Sidney
's Treatise of Government will pass upon many for the Law of the Land; and those who approve most of the Revolution, may live to see this latitudinarian Allegiance (which the misguided People will be apt to learn) become troublesome under the best Princes.
I should think therefore this Prosecution cannot have been a very agreeable Entertainment to the Queen, nor a pleasing Speculation to those who are in the Course of Succession to the Crown.
In the mean time, Conversation runs as low with us in Town as you describe it in the Country. You can hardly find a rational Creature to talk to, or a rational Topic to talk upon. Go where you will, you meet the
Doctor.
Be it
pro
or
con,
it is still the
Doctor.
The devout Adherers to the literal Construction of Holy Writ, say, that the sacred Volume is in Peril; and ejaculate their Apprehensions in Metre. One of their
Pasquins
closes thus.
Tho' all the Fathers, great and small,
From good St.
Austin,
back to
Paul,
Did justify the Criminal;
Yet nothing cou'd acquit the Priest,
Nor Father
Paul,
nor
Jesus Christ:
Look to your Doctrine,
Paul
and
Jesus,
Sachev'rel
's Sermons do not please us,
He copy'd you, was your Disciple;
Next Turn is your's, they'll burn the Bible.
The Poet's Partiality, in Favour of the Doctor, is as extravagant, as his Apprehension of the Danger of burning the Bible. I give you this only as a Specimen, or rather Symptom, of the Fever of the Town; for I assure you, the Zealous of my Acquaintance who read these Lines, are as fond of them as he can be that made them; for my own Part, I rather agree with Mr.
Dryden
to count such Clergymen,
The
Phaetons
of Mankind, who fire that World,
Which they were sent, by preaching, but to warm.
The Alteration of the many-headed Monster in Seventy, yea, in Thirty Years, is unaccountable.
Pym
and his Fellows were idolized by the Multitude of this very City, for the Reverse of this Doctrine, and so were the Seven Bishops: But now if any Man has a Doubt about it, let him not divulge that Doubt in the Streets of
London:
If the present Humour of the Town continues a little longer, I shall be able to send you an whole Suit of Apparel, or Set of Houshold Furniture, sanctified with the goodly Image of the Doctor.
LETTER XIII.
August 14, 1712.
IT is not doubted that this Treaty will end in Peace, in Spite of all Opposers. It is pretty unhappy for us, that all the Nations engaged in War should not concur with us to wish heartily for the general Tranquillity of
Europe.
Nor will I answer for our own Soldiers of Fortune. The inferior Officers make a great Clamour against it in Coffee-houses and other Places of publick Resort, and if you will take their Words, they speak the Sense of the Nation; but do not you believe a Word of that.
The Emperor perhaps fancies that it is the Business of
Great-Britain
to raise the House of
Austria,
on the Ruins of that of
Bourbon
and of
Great-Britain
together; the
Dutch
can never be tired of having the Subsistence Money of our Great Land Army circulate in their Country; and the little Princes of
Germany
can afford to hire out Troops to us a good while longer, if we can find Cash to pay for them; this is a trade among them.
Mancipiis locuples, eget oeris Capadocum Rex.
But
England
seems, as well as
France
and
Spain,
to have occasion for a Peace, and for some of the same Reasons. We have not been beaten often, it is true; we have gotten great Victories, yet still we are Sufferers, and must be so, as the Scene has been laid. What we conquer in
Flanders
is to be divided between the
Dutch
and the
Emperor,
and
Spain
is also to be conquered for the latter. As if the House of
Austria
might not Lord it over
Europe
as severely as that of
Bourbon;
as if it were necessary to exhaust ourselves, to bring a Moiety of
Europe
under a single Person, lest a Moiety of
Europe
should at some Time or other hereafter (which possibly may never happen) fall under the Dominion of a single Person. This is,
ne moriare mori,
with a Witness. Nay it is worse, it is giving boot, where the Exchange at even hand would be a bad Bargain; it is paying our Blood and Treasure to set
Charles
on the
Spanish
Throne, when we can leave
Philip
there without farther Expence; and when, of the two, it is rather our Interest that
Philip
should fill it; and the best of the Jest is, that not one of them pretends to shew how
Great-Britain
is to be reimbursed a single Stiver, whatever her Expence has been, or may be hereafter. This is a well chosen Game to play at, where we may lose and cannot win. We are told indeed, that by carrying on the War, we shall keep out the
Pretender.
I fancy, at this Time of Day,
France
will readily agree to make us more secure against him by a Peace.
It is to be hoped that the Outcry in Coffee-Houses of Red Coats, who have the Fear of Breaking before their Eyes, may be slighted; that those who have made a Trade of War, either abroad or at Home, may have no Influence upon our Councils; that our Ministers will sit down to treat in Temper, and not in Spite, thar they will rather imitate
Martin
's Behaviour in the
Tale of a Tub,
than his Brother
Jack
's. We must not pique ourselves on pulling down every thing which our Domestick Enemies have built.
I can only
wish,
that the Wings of
France
may be effectually clipped, even to the dismembering some of its Provinces, if possible, in Favour of
Savoy, Lorain, Bavaria,
any body: and that if we are to have the least Retribution for all our Labours, Costs and Losses, it may be allotted to us in Islands above all Places; and above all Islands, in those of
America
which produce Sugars and Cotton. A small Portion in these would answer our Purposes, better than twenty Capital Fortresses on the Continent of
Europe.
They would be a Mine, and not an Issue of Treasure. As for any Fortress, as
Dunkirk, Gibraltar
or any other that may annoy our Traffick, it would be convenient to reduce them to the Condition of
Tangiers,
but not to think of holding them.
I am strangely fond of those
American
Islands, and think I can justify my Notion by a short Observation upon a well known Piece of History. I frequently recollect that
Jamacia
was taken by mere Accident:
Oliver
had formed a much greater Design, which miscarried; and when only
Jamacia
was the Prize, his Commanders were called to a severe Account. He was also Master of
Dunkirk,
and King
Charles
the Second of
Tangier,
in Dowry with his Queen. These were monstrously expensive, so as not to be tenable. The People grumbled that the Crown did not keep them; but as long as they were kept, they grumbled also at the great Expence of maintaining them. These are gone for ever from
England,
while the poor despicable Island of
Jamacia
has grown a flourishing Colony, is become an inexhaustible Fund of Wealth to us, and occasions the constant Employment of a considerable Fleet of
British
Merchants.
The Dominion of the Seas is what we are able to maintain, it maintains itself: The more we have of it, the less Danger we are in of being invaded in it by the envying World confederated against us. It is one of the clearest Demonstrations, it is Vulgar Arithmetick; that if we carry a Million of Tuns of Goods each Year a thousands Leagues, and our Neighbour carries but the tenth Part of that Quantity the like Voyage; we shall maintain tenfold his Shipping, tenfold his Seamen, and in Consequence be able to meet ten such Neighbours as Enemies, at once, upon the Watry Plain.
If our Island-Colonies were very considerable in Number and Value, we should find this great Convenience, that they would require no Garisons, because no Armament could appear upon the Seas, sufficient to disturb them: Nor ought we to oppress them, nor suffer them to be oppressed rapacious Governors. But while our Neighbours are stronger in those Parts than we are, both We are, and the Colonies must be burthened with the Expence of an armed Force both by Sea and Land for their Security. Were they ever so populous, had they as many People among them as their Mother Country contains; there would be no Danger of their Defection, while we gave them no Cause to mourn the Want of Liberty. Their Trade would all pass thro' our Hands, protected by our Fleets, while they lived at Ease, and in as perfect Obedience as the several Parishes of
Middlesex.
LETTER XIV.
May 6. 1723.
WE are under terrible Apprehensions here, about no less than Church and State. This has been the Devil of a Plot, and it is proved by Means that must not be discovered; for if a Plotter knows how a Decypherer found him out, it seems he may grow so cunning in perplexing his Cypher, that the Artist will not be able to follow him any longer. Silly Traitors! is it then possible to invent inextricable Cyphers, and you remain so indolent as to put your Lives and Fortunes on a Key as simple as
Julius Caesar
's, which the School-boys have learned from
Suetonius
for these Sixteen hundred Years past.
Treason is a paw Thing!
a noisy Crime of State,
as
Dryden
says. I'll have none on't. There's
Perkins
's Head on
Temple-Bar,
like
Cymon
in
Dryden
's Fables,
Whistles for want of Thought.
From all Men of Common Sense, Heaven avert the Omen.
There is an
English
Bishop, a
Spanish
Cardinal, an
Irish
General, a
British
Peer, or twain, a Brace of very small Nonjuring Priests (but one of them has drowned himself, I wish you were to see the Wall he got over, you would judge how ingenious, and nimble too, he must have been) all these, and more, are Personages in the
Drama,
which has lately entertained the Town. I say nothing of Proofs; some People are very believing, and others were mere Infidels. The Doctrine of Transubstantiation has had full Credit with our Ancestors, in Spite of their Senses: And yet
Zeno,
in another Age, would not believe there was such a Thing as Motion.
For my own Part, I design, as long as I live, to be Courtly in my Political Creed: Want of Acknowledging, that,
a Cloud is like a Whale; or very like a Weazel.
Since
Plots, true or false, are necessary Things,
why should we doubt of the Reality of this: But for irrefragable Proofs of it, peruse the Arguments of the Sollicitor-General,
&c.
Mr.
Wynne,
a young Lawyer, is much applauded for the Defence. The D— of
W—
has shone in his House on the Occasion; he has taken abundance of Pains to observe upon the Evidence, which makes his Speech much the longer; it delighted many of the Hearers: But the Master-piece of Eloquence on this Occasion, in my poor Opinion, is Mr.
K—
's which you receive a Copy of; it is indeed the most finished Performance of the greatest Orator our Island ever boasted. There is nothing omitted that was necessary to be remembred; there is not a superfluous Sentence, not an ill-turned Period, not an ill-chosen Expression in the whole. There is that Strength of Reasoning in answering the Arguments of the Adversary, and that Clearness of Diction to convey to us his own Sentiments, that, it is like a polished Diamond, of the first Water and most excellent Workmanship. It is impossible to say whether its Firmness or its Lustre be most predominant; or for which of those Merits in the highest Degree of Perfection, all other Gems must yeild it the Prefertence.
LETTER XV.
May 28. 1725.
YOUR Complaint is very just, that by the Titles of Impeachments in Parliament, a Man at a Distance off cannot guess what the Accusation is. This against the Earl of
M**
consisted chiefly of two Branches; one, that he sold the Offices of the Masters in Chancery for very great Sums of Money; which Offices are in some Degree judicial; the Sale of them therefore must naturally introduce Corruption in the Officers, according to the Adage, He that buys Justice, must sell Justice, The other Branch is, that to conceal this Sin, (as it commonly happens) he fell into a greater: Large Sums of Money, belonging chiefly to Orphans, had by the Authority of the Court been deposited in the Hands of these Masters; some of them thought it a proper Opportunity to grow rich, nor scrupled to adventure the Fortunes of their Neighbours: they met with woeful Disappointments of their Expectations; there were great Deficiencies, and the Chancellor, to screen them, was guilty of shameful Delays of Justice, by putting off the Hearing of the Causes affected by these Losses
To the Wonder of the gazing World, and maugre the zealous Endeavours of some most Noble Peers, this corrupt Man is to continue a Judge, upon his Honour, of the Lives and Fortunes of
Englishmen;
he is to continue to make our Laws, and to interpret them. He is condemned in thirty thousand Pounds, it is true, but,
cui bono?
Not to repair the suffering Suitors; but as a Fine to the Crown, (which perhaps may remit it) tho' the People have received the greatest Injury. How then are the Sufferers to be repaired, think ye? Why, truly, it is rumoured, by a Tax to be laid on the Suitors in that Court. The innocent Suitors, who may be esteemed sufficiently unfortunate in having Occasion to resort thither, are to be punished for the Iniquities of the Chancellor.
The House of Lords is not bound by the Forms of the Courts below Stairs, and the Impeachments before them are managed pretty much in the Stile of the Civil Law; it were to be wished, in the Case of this Earl, they had adopted a Form of that Law which is proper to produce a just and rational Sentence upon Crimes like these they have lately censured. The Criminal Process, among the Civilians, is frequently, if not always, in the Nature of an Action
Qui tam,
&c. I have seen a Libel of theirs for Homicide, which amounted to an Appeal, as well as Indictment. In a Case like this, they would, in the first Place, have given Relief to the Injured out of his Estate, and then have made a reasonable Confiscation to the Prince, as a Punishment of his Crimes. Thus they would have fulfilled the Dictates both of Commutative and Distributive Justice. Restition, was barely a Debt, and Confiscation was a moderate Punishment.
If a Sentence of Sir
George Oxenden
's, who opened this Impeachment, had been duly weighed, we should hardly see the Innocent taxed for the Crimes of the solvent Guilty.
See the Close of the XVIth Letter.
But we have never been fond of changing our Laws, no not even for the better; the Lords in Parliament, four hundred Years ago, to reject a mischievous Ecclesiastical Proposal, answered,
Nolumus leges Angliae mutari.
An answer highly laudable on that Occasion! and ever since we have it trumped up to us, as a Maxim, without the least Attention to the Difference of the Matters in Question. I will mention to you Two strong Instances (instead of twenty) of our supine Neglect in amending our Laws. The Landlord from all Antiquity might distrain his Tenant for Rent due, and then the Distress must perish in his Hands, if the Tenant could not pay; for the Lord could not sell it, till enabled by a Statute made in the Days of King
Charles
II. This Piece of Common Law we sent to
Ireland,
but they found the Remedy one hundred and fifty Years earlier than we did. Another Instance is, that the then Statute of Administrations (which is but a Translation from the one hundred and eighteenth Novel) was made in the latter End of the same Reign, and no earlier; and we are sure that our Law was a regular and flourishing Profession four hundred Years without it. Perhaps it flourished the more, for differing in many Points from common Sense.
LETTER XVI.
Feb. 7. 1730.
THERE is one of the Wonders of the World to be accomplished this Session; the Salt Tax will be abolished. It is a new Thing for the Crown to lose Ground in the Revenue. Our History shews very few Instances of the kind. Tho' the Occasion was most urgent when the Tax was imposed, and tho' the Grant of it was only temporary, and for a very short Time too, yet Pretences have been always found to continue the Burthen, when the Necessity ceased. Our Oracle in the Law and Records of Parliament observes, that Tonnage and Poundage were granted first to King
Henry
the Fifth, to enable Him to invade and conquer
France;
but his unfortunate Son, who lost that Acquisition back again, enjoyed the same Revenue, as did also Queen
Mary
the First, who lost
Calais,
the only Fragment of it that remained till her Time. So forcible is a Possession in the Crown, that People are apt to suffer it to turn to a Right. But this Mistake cost King
Charles
the First dear; it was the First Grievance of his Reign and disposed a knowing, a resolute Generation of Freeman (whose Spirits were not broken by Taxes and Standing Armies) to examine every thing with Rigour. Yet not all the Difficulties and Misfortunes of his Reign could deter his Son, King
James
the Second (tho' he did not want the Money) from levying the same Revenue before it was given by Parliament. I think we have one Instance in the
English
History, of the Monarch's taking less than the Subject gave, and that was in the Days of Good Queen
Elizabeth,
who chose to reign in the Hearts of her People, who depressed Monopolies, and particular Schemes of robbing the Publick, and esteemed the Wealth and Honour of the Nation as her own.
If Farmers in their Tillage and their Diet, Merchants in Victualling their Ships, Potters in their Manufacture, but above all, the Fishery (that
Diu multumque desideratum
of
Great Britain
) require such immense Quantities of Salt, that it is impossible to maintain the Officers, and to make any considerable Profit of that Revenue, if we allow Draw-backs for all those Purposes (not to speak of the frequent Frauds upon Exportation) and as on the other Hand, we would not have our Neighbours Till their Land, Navigate their Ships, Cure their Fish, and even be able to sell an earthen Pitcher cheaper than we can; it is really amazing to consider how this Tax came first to be granted in this Nation; but it is much more astonishing that the Experience of its Michiefs had not long ago awakened the Legislature to redeem it. It is not strange that the People should gladly embrace the Opportunity of Deliverance from this Oppression; the Miracle is, that a First Minister should give his Voice for so considerable a Reduction of his Myrmidons, should concur in abolishing a Tax which seems calculated to create Ministerial Dependencies, and to corrupt Voices for Parliamentary Elections. Perhaps, like
Sylla,
he knows he has so well convinced the World of his transcendent Ability for Mischief, that he may retire in Safety with the Spoil of Nations, and deserve the Thanks of Mankind for plaguing them no longer. But if he designs to pursue the Plan which he has hitherto proceeded on, the Trained Bands of the Salt-Duty are an ill-judged Reduction of his Forces: He does not usually commit such Blunders in Domestick Politicks, whatever his Enemies object to his Skill and Address in Foreign Treaties. Taxes, burthensome as This is, make Standing Armies necessary; and great Armies cannot be maintained without burthensome Taxes; they are Bawd and Punk to each other, but the poor Nation is always the Cully.
It is a Proposition as demonstrable as any in
Euclid,
that heavy Taxes must naturally destroy this or any other trading populous Nation, which depends greatly on its own Manufactures. Yet neither the small Vulgar nor the Great can comprehend this Truth. If
France
can maintain her Manufacturer, in proper Provinces, at Ten Pounds
per Ann.
when ours must cost Twenty, and if the Value of 30
l.
in Wool will employ at least six Persons, at a Medium,
per Ann.
the
English
Account will stand thus, For Wool 30
l.
for Work, 120
l.
Total, 150
l.
The
French
may be stated thus, For Wool, 40
l.
for Work, 60
l.
Total, 100
l.
so that the
French
may sell Wares of equal Goodness at 100
l.
which we shall not be able to sell under 150
l.
and this upon a Supposition too, that they pay 20
l.
for one third Part of their Quantity of Wool which costs us only 10
l.
Thus if we suppose that they use two thirds of their own Growth, they can afford to give for what they buy from us, or from
Ireland,
double the Price of our Market, and yet sell so much cheaper than we can, as is already stated.
Our Manufacturers make a Noise about the running of Wool, and about that only, as if this were their only Evil. They are assisted in their Clamour, and misled in their Reasoning, by those whose Business it is to raise a Dust, and to hide the true, the principal Cause of the Declension of the
British
Trade; that is of the
British
Grandeur. This assigning
non causa pro causa,
is (when it can pass upon People) the most dangerous kind of Sophistry; the Principle being false, the falfe Deductions from it may be numberless.
If a Master Weaver, who returns Twenty Thousand Pounds a Year in his Trade, should complain that Wool is risen Ten
per Cent.
by clandestine Exportation, and that the Manufacturer is ruined by it; it would be in vain to tell him, that there is a single Evil that prejudices his Manufacture in a much greater Degree: He would laugh at me, as an ignorant Pretender, to presume to be wiser than a Man in his own Trade. And yet I may venture to say, that the Duty on Soap and Candles is an heavier Clog on the Manufacture, than any probable Advance in the Price of the unwrought Commodity can amount to. But here is the Difference, the Master knows when he pays an advanced Price for Wool, but he forgets that he pays the Candle-Tax in the Wages of the Workman.
I do not mean upon the Whole, that
France
will be able to cut us out from every particular Branch or Article of the Woollen Manufacture. I doubt not that we are in Possession of a Manufacture of some Sorts both of Cloths and Stuffs, which they cannot equal; especially without the Help of our Wool, or that of
Ireland.
But then this must be admitted, that tho' we could totally cut of the clandestine Exportation, yet the
French
would still be able to increase in the Manufacture of vast Quantities of coarse Goods; and let us remember, that tho' a Yard of fine Cloth may be worth a Guinea, yet the Proportion of that Export is but small. It is the Cloathing of the Millions that makes Millions of Money; and if the
French
are to supplant us in foreign Markets for the Sale of coarse Goods, tho' perhaps the Fountain of our Wealth will not be quite exhausted, yet I fear it will run miserably low. It is idle to say, that their coarse Manufactures will not be as good as ours, if they sell at a lower Price, that will more than compensate the Difference. The Multitude do not affect the nicest Goods, they are glad to be warm at a cheap Rate, and I think our Merchants have said something like this in their Complaints of the
Irish
Trade to
Lisbon.
They say, that the
Irish
Goods, are not comparable to ours, but because they can undersell us, they have a ready Market, while ours lye unsold upon the Factors Hands.
It would be proper to apply this Complaint against
Ireland,
to
France,
and to
Prussia
too; for the
Prussian
has supplanted us very lately in our Trade to
Muscovy,
to the Value of many Thousand Pounds a Year for coarse cloathing for the
Russian
Armies. Does all this depend on the Running of Wool from home? Has the Almighty given fleecy Sheep only to
England
and
Ireland?
We may possibly hinder Foreigners from getting our Wool, but what Act of Parliament shall prevent their working up their own? Why do not we make a Law to forbid their Grass to grow, and to interrupt their Sun-shine?
Nothing but the true Foundation of the Growth of the Wealth of private Dealers, can make a trading Nation flourish. We must sell great Quantities and that cannot happen unless we sell at least as cheap as our Neighbours: It is easy to see, that we cannot effect this, while we are plunged in Debt: It is no Wonder that we are thus in Debt, since, after our devouring Land War, we continue to support a great Army at home and abroad ever since; and that by Taxes which were half devoured by those who collected them. It is natural for People to flock out of the Mortgaged-Kingdom to
America, France
or
Holland,
or any other Place where their Industry may feed and cloath them, which it cannot at home: And thus (just as it happens in the Case of private Persons) the Increase of the Nation's Debt occasions the Decrease of the Means of paying it. The Loss of the Nation by maintaining a great Army, is not yet sufficiently stated, besides the positive Loss of paying them, there is also a negative Loss of at least Two Hundred Thousand Pounds
per Ann.
which they would and ought to get, if they were left to labour for their Subsistence.
I am, &c.
Miscellaneous Letters.
A Letter from Bishop BARLOW, to his Honored Friend Mr.
Edward Cooke,
This Gentleman was, one of the Benchers of the
Temple,
and, some time, Licenser of the Press.
at his House in
Plow-Yard
in
Fetter-Lane.
I Have received your Letter, and the ingenuous book
A
Discourse
on the
Nature
of the
English-Constitution.
Written by Mr.
Cooke.
you so kindly Sent me; and this comes (with my love and Service) to bring my harty Thanks. Though my businesses be many, and my Infirmities more, (beinge now past the 74 year of my Age) yet I have read over your Booke, with great content and satisfaction: For I doe really believe, that the many pertinent Records, and profes which you have brought, are sufficient to evince the truth of your positions. You have done me a great honor in the Conclusion of your Booke, which I wish I were worthy of. You are pleased, to make use of the same words and chalenge to yours, which I have made to my
See his Remains.
Adversaries; and I doubt not, but you will, and (God willinge) I shall (when there is a just occasion), be able to make good that chalenge. Some of our late scriblers seeme to make the Kingdome of
England,
rather Elective than Successive and Hereditary; and that it is in the Power of the Parliament to depose and sett upp Kings, or alter the Government (which was fatally and traiterously put in practice, (to the horror and amazement of all good men) by the late longe Parliament) yet it is evident, and in our laws and publique Acts of Parliament declared, (which you better know) that this Kingdom ever was, and for ever
Statut. Jacob. I. Cap. 7.
ought to be hererditary and successive. Nor did the Conqueror, or any Kinge since, ever acknowledge or pretend to any popular or Parliamentary Election: But even those Kings, who had not an undoubted immediate right of Succession, did ever clame the Crowne, as Heires and Successors to it. Soe
William
the Conqueror; (as you have well proved) so
Henry
the 4. (after the Deposition of
Richard
the 2) did in fall Parliament, challenge the Crowne
Jure Sanguinis,
as legall Heire to it, as appeare by our authentique Records: The Record is now in print, amongst our Historians published by
Vide Historiae Anglicanae Scriptores Decem. pag. 2757.
lin.
50.
Cornelius Bee,
who had that Record from me. But I need not tell you, what (I believe) you better know. And
Henry
the 7 (as my Lord
Bacon
in his Life tells us (as I remember) when he was to be proclamed Kinge, layed clame to it, not onely as marryinge
Elizabeth,
(next Heire of the House of
Yorke
) but by Inheritance, and in right of the House of
Lancaster.
They all know, that the Kingdome of
England
was hereditary and successive, and therefore they all had, or pretended to, that Title, and not to any parliamentary or popular Election.
I beg your pardon for this tedious, and (I fear) impertinent scrible. My love and Service (with my thanks for your Civility and undeserved kindnes to me) once more remembered, you shall (at this Time) have noe farther trouble from
Your much obliged friend and servant Thomas Lincolne.
Buckden,
March 19. 1681.
P.S.
Pray present my respects and service to my worthy friend and cossin Mr.
William Petyt
of the Temple.
LETTERS OF Bishop
FLEETWOOD,
Containing, His Sentiments of the PROCEEDINGS of the NEW MINISTRY during the Last Four Years Reign of Queen
ANNE.
W HEN that unhappy Change was made in the
Queen
's Measures, 1710, which blasted all the Glories and Triumphs of the Eight preceding Years, this good Bishop, who was a steady Friend to the
Old Ministry,
because he saw they had served their Country well and faithfully, could not be drawn to give any Countenance to the Measures of the
New One,
tho' Endeavours had been used, and Intimations given by the Queen herself, who had a great Value for him, how pleasing his frequent coming to Court would be to her. But his Sentiments will best appear from his own Words, in a
Letter
to a FRIEND,
viz.
—
—When my Duty to the Queen, and the Good of my Country will permit it, my Gratitude will never let me vote against my Friends; when I have saved my Conscience, I give myself up to what I call my Honour; and therefore under all the Discouragements I can be, I shall always be on the Side of the late Ministry, because I know they served the Queen and Nation so well, that I am morally assured they never will be served better; and whenever they are, I shall certainly be on their Side who do that Service: I think I may be allowed to act as clear and disinterested a Part as any Man of our Order; for sure if I could shift my Side, I might be well accepted, considering what Relation I have had to One,
The Earl of
Rochester.
who governs all, and who is very civil to me upon all Occasions; but the Measures we are in are by no Means pleasing to me, as what will never do the Nation's Business; and I foresee that all our Millions and our Blood spent for these twenty Years past, will end in a despicable Peace, which yet we must pitifully sue for too.—
About two Years after, when he was again asked his Opinion of the Situation of our Public Affairs, his Answer was as follows;
I have been, and am still, in so ill Humour with relation to them, that I
hardly can endure to think of them. We were in the greatest Honour abroad of any Nation in the Earth; we are now the Scorn of all People: Our Friends hate us, and our Enemies laugh at us. We shall neither have a good Peace, nor a good War;
France
will not give us the first, and we ourselves have cut off the Means of the last. The Disgrace of the Duke of
Marlborough
was worth a Million at least, and yet I do not hear we got a Farthing by it; which I impute not to our Honesty and Virtue, but to our Folly, Malice, Infatuation, and the great Haste we are in to be undone. The Parliament has passed such a Censure upon the Duke, that I dare aver no equal Number of Men in all the World, of what Nation or Religion soever, would have done. But the laying him aside is so strange a thing, that People are put to all their Shifts to account for it; and to make it go down with the World, must invent, exaggerate, and say and do any thing, to make him appear worthy of such Ʋ sage; but I expect it will turn to his Enemies Mischief, as it certainly does to his Honour, that after so keen and malicious an Inquisition into his Conduct, their great Master should be able to accuse him of nothing, but of doing what all Generals have done before him, and what King
William
always did.—
In
May
1712, he published FOUR
Sermons,
on extraordinary Occasions
1. On the Death of Queen
Mary.
2. On the Death of the D. of
Glôster.
3. On the Death of K.
William.
4. On the Accession of Q.
Anne.
, with a PREFACE which was ordered to be burnt by a Vote of the Majority of the
House
of
Commons.
Upon this most unjust Affront, his Lordship wrote the following Letter to the Bishop of
Salisbury.
TO The Bishop of
Salisbury.
June 17. 1712.
MY LORD,
I Received the Favour of your Lordship's Letter, and took it, as I know it was intended, very kindly. The Manner of my receiving the Indignity put upon my Preface, was neither like a Christian nor Philosopher, but like a very worldly Man. I knew the whole Process, and knew it to be a Piece of
Revenge
For Printing, a few Months before, his excellent SERMON
against Those that Delight in War.
Wherein he had set the ungenerous Treatment shewn the D. of
Marlborough,
in such a Light, as will reflect everlasting Infamy upon his Persecutors, the Professed Enemies of their Country.
taken by a
wicked Party,
that found themselves sorely stung; and it affected me accordingly,
i.e.
very little. I am not one that love to be the Talk of the Town, and in this Part I confess I was uneasy, although I think the Talk was very much in my Favour. The Complaint was
made
by
Hungerford,
A sneering, trifling, Wrangler, and much more noted, at the Bar, for Noise and Clamour, than a Knowledge of the Laws of his Country.
and
seconded
by
Manley,
A Tool of
Hungerford
's, par Nobile Fratrum.
(
People
that should indeed have been ordered to have burnt it) and
thirded
by what we call the
Court,
and carried by Numbers without a wise Word said against it. Sir
Peter King,
Sir
Joseph Jekyll,
Mr.
Lechmere,
and others of the Robe, were very strenuous Advocates in its Behalf, and so were other Gentlemen, but to no great Purpose, for the
Court
divided 119, and my Friends but 54. If their Design was to intimidate me, they have lost it utterly; or, if to suppress the Book, it happens much otherwise, for every Body's Curiosity is awakened by this Ʋ sage, and the Bookseller finds his Account in it, above any one else. The
Spectator
has conveyed above 14,000 of them into other People's Hands, that would otherwise have never seen or heard of it. In a word,
My Lord,
when I consider that these Gentlemen have used me no worse, than, I think, they have used their own Country, the
Emperour,
the
States,
the
House of Hanover,
and all our Allies Abroad, as well as all the
Bravest, Wisest,
and the
Honestest
Men we have at Home, I am more inclined to become vain, than any ways depress'd at what has befallen me, and intend to set up for a Man of Merit upon this very Stock. But Pleasantry apart, my Heart is wounded within me, when I consider seriously whereabouts we are, and whither we are tending. The Court-Party do now own publickly, that except the Allies accept of the Conditions that are offered them, King
Philip
is not to make any
Renunciation;
and certainly the Allies cannot accept of those Conditions, unless they are distressed to the last Degree. We must and shall have a separate Peace in spite of all that can be said, and that must be without a
Renunciation
on the Part of
France,
and without a Guaranty from the Allies; and what a Peace is that like to be? It is now said, that
England
is to constrain the King of
France
to content the
States
with a Barrier to their liking, and that the rest will come in, or stand out without any Danger; but I am afraid
England
has lost all her constraining Power, and that
France
thinks she has us in her Hands, and may use us as she pleases, which I dare say, will be as scurvily as we deserve. What a Change has Two Years made? Your Lordship may now imagine you are growing young again, for we are fallen, methinks, into the very Dregs of
Charles the Second
's Politicks; saving, that then they were more reasonable, because our Enemy was then in so full Power and Lustre, as might both terrify and dazzle a poor luxurious Prince, who would not be disturbed, nor seemed to care much what became of
England
after he was gone. The present Times may put you in Mind of those, with this bad Difference still, that now the ruinous Effects of those Advices seem to be taking Place after an Interval of five, or six, and twenty Years; and after such an Interruption, as one would have thought should have quite baffled and destroyed them. I find,
My Lord,
upon reading my Letter, that I have entred upon deep Matters, which, considering the Times, and the
Spâ
Waters I have taken, I ought not to have done. You will, I hope, excuse me, for methought I was talking with you, who, I believe favour me. I have, I thank God, an intire Trust in his Goodness, and know he has hitherto preserved us beyond all reasonable Hopes, without, and against, all our Deservings; but will he still go on to save us against our Will, and in the Midst of our Endeavours to destroy ourselves? I hope He will, for else I think we are a lost People. I pray God to preserve your Lordship, and all your Family.
I am, My Lord, Your Lordship's most humble Servant, W. ASAPH.
About Three Years after the writing of this
Letter,
he had a true Sense of the great Blessing this Nation enjoyed by having both its Civil and Religious Rights fixed on such a sure and lasting Foundation as that of the
Protestant Succession
by the Arrival of King
George
I. For,
though neither You nor I,
said this good Bishop to an intimate Friend,
are to look for any Amendment of our Fortunes; yet, we have now the Satisfaction, that, we shall enjoy our little Properties in Quiet and Security, and transmit them safe to our Children.
—Such was the great Tranquillity of his Mind! He never aspired after, or was sollicitous for a Change; but yet his Deserts were justly, and soon, considered by his Majesty; for, on the Demise of Bishop
Moore,
he was Translated to the See of
Ely.
This Promotion he had enjoyed almost Nine Years when he Died,
Anno,
1723.
Bishop
Atterbury
to Mr.
Dennis.
SIR,
I Hear
one
of my
Adversaries
A certain Minister of State.
has not considered duly your
Merit;
but, continues firm to the present Fashion of distinguishing every kind of
it,
by
Ill-treatment.
I am informed, by the
News-papers,
that there is a
voluntary Subscription
For printing Some
Select Pieces of Mr.
Dennis
's in Prose and Verse. In
Two
Volumes
Octavo.
going forwards for your Advantage. I send you my Mite,
The
Bishop
and Mr.
Dennis
had been very intimate at their first setting out in the World, (especially when his Lordship was Preacher at the Rolls) what he here, calls his
Mite,
was the
genteel
present of 100
l.
Mr.
Dennis
died 1734, and was buried at the Parish-Church of St.
Martin in the Fields.
which I have really borrowed, in order thereto; for, it so happens, that some Enemies of mine enjoy an Affluence I am deprived of; but I have made this little Effort as
one
Instance that it is People, not Denominations, I consider; and to the best of my small Power of shewing, I always shall be proud of doing it.
Your, &c. FRA. ROFFEN.
Paris,
1730.
A Monsieur, Monsieur ROLLIN.
Reverende atque Eruditissime Vir,
CUM, monente amico, quodam, quijuxta Aedes tuas habitat, scirem te Parisios revertisse; statui salutatum te ire, ut primùm per valetudinem liceret. Id officii, ex pedum infirmitate aliquandiu dilatum, cùm tandem me impleturum sperarem, frustra sui, domi non eras. Restat, ut quod coram exequi non potui, scriptis saltem literis praestem; tibique ob ea omnia, quibus à te auctus sum, beneficia, grates agam, quas habeo certe, & semper habiturus sum, maximas.
Reverà munera illa librorum nuperis à te annis editorum egregia ac perhonorifica mihi visa sunt. Multi enim facio, & te, vir praestantissime: & tua omnia quaecunque in isto literarum genere perpolita sunt; in quo quidem Te caeteris omnibus ejusmodi scriptoribus facilè antecellere, atque esse eundem & dicendi & sentiendi magistrum optimum, prorsùs existimo: cúmque in excolendis his studiis aliquantulum ipse & operis & temporis posuerim, liberè tamen profiteor me, tua cum legam ac relegam, ea edoctum esse a te, non solùm quae nesciebam prorsùs, sed etiam quae antea didicisse mihi visus sum. Modestè itaque nimum de opere tuo sentis, cùm juventuti tantùm instituendae elaboratum id esse contendis. Ea certè scribis, quae à viris istiusmodi rerum haud imperitis, cum voluptate & fructu legi possunt. Vetera quidem & satis cognita revocas in memoriam; sed ita revocas, ut illustres, ut ornes; ut aliquid vetustis adjicias quod novum sit, alienis quod omnino tuum: bonasque dicturas bonà in luce collocando efficis, ut etiam iis, a quibus saepissimè conspectae sunt, elegantiores tamen solitò appareant, & placeant magis.
Certè, dum Xenophontem saepiùs versas, ab illo, & ea quae à te plurimis in locis narrantur, & ipsum ubique narrandi modum videris traxisse, stylique Xenophontei nitorem ac venustam simplicitatem non imitari tantùm, sed planè assequi: ita ut si Gallicè scîsset Xenophon, non aliis illum, in eo argumento quod tractas, verbis usurum, non also prorsùs more scripturum judicem.
Haec ego, haud assentandi causâ (quod vitium procul a me abest) sed verè ex animi sententiâ dico. Cùm enim pulchris a te donis ditatus sim, quibus, in eodem, aut in alio quopiam doctrinae genere referendis imparem me sentio, volui tamen propensi erga te animi gratique testimonium proferre, & te aliquo saltem munusculo, etsi perquam dissimili, remunerari.
Perge, vir docte admodum & venerande, de bonis literis, quae nunc neglectae passim & spretae jacent, benè mereri: perge juventutem Gallicam (quando illi solummodo te utilem esse vis) optimis & praeceptis & exemplis informare.
Quod ut facias, annis aetatis tuae elapsis multos adjiciat Deus! iisque decurrentibus sanum te praestet atque incolumem. Hoc ex animo optat ac vovet
Tui observantissimus FRANCISCUS ROFFENSIS.
6o . Kal. Jan. 1731.
P.S.
Pransurum te mecum post Festa dixit mihi amicus ille noster qui tibi vicinus est. Cum statueris tecum quo die adfuturus es, id illi significabis. Me certé annismalisque debilitatum, quandocunque veneris, domi invenies.
TO Monsieur ROLLIN.
Reverend and most Learned Sir,
WHEN a Friend, who is your near Neighbour, informed me of your Return to
Paris,
I resolved to see you, as soon as I found myself able to stir abroad. The Gout obliged me to defer that Happiness for some Time; and when at length I hoped to enjoy it, it was my Misfortune that you was not at home. It remains therefore that I perform by Letter, what I could not do by Word of Mouth; and that I give you hearty Thanks for the many Favours you have conferred on me, of which I shall always retain a grateful Remembrance.
Those Presents of the Books which you have published of late Years, are to me very valuable, and do me abundance of Honour; for, most worthy Sir, I greatly esteem you, and every Thing of yours. Every thing you write in that Kind of Learning, is finely finished; and I not only prefer you before all other Writers in that Way, but esteem you as the most perfect Master both of Style and Sentiment: And tho' I have spent some little Time and Pains myself in Pursuit of this very Study, yet I freely own, that when I read your Works over and over, I learn not only those Things from you which I did not know, but also many Things which I thought I had been Master of before. Therefore you speak too modestly of your Persormance, when you say it is only calculated for the Instruction of Youth. Men who are well acquainted with this Branch of Learning, may certainly read your Writings with Pleasure, and with Profit. You revive indeed to our Memories Facts that are ancient and well known, but in reviveing them, you illustrate and adorn them; to the Old you add something New; to the Works of Others, something that is intirely your Own; and by placing good Pictures in a good Light, you bring it to pass, that they give greater Pleasure, and appear more beautiful than ever, even to those who have often seen them before.
As you frequently turn over
Xenophon,
you clearly seem to have borrowed from him both the Matter which you relate in many Places, and the manner of relating it, and you have not only imitated, but have manifestly acquired the Perspicuity and neat Simplicity of his Style: So that, if
Xenophon
had understood
French,
I am of Opinion he would have written in no other Words or Manner than you have done upon the same Subject.
I say not these Things to flatter (a Vice I am not at all liable to) but from my real Sentiments; and as you have inriched me with the choicest Gifts, to which I know myself unable to make a suitable Return, in the same, or any other, Kind of Learning, I was at least desirous to shew a willing and grateful Mind to you, and to make you some small Present,
The Bishop sent Him his Sermons.
tho' very unlike what I had received. Go on, most Learned and Reverend Sir, to deserve well of the Republic of Letters, in these Days too much neglected and despised: Go on to form the Youth of
France
(since you will acknowledge your self useful only to them) by the best Precepts and Examples.
Which that you may accomplish, may God add many Years to your Life; and may they be attended with Health and Tranquillity. These, Sir, are the hearty Wishes of
Your most Obedient Servant, FRANCIS ROCHESTER.
P.S.
Our Friend, your Neighbour, told me you would dine with me after the Holy-days. When you have fixed your Day, be pleased to give him Notice of it. Whenever you come, you will certainly find me at home, disabled, as I am, by Old Age and other Evils.
December 27. 1731.
ORATIO.
M.DCC.X.
ID Officii, quod à te, PATER REVERENDISSIME, sibi demandatum habuit Clerus, ut vitum aliquem doctum & disertum, suscipiendo PROLOCUTORIS muneri idoneum, sustinendo parem, è gremio suo eligeret, pro solenni more fideliter explevit; vobisque hodie, PATRES admodum VENERANDI, meá voce commendat eximium hunc
Virum,
nostrae, vestrae, & bonorum omnium existimationi suis in Ecclesiam meritis jampridem commendatum;
Virum
iis ingenii dotibus praeditum, ut omni praeconio sit dignus, eâ nominis famâ celebrem, ut nullo indigeat:
Virum
ad descriptam à majoribus designandi PROLOCUTORIS formulam adeò compositum, ut non tam nostris suffragiis quam antiquis Synodorum legibus ad insigne hoc munus evocari videatur. Si quid enim adjumenti afferat ad obeundam hanc provinciam exquisita doctrina, Quis eam majori aut suâ laude aut nostro fructu est obiturus, quàm
Vir
in nullo literarum genere hospes, in plerisque artibus & studiis diù & feliciter exercitatus, in maximè perfectis literarum disciplinis perfectissimus? Si ad consummati PROLOCUTORIS tandem id praecipuè pertinet, ut complurium disertissimorum virorum sententiam sui unius linguâ eleganter exprimat, habemus Oratorem eà facundiâ perpolitum, ut à vobis, PATRES, minime metuendum sit ne responsorum vestrorum dignitati sua dicendi inscitiâ detrahet: ànobis maximè sperandum, quòd nostris desideriis multum ponderis ac momenti suâ eloquentiâ sit additurus. Si in conciliandis hominum animis plurimùm valet gratia, in concionibus moderandis permagnam vim habet autoritas, quem potiùs optemus rerum inter nos disquirendarum arbitrum, quàm
Virum
placidissimis moribus ita popularem, ut omnes bonos atque humanos indolis suae suavitate ad pacis & concordiae studium facilè speret allicere; ita sine arrogantiâ gravem, ut procellarum si quae fortè ingruerint motus, ipsius praesentiae dignitate statim represserit? Vestrae igitur expectationi, PATRES SANCTISSIMI, parum satisfecerat Clerus, si gravissimum hoc onus in humeros minos valentes collocaverat, pariterque ingratum sese & maximorum beneficiorum immemorem arguerat, si quae honoris praemia penes ipsos posita
Viro
optime de se merito non libenter obtulerat. Primam certe sedem in synodali nostrâ domo jure vendicat, qui suscitante Deo, id vehementer conatus est, favente Deo, id feliciter effecit, ut non omnino demortuae, non penitùs elingues apud nos fuerint Synodi.
Favete mihi, PATRES, hanc rem paulò altius repetenti; nihil ad dignitatem vestram, quam ex animo submisse veneror, minuendam, nihil ad inimicitias, à quibus totus abhorreo, resuscitandas sum dicturus. Multis jam annis interrupta fuerant Prelatorum & Cleri concilia: ad tractanda Reipublicae negotia frequens fuit senatûs populique congressio, ad promovendam Ecclesiae utilitatem nulli interim Episcoporum cum Presbyteris conventus. Iniquo id consilio factum non dico, non existimo: imò ex propensâ in Ecclesiam voluntate, ex pio dissidii metu, ex ardentissimo pacis conservandae studio profectum facilè credo; verùm enimvero diuturnam illam Synodorum intermissionem in maximum Ecclesiae detrimentum aliquando cessuram multi autumabant homines nec improbi nec imprudentes. Quod ab optimo PRINCIPE optimis consiliis inchoatum norant, id à pejori PRINCIPE pejora meditanti in Ecclesiae perniciem trahi posse valdè metuebant. Multa interea novorum dogmatum portenta indies evulgantur, multae ubique haereses virus suum ac venena impunè spargunt: in Sacerdotes, in res sacras, in sanctissimum ipsius Dei nomen, dictu turpia, auditu horrenda evomuntur convitia. Adversus teterrimas has pestes salubre olim ac praesens remedium adhibuerat Synodorum autoritas: Hanc opem boni omnes implorârant, hâc ope destituti, de tuendâ apud
nos
Religione prorsus desperandum putant. Ea suit rerum nostrarum conditio, cùm Synodi
Anglicanae
jura, potestates, ac privilegia in apertâ luce collocanda & firmissimis legum ac consuetudinum praesidiis munienda censuit
Vir
doctissimus. Ad hanc metam collimans, antiqua Ecclesiae monumenta situ & squalore obsita sedulus vestigar; cogendorum Synodorum viam ac rationem, habendarum normam & regulam, non ex sermone hominum recenti, non ex nostrâ aut PATRUM nostrorum memoriâ, sed ex priscorum commentatis, ex Regum edictis, ex Pontificum fastis eruendas ducit: Chartas ipsâ vetustate pene obliteratas, locis multùm dissitas, magno labore ac pretio conquisitas, in sua scrinia compilat, legit, relegitque. Hisce adminiculis adjutus, viam multis spinis obsessam, spissis tenebris obvolutam, variis ambagibus perplexam, primus insistit: Nullus erat quem tutò sequeretur itineris dux, nulla quae gressus dirigerent praeeuntium vestigia; quin
Ille
suis ingenii luminibus fretus, & flagrandi veritatîs indagandae studio accensus, eam tandem utcunque abditam & reclusam integumentis suis evolvit; rebus obscuris lucem, ambiguis fidem, inornatis nitorem attulit: Antiquam
Ecclesiae
faciem, reducto quasi velo, omnibus contemplandam pariter ac suspiciendam ante ora atque oculos posuit; expressam ejus imaginem justâ lineamentorum figuratione conformatam, aptis coloribus depictam, in hujusce
Viri
scriptis laeti conspicimus; quanto majori laetitiâ simul & veneratione matronam ipsam, quasi à mortuis reviviscentem, spirantem demum & loquentem coram intuebimur. Nullo
Hunc
rerum novandarum studio, nullâ privatim laesum injuriâ, nullâ praemii spe aductum, nullâ re aliâ commotum nisi communi? Ecclesiae utilitate, arduum hoc opus suscepisse, si non ipsi saepe id & solenniter asseveranti fidem adhiberem,
Virum
mihi ob officiorum conjunctionem valdè dilectum, ob spectatam integritatem perquam honoratum gravi injuriâ afficerem: si eam opinionem quae animo meo penitùs insedit, quamque non ex inani conjecturâ temerè arripui, sed ex intimiori consuetudine experiundo suscepi, aliorum animis inserere non studerem, nec benevoli, nec fidi, nec honesti viri officio defungerer. Nunquam illum in tam longo opere lapsum esse, unquam errasse, nullum fervente calamo verbum emisisse, quod non restinctis animi incendiis revocare vellet, si dicerem, plena invidiâ foret oratio, & nulli magis quam ipsi molesta: Si non saepe lapsum, non graviter deceptum, non sponte alios in errorem traxisse dixero; si plurima in istis paginis enitere, quae summam laudem merentur, perpauca esse quae excusatione indigeant, plane nulla quibus homines benevoli haud facilè ignoscant, fidenter asseram, dicam quod & ego sentio, &., nisi prae nimiâ amicitiâ invitus fallar, mecum sentiunt omnes aequi rerum aestimatores. Sit igitur veniae, sit laudi, sit gratitudini locus; si quid fortè asperius, si quid ardentius, si quid liberius effuderit, lector paulò humanior id non odio, non livori, non arrogantiae tribuet; sed aut ingenio suaptè naturâ aliquantulum praefervido, aut fortasse iracundiae in milite pro aris focisque acriter dimicante, in filio ab injuriâ & vi matrem suam eripiente facilè ignoscendae. Quòd si plures in illius scriptis effulgent virtutes, si res tractaverit cognitu difficiles, utiles, jucundas; si eas validissimis argumentis firmaverit, si puro ac dilucido sermone in ipsis Legentium animis inscripserit, eruditioni apud eruditos, eloquentiae apud disertos suus constet honos. Si Synodorum privilegia ac libertates haud sine aliquo fortunae suae discrimine constanter asseruit, si publicae utilitati rem privatam posthabuit, jurium Ecclesiasticorum vindici aliqua saltem ab Ecclesiasticis rependatur gratia: Hanc aptissimam laborum suorum mercedem reportet
Vir
in agendis rebus acer & industrius, ut spatiosior ei aperiatur campus, ubi in instaurandâ, in promovendâ, in stabiliendâ Ecclesiae pace ingenium suum ac vires exerat. Quo audientium plausu apud Populum, apud Magistratum, apud Clerum, apud Senatores, apud Aulicos è rostris frequentem concionatus est: quâ facundiâ & MARIAE in coelum jam receptae aures saepe demulsit, &
Sororis
divinâ gratia adhuc superstitis & diu (ita faxit Deus) superfuturae animum gravi ac recenti dolore ferè oppressum recreavit: quâ dignitate Concionatoris, Canonici, Archidiaconi, Decani munia officiis & locis disjuncta, diu sustinuit! eadem circumstantium approbatione, eâdem eloquentiâ, iisdem virtutibus Prolocutoriam hanc Cathedram aliquanter perornet, aliam at
que
altiori honoris gradu positam (nisi vana auguror) aliquando ornaturus. Quicquid certè Ecclesiae
Anglicanae
utile aut gloriosum fuerit, id omne nobis spondet hodiernus rerum status: Populi studium, Principum virorum fervor, Optimae Reginae pietas, arctissima inter Ordines Civiles atque Ecclesiasticos concordia. Fuit semper inter inferiora Regni & Ecclesiae Concilia affinitatis conjunctio, & qualis inter sorores esse solet, cum diversitate aliquâ non parva similitudo: at propior iis jam abhinc intercedit cognatio, dum duobus hisce caetibus duo praeerunt viri in eâdem Aede; faecundâ optimarum artium parente pariter innutriti, sub eodem beatae memoriae Antestiti simul educti, iisdem principiis penitùs imbuti, uterque fide in Principem, in Patriam, in Ecclesiam exploratâ, stabili, inconcussa: uterque magna de se pollicitus, majora praestiturus: alter Reipublicae, alter Ecclesiae optimè apud nos constitutae & feliciter attemperatae propugnator strenuus: Dignus sanè ille, quem
Senatus Reginae
addictissimus sibi praeficeret, quem
Regina
civium amantissima autoritate suâ confirmaret: Nec indignus hic, quem Clerus Episcopali Ordini firmiter obstrictus deditusque, Vobis, PATRES, commendet, quem Vos, Patres maximè colendi, pro tenerrima in Clerum affectu calculis vestris comproberis.
Dr.
SMALRIDGE
's SPEECH TO THE Upper House of
Convocation.
This Version was made by Dr.
Sewell,
and approv'd by Dr.
Smalridge.
THE CLERGY,
Most Reverend Father,
Addressing Himself to Archbishop TENNISON.
have in the usual manner, with all Fidelity, discharged the Duty You injoined them, the Choice of a Man of Learning and Eloquence out of their own Body, fit to undertake, and equal to execute the Office of their PROLOCUTOR, and they do this Day recommend to you,
Venerable Fathers,
by my Mouth, this Excellent Person,
Dr.
Francis Atterbury.
already by his great Merits to the Church sufficiently recommended to Our, to Your, and the general Esteem of all good Men; a Person endowed with such Talents, that he deserves all manner of Praise; so high in Fame and Reputation, that he stands in need of none; a Person so exactly suiting the Plan and Character which our Ancestors laid down for a PROLOCUTOR, that he may well seem selected from among Us to this high Dignity, not so much by our VOTES, as by the Ancient Rules of CONVOCATIONS.
For if a Store of exquisite Learning can be of any Assistance in the Discharge of this Office, who can discharge it with greater Applause to himself, or more Advantage to Us, than One who is well acquainted with
all
Parts of Literature, long and successfully exercised in
most
Arts and Studies, most accomplished and perfect in those Sciences which admit of the greatest Perfection? If lastly, it is a peculiar part of the Character of a Complete PROLOCUTOR, to express by his single Tongue the Sentiments of many Eloquent Men, we have an Orator of so finished an Elegance, that You, Fathers, need not fear that his Unskilfulness should diminish the Dignity of your Answers; and we may justly hope, that his Eloquence will add a considerable Weight and Advantage to Our Petitions. If Good-will has an Influence in reconciling Refentments, Authority a great Force in moderating Disputes, whom we could rather wish to be a Judge in our Debates, than one whose gentle Disposition renders him so popular, that he may justly hope by the Sweetness of his Temper to allure all who have any share of, Goodness or Humanity, to the Study of Peace and Unity; one, whose Gravity is so free from Arrogance, that should any Commotions happen to arise among us, the very Dignity of his Presence must immediately suppress them. Little therefore, most
Sacred Fathers,
had the Clergy answered your Expectations, had they placed this weighty Burthen on any weaker Shoulders; and at the same time they had proved themselves ungrateful, and forgetful of the greatest Benefits, had they not willingly offered any Honours, that they could confer, to one who had so highly deserved of them. He certainly may rightfully claim the first Place in our SYNOD, who by Divine Incitement strenuously endeavoured, by Divine Favour happily effected this, That SYNODS in this Nation are not altogether lost and dead, nor intirely Speechless.
Indulge me,
Fathers,
if I trace this matter something higher; nothing shall I say to detract from your Dignity, to which I bear the deepest and sincerest Veneration; nothing to revive antient Differences, to which I have the utmost Abhorrence.
The Convention of the Bishops and Clergy had been now for some Years interrupted. The Meetings of the States in Parliament for the Management of the Affairs of the
Common-wealth
were frequent; all this time there were no Meetings of the
Bishops
and
their Clergy,
for the Promotion of the Good of the Church. I don't say, I don't think, that this was done with an evil Intent; nay, I am apt to believe, that it proceeded from an Affection to the Church, from a pious Fear of Differences, and an ardent Desire for the Preservation of Peace: But however, many Persons, who neither wanted Honesty nor Foresight, thought that this Intermission of Convocations would one time or other prove of the greatest Disadvantage to the Church. They were under great Apprehensions, that what they knew was begun by the best of Princes, and with the best Advice, might by a worse
Prince,
who had worse Designs, be turned to the Destruction of the
Church.
In the mean time many new monstrous Doctrines are daily Published; many Heresies diffuse their poisonous Principles with Impunity; Reproaches and Blasphemies, shameful to utter, and horrible to hear, are freely vented against the Priesthood, against things Sacred, and the most Holy Name of GOD himself. The Authority of a Convocation had formerly given a proper and present Antidote against these Plagues. All good Men implore this Assistance; without this they think we must utterly despair of preserving and defending Religion in these Nations.
Such was the State of Affairs, when this very Learned
Person
thought it proper to place
The Rights, Powers and Privileges of an English Convocation
The Title of Dr. Atterbury's Book in Answer to Dr.
Wake
's
State of the Church, and Clergy of
England.
fol.
1703.
in an open and true Light, and to strengthen them with all the Force they could receive from Laws and Custom. With this View he searches carefully into the Antient Monuments of the Church, then covered with Dust and obscurity, rightly thinking that the Manner and Method of Convening, the Rules and Laws of holding
Convocations,
was not to be drawn from the modern Discourses of Men, nor from the Memory of us, or our Fathers; but from the Commentaries of the Antients, the Edicts of Kings, and the Registers of Popes. For this purpose he got into his Possession, with great Labour and Cost, many loose and scatter'd Manuscripts, almost obliterated by Time, which he carefully read again and again. By the Assistance of these he first ventured to tread a Way involved with Darkness, covered with Thorns, and perplexed with Intricacies, without any Guide to conduct him, without any Footsteps of former Travellers to direct him. But he, relying on the Strength and Powers of his Genius, and inflamed with the Zeal for the Discovery of Truth, unwound all these Mazes, however difficult and perplexed; Things in themselves obscure he brighten'd, the doubtful reduced to Certainty, and polished the unornamental. He by drawing away the Veil exhibited to publick View and Admiration the antient Face of the
Church.
In his Writings we with Joy behold her very Picture drawn in proper Colours, and exactly agreeable to the true Features and Lineaments of the Original; and how will that Joy and Veneration be increased, when we shall view the Matron herself before us, reviv'd as it were from the Dead, breathing, speaking! Much should I injure one endeared to me by the strictest Rules of Friendship, much esteemed from frequent Trials of his Integrity, if I did not believe his frequent and solemn Asseverations, that he did not engage in this Great Work out of any Desire of Innovations, any private Resentments, or meaner Views of Interest, but merely for the Good and Advantage of the
Church.
Neither should I act the human, faithful or just Part, did I not endeavour to fix in the Minds of others that Character and Opinion of Him, which is intirely rooted in my own; and which I did not rashly take up from slight Conjectures, but from an intimare Acquaintance and long Experience. This Recommendation would be too invidious, and more uneasy to Him than any one besides, should I say that he never err'd, never was mistaken in so long a Work, never let some Words in the Heat of his Pen pass from him, which he would not willingly have recalled upon cooler Reflections. Should I say that he has not often nor grosly err'd, nor willingly drawn others into Mistakes; should I positively assert that there are many Things in these Writings that merit the highest Praise, few that want any Allowances of Excuse, none but what Men of Humanity might easily pardon; I should in that utter my own Opinion, and, if I am not deceived by too great a Fondness of Friendship, the Opinion of all impartial Judges too. Be there then room left for Pardon, for Praise, for Gratitude. If some sharp, warm or free Expressions have escaped him, a Reader of any Humanity will not attribute them to Envy, Resentment, or Arrogance, but to a Temper of itself too warm, or perhaps to Passion easily pardonable in a Soldier who contended for all that is dear to Us, in a Son endeavouring to rescue his Mother from Injury and Violence. But if there is an Overballance of Beauties in his Writings, if he has treated of things in themselves difficult, useful, pleasing; if he has confirmed them by the strongest Arguments, if he has imprinted them in the Minds of the Readers by a Purity and Perspicuity of Stile, it is fit that he receive the Applause due to Learning from Men of Letters, from the Eloquent the Honour due to Eloquence. If he has bravely asserted the Privileges and Liberties of CONVOCATIONS at the Hazard of his own Fortune, if he has preferr'd the publick Advantage to his private Interest, let the CLERGY make some Returns at least, to the Assertor of
The Rights of the Clergy.
May this Man of equal Penetration and Diligence in the Management of Business, receive this most proper Reward of his Services, the Opportunity of acting in a larger Sphere, where he may exert all his Powers of Arts and Genius, in contriving, promoting, and confirming
the Peace of the Church.
WITH what Applause has he often Preached before the People, the Magistrates, the Clergy, the Senate, and the Court! How often has the late Queen MARY (now gathered to the Saints above) been charmed with his Eloquence! And what Address did he use in tempering the Soul of her
Sister,
who still survives (and by the Blessing of Heaven may she long do so!) when she was almost oppressed and overcome by her late Affliction.
The Death of Prince GEORGE.
As he has long supported with Dignity the different and distinct Offices of a Preacher, Canon, Arch-Deacon, and Dean, so may he with the same Virtues, the same Eloquence, the same universal Approbation, adorn this Chair as PROLOCUTOR, who will (if I prophecy right) some time or other adorn one in a greater and more honourable Station.
The present Sate of Affairs certainly promises Us every thing that is likely to redound to the Advantage and Glory of
The Church
of
England,
from the Inclination of the People, the Zeal of the Ministry, the Piety of the best of QUEENS, and the closest Agreement between the Civil and Ecclesiastical Powers. There ever was a near Affinity between the
House of Commons
and the
Lower House of Convocation,
a Resemblance such as is usual between Sisters, with some diversity: But from this Time there will be a nearer Relation between them, while
Mr.
Bromley
and Dr.
Atterbury,
both of
Christ-Church, Oxon.
Two Persons educated together in the same College (ever fruitful of the best Sciences) under the same
Bishop
Fell.
Prelate of blessed Memory, happily instructed in the same Principles, preside over these different Assemblies; both of them, of tried, fixed, unshaken Fidelity, to their
Prince,
their
Country,
and their
Church;
who both make us hope Great Things, and who will still perform Greater. The One a strenuous Assertor of the best constituted and happily tempered
Government,
the Other of its
Church.
He certainly was a proper Person for a SENATE to make choice of to preside over them, that bore the deepest Veneration for their QUEEN; and one fit to be confirmed by the Authority of a QUEEN, who had the tenderest Affection for her People: Neither is This Person unworthy to be recommended to you, FATHERS, by a
Clergy
most Dutiful and Respectful to the
Episcopal Order,
nor undeserving that Approbation, which you,
Venerable Fathers,
out of your tender Affection to that CLERGY, shall vouchsafe to their Election.
ORATION.
Nova
PHILOSOPHIA
Veteri
praeferenda est.
Vid. THEATRI
Oxoniensis
ENCAENIA, sive
Comitia Philologica,
Julii 7. 1693, celebrata.
N.B.
Of this Piece one
Lockman
who pretended to write Mr.
Addison
's Life was wholly ignorant.
QUOUSQUE Veterum Vestigiis serviliter insistemus, Academici, nec ultra Patres sapere audebimus? Quousque Antiquitatis ineptias, ut Senum Deliria nonnulli solent, religiose venerabimur? Pudeat sane, dum tam praeclarum Aetatis hujusce Specimen coram Oculis praesens intuemur, ad Antiquos Encomia nostra transferre, & inter priora saecula quos celebremus sedulo investigare.
Satis superque veteri Philosophiae concessum est, quod STAGYRITAE Laudibus Theatrum toties sonuit
Sheldonianum,
quod ille vel Alexandro suo major in Scholarum Rostris tam diu impune triumphavit, & totum Mundum habuit Discipulum. Faeliciori tandem ingenio succedit CARTESIUS, qui contra omnes omnium oppugnantium vires Veritatem pertinaciter asseruit, & novum hoc introduxit philosophandi Genus; si vero Philosophiae isti Novitatis Nomen tribuendum sit, quae, quanquam jam primum innotuerit, vel Peripateticam Antiquitate superat, & ipsi Materiae a quâ derivatur, existit coaetanea. Illustris ille Vir, quem unum
Galliae
invidemus, proinde omnia explicuit, ac si ipse totius Mundi olim fuisset Architectus. Diffregit ille Vitreos istos Caelorum Orbes, quos Veterum insomnia compegere, ex Materiae Catibulis ignotam eruit Formarum Turbam, & elementum Ignis penitus extinxit, imo totam tam dilucide depinxit Rerum universitatem, ut nulla jam Qualitas relicta sit occulta. Inter Mundi
Aristotelici
Angustias & Maenia Chrystallina diutius coarctari dedignatur Philosophus, juvat undique Superiores Coelorum Tractus explorare, novosque soles, & Mundos inter Sydera latentes detegere; juvat immensas hasce Aetheris plagas Orbibus erraticis passim interspersas, Terrafque per Viam Lacteam undequaque disjacentes intueri, & Machinae totius Molem rectius metiri, Machinae jam tandem dignae, ubi Philosophorum Animi expatientur, Deo dignae Opifice,
Nec solum in Coelis Orbes novos, sed si in Tellurem despiciatur, diversa Animantium Genera hodierna patefecit Philosophia, dum Perspicilli Ope Oculorum Acies intenditur, & obvios se produnt minutissimarum Rerum partus, dum curioso intuitu animatas conspicimus Materiae Particulas, & Reptiles miramur Atomorum viventium acervos: Usque adeo vel Oculi acriores fiunt Neotericorum Artibus, & Opus, quod unum ex omnibus optimum voluit Natura, emendatur & perficiatur. Non jam barbaras Peripateticorum voces & obscuriores Scholarum Terminos tanquam Oraculi Ambages inepte veneramur, sed ipsa Sensuum Dictamina consulimus, & Machinis nuper inventis Tormentum quoddam Naturae admovemus quibus cogitur Arcana sua abditissimasque Vires Palam confiteri.
His adjuti Instrumentis etiam Aetherem, quem omnibns indulsit Naturae Benignitas, nos potentiori Arte quoties libet Animalibus negamus, Pneumaticoque carceri inclusis commune Aurae Aetheriae Consortium interdicimus▪ Ut juvat irritos pulmonum conatus intueri, Vitam exhaurire, & Spiritum ipsum ingenioso quodam Furto surripere! Ubi nihil adeo tutum est, adeo Animae suae tenax, quod non paulatim effrigescat, & nullo accepto Vulnere concidat Cadaver. Divinum hoc quidem artis opus, & Autore suo non indignum, qui Vitae, Moribus, & Argumentorum Pondere Gentem nostram & novam tam eximie cohonestavit Philosophiam, qui hinc certe meruit ut Aeris sui Beneficio nunquam destitueretur, & qui caetera Animalia toties Vita spoliavit, suam nunquam exhalaret.
Non hisce quidem Auxiliis innixus, suam contexuit Philosophiam ARISTOTELES, qui omnes ex seipso eruit Artium & Scientiarum Regulas, & nihil intactum nihil illibatum reliquit praeter ipsam Veritatem: Si ideo in
Euripum,
quoniam illius naturam non satis habuit exploratam, sese praecipitem immerserit eadem, quidem Ratione adduci potuit, ut in ipso Philosophiae suae Limine Mortem sibi conscisceret, & optimo quidem jure dubitare liceat in quo Elemento praeter caetera potius debuerit periisse.
Quin ubi inter
Euripi
Fluctus actum est de ARISTOTELE, nova tandem succrevit Peripate pejor, quae Philosophiam tanta Verborum caligine involutam posteris reliquit, ut hoc solum obstet, quo minus omnium Risu & Dicteriis excipiatur, quoniam a paucissimis intelligitur. Inveniuntur autem qui inter has Commentariorum sarcinas, quibus haec Blateronum Soboles Mundum oneravit, Operae Pretium ducunt Aetatem terere, qui divinos hos Literarum Thesauros volvunt denuo, revolvuntque, nec unquam prodeunt, nec Studiis se unquam abripiunt, nisi ut ostendant quanto Labore opus est ut erudiamur desipere: Num quod enim potest Spectaculum pulchrius exhiberi, quam ut pugiles hujusmodi sagaces inter se digladiantes intueamur? Hic Propositionibus & Syllogismis armatus illum similiter armatum aggreditur: Uterque Vervex indignatur, pendet, Avidus Victoriae, quae non tantilli est, utri accenseatur, uterque (quod unum potest) in alterum Barbarismos pro virili ejaculatur, irretiunt sese tandem ineptiis, & cum neuter videt quomodo se expediat, Receptui canitur, & consumptis utrinque Armis, utrinque visum est demum conticescere.
Huc usque,
Academici,
nec ultra progreditur Antiquorum Philosophia. Ineptam ideo hanc Commentatorum Turbam si Bibliothecis & Catenis in Aeternum damnemus alligandam, ubi Vermimum & Tinearum fiant Pabula, & ab omni Lectorum inspectu liberi placide exolescant.
Joseph Addison.
AN ORATION, IN DEFENCE OF THE NEW Philosophy.
Translated by
Richard Rawlinson,
L.L.D. and F.R.S. of St.
John
's Coll.
Oxon.
GENTLEMEN of the
Ʋ niversity,
how long, shall we slavishly tread in the Steps of the Antients, and be afraid of being wiser than our Ancestors? How long shall we religiously worship the Triflings of Antiquity, as some do Old Wives Stories? It is indeed shameful, when we survey the great Ornament of the present Age,
Sir
Isaac Newton.
to transfer our Applauses to the Ancients, and to take Pains to search into Ages past for Persons deserving of Panegyric.
The antient Philosophy has had more allowed, than it could resonably pretend to. How often has SHELDON's Theatre rung with Encomia on the
Stagyrite,
Who, greater than his own
Alexander,
has long, un-opposed, triumphed in our School-Desks, and had the whole World for his Pupils. At length arose CARTESIUS, a happier Genius, who has bravely asserted the Truth against the united Force of all Opposers, and has brought on the Stage a new Method of Philosophizing. But shall we stigmatize with the Name of Novelty that Philosophy, which, tho' but lately revived, is more antient than the
Peripatetic,
and as Old as the Matter from whence it is derived. A great Man indeed He was, and the only one we envy FRANCE. He solved the Difficulties of the Universe almost as well as if he had been its Architect. He destroyed those Orbs of Glass, which the Whims of Antiquity had fixed above, brought to light that Troop of Forms till then unknown, and has almost extinguished the Element of Fire; nay, he with so much Clearness traced out the whole Mass of Matter, as to leave no Occult Quality untouched. This Philosopher scorned to be any longer bounded within the Streights and Chrystalline Walls of an
Aristotelic
World; No, his Delight is to search the Regions above, to discover new Suns, and new Worlds, which lay hid amongst the Stars; his Satisfaction is to view that large Kingdom of Air amidst the unfixed Stars, and Lands that pass the Milky-Way, and more accurately measure this vast Machine, a Machine fit for Mankind to philosophize on, and worthy of the Deity, who first framed it.
Here we have not only New Heavens opened to us, but we look down on our Earth; this Philosophy affords us several Kinds of Animals, where, by the Help of the Microscope, our Eyes are so far assisted, that we may discern the Productions of the smallest Creatures, while we consider with a curious Eye the animated Particles of Matter, and behold with Astonishment the reptile Mountains of living Atoms. Thus are our Eyes become more penetrating by modern Helps; and even that Work, which Nature boasts for her Master-Piece, is rendered more correct and finished. We no longer pay a blind Veneration to that barbarous
Peripatetic
Jingle, those obscure Scholastic Terms of Art, once held as Oracles, but consult the Dictates of our own Senses, and by late invented Engines force Nature herself to discover plainly her most valued Secrets, her most hidden Recesses.
By the Help of Instruments like these, that Air, which a bountiful Nature has indulged us, we, as often as we please, by the Force of Art, abridge other Animals of, and keep them in our Pneumatick Pumps, from its common Benefit: What a Pleasure is it to see the fruitless Heavings of the Lights, to exhaust their Lives, and by a most artful Sort of Theft rob them of their Breath? From this nothing is safe, nothing so long lived, which gradually does not languish, and fall dead without a Wound. A divine Piece of Art this, and worthy its Author,
The Honourable
Robert Boyle
Esq
who in the Conduct of his Life, and the Force of his Arguments, has so nobly honoured our Nation, and the new Philosophy, one who for this Reason too deserves never to want the Benefit of his own Air, or that he, who has so often deprived other Animals of their Life, should ever breathe out his own.
On no such Grounds as these has ARISTOTLE built his Philosophy, who from his own Brain furnished out all his Rules of Arts and Sciences, and left nothing untouched on, nothing unregarded but
Truth.
If therefore he precipitated himself into the River
Euripus,
because he could not understand its Ebb and Flow, by the same Logick he might at his first Entrance on Philosophy have destroyed himself, and we may fairly doubt, in which of the Elements he ought to have perished.
After ARISTOTLE's Fate amidst the Waves of
Euripus,
a new Race of
Peripateticks
started up, even worse than their Founder, who handed their Philosophy to After-Ages in so thick an Obscurity, that it has preserved it from the Satire and Ridicule of all Mankind, as understood by very few. Some there are to be found, who spend their Time amidst the Rubbish which these Commentators have filled the World with, and pore more than once on these god-like Treasures of Learning, and stick to them to no other Purpose, unless to shew the World the vast Pains they take to be deceived. Can there be a more pleasant Sight than to see these wise Champions wrangling with each other? The one, armed with Propositions and Syllogisms, attacks his Antagonist in the same Armour: Both Bell-weathers grow angry, and storm, fond of a Victory, which is worth but a Trifle, when obtained: Each, with all his Might darts out his Barbarisms at the other, they entangle themselves in their Follies, and as neither knows how to extricate himself, they sound to a Retreat, and when all the Ammunition is spent on both Sides, they think fit to keep Silence.
Thus far,
Gentlemen,
and no farther launches out the antient Philosophy: Let us therefore sentence for ever this Troop of Commentators, to be tied up in Chains and Libraries, Food only for Moths and Worms, and there let them quietly grow Old, free from the Sight of any Reader.
Joseph Addison.
A CHARACTER OF Mr.
Edmund Curll,
Bookseller.
By Mr. POPE.
Before the Lords,
Alone, untaught to fear,
Stood dauntless CURLL
(and spoke to ev'ry Peer.)
He triumph'd, Victor of the high wrought Day!
DUNCIAD.
W E come now to a
Character
of much
Respect,
Equal in Family, Birth, Education, and
Respect
to Mr.
Alexander Pope.
that of Mr. EDMUND CURLL. As a plain Repetition of great Actions is the best Praise of them, we shall only say of this eminent Man, that he carried his Trade many Lengths beyond what it ever before had arrived at,
This Truth is agreed to, by all who know Mr.
Curll;
and if he has
carried
the
Art
of
Bookselling
beyond all his Cotemporaries, has not Mr.
Pope
done the same by the
Art
of
Poetry?
Mr.
Dryden
had neither
Chariot
nor
Barge
(of which Mr.
Pope
makes his Boast) but tells us, he was
Unprofitably kept at Heav'ns Expence,
And liv'd a Rent-Charge on its Providence.
and that he was the Envy and Admiration of all his Profession.
In this Instance also do the
Characters
of Mr.
Curll
and Mr.
Pope
exactly Tally.
He possessed himself of a Command over all Authors whatever; he caused them to write what he pleased;
So will every Body, who pays for what he bespeaks.
they could not call their
very Names
their own.
Mr.
Pope
has often denied his own
very Name,
and wrote under those of
Barnivelt,
Dr.
Norris,
&c.
He was not only famous among these; He was taken Notice of by the State, the Church, and the Law, and received particular Marks of Distinction from each.
These Favours Mr.
Curll
has
enjoyed,
and Mr.
Pope
can only
expect
them in
Reversion.
It will be owned, that he is here
(i.e.
in the
Dunciad)
introduced with all possible
Dignity:
And in Return, Mr.
Curll,
in his Dedication of the SECOND VOLUME of
Literary Correspondence,
has introduced Mr.
Pope
with all possible
Ignominy.
He speaks like the intrepid
Diomed;
he runs like the swift-footed
Achilles;
if he falls, it is like the beloved
Nisus;
and (what
Homer
makes to be the Chief of all Praises) he is favoured of the Gods: He says but three Words, and his Prayer is heard;
Homer
—THERSITES sings; and
Pope
a CURLL.
a Goddess conveys it to the Seat of
Jupiter;
tho' he loses the Prize, he gains the Victory; the great Mother herself comforts him, she inspires him with Expedients, she honours him with an immortal Present (such as
Achilles
receives from
Thetis,
and
Aeneas
from
Venus
) at once instructive and prophetical: After this, he is unrivaled and triumphant.
As to the Classical Mimicries herein alluded to, I refer the Reader to that Colluvy: or, Sink of Scandal, the
Dunciad,
to encounter which, would be like a Gentleman's boxing with a Chimney-Sweeper in the Habit of his Vocation.
The Tribute our Author here pays him, was a grateful Return for several unmerited Obligations: Many weighty Animadversions on the Public Affairs, and
many
excellent and diverting Pieces of private Persons, had he given to his Name.
This is false. Mr.
Pope
is defied to produce any
one
Instance of his Assertion.
If ever he owed
two
Verses to any other, he owed Mr.
Curll
some thousands.
This Debt (of Mr.
Pope
's to Mr.
Curll
) acknowledged by
Scriblerus,
will be discharged like those promised by Mr.
Pope
in Advertisements, by adding one
Falshood
to
another.
CRYING came our Bard into the World, but LYING, it is greatly to be feared, will he go out of it. One Monument will suffice for the Remains of him and his Relatives;
Ananias, Saphyra, Scriblerus
and
Will. Cleland.
He was every Day extending his Fame, and enlarging his Writings: Witness innumerable Instances! but it shall suffice only to mention the
Court Poems,
which he
How can Mr.
Pope
tell what Mr.
Curll meant?
The Preface to the
Court Poems
only mentions the Public Voice; that they were attributed to a
Lady,
Mr.
Gay
and Mr.
Pope,
but here,
utrum horum,
is left to every one's Choice. Why does not Mr.
Pope
name the true Writer?
meant
to publish as the Work of the true Writer, a
Lady of Quality;
but being first
As to Mr.
Pope
's first threatening, and afterwards punishing Mr.
Curll,
it is our Opinion he has met with a
Rowland
for his
Oliver.
Fas est vel ab hoste doceri.
threatened, and afterwards punished for it by Mr.
Pope,
he generously transferred it from
Her
to
Him,
and has now printed it above
Eighteen
Years in his Name.
And will continue so to do, till Mr.
Pope
thinks fit to tell the Truth. Mr.
Gay
has inserted
one
of them (the
Toilette
) among his Poems, which is a full Detection of Mr.
Pope
's Falshood in affirming, that they were, All of them, the Performance of a
Lady of Quality.
The single Time that ever he spoke to
Curll
was on that Affair, and to that happy Incident he owed all the Favours since received from him. So true is the Saying of Dr.
Sydenham,
We allow the Verity of Dr.
Sydenham
's Saying: For Mr.
Curll
has certainly been the better for Mr.
Pope
's BAD Qualifications, but not his GOOD ones. 
Probatum est.
"That any One shall be, at some Time or other, the
better
or the
worse,
for having but seen or spoken to a
good,
or a
bad
Man."
Court Poems
to this Work are join'd,
That All the World may see;
Pope
's Falshoods manifested here,
Hinc illae Lacrymae.
Kneller pinx Parr sculp
Mr . Pope Horatius Anglicanus.
SOBER ADVICE FROM HORACE, TO THE Young GENTLEMEN about Town.
As delivered in his SECOND SERMON.
IMITATED
[NOTAE BENTLEIANAE.]
Imitated.
Why Imitated? Why not translated?
Odi Imitatores!
A Metaphrast had not turned
Tigellius,
and
Fufidius, Malchinus
and
Gargonius
(for I say
Malchinus,
not
Malthinus,
and
Gargonius
not
Gorgonius
) into so many LADIES.
Benignus, hic, hunc,
&c. all of the Masculine Gender: Every School-boy knows more than our Imitator.
in the Manner of Mr.
POPE.
Together with the
Original Text,
as restored by the Reverend RICHARD BENTLEY, Doctor of Divinity. And some Remarks on the
Version.
Printed for
T. Boreman,
at the
Cock
on
Ludgate-Hill,
1739; who having taken the Liberty, lately, to Print some Poems which are my Property, I here return him the Compliment, in Part, as I always will, whoever attacks me, by way of
Lex Talionis,
i.e. the just
Law
of
Retaliation.
E.C.
TO
Alexander Pope,
Esq
i.e.
Alexander Pope,
Esq
to Himself.
SIR,
I HAVE so great a Trust in your Indulgence toward me, as to believe you cannot but Patronize this
Imitation,
so much in your
own Manner,
and whose
Birth
I may truly say is
owing to you.
This Assertion proves most True.
There farther runs a Rumour, that Mr.
Pope
challenged
Dr. Bentley's
Son, to a Pistol Combat on this Occasion,
but how true this is I know not.
In that Confidence, I would not suppress the Criticisms made upon it by the
Reverend Doctor,
the rather, since he has promised to
mend the Faults
in the next Edition, with the same Goodness he has practised to
Milton.
I hope you will believe that while I express my Regard for you, it is only out of Modesty I conceal my Name; since, tho' perhaps, I may not profess myself your Admirer so much as some others, I cannot but be, with as much inward Respect, Good-Will, and Zeal as any Man,
Dear Sir,
Your most Affectionate, AND Faithful Servant.
SOBER ADVICE FROM HORACE.
T HE Tribe of Templars, Play'rs, Apothecaries,
Pimps, Poets, Wits, Lord
Fanny
's, Lady
Mary
's,
And all the Court in Tears, and half the Town,
Lament dear charming
Oldfield,
dead and gone!
Engaging
Oldfield!
who, with Grace and Ease,
Could join the Arts, to ruin, and to please.
Not so, who of Ten Thousand gull'd her Knight,
Then ask'd Ten Thousand for a second Night;
The Gallant too, to whom she pay'd it down,
Liv'd to refuse that Mistress half a Crown.
This is a Piece of Travelling Scandal, related of the late Duchess of
C—d
and the late Duke of
M—h.
 
E.C.
Con. Philips
cries,
A sneaking Dog I hate.
That's all
three
Lovers have for their Estate!
Treat on, treat on,
is her eternal Note,
And Lands and Tenements go down her Throat.
Some damn the Jade, and some the Cullies blame,
But not Sir
H—t,
for he does the same.
With all a Woman's Virtues but the Pox,
Fufidia
thrives in Money, Land, and Stocks:
For Int'rest, Ten
per Cent.
her constant Rate is;
Her Body? hopeful Heirs may have it
gratis.
She turns her very Sister to a Job,
And, in the Happy Minute, picks your Fob:
Yet starves herself, so little her own Friend,
And thirsts and hungers only at one End:
A Self-Tormentor, worse than (in the
See my
Terence, Heautontimorumenos:
There is
nothing
in Dr.
Hare
's. BENT.
Play)
The Wretch, whose Av'rice drove his
Son
away.
But why all this? Beloved, 'tis my Theme:
Women and Fools are always in Extreme.
Rufa
's at either End a Common-Shoar,
Sweet
Moll
and
Jack
are
Civet-Cat
and
Boar:
Nothing in Nature is so lewd as
Peg,
Yet, for the World, she would not shew her Leg!
While bashful
Jenny,
ev'n at Morning-Prayer,
A Verse taken from Mr.
Pope.
Of which, Mr.
Pope
is so fond, that he has made use of it no less than
three
Times. 
E.C.
Spreads her
Fore-Buttocks
to the
Navel
bare.
But diff'rent Taste in diff'rent Men prevails,
And one is fired by Heads, and one by Tails,
Some feel no Flames but at the
Court
or
Ball,
And others hunt
white Aprons
in the
Mall.
My Lord of
L—n,
chancing to remark
A
noted Dean
much busy'd in the Park,
" Proceed (he cry'd) proceed, my Reverend Brother,
" 'Tis
Fornicatio simplex,
and no other:
" Better than Lust for Boys, with
Pope
and
Turk,
" Or others Spouses, like
Others read
Lord-Mayor.
Cork
would have stopt this Hole. 
E.C.
my Lord of —
May no such Praise (cries
J—s
) e'er be mine!
J—s,
who bows at
Hi—sh—w
's
hoary Shrine.
All you, who think the
City
ne'er can thrive,
Till ev'ry Cuckold-maker's flead alive;
Attend, while I their Miseries explain,
And pity Men of Pleasure still in Pain!
Survey the Pangs they bear, the Risques they run,
Where the most lucky are but last undone.
See wretched
Monsieur
flies to save his Throat,
And quits his Mistress, Money, Ring, and Note!
K—
of his Footman's borrow'd Livery stript,
By worthier Footmen pist upon and whipt!
Plunder'd by Thieves, or Lawyers, which is worse,
One bleeds in Person, and one bleeds in Purse;
This meets a Blanket, and that meets a Cudgel—
And all applaud the Justice—All, but
A Gentleman as celebrated for his
Galiantries
as his
Politicks;
an entertaining History of which may be published, without the least
Scandal
on the
Ladies.
 
E. CURLL.
This
Opinion
I agree to as
True,
but that this Note was
Mine,
is
False.
 
E.C.
Budgell.
How much more safe, dear Countrymen! his State,
Who trades in Frigates of the second Rate?
And yet some Care of
S—st
should be had,
Nothing so mean for which he can't run mad;
His Wit confirms him but a Slave the more,
And makes a Princess whom he found a Whore.
The Youth might save much Trouble and Expence,
Were he a Dupe of only common Sense.
But here's his Point; a Wench (he cries) for me!
I never touch a Dame of Quality.
To
P—l—r
's Bed no Actress comes amiss,
He courts the whole
Personae Dramatis:
He too can say,
With Wives I never sin.
But Singing-Girls and Mimicks draw him in.
Sure, worthy Sir, the Diff'rence is not great,
With
whom
you lose your Credit and Estate?
This, or that Person, what avails to shun?
What's wrong is wrong, wherever it be done:
The Ease, Support, and Lustre of your Life,
Destroy'd alike with Strumpet, Maid, or Wif e.
What push'd poor
E—s
on th'Imperial Whore?
'Twas but to be where CHARLES had been before.
The fatal Steel unjustly was apply'd,
When not his Lust offended, but his Pride:
Too hard a Penance for defeated Sin,
Himself shut out, and
Jacob Hall
A famous Rope-Dancer.
let in.
Suppose that honest Part that rules us all,
Should rise, and say—"Sir
Robert!
or Sir
Paul!
" Did I demand, in my most vig'rous Hour,
" A Thing descended from the Conqueror?
" Or when my Pulse beat highest, ask for any
" Such Nicety as Lady or Lord
Fanny?
—
What would you answer? could you have the Face,
When the poor Suff'rer humbly mourn'd his Case,
To cry,
You weep the Favours of her
Spoken not of one particular Dutchess, but of divers Dutchesses.
GRACE?
Hath not indulgent Nature spread a Feast,
The original Manuscript has it,—
Spread a Feast
Of—enough for Man, enough for Beast:
but we prefer the present, as the purer Diction.
And giv'n enough for Man, enough for Beast?
But Man corrupt, perverse in all his Ways,
In search of Vanities from Nature strays:
Yea, tho' the Blessing's more than he can use,
Shuns the permitted, the forbid pursues!
Weigh well the Cause from whence these Evils spring,
'Tis in thyself, and not in God's good Thing:
Then, lest Repentance punish such a Life,
Never, ah, never! kiss thy Neighbour's Wife.
First,
Silks and Diamonds veil no finer Shape,
Or plumper Thigh, than lurk in humble Crape:
And
secondly,
how innocent a
Belle
Is she who shows what Ware she has to sell;
Not Lady-like, displays a Milk-white Breast,
And hides in sacred Sluttishness the rest.
Ourancient Kings (and sure those Kings were wise,
Who judg'd themselves, and saw with their own Eyes)
A War-Horse never for the Service chose,
But ey'd him round, and stript off all the Cloaths;
For well they knew, proud Trappings serve to hide
A heavy Chest, thick Neck, or heaving Side.
But Fools are ready Chaps, agog to buy,
Let but a comely Fore-hand strike the Eye:
No Eagle sharper, every Charm to find,
To all Defects,
Ty—y
not so blind:
Goose-rump'd, Hawk-nos'd, Swan-footed, is my Dear:
They'll praise her
Elbow, Heel,
or
Tip o'th' Ear.
A Lady's Face is all you see undress'd;
(For none but Lady M— show'd the Rest)
But if to Charms more latent you pretend,
What Lines encompass, and what Works defend!
Dangers on Dangers! Obstacles by Dozens!
Spies, Guardians, Guests, old Women, Aunts, and
Cozens!
There is a famous
Staye-Maker
of this Name, which stiffens the
Double Entendre
here meant. 
E.C.
Could you directly to her Person go,
Stayes will obstruct above, and Hoops below,
And if the Dame says yes, the Dress says no.
Not thus at
Needham
's;
A
Quondam
Bawd of high Renown,
In whose Apartments P— has oft been seen,
Patting Fore-Buttocks, to divert the Spleen.
your judicious Eye
May measure there the Breast, the Hip, the Thigh!
And will you run to Perils, Sword, and Law,
All for a Thing you ne're so much as
saw?
" The Hareonce seiz'd, the Hunter heeds no more
" The little Scut he so pursu'd before,
" Love follows flying Game (as
Sucklyn
sings)
" And 'tis for that the wanton Boy has Wings."
Why let him Sing—but when you're in the Wrong,
Think you to cure the Mischief with a Song?
Has Nature set no Bounds to wild Desire?
No Sense to guide, no Reason to enquire,
What solid Happiness, what empty Pride?
And what is best indulg'd, or best deny'd?
If neither Gems adorn, nor Silver tip
The flowing Bowl, will you not wet your Lip?
When sharp with Hunger, scorn you to be fed,
Except on
Pea-Chicks,
at the
Bedford-Head?
A noted Tavern for Eating, Drinking and Gaming, in
Southampton-Street, Covent-Garden.
 
E.C.
Or, when a tight, neat Girl, will serve the Turn,
In errant Pride continue stiff, and burn?
I'm a plain Man, whose Maxim is profest,
" The Thing at hand is of all Things the
best.
But Her who will, and then will not comply,
Whose Word is
If, Perhaps,
and
By-and-by,
Z—ds! let some Eunuch or Platonic take—
So
B—t
cries, Philosopher and Rake!
Who asks no more (right reasonable Peer)
Than not to wait too long, nor pay too dear.
Give me a willing Nymph! 'tis all I care,
Extremely clean, and tolerably fair,
Her Shape her own, whatever Shape she have,
And just that White and Red which Nature gave.
Her I transported touch, transported view,
And call her
Angel! Goddess! M—ue!
No furious Husband thunders at the Door;
No barking Dog, no Houshold in a Roar;
From gleaming Swords no shrieking Women run;
No wretched Wife cries out,
Undone! Undone!
Seiz'd in the Fact, and in her Cuckold's Pow'r,
She kneels, she weeps, and worse! resigns her Dow'r.
Me, naked me, to Posts, to Pumps they draw,
To Shame eternal, or eternal Law.
Oh Love! be deep Tranquility my Luck!
Here the Imitator errs. The
Latin
has it
dum futuo,
a most necessary Circumstance! which ought to be
restored;
and may, by the change of a
single Word,
be the
same
with that of the Author, and one which wou'd marvelously agree with the Ladies in the second Line. 
BENT.
No Mistress
H—ysh—m
near, no Lady
B—ck!
For, to be taken, is the Dev'l in Hell;
This Truth, let
L—l, J—ys, O—w
tell.
HORATII FLACCI. S. II. L. I.
Textum recensuit V. R. RICARDUS BENLEIUS, S. T. P.
AMbubajarum collegia, pharmacopolae,
Mendici, mimae, balatrones; hoc genus omne
Maestum ac sollicitum est cantoris morte Tigelli:
Quippe
Benignus
erat—
—Contra hic, ne prodigus esse
Dicatur, metuens, inopi dare nolit amico,
Frigus quo duramque famem depellere possit.
Hunc si perconteris, avi cur atque parentis
Praeclaram ingrata stringat malus ingluvie rem,
Omnia conductis coemens obsonia nummis:
Sordidus, atque animi quod parvi nolit haberi,
Respondet. Laudatur ab his, culpatur ab illis.
Fufidius vappae famam timet ac nebulonis,
Dives agris, dives positis in fenore nummis.
Quinas hic capiti mercedes exsecat; atque
Quanto perditior quisque est, tanto acrius urguet.
Nomina sectatur, modo sumta veste virili
Sub patribus duris, tironum. Maxime, quis non,
Juppiter, exclamat, simul atque audivit?
At in se
Pro quaestu sumtum facit hic.
Vix credere possis
Quam sibi non sit amicus: ita ut
Pater
ille, Terenti
Fabula quem miserum
gnato
vixisse
fugato
Inducit, non se pejus cruciaverit atque hic.
Si quis nunc quaerat, Quo res haec pertinet? Illuc:
Dum vitant stulti vitia, in contraria currunt.
Malchinus tunicis demissis ambulat: est qui
Inguen
ad
obscaenum
subductis usque facetus:
Pastillos Rufillus olet, Gargonius hircum.
Nil medium est. Sunt qui nolint tetigisse, nisi illas,
Quarum subsuta talos tegat instita veste:
Contra alius nullam, nisi olente in
fornice
stantem.
Quidam
notus bomo
cum exiret fornice; "Macte
" Virtue esto, inquit, sententia dia Catonis,
" Nam simul ac venas inflavit tetra libido,
" Huc juvenes aequum est descendere, non alienas
" Permolere uxores.—
—Nolim laudarier, inquit,
Sic me, mirator CUNNI CUPIENNIUS ALBI
CUNNI CUPIENNIUS ALBI, Hoary Shrine.
Here the Imitator grievously errs.
Cunnus albus
by no means signifying a
white
or
grey Thing,
but a Thing under a
white
or
grey Garment,
which Thing may be either black, brown, red, or party-coloured. 
BENT.
Audire est operae pretium, procedere recte
Qui moechos non voltis, ut omni parte laborent;
Utque illis multo corrupta dolore voluptas,
Atque haec rara, cadat dura inter saepe pericla.
Hic se praecipitem tecto dedit: ille flagellis
Ad mortem caesus: fugiens hic decidet acrem
Praeonum in turbam: dedit hic pro corpore nummos:
Hunc perminxerunt calones; quin etiam illud
Accidit, ut
TESTIS CAUDAMQUE SALACEM Demeterent ferro (
for so I say, and not
Demeteret ferrum) Bleeds in Person.
Silly! Was he let Blood by a Surgeon? How short is this of the Amputation of the
Testes
and
Cauda salax?
What Ignorance also of Ancient Learning appears in his shallow Translation of
Perminxerunt,
totally missing the Mark, and not entring into the deep Meaning of the Author.
cuidam TESTIS, CAUDAMQUE SALACEM
Demeterent ferro. Jure omnes. Galba negabat.
Tutior at quanto merx est in classe secunda!
Libertinarum dico: Sallustius in qua
Non minus insanit, quam qui moechatur. At hic si,
Qua res, qua ratio suaderet, quaque modeste
Munifico esse licet, vellet bonus atque benignus
Esse; daret quantum satis esset, nec sibi damno
Dedecorique foret. Verum hoc se amplectitur uno,
Hoc amat & laudat: Matronam nullam ego tango.
Ut quondam Marsaeus amator Originis, ille
Qui patrium mimae donat fundumque laremque,
Nil fuerit mi, inquit, cum uxoribus umquam alienis.
Verum est cum mimis, est cum meretricibus unde:
Fama malum gravius, quam res, trahit. An tibi abunde
Personam satis est, non illud, quicquid ubique
Officit, evitare? bonam deperdere famam,
Rem patris oblimare, malum est ubicumque. Quid inter
Est in matrona, ancilla, peccesne togata?
Villins in Fausia Sullae gener, hoc miser uno
Nomine deceptus, poenas dedit usque, superque
Quam satis est; pugnis caesus, ferroque petitus,
Exclusus fore, cum Longarenus foret intus.
Huic si, mutonis verbis, mala tanta videnti
Diceret haec animus: Quid vis tibi? numquid ego a te
Magno prognatum deposco consule
Magno prognatum deposco consule
Cunnum.
A Thing descended from the Conqueror.
A Thing descended.—why
Thing?
The Poet has it
Cunnum;
which, therefore, boldly place here. 
BENT.
CUNNUM,
Velatumque stola, mea cum conferbuit ira?
Quid responderet? Magno patre nata puella est.
At quanto meliora monet, pugnantiaque istis
Dives opis natura suae! ut si modo recte
Dispensare velis, ac non fugienda petendis Inmiscere.
—Tuo vitio, rerumne labores,
Nil referre putas? quare, ne poeniteat te,
Desine matronas sectarier: unde laboris
Plus haurire, mali est, quam ex re decerpere fructus.
Nec magis huic, inter niveos viridisque lapillos
Sit licet, o Cerinthe, tuo tenerum est femur, aut crus
Rectius: atque etiam melius persaepe togatae est.
Adde huc, quod mercem sine fucis gestat; aperte
Quod venale habet, ostendit; neque si quid honesti est
Jactat habetque palam, quaerit quo turpia celet.
Regibus hic mos est, ubi equos mercantur; opertos
Inspiciunt: ne si facies, ut saepe, decora
Molli fulta pede est; emtorem ducat hiantem,
Quod pulchrae clunes, breve quod caput, ardua corvix.
Hoc illi recte. Tu corporis optima Lyncei
Contemplare oculis; Hypsaea caecior, illa
Quae mala sunt, spectas. O crus, O brachia! verum
Depugis, nasuta, brevi latere, ac pede longo est.
Matronae, praeter faciem, nil cernere possis;
Ceatera, ni Catia est, demissia veste tegentis.
Si interdicta petes, vallo circumdata, (nam te
Hoc facit insanum) multae tibi tum officient res;
Custodes, lectica, ciniflones, parasitae;
Ad talos stola demissa, & circumdata palla:
Plurima, quae invideant pure adparere tibi rem.
Altera nil obstat: Cois tibi pene videre est
Ut nudam▪ ne crure malo, ne sit pede turpi:
Metiri possis oculo latus. an tibi mavis
Insidias fieri, pretiumque avellier, ante
Quam mercem ostendi?
—LEPOREM venator ut alta
In nive sectetur, positum sic tangere nolit:
Cantat, & adponit, MEUS est amor huic similis: nam
Transvolat in medio posita, & fugientia captat.
Hiscine versiculis speras tibi posse dolores,
Atque aestus, curasque gravis e pectore tolli?
Nonne, cupidinibus statuat natura modum quem,
Quid latura, sibi quid sit dolitura negatum,
Quaerere plus prodest; & inane abscindere soldo?
Num, tibi cum faucis urit sitis, aurea quaeris
Pocula? num esuriens fastidis omnia praeter
PAVONEM, Pea-Chicks
] Not ill-render'd, meaning a
young
or
soft Piece,
Anglice
a Tid-Bit:
such as that Delicate Youth
Cerinthus,
whose Flesh, our
Horace
expressly says, was as
tender as a Lady's,
and our Imitator turn'd
Such Nicety, as Lady or Lord F—
not amiss truly; it agrees with My own Reading of
tuo femore,
instead of
tuum femur,
and savours of the true Taste of Antiquity. 
BENT.
Pavonem, rhombumque? tument tibi cum inguina, num, si
Ancilla aut verna est praesto puer, impetus in quem
Continuo fiat, malis centigine rumpi?
Non ego: namque
parabilem amo venerem, facilemque.
ILLAM,
Post paullo, Sed pluris, Si exierit vir,
Gallis: Hanc, Philodemus ait sibi, quae neque magno
Stet pretio; nec cunctetur, cum est jussa venire.
Candida rectaque sit; munda hactenus, ut neque longa,
Nec magis alba velit, quam det natura, videri.
Haec, ubi supposuit dextro corpus mihi laevum,
Ilia & Egeria est: do nomen quodlibet illi.
Nec vereor, ne,
dum futuo,
vir rure recurrat;
Janua frangatur; latret canis; undique magno
Pulsa domus strepitu resonet: ne pallida lecto
Desiliat mulier; miseram se conscia clamet;
Cruribus haec metuat, doti haec deprensa, egomet mi.
Discincta tunica fugienda est, ac pede nudo;
Ne nummi pereant, aut puga, aut denique fama.
Deprendi miserum est: Fabio vel judice vincam.
LETTERS WRITTEN BY King
HENRY
the VIIIth, TO
ANNE BOLEYN,
1528.
LETTER I.
N.B.
The 1st, 2d, 3d, 4th and 5th of these
LETTERS,
are Translated,
literally,
from the
French
Originals.
M Y Mistress and Friend, I and my Heart put our selves in your Hands, begging you to recommend us to your Favour, and not to let Absence lessen your Affection to us. For it were great Pity to increase our Pain, which Absence alone does sufficiently, and more than I could ever have thought; bringing to my Mind a Point of Astronomy, which is, That the farther the
Moors
are from us, the farther too is the Sun, and yet his Heat is the more scorching; so it is with our Love, we are at a Distance from one another, and yet it keeps its Fervency, at least on my Side. I hope the like on your Part, assuring you that the Uneasiness of Absence is already too severe for me, and when I think of the Continuance of that which I must of Necessity suffer, it would seem intolerable to me, were it not for the firm Hope I have of your unchangeable Affection for me; and now to put you sometimes in mind of it, and seeing I cannot be present in Person with you, I send you the nearest Thing to that possible, that is, my Picture set in Bracelets, with the whole Device, which you know already, wishing my self in their Place, when it shall please you. This from the Hand of
Your Servant and Friend, H. Rex.
LETTER II.
To my MISTRESS,
BECAUSE the Time seems to me very long, since I have heard from you, or concerning your Health; the great Affection I have for you, has obliged me to send this Bearer to be better informed both of your Health and Pleasure, particularly because since my last parting with you, I have been told, that you have intirely changed the Opinion in which I left you, and that you would neither come to Court with your Mother, nor any other Way; which Report, if true, I cannot enough wonder at, being persuaded in my own Mind, that I have never committed any Offence against you; and it seems a very small Return for the great Love I bear to you, to be kept at a Distance from the Person and Presence of the Woman in the World that I value the most; and if you love me with as much Affection as I hope you do, I am sure the Distance of our Two Persons would be a little uneasy to you. Tho' this does not belong so much to the Mistress as the Servant. Consider well, my Mistress, how greatly your Absence grieves me; I hope it is not your Will that it should be so; but if I heard for certain, that you your self desired it, I could do no other than complain of my ill Fortune, and by Degrees abate my great Folly: And so for want of Time, I make an End of my rude Letter, desiring you to give Credit to this Bearer in all he will tell you from me. Written by the Hand of your entire Servant.
LETTER III.
THE Uneasiness my Doubts about your Health gave me, disturbed, and frightned me extreamly, and I should not have had any Quiet without hearing a certain Account. But now since you have yet felt nothing, I hope it is with you as with us; for when we were at
Walton,
two Ushers, two
Valets de Chambre,
and your Brother, Master Treasurer, fell ill, and are now quite well; and since we are returned to your House at
Hundsdon,
we have been perfectly well, God be praised, and have not at present one sick Person in the Family; and I think if you would retire from the
Surrey
Side, as we did, you would escape all Danger. There is another Thing that may comfort you, which is, that in Truth, in this Distemper,
The
Sweating-Sickness.
few or no Women have been taken ill; and besides, no Person of our Court, and few elsewhere have died of it. For which Reasons I beg you, my entirely beloved, not to frighten your self, nor to be too uneasy at our Absence. For where-ever I am, I am yours, and yet we must sometimes submit to our Misfortunes; for whoever will struggle against Fate, is generally but so much the farther from gaining his End: Wherefore comfort your self, and take Courage, and make this Misfortune as easy to you as you can, and I hope shortly to make you sing for Joy of your Recal. No more at present for lack of Time, but that I wish you in my Arms, that I might a little dispel your unreasonable Thoughts. Written by the Hand of him who is, and always will be yours
My
H.
Rex, Lovely.
LETTER IV.
BY turning over in my Thoughts the Contents of your last Letters, I have put my self into a great Agony, not knowing how to understand them, whether to my Disadvantage, as I understood some others, or not; I beseech you now, with the greatest Earnestness, to let me know your whole Intention as to the Love between us two. For I must of Necessity obtain this Answer of you, having been above a whole Year struck with the Dart of Love, and not yet sure whether I shall fail, or find a Place in your Heart and Affection. This Uncertainty has hindered me of late from naming you my Mistress, since you only love me with an ordinary Affection; but if you please to do the Duty of a True and Loyal Mistress, and to give up your self, Body and Heart to me, who will be, as I have been your most Loyal Servant, (if your Rigour does not forbid me) I promise you that not only the Name shall be given you, but also that I will take you for my Mistress, casting off all others that are in Competition with you, out of my Thoughts and Affection, and serving you only. I beg you to give an entire Answer to this my rude Letter, that I may know on what, and how far I may depend. But if it does not please you to answer in Writing, let me know some Place, where I may have it by Word of Mouth, and I will go thither with all my Heart. No more for fear of tiring you. Written by the Hand of him who would willingly remain yours,
H. Rex.
LETTER V.
FOR a Present so valuable that nothing could be more (considering the Whole of it) I return you my most hearty Thanks not only on account of the costly Diamond, and the Ship in which the solitary Damsel is tossed about; but chiefly for the fine Interpretation, and too humble Submission which your Goodness hath made to me. For I think it would be very difficult for me to find an Occasion to deserve it, if I was not assisted by your great Humanity and Favour, which I have sought, do seek, and will always seek to preserve by all the Services in my Power; and this is my firm Intention and Hope, according to the Motto,
Aut illic, aut nullibi.
Either Here, or Nowhere,
The Demonstrations of your Affection are such, the fine Thoughts of your Letter so cordially expressed, that they oblige me for ever to honour, love, and serve you sincerely; beseeching you to continue in the same firm and constant Purpose; and assuring you that on my Part, I will not only make you a suitable Return, but out-do you in Loyalty of Heart, if it be possible. I desire you also, that if at any Time before this I have in any Sort offended you, you will give me the same Absolution which you ask, assuring you, That hereafter my Heart shall be dedicated to you alone, I wish my Body were so too, God can do it if he pleases; to whom I pray once a Day for that End; hoping that at length my Prayers will be heard. I wish the Time may be short, but I shall think it long, till we shall see one another. Written by the Hand of the Secretary, who in Heart, Body and Will, is,
Your Loyal, and most Assured Servant,
H.
no other Heart,
A.B.
seeks
Rex.
LETTER VI.
Original.
THE Reasonable Requests of your last Letter, with the Pleasure I also take to know them, causes me to send you now this Newes. The Legat,
Campegio.
which we most desire, arrived at
Paris
on
Sunday
or
Monday
last past; so that I trust, by the next
Monday,
to hear of his Arrival at
Calais:
And then I trust, within a While after, to enjoy that which I have so long longed for, to God's Pleasure, and both our Comforts. No more to you at this present, mine awne Darling, for lake of Time; but that I would you were in myne Arms, or I in yours; for I think it long since I kyst you. Writen after the killing of an Hart, at xi of the Clock: Minding with God's Grace to-morrow, mightily tymely to kill another, by the Hand of him, which I trust shortly shall be yours.
Henry Rex.
LETTER VII.
Original.
DArling, tho' I have skant Leasure, yet remembring my Promise, I thought it convenient to certifie you breevly, in what Case our Affaires stand. As touching a Lodging for you, we have gotten wone by my Lord Cardinal's Means, the like whereof could not have been fond hereabouts for all Causes, as this Bearer shall more shew yow. As touching our other Affairs, I ensure you there can be no more done, nor more Diligence used, nor all manner of Dangers better both foreseen and provided for, so that I trust it shall be hereafter to both our Comforts, the Speciallities whereof were both too long to be writen, and hardly by Messenger to be declared. Wherefor till you repaire hydder, I keep something in Store, trusting it shall not be long too. For I have caused my Lord your Father, to make his Provisions with Speed. And thus for lake of Tyme, Darling, I make an end of my Letter, writen with the Hand of him which I would were yours.
H. Rex.
LETTER VIII.
Out of
French.
ALTHO' it doth not belong to a Gentleman to take his Lady in the Place of a Servant, however in following your Desires I willingly grant it, that so you may be more agreeably in the Place that you yourself have chosen, than you have been in that which I gave you. I shall be heartily obliged to you, if you please to have some Remembrance of me. 6. N. R. 1. de. R. O. M. V. E. Z.
Henry. Rex.
LETTER IX.
Original.
THE Cause of my Writeing at this time (good Sweatheart) is wonly to understand off your good Health and Prosperity, whereof to know, I would be as glad as in manner myne awne, praying God (that and it be his Pleasure) to send us shortly togyder, for I promise you I long for it, howbeit, trust it shall not be long too, and seeing my Darling is absent, I can no less do, than to send her some Fleshe representing my Name, which is Hart's-Fleshe, for
Henry,
prognosticating, that hereafter God willing you must enjoy some of mine, which if he pleased I wolde were now. As touching your Sister's Matter, I have caused
Walter Welche
to write to my Lord mine Minde therein, whereby I trust that
Eve
shall not have Power to deceive
Adam.
For surely whatsoever is said, it cannot so stand with his Honour, but that he must needs take her his natural Daughter now in her extreame Necessity. No more to you at this tyme mine awne Darling, but that with a Wishe I wolde we were togyder one Evening with the Hand of your
H. Rex.
LETTER X.
Out of
French.
ALthough, My Mistress, you have not been pleased to remember the Promise which you made me when I was last with you, which was, That I should hear News of you, and have an Answer to my last Letter; yet I think it belongs to a true Servant (since otherwise he can know nothing) to send to enquire of his Mistress's Health; and to acquit my self of the Office of a True Servant, I send you this Letter, begging you to give me an Account of the State you are in, which I pray God may continue as long in Prosperity, as I wish my own; and that you may the oftner remember me, I send you, by this Bearer, a Buck killed late last Night by my Hand, hoping when you eat of it, you will think on the Hunter; and thus for want of more Room, I will make an End of my Letter. Written by the Hand of your Servant, who often wishes you in your Brother's Room.
H. Rex.
LETTER XI.
Out of
French.
THE Approach of the Time which I have so long expected, rejoices me so much, that it seems almost already come. However, the intire Accomplishment cannot be till the two Persons meet, which Meeting is more desired by me than any Thing in this World; for what Joy can be greater upon Earth, than to have the Company of her who is my dearest Friend? knowing likewise that she does the same on her Part, the Thinking on which gives great Pleasure. You may judge what an Effect the Presence of that Person must have on me, whose Absence has made a greater Wound in my Heart, than either Words or Writing can express, and which nothing can Cure but her Return: I beg you, dear Mistress, to tell your Father from me, That I desire him to hasten the Appointment by two Days, that he may be in Court before the Old Term, or at farthest on the Day prefixed; for otherwise I shall think, he will not do the Lover's Turn, as he said he would, nor answer my Expectation. No more at present for want of Time; hoping shortly that by Word of Mouth I shall tell you the rest of my Sufferings from your Absence. Written by the Hand of the Secretary, who wishes himself at present privately with you, and who is, and always will be,
Your Loyal, and most Assured Servant,
H.
no other Heart,
A.B.
seeks
Rex.
LETTER XII.
Out of
French.
THERE came to me in the Night the most afflicting News possible. For I have reason to grieve upon three Accounts.
First,
Because I heard of the Sickness of my Mistress, whom I esteem more than all the World, whose Health I desire as much as my own, and the Half of whose Sickness I would willingly bear to have her cured.
Secondly,
Because I fear I shall suffer yet longer that tedious Absence which has hitherto given me all possible Uneasiness, and as far as I can judge, is like to give me more. I pray God he would deliver me from so troublesome a Tormentor.
The Third Reason is,
because the Physician, in whom I trust most, is absent at present, when he could do me the greatest Pleasure. For I should hope by him, and his Means, to obtain one of my principal Joys in this World, that is my Mistress cured; however, in Default of him, I send you the second, and the only one left, praying God that he may soon make you well, and then I shall love him more than ever. I beseech you to be governed by his Advice, with relation to your Illness; by your doing which, I hope shortly to see you again, which will be to me a greater Cordial than all the precious Stones in the World. Written by the Secretary, who is, and always will be,
Your Loyal, and most Assured Servant,
H
's Heart,
A.B.
Rex.
LETTER XIII.
Original.
SINCE your last Letters, myne awn Darling,
Walter Welche,
Master
Brown, John Care, Yrion
of
Brearton, John Cocke
the Pothecary, be fallen of the Swett in this House, and thankyd be God all well recovered, so that as yet the Pleague is not fully ceased here; but I trust shortly it shall by the Mercy of God; the rest of us yet be well, and I trust shall passe it, either not to have it, or at the least as easily as the rest have don. As touching the Matter of
Wylton,
My Lord Cardinal
Wolsey.
hath had the Nunys before him, and examined them, Master
Bell
being present, which hath certified me, that for a Truth, that she hath confessed herself (which we would have had Abbesse) to have had Two Children by Two sundry Priests; and furder, since hath been keeped by a Servant of the Lord
Broke,
that was, and that not long ago. Wherefor I would not for all the Gold in the World clog your Conscience nor mine, to make her Ruler of a House which is of so ungodly Demeanour; nor I trust you would not, that neither for Brother nor Sister I should so destain mine Honour or Conscience: And as touching the Pryoresse, or Dame
Ellenor
's Eldest Sister, tho' there is not any evident Case proved against them, and that the Pryoresse is so Old, that of many Years she could not be as she was named; yet notwithstanding to do you Pleasure, I have don that neither of them shall have it, but that some other good and welldisposed Woman shall have it: Whereby the House shall be the better reformed (whereof I ensure you it had much need) and God much the better served: As touching abode at
Hever,
do therein as best shall like you, for you know best what Aire doth best with you; but I wold it were come thereto (if it pleased God) that neither of us need care for that, for I ensure you I think it long.
Suche
is fallen sick of the Swett, and therefor I send you this Bearer, because I think you long to hear Tydings from us, as we do in likewise from you. Writen with the Hand,
De votre seul
i.e.
Of yours only.
H. Rex.
LETTER XIV.
Original.
DARLING, these shall be only to advertise you, that this Bearer, and his Fellow, be dispatched with as many Things to compasse our Matter, and to bring it to passe, as our Wits could imagine or devise; which brought to passe, as I trust by their Diligence it shall be, shortly you and I shall have our desired End, which should be more to my Hearts Ease, and more Quietnesse to my Minde, than any other Thing in this World, as with God's Grace shortly I trust shall be proved, but not so soon as I would it were, yet I will ensure you there shall be no Tyme lost, that may be wone, and further cannot be done, for
ultra posse non est esse:
Keep him not too long with you, but desire him for your Sake to make the more Speed, for the sooner we shall have Word from him, the sooner shall our Matter come to passe; and thus upon trust of your short Repair to
London,
I make an End of my Letter Mine awne Sweetheart. Writen with the Hand of him which desyreth as much to be yours as you do to have him.
H. Rex.
LETTER XV.
Original.
DARLING, I heartily recommend me to you, assertaining you, that I am not a little perplexed with such Things as your Brother shall on my Part declare unto you, to whom I pray you give full Credence, for it were too long to write. In my last Letters I writ to you, that I trusted shortly to see you, which is better known at
London,
than with any that is about me, whereof I not a little mervelle, but lake of descreet handling must needs be the Cause thereof. No more to you at this tyme, but that I trust shortly, our Meeting shall not depend upon other Men's light Handlings, but upon your awne. Writen with the Hand of him that longeth to be Yours.
H. Rex.
LETTER XVI.
Original.
MYNE awne Sweetheart, this shall be to advertise you of the great ellingness that I find here since your departing, for I ensure you, me thinketh the Tyme longer since your departing now last then I was wont to do a whole Fortnight; I think your Kindness and my Fervence of Love causeth it, for otherwise I wolde not thought it possible, that for so little a while it should have grived me, but now that I am comeing toward you, me thinketh my Pains been half released, and also I am right well comforted, insomuch that my
The
King
wrote a Treatise against the
Pope's
Supremacy.
Book maketh substantially for my Matter, in writing whereof I have spent above 1111 Hours this Day, which caused me now write the shorter Letter to you at this tyme, because of some Payne in my Head, wishing my self (specially an Evening) in my Sweet-hearts Armes, whose pritty Duckys I trust shortly to kysse. Writen with the Hand of him that was, is, and shall be yours by his Will,
H. Rex.
LETTER XVII.
Original.
TO informe you what Joye it is to me to understand of your Conformableness with Reasone, and of the suppressing of your inutile and vain Thoughts and Fantasies with the Bridle of Reason, I ensure you all the Good of this World could not counterpoise for my Satisfaction, the Knowledge and Certainty thereof; wherefore good Sweetheart, continue the same not only in this, but in all your Doings hereafter, for thereby shall come both to you and me the greatest Quietnesse that may be in this World. The Cause why this Bearer stayed so long, is the Business that I have had to dresse up Geer for you, which I trust ere long to see you occupye, and then I trust to occupy yours, which shall be Recompence enough to me for all my Pains and Labours. The unfayned Sickness of this well-willing Legate, doth somewhat retard his Accesse to your Person, but I trust veryly, when God shall send him Health, he will with Diligence recompence his Demurre, for I know well where he hath said (lamenting the Saying, and brute, that he shall be thought Imperial) that shall be well known in this Matter, that he is not Imperial. And this for lake of Tyme farewell. Writen with the Hand which faine would be yours, and so is the Heart.
H. Rex.
LETTERS from
Anne Boleyn,
to Cardinal
Wolsey.
LETTER I.
This
Letter
is remarked on by Dr.
Burnet,
in his
Hist.
of the
Reformat. p.
55.
Vol.
I.
MY Lord, in my most humblest wise that my Heart can think, I desire you to pardon me that I am so bold to trouble you with my simple and rude Writing, esteeming it to proceed from her, that is much desirous to know that your Grace does well, as I perceive by this Bearer that you do. The which I pray God long to continue, as I am most bound to pray; for I do know the great Pains and Troubles that you have taken for me both Day and Night, is never like to be recompenced on my Part, but alonely in loving you next unto the King's Grace, above all Creatures living. And I do not doubt but the daily Proofs of my Deeds shall manifestly declare and affirm my Writing to be true, and I do trust you do think the same. My Lord, I do assure you I do long to hear from you News of the Legate; for I do hope an they come from you they shall be very good, and I am sure you desire it as much as I, and more, an it were possible, as I know it is not: And thus remaining in a stedfast Hope, I make an End of my Letter written with the Hand of her that is most bound to be,
Your Humble Servant, Anne Boleyn.
Postscript
by the KING.
THE Writer of this Letter would not cease till she had caused me likewise to set to my Hand; desiring you, though it be short, to take it in good Part. I ensure you there is neither of us, but that greatly desireth to see you, and much more joyous to hear that you have scaped this Plague so well, trusting the Fury thereof to be passed, specially with them that keepeth good Diet, as I trust you do. The not hearing of the Legate's Arrival in
France,
causeth us somewhat to muse; notwithstanding we trust by your Diligence and Vigilancy (with the Assistance of Almighty God) shortly to be eased out of that Trouble. No more to you at this Time; but that I pray God send you as good Health and Prosperity as the Writer would.
By Your Loving Soveraigne and Friend,
Henry
K.
LETTER II.
MY Lord, in my most humble wise that my poor Heart can think, I do thank your Grace for your kind Letter, and for your rich and goodly Present, the which I shall never be able to deserve without your Help, of the which I have hitherto had so great Plenty, that all the Days of my Life I am most bound of all Creatures, next the King's Grace, to love and serve your Grace; of the which I beseech you never to doubt, that ever I shall vary from this Thought as long as any Breath is in my Body. And as touching your Grace's Trouble with the Sweat, I thank our Lord, that them that I desired and prayed for are scaped, and that is the King and You; not doubting but that God has preserved you both for great Causes known alonely of his high Wisdom. And as for the coming of the Legate, I desire that much; and if it be God's Pleasure, I pray him to send this Matter shortly to a good End, and then I trust my Lord, to recompence Part of your great Pains. In the which I must require you in the mean Time to accept my Good-Will in the Stead of the Power, the which must proceed partly from you, as our Lord knoweth; to whom I beseech to send you long Life, with continuance in Honour. Writen with the Hand of her that is most bound to be,
Your Humble and Obedient Servant, Anne Boleyn.
Anne Boleyn's
Last
LETTER
to King
HENRY.
See
Hist.
of
Reform. p.
154.
Vol.
I. This Letter was written after her Marriage with the King.
SIR,
YOUR Grace's Displeasure, and my Imprisonment, are Things so strange unto me, as what to Write, or to what to Excuse, I am altogether ignorant. Whereas you send unto me (willing me to confess a Truth, and so obtain your Favour) by such an one whom you know to be mine antient professed Enemy; I no sooner received this Message by him, than I rightly conceived your Meaning; and if, as you say, confessing a Truth indeed may procure my Safety, I shall with all Willingness and Duty perform your Command.
But let not your Grace ever imagine that your poor Wife will ever be brought to acknowledge a Fault, where not so much as a Thought thereof preceded. And to speak a Truth, never Prince had Wife more Loyal in all Duty, and in all true Affection, than you have ever found in
Anne Boleyn,
with which Name and Place I could willingly have contented my self, if God, and your Grace's Pleasure had been so pleased. Neither did I at any Time so far forget my self in my Exaltation, or received Queenship, but that I always looked for such an Alteration as now I find; for the Ground of my Preferment being on no surer Foundation than you Grace's Fancy, the least Alteration, I knew, was fit and sufficient to draw that Fancy to some other Subject. You have chosen me, from a low Estate, to be your Queen and Companion, far beyond my Desert or Desire. If then you found me worthy of such Honour, Good your Grace let not any light Fancy, or bad Councel of mine Enemies, withdraw your Princely Favour from me; neither let that Stain, that unworthy Stain of a Disloyal Heart towards your good Grace, ever cast so soul a Blot on your most Dutiful Wife, and the Infant Princess your Daughter: Try me good King, but let me have a Lawful Trial, and let not my sworn Enemies sit as my Accusers and Judges; yea, let me receive an open Trial, for my Truth shall fear no open Shame; then shall you see, either mine Innocency cleared, your Suspicion and Conscience satisfied, the Ignominy and Slander of the World stopped, or my Guilt openly declared. So that whatsoever God or You may determine of me, your Grace may be freed from an open Censure; and mine Offences being so lawfully proved, your Grace is at liberty, both before God and Man, not only to execute worthy Punishment on me as an unlawful Wife, but to follow your Affection already settled on that Party, for whose Sake I am now as I am, whose Name I could some good While since have pointed unto: Your Grace being not ignorant of my Suspicion therein.
But if you have already determined of me, and that not only my Death, but an infamous Slander must bring you the enjoying of your desired Happiness; then I desire of God, that he will pardon your great Sin therein, and likewise mine Enemies, the Instruments thereof; and that he will not call you to a strict Account for your unprincely and cruel Usage of me, at his General Judgment-Seat, where both You and Myself must shortly appear, and in whose Judgment, I doubt not, (whatsoever the World may think of me) mine Innocence shall be openly known, and sufficiently cleared.
My last and only Request shall be, That my self may only bear the Burthen of your Grace's Displeasure, and that it may not touch the innocent Souls of those poor Gentlemen, who (as I understand) are likewise in strait Imprisonment for my Sake. If ever I have found Favour in your Sight; if ever the Name of
Anne Boleyn
hath been pleasing in your Ears, then let me obtain this Request: and I will so leave to trouble your Grace any longer, with mine earnest Prayers to the Trinity, to have your Grace in his good Keeping, and to direct you in all your Actions. From my doleful Prison in the
Tower,
this 6th of
May.
Your most Loyal and ever Faithful Wife, Anne Boleyn,
To Mr. POPE.
SIR,
THE ORIGINALS, of the foregoing LETTERS, are in the
Vatican
Library at
Rome,
where they are shewn as one of their greatest Curiosities.
In the Year 1683, Dr. FALL, then Precentor of
York,
took a Copy of Them, from whence they are here exactly printed.
The Cause, and Occasion, of the KING's Amour with
Anne Boleyn,
may be fully seen in Bishop BURNET's
History
of the
Reformation.
These
Letters
must, in all Probability, have been written immediately after the Lady's Dismission from Court; which was done in so abrupt a Manner, that she determined never more to return. This made the King soon repent of his Severity towards her, and most earnestly press her to come back. But his Majesty could not for a considerable Time, nor without great Difficulty, bring this about; as appears by several Passages herein.
The Time of her
Dismission
was in
May,
1528.
In the
First
LETTER, the
King
makes Excuses for the Necessity of their being asunder. And in the
Second
complains of her Unwillingness to return to Court. There is not, in either of them, the least mention of the
Sweating-Sickness,
which raged violently in
June;
and of which he speaks in his
Third Letter,
adding, that he had made many Observations from Experience. Between this Letter, which seems to have been written in
July,
and the
Sixth,
which mentions the Legate's Arrival at
Paris,
must have been written in the Close of
September;
and there are
Two,
which by the Earnestness of the Business, were plainly written within few Days one of another. In the
Last,
the King expresses,
how much He is pleased with her Answer to his earnest Request made in the
First. In the
Heat
of his
Royal Gratitude,
he pays a Visit to his
Mistress,
and They, jointly, wrote a Letter to Cardinal
Wolsey,
wherein the
King
greatly admires, at his not hearing of
Campegio
's Arrival. He did not stay long with her after this; for when she had received
Wolsey
's Answer,
She
wrote the Cardinal a
Second
Letter, without any mention of the
King,
expressing her
own
Impatience to hear of the Legate's comming; of which his
Majesty
sent her the News soon after. But to return to the
Fourth
LETTER, which must, in all Probability, have been written in
August;
it is the most important in all the Collection; for, it fixeth the exact Time of the Rise of his
Majesty's
Affection to this
Lady.
He pathetically complaineth therein, that,
He had been above a whole Year struck with the Dart of Love, and was not yet sure, whether He should fail, or find a Place in her Heart and Affection.
He farther addeth, that,
long before
She
suspected
it,
from his
first
seeing Her, he felt a Passion for
Her.
It cannot be doubted by any, who read these
Letters,
that King HENRY's Affection to
Anne Boleyn,
was altogether upon honourable Terms. There appears not the least Pretension to the
Last-Favour,
nor Aim towards it, till the
Holy Legate
and
Mother Church,
had paved the Way to Consummation, (and then,
He! Monsieur
Pope!
Entendez vous bien.
)
The
Last
of these
Letters,
mentions the
Legate's
Illness, as a Reason why he had not performed the Duties of his Function; which makes it apparent that this
Royal Love Correspondence
ended in
May,
1529, when the Process began, making up just one Year.
You see, Sir, how readily I lay hold of every Opportunity to oblige you. The
New-Year's
Gift I sent you was from
Paris;
The
New-Year's-Gift,
I sent by a Special Messenger, to Mr.
Pope
at
Twickenham,
was a little Book (neaty Bound in
Red Turky
Leather, Ruled, and the Capital Letters illuminated with Gold, and various Colours) intitled, "HEURES des PRIERRES: Dedie à Madame la Duchesse de CHARTRES. Avec les Sept Pseaumes Penitentieux. à Paris, 1696." This Manual was likewise illustrated with
Four
beautiful Prints,
One,
in particular, representing
David
prostrate; in which Part of the Book, upon a Label, was wrote the following Lines.
As Friends who of a Criminal take Leave;
Pray the Almighty may his Soul receive;
So, I these Penitential Psalms have sent,
Hoping, like
David,
you'll at length repent.
One good Effect I find they have produced, for you have recanted, and razed out, this
Distich
against the
Dutch.
Then
first
the
Belgian
Morals were extoll'd;
We their
Religion
had, and they our Gold.
Ess. on Crit.
You now say, as these Lines
contain a National Reflection, in your stricter Judgment,
it is what you
cannot but disapprove, on any People whatever.
Were you not as sensible, that this was a
National Reflection,
when you wrote it, as it is now?
and this immaculate Intercourse of
Royal Affection,
comes from
Rome.
So that, not in the least doubting, but you will give an equal Reception to both Presents, I now do, and ever shall, with the like Sincerity, remain
Your humble Servant, E. CURLL.
8 March, 1735/6.
TO Sir BERKELEY LUCY, Bart.
SIR,
IN farther Justice to the Memory of Mr.
Collins,
as well as to obviate some misrepresentations which have been made, concerning it, I here send you a true Copy of his last Will and Testament,
viz.
I ANTHONY COLLINS of
Great-Baddow,
in the County of
Essex,
do, this 24th of
August
1728, make this my last Will and Testament, in Manner and Form following, Writing it all with my own Hand. I constitute and appoint my dearest Wife,
Elizabeth Collins,
for whom I have the utmost Affection, and to whom I cannot be sufficiently grateful, for the Pleasure and Happiness I have constantly enjoyed with her, my sole Executrix. I give to my Wife for the Augmentation of her Jointure, for the Term of her Life, all my Manor of
Hatfield-Peverel,
alias
Hatfield-Bury,
in the County of
Essex,
and all Courts, Fines, Herriots, Profits, Perquisites, and Quit-Rents thereof, as also all that Wood, called
South-Wood,
lying in
Hatfield-Peverel,
aforesaid, and all the Wood, and Underwood, from time to time, growing thereon, with full Power, for my said Wife and her Assigns, at all times, during her Life, to fell, and take sufficient Timber within the said Wood-Land, for the necessary Repairs of my Farms in
Hatfield-Peverel,
and the Bridges there, and also all my Lands, Tenements, and Hereditaments, and Estate, in the Occupation of, and Let unto Mrs.
Deekes,
at the yearly Rent of Thirty two Pounds, and lying, and being in the Parish of
Ulting,
in the County of
Essex.
To have and to hold the said Manor, Lands, Tenements, Wood-Lands, and all, and singular the Premisses in
Hatfield-Peverel,
and
Ulting
aforesaid, with their Appurtenances unto the said
Elizabeth Collins,
my Wife and her Assigns, for, and during the Term of her Life. And my Will is, that my said Wife shall have, and I give unto her, full Power, from time to time, to Let the said Lands and Tenenents in
Ulting,
to any Person or Persons, by Lease in Writing, for any Term or Terms of Years, not exceeding One and Twenty Years in Possession, and not in Reversion, and so as the present Rent, or the best and most improved yearly Rent that can be got for the same, be reserved and made payable yearly, by half yearly Payments, and so as such Lease or Leases be not made dispunishable of, or for Waste. Also I give to my Wife,
Elizabeth Collins,
all my Dwelling-House in
Cavendish
or
Oxford-Square,
within the Parish of St.
Mary-le-Bone,
alias
Mary Bone,
in the County of
Middlesex,
with all the Buildings, Backside, and Appurtenances thereto belonging, and all Estate, Use, Trust, Term, and Terms of Years to come, Claim and Demand in Law, and in Equity of, in, and to the same last mentioned Premisses, with all the Leases, Evi-dences, and Writings concerning the same. To have, and to hold the said Dwelling House and Premisses, with the Appurtenances unto the said
Elizabeth Collins
my Wife, her Executors, Administrators, and Assigns, for, and during all the Residue and Remainder of the Term of Years, in the Premisses which I purchased, and now remain unexpired, to her and their own sole and proper Use and Benefit for ever. I give and bequeath all my Messuages and Tenements, and Lease and Leasehold Estate and Estates, lying in St.
Clement's-Lane,
within the Parish of St.
Clement's Danes,
in the County of
Middlesex.
And all my Estate, Right, Title, Interest, Use, Trust, Term, and Terms of Years therein, to come, Claim and Demand in Law and in Equity, of, in, and to, the last mentioned Premisses, unto my two Daughters,
Elizabeth
and
Martha Collins,
equally between them and their Executors, Administrators, and Assigns, respectively share, and share, alike, nevertheless charged with, and subject to, as well with the Payment of Eleven hundred Pounds unto the said
Elizabeth Collins
my Wife, as also with the yearly Payment of five and fifty Pounds unto my said Wife,
Elizabeth Collins,
during the Term of her Life, in such Manner and Form, as the same are already duly settled in Writing. And for all the Residue of my Manors, Messuages, Lands, Tenements, and Hereditaments and real Estate and Estates whatsoever, and wheresoever within the Kingdom of
Great Britain,
not hereby, or otherwise, by me disposed of. I do will, and leave to descend to my two Children
Elizabeth
and
Martha Collins,
and their several and respective Heirs equally in Copartners as Tennants in Common. I give to my two Daughters,
Elizabeth
and
Martha
aforesaid, one hundred Pounds each for Mourning.
I give to Doctor
Arthur Ashley Sykes,
Fifty Pounds.
I give to Mr.
William Henry Thomlinson,
Two hundred Pounds.
I give to Mr.
Peter Desmaizeaux,
One hundred Pounds, and all my Manuscripts in my Study, or elsewhere, except such as relate to the Affairs of my Family, and Estate.
I give to
Sarah Kirby,
if in my Service at the time of my Death, Five Pounds a Year for Life.
I give to her Daughter Ten Pounds.
I give to my Servant
Richard Dighton,
Twenty Pounds.
I give to the Poor of the Parish of
Great Baddow
and
Sundu,
Twenty Pounds, to be disposed of according to the Discretion of my Wife.
I give all my Servants who shall live with me at the Time of my Decease, (except
Sarah Kirby
and
Richard Dighton,
abovementioned) Five Pounds each.
And of this my last Will and Testament, I do appoint
Elizabeth Collins
my sole Executrix, to whom I Will and Bequeath all my Jewels, Plate, ready Monies, and Monies, owing to me by Bill, Bond, Mortgage, or otherwise; with all my Houshold Goods and Furniture; Coach and Horses; my Library, with all other my Rights, Credits, and Personal Estate whatsoever, and wheresoever, not hereby nor otherwise by me disposed of; my said Wife paying all my just Debts, Legacies, within a Twelve-month's Time hereby given, and my Funeral Charges.
I desire to be buried privately in the Church-Yard where I dye.
In Witness whereof, I, the said
Anthony Collins,
have set my Hand and Seal to this my last Will and Testament, this 24th of
August,
1728.
Anthony Collins.
Signed, Sealed and Published, by the above named
Anthony Collins,
the Testator, as, and for his last Will and Testament, in the Presence of us who immediately afterwards, and in his Presence, subscribed our Names as Witnesses thereunto,
Mary Fowler,
Hatham Duffeild,
George Andrews.
PROBATUM fuit hujusmodi Testamentum apud London,
vicesimo nono Die Mensis Decembris, Anno Domini 1729.
Coram Venerabili Viro Gulielmo Straham, Legum Doctore Surragato, &c. Juramento Elizabethae Collins, Viduae Relictae et Executricis in dicto Testamento nominate cui, &c.
de bene, &c.
Jurat
Deputy Registers.
William Legard,
Peter St. Eloy,
Henry Stevens,
It will now be seen,
Sir,
that the
last
Behaviour of Mr.
Collins,
was conformable to the whole Tenour of his
Life.
Herein is also detected a most notorious
Falshood
propagated, with great Diligence, throughout the Town, by some of the
Sucking Priesthood,
That Mr.
Collins
had
given
all his
Manuscripts
to Mr.
Des-Maizeaux,
and That this Gentleman had been
corrupted
to
destroy
them.
The
Article
relating to our dear Friend, in
The Gen. Hist. and Crit. Dict.
contains a tolerable Account of his
Writings;
but the silly Sarcasms, spleneticly levelled against his Character, That
he lent several Persons Books, and directed them how to confute Himself
are, to the last Degree, contemptible.
For ever will His
Light shine among Men,
whilst, to the latest Posterity, the
Understandings
of his petulant
Antagonists
will be looked upon as inveloped in
Egyptian Darkness.
I am, Sir, Your, &c. E.C.
COURT
POEMS.
By Mr. POPE and Mr. GAY.
Published by Mr. OLDMIXON, 1717.
ADVERTISEMENT, By the Bookseller.
BEING possessed of the following excellent POEMS, All that I have to add, is only a Word or two concerning their
Author.
Upon Reading them over at St.
James
's
Coffee-House,
they were attributed by the General Voice, to be the Productions of a
Lady of Quality.
When I produced them at
Button
's, the
Poetical Jury
there, brought in a different Verdict; and the
Foreman
strenuously insisted upon it, that Mr.
Gay
was the
Man,
and declared, that in Comparing the TOILETTE with that Gentleman's PASTORALS, he found the
Stile,
and
Turn of Thought,
to be evidently the same
This is confirmed by Mr. GAY's inserting this Piece in his Works, 1730.
, which confirmed him, and his Brethren, in the Sentence they had pronounced.
Not content with these Two Decisions, I was resolved to call in an Umpire; and accordingly chose a Gentleman of distinguished Merit, who lives not far from
Chelsea.
Sir.
Richard Blackmore.
I sent him the Papers; which he returned me the next Day, with this Answer:
SIR,
Depend upon it, these Lines could come from no other Hand, than the
Laudable
Translator of
HOMER.
Thus having impartially given the Sentiments of the
Town;
I hope I may deserve Thanks for the Pains I have taken, by endeavouring to find out the
Author
of these Valuable Performances; and every Body is at Liberty to bestow the Laurel as they please.
E. CURLL.
THE BASSET TABLE.
THE
Basset-Table
spread, the
Tallier
come;
Why stays
Smilinda
in the Dressing-Room?
Rise, pensive Nymph, the
Tallier
waits for You.
Ah
Madam,
since my
Sharper
is untrue,
I joyless make my once ador'd
Alpeu.
I saw him stand behind
Ombrelia
's Chair,
And whisper with that soft, deluding Air,
And those feign'd Sighs which cheat the list'ning
Fair.
Is this the Cause of your Romantic Strains?
A mightier Grief my heavy Heart sustains.
See here, a fit Companion of your Pain!
(Yet heavier is the Grief which I sustain;)
As You by Love, so I by Fortune crost;
In One bad Deal, Three
Septleva
's have lost.
Is that the Grief, which you compare with Mine?
With Ease the Smiles of Fortune I resign:
Would all my Gold in One bad Deal were gone;
Were lovely
Sharper
Mine, and Mine alone.
A Lover lost, is but a common Care;
And prudent Nymphs against that Change prepare:
The
Knave of Clubs
thrice lost: O! who could guess
This fatal Stroke, this unforeseen Distress?
See
Betty Lovett!
—very
à propos,
She all the Cares of
Love
and
Play
does know,
Deeply experienc'd many Years ago.
Dear
Betty
shall th' important Point decide;
Betty,
who oft the Pain of each has try'd;
Impartial She, shall say who suffers most,
By
Cards Ill Usage,
or by
Lovers lost.
Tell, tell your Griefs; attentive will I stay,
Tho' Time is precious, and I want some
Tea.
Behold this
Equipage,
of
Mathers
Alias
Charles Bubble-Boy,
a noted Toyman in
Fleetstreet.
bought,
With
Fifty Guineas;
a great Pen'worth thought;
See on the
Toothpick, Mars
and
Cupid
strive;
And both the strugling Figures, seem alive.
Upon the Bottom, shines the
Queen's
bright Face;
A Myrtle Foliage round the
Thimble-Case.
Jove, Jove
himself, does on the
Scissars
shine;
The Metal, and the Workmanship, Divine!
This
Snuff-Box,
once the Pledge of
Sharper
's Love,
When Rival Beauties for the
Present
strove;
At
Corticelli
's He the Raffle won,
When first his Passion was in Public shown:
Hazardia
blush'd, and turn'd her Head aside,
A Rival's Envy (all in vain) to hide.
This
Snuff-Box,
on the Hinge, see
Brilliants
shine;
This
Snuff-Box,
will I stake, the Prize is mine.
Alas! far lesser Losses than I bear,
Have made a
Soldier
sigh, a
Lover
swear,
And O! what makes the Disappointment hard,
'Twas my own Lord that drew the fatal
Card.
In Complaisance, I took the
Queen
he gave:
Tho' my own Secret-Wish was for the
Knave.
The
Knave
won
Sonica,
which I had chose;
And the next
Pull,
my
Septleva
I lose.
But ah! what aggravates the killing Smart,
The cruel Thought, that stabs me to the Heart;
This curs'd
Ombrelia,
this undoing
Fair
By whose vile Arts this heavy Grief I bear,
She, at whose Name I shed these
spiteful Tears,
She owes to me the very Charms she wears.
An
aukward Thing,
when first she came to Town;
Her
Shape
unfashion'd, and her
Face
unknown:
She was my Friend, I taught her first to spread
Upon her
sallow Cheeks
th'enliv'ning Red;
I introduc'd her to the
Park
and
Plays;
And by my Int'rest,
Cozens
made her
Stayes.
Ungrateful Wretch, with mimic Airs grown pert,
She dares to steal my
Fav'rite Lover's
Heart.
Wretch that I was, how often have I swore,
When
Win-All tally'd,
I would
Punt
no more?
I Know the
Bite,
yet to my
Ruin
run;
And see the
Folly,
which I cannot
shun.
How many Maids have
Sharper
's
Vows
deceiv'd?
How many curs'd the Moment they believ'd?
Yet his
known Falshoods
could no Warning prove:
Ah! what is Warning to
a Maid in Love.
But of what Marble must the Breast be form'd,
To gaze on
Basset,
and remain unwarm'd?
When
Kings, Queens, Knaves,
are set in decent Rank
Expos'd in glorious Heaps the
tempting Bank,
Guineas, Half-Guineas,
all the shining Train;
The
Winner's
Pleasure, and the
Loser's
Pain.
In bright Confusion open
Rouleaus
lye,
They strike the Soul, and glitter in the Eye.
Fir'd by the Sight, all Reason I disdain;
My Passions rise, and will not bear the Rein.
Look upon
Basset,
you who Reason boast;
And see if Reason may not
There
be lost.
What
more
than Marble must that Heart compose
Can hearken coldly to my
Sharper
's
Vows?
Then, when he trembles! when his blushes rise!
When awful Love seems melting in his Eyes!
With eager Beats his
Mechlin
Cravat moves:
He loves,
—I whisper to myself,
He loves.
Such unfeign'd Passion in his Looks appears,
I lose all Mem'ry of my former Fears;
My panting Heart confesses all his Charms,
I yield at once, and sink into his Arms:
Think of that Moment, you who Prudence boast;
For such a Moment, Prudence well were lost.
At the
Groom-Porter's,
batter'd Bullies play;
Some
Dukes
at
Mary-Bone
bowl Time away.
But who the
Bowl,
or rattling
Dice
compares,
To
Basset
's heavenly Joys, and pleasing Cares?
Soft
Simplicetta
doats upon a
Beau:
Prudina
likes a
Man,
and laughs at
Show,
Their several
Graces
in my
Sharper
meet;
Strong as the
Footman,
as the
Master
sweet.
Cease your Contention, which has been too long;
I grow impatient, and the
Tea
's too strong.
Attend, and yield to what I now decide;
The
Equipage
shall grace
Smilinda
's Side;
The
Snuff-Box
to
Cardelia,
I Decree,
Now leave complaining, and begin your
Tea.
THE DRAWING ROOM.
ROxana
from the Court returning late,
Sigh'd her soft Sorrow at St.
Jumes
's Gate:
Such heavy Thoughts lay brooding in her Breast;
Not her own
Chairmen
with more Weight opprest:
They curse the cruel Weight they're doom'd to bear.
She in more gentle Sounds express'd her Care.
Was it for this, that I these Roses wear?
For this, new set the Jewels for my Hair?
Ah
Princess?
with what Zeal have I pursu'd?
Almost forgot the Duty of a
Prude.
This
King,
I never could attend too soon;
I miss'd my Pray'rs, to get me dress'd by Noon.
For Thee, Ah! what for Thee did I resign;
My Passions, Pleasures, all that e'er was mine?
I've sacrific'd both Modesty, and Ease;
Left
Operas,
and went to filthy
Plays.
Double Entendres
shock'd my tender Ear;
Yet even this, for thee, I chuse to bear.
In glowing Youth, when Nature bids be gay,
And ev'ry Joy of Life before me lay;
By Honour prompted, and by Pride restrain'd,
The Pleasures of the Young my Soul disdain'd.
Sermons I sought, and with a Mien severe,
Censur'd my Neighbours, and said Daily Pray'r.
Alas, how chang'd! with this same Sermon Mien,
The filthy
What d'ye call it
—I have seen.
Ah Royal
Princess!
for whose sake I lost
The Reputation, which so dear had cost:
I, who avoided ev'ry public Place,
When Bloom and Beauty bid me show my Face
Now near Thee, constant, I each Night abide,
With never-failing Duty, by thy Side;
Myself and Daughters standing in a Row,
To all the
Foreigners
a goodly Show.
Oft had your
Drawing-Room
been sadly thin,
And
Merchants Wives
close by your Side had been;
Had I not amply fill'd the empty Place,
And sav'd your
Highness
from the dire Disgrace,
Yet
Cockatilla
's Artifice prevails,
When all my Duty and my Merit fails:
That
Cockatilla,
whose deluding Airs
Corrupts our Virgins, and our Youth insnares;
So sunk her Character, and lost her Fame,
Scarce visited, before your
Highness
came;
Yet for the
Bed-Chamber
'tis she you chuse,
Whilst Zeal, and Fame, and Virtue you refuse.
Ah worthy Choice! not One of all your Train
Which Censures blast not, or Dishonours stain.
I know the Court, with all its treach'rous Wiles,
The
false Caresses,
and
undoing Smiles.
Ah
Princess!
learn'd in all the Courtly Arts,
To
cheat
our Hopes, and yet to
gain
our Hearts.
THE TOILETTE.
NOW twenty Springs had cloath'd the Park with Green,
Since
Lydia
knew the Blossom of Fifteen:
No Lovers now her Morning Hours molest,
And catch her at her Toilette half undrest;
The thund'ring Knocker wakes the Street no more;
Nor Chairs, nor Coaches croud her silent Door;
Now at the Window all the Mornings pass,
Or at the dumb Devotion of the Glass;
Reclin'd upon her Arm she pensive sat,
And curst th'Inconstancy of Man too late.
O Youth! O Spring of Life! for ever lost!
No more my Name shall reign the fav'rite Toast,
On Glass no more the Diamond grave my Name,
And Rhimes mispell'd record a Lover's Flame:
Nor shall Side-Boxes watch my restless Eyes,
And as they catch the Glance in Rows arise
With humble Bows; nor White-glov'd Beaus incroach
In Crouds behind, to guard me to my Coach.
What shall I do to spend the hateful Day?
At Chapel shall I wear the Morn away?
Who there appears at these unmodish Hours,
But ancient Matrons with their frizled Tow'rs,
And grey religious Maids? my Presence there,
Amid that sober Train, would cause Despair.
Nor am I yet so old; nor is my Glance
As yet fix'd wholly to Devotion's Trance.
Strait then I'll dress, and take my wonted Range,
To
India
-Shops,
Motteux
's, or the
Change;
Where the Tall Jar erects his costly Pride,
With antique Shapes, in
China
's Azure dy'd:
There, careless lies the rich
Brocade,
unroll'd;
Here, shines a Cabinet with Burnish'd Gold:
But then, alas! I must be forc'd to pay,
Or bring no Pennyworths, or Fan away.
How am I curs'd! (unhappy, and forlorn)
My Lover's Triumph, and my Sex's Scorn?
False is the pompous Grief of youthful Heirs,
False are the loose
Coquet's
inveig'ling Airs,
False is the crafty Courtiers plighted Word;
False are the Dice, when Gamesters stamp the Board:
False is the sprightly Widow's public Tear:
Yet these to
Damon
's Oaths are all sincere.
For what young Flirt, base Man, am I abus'd?
To please your Wife, am I unkindly us'd?
'Tis true, her Face may boast the Peach's Bloom;
But does her nearer whisp'ring Breath perfume?
I own, her taper Shape is made to please;
Yet when you see her unconfin'd by Stayes,
She doubly to Fifteen may claim Pretence;
Alike we read it in her Wit and Sense.
Insipid, servile Thing, that I disdain,
WhosePhlegm can best support theMarriage-Chain.
Damon
is practis'd in the modish Life,
Can hate, and yet be civil to his Wife.
He games, he swears, he drinks, he fights, he roves,
Yet
Cloe
can believe he fondly loves.
Mistress and Wife by turns supply his Need;
A Miss for Pleasure, and a Wife for Breed.
Tower'd with Di'monds, free from Thought or Care,
She can a sullen Husband's Humour bear.
Her cred'lous Friendship, and her stupid Ease,
Has often been my Jest in happier Days.
Now
Cloe
boasts and triumphs in my Pains;
To Her he's faithful, tis to Me he feigns,
Am I that senseless Thing to bear Neglect,
And force a Smile not daring to suspect.
No,—perjur'd Man! a Wife may be content;
But you shall find a Mistress can resent.
Thus Love-sick
Lydia
rav'd. Her Maid appears;
With steddy Hand the Band-Box-Charge she bears.
How well those Ribbands-Gloss becomes your Face
She cries, in Raptures! then, so sweet a Lace;
How charmingly you look! so strait! so fair!
'Tis to your Eyes the Head-Dress owes its Air.
Strait
Lydia
smil'd; the Comb adjusts her Locks,
And at the
Play-House, Harry
keeps her Box.
TO His GRACE THE Duke of
RICHMOND.
My LORD,
A S there is a Pleasure in owning Obligations which it is an Honour to have received; I most humbly beg Leave of Your GRACE to acknowledge my Gratitude hereby.
The Favour I have to ask, is, that in the Perusal of these Letters, Your GRACE will give Attention to the Truth they contain. They were written to satisfy the Curiosity of an intimate Friend, as the
French
Editor thus relates,
viz.
THE Public will, doubtless, says he, be desirous to know by what Accident these
Letters
fell into my Hands, and what induced me to publish them. I do not question, but many will be apt to blame my Temerity, in daring to expose the
Foible
of so powerful a Nation. To these Criticks I shall only answer, that the Interest of all the rest of
Europe
has, with me, taken Place of every other Consideration. Besides, our Author says no more than the bare evident Truth: And, for my Part, I shall think my Labour more than recompenc'd, if the reading of these Letters may have the wish'd-for Effect, to deter every Man of Worth from travelling into
Muscovy,
where he would run the Risk of being exposed to the same Tragical Events our
Italian
here relates.
It was by a very extraordinary Accident, no less than that of a Shipwreck, that these Letters fell into my Hands. The Author of them was reserved for this new Misfortune, which, in all Probability was the last of his Life. We may presume he did not survive this fatal Event, and may, therefore, properly apply the following Words to his Case:
Fortuna libera mors est.
This Misfortune, perhaps, befell him in the Voyage, which, towards the Conclusion of his
last
Letter, he says he was just upon the Point of undertaking: But it is not very material, when and where it happened. Let it suffice, that a Trunk, which drove on Shoar, falling into my Hands, I observed a Paper pasted in the Inside of the Lid, which contained the following Inscription:
Durae ac dirae Captivitatis
Apud barbaros
Muscovitas
satis fortit toleratae
Sarcinae
Successoribus servatae ac relictae
Cum monitu
Ne adeant ad istam inbumanam Nationem,
Nisi farro & igne eam depopulandam.
Sed si talis non datur facultas
Saltem sequentes preces quotidie
Ex toto corde effundant.
In MUSCOVITAS coelestia templa ruinent,
Terraque se pedibus raptim subducat, & omnes
Inter per mistas Terrae Coelique ruinas
Corpora solventes, abeant per inane profundum,
Temporis stet puncto nibil extet reliquiarum,
Desertum praeter spatium, & primordia caeca.
The last four Lines of this Inscription are from
Lucretius.
This Inscription excited my Curiosity; and examining the Trunk, in which I, at first, only saw some old Cloaths, I discovered a Bundle of Papers, which put a Stop to my Enquiry for the present; I found them to be Letters, but the Hand they were written in was almost illegible, from whence I concluded, they had been wrote in a great Hurry. I made a Shift to read them, tho' not without a great deal of Pains, and was sensibly moved with the Author's Misfortunes. I was before partly acquainted with what he writes of the
MUSCOVITE Government,
their
Power, Finances,
and
Ministry:
But I was an entire Stranger to all the rest, and not a little surprized to find, that the Pains
PETER
I. had taken to civilize this Nation, were hitherto fruitless.
It is astonishing, that notwithstanding all which has been done, for above a Century, to bring these People off from their native Barbarity, they, to this Day, retain the same Savage Customs and Manners as will appear from these Letters.
What Idea then must we not form of the
Foreigners,
who are at the Head of the Administration, in that Country, and who, in the most flagrant Manner, abused the Confidence reposed in them, by the best of PRINCESSES? Must they, of Necessity, as soon as they set Foot in the
Russian
Dominions, become very
Muscovites?
I was not entirely ignorant before, of the Conduct of these Ministers: But I could never have believed them capable of carrying Matters this Length. I am assured from very good Hands, that their whole Aim was to fill their own Coffers, that they might be able to screen themselves against every suture Event; and they are probably so far right: For without any great Skill in Astrology, I would venture to presage, what will be their Fate, whenever the Empress, who is now their Support, comes to die. In the mean Time, let them think their Measures ever so secure, I very much question, whether they will escape the Storm they are threatned with, if every the Illustrious PRINCESS, who has an incontestable Right to that Crown, acceed to the Throne.
The Manner in which she is treated by these Ministers, cries aloud for Vengeance: For, instead of respecting her, as the presumptive Heir of a vast Empire: They do not so much as allow her where withal to support her Dignity, and to maintain her antient Domesticks, who chuse rather to linger on in Misery, than to quit her Service. They have even the Cruelty to keep her in a Sort of Bondage, which deters every one from making their Court to her, and is the Occasion of her being abandoned by the whole World. This is no Secret to those who travel into that Country, and when they return, they speak of it with the utmost Indignation: But, at the same Time, they are too well acquainted with the excellent Qualities and Clemency of the present Empress, to lay any Part of the Blame on her.
The
Foreign Ministry
are the Authors of all this Evil; and as they are not insensible how ill they have deserved, there is Reason to believe they will employ all their Skill to keep the next Heir from the Throne. However, notwithstanding their utmost Efforts, I very much doubt of their Success. They are, indeed, at present, absolute Masters, and dispose of every Thing at their own Will: But they may probably be divested of this Authority, which they now abuse with Impunity, whenever a Matter of that Importance, in which all the Powers of
Europe
ought to concern themselves, is brought upon the Carpet.
The very same Reasons which necessarily prompt this
Foreign Ministry
to aim at the
Exclusion
of the PRINCESS, will of course engage the Native
Muscovites
to give her their
Suffrages:
And if the
latter
gain their Point, I do not doubt but the
former
will meet the Fate they have deserved. By this Means the
Muscovites
may shake off the heavy Yoke which they now bear, and I dare answer for them, they will not let so favourable an Opportunity escape. In this Case, these
Foreign Gentlemen
will find themselves in great Danger: I advise them to be early upon their Guard, and I hope they will make a right Use of the charitable Advice I give them. I likewise hope they will not take it amiss, that I print these Letters, nor will complain of my Conduct, with Regard to them. They will, I flatter myself, thank me, for the Regard I have shewn for them, in following my Author, who is so candid to conceal the Names of all his most inveterate Enemies, and only to mention those of the Persons to whom he was obliged.
As I am perfectly acquainted with all the Intrigues of the
Muscovite
Ministry, it would be no difficult Thing for me to give an exact Description of those who are at the Head of the Affairs of that Kingdom: But, as well out of Prudence, as Caution, I shall be contented with what I have already said.
As for the
Muscovites,
I shall not need to make any Excuse on their Account: They are not a People to take Pet at so small a Matter, and they will themselves find, that what is advanced, with Respect to them, is nothing in Comparison, of what might be said against them.
After having satisfied my Curiosity with Regard to these Letters, I, with Eagerness, returned to the
Trunk
which contained them, to examine more narrowly what was yet behind. I there saw the famous
Night-Gown,
which the Author wore, to be taken Notice of by the Empress and her whole Court, when they passed under the Window of his Prison. There were yet the same Sheep's-skin-Pelt, and the same Cap, which were of so much Service to him, in his Journey from
Casan
to
Petersburg.
The
Trunk
was filled with tattered Cloaths, a few Shirts, and other Necessaries. Besides these, I opened a
Hamper,
in which were some Bottles, Earthen Plates, and Wooden Forks. I, likewise, found an Iron Fork, much larger than the others, which probably the same our Author mentions in several Parts of his Letters, and which he imagined, he might have made an advantageous Use of, as a Weapon, in Case of Need. There was even the very Axe, by the Help of which he so dextrously opened his
Trunk.
At Length, I was agreeably surprized with a Roll of Paper, which I, at first Sight, took for a Manuscript: But after having unfolded it, with a great deal of Impatience, hoping to find some important Secret inclosed; I was amazed to see only a few blank Leaves, on which some few Characters were perceivable. I soon apprehended these to be the Papers he mentions to have writ upon with his Silver Pencil, without Ink, and which after the Misfortune he met with, of falling into a Pit, in
Courland,
were become illegible.
After having carefully examined, whatever was in the
Trunk,
I acquainted several Friends with my Resolution of publishing these Letters: But I found their Opinions very various. I shall therefore only mention some of the principal Reflections that were made on this Account.
One of the Events, which, among others, greatly surprized us, was that of the Attempt, which our Author endeavours to prove, was made to Poison him. We carefully examined his Allegations, and found them all well grounded. Let any Man judge with what Horror we considered so black, and so detestable an Action.
Having enquired into this important Point, the next Thing we fell upon was, his Attempt to discover the Original of the
Muscovites.
As Novelty never fails of pleasing, this Passage entertained us some Time, and every one was allowed to give his Opinion freely. At first, none would decide upon the Matter, for Fear of being deceived; some said the Thought was ingenious, but had no Foundation: Others looked upon it as a Thing demonstrated beyond all Contradiction.
While we were thus in Suspence what to determine, one of the Company proposed to look upon the Author's Opinion as a mere Conjecture. This every one approved of, and thereby an End was soon put to this Dispute. This Person added, that if we would indulge him a Moment, he would set us right in several Circumstances, which our Author had not mentioned, either because they had escaped his Memory; or, perhaps, because he never had an Opportunity of being informed of them. The whole Company having expressed an eager Desire of hearing what he had farther to propose, he related a Fact of which we were all ignorant, tho' the Truth of it is incontestable,
viz.
That the third Expedition of the
Scythians
into
Asia
is fixed, by the most able Chronologists, to
A.M.
3334, which is just 676 Years before the
Christian-Aera:
This being premised, our Author might with Reason say, that the
Muscovites
would be in the wrong, to complain of the Original he ascribes to them; for if it be not one of the most illustrious, it is, at least, one of the most antient. He acquainted us farther, that the City, which he calls the
City of Slaves,
is now known by the Name of
Clopigorod,
and is situated in the very Country, thro' which these wretched People made their Retreat. These Illustrations, put us to reflect upon the Fact in Question, not only as probable, but as an evident Truth.
While we proceeded in the Perusal of these
Letters,
every one gave their Opinions, and some made very judicious and curious Reflections. But the reading of the
last
Letter, made us almost forget all that had been said on the foregoing. The single Circumstance of the
Pass
given to our Author, fixed the Attention of the whole Company. This Procedure of the
Muscovites,
by which they exposed him to be looked upon as the most base and vilest of Men, excited a general Indignation in us. Every one exclai med against this Piece of flagrant Injustice, and the
Muscovites
were treated as they deserved. Who could blame us? Can they say any Thing in Justification of themselves, for sullying the Reputation of a
Man of Honour,
without any Cause, and brand him with the Character of a Spy, in a strange Country? Was it not enough, that they had detained him so long in a grievous Captivity, wherein they had subjected him to a thousand Evils? A Man of Worth would much rather chuse to dye, than to suffer such a Blemish on his Reputation.
Just as we were going to part, a Gentleman asked, if there was not any one amongst us, inclinable to take a Voyage to
Muscovy,
in Hopes of making his Fortune? This Proposal surprized us all, so much, that we could not but turn it into Ridicule; and soon replied in the Negative, alledging, that we should expect the same Fate which our Author had undergone. This, says he, is the very Answer I expected: For these
Letters
I must own are a sufficient Warning to all Strangers,
Felix quem faciunt,
&c. how they trust to
Muscovite
Integrity. For which Reason the publishing of these will be a Public Benefit. I replied, that in Regard to the favourable Judgment they had formed of these Letters, I should not hesitate, but would forthwith print them; but begged Leave to make one Observation which escaped their Notice,
viz.
That the
Muscovites
themselves, and even their
Foreign Ministry,
under whose Rule they are, so far from having Reason to complain of the Publication of these
Letters,
might be greatly benefitted by them, and could not but be thankful to us for it. For, we all know, that, the
Muscovites
bear a mortal Hatred to the
Foreigners,
who are at the Head of their Affairs, and wish nothing more, than to be rid of them. On the other Hand, it is no less certain, that the
Foreigners,
who find they have Power enough to support their Cabal, use all the Skill they are Masters of, to keep other
Foreigners
from getting a Footing in that Court. It is therefore, doing considerable Service to Both, to publish these
Letters:
Since it is not to be imagined, that those who read them, will ever think of seeking an Employ in
Muscovy?
By this Means, the
Muscovites
will have no Reason to complain of Interlopers, and the
Foreigners,
who are now employed, need not be apprehensive of losing their Places, or being emulated by Rivals.
This Observation was approved by all who were present; but then another Difficulty was, at the same Time, started. It was objected, that these
Letters,
being written by an
Italian,
who, perhaps, had never any Thoughts of their being published, it would be absolutely necessary to revise them, and to correct the Stile. To which it was judiciously answered, That a Work like this, which was written with no other Intent, but that of obliging a Friend, ought to be given to the Publick, without any Alteration; and it is hoped their intrinsick Worth will deserve that they should be translated into all the
European
Languages, and may return to
Muscovy
and prove a
Speculum
to those of
other
Nations now resident there. I do not in the least doubt but the
Italians
in particular, would, in Vindication of their Countryman, be the first to put their Hands to the Plough, and other Nations, doubtless, will soon follow their Example. The
Germans
are principally concerned in this Matter, because a great Number of their Countrymen go daily into
Muscovy,
to
seek their Fortune.
The Example of some
false Brethren
ought not to hinder them from concurring in a Matter from whence so much Good may result: But if I should even be deceived in my Hopes, I will never forsake so just a Cause during Life; but resolutely maintain it.
Ipsum potius Acheronta movebo.
Here the
French
Editor concludes his Account of these LETTERS, and I will not presume to detain Your GRACE any longer, than begging Leave to subscribe myself,
Your GRACE's Most Dutiful, And Most Obedient Humble Servant, W.M.
MUSCOVIAN LETTERS.
LETTER I.
SIR,
Y OUR generous Behaviour towards Me may hereafter serve as an Example to all who make Profession of Friendship. You had all the Reason in the World to believe me lost to you, and for ever; and yet this did not hinder you from doing for me, whatever could be done by those who are in a Condition to give daily Proofs of their Affection one to the other. This may be stiled Friendship even to the Dead: Among the Number of whom you could not but account me, since you had no News from me, and nothing but Death could be supposed to prevent my Writing. I am more than convinced of all the Effects you say my first Letter had upon you, and you will be as fully persuaded of those, which yours could produce in me. We know each other too well to need any farther Explication on this Head.
You say, you cannot forbear looking upon me, as a Person risen from the Dead; and you are so far right: I am not dead, indeed, because
Mors miseros fugit;
but I may, nevertheless, be esteemed a Ghost, since I am actually returned from another World, where I have made no short Abode. I learn every Day something new and surprizing, and that almost with the same Pleasure a deaf Man would, who should at once recover the Organs of Hearing. The earnest Desire you express, of having a circumstantial Account of my Adventures, looks as if you expected something extraordinary and wonderful, and therein, you are not mistaken. Had the same Things happened to another, I my self should have been backward in believing them:
Triste petit munus:
But should I refuse to satisfy your Curiosity, it would be the first Time you ever asked me any thing in vain. I shall not, therefore, hesitate a Moment, and the less, as a renewed Friendship requires more Assiduity than that which has never been broken. Ours may well be said to be renewed, since it is come back from the other World. What terrifies me is, that Accuracy of Relation which you require of me. For I am scrupulous enough with you, to endeavour strictly to obey you. Had it not been for an unhappy Shipwreck, which I suffered, at a Time when I might have thought my self least liable to a Misfortune of that Nature, I should, perhaps, have been able to fulfil your Desires. Some Memoirs which I had written in a very peculiar Manner, would have been of great Service to my History: But they are not at all legible. I have, indeed, preserved a short Journal, which now must supply every Thing. Had any one but you made this Request, I should have found more than one reasonable Excuse for a Denial. It is not a bare Relation of my Fate will content you; I must give you the History of a whole Nation, its Manners and Government, and describe it to you, in such a Light as I found it, and not such as, perhaps, you, and many others have believed it to be. It is true, since the Beginning of this Century, we have had a more extensive Knowledge of this Nation, than formerly; and the great Reform which has been attempted in it, has furnished ample Occasion for Discourse. You will see how far it has succeeded, and whether the Pains which have been taken, and the Torrents of Blood which have been shed, have answered Expectation? It is generally said, we must travel to know the Manners of People: But, to my Cost, I have found, that it is requisite to know them, before we leave our own Home. You will be the more convinced of this Truth, the farther you proceed in the History of my Adventures.
In my former Letter, I advis'd you, that after the Misfortune which obliged me to leave a Country, I shall regret to the last Period of my Life, transported by a just Despair, I had no other Thoughts but of retiring to some Place, where I might be entirely unknown; but my evil Destiny continued to pursue me, and directed my Choice to the only Part of the World, where she could exercise her most cruel Tyranny upon me: For I am persuaded, there is no other Country, in which I could have been exposed to the like Events. I shall leave you to judge of these Matters; be prepared only to give Attention to what I am about to relate. You will find some Things to amuse and divert you, and others which will justly raise your Indignation, and compel you to allow, that it is with Truth, I say, I am returned from another World.
Being arrived at
Dantzick,
where I made some Stay, I resolved to conceal my self from the whole World, under the Character of an
Italian
Merchant, with the Name of
Roccaforte.
My Imagination probably suggested this Name to my Mind, to encourage me to undergo all my Misfortunes with Constancy. In the mean Time, uneasy, and tired as I was, with a painful Journey by Land, I was for trying if I could leave some Share of my Sorrows there, and embarked, in the Beginning of
May,
1733. on Board a small Vessel, bound for St.
Petersburg,
whither my Inclinations led me.
We departed from the Harbour the next Day, with a tolerable good Wind; but the Day following, about the same Hour, were again in the same Place, having been obliged to return faster than we set out. We hoisted Sail, a second Time: But the Inconstancy of the Weather, and the Violence of the Winds, drove us, for the space of a Fortnight, sometimes on the Coasts of
Pomerania,
sometimes on those of
Denmark;
now on the
Swedish
Coasts, and then on the
Livonian;
where a Sight of the Island of
Dagho
had like to have cost us dear, by the Unskilfulness of our Pilot. A Want of Provisions began to augment our Fears, the Voyage from
Dantzick
to
Petersburg
being generally eight or ten Days, whereas we had been already fifteen, at Sea. We were often in Sight of the Island of
Gothland;
but with such stormy Weather, as obliged us to keep the Sea. At Length, we happily gained the Eastern Coast of that Island, where, among a Number of Rocks, we found a proper Anchorage. It was with great Pleasure I went on Shoar, where the first thing I observed was, by certain Marks, that the Sea was retired from that Place: The next Day, I was fully convinced of it, and saw that it had left a good half League of dry Land. We were so fortunate to find a House, and whatever we wanted to re-victual our Ship.
During our Stay there, which was three or four Days, I diverted my self with taking long Walks, and I found very pleasant ones all along the Shoar, with Situations very proper for the Abode of a Wretch like my self. You will laugh at another Remark I made, in this Island; which is, that of one Species of Birds, common every where else, at least in
Europe,
and that small part of
Asia,
I have travelled through, I mean
Sparrows,
not any are to be seen there. If you ask me the Reason of it, I shall ingenuously confess my Ignorance, since there are many other Kinds of Birds. I could gladly have staid some Days longer, in this charming Solitude: But the Time for our Departure was come, and we were destined to be, another Fortnight, the Sport of the Winds, which, at length, drove us into the Port of
Revel.
These Accidents, which happened to me in my Voyage, were designed, by Fate, to give me a Foresight of what I was to expect when arrived in Port: But I was not capable of Reflection; my Thoughts were bent on nothing but carrying my Despair and Sorrows to a Place, where they might not be seen or known by any one. After having furnished ourselves with some Provisions at
Revel,
we put to Sea again, and, not to tire your Patience any longer, after a most unfortunate Voyage of six Weeks, we arrived, the 20th of
June,
at
Petersburg.
Ergo erat in fatis
Scythiam
quoque visere nostris!
But before I suffer this Exclamation to carry me too far, I must solemnly protest, that being about to treat of the
Muscovite
Nation, of which,
Difficile est Satyram non scribere,
I except the August SOVERAIGN, who now rules it, for whom I have the most profound Veneration. I am acquainted with her extraordinary Qualities, and especially her Religion and Piety. I am not ignorant, in what an excellent Manner she dispenses her Justice and Clemency; but what is most admirable, is her extreme good Nature, a Quality rarely to be met with on the Throne; which, however, she possesses in the highest Degree of Perfection, and extends to the utmost of her Power, tho' always far short of her Inclination: So that, in many Cases, we might justly make her speak the Language of
Iphigenia,
Non ego crudelis, juvenes ignoscite, dixit:
Sacra suo facio barbariora loco.
In short, to say every Thing in a few Words; there is nothing wanting in her, that can be desired; but, on the contrary, what she might reasonably expect, she is far from possessing: Her Merits give her a Title to govern another Sort of People, who might be capable of knowing and perceiving the Happiness they enjoy in her Person, and to have another Kind of Subjects about her, who might assist her in supporting the Burthen of so vast a Government.
As for the Illustrious
Princess,
the only Remains of the Family which now reigns; they only, who have not seen nor heard of her, can be at a Loss to distinguish her from the rest of the Nation. The Qualities of her Mind and Body are a Conjunction of whatever is excellent: And if I should pretend to give you a Detail of what I have seen of one, and heard of the other, I should not be so soon able to give you Satisfaction, with Regard to my self. Let it then suffice, that she possesses every Quality, in such a Perfection;
Quâ faemina nasci nulla potest.
Having rendered,
Quae sunt Caesaris Caesari,
I return to my Voyage, which we pursued up the
Nieva,
till we came near a fine Bridge of Boats, that crosses it. I would gladly have landed immediately; but the Officers, who were put on Board our Vessel at
Cronstadt,
would not suffer us to carry the least Thing from the Ship: I was, therefore, forced to stay on Board, and it was three Days before our Master could get his Clearances; which gave me not the best Idea of their Regulations with Regard to Trade. In this Interval, all I could do was to amuse my self with what came within my View. The first Thing which offered was the Bridge, which serves for a Communication of one Part of the Town with the other. It is little frequented, from whence I concluded the Place not populous, and I was not deceived. The Ships which are ranged on both Sides of the River, in a Symetrical Order, make a pretty agreable View, but the rest is no way answerable to this Part of the Town, which may be called fine. Suffer me now to guess at your Desires: I am persuaded, that amidst the Accuracy of the Relations you desire from me, they do not extend to a Description of Things; that would be an Entertainment too gross for your refined Taste; nor shall I want Matter, without that, to employ a good Part of your Time: For being to give you an Account of a Captivity, which lasted two whole Years, Circumstances will offer, of sufficient Importance to deserve not to be treated in a
Laconic
Manner.
The first Person I became acquainted with at
Petersburg
was a Merchant whose Name is
Mariotti,
a very honest Man, and to whom I am highly obliged. He assisted me in every Thing within his Sphere, and I am persuaded he would have done more had it been in his Power. I went to the
Roman Catholic
Church, and visited the Fathers who officiated in it, whither a pretty many People resorted. I there used my best Endeavours to get Information of such Things as were most necessary, on my Arrival in a Country where I proposed to settle. I picked up my Intelligences, some here, some there, and neglected no Opportunity to be instructed. Thus, in a few Days, I easily perceived, this was no Country for my Purpose; but I was advanced too far to retreat. My Business was how to get into the Service; I advised with Mr.
Mariotti
about it: But he laid so many Difficulties before me, as threw me into an unusual Disorder.
While my Thoughts where thus employed what Course to take, I accidentally saw a Person, who I believed might know me, and besides met with a very singular Adventure, which obliged me to take other Measures. I formed the Resolution of going to
Persia,
where I knew the Prince of
Hesse-Homburg
commanded, and the Character I had heard of him gave me Room to hope, that if I made my self known to him, he would not refuse me the Honour of his Protection. I but just hint at these Matters now, because you will find a particular Account of them, in a Petition I presented to the
Czarina
's Cabinet-Council. But I must acquaint you with the chief Motive that put me upon going to
Persia,
which I could not insert in that Piece, as you yourself will judge. Being continually inquisitive after a Knowledge of Things, I likewise gathered all the News I could, not only what was published in the
Gazettes,
but what I could learn from the Persons I conversed with. Among the latter was one who was perfectly acquainted with the Projects, Designs, and Preparations of the Court of
Petersburg,
and who knew the Strength, as well as the weak Side, of this Power, which now so much alarms
Europe,
tho' I see no Reason for it. By all I could learn, I was convinced, that the War in
Poland
was inevitable, and that if I engaged in the
Russian
Service, I should, perhaps, be obliged to draw my Sword against a Prince I respect, and against a Nation I shall love with my latest Breath, and to which I owe the little Knowledge I have in the Art of War. You know me so much a
Frenchman
at Heart, to be intirely persuaded, I should rather quit the Profession of a Soldier for ever, than engage against the Interest of King
Stanislaus,
and the Troops employed to support his lawful Rights. The Declaration made by the
French
King, to all the Ministers I had seen, left me no Room to doubt, but he would employ all his Force in so just a Cause, for which the Honour of the
French
Name is so tenderly concerned. I leave you to judge, whether I could bear to be in the
Muscovite
Army, in View of the Troops of
France;
I detest the very Thoughts of it. This was the true Motive which fixed my Resolution of going to
Persia,
and you are by this Time sensible I could not insert it in the Petition mentioned above. As soon as my Design was formed, I spoke to my Friend
Mariotti
to look out for a Conveniency of going thither; and in order to provide what was most necessary for my Journey, I sold a good Part of my Equipage, to raise Money. My next Care was to get a Pass, which is not to be obtained without Difficulty, and at a great Expence, especially if it be to go out of the
Russian
Dominions: But as this was not my Case, I got off for four or five Rubles
A
Russian
Coin about the Value of a Crown.
: A shameful Practice, to oblige People to pay for a Pass! What must a Person do who has but just enough to bear the Expences of his Journey? Why truly, he must remain there, and submit to Slavery, as has been the Case of many. A Foreigner, who has lived some Time among them, finds it difficult to obtain his Dismission. They are no sooner informed of his Intent, than they raise Suspicions, and carry their Jealousy and Distrust to an Excess. Whoever has once got a Knowledge of their Affairs, must never hope to leave the Country. They imagine, they have Reason to apprehend such a one would divulge their
Arcana.
What more sensible Evidence can there be of the Weakness of their Government?
All I advance on this Head is but too wellgrounded, and I could give a Number of Instances which would sufficiently evince this Truth: But I shall confine myself to One, that of an
Italian,
who calls himself
Sava,
and who has rendered the Empress such Services, as put it out of the Power of this Princess to acknowledge them. As his Case has been already made public, I shall not detain you with a long Account of it: And only add, that this Man, after having long served the State, could not obtain Leave to pass the Rest of his Days with his Wife, at
Venice.
Does not this single Instance of
Muscovite
Politicks surprize you? For my Part, I think it the more shocking; as the Person I am speaking of deserves a better Fate. But to return to my own Concerns.
Having procured a Pass, I wanted nothing but a favourable Opportunity of departing, and soon after one offered, such, I thought, as my Heart could wish. I embraced it with the greater Pleasure, as I was convinced I should, by this Means, pursue my Journey, with Safety and Delight. It was not easy to foresee, that such an Opportunity could ever be the Source of a grievous Captivity, and of all my Misfortunes. You, without doubt, know, that the Emperor PETER I. founded an Academy of Sciences, which is yet in being, but in so confused a State, that the principal Members of it have desired their Dismission. Perhaps, likewise, you have heard of an Expedition to the North-Eastern Parts of
Asia,
to a Country call'd
Kamtschatki,
in which the
Muscovites
have already settled some Colonies. This Undertaking furnished me with the Opportunity I am speaking of. Three Professors of the Academy, one of Astrology, a second of History, and a third of Botany, were to be sent to this Country, and they, with several others, formed a sort of Caravan. Their Way lay through the Kingdom of
Casan,
which was likewise my Road to
Persia.
As soon as I was informed, that these Gentlemen were preparing to depart, I did what I could to be one of the Company. I first enquired to whom I must make my Application, for this End, and was told to Mons.
de l'Isle,
Professor of Astronomy, Brother of the late Mons.
de l'Isle,
the famous Geographer to his most
Christian
Majesty. This Gentleman left
France,
and went to
Petersburg,
in the Time of
Peter
I. who had desired him of the
French
King. As I shall have frequent Occasion, in the Sequel, to mention him and his Spouse, I must not omit making you acquainted with their Characters; but I must previously tell you, that their Merit infinitely surpasses whatever I can say of them. Good Nature, Generosity, Candour, and every other Quality, which can render a Person amiable, are perfectly united in them. I may say, in short, they are an Honour to the
French
Nation. A rare
Phenomenon,
to preserve so many good Qualities among a People, who hardly know one of them! Nothing can be a more convincing Proof of it, than what they did for me during my Captivity.
When I waited on Mons.
de l'Isle,
to concert, with him, the Measures I had to take; he received me with an unprecedented Politeness, and gave me a most favourable Reception. He told me, that he was not to go the Journey himself, but that it was his Brother, Mons.
de la. Croyere,
who, without doubt, would rejoice at having my Company. I afterwards spoke of it to Mons.
de la Croyere,
and to the other Professors, who readily granted my Desire. Some Days after, Mons.
de la Croyere,
desired me to come to his House, in Order to depart, the next Day: But, their last Dispatches not being ready, our Journey was delayed a good while longer. During this Interval, Mons. and Madam
de l'Isle
compelled me to be with them, and treated me as an intimate Friend. There it was I got acquainted with Mons.
du Vernoi,
a very learned Professor of Anatomy, and a Man of unquestionable Worth: To whom I have great Obligations for Services done me; And as I shall mention him farther in the Sequel of my History, I thought it my Duty to make you acquainted with him. As our whole Conversation at Mons.
de l'Isle
's, turned upon the Expedition to
Kamtschatki,
I had some Inclination to go thither my self, and it was compatible enough with my Resolution of being unknown. I opened my Mind to Mons.
de l'Isle,
and we debated on it some Days: But, upon mature Enquiry, finding neither Order nor Management in the Design, I thought no more of it. And, indeed, they were so ill prepared for it, that on the very Day intended for our Departure, we were obliged to put it off a Fortnight, to regulate certain Matters, which ought to have been provided for long before. Such is the Custom of the Country; Nothing is done there
To-day,
every Thing is put off till
To-morrow,
which I have too often experienced to my Cost, and been forced to put up with those
To-days
and
To-morrows,
for three Months together.
At length, after many Delays, on the most frivolous Accounts in the World, we were upon the Point of departing: But two of these Gentlemen having some Doubts, I went before, with a Servant, Monsieur
de la Croyere
was so kind to give me. We agreed upon a Place, where we were all to meet, and pursue our Journey afterwards together. Monsieur
de l'Isle
and his Spouse, not satisfied with the Civilities they had shewn me, loaded me with such a Quantity of Provisions, as would have served me quite to
Persia,
had I been allowed to pursue my intended Journey thither.
The Day of my Departure was the 15th of
August,
O.S. I embarked on board a small Vessel as customary, and went up the River
Nieva
to the famous Canal of
Ladoga.
This Canal is situate in a very marshy Soil, and is of a vast Extent; but I very much question, whether the Advantages accruing from it answer the immense Sums it cost at first; not to mention the prodigious Number of Lives sacrificed in that Undertaking. I make little or no Doubt, but it will insensibly fall to Decay; because it is hardly possible to keep it in Repair, without a considerable yearly Expence; and, on the other Hand, the
Muscovites
are not enough inured to Labour to continue such painful Works long.
From this Canal of
Ladoga,
I entered the River
Wolkowa,
in which there are Currents of an astonishing Rapidity, and very difficult to stem. The Violence of the Stream broke the Rope which drew my Barque; but, by good Fortune, it happened at a Place, where the Danger was not great, and all the Damage I suffered was being carried some Distance back again. However, not to incur the like Danger again, I took care always to land, when I found myself exposed to it.
These Currents, or rather Cataracts of the
Ladoga,
are a Hinderance to the Advantages proposed by this Canal. The chief Aim of digging it, was to facilitate the Communication of the
Wolga
with the
Baltick,
and so far it has succeeded; because, by this River, there is a very easy Passage even to the
Caspian
Sea. It is, likewise, of great Service to the Transport from
Muscow
to
Petersburg.
As for the Transport of Goods from
Petersburg
into the Country, I look upon this Design as very difficult. How is it possible Vessels, heavy laden, should stem these Currents? What Dangers would they not be exposed to? And supposing it practicable, how few Merchants would be at the Expence of an Undertaking of this Nature?
Having passed these Currents, I continued my Journey through a Country equally populous and well cultivated. I traversed the great
Novogrod,
which carried me into the Lake of
Imen;
from thence into the River
Mista,
which I was likewise obliged to go up as far as
Bronitz,
the Rendez-vous appointed by my Friend
de la Croyere.
We both rejoiced at our happy Meèting, and after having continued our Journey some Days by Land, we embarked on the
Twersa,
a little River, which falls into the
Wolga,
at
Twer,
whither we repaired. Here we were obliged to stay about ten Days, to fit out a large Barque, big enough for the whole Caravan. I must confess, this Delay was very tedious to me: And I could not conceive, how, in an Undertaking of this Importance, Measures could have been so ill concerted. But thus, as I observed before, it is with every Thing in
Muscovy;
an eternal Slowness rules in all their Actions, and if any thing ever succeeds there, it is generally the Effect of meer Hazard.
All Things being ready for our Departure, Monsieur
de la Croyere
would take me into the same Cabbin provided for himself. I shall not give you any Account of my Remarks, nor of what happened in my Journey from
Petersburg
to
Casan.
I had kept a little Journal, but the
Muscovites
thought fit to take away this, and several other of my Papers. This petty Larceny shews the Character of the People: They were apprehensive, the Use I should make of this Journal might not turn to their Honour, and perhaps they were not mistaken: This, however, is certain, that Distrust is one of the evil Qualities of this Nation. I think I promised to say something of
Kamtschatki,
and of the Expedition thither: it is time I keep my Word, and entertain you a Moment on that Head.
It is certain, that the North-East Part of
Asia
differs very much from what it has been long believed to be. It was supposed to be bordered by the
Promontorium Glaciale,
or Cape of
Swetenoes.
But it is now discovered, that, at the End of this Cape, there is a large Continent which stretches North and South, for the Space of more than twenty Degrees, and forms a sort of
Peninsula,
joining to that Part of
Asia
only on the North. On the Western Side of it, is a Gulph, which separates it from
Siberia,
and on the Eastern Side is the Sea of
Japan.
Towards the South it is bordered by a very narrow Streight, full of Islands. For this Discovery we are indebted to the People who inhabit the most Northern Parts of
Siberia.
Some pretend it was made by Sea, by doubling the Cape of
Swetenoes:
Others, that it was made on the Land-side, by advancing very far into the Country; I shall not determine which is the right: But however this be, it is certain the Country is inhabited by divers Nations, and that, at this Time, a great Number of
Russian
Colonies are settled there. PETER I. sent a
Danish
Sea-Officer thither, called Captain
Berrin;
who, having undertaken the Journey by Land, traversed
Siberia,
advanced to this very Place, and returned. What Discoveries this Captain made, I cannot pretend so justly to say: But it is to be presumed, that whatever Measures have been since taken, are grounded on his Report. The same Officer has now undertaken this second Journey thither, by Order of the Empress, who has intrusted the Direction of this Affair solely to him. He departed some Months before us, with a large Company, especially of Mariners, and a great Number of Artificers, who are to be employed in building several Vessels there. The Professors hoped to overtake them at
Tobolski,
the Capital of
Siberia,
with the rest of the Caravan.
This Project was formed with several Views. The first is, to establish a Trade with the
Japanese.
The second, to work at the Mines, which are very rich and numerous, in the Country already known: And a third, to attempt new Discoveries towards
America,
which, perhaps, is not very far from thence; since the Bounds of the Northern Part of
California
are not yet known. It is even said, that Captain
Berrin
has already discerned some Land on that Side. We must allow, that nothing has a more promising Appearance, than all these Views, and, if they succeed, great Advantages will ensue: But I very much fear, the Court of
Russia
will be deceived in their Expectations, and am concerned for my Friend the Astronomer, who has engaged so unwarily in the Design. Their Measures have been hitherto so ill concerted, that, in all Appearance, this Enterprize will never succeed. The greater Part of those employed therein are unexperienced Persons, who have no Talent, nor have I observed either Discipline or Order among them. Nevertheless, a Scheme of this Nature, if well executed, would excite the Attention of all
Europe,
and be an inexpressible Glory to the Sovereign, under whose Reign it has been formed.
I should be curious to know what the
Dutch
think of this Undertaking; they, who alone, in
Europe,
carry on a Trade to
Japan.
They would not have much Reason to be concerned at it: The
Muscovites
are not a very expeditious People to settle such a Commerce. But it may be objected, that the Face of Affairs may change in
Russia;
The Inhabitants of it are not always the same; And after all, may not the Design, which miscarried in the first Attempt, succeed in a Second? Vain Imagination! A Change in the
Muscovites
is a
Phenomenon
which will not appear so soon, and which, I confess, I look upon as impossible. On the other Hand, there are, in the wise and mighty Republick of
Holland,
Politicians too refined, and Traders too knowing, not to be watchful for the Security of their Commerce; And if they find such a Settlement likely to take Place, they will not want Means to prevent the Consequences of it. The least Suspicions, dextrously insinuated into the jealous Minds of the
Japanese,
would alone suffice to overthrow all the Schemes of the
Muscovites,
were they even concerted with more Prudence and Wisdom than they are.
My Journey to
Kamtschatki
has been no less tedious than that from
Twer
to
Casan.
We entered the little River of
Casanka,
which begun to freeze, and going up it, arrived the 20th of
October
about Noon at
Casan,
where I shall take some Days Repose. Do you the same, Sir, expecting a second Letter, in which I shall acquaint you only with what regards my self.
—Et quanquam luctus renoventur amari Perpetiar memorare tamen.
Yours, &c.
LETTER II.
SIR,
I Take the Advantage of staying at
Casan,
as well to recover my self from the Fatigues of my Journey, as to retrieve, if possible, the Time I have lost: But what Satisfaction can I make, for having kept a profound Silence with regard to you, for two whole Years together. The more I think of it, the more I am sensible of my Incapacity: And, indeed, what Possibility is there of expressing the Obligations I lye under, for what you have done in my Behalf! No, Sir, I am convinced, I shall never be in a Condition to make a Return adequate to your Goodness.
Nec si Nestoreos compleam annos.
My last informed you of our Arrival at
Casan,
the 20th of
October.
It then began to be so cold, that the River was half frozen over. I had so little Thoughts of making any stay there, that my first Care was to inquire, if there was any Vessel bound for
Astracan:
But it was labour in vain, the Season was too far advanced. I had no Remedy but to hire a Barque to my self, and all Necessaries for my Journey were soon provided. My Friends were no sooner informed of my Design, than they used their utmost Endeavours to dissuade me from it. Mons.
de la Croyere,
in particular, gave me such an Idea of the Difficulties, and represented, in such lively Colours, the Dangers, I was about to expose myself to, that I, at length, determined to wait for an Opportunity of continuing my Journey by Land: It was next to impossible for me to resist the pressing Instances, which were made me on this Account. My Resolution being fixed, a small Lodging was provided for me, and as I foresaw my Abode there might be long, I took care to buy those Things, I should stand in need of. The next Point was, what Character I was to appear under: After mature Consideration, I concluded, it would not become me to remain wholly under Disguise, and as a Vagrant. I did not in the least doubt, but the Professors made mention of me; But I was intirely at a Loss what Construction was put upon their Discourse. Being informed that the Governor was a Person of Distinction, who had travelled, and spoke
French
and
Italian,
I took that Resolution, which to me seemed alone becoming a Man of Honour. I paid him a Visit, the 28th of
October,
and opened my self to him, in the following Words:
"Sir, tho I am persuaded, it is allowable to deceive the Publick, in Things which concern none but my self, I am, at the same Time, convinced, it will not become me to impose upon a Person of your Quality and Character. My Pass, you see, describes me as a Merchant, by a feigned Name; But I must confess to you, that I am a Soldier, of some Distinction. My Design is to go into
Persia,
to offer my Service to the Prince of
Hesse-Homburg,
to be employed under him, in Her Majesty's Army. I beg of you, Sir, to give me a Guard, that I may continue my Journey in Safety."
I told him my real Name, and the Reason, which had induced me to conceal it. He answered me courteously enough, but with some Perplexity.
"I am sorry (said he) for your Misfortunes, and shall take care for your Departure with the first Opportunity."
Having, thereupon, made me repeat my true Name, he took it down in Writing. He continued his Discourse to me in the most obliging Manner; But perceiving his Countenance did not speak the same Language, I replied:
"Sir, as you may have some Scruple with Respect to my Person, I here offer you my Sword, and am ready to surrender my self your Prisoner, whenever you shall think proper, 'till you know who I am, and in what manner I have behaved."
To which he answered in these very Words:
"Fear Nothing, Sir, I am convinced by your Carriage and your Discourse, that you are the Person, you say you are: Let nothing disquiet you, and be assured a Passage shall be provided for you, in the first Ship, that departs for
Astracan
:"
Upon this, I took my Leave, without, however, knowing what Course to take: The Surprize I had observed in his Looks, was to me not the most auspicious Omen.
When I left the Governour, I went directly to Mons.
de la Croyere,
to acquaint him what had happened. I had too much Obligation to conceal any Thing from him. He had Company with him, so I did not think it proper to speak of this Matter, 'till he was alone. I had hardly sat down, when I saw the City-Major come in, at the Head of half a Dozen Soldiers, with their Bayonets on the Muzzles of their Muskets. He immediately demanded my Sword, which I gave him without Hesitation, telling him, the Governour might have received it himself, without taking this Step. He did not understand me, but behaved with much more Politeness, than is usual in
Muscovy.
I must do him the Justice to own, that of all those I had any Concern with, his Carriage was the most Gentleman-like. I could almost swear he is of
Tartarian
Race; At least his Shape and Phisiognomy had very much the Resemblance of that Nation, which has Nothing in common with the
Muscovite.
He soon took Possession of the Room I was in, and obliged Mons.
de
la Croyere,
with his Company, to go out, and then leaving me to the Care of a Corporal and six Soldiers, who kept their Bayonets on the Muzzles of their Muskets, he returned to give the Governour an Account of his Expedition. I desired Mons.
de la Croyere,
when he left me, not to be uneasy, neither on his own Account nor mine, assuring him, that the Regard he had shewn for me could never be of any Prejudice to him. The Major returned in about half an Hour, and, taking me in his Sled, carried me to my Lodgings, where all that belonged to me were examined with the greatest Exactness. This was done by a young Man who had the Appearance of an Officer, but whose Carriage bespoke him nothing less. Not the least Thing, in my whole Equipage, could escape his Sight. He unfolded my Shirts, and folded them up again, to see if he could find any thing concealed in them. In short, his Hands and Eyes were every where. The Major, who seemed pleased with his performing his Function with so much Care, told him, with a Sneer:
Thou wouldst make an excellent
Valet de Chambre,
none better.
I took this young Man to be an Officer, by his Dress; But if he was so, judge what sort of Officers there are in
Muscovy.
After a nice Enquiry what was to be found, they bundled up my Books, and some Writings of no great Concern, which they seized and carried off.
Having thus disposed of my Effects, the next Thing was to secure my Person. They carried me to the
Corps de Garde,
which is over-against the Governour's House. I was there shut up, in the Officer's Room, where a Soldier was placed to guard me, within Sight, with his Sword drawn. I expected, with Impatience, that the Governour would either send for me, or let me know what he designed to do with me. It was already past Noon, and I saw no Body, but the Officer of the Guard, and the Soldiers who went out and in. At length, a very slender Dinner was brought for the Officer, and another Person who was to dine with him. They were so civil to invite me to take Part with them. I returned them Thanks; But enquiring of them, by Signs, if the Governour would not send me my Portion likewise, they gave me to understand he would not. In vain I desired to have somebody I could speak with; I was told I was not to expect it. Hunger, in the mean time, pressing, and seeing nothing brought me, I thought it was best to accept of their Offer. I neither saw nor heard of any thing farther, the whole Day; and Night being come, I was obliged to take up with a Bench instead of a Bed; where, however, I slept pretty quietly, after having taken a Knife out of my Pocket, which was troublesome to me, and which was stolen before Morning, from the Table where I laid it.
I met with no better Usage, the Day following: Having therefore expected my Destiny, to no Purpose, 'till Noon, I desired to speak with the Officer, to whom I gave to understand, by Signs, and pretty bluntly, that I was ill used; that he should go to the Governour, and tell him, I expected he should either send me an Interpreter, or suffer me to speak to him my self. This Officer, highly surprized to see a Prisoner, equally haughty in his Gesttures, and threatning in the Tone of his Voice, went immediately out of the Room, but returned in a Moment, to tell me the Governour was not at Home. Tho this Answer gave me little Satisfaction, I endeavoured to make him understand several other Things, but to no Purpose. He only perceived, that I wanted to know, whether I should have any Thing sent me to eat, and to this he again answered in the Negative. I plainly saw I was to be at my own Expence, and therefore threw a Ruble on the Table, and made Signs to have something provided for me.
It may not be amiss to observe here, that in the whole Kingdom of
Casan,
a Ruble is a considerable Sum, sufficient to maintain a Man elegantly for a whole Month. As Money is extream scarce in this Country, every thing is exceeding cheap. A Sheep is not worth above ten Pence,
I have translated the
French
Word
Sous,
a Penny, because we have no Denomination of Coin exactly adequate to it, tho' otherwise it is not worth above two Thirds of a Penny.
a Hen a Penny, and 30 Eggs the same. For 4 or 5 Rubles you may buy the best Horse, that is brought to Market, and the best Bullock is not worth above Two. You know, without doubt, that a Ruble is a Silver Coin, of about the Value of 4 Livres and a half,
French
Money.
They returned me my Change; but I soon perceived, that Stewards in
Muscovy
were no more troubled with Honesty, than in other Countries. I was, however, under a Necessity of being cheated in this Manner, during the whole Time of my Captivity. I thought my self happy, when I met with People who were contented with a small Gain: But this is a
Phenomenon
which rarely appears in
Muscovy.
Pardon, I beseech you, a small Digression. You may, perhaps, be curious to know my Bill of Fare; It consisted only in Bread, Beer, and a large Piece of boiled Sturgeon. I no sooner sat down to my short Meal, than a Corporal, who was in the Room, came to offer me the Service of a Carver, with the same Knife which was stolen from me the Night before. I leave you to judge of my Surprize: I fell a laughing, and, at the same Time, laying hold of my Knife, I gave him to understand I could dispense with his Office: But finding he would not let go his Hold, I began to talk big, and hector. My Guards were afraid, and thought proper to send for their Officer. He came in a great Fright, and being informed of the Matter, he offered me his Hand, and made me give him my Word, that no Mischief should ensue. Satisfied with my Promise, he ordered my Knife to be given me, but I was obliged to return it again after Dinner. This short Scene let me see into what Hands I was fallen, and by this I judged what Treatment I had to expect for the future.
Me scivi in media vivere Barbaria.
In the Afternoon, my Cloaths were brought me, of which I found they had stolen a good Part. The Linnen I had given to wash, they brought me quite wet: And as they had seized, among my other Papers, my Laundress's Bill, I suppose that was laid, among the Rest, before the Empress's Cabinet-Council. As for the Receipt for my Rent, which I had paid beforehand, and several other Things I had bought, they did not think fit to restore them, nor was ever any farther Mention made of them. In the mean time, I still persisted in demanding an Interpreter, or that I might be carried before the Governour; but allIntreaties on thisHead were fruitless. I then perceived I must prepare to return to
Petersburg,
and consequently undergo the Fatigue of a Journey of 5 or 600 Leagues: For this End, I was desirous at least to buy Necessaries to screen me from the Cold; But no Body could or would understand me, and I was wholly ignorant what would be my Pate.
The next Day, a Man brought my printed Books, which he lock'd up in my Trunk, leaving only a
Russian
Almanack, with a little Dictionary, in my Disposal. They likewise allowed me some Shirts; but every Thing else was locked up and sealed. About Four in the Afternoon, I was carried, by a Guard of a Serjeant and two Soldiers, to one of the Suburbs of the City, where I lay, that Night, in the House of a Peasant; And here it was that I began to bully in earnest. I had delivered my Sword, as I have observed above, to the City-Major, and it had been kept in my Prison: When they carried me away, I bid the Serjeant take it with him: But the Officer of the Guard, who probably took a Liking to it, refused it, under Pretext, as far as I could understand, that the Major would send it after me. After having waited for it, some Time, in vain, I told the Serjeant I was resolved not to go away without my Sword. I spoke to him of it, with such an Air of Authority, that he, at length, thought fit to go for it, and brought it me in a Moment. Happily for me, the Woman of the House where I was, had a Sheep-skin Pelt, quite new, which she seemed very willing to part with, because the Wool began to fall off. We soon agreed for the Price, and it was of great Service to me in the Sequel. During my Stay at
Twer,
I had likewise got a Cap made of a black
Fox
-skin Muff, which cost me a great deal of Money, tho it was then of no Use to me. I yet keep these two Pieces of Fur, with the whole Furniture of my Captivity, hoping one Time or other to divert you with a Sight of them.
The next Day being appointed for my Departure, they put me into the worst Sled they could find, and it was the first Time, in my Life, I had ever crossed a River in a Sled. This River is called the
Casana,
and was then so frozen as to bear great Burdens: But the Passage over the
Wolga
had like to have proved fatal to me. This River is very broad, at the Place where I was to go over it: I believe I speak within Compass, if I say, it is at least half a League broad. The Ice was pretty strong, to some Distance from the Banks; but when we came farther, we met with large Pieces of floating Ice, driving with the Stream. In the Middle of the River, lay a Barque which waited for me: But when we came within three or four hundred Paces of it, there was no other Way to get at it, but by jumping from one Flake of Ice to the other. I was, at first, terrified with the Danger, and thought it rash to attempt this Passage: However, after some Reflections, I took Courage, and resolved to run the Hazard of it. I was willing to set an Example to three
Muscovites,
who were to follow me. There were several Persons more, who designed to have gone over with us; but who, after having viewed the Danger they were like to expose themselves to, wisely resolved to return.
There remained only two
Tartars
and a
Muscovite
on the Banks. Seven or eight Men offered me their Assistance, with some Planks, to be made use of, in the most dangerous Places. But upon second Thoughts, I believed it adviseable to see first what Course the two
Tartars
would take, to overcome these Difficulties. I beheld them, tho not without laughing, leaping from one Piece of Ice to the other, and soon after getting into the Boat, without any Accident. Encouraged by their Example, I was not long in resolving to follow them. Having pulled off my Cloak, I ordered two Men to walk before me, whom I followed Step for Step. I thought there was less Danger in tracing their Footsteps, than if I had taken any other Way. The Walk seemed pretty tedious to me; but, at length, I had the Pleasure to take my last Leap, into the Barque. My two
Tartars
expressed their Joy, by Signs, to see me with them, and I no less rejoiced, at having escaped so great a Danger. Those who followed me had, likewise, the good Fortune to get into the Barque to us.
The
Muscovite,
more timorous than the rest, would be the last, and was near being lost. He was not half way, when he sunk down, between two Pieces of Ice, which, by good Fortune, proved strong enough to bear him up by his two Arms. One of the Passengers, who happened to be near him, came to his Assistance, and helped him up, on the Ice again; when perceiving he was nearer the Shoar than the Bark, he chose rather to go back, than to expose himself to new Perils. This Bark carried us over, tho with great Difficulty: For, every Moment, large Pieces of Ice came driving upon us, without any Possibility of avoiding them.
Being happily arrived, on the other Shoar, I ran towards some Houses, which were not far off, to screen my self from a very piercing Cold, and a North-Wind, which blew hard. My Guards who were not yet recovered from the Fright, which so dangerous a Passage had put them into, and being besides taken up with getting my Goods on Shoar, had forgot to keep an Eye upon me. In the mean Time, having found all the Houses shut, I went into a little Church; where I heartily thanked GOD, for having delivered me from so apparent a Danger. I staid there some Time, with no other Design, but to be screen'd from the Cold. Our People, at length, having lost Sight of me, were alarmed, and ran, with all their Might, directly towards the Houses, not doubting but I was got into one of them. They were greatly surprized when they got thither, and I, who sawtheir Uneasiness, took a Pleasure in leaving them in it. However, not to carry the Jest too far, I appeared again a Moment afterwards, and eased them of the Fears of my being escaped.
We took up our Lodging at a House near the Place of our Landing, being resolved to spend the Night there, to rest from our great Fatigue. Tho our Journey, this Day, had been but short, it might be reckoned one of the most severe we had to undergo. Being come to our Quarters, I endeavoured to convince the Serjeant, who had Care of me, that he might be very easy on my Account, and I promised him to do nothing contrary to his Orders. He understood me, and taking me by the Hand, expressed a Satisfaction in my Behaviour. From this Time forwards, I was no longer a Prisoner, but my Guard became my Servants. After a light Supper, I laid my self down to rest. The Night was long, and I had Time enough to sleep, and to think, at Leisure, on my unhappy Fate. It may, perhaps, not be disagreable to you to know what were my Reflections on this Occasion.
They chiefly ran upon my Adventures. I first called to Mind all that
Peter,
the
Great,
had done, the Pains he had taken, and the Torrents of Blood he had shed, to extricate his Subjects, from that Barbarity and Ignorance into which they were plunged. I then reflected on his Voyages, Enquiries, Labours, and Establishments; and I said to myself; where are now the Effects of all the Pains this great Monarch took to reform his People? Is it possible that his Subjects should be yet in the same State of Barbarity, they were in, long before his Reign? Where are then the Fruits of his Labour? I could not find that this Prince had changed the Genius of his Nation, and I had but too much Experience of the contrary.
Peter
I. has been often heard to say, That he had made Men of Beasts; but that after his Death, they would turn to Beasts again; and the Author of these Letters seems to justify his Prophecy.
From these Thoughts, coming to the Usage I had met with, the most injurious that could be imagined, I began to make other Reflections. The Government of
Casan
(said I) ought, for several Reasons, to be looked upon as one of the principal Employments conferred by the
Russian
Court.
The Kingdom of
Casan
is one of the ten Governments, into which
Peter
I. parcel'd out his vast
Empire.
He first divided it into eight only, of which the Kingdoms of
Casan
and
Astracan
together made one: But upon enlarging his Conquests otwards
Persia,
these two Kingdoms were separated, and made two Governments, which made them nine in all, and he afterwards divided the two into three, in Order to make ten Governments; in Veneration to the Number Ten; (as it is said) that Number being held sacred by the
Russians.
Consequently the Person, who now enjoys it, should be esteemed one of the most worthy Subjects belonging to it. And yet this Man, who is stamped with such a Character, behaves himself in the most unjustifiable Manner in the World. He has neither Christianity, nor even any Principle of Humanity. He is the most vile and ungenerous of Men: In a Word, he is a very
Barbarian.
Has not he shewn himself to be the most abandoned of the human Species, with Regard to me? Where is the Justice of imprisoning a Foreigner, who, relying upon the Laws of Nations, travels under a feigned Name, and in whom there does not appear the least Cause of Suspicion? Is it a
Christian
Usage, to force a Man to travel in a Season, in which a
Muscovite,
who is the most inured to Hardship, is obliged to keep his Home? Ought not he to have enquired, whether I was provided with Necessaries to resist the Inclemencies of a hard Winter, in a Climat I was no Ways accustomed to? Was it not a Cruelty to abandon me in a Prison, without ever informing, himself if I had where withal to subsist? He knew I was ignorant of the Language of the Country; I was not capable of asking for what I stood most in need of. Ought he not, by his Orders, to have prevented my being robbed of Part of what I had? In short, Sir, would it not have excited your Compassion, passion, to have seen me going over the
Wolga?
And if I had perished in that Passage, had not the Governour of
Casan
been the Cause of my Death? I cannot but look upon this Event as the most dangerous I ever encountered with, during the whole Course of my Life.
But to go father: To whom is it this Governour shews such unworthy Treatment? Why, to a Man of Quality, one whom he himself has acknowledged to be so, and pitied him in his Misfortunes. A Person, who, with a sincere and open Heart, throws himself into his Power, and entreats his Protection. That he might the better surprize and betray me, he begins, by giving me good Words, he assures me I have nothing to fear, and that he will procure me an Opportunity of pursuing my Journey, in all Safety. Weak, ungenerous Action! Tell me, I beseech you, was there no other Way to secure me but by Treachery? In any other Country, a little more civiliz'd, a Governour of a Province would have behaved in a very different Manner. He would have said;
"Sir, I am sorry I cannot grant you the Favour you ask, the present Juncture, and the positive Orders I have from Court, oblige me indispensably to secure your Person: However, be assured, I will do every thing, that is in my Power, to relieve you, and make your Captivity easy."
Had the Governour of
Casan
treated me with such Language, he would no less have executed the Orders of his Court, supposing he had any: And for me, far from having Reason of Complaint, I should certainly have acknowledged his Favours: But this is not their Manner of Proceeding in
Muscovy.
Their Way there is to seize a Person without any Cause, without any Examination, and, without even alledging the least Pretext for it; they treat him immediately as a State-Criminal, he is guarded within View, and with Sword in Hand, he is refused the Use of his Knife and Fork, and his Equipage is rifled. Can a People, who behave in this Manner, be called civilized? And who then are
Barbarians,
if they are not so? Certainly, if I had fallen into the Hands of
Mursa,
the Chief of the
Tartars,
who dwells in
Casan,
I should never have met with such Treatment: And yet these pass for
Barbarians,
and no one has yet been at the Pains to undeceive the World in this Point. There is an enormous Difference between them and the
Muscovites;
but it consists in this, that they are not guilty of the Vices, the latter are so justly reproached with. The very Sight of the
Tartars
inclines one to believe all that Fame tells us of those noble Enterprizes, by Means of which they extended their Conquests throughout all
Asia,
and a Part of
Europe.
But at this Time, by the greatest of all Misfortunes, several Branches of this valiant Nation are brought under the
Muscovite
Yoke. I must confess, this surpasses my Understanding, and I am at a Loss to comprehend it. It is true, the
Russians
shew a great Regard for them, which is one Reason why they are so easy: But as they are not born to creep to such Masters, I hardly question but they will, soon or late, shake off their Yoke.
You will judge, Sir, of the Length of the Night, by that of my Reflections: But, at length Day appears, and I must rise to pursue my Way, to
Muscow,
in a Season, when the Ground is every where covered with Snow. We had a pretty good Journey, this Day, chiefly thro Woods and By-ways. I was obliged to lie all along in my Sled, to avoid the Branches of the Trees: But then I was almost buried in the Snow, which was every Moment falling upon me. We came, in in the Evening, to a Village, the Houses of which appeared to me very different from those of the
Muscovites.
Both Men and Women had other Habits, and their Language bore no Analogy to the
Russian.
Upon Enquiry, I found I was among the
Scherimissian Tartars,
and I rejoiced at it. The Character I had heard of this Nation, and what I had observed myself of them, while at
Casan,
gave me an advantageous Idea of them. I took great Delight in viewing their Houses and Furniture, but more especially the Dress of their Women, which is very singular.
While I was diverting myself in this Manner, I had the Dissatisfaction, to see my Guard scuffling with my Landlady. These Rascals had their Views, in taking this Way, which is not the common Road. The most brutal among them began to abuse the poor old Creature, for no other Crime but endeavouring to secure her own. I thought it my Duty to stand by this Woman: I therefore wrested a large Pole out of the Hands of a Soldier, who had seized it, and, what with Signs and Words, had the good Fortune to appease him. I found, however, that the poor
Scheremissi,
had been obliged to treat these Soldiers, and to furnish them with whatever they asked. For my Part, I was contented with a small Matter, conformable to the Bill of Fare I had prescribed my self for the whole Journey. It may be proper to inform you, that, in
Muscovy,
there are no Houses of Entertainment, where a Man may lodge and be boarded. In the Publick Houses they have, they only sell Beer and Brandy. Having therefore thrown down some Money on the Table, I made a Sign for them to get me some Eggs, They took but one Penny, for which they brought me thirty. I began to laugh at seeing so large a Number for so little Money. I picked out six of the freshest, and gave the rest to my Landlady. One of my greedy Guard would have laid hold on them; but I gave him to understand, by a Sign, that he was already well enough served. My whole Supper consisted of these six Eggs, and a little Brandy mixed with Water. I might have had Beer, but it was so bad, there was no drinking it. This was all my Food from
Casan
to
Muscow,
and this Way of Living was so far from impairing my Health, that I was perfectly well, at my Arrival there. My Bedding was as mean as my Food; a Bench was the only Conveniency offer'd me, and all a Traveller has to expect throughout whole
Muscovy.
I had happily provided my self, before my Departure, with a good Mattrass, which was of singular Use to me, as well now as afterwards.
We continued our Journey, the next Morning. My Guard, whose chief Views were Pillage, were for putting up at Noon: I plainly saw their Design; But did not know how to prevent it. However, considering how much this retarded my Journey, I took the Serjeant aside, and endeavoured, by good Words, to convince him, that this Behaviour of his Men, might be the Occasion of a Riot. My Admonition produced no great Effect; he alledged some poor Reasons, in their Justification, which I was obliged to put up with. I had every Day the Mortification to see these Free-booters go from House to House, and pillage the poor
Tartars,
of what they pleased. I thought, nevertheless, it was my Business to proceed warily, in Case of any Tumult. I had Reason to be apprehensive, that the enraged
Tartars
might attempt to massacre my Guard, together with their Prisoner. I therefore, concluded, that if any Disturbance happened, the most prudent Measures I could take, would be to join with the strongest Party. I never suffered my Sword, which was my only Defence, to be out of my Sight. To gain the Affection of the
Tartars,
I never went into any House, but I gave the Children Money; and as I had made a large Provision of white Bread, I was very free in distributing Pieces of it among them; for which I always had their Thanks. My Guard, tho very stupid, had Cunning enough to pass by the larger Villages, that they might pillage with the less Danger.
This Behaviour of theirs gave Occasion to many Reflections, which I made during my Journey. I could not forbear lamenting my Fate, to be put into the Hands of these Robbers. A thousand Times I cursed the Governor for committing me to the Care of such Wretches. When I observed what miserable Discipline they were under, I said to my self:
Quid Domini sacient, audent cum talia Servi!
It was a melancholy State I was reduced to, and I could not reflect upon it, without extream Concern. I found my self obliged to traverse a Country almost unknown, drawn upon a Board in the midst of the Snow, dressed like a Savage, and destitute, in this Desart, of wherewithal to eat or drink. The three Soldiers, who were my Companions, were Men without Manners or Humanity, nor could I ever have any Conversation with them. I sometimes however dispelled these gloomy Ideas with a
sic erat in satis.
I must not omit informing you, that, in this Journey, I once quarrelled with my Sled-driver.
This small Adventure will contribute not a little to give you a just Idea of the
Muscovites.
The Rascal, for he deserves no better Name, took a Delight in giving every one of the poor
Scheremissi
he met, a good Lash with his Whip. I thought, at first, it would suffice to let him know it displeased me, and that he would then leave it: But my Admonitions were in vain, and my Patience being, at length, quite spent, I gave him a Blow with my Fist, that beat him off the Sled. In his Justification, he pretended to convince me, that these People were no
Christians.
Here had been a good Opportunity to read him a Lesson of Morality: But then, on the one Hand, I must have known how to explain my self to him, and, on the other, he must have been indued with some Principles of Religion; a Thing very rare among the
Muscovites.
But since I am speaking of Religion, you must know, the
Muscovites
think they alone have a Title to the Name of
Christians.
They look upon all other People, the
Europeans
not excepted, to be Idolaters, who have no Knowledge of the true God.
Qualibus in tenebris vitae.
Wretches that they are! They are not sensible of the profound Ignorance, in which they themselves are immerged. What a strange Worship is theirs! How imperfect their Faith! How loose their Manners! I speak more especially of those, who are in the highest Posts, and who ought to set an Example to others. But to conclude my Reflections on this Head, suffer me only to enquire what their Monks are. This Species of Men, who swarm in every Province, are generally Drunkards, who live in a criminal Slothfulness, giving themselves up to all Manner of Vices. Superstition abounds no where more than in their Convents. Their Vows of Continence are a Crime, because they never live up to them. They think of nothing but living at their Ease, without Labour or Care, and they immure themselves within the Walls of their Convents only to escape Famine, or going to the Army. When I have frequently asked to what End this Number of Sluggards, the Answer has always been, their Business is to pray to
God.
This is the Character of the Monks, and of the whole Body of the Clergy in
Muscovy.
If these Hypocrites, who pretend to Sanctity, had any Zeal for Religion, would they suffer idolatrous Nations as these
Scheremissi
are, who inhabit the very Center of the
Russian
Empire, to live among them? It is true, the Clergy would be obliged to change their Manners, before they could pretend to preach the Gospel, or they would run a great Hazard not to make a single Convert. All these
Pagans
live in an honest Simplicity, and conformable to those Laws which Nature has dictated to all Men. And certainly, they would be very little inclined to give Ear to Men, who lead a Life perfectly scandalous. I fear, Sir, you will think this Digression tedious: But the Subject has carried me insensibly beyond the Bounds I had prescribed my self. I might say a great deal more on this Head,
Verum animo satis haec vestigia parva sagaci.
Suppose me just arrived at a Village, called
Sabaczar,
which was formerly the Capital of the Province, where having bought some Provisions, with a Covering for my Sled, and a Sack to put my Feet in,
It is a Custom, in these, and other Northern Parts, to travel with a large Sack lined with Furr, into which they put their Legs, and drawing it up, tie it about their Middles. It is of excellent Service to keep out the Cold, and for those who cannot pay for these, a Sack filled with Bran has the same, or a better Effect.
I travelled afterwards with a little more Ease. The Persons I employed to buy these Things, did not forget themselves. Not satisfied with the Present I made them, they kept Part of the Money I put into their Hands. I accused them of the Theft, but I might as well have spoken to deaf Men: And besides, it is not customary, in
Muscovy,
to return Change.
It was some Comfort to me, under my Afflictions, that these People did me the Office of Servants; I was more their Superior and Master than their Prisoner. I had always the good Fortune, to keep up a Sort of Authority over my Guard, and all I had any Concern with, from the Beginning to the End of my Captivity. Upon some Occasions I treated them harshly, and at other Times, I was as gentle as a Lamb. Happy for me, that I began, in Time, to bring them under my Yoke; I might otherwise have been doubly their Slave. The
Muscovites
are naturally very brutal, but at the same Time, timorous, and great Cowards, who, when they find any Resistance, have not the Courage to go on. Cowards are generally treacherous: But to put it out of their Power, the best Way is to keep them under.
In the last
Northern
War, after the Battle of
Gadebusch,
when the
Muscovites
were in
Holstein,
the poor
Boors,
who had been harrassed by the
Swedes
as Enemies, and by the
Muscovites, Saxons,
and
Danes
as Friends, were wont to say, If they might have their Choice, they would desire the
Swedes
as Enemies, rather than the
Muscovites
as Friends.
But to return to my Journey.
From
Sabaczar,
we went to
Nisninovogorod,
Nischnagorod,
I believe it should be.
and from thence to
Muscow,
where we arrived the 23d of
November.
You will imagine, without Doubt, that at my Arrival in the Metropolis of so vast an Empire, the Face of Things must necessarily be changed, with Regard to me: That I met with another kind of Men, and especially a Governour of better Understanding, and more just and human, than the Governour of
Casan;
and consequently, that I was soon discharged from my Confinement, or, at least, treated in a Manner more becoming my Quality. If these be your Thoughts, Sir, you are greatly mistaken. A
Muscovite
is the same every where, and you will find them, at
Muscow,
just such as you have seen them at
Casan,
Imagine the Inhabitants of this great City, to be a new Colony of
Laplanders, Samojedes,
and
Ostiacks,
who are accounted the most stupid Nations of the North, and then you may form, at least, some Idea of the Character of the People, who dwell in this Capital. Do not, however, suppose this Parallel just in every Part of it. The
Muscovites
are infinitely beneath all these other Nations: They are more barbarous, more irrational and less human. The Evidences I shall give you of this, in the Sequel, will put it beyond all Doubt. I could wish to do it now: But as it is Time to put an End to this Letter, which is already but too long,
Verbum non amplius addam.
LETTER III.
SIR,
T HO the last Messenger brought me no Letter from you, I must not omit writing, as well to perform my Promise, as to satisfy your Curiosity. It is, besides, a singular Pleasure to me, that I am able now to pay a Debt, which I have contracted by a long Silence. Be assured, it is no small Satisfaction to me, that I can converse with you by Letter, 'till
—Dextrae conjungere Dextram
Fas crit & notas audire ac reddere voces.
My last gave you an Account of my Arrival at
Muscow.
I was first carried to the House of a Baker, till the Serjeant and one of the Soliders went to give an Account of my being there. The Soldier who was left, instead of following his Orders, to have a watchful Eye over me, laid himself down upon an Oven, and slept most profoundly. You must know, in
Muscovy,
the Houses of the meaner Sort of People, consist generally of one large Room only, which serves them for Chamber, Kitchen, and every other Occasion. In this Room you find an Oven, in which they bake their Bread, Meat, and almost all their Eatables, so that it is kept very hot all the Year round. The Top of it is covered with a great Number of Boards, which form a Sort of square Scaffold; upon which the whole Family almost continually lives, as well in Summer as Winter. I have sometimes happened to lay my Hand upon it, but found it so hot, that I was soon obliged to take it away. Some natural Philosophers of your Acquaintance, who have made so many curious Experiments concerning
Salamanders,
did not perhaps know, that so peculiar a Species of them was to be found in
Muscovy.
It is to be supposed, that if they had made this Discovery, they would have allowed those Animals the Property given them, by the most early of the Ancients, of living in Fire. Pray assure those Gentlemen, that the
Salamanders
in
Muscovy,
not only pass almost all their Time, but eat, sleep and perform every Office of Life, in that Element.
Nothing would have been more easy, than for me to have escaped, while my
Salamander
was asleep on the Oven; and could I have foreseen what was to ensue, I assure you, I should not have neglected the Opportunity. In a City so full of Strangers as
Muscow
is, I might easily have been concealed in the Crowd, and have freed my self from the Pursuit of my Enemies: But I was so far from having the least Thought of it, that I looked upon all that had happened to me till then, as a Farce, which would end with my Arrival at
Petersburg.
The first Scene which was opened at
Muscow,
was humorous enough, but that which followed was as tragical: But you shall be judge of them.
As soon as the Serjeant returned, I was conveyed to
Cremelin
Kreml,
or
Cremmelin,
is the innermost of the four Towns or Parts, into which the City of
Muscow
is divided, and incircle one another. It contains the Palace of the
Czars
of
Muscovy,
an ancient Building, which is said to contain 1687 Apartments, including Cellars and Magazines; as likewise the Cathedral, and five other Churches. It is not the Palace of the
Czars
alone, which is called
Cremmelin,
as some Writers suppose, but this whole Town or Division, of which the Palace is but Part.
the Residence of the
Czars,
I was not uneasy that the first Scene was opened in a Place, where such tragical Pieces have been represented. This Building consists of several enormous Piles, heaped upon one another, without any Order. I was carried into a large Hall, which they call the Palace or Civil Court, but is one of the most filthy Places in the World. I there found a great Number of Clerks, busied in dispatching a Crowd of People, who were round about them. My coming in put an immediate stop to their Labour, and the Eyes of every one were turned upon me. As the
Muscovites
are sworn Enemies to the rest of Mankind, the Sight of a Foreign Prisoner was a Diversion to them, and the Hall was soon frequented in a more than ordinary Manner.
I was committed to the Care of an Officer, a Corporal and six old Soldiers. One of them stood always before me, with his Sword drawn, but he had not the most terrifying Countenance. At length, they brought some of my Goods, but I saw neither my Sword nor my Trunk. They shewed me one Corner of the Hall, which was destined for my Prison: But I had no sooner begun to prepare my Lodging, than a Person appeared at the Gate, to inform my Guard that I had a Pair of Scissars about me. They immediately set about to visit a little Bag, into which I had put such Things as were most necessary on my Journey, and upon my opposing them, they called the Officer, who told me he had Orders to visit every Thing I had. I then opened the Bag my self, and in a Moment they seized the Scissars, which they found there. I endeavoured to convince them, that I could not do without them, that I should make no ill Use of them, and that they need not fear my making my self an Eunuch with them. None of these Arguments had any Effect, so I was obliged to give way to Force. By good Fortune, I had another Pair of Scissars which escaped their Notice. I had, likewise, a large Fork, which, upon Occasion, would have done the Service of a Dagger; for the least terrifying Weapons are more than sufficient to affright a
Muscovite.
So excellent a Beginning gave me Room to judge what I had to expect in the Sequel; I, therefore, endeavoured to make my self easy under the State I was in. My greatest Mortification was to see my self exposed as a Sight to Crowds of People, who were continually flocking into the Hall. I should have been very glad of an Interpreter; but all the Application I made for that End was in vain, nor could I, with all my Entreaties, prevail upon them to let me have a Barber. Dinner-Time approaching, I made Signs for something to eat, and was answered, in the same Manner, that I must open my Purse. After long waiting, and seeing nothing appear, I was obliged to be content with a Morsel of Bread, and some Scraps which I had yet left in my Hamper. While I was at Dinner, they asked me for the Key of my Trunk, which they had not thought fit to entrust to my Care. I thought it something strange, that they should ransack my Trunk out of my Sight; however, I gave them the Key, tho with Reluctance. At Supper-Time, I was obliged to have Recourse to my Pocket, and upon this Occasion I found, that Stewards at
Muscow,
are greater Thieves than those of
Casan.
You will not need to ask me what Sort of a Bed I had, I believe, I have already told you, that they lye on Benches, in
Muscovy.
I was so happy to have Sheets, and Coverlets, of my own, which did me good Service: But what a Surprize appeared in my Guard, when they saw me making my Bed! They could not conceive what I was going to do with those Bed-Cloaths.
You see, Sir, I keep my Word with you: It was your Command, that I should inform you of the most minute Circumstances, and you have no Cause to complain on that Score. Since then you have a Taste that Way, you shall know some Particulars of what happened the next Day. I was disturbed, very early, at my Toilet, by the same Troop of Clerks, I mentioned above, and a great Number of other People, whom Curiosity or Business had drawn together, in the Hall. I continued exposed as a Sight to these Crowds, who could not forbear fixing their Eyes upon me. At Length, I began to think of making Advantage of this Concourse of People. When I saw any one come in, who had a good Appearance, or who seemed to be an Officer or Foreigner, I immediately accosted him, speaking in
Italian, French
or
Latin:
But it was all in vain, I did not find one who could understand me. My Guard, in the mean Time, offended at the Freedom I took, pretended to impose Silence upon me; but I gave them to understand, by Signs, that they must cut out my Tongue, if they would debar me the Use of it. Two
Poles
coming in, I addressed my self to them in
Latin,
and they began to answer me, but their Mouths were soon stopped. Their Silence did not, however, hinder me from asking them, if it was customary, in
Muscovy,
to treat Prisoners as the most abject Slaves? If it was usual to let them perish for Hunger, by denying them an Interpreter? And, finally, if, since
Peter
the
Great,
had obliged the
Muscovites
Peter
I, obliged all his Subjects, by an Edict, to cut off their Beards, and to wear short Cloathing, which Edict was the Occasion of a Rebellion, in 1704 in the Kingdom of
Astracan,
and the adjacent Countries.
to cut off their Beards, there was no such Thing as a Barber established in that City?
While I was discoursing with these
Poles,
the Man who had been so anctious about my Scissars, came in, and made me a Sign to follow him. Being persuaded that he was to carry me before the Governour, I readily obeyed; for I longed for nothing more, being in Hopes he might understand some of the Languages I knew. I was carried into an Apartment, not far from the Hall, where I found one single Man only; but soon after came in another, with some Papers in his Hands. This latter passed by me without saluting, or so much as looking on me, and sate down near a Table, towards which I likewise advanced. The Person I saw first did the same, and having asked me if I spoke
Italian,
I answered him, it was natural for me to speak my Mother Tongue. He then, after having received the Instructions of the Person who was sitting, asked me, who I was? But before I answered him, I was inquisitive, in my Turn, who it was that was examining me? I was told he was a Secretary, I was not a little surprized to see a Secretary examining me sitting, while I was standing; but being apprehensive I might be sent back from whence I came, I told him my Name, which he wrote down. He asked me several other frivolous Questions, by which I found my Examination was not like to be short. I, therefore, took the Resolution to tell him, that if he expected any farther Answer from me, he must order me a Chair. He lifted up his Head, in a great Surprize, and looking me in the Face, continued his Interrogations. All the Answer I gave was, that I would not speak standing. He seemed terribly perplexed, and I found he had not been accustomed to such Replies; he was obliged, however, to give Way to them. Being seated, I was forced to give Answer to a Number of the most impertinent Questions in the World: And what was particular, there were, besides the Soldier who guarded me, Sword in Hand, twenty other Persons in the Room: A peculiar Manner of examining Prisoners of State. As soon as the Secretary let me know, I might retire, I bid the Interpreter tell him, I desired to speak with the Governour, and that I expected to be treated as Persons of Quality are treated throughout all
Europe.
All the Answer he vouchsafed me was, that he did not know whether I was so or not. Enraged to the utmost at this Answer, I told him he had very little Skill in Physiognomy; and I would gladly have added, that having a better Knowledge of Men than he, I could foretel him that the Gallows would soon be his Fate. He had indeed a very hanging Look, and my Prophecy would hardly have been misplaced. I leave you to judge, whether he did not deserve, at least, that Fate, by his Carriage to me.
The next Day, I was again obliged to appear before Mr. Secretary; who took Care to put it out of my Power, to insist upon being seated, by ordering all the Chairs to be conveyed out of the Room. This was so far from exciting my Anger, that it put me into a good Humour; and I was very near imitating the Person, who for want of a Chair, sate down upon his Cloak. I no sooner came into the Room, than the Interpreter read a Paper to me, containing the Examination of the foregoing Day, and I was directed to sign it. I answered I would never set my Hand to a Writing, in a Language I did not understand. The Reply was, it is the Custom of the Country; if it be so, said I, it is a very scandalous one; and, indeed, supposing I had been as criminal as they pretended, it would have been contrary to all Law, to condemn me on such an Evidence. The Secretary insisted upon my signing it, I opposed it for some Time, alledging such Reasons as might have convinced him of his Ignorance, and how little I valued these Proceedings: However, at length, seeing no other Way to get out of his Clutches, I consented. I asked him, if he had let the Governour know I desired to be admitted to his Presence; he said he had. I likewise desired him, if I was to be detained any Time at
Muscow,
that he would endeavour to procure me another Prison, that in which I was, being very unbeseeming a Prisoner of State; he said he would speak about it. To conclude, at leaving him, I let him know, I should be very glad to have a Barber; to which he replied, it was Time enough for that; an Answer worthy of a Secretary of
Muscovy,
in Return for which, I ought to have spit in his Face. The
Muscovites
are still so enraged, that
Peter
the
Great,
obliged them to cut off their Beards, that not daring to have them themselves, they will oblige Strangers to let theirs grow. It is, likewise, a Custom, that as soon as a Man is accused of any Crime, he does not touch his Beard afterwards, but affects a suppliant Air, to excite Compassion in his Judges. Perhaps these Gentlemen thought to make me conform to this Custom, and in one Respect they had there Will, because I never could get a Barber: But they did not gain so much over me, to make me appear before them as a Suppliant.
I expected I should have been sent away, that Day, or the next, for
Petersburg;
but they are rarely so expeditious, in
Muscovy.
They let me pass the Remainder of the Day, very peaceably, without offering me any Thing to eat. I was obliged to provide at my own Expence, and to see my self robbed, with Impunity, by those whose Care it was to buy my Provisions. I believe, I have told you already, Sir, that the
Muscovites
are very great Thieves: But I had almost forgot to let you know, that, at my Meals, I was forced to be contented with two Spoons, instead of a Knife and Fork. This manner of treating Prisoners in
Muscovy,
gave me often an Opportunity of jesting with the Soldiers, and those who were about me, tho I understood very little of their Language.
The Governour did not desire to see me till the 27th, and then more out of Curiosity, than any other Motive. When I was introduced to him, he was sitting with two others, at a great Table, with his Back to the Door, I came in at: And, when I drew near him, he continued still in the same Posture, being contented with turning his Head, and looking at me over his Shoulder. He immediately ordered the
Italian
Interpreter, who was present, to ask me several Questions. As for his two Companions, I could not perceive they so much as moved, or once turned their Eyes towards me. Having answered the Governour's Questions, I bid the Interpreter tell him, I could hardly believe it was with his Knowledge, I was treated in a Manner so little becoming my Quality; that I begged of him he would allot me another Prison, for that I could have no Rest where I was, and besides, was exposed to be the Scoff of the whole Town. Upon which he spoke to the Secretary, but I could not understand any thing he said. To dismiss me, he at length gave me a gracious Nod;
It is plain, our Author had not traveled much among the
Northern
Grandees, who are so used to treat their Vassals in this Manner, that they are very apt to forget themselves, and treat others, and sometimes their Equals, with this familiar Nods. And that not in
Muscovy
only.
But as I did not seem to understand these apish Tricks, he was constrained, at length, to tell me, by the Mouth of the Interpreter, that I must retire. And thus ended this formal Appearance, which I was forced to make before the Governour of the Great City of
Muscow.
I do not doubt but you have seen the Play called
Arlichin finto Prencipe.
Imagine, you see me received much with the same Grimaces, as
Harlequin
receives his People with, and that the Discourse which passed was not much unlike that of the Illustrious Buffoon, I have just mentioned. The Farce which followed, did not in the least deviate from the Absurdity of that which preceeded it. But I must give you a Skitch of it.
The same Evening, they carried me to another Prison; which was a Piece of antient Ruins, that served as a Shelter for those People whose Business it was to break the Ice, and to cleanse the Streets from Snow and Dirt. In this Prison was a little Room, which was allotted for me, my Guard of 6 or 7 Soldiers, and 3 or 4 Dust (or rather Dirt) men, who had already taken Possession. This Change, which I was to take as a Favour too, surprized me strangely; but my Wonder soon ceased, when I was informed, that Signor
Harlequin
himself had ordered it. I placed my self as conveniently as I could, in a Corner, where, during the whole Time I was forced to stay there, I was almost suffocated with Smoke and Heat. While I was in this Dungeon, a little Adventure happened to me, which may make you laugh. One Day, not knowing how to employ my Time, it came into my Head to clean my Teeth: But as I had neglected it a long while, I could not do it without making my Gums bleed. My Guard, the most stupid of Human Species, were very attentive to what I was doing, but, could not tell what to think of the Operation. After having frequently asked one another what it meant, they, at length, ventured to draw nearer, and examine the Instruments I made use of. As I had some Steel-Pens, which probably they took for Launcets, and they saw Blood, they endeavoured to hinder me. I laughed at their Stupidity, but I was forced to make a great many Signs, before I could prevail on them to let me go on. One Scene more, and then I shall shift the Decorations: But, unhappily for me, I shall be obliged
induere Cothurnum.
The 30th, which, if I mistake not, is the Feast of St.
Andrew;
I had a Visit again from my Scissars Merchant, in Company with another Person. They made a long Speech, in which I heard the Names of the Empress and the Governour mentioned: But all that I could comprehend of it was, that they came to make me a Present; however, he who was Chief in the Commission, held it so close in his Hand, and kept at such a Distance, that it was impossible for me to distinguish what it consisted of. At length drawing nearer towards him, I suddenly seized his Hand, and found a single Ruble in it. Far from vouchsafing to accept of such a Present, I only thanked them, and said I never received Money of any body. One of my Guards surprized to see me refuse so considerable a Present, drew near, and pushing me pretty roughly, cried,
Take it, Take it, Fool that thou art.
They pressed me, to accept of it, but finding me obstinate in my Refusal, they walked off with their Present.
Could you ever have imagined I should be reduced to the Condition of having a Crown offered me? And do you think it possible such a Present should be made, to a Person of my Birth, in the Name of the Empress of
Russia.
It would be ridiculous to believe this Offer was made me by Order from Her Majesty, and if it came from the Governour, I leave you to judge of his Character.
The 2d of
December,
two Hours before Day, they came to tell me, I must rise, and depart immediately. It was to no Purpose to consider; they put me instantly into a Sled, without giving me Time to recollect, without any Regard to the Rigour of the Season, and without allowing me to make necessary Provision for such a Journey. I was guarded by three Rascals, one of whom called himself a Sergeant, and the other two Soldiers, tho they had neither the Habit, nor Arms, nor any Thing else, to distinguish them as such. Before I went out, I asked for my Sword, which had disappeared, and was told, it was locked up in my Trunk. Do not forget, I beseech you, this Circumstance; Because it has some Relation to that of the Key of this same Trunk, of which I shall have Occasion to speak hereafter.
As we stopped in the
Slaboda,
There are two large
Slabodas
or Suburbs without the Mud-Wall which encloses all the four Towns or Divisions, that together make the whole City of
Muscow.
One of these is called the
German,
the other the
Strelitz, Slaboda.
I took Care to furnish my self there, with what was necessary, that I should not have found elsewhere. While I was thus employed, one of my Soldiers, who was upon Duty, with a great Scimitar in his Hand, had the Assurance to insult, and talk saucily to me. To punish him for his Insolence, I immediately wrested a Stick out of the Hands of the Corporal, and offered to strike him. This Shew of chastizing him was sufficient to make him retreat ten Paces from me, and this Coward was afterwards the most humble, and the most submissive of my Guard. The Brutality of the
Muscovites
ought always to be reproved in this Manner. Shew your Teeth to these Cowardly Wretches, and you soon have them creeping at your Feet.
When I left
Muscow,
I was in perfect Health; But, two Days after, I was seized with a Distemper, which I thought would have laid me in the Grave. It was a Sort of a Cholick in the Stomach, attended with intolerable Pain, convulsive Motions, and a continual Propensity to vomit. You may judge in what a melancholy State I was then in, obliged to travel in a Sled, in the Depth of Winter, and destitute of all Relief. The first Stage we came at, I had immediate Recourse to some Remedies I carried with me. I had
Venice-Treacle,
some
Eaudes Carmes,
and a certain Balsam, which is accounted an excellent Remedy, and is distributed by the Monks of St.
Justin,
to their Friends, All these Remedies I applied in a Moment, without the least Success: My Distemper continued, with an astonishing Violence, and without the least Intermission. From my Stomach, the Pains descended into my Bowels, my Convulsions became more violent, and my Retchings to vomit increased every Moment. In this sad Extremity, instead of being quite dispirited, I thought it expedient to double the Dose of my Medicines, but still without receiving the least Benefit by them. After having suffered inexpressible Torments, for 6 or 7 Hours together, I was seized with the most burning Thirst, which obliged me to drink a prodigious Quantity of Water. My Pain continued with the same Violence, I had only a small Evacuation downwards.
The miserable Condition I was in, did not hinder my Guard from proposing to depart. I was sorced to submit to my Destiny, and throw my self into the Arms of Providence. As I was devoured with Thirst, I took several Bottles of Water before my Departure. I was often obliged to stop by the Way to ease Nature, and I always observed that my Stools were of divers Colours, and that I voided Blood. To compleat the Misfortune, we had like all to have perished, in the most melancholy manner in the World. One Night, when we were crossing the River
Wolkowa,
I suddenly heard a loud Voice repeating three Times,
Keep back:
Upon Enquiry what was the Matter, we found, that two Sleds, and 8 Horses, laden with Money, were just fallen in, at the very Place where we were. The Sled, in which my Goods were, run a great Hazard, being the foremost of our Train; but fortunately we had all Time to retreat, and afterwards took another Way.
But to return to my Illness; give me leave to make some Conjectures on that Head, which to me seem but too well grounded, of which, however, I leave you to be the sole Judge. My intent is to mark out to you the real Cause of so fatal a Distemper; and I firmly believe it to have been the Effect of Poison given me. I shall give you my Reasons for it, in the Sequel, in the mean Time, I desire you to give some Attention to the following Reflections. Before my Illness, I was of a hail robust Constitution, and at my Departure from
Muscow,
I was in a State of perfect Health. I did not know that I ever eat or drunk any Thing, that could be the Cause of such Symptoms: Nor is there any more Probability, that any Species of Poison should have accidentally been mixed with my Food. I cannot therefore, be persuaded, but that my Guard, out of an execrable Design, themselves endeavoured to take away my Life by Poison.
In the Night between the 14th and 15th I arrived, in a very piteous Condition, at a large Suburb, about a Quarter of a League's Distance from
Petersburg.
The House where we took our Quarters had neither Eggs, nor any Thing else to eat, so I was obliged to put up with a Piece of brown Bread, which I found upon the Table. I passed the whole Night under great Uneasiness, and without any Rest, my Distemper obliging me to get up every Moment.
Thus ended my painful Journey from
Muscow
to
Petersburg;
where I hope to find all the Assistance I stand in need of, and, in a short Time, to see all my Misfortunes at an End. These Hopes are so powerful, that methinks I am already, in some Measure, eased of my Pain. What is your Opinion of it, Sir, do you believe I shall find my self mistaken? I must confess, I do not esteem
Petersburg,
as a City of
Muscovy:
I look upon this Capital as the Residence of one of the most mighty Monarchs in the whole World, crouded with Foreigners, the greater Part of whom have the Direction of the most important Affairs. I expect speedily to be lodged in a Palace, which is opposite to that of the Sovereign, and in which the wisest Ministers assemble. I flatter my self with the Hopes of being treated there in such a Manner, that I shall entirely lose the Remembrance of what is past. Depend on it, Sir, I shall not delay giving you an Account of every Thing, being persuaded that you will expect it with the utmost Impatience;
Nam tibi sollicito nova res mollitur ad aures
Accidere, et nova se species ostendere rerum.
LETTER IV.
SIR,
I Cannot but acknowledge, with the utmost Gratitude, the many Obligations you lay me under. By your last, I perceive, that your Friendship to me encreases daily; that you bemoan my Absence; that you are sensibly affected with what ever befals me; and, in fine, that you pity my Misfortunes, which you wish to see speedily ended. These lively Tokens of a Friendship the most sincere, without Doubt merit a Retaliation from my Hands. Be assured then, that you are to me the dearest Person living, and that nothing can afford me so much Comfort, in my present unhappy State, as the Hopes of embracing, soon or late, so valuable a Friend. You are pleased to observe, that neither my Imprisonment, nor my Sufferings, have made me forget the
Latin
Tongue, and that you take a Pleasure in the Perusal of those Verses, which I sometimes quote in that Language. As you seem, Sir, to relish this Way of Writing, I will not, in the Sequel, fail to give you that Satisfaction: And am only sorry, that I have not a Library at Command, for then I should find it more easy to send you elegant
Latin,
than bad
French.
In the mean Time, as I am lost to all Ambition, so neither am I in a Humour, to give my self the least Trouble either for the one or the other; if therefore my Letters are written in a cold, flagging Stile, you may freely say,
Didicit jam bona verba loqui.
and if the Expressions are low, and the Diction incorrect, I must plead, as an Excuse, that I'm a Stranger to the Language I write in. As you seem fond of
Latin,
I must beg Leave to tell you, that
De qua scribebam barbara terra fuit.
I shall begin my Account of this Country by telling you, that we made our Entry into
Petersburg
on the 15th of
December,
1733. A Thaw had made the Roads, at that Time, very deep, and, when we reached the River, which we were to pass, we were obliged to halt, no one being suffered to cross it: Guards were even placed at all the most frequented Passes, to obstruct the Passage of Drunkards, which Appellation is generally due to half, and sometimes to the whole City. After a stay of two Hours, without knowing what my Fate would be, I was ordered to pass the River, and my Guard shewed me on the opposite Side a House, called the Senate-House, whither I was to go. I was really ashamed of the Condition I found my self in, when I stepped out of my Sled, and leave you to judge what a Figure I must have made after what I had undergone. My Passage over this River, seemed in Comparison with the Trial I had undergone in crossing the
Wolga,
only a pleasant Step, through the Gravel-Walks of a Garden, or on an Arched Roof. I was no sooner landed on the opposite Banks, than the Soldiers, who were posted there, to stop up the Passes, presented their Bayonets, and enjoined me to return from whence I came. But upon the pressing Instances of the Sergeant, who had accompanied me, I was at last permitted to pass.
They conducted me immediately to the Hall of the Senate-House, which was crowded with Persons of all Ranks. After having waited some Time there, I was led to another little Apartment, where I could hardly stand upright, and informed by Signs that I must take up my Habitation there. At the Remonstrance of the Soldiers, who were on Guard, I was however directed to a Chamber, where I found a Score of Clerks, five or six Soldiers, and Crowds of other People. No sooner had I entered this Room, than an Officer pointed to a Corner, and said to me,
There's thy Lodging.
The manner with which he uttered these Words, shewed he had a secret Pleasure in having an imprisoned Foreigner in his Custody. He asked, whether I had any Money, for, if I had none, I should be supplyed with Beer and Bread. If you was in my Case, thought I with my self, you would fare very hard.
Being left to the Custody of a Soldier, who guarded me, Sword in Hand, I lay down on my Mattress, to take a little Rest. I was so overwhelmed with Grief, that I was hardly capable of reflecting on the Situation I was in. Some Slaves brought, at the same Time, my Goods, all but my Trunk, and whatever else they thought proper to rob me of. At noon, every one retired, and I was left only with my Guard, who were of the Regiment of
Astracan.
Soon after came in the Sergeant, who gave some Orders to my Guard, and I perceived I was to be under his Inspection. I let him know I wanted somebody I could speak to, having Occasion to buy some Victuals. He promised to grant my Request the next Morning. But as I found, that the People of this Country seemed unacquainted with the Proverb,
Venter non patitur dilationem,
I gave Money to one of the Soldiers to fetch me Bread and Wine, which he did. Having some Sugar, I made a Toast, and sweetned the Wine, which had been my greatest Relief during the whole Journey.
At Day-Break, the next Morning, my Apartment was again, crowded with Clerks and other People. The little Corner, where I was streightned for want of Room, was the Anti-Chamber of a Secretary, who came in, and, having fixed his Eyes on me, in an insolent Manner, passed by without saluting me. He went into his Office, and returned instantly, to order an Officer of the Guards, then present, not to suffer me to be at the Window, or to go into the Secretary's Office. He kept his Hat on whilst he gave these Orders to the Officer, to whom he spoke with an Air of Superiority that surprized me. This Carriage occasioned me to think, that the Gentlemen, who are at the Head of the
Muscovite
Troops, are probably ignorant, how they expose the Honour of their Regiments by subjecting them to the Injunctions of such Wretches.
I waited, in the mean Time, with great Impatience for the Interpreter, they had promised me. I acquainted the Sergeant, who came to see me, with my Desire, and he assured me, that he would immediately send me one. I met with the same Answer to my Demand for a Barber. But, notwithstanding these repeated Assurances, I saw neither one nor t'other. The Door of an adjoining Apartment being open, and no one there, my Curiosity induced me to go in, but I was ordered to retire, and I was obliged to obey. I met with the same Order, when I approached a Window, but having little Regard to such Impertinences, I gave them to understand, that, if they would hinder me from looking out at the Windows, they must wall them up. This Answer put a Stop to all further Uneasiness on that Head. I passed the Night quietly enough, but, when I waked, found myself benum'd from Head to Foot, and not able to stir for some Time. This Accident revived the Suspicion, I entertained before, of being poisoned: Which mysterious Scene of Iniquity, I shall explain to you more at large, in the Sequel: at present I must inform you of what passed at my Levee.
I was hardly up, when the Sergeant came into my Chamber, and desired me to prepare for going out. I was very soon ready, and met, at the Bottom of the Stairs, a Secretary, who made Signs to me, to follow him: This Officer was to conduct me to the Empress's Palace, situate on the other Side of the River. Notwithstanding that the Ice appeared to me very strong, yet few were willing to pass over it: But a large Number of Planks were laid upon it which rendered the Passage entirely safe. When I came to the Palace, I was carried into an Anti-Chamber crowded with People. A Looking-Glass, which was in that Apartment, gave me an Opportunity of seeing what a Figure I made: But I was highly mortified to find my self so nearly resembling a Savage. Another Object, which, at the same Time, offered itself to my View, soon dispelled this little Uneasiness. I saw, the Sergeant, who had guarded me from
Moscow
to
Petersburg,
in a much worse Condition than my self. One would have thought this poor Wretch just come from the Rack. I beg, Sir, you would not forget this Circumstance, which I shall have Occasion to remind you of in the Sequel.
Whilst my Mind was employed in forming Conjectures about what might have happened to my Sergeant, I was sent for to a small Apartment, where I saw two Lords sitting at a Table, and at some Distance another Person likewise sitting, on a low Stool. The former were the two Prime-Ministers of her
Czarian
Majesty; the one a Foreigner, and the other a
Muscovite;
and the third, who sat at some Distance, was the Attorney-General. I drew near to the Table as well as my Legs would let me; for they were scarce in a Condition to obey my Orders;
Sed vires animus dabat.
The Foreign Minister, who is a Man of a noble Appearance, broke Silence, and asked me in
French,
who I was. I acquainted him with my Name, and told him, at the same Time, how much I was ashamed to appear before him in so mean a Condition. He then asked some other insignificant Questions, to which I answered as well as I could. An Abstract of these Interrogations, you will find in a Memorial, which I shall take Care to send you.
The
Muscovite
Minister kept a profound Silence during the Conversation, I had with the other, and did not so much as lift up his Eyes. He is a Man of an enormous Size, and wore a Peruke with a Bag, as remarkably small. The comical Figure, this diminutive Peruke made on the Head of so big a Man, was such, that on any other Occasion I should unaavoidibly have burst out into Laughter, and might justly have applyed to him these Words,
Atque supercilio brevior comoe.
As for the Attorney-General, his Function seemed to be no other, than that of hearing what was said. The Prime-Minister continued, in the mean Time, to examine me, and enquired into the Motives, that induced me to leave
France.
I answered that it was to avoid a Marriage, which I should have been obliged to contract, had I made any longer Stay in that Country. To this he answered, that I must surely be more scrupulous than People generally are in
France,
adding, these very Words:
Sir, you might have married the Person, you speak of, and need not have been destitute of Means to rid your self of her afterwards.
Notwithstanding my extream Weakness, at these Words, I retreated a Step or two backwards, &
hic vires indignatio dedit.
He recollected himself, when he saw the Surprize I was in, and endeavoured to explain his Meaning. He told me, that I might have been divorced from this Wife in a legal Way, very common, especially in
France,
and added several other Circumstances, all tending to illustrate what he had before said. I should be glad to know whether he would have advised me to hang my self, in hopes of somebody's coming to cut me down?
After he had made some farther Enquiry into my Affairs, to which I replyed in few Words, I was ordered to go out, and wait in the Anti-Chamber. As, in my Examination, I had mentioned the Son of Count
de Munich,
who I thought might know me, having seen me in foreign Countries, it was thought proper to send for him, and, when he came, he was placed behind a Door, through which he took a View of me. A very necessary Caution certainly! What Harm would it have been, if they had let him come nearer, that he might have seen and spoken to me? It would have been much more easy to him to have known me, in the Condition I was then in, by my Voice, than by my doleful Aspect. My Beard was, at that Time, of two Months Growth, I had a Peruke on, combed in the
Turkish
Fashion, and a very ragged Cloak. Count
de Munich
's Son had to be sure never seen me in such an Equipage, and consequently could not be supposed to know me. After they had got what Information they thought necessary, the same Minister, who had all along discoursed with me, drew nearer, and asked the Name of the Person, who had been the Cause of all my Misfortunes. This Question highly surprized me, and I wonder I had not answered,
Et osi di viltà tentare Argante?
I was, however, contented with replying, with a disdainful Smile, that I could not believe he expected I should answer him. That he could not be ignorant of the Respect due to the Sex, though they often might not deserve it. I thought proper, before I retired, to beg he would take Notice of my infirm State of Health, after so tedious a Sickness, and of the strange Usage I had met with from the first Day of my Imprisonment. He gave me no other Answer, than this:
It is your own Fault, Sir, we shall proceed as favourably as we can.
Reflect, I beseech you, on this whole Procedure. But in order to inform you rightly of the State of Things, it will be necessary to acquaint you with what I could learn of the
Muscovite
Ministry. It is certain, that all the grand Affairs transacted at present at the Court of
Russia,
are under the Direction of Ministers who are Foreigners, and though out of Decency, they are likewise communicated to two or three Natives of the Country, it is, nevertheless, beyond all Doubt, that the Power is only in the Hands of the Former. And they are so jealous of their Authority, and know so well how to support one another, that the
Muscovites
are only looked on as Subalterns, who dare not undertake any Thing, without their previous Advice and Consent. In all Consultations that Minister who examined me, presides: But tho he has a great Share in the Decision of important Matters, yet, I believe it does not appertain solely to him. The others are Lords of the Court, who assist at Councils, Conferences, Audiences of foreign Ministers, and are consulted in all Concerns which are of any Moment. As the
Muscovites
are naturally suspicious, diffident, and imagine, that there is not a Person in the World whose Integrity can be relied on, there is always some Overseer every where, which is the Reason that even those Things, which require the utmost Secrecy, are treated of in the Presence of several Persons. How far this is advantageous or prejudicial to the State, is not my Province to determine. All I know is, that the wisest Man in
Muscovy,
tho never so well inclined to serve his Country, would find it difficult to succeed in any Attempt, because the continual Suspicions and Diffidence he would meet with, with Regard to himself, must discourage him, and make him lose that Freedom of Mind and Sentiments, which is so necessary to terminate Affairs, that require a ready Execution.
Let me now inform you of what I have learned of the second Class of Ministers, who are the Senators. The Senate consists of
Muscovite
Noblemen of the first Rank, and such, as pass for Men of a great Genius, and thorough Knowledge of Business. Among these there are some, who have served the State, in the Quality of Ambassadors to foreign Courts, others, who have been Generals in the Army, and some, who have travelled through a great Part of
Europe.
I cannot inform you of the exact Number of the Senators, but am assured from good Hands, it is but small. I know six or seven of them, with whom I have had some Concerns. They have a great Number of Secretaries, who are the most ignorant, the most insolent, and at the same Time, the most presumptuous Animals, the Earth ever bore. These have under their Command a prodigious Troop of Clerks, who seem to be always employed. Add to this the Multitude of petty Officers, who go, indeed, by the Name of Soldiers, but may be placed among the lowest Dregs of the Vulgar, and are the very Scum of the People. Of all these consists that August Assembly called the Senate. As for the respective Functions of each of these Officers, they themselves are frequently so ignorant of them, that it is no Wonder if a Stranger is so. All I can say, on that Head, is, that they generally meet four or five Hours a Day, that they take a great deal of Pains themselves, and give no less to others, without advancing the Interests of the State. The Custom of this Nation, of deferring every Thing to the Morrow, is the Occasion that most Affairs are not terminated, till after many Delays. This Remissness is a natural Consequence of the mutual Distrusts they entertain of each other; for as they cannot venture to deliver their Opinions with an entire Freedom, they are often necessitated to defer the most urgent Affairs to another Time. The Door of this illustrious
Areopagus
might be properly adorned with the following Device:
Hic operose nihil agitur.
But this is not all. There is a third Order of Ministers, if they may be allowed that Denomination, who compose what they call the Colleges; these Colleges are divided into different Classes. There is the College of War, that of Foreign Affairs, those of Finances and Commerce, and several others. As I have had nothing to do with these Gentlemen, I can hardly give you any Account of their several Functions. I am nevertheless pretty confidently assured, that all the Members of these Bodies, as well that of the Senate, as those, who compose the Colleges, are only regarded as bare Commissioners or Deputies under the Influence of the Ministers, who are Foreigners, and are esteemed their Oracles. Nothing can be done without previously consulting, or receiving the Orders of these, and all the others live in the most servile Fear and Subjection. The Governours of Provinces dare hardly ever undertake any Thing of their own Accord, and are even ignorant, how far their Authority and Jurisdiction extends. Their natural Timidity, and the entire Dependance, they are always kept in, occasion even Trifles to pass with them for Matters of the greatest Importance.
This in a few Words, is what I have been able to learn of the Form of Government established in
Muscovy.
I thought it necessary to give you this Abstract,
Per quae possis, cognoscere caetera tuté.
The Fate of the
Muscovites
would deserve our Pity, had they any generous Passions, or any Honour at Heart. In process of Time they may perhaps shake off the Yoke, imposed on them by Foreigners, and then, perhaps, we may see
Muscovian
Vespers, as we have formerly seen
Sicilian
Vespers. Their Hatred of Foreigners is so great, that, in this Case, hardly one would escape with Life. It would be the more easy to execute an Enterprize of this Kind, as the Authority Foreigners have assumed, is only founded on a slavish Fear, into which the whole Nation is immerged.
Peter
I. who used his utmost Endeavours to draw his Subjects out of Barbarity, having, in his Travels in
France,
at the Time of the Regency, made Enquiries into the then Form of Government, framed, and, in Part, executed the Project of regulating his own after that Model. He proposed, by establishing so many Councils, to employ, in the Administration, all those of his Subjects, who should be most capable of it, that in Time, they might render themselves useful to their Prince and Country. I know not what Idea to frame of such a Form of Government, which seems not the most suitable to so despotick a State, as that of
Muscovy:
It will, I fear, in Time, produce many Disorders, and insensibly tinge the Commonalty with
Republican
Principles.
We have already seen the Seeds of such Notions at the Death of
Peter
II; for a Motion was then made to form the Government into a Commonwealth. If this Project had taken Place, we should have seen a Plan of Government very different from that of
Plato,
A
Muscovian
Republick! It would, without doubt, have been a Master-Piece! But was
Peter.
the
Great,
with all his fine Schemes and Establishments, sufficiently acquainted with the Genius of his Subjects? I have great Room to doubt it, and this is my Reason There is not to this Day a single
Muscovite,
who is not betrer pleased with his Village, and his Oven, than with the most eminent Post of Honour. They would have been better pleas'd, if
Peter
the Great, instead of attempting to change Beasts, as they were, into Men, had, on the contrary, labour'd, to reduce them from a State of Humanity to that of Brutes. All the Pains that Prince took have hardly had any Effect on his Subjects, farther than the curtailing their Beards, and a Change of their Habits. Their favourite Idols are Fire and Laziness, to which they are ready to sacrifice their All. But I have said enough on this Article, and shall now resume the Account of my own Adventures.
At my Return to my Prison, the Sergeant, who accompany'd me thither, offer'd me half a Ruble, to furnish my self (as he said) with some Provisions. I told him, I had no Occasion for his Money, and begg'd he would rather send me an Interpreter, and a Barber. He left me, but I could not obtain what I ask'd for. I wish'd for nothing so much, in the Condition I was then in, as to consult some Physician, and to be lodg'd in a more commodious Prison, where I might enjoy that Repose and Tranquility, I stood in so great need of. As my Distemper continued, I begun to fear some fatal Event. Though I was eased of the most virulent Pains, and strove to support Nature with the best Diet I could; yet I was still very weak. I had entirely lost two of my Senses, Taste and Smell. A Thirst, which nothing could allay, prey'd upon me incessantly. All these Symptoms did not put me under any Apprehensions of my Life; but I was afflicted with others still more grievous. A general Numbness seized all my Limbs after Sleep, and when I awaked I found my self depriv'd of all Motion. My Head was then troubled with an uncommon Heaviness. My Sight likewise underwent a great Change, for all Objects appeared to me double. These Symptoms disappeared insensibly after I had lain some Time in that deplorable Condition, but then a kind of Restlessness ensued, for which I could not assign any Cause. I applied, from Time to Time, my own Medicines, but tho I am well assured, that 'tis to them I owe my Life, yet could I not perceive, that they produced any visible Effect.
As I constantly reiterated my Entreaties for an Interpreter, a young Man was at last brought to me, who spoke
French,
and was accompanied by the Sergeant, and an Overseer, which they always think requisite in the like Cases. As it was my Design, that he should give a faithful Account of what I had to say to him, I desired him to take it down in Writing,
viz.
"That no one might have Cause to censure my Conduct, I declared, that, when Money was offer'd me, of which I should be ashamed to specify the Value I did not think fit to accept of it, not knowing from whose Hands it came, and being besides assured, that Her Majesty would never offer me a Present, so little agreable to Her great Generosity. I doubted not, but that, if Her Majesty would be pleased to issue Her Orders, to procure me the Sustenance I stood in Need of, it would be in a Manner, suitable to her Dignity, and my Birth; but should it be signified to me, that whatever was offered was by Her Order, I should always receive it with the greatest Deference. All the Assistance, which Her Majesty might, in the mean Time, vouchsafe to lend me, would be of little Service to me, unless I was removed from the Prison, where I was, as I could not enjoy any Rest there, either by Day, or by Night, and unless I was, in the mean while, supplied with what was requisite for the Recovery of my Health, which at that time was in so dangerous a Situation, that I run the Hazard of sinking very soon under the Weight of my Miseries. Should these Precautions on my Behalf be neglected, Her Majesty would lose an Opportunity of punishing me, if I were a Criminal; or, on the other Hand, if my Innocence were proved, she would have the Regret of seeing a Man perish miserably under her Eyes, who came into her Dominions with no other View, but of devoting the Rest of his Days to her Service. To conclude, there was nothing I said, but what I had Room to hope from Her Majesty's Justice and Clemency."
In this Memorandum I likewise particularised all those Things, which I stood absolutely in Need of,
viz.
another Prison, a Physician, my Trunk, and a Person, who might, on all Occasions, serve me as an Interpreter. My Clerk promised to give a faithful Account of all, I had dictated to him. I asked, why they would not suffer me to be shaved, to which he replied, that they feared, I might make an Attempt upon my own Life.
My Memorandum had no farther Success, but to procure the Change of my Prison three Days afterwards, when I was removed into the Secretary's Apartment, who was obliged to shift his Quarters, this new Lodging gave me a little more Ease, tho some Clerk or other was every Day running in and out for Papers, which had been left there. But, on the other Hand, I was tormented with a vast Number of every Kind of Insects that commonly frequent the most odious and filthy Places. I had every Moment the Company of huge Rats, that consumed whatever I could procure for myself; and all the Furniture I had in this Secretary's Office, which I might justly call a Nest of Rats, was two Chairs and a Table, without a Carpet.
This Change of Prison did not therefore, afford me the least Relief. My Sickness encreased daily, and I saw no Hopes of any Succour. I remember, the 24th, which was
Christmas-Eve,
being extreamly ill in my Bed, the Sergeant brought me a very large Goose and a Fowl, and gave me to understand, that this Present was sent me by Her Imperial Majesty. I answered, that the Condition I was then in required other Succour, and desired him to send me, with all Speed, a Physician, and take his Present back with him. But he left it, notwithstanding all I could say, and retired. I gave them to my Guard, to dispose of as they thought fit, and make themselves merry but I found they durst not touch them. The same Officer returned the next Morning, and made a great Bustle, because they had let those Provisions be spoiled, instead of carrying them away. I thought this a proper Time to make lively Expostulations with him about my Trunk, where all my Linnen was, which I stood the more in Need of, as I was eat up with Vermin. He took little Notice of what I said, but walk'd off with the Goose and Fowl.
The Refusal of my Trunk, which I had so long and so pressingly desired, was not without some Cause. Several Circumstances made me suspect, that they had robbed me of Part of what it contained, and strove now to conceal it. Theft is well known to be so common in
Muscovy,
that no one is ashamed of it. Great and Small, Men and Women, lay hold, without any Scruple, of the Property of another, wherever they meet with it. Hence it is, that People are always upon their Guard, and live in this Country in a continual Diffidence of each other.
Peter
I. was wont to say, that if he was to hang all the Thieves in his Dominions, he should be destitute of Subjects. My Suspicions were still farther grounded, by the Detention of the Key of my Trunk at
Muscow,
and by my seeing the Sergeant, who had conducted me into the
Czarina
's Palace, where he appeared like a Criminal, on whom Sentence was just going to be pronounced. These several Considerations induced me to believe, that I had been robbed, and that, to conceal the Fact, and avoid the Hands of Justice, they had attempted to poison me. Their Proceedings, in Regard to me, in the Sequel, will give you very strong Proofs of what I here advance.
You will, without doubt, be shocked at the Perusal of these Circumstances of my Adventures. Had not my Courage supported me in the doleful Condition I was in, I must have inevitably perished. I should a thousand Times have sunk under the Load of my Calamities, had I not preserved a perfect Peace of Mind amidst my greatest Distresses. I perceived my self often at the Point of Death, destitute of all Relief, and of all Hopes of receiving any. Nothing afflicted me more than the Reflection of being sacrific'd, as I was, to the Fury and unjust Resentments of a Savage Nation, which, having not the least Sense of Humanity, treated me as the most abject of Slaves. Nevertheless, in the midst of these Perplexities,
Neque ullam vocem protuli indignam viro, neque cedentem calamitati.
I leave you to judge, after having weighed these Circumstances, what Idea the World ought to form of this Nation, which at present makes so much Noise in
Europe,
whose Alliance is so earnestly sought for, and which claims a Right to the Disposal of Kiugdoms.
Spes improbissimas complectuntur insperata assecuti.
LETTER V.
SIR,
I must not omit begging your Excuse for the abrupt Manner, with which I concluded my last. My Head was at that Time filled with such melancholy Ideas, and my Heart perplexed with Motions so extraordinary, that I fancied my Hand was growing heavy, and my Ink appeared more black, than it really was. These Symptoms made me resolve upon taking some Repose; for, whatever I write to you, shall, as far as possible, be the Product of a Mind at Ease, and by no Means of an impetuous Imagination. Not that I am fearful of being too severe in my Censures of the
Muscovites,
who certainly deserve no Mercy; But as I engaged in this Correspondence, with no other View, than that of satisfying your Curiosity, I am not so much intent on seeking Revenge for the Injuries, done me by that Nation, as on informing you of what you desire to know of my Adventures. To continue my Narrative of them, I must, therefore, tell you, that, after I had been left to struggle with Death, for the Space of ten Days, a Physician, was, at last, brought me by the Sergeant and an Overseer. This Physician happened unfortunately to speak nothing but
Latin;
which gave me a great deal of Uneasiness; For, though I am pretty well versed in that Language, yet I found it difficult to express my Thoughts, as I had never made made Use of it in familiar Discourse. I therefore immediately told my Physician, that since I should hardly be able to give him the true Grounds of my Disease, I had Cause to fear he might not apply proper Medicines, nor give me that Assistance, I stood in Need of. He replyed by this Axiom, which he faid, was unquestionable:
Omnes Captivi infirmitatibus laborant;
this unpromising Beginning exasperated me, &
indignatio dedit Linguam.
I answered him in as Philosophical Manner,
Non doleo de captivitate, sed de modo captivitatis.
I continued my Harangue in the same Tone, but in a
Latin
Idiom, as barbarous as the Country I was in. The Doctor, however, not thinking me perhaps so tractable, as blindly to submit to his Prescriptions, thought fit to retire: And this was all the Benefit I received from his Visit!
An Accident happened some Time after, which contributed not a little to confirm the Suspicions I had of my having been poisoned. But give me leave to put you in mind of the following Circumstances, before I inform you of what passed. First, the Key of my Trunk, which was demanded, and I was forced to surrender at
Muscow:
In the second Place, my Sword, which was likewise taken from me at
Muscow,
and locked up, in the Trunk; and lastly, my Trunk itself, which had been detained from the 15th of
December,
the Day of my Arrival at
Petersburg,
'till the 11th of
January
1734. My Trunk was that Day brought into my Prison, guarded by several petty Officers, a Secretary, some Clerks and an Overseer. The Secretary having first saluted me with a smiling Countenance, demanded the Key of the Trunk. I answered, that I had the same Demand upon him. Seemingly surprized at this Answer, he spoke to those who were present, as if he was enquiring what was become of the Key.
Several Questions and Answers ensued, which tended only to delude and blind me, till at last the Key appeared. They begun then, by unlocking the Padlock, but as it was sealed, one of the Clerks addressing himself to the Secretary, and, by his Looks, expressing his Surprize, said:
Sir, here are two Seals. Yes,
replied the Secretary, the better to conceal his Villany,
there are two, one of Casan, and the other of Muscow.
The Trunk was at last opened, where I found every Thing in Disorder. I took out my Pistols and my Sword, which could not be there, but by a very great Miracle, as they must have been put in, without taking off the Seal of
Casan.
I told the Secretary, that my Arms were useless to a Prisoner, and would have put them into his Hands: But he answered, they must be left in the Trunk, which he would shut himself. It appeared to me somewhat extraordinary, that I should be debarred the Use of my Cloaths; for all I could obtain was three or four Shirts, which I stood in great need of. They even refused me, with the utmost Barbarity, some
Eau des Carmes,
and other Medicines. The Secretary having first locked the Trunk, assured me, that I should be supplied with common Necessaries, by Orderm and at the Expence of her Majesty, and then retired.
These Circumstances duly weighed, it will be easy to determine, whether I was really poisoned or not? I should even be glad, if, on this Subject, you would consult all the Physicians and natural Philosophers of your Acquaintance, who will not, in a case so singular, refuse to give you their Opinion. For my Part, I should be glad to have my Suspicions removed, by a Demonstration, that my Disease could be the Effect of any other Cause than Poison; but beg, you would first maturely and leisurely consider the following Circumstances.
In my last, you may remember, I observed, that the
Muscovites
are very prone to Theft, and that it is a Vice common to the whole Nation. Hence I may infer the Probability of their embracing the first Opportuni y that offered of robbing me. That this Conjecture comes nearly up to Truth, is but too evident, by the Key of my Trunk, being taken from me at
Muscow.
And I may reasonably ask, what Occasion there was to search my Trunk at all? It had already been looked into at
Casan,
and was, besides, closely sealed. Had Curiosity been their sole Inducemen sor viewing my Effects, they might have gratified it in my Presence. But there are still other Circumstances. My Trunk was seized, on my Arrival at
Peersburg,
without any apparent Cause, and the Sergeant, who had brought me thither, appeared at the
Czarina
's Palace, in the Posture of a Criminal. In Order to account for this Person's Fate, you must know, that my Trunk was opened, as soon as it was brought to
Petersburg,
and that, after having compared the Contents with the Inventory sent from
Casan,
Part of the Things, specified in the last, was sound to be wanting. The Sergeant was immediately supposed to be the Thief, or at least an Accomplice in the Robbery. The Trunk was, therefore, to be detained, till the Deficiency could be repaired, and some one be instantly dispatched to Muscow to recover what was stolen. It is certain, the Sergeant himself was directly sent back thither: For when, some Days after my Arrival at
Petersburg,
I asked, what was become of my Sled, they answered, the Sergeant had taken it to return to
Muscow.
In short, my Trunk was not returned to me, till the 11th of
January,
twenty-seven Days after my Arrival at
Petersburg;
a Time, sufficient to go to
Muscow,
to discharge the Commission, which the Sergeant was entrusted with, and to return to
Petersburg.
These are, beyond all Contradiction, Probabilities, which, on many Occasions, might pass for evident Proofs; but let us examine the Affair yet farther, The Secretary demanded the Key of my Trunk, when it was brought to me, and endeavoured to persuade me, that it had been likewise sealed at
Casan,
in order to insinuate, that it had not been opened since. Could any Thing be more ridiculous, than to imagine, I had such a Stock of Credulity, as to be persuaded, that they had neglected a thorough View of all my Effects? They were too desirous of knowing, who I was, and of finding some Pretence, whereby to justify their Proceedings with Regard to me, to omit such a Search. I should likewise be glad to know, what they can alledge in Respect to my Sword, which the Officer of the Guards at
Casan
seemed so much pleased with, which I wore till I reached
Muscow,
and which at length I found in my Trunk, though they pretended it had not been opened either at
Muscow
or at
Petersburg.
I am certainly highly obliged to the
Muscovites,
if they have found out the Secret of imparting to my Sword some of those Qualities, attributed to the Thunder-Bolt, especially that of penetrating the most solid Bodies, without leaving the least Mark; for then I shall hereafter be armed as powerfully as
Jove
himself. What could, in fine, induce them to refuse me my Cloaths, and to shut the Trunk so abruptly, without giving me Time to examine what was in it? I should not, I believe, deviate very far from the Truth, were I to say that they proceeded in this unaccountable Manner, the better to conceal the Robbery, they had committed on the greatest Part of my Equipage, the Want of which I was forced to bear with during the whole Time of my Captivity. As I have now averred the Theft, I shall find it more easy to prove, that I was poisoned. You may perhaps ask, who were the Authors of the former Villany? For your Satisfaction, let it suffice, that I put you in Mind of my having cast the Nativity of the Secretary of
Muscow,
when the Humour took me to tell him, that the Gallows would soon be his Fate. And in Reality the whole Matter must fall upon that Secretary, and his Accomplices.
My Sickness became in the mean while so extream, and I was reduced to so feeble a State, that my Guard were obliged to carry me, whenever I had occasion to ease Nature. I was again afflicted with a Cholick, accompanied with Pains, so violent, that I almost begun to fear I had been poisoned a second Time. This new Paroxism was however, of a short Duration, it left me insensibly, and I found my self in better Health, than I had been before. The incessant Requests, I had long made, for a Physician, were at last complied with. He was accompanied by the same Clerk, who had played his Leger-de-main Tricks with the two Seals, at the opening of my Trunk. The Doctor, who spoke good
Italian,
immediately enquired into the Nature of my Distemper. I told him, that to give him a true Idea of it, I could not avoid entring into several Particulars, which would necessarily require his Attention. After having given him an Account of my Constitution, I acquainted him what befel me at my Departure from
Muscow.
My Physician was every Moment interrupted by the Clerk who was present, and, as he had Orders to write down this whole Consultation, was teazing him to know what I said; he even desired us, in pressing Terms, to hasten to a Conclusion. The Physician, who had his Instructions, seemed to give Way to the Secretary's Instances, and before he had Time to inform himself of my Disease, advised me to take a Vomit, and to be blooded. To this I answered, that I could not prevail upon my self to follow the Advice which he gave me, without informing himself of my Disease: That as for the Emetick, I was resolved not to take it; and, though I might hope for some Relief from Bleeding, yet I could not with any Probability expect a Surgeon, since they had refused to send me a Barber, lest I should make away with my self. I then informed him of the Treatment I had met with, but all the Answer, he made me was, that I must conform to the Customs of the Country. The Clerk, likewise, thought fit to give me his Advice, and said, that Grief being my Disease, I must wait my Remedy from Time and Circumstances. This stung me to the quick, and put me in Mind of my former Physician's Axiom. To convince him of this Mistake, I told him, in these very Terms:
"Sir, my Mind has no Share in the doleful Condition I am reduced to, and give me leave to tell you, that a Man, tho a Prisoner, may enjoy a perfect Freedom of Mind. But the Case is this, you have neither Orders nor Leisure to hear me speak, and seem but little inclined to give me that Assistance, I stand so much in Need of; therefore, not to detain you any longer, you are at Liberty to be gone. All the Favour I ask of you is, to tell those Gentlemen, who sent you, that a Patient is not relieved by the bare Sight of a Physician, and that no Remedy ought to be prescribed to me, till I am allowed to tell my Case. Your Visits will be always agreeable, and may prove highly beneficial to me, if you have so much Influence as to procure me that Permission; but if it be thought improper to grant me that Favour, to give your self any farther Trouble, seems to me entirely needless."
Whether my Physician was pleased with this Compliment I know not; but the contrary seems most probable, for he instantly retired, and gave himself no farther Trouble about me.
I continued to fare very hard, notwithstanding the repeated Promises made me, several Days together, that I should be maintained by the Order, and at the Expence, of Her Imperial Majesty, and I saw no signs of any thing being sent me by that Princess. The Matter was, I suppose, deemed so very important, that it required a Respite, till the Morrow. This Rule is generally observed by the
Muscovites,
when the Point in Debate relates to Disbursements: And they are certainly right; for Money is not so scarce, in any other Country in the World. An Interpreter, at last appeared, after I had long waited for him, accompanied by two or three Persons, who came to tell me, he had Orders to provide for my Sustenance. I expressed my Satisfaction at this News, and told him, the sooner the better. But how replied he, do you expect to be served? How said I? Just as you think fit, provided it be not after the
Muscovian
Manner, for their Ragoos I am not accustomed to. He then consulted with those, who were present, and said, that I might have Money allowed me, and asked how much would do? This Question made me laugh, and I desired to know, in my turn, if he took me for a Person that would accept of Money. I ordered him to tell his Masters, that I should always, with the utmost Deference and Gratitude, accept of whatever should be offered me by Her Majesty's Order. This Reply gave Occasion to a fresh Consultation, which being ended, this weighty Affair was put off to the Morrow.
The Necessity I lay under of making my Case known to some able Physician, put me upon writing an exact Relation of all that had happened to me, to send it to Mons.
du Vernoi,
Anatomy-Professor. You may remember the Character I have already given you of him. He is a Man of Merit, and one to whom I am greatly obliged. At the same Time, I wrote a short Memorial to the Empress, wherein I complained of the Manner in which I was treated. I was told, they should both be safely delivered; but as neither of them produced the Effect I hoped, they probably were both suppressed. I was even treated with more Severity than before; for after this, notwithstanding all my Remonstrances, I never could obtain either Physician or Interpreter, either Pen and Ink, or my Cloaths.
That these Gentlemen acted, with the utmost Injustice, with Regard to me, is most certain; and yet they may have had their Motives to palliate those Proceedings. In order to unfold this Mystery, I must put you in Mind of the Hatred, which the
Muscovites
bear to all Strangers who are any Expence to them. This undoubted Truth is one of the Motives, which induce me to believe, that the Gentlemen in the Administration at
Muscow,
were resolved upon my Perdition at any Rate. And indeed, what Necessity could there be to detain me in that City eight or ten Days? Why was I, at my Arrival at
Petersberg,
refused the immediate Benefit of a Physician, since there are so many of the Profession in that Place? At last indeed they sent me one, but he spoke
Latin
only, and the Conversation I had with him, was, besides, so very short, that he could not possibly be informed of my Case, nor apply proper Remedies. As they knew I was an
Italian,
and there are three or four Physicians of that Nation in the Town, why was I not permitted to speak to one of them? They very well knew, I was conversant in the
French
Tongue, why was not some one of that Nation suffered to come to me? The second Physician spoke, I confess, the
Italian
Tongue very well; but the Orders, which were given to interrupt our Conversation every Moment, hindered me from making my Case known. They feared, and very justly too, that, had I given an exact Account of it, the Physician would have discovered the real Cause of my Distemper. What can be in-ferred from their Refusal of letting me make Use of the Medicines, I had in my Trunk? They were probably afraid, that those Remedies might restore my Health, which they did their utmost Endeavours to prevent. The Attempt, they had made on my Life, would, they hoped, be concealed from the World by my Death. The Expedient they made Use of to silence my Complaints, was very odd. They allowed me to write to a Physician, but, at the same Time, intercepted my Letter, because the Perusal of it might disclose a Secret, which it was too much their Interest to conceal. Therefore, to compass their iniquitous Scheme, they could use no better Means, than that of leaving me alone. It would perhaps be difficult, to discover, how the Poison was conveyed to me, and to name the principal Authors of so execrable an Attempt, but that they did find Means to give it me, and that every
Muscovite
is justly liable to be suspected thereof, are most indisputable Truths.
Ad te, quisquis is es, nostra querela redit.
I now leave you to judge, whether the Report, spread throughout all
Europe,
of the Death of the three last Sovereigns of
Muscovy
being owing to Poison, was so very groundless. They will certainly find it very difficult, to clear themselves from an Imputation, which is but too well founded. They are already known by too many iniquitous Passages, not to be thought capable of any Thing. In all their Proceedings, they are known to consult their private Interest only, and the Project they have formed of extending their Dominions, has induced them to commit all kinds of Injustice, in Regard to their Neighbours. They have invaded the finest Countries, to open their Way into
Germany.
They have long since aimed at the sole Dominion of the
Baltick.
The whole World is sensible of the Tyranny they exercise in
Poland,
after having sowed Discord in that Kingdom. And
Europe
has Reason to fear their penetrating yet farther, and kindling a Flame in other Countries, as they have done in
Poland.
It is the Interest of more Potentates, than one, to set Bounds to their Ambition, and to break their Measures; and it were to be wished, that a Method might be speedily found of driving them back into their Forests, and lurking Holes, where they lived whole Ages in Obscurity. As they desire nothing more earnestly, than to revive their antient Customs, and to live unknown to the rest of Mankind, nothing could be of greater Service to them. They bear so great an Aversion to the Innovations, which have been attempted to be introduced among them, in the last forty Years, that, if they were left to themselves, they would soon shake off the Yoke, which they think is imposed on them. This Nation is fit for nothing but to be kept in Bondage and Obscurity. Is it not surprizing, that notwithstanding the absolute Power of their Monarchs, they have hitherto been so unsuccessful in their Endeavours, to render this Country flourishing in Commerce, and to establish Religion and Sciences among them.
Whoever should undertake to enquire into the Origin of the
Muscovites,
must be greatly perplexed by this their singular Character. If I could prevail upon my self to believe, that there were
Pre-adamites,
I should almost have sworn, that the
Muscovites
are their Descendants. And they must certainly be allowed to owe their Extraction to a Set of Men, very different, from any we now meet with. I have, after many Reflections, formed a Conjecture, which appears to me entirely well grounded, and will, I am assured, notwithstanding its Novelty, meet with your Approbation. You cannot be ignorant of the unanimous Consent of Historians, in the mention they make of this Nation, that no Traces can be found of its antient State, and that the profound Ignorance, in which it has been always involved, has rendered all Enquiries, into its Original, entirely fruitless. This great Difficulty has kept all Historians in Suspence, and deterred them from attempting any Decision on this Article. But I will lead you into the Path they should have followed, and which I my self have taken, in making this signal Discovery.
Whenever the Origin of a People is not discoverable by any Monuments of Antiquity, we must of Necessity examine their Manners and Customs, and compare them with those of other Nations, and especially of their Neighbours. This being premised, I need only put you in Mind of a Piece of History, which you are not ignorant of, tho you may not know how so easily to fix it to any certain Period. You may remember to have read, that the
Scythians,
at their Return from their third Expedition in
Asia,
met, on the Frontiers of their Country, a numerous Army, ready to oppose their Entrance. Their own Wives, being tired of so long a State of Viduity, had all agreed to throw themselves into the Arms of their Slaves, and had inspired those base Lover; with sufficient Courage and Strength to take up Arms. The
Scythians,
informed of this Procedure, consulted among themselves, what Course to take. They imagined, that to employ their Arms against their Slaves, would be to debase themselves: They therefore, armed themselves with Scourges only, and in that Manner marched against the Rebels, who, awed by the Presence of their Masters, were immediately seized with a Panick, and endeavoured to save themselves by Flight. These Wretches, fearful of a Pursuit, penetrated very far towards the
North,
into a Country, then un inhabited, which their Descendants still possess.
If you cast your Eyes upon a Map, it will instantly appear to you, that the Country, into which these Slaves made their Retreat, must necessarily be the same, which is now known by the Name of
Muscovy.
It would be derogatory from the extensive Knowledge you have in History, should I here attempt to prove this Fact, which is attested by all Authors, who have written of the
Scythians
and their Country. This great Event is likewise confirmed by an authentick Monument, which we to this Day meet with in
Muscovy,
for the Place, to which they at first retired, is still known by the Name of
the City of Slaves.
Such is the Original of the
Muscovites,
which none, but themselves, ought to regard as a Mystery. You need therefore no longer think it strange, that a People, descended from such Ancestors, has strove, to remain in Obscurity, by neglecting to transmit to Posterity these Titles, and all other Monuments, which could lead us to the Knowledge of them. The
Muscovites
would thereby have discovered themselves to be not only Slaves by Birth, but likewise Traitors, Cowards and Rebels. All these fine Qualities are still discernable in that Nation, and it is well known, that Slavery has been handed down among them from Father to Son, without any Interruption, till the present Age. The Assurance, wherewith they boast themselves to be Descendants of the
Scythians,
may therefore be pardoned, provided they mean in the Manner I have here explained.
To remove all Doubts, that may be raised on this Head, I beg leave to add a Word or two about those
Tartars,
who are Neighbours of the
Muscovites.
You know, without Doubt, that these People are the same
Scythians,
of whom several Authors make Mention, and whose Exploits were formerly famous throughout the whole World. These are the People, who possess, to this Day, besides great
Tartary,
the two finest Empires in the World, which are
China
and
Mogul.
Notwithstanding the vast Extent of the Countries this Nation is Master of, there is not a single Tribe among them, but is thoroughly acquainted not only with their common Origin, but likewise in particular with their own Descent. They can inform you, with the utmost Accuracy, what Branch they are descended from. Whence proceeds then so great a Difference, as we here observe, between two Nations bordering on each other? It may be very easily explained. The
Tartars
are those famous
Scythians,
who glory in their Origin; and the
Muscovites
are those cowardly Slaves, whose Descent and Extraction have rendered them infamous.
Whatever Arguments the
Muscovites
advance, with a View of persuading us, that they are Descendants of the
Scythians,
this single Observation may almost suffice to subvert. But I cannot really perceive, that they have any Thing in common with that Nation. The greatest Part of the modern
Tartars,
on the contrary, seem to have an entire Resemblance with those ancient
Scythians. Justin, Herodotus,
and some other Authors, describe the Manners, and relate the brave Exploits of those Conquerors, and, if you compare them with what we read of the
Mungals
and
Kalmucs,
you will find a very great Resemblance between those People. An intrepid Courage, and a surprizing Magnanimity, are Qualities, which we observe in the
Tartars
here mentioned; but the
Muscovites
distinguish themselves only by their Cowardice and Baseness. You will not find it an easy Matter, Sir, to meet, in History, with Conjectures better founded, than these, about the Original of the
Muscovites;
therefore,
si tibi vera videntur dede manus.
And with this I shall conclude my Letter, reserving for the next a Subject more jocose and diverting. You judge very rightly, that, to entertain you with Matters of this Kind, which ought always to be treated not only,
corpore valido,
but likewise,
animo sereno,
I must needs put a great Constraint on my self. In the mean Time,
Ut, qui jocularia ridens,
Percurram.
LETTER VI.
SIR,
T HE Treatment I here meet with is certainly most extraordinary. The
Muscovites,
perceiving that my Sickness did not put an End to my Life, endeavoured by all possible Means to effect it by Hunger. This would certainly have been the Event of their Barbarity, had I not received timely Assistance from Mr
de L'Isle
and his Wife. I shall, in the Sequel, have frequent Occasion to mention them both, and, by what I shall say of them, you'll find, that Ministers, Generals of Armies and Warriours are not the only Persons, who promote the Honour of the
French
Nation. In order to apprize you fully of what I have to say, it will be proper to resume the Thread of my Relation.
Though my Disease was become Chronical, and in a Manner incurable, it was nevertheless not so violent as before, and I begun to be sensible of the Necessity I lay under of taking some solid, nourishing Food, which might support Nature, and insensibly increase my Strength. All the Provisions, which my Guard brought me, at my own Expence, were so dear, and, at the same Time, so very bad, that I resolved at last, to seek for other Diet. The Gentleman and Lady before mentioned were therefore to be applied to, and I found it necessary to beg of them, to send me some Wine, and other Provisions, which I stood most in Need of. As I was neither permitted to speak, nor to write to any one, my greatest Difficulty was, how to acquaint them with my Desires. I found Means at last, after having given my self a great deal of Trouble, to put my Project in Execution, by prevailing upon a Clerk to write down whatever I should dictate to him in the
Russian
Tongue. You must not wonder to find me dictating a Letter in this Tongue, for Necessity is the best Master of Languages,
Ingenîque largitor venter.
I had begun some Time before to understand the Language of the Country pretty well, and knew enough to ask for what I stood in Need of.
Mr.
de L'Isle
no sooner received my Letter, than he sent me much more than I desired. I had no Room to doubt of his being apprized of my Adventures, and of my Arrival at
Petersburg;
because his Brother, without Doubt, had advised him of my Fate: And besides, as I named him, in my Examination, it is highly probable, he was likewise interrogated. I have even been since informed, that he was placed behind a Door, to see whether he knew me. Having soon consumed the Provisions, sent me by Mr.
De L'Isle,
and what I had provided at my own Expence, as they had several Times promised, I should be furnished with Necessaries by Order of the Court, and I saw no Effect of this Promise, I thought it my Duty to expostulate pretty warmly with the Officer on that Head. He answered, that, since I had declared my Aversion to
Muscovite
Ragoos, they were extreamly at a Loss, what to provide for me. Little satisfied with so poor a Pretence, I spoke to him in such haughty Terms, as terrified him from coming near me again in haste. And so it is with the
Muscovites,
in general, not excepting their Soldiers, when they meet with any Opposition.
It is pretty extraordinary, that I could never learn what they call a Man of Courage in the
Russian
Tongue. I am almost inclined to think, that, as there is not a Man among them, who has the least Valour to boast of, such a Term would be entirely useless to them. This Cowardice, and a certain brutish Disposition, equally natural to them, are Qualities, which I cannot well reconcile.
There does not seem to be much Difficulty in reconciling them; for Bullies are always Cowards.
They have a Law, whereby all Subjects are forbid to draw their Swords, and it has been so religiously observed throughout the whole Empire, that there has not been one Instance of its being violated. I know not whether they have any Laws to prevent Theft, but, if they have, they are not much enforced. What Inference may we draw from this Observation? May we not justly say, that they are naturally inclined to Pilfering, and that their Pusillanimity is the Occasion that they never draw their Swords? I leave you to decide this Question, and doubt not, but you will be of my Opinion.
In the mean Time, I gave my Guard to understand, that, as they continued to neglect bringing me any Provisions, I should find Means of being admitted to the
Czarina's
Presence, and that I should make my Complaints to Her Majesty of those, who refused to execute her Orders. I repeated these Menaces to the whole Body of Clerks, who were in my Anti-Chamber, and my Officer venturing at last to appear again, I assured him, I would break the Windows, and entreat Relief, of those who passed by in the Street. These Threats produced their Effect; for, the next Morning, the Corporal came with a Purse in his Hand, and said, that I might order what I pleased. I told him I wanted Bread, Wine, Sugar and Meat, all which he soon after brought me. I gave the same Orders the next Day, but found it no longer complied with. One of my Guard refused to take the Money I offered him, to buy what I stood in Need of, pretending he had received Orders not to concern himself with any of my Commissions. I was not a little surprized to hear of such an Order, but was obliged to put up with it, and to make shift with the Remnants of the preceding Day. After this, I had but very little, and sometimes nothing at all to eat for some Days. When it was my Fate to fast, one of the Soldiers took up a
Violin,
and invited me to dance, saying,
French
-Men could forget Hunger for a Jigg. This Farce diverted me for a Time, but my Patience being, at length, tired, I was again so busy with my Threats, that my Soldiers, brought me the same Evening a fine Piece of roasted Meat, some Bread and Wine: And no less a Feast than this would have sufficed to allay my voracious Appetite. When my Repast was ended, folding up a Piece of Paper, in which some Salt had been wrapped, I accidentally saw some Writing upon it. Curiosity inducing me to read it, I perceived, it contained only some Astronomical Calculations. I immediately conceived, that I was obliged to Mr.
De L'Isle
and his Wife for my Supper; and was so enraged at this Proceeding, that I made use of the most bitter Invectives to reproach the Corporal. I even threatened him, Her Imperial Majesty should know how her Orders were executed, being assured, she would reward them all with a Halter. He begun to excuse himself by the Difficulty, he pretended, there was in pleasing me, but I was so loud with my Complaints, that he retired in a Pannick.
Were I to relate the many Scenes I passed thro on this Account, I should never have done. It may suffice, to tell you, that all the Food I had, from the 11th of
January
to the 15th of
February,
were sent me by Mr.
De L'Isle.
This Gentleman even gave my Guard some other Necessaries, but those Villains thought fit, as I afterwards found, to keep them for their own Use. I had been in great Danger of being starved in my Prison, had I not been so kindly assisted by Mr.
De L'Isle.
The Impossibility the
Muscovites
lie under of maintaining their Prisoners, whilst they have so large a Number of Foreigners on their Hands, is the only Pretence that can justify their Conduct with Regard to me. Could you ever have thought, that the whole Revenue of this vast Empire does not amount to above ten or twelve Millions of Crowns? Their Generosity cannot be very extensive out of so inconsiderable an Income. But after all, you may object, Why was I not satisfied with what they gave me? Was it not sufficient, to be fed in the Manner they live themselves? Black Bread, Salt, and often putrid Fish, are the Victuals, and Water the Drink, they generally put up with in
Muscovy.
Could a Prisoner as I was, a Person unknown, expect to meet with a better Treatment? Had they vouchsafed me the Allowance, given in other Countries to Prisoners of State, I should alone have consumed as much, as would have served half a Dozen of
Muscovite
Families. The Scarceness of Money in this Country, and the Misery, the People are reduced to, can hardly be imagined. In the whole Extent of
Muscovy,
there does not so much Money circulate, during the Course of a Year, as at
Paris, London,
and
Amsterdam
in a single Day. I believe I should speak within Compass, if I tell you, that the daily Expence of a single Merchant at
London
far exceeds that of a whole City in
Muscovy.
This impossibility which they laboured under of maintaining me, in the Manner I ought to have been treated, was the Reason that they gladly left that Care to Mr.
de L'Isle
and his Wife, who were both as kind and generous to me, as the People in
France
generally are to Strangers. Tho I forbid my Guard going to ask for any Thing at Mr.
de L'Isle
's, yet they constantly went thither, and not a Day passed that I did not receive some Tokens of their Benevolence. I assure you, his Generosity to me, exceeded whatever I could expect from the best of my Friends. I intend to let you know more on this Article on an other Occasion. Permit me now to entertain you with an Account how I employed my Time in my Prison.
I found Means to make a shift without Pen, Paper or Ink, as I was destitute of those Helps. A Nail, which by Chance I found in my Prison, supplied the Place of a Pen, and, instead of Paper, I made use of the Table, from whence they had taken away the Carpet. I had therefore no Occasion for Ink, to write with. I begun by engraving on the Edge of the Drawer these Words:
Inter scribas et Pharisaeos innocens erat.
After this I undertook to embroider all my Table, and my first Attempt was an Encomium on the
Czarina,
in the following Words:
Anna della tue glorie al scriver pronto
Dell' ala della fama
Piuma stringer vorrei;
Ma misero sol servo
Suelta dal Carcer mio penna di ferro.
Having thus begun to take delight in Poetry, I made these following Lines.
Anna delle tue Lodi
Pur dir vorrei, Ma alla materia vasta
Un sol foglio poseggo ed ei non basta.
It would be difficult to account,
ut sic repente Poeta prodirem.
But however it happened my Table, was, in a few Days, covered with wretched Verses. The
Muscovites
understood nothing of the Matter; nor, indeed, did I make them for their Use. I resolved, after having filled my Table, to engrave on the Door of my Prison an Account of my most remarkable Adventures in
Muscovy.
There you may read, that I was refused a Barber, lest I should make Use of his Razor to cut my own Throat; and that they would not allow me a Physician, because he might have cured me, and saved my Life. These two Incidents occasioned me to propose the Riddle of a Man, who could neither live, nor dye. And I was in reality in the Case of that Person, to whom a
Gascoon
said, If you draw near, I shall kill you; and if you go back, you are a dead Man. This unhappy Man could, in so great an Extremity, no Way avoid the imminent Danger, without becoming invisible, which was likewise the Advice the
Gascoon
gave him. As this Behaviour of the
Muscovites,
in Regard to me, was a very evident Proof of their Barbarity, I resolved, in order to perpetuate the Memory thereof, to address the following Lines to their Secretaries:
Signori Secretari,
Che il Barbiero negate,
Ed il Medico non date,
Siete Cervelli rari.
Voi dite Barbiere n
,
Che ucciderti vó;
Ma il Medico? Iol, so
Perehe sanarmi può.
Ocridicolo absurdo: In fede mia
Ignorate esser forza questa Porta
Aperta o chiusa sia
It is a Phenomenon, somewhat strange, to be exposed to perish by Hunger, and as this was my Case in
Muscovy,
I thought an Occurrence of that kind deserved to be transmitted to Posterity. These are the Verses I composed on that Subject:
Signori Secretari, dite un puoco
Per chi voi mi prendete?
Se per uomo: O per spirto: se son tale,
Guardate non vi faccia inspiritare.
Ma se uomo son io, date a mangeare.
Forsi perche senza verun soccorso
Non mori di gran male
Mi credete immortale?
Such was my Occupation in my Prison. Any one besides my self, would have taken Pains to broach Invectives against the
Muscovites,
but to tell you the Truth, I thought them unworthy of my Anger. An Affair happened, in the mean Time, at which, tho ludicrous enough, I could not forbear expressing some Indignation. The Matter was this:
As my Confinement begun to be irksome to me, not a Day passed that I did not make some serious Reflections on the Motives, that could induce the
Muscovites
to keep me so long closed between four Walls. I thought, that they begun to forget me, and resolved to seek some Method of making my self the Subject of Publick Discourse. My Beard appeared most proper to awaken their Minds, and to give the Alarm to my whole Guard. It had, for some Time, been of a frightful Length. I daily observed the Clerks who came into my Chamber, telling one another, that I was not unlike a
Tartar.
As I should rather choose to resemble a
Tartar,
than a
Muscovite,
this Comparison gave me no great Offence. In order to convince them of my entire Indifference as to all their Railleries, on my Beard, I sometimes told them, that, if
Peter
I. had met me in his Dominions, I should have met but with a bad Reception. I even made some Verses, and engraved them on my Table, by which I gave them to understand, that my Beard was so far from rendering me dejected, and giving me the Air of a Criminal, that it added to my Courage and Resolution. I frequently talked in this Strain, and to confirm what I said, the more, I added these Words:
Barbatum hoc crede Magistrum
Dicere.
I took, however, the Resolution of cutting off my Beard, and I even intended to give them Notice of it, notwithstanding the Indifference I expressed about it. You know, I always wear on my Arm one of those Stones, so famed in the Writings of the Learned, which ought, if I had been somewhat more credulous, to have been in greater Esteem with me, during the Course of my Adventures. Having called my Corporal, I shewed him the Stone, protesting, that, if he did not instantly send me a Barber, I would cause a Genius, whom I pretended to have at Command, and to keep inclosed there, to come immediately, and shave me. At hearing these Words, he seemed to be in a Maze, and, having alternatively cast his Eyes on me and my Stone, trembling, replied, that he would carry my Message to his Officers, and return immediately with their Answer. At his return, he told me, I must have a little more Patience, and that it was still thought improper, to grant my Request. Dissatisfied with this repeated Refusal, I directly resolved to perform the Office of a Barber my self. No sooner were my Guard intent upon something else, than I took my Scissars, which supplied the want of a Razor, and soon after shewed my self again to the Corporal, without a Beard. His Astonishment was beyond Expression; he was in a perfect Rapture.
I easily foresaw, that I must arm my self with Courage against the Consequences, which this Affair might produce, and be prepared for all Events. As nobody appeared all that Day, I concluded it gave them little or no Concern. But was told by my Guard, the next Morning, that my Beard had caused a great Disturbance, and that they themselves expected to be punished, for not observing my Actions more narrowly. By their Discourse I perceived, they had no thoughts of my having Scissars, and that I should certainly be esteemed an arrant Sorcerer. The Reluctance I had of passing for a Magician, and seeing my Guard undeservedly lashed, made me frankly own I had a Pair of Scissars, and had made Use of them, to cut off my Beard. An universal Alarm ensued, the Clerks in the Anti-Chamber made it the whole Subject of their Discourse, and looked upon this Trifle, as a Matter of the utmost Importance. The Noise, this Affair made, gave me but little Uneasiness, but I was highly surprized, when the Sergeant of my Guard, the Corporal, and seven or eight Soldiers, came, with their Swords drawn, into my Chamber. The Sight of this effeminate Troop was nevertheless so far from terrifying me, that I prepared for a vigorous Resistance, in Case of an Attack.
The Sergeant broke Silence, and demanded my Scissars, but all the Answer I gave him, was, that I did not understand him. I made the same Reply to the Corporal and Soldiers, who likewise made the same Demand. In vain they made various Signs, for me to apprehend their Meaning, and the Sergeant, in particular, put his Fingers to his Whiskers, to signify that they desired to have the Scissars, with which I had cut off my Beard. They went out of my Room, when I ordered them to fetch me an Interpreter, but returned a quarter of an Hour after, attended by a much larger Number of Soldiers. They found me sitting, and, approaching me, repeated their former Demand. I desired them, in plain Terms, to retire, and signified that I was not sufficiently versed in the
Russian
Tongue, to make them any Answer. The Drawer of my Table being half open, one of these Men of War, more bold than the rest, very insolently put in his Hand. I was going at the very Instant, to shut the Drawer, and pinch his Hand, but he deprived me of this Pleasure, by withdrawing it very seasonably. I got up, at the same Time, somewhat hastily, and, having called my Guard, made Signs to them, immediately to rid me of this rascally Crew. Thus ended the Uproar, occasioned by my Scissars. The
Italian
Comedians could, I believe, hardly present a Piece, which would afford the
Czarina
more Pleasure, than this, and, had that Princess known, that there was a Theatre open so near her, where her own Subjects acted such diverting Parts, I am pretty well assured, my Prison would have been honoured with Her Majesty's Presence. You see, Sir, I am as good as my Word, I promised you something ludicrous, and you have no Reason to complain of any Want of it in this Letter. I leave it to your Judgment, after you have perused it. As I have already entertained you with some Verses, which I made, when my Request for a Barber met with a Refusal, it is but just I send you some others, which I carved on my Table, when I was rid of my Beard. They were conceived in these Words:
Signori Secretari
Perche alla vostra Barba
Mi son fatta la Barba,
Voi fate del rumore?
Opetere del Cielo
E che! quivi tra voi non è permesse,
Ne pur strapparsi il pelo!
But it's Time to conclude, the Farce is already too long, I begin to be tired with it, and fear it will have the same Effect on you: I ought rather to have recollected the Proverb:
Li Jochi son belli, quando son corti.
To retaliate your Loss of Time, in the Perusal of so many bad
Italian
Verses, I shall conclude this Letter with a Line or two of good
Latin,
and so bid you farewel.
Tu tamen, ô nobis usu junctissime longo,
Pars desiderii maxima, crede, mei,
Sis nostri memor.
LETTER VII.
SIR,
T HIS is already my seventh Letter, tho I am but come to the fourth Month of my Imprisonment. If I go on thus, I very much fear, I shall be obliged
centuriam tibi dare,
which will not only prove tedious to you, but likewise far exceed my Reckoning. But tell me, dear Sir, what Course can I take? For I see no Possibility of being more concise. You, on the one Hand, make pressing Demands for an exact and circumstantial Account of what befals me; and the
Muscovites,
on the other Side, furnish me daily with fresh Adventures. The following is a very singular one.
Towards the End of
February,
a Person came into my Prison, who, having saluted me in
French,
with a Compliment from Mr.
De L'Isle
and his Spouse, laid a Parcel of Linnen, with some Wine, and several other Provisions, upon my Table. The Joy I felt, at seeing a Person, with whom I could converse, was of a short Duration. I had hardly Time, to tell him, how much I was obliged to that Gentleman, and his Lady, for the Kindnesses I received from them, and, that I was ashamed to see their Generosity so much trespassed upon. The Case was this; having given some Linnen to the Soldiers, to get it washed and mended for me, they had thought proper to carry it to this Lady, who was so kind, as to add thereto several other Things, which she thought I might stand in Need of. She had ordered one of her Servants to deliver the Parcel himself, being sensible, that if it had fallen into other Hands, I should have been robbed of a good Part of her Benevolence. You will, Sir, undoubtedly be surprized, that the Servant, should be suffered to speak to me, and to give me that Parcel, which had not been visited either by a Secretary, or by any of the Guard. Was I then no longer the same Prisoner of State, whose Steps were to be narrowly observed, and who was to be guarded with the utmost Rigour? Was I not the same Person, whose Request for a Barber had been refused, and who could not obtain the Liberty of using a Knife, or Fork? Yes, I was the same, but the grand Motive, which induced the
Muscovites
to act, on this Occasion, otherwise, with Regard to me, was this. If these sordid Wretches had furnished these Provisions, and caused my Linnen to be washed themselves, it would have cost them very near the Value of a Ruble; a Sum which to them appeared considerable enough,
ut silerent leges,
and they were willing to leave the Care of it to any one, who would be at the Expence. The Truth of what I here affirm, is so very certain, that when, in the Sequel, I desired any Thing, that they thought too dear, I was obliged to have Recourse to Mrs.
De L'Isle,
who never failed of sending her Servant immediately.
This Instance may serve to give you an Idea of the Sordidness of the
Muscovites;
and at the same Time will shew you the Necessity, I lie under, of descending to those Particulars, to give you a perfect Insight into the Character of the Nation. A different Inducement, or rather a Sense of Gratitude, prompts me to mention two small Birds, which one of my Guard made me a Present of, and no sooner had I them, than I set them at Liberty, to fly about my Room. They soon grew familiar, and convinced me, that Man is not the only Creature, endued with Reason. With Submission to the Gentlemen of the
Cartesian
Sect, I could by no Means believe them to be meer Pieces of Machinery. I discovered in them a Genius, the Faculty of Reason, and a certain engaging Carriage, which Men are not Masters of. I may justly say, that I was charmed with their Company, and that they gave me many agreeable Hours. They were continually about me, and made me a Thousand pretty Tenders of their Affection. I may venture to affirm, without being too profuse in their Praise, that many
Muscovites
are their Inferiours; I mean, with regard to their Reason, Manners, and certain Passions, which I may call humane, and which I never had the good Fortune to experience in any one of my Guard. This innocent Couple, no longer able to see the Brutality of my Attendants, quitted my Prison at last, and left me alone in Captivity. I loved them too well, not to allow them a Place among my Poetical Compositions, or to neglect their due Encomium, but I omit it here, to go on to another Subject.
I have already told you, that I carved my Verses on the Table and Door, and that both were soon filled with Fragments of Poetry. Weary of this Amusement, I resolved to spend my Time somewhat more usefully. I had, as I observed above, a
Muscovite
Almanack, which is a Book of a pretty large Size; and besides this I had a Pocket Book, and a Silver Pencil. My Almanack lay open before me one Day, when by Chance I discovered a Leaf of blank Paper in it, which I resolved to write upon with my Pencil. I directly made a Trial, and succeeded to my Wish. I held my Paper to the Light, whenever I desired to read what I had written, and every Character appeared as distinct, as if I had written them with Ink. Thus may a Prison be sometimes the Mother of Invention. My mistrustful Guard, in the mean Time, being highly surprized, to see me thus employed, drew near, from Time to Time, to examine my Actions; but as they saw Nothing, but the Blank Paper, and I had neither Pen nor Ink, which were forbidden me, they suffered me to go on without Interruption, and I was so expeditious, that all the Paper was soon filled. There was a large Quantity in my Room: But it was tied up and sealed, according to the Custom of the Country, and the Soldiers had Orders to take Care of it. I found Means, however, to get some of it, without being discovered, and laid up so good a Store, that I found I had sufficient to finish what I had begun. A Shipwrack unfortunately deprived me of all these Memoirs, which would have been excellent Materials for the History of my Adventures, and hence it is, that my Letters are so dull, and written in so incorrect a Stile.
But what will you think of my Temerity, in stealing Paper, and breaking open Seals, which, in
Muscovy,
is looked upon as a capital Crime? As for the Paper, I thought my self entitled to it, to repair the Loss I had sustained of my own, which I had been robbed of at
Casan,
and Part of my Cloaths, which they had thought proper to deprive me of. I confess, that, had I been discovered in breaking open the Seals, it might have fared hard with me: For in
Muscovy,
you must know, every Thing is sealed, Houses, Shops, Ware-Houses, Chambers, Doors and Windows. There is but one Thing, which in this Country it is not customary to seal, tho they do it in
Italy,
where Jealousy is carried too great a Length. I leave you to guess my Meaning. The Manner of sealing up Papers in
Muscovy
is very singular. They take a little Piece of yellow Wax between their Fingers, which they apply to a twisted Piece of Packthread, and then put a Seal to it, on which it would be pretty difficult to discern any Impression. You find, however, People every where, who are entrusted with the Care of those Papers, thus negligently sealed, are very watchful of them. Nothing is more easy, in spite of all these Precautions, than to learn the Secrets of the State. Should ever a fatal Star lead you to an Ambassy in
Muscovy,
you need only previously consult me, and may rely on my pointing out to you the necessary Means of being soon apprized of them. I shall even instruct you how to get all the Writings out of the Secretary's Office, and re-place them, without any Danger of being detected. A Glass of Brandy, or half a Ruble, are Bribes sufficient to gain any Clerk in the Office.
The Soldiers on Guard are seldom over careful in the Discharge of their Duty: They are almost always snoring, never acquainted with their Orders, and ever ready to submit to the first that are given them, by any one. But what is yet worse, these Wretches are incessantly Drunk, which gives Occasion to continual Quarrels, and to that Disorder, which reigns among them. I have frequently seen, at one Time, half a Dozen Clerks in Irons, for Neglect of Duty, which nevertheless could not put a stop to their indecent Mirth. Iron is very cheap in
Muscovy,
and for the least Neglect, the guilty Person is so loaded with it, that he cannot stir.
In the mean Time, I was buried in Oblivion, and my Releasement seemed to be no longer thought of. As I was determined to strive, by all the Means I could invent, to effect my Deliverance from this unhappy State, I resolved to write a Petition to the Ministers. For this I made use of a little Pen, which I fixed at the End of my Pencil. This happily succeeded, without the Privity of my Guard; and I may say, that I often shewed them,
Candida de nigris, & de candentibus atra.
One need not be a Conjurer, to impose on these People.
In my Petition to the Ministers, I humbly entreated them, as I had been so long imprisoned, without being able to conceive the Motives of so rigorous and tedious a Detention, to allow me, at least, to draw up my Vindication in Writing. If I was found guilty, I willingly submitted to the Forfeiture of my Life; but in Case I appeared innocent, as I hoped to convince them I was, I begged they would use their Interest with her Majesty for my Releasement. The next Difficulty, after I had drawn up this Petition, was, to convey it to the Hands of the Ministers, which was no very easy Matter. I knew not, at that Time, whether those Gentlemen must be directly applied to. I had indeed often heard of Secretaries and Senators; but I persisted still, that my Affairs were only cognisable before Empress and her Ministers. The Disdain, I had, on several Occasions, expressed for the Senate, did, perhaps, protract my Captivity. But I could never prevail upon my self to change my Sentiments on that Head, and even, when my Misery drew towards a Crisis, I implored the Protection of the
Czarina
only, without making the least mention of the Senate, or the Council.
Tantum licentiae dabat innocentia.
As I did not immediately meet with an Opportunity of presenting my Petition, I prepared, in the mean Time, for the Execution of a fresh Project. I had, for some Time, been troubled with a Rheum in my Head, and, as my
Eau des Carmes
was locked up in my Trunk, I resolved to get it open, in order to come at some. The Matter at first appeared not very easy, by reason of the Padlock and Seal, neither of which I durst venture to touch. Having, in the mean Time, narrowly viewed the Trunk, it appeared to be made only of several Planks, joined together without Nails, and that by the Help of a Piece of Iron I might easily take one of them off. This, therefore, or something like it, was my next Want, which I supplied in the following Manner. Seeing my Guard very busy one Day at making a Fire in the Stove, and taking great Pains to cut little Pieces of Wood with their Swords, I told them, that an Ax would be much more convenient for that Purpose; and that they should endeavour to procure one. They had Sense enough, on that Occasion, to apprehend, that I was in the right, but replied, that I must demand that Utensil of the Sergeant. As I was not the best satisfied with this Officer, who now never came near me, I answered, he was a Rascal, and that I desired to have nothing to do with him. I gave them, at the same Time, half a Ruble, and ordered them to go and buy an Ax. I was soon obeyed; for they stick at nothing, when Money is in the Case. Be pleased likewise here to observe the Folly of my Guard. I should without fail have met with a Refusal, had I demanded a Knife or Fork, and yet they buy an Ax and entrust it in my Hands, without Difficulty. You will, perhaps, ask, whence proceeds this Difference? Because the Ax was not specified in their Bede-roll. It was not one of those Things, I had been denied the Use of; and it was besides to be of Service to themselves. But as the Fear of my cutting my Throat induced them to refuse me a Knife, had they not the same Room to apprehend I might split my Scull with the Ax, or employ it against them, if an Opportunity offered? Hence you may judge of the Perverseness of the
Muscovites.
I shall now tell you, in what Manner I executed both the Projects I had formed. If I mistake not, it was on the 18th of
March.
But since I mention the 18th Day, I must take Notice of an Observation I made, which appears to me pretty singular. Have you not, in the Perusal of my Letters, found that all the remarkable Epochs of my Adventures happened precisely on that Day? I was carried to the
Czarina's
Palace on the 18th of
December:
It was the 18th of
January,
when I was allowed to write, and, in the Sequel, you will find, that the most remarkable Adventures I met with, always happened on the 18th Day of the Month. I wish some one could account for this Phenomenon. The Number 9 has, I know, beeen formerly regarded by all Nations as a mysterious Number, for which they have always had a great Veneration: Whether our modern Cabalists are still of the same Opinion, I know not; but, in Regard to the Number 18, I never heard, that it had any mysterious Meaning, and assure you, that to me the Discovery is entirely new. Can you imagine this to be the bare Effect of Chance? It will not be foreign to my Subject, here to observe, that the
Muscovites,
who are superstitious even to an Excess, have always endeavoured to improve the extravagant Fancies of the Ancients, and hence it is, that, of two nines, they have made one 18.
The 18th of
March
was the Day, on which I was ordered to be carried to another Prison. As I feared this Removal would deprive me of an Opportunity of presenting my Petition, in the Manner I had proposed, the News of it gave me some Uneasiness. My Departure was so very abrupt, that they allowed me no Time to make many Reflections, and I was obliged to take
Consilium in arena.
I was escorted by a Troop of Soldiers, and by my Guard, headed by their Sergeant. No sooner was I brought into a Chamber, crowded with People, than I pulled my Petition out of my Pocket, and crying out aloud, that every one might hear me, gave it to the Sergeant of my Guard, charging him to carry it immediately to the
Czarina's
Council. A superior Officer, who was probably in some neighbouring Chamber, terrified at the Noise, instantly appeared, and being informed of the Occasion, took it, and carried it into the Chamber, where the Senate was assembled. After my Petition was delivered, I was for retiring, but they forced was to wait a Quarter of an Hour longer; and the Officer, in the mean Time, returning, gave me my Papers back again, and would force me to take them. Enraged at the Fellow's Obstinacy, and having before had Reason to be dissatisfied with him, I gave him a Blow on the Hand, which caused the Paper to fall on the Ground, and then leaving the Place abruptly, threatned him with Her Imperial Majesty's Displeasure, if he refused to convey the Petition to her Hands.
On my Arrival in my new Prison, I set about the Project I had formed, of opening my Trunk, and taking from thence what I most wanted. To succeed the better, I gave my Guard some Employment, and for my Part, I was busied in making a Cage for my Birds. Thus was I working, Ax in Hand, to cut a Plank, which I had laid upon my Trunk. You may easiy suppose, that, at Times, I applied my Axe to my Trunk, to open it, and consequently that all my Blows were not spent on that Plank. My Guard supplied me with what other Tools I still stood in Need of, and, with their Help, I soon compassed my Ends. Having thrown my Cloak-Bag, and some other Things, on the Trunk, I slid off the Plank, which I had loosened, and immediately took out the
Eau des Carmes,
and whatever came first to Hand. It happened very luckily, that I could fix the Plank in the Manner it was in before, and afterwards, as easily, loosen it again, to take out of my Trunk whatever I wanted. Thus was I restored to the Possession of my own; and could even, in Case of Necessity, have armed my self with a Sword and Pistols, to procure my Liberty. The People, I had to do with, had not Courage enough, to defend themselves against me, and my single Fork seemed to me sufficient, to put three or four
Muscovites
to the Flight. The World would have an Opinion, very different, from that which
Europe
has for some Time entertained of this Nation, were they as well acquainted as I am of their Cowardice.
Having thus delivered my Petition, I waited impatiently for the Result of it. No Answer was brought that Day, nor the next, but the Day after an Interpreter came into my Chamber, with my Paper in his Hand, and begged I would explain several Lines, which they had not perfectly understood. I soon complied with his Request, and he promised to give a faithful Account of the Passages I had cleared up. The same Man returned an Hour afterwards, to ask, what Means I us'd to write that Petition, and whether I had corrupted my Guard, either with Money or Brandy. I answered, that I had no Occasion to have Recourse to either of those Expedients; that, as I was in a Room, where thirty or more Clerks were employed, I had not found it difficult to procure Ink, a Pen, and some Paper, without the Knowledge of my Guard, and that they were not at all privy to it. As the Account, I gave, met with but little Credit, and I was apprehensive they might punish the innocent Soldiers, I resolved to discover the whole Secret. I therefore desired the Interpreter to let his Masters know, that for a Fortnight together, I had written with white Characters, that I might be able to write black ones, for one Quarter of an Hour. The Interpreter seemed satisfied with my Answer, and went away to make his Report. He returned once more, half an Hour afterwards, to ask me, how I had done to seal my Petition. I shewed him, for his Satisfaction, some Wax I had in my Pocket, with the two Seals hanging at my Watch. Notwithstanding my pressing Entreaties to speak to this Interpreter again, I could never, from that Time, have the Pleasure of seeing him.
The Addition which was now made to the Number of my Guard, and the fresh Orders that were given to interrupt all my Proceedings, occasioned me to think, that, after a Consultation was held on my Affairs, it was thought necessary that my Actions should be more narrowly watched. My only Comfort, on this Occasion, was, that I could enjoy more Peace, and had a larger Room for my Prison. I could not, however, account, for the Behaviour of the Ministers, with regard to me. I had now been confined four Months at
Petersburg,
and my Enlargement was not yet thought of. After many Reflections on the State of my Affairs, I fancied, that the Intention I had declared, of serving in
Persia,
under the Prince of
Hesse-Homburg,
had perhaps given the Ministers Room for some Suspicions. And as that Prince had no Thoughts himself of going into that Country, till some Uneasiness put him upon it, this Notion appeared to be the better grounded. As, on the other Hand, the fundamental Maxim of the
Muscovite
Government consists in trusting nobody, and in believing all Mankind to be capable of the most villainous Attempts, I had Reason to suppose, that they only detained me so long Prisoner, to inform themselves of the real Motive of my Voyage. Or perhaps, in the present Juncture of Affairs, in
Europe,
they took me for an Emissary of
France,
or of King
Stanislaus.
I am however, not conscious of having done or said any thing, that could raise such a Suspicion, and my Behaviour in
Muscovy
was very much unlike that of a Person entrusted with secret Commissions: I was, nevertheless, some Time after, informed, that I was taken for a Spy of King
Stanislaus,
though I never had the Honour of knowing that Prince, or being at all known to him. But let us leave these Conjectures, which may lead me too far: And instead thereof, let me inform you of what passed in my new Habitation.
After having opened my Trunk, and taken out of it what I thought necessary, I resolved to make no longer Use of a wooden Fork, which had been given me, nor to be obliged to borrow a Knife, to cut my Victuals; but made a Shew of my great Fork, and of a Knife, which I had taken out of my Trunk. My Guard seemed surprized at the Sight of these Things, and I wondered no less to see them profoundly silent. From thence I inferred, that they no longer feared my cutting my Throat, and that all their Care was, to hinder me from writing again. They gave me the Pleasure of seeing them, every Day, visit the Seals of my Trunk, to know whether I had tried to open it. By my frequent Representations, how necessary it was to have a constant Eye on those Seals, I even invited them to make that Visit. Thus, after I had tricked them, they served for Objects of my Ridicule. I was taken up with this Amusement one Part of the Day, and spent the Remainder of my Time in looking over the
Muscovite
Almanack, which was the only Book, I had left. I was one Day perusing the List of the Potentates of
Europe,
and read, with some Surprize, the Name of
Augustus
III. as King of
Poland.
This News occasioned me to form various Conjectures, and gave me a very eager Desire of knowing what had passed. I no longer doubted but that the War was kindled in
Poland,
and found, at the same Time, that the Person, from whom I had received my chief Intelligence, since my Arrival at
Petersburg,
must be perfectly well acquainted with the Designs and Projects of the Court of
Russia.
This Person, whom, I believe, I mentioned before, had not a little contributed to my taking the Resolution of going into
Persia.
I had long before suspected, that he resided at
Petersburg
on Account of some secret and important Affair, which Suspicion was afterwards confirmed by fresh Proofs, and such, as suffered me no longer to doubt of the Truth of my Conjecture. As he was well acquainted with whatever passed at the Court of
Russia,
he appeared to me the more proper to discharge his Commission.
Tho it was with Astonishment I heard, that King
Augustus
had acceeded to the Throne of
Poland,
yet I was not ignorant that the
Muscovites
would use their utmost Efforts, to effect the Exclusion of King
Stanislaus;
but I could hardly persuade my self, they would ever have succeeded. The great Influence the
Russian
Court at present has, in the Affairs of
Europe,
does really surprize me, and is what I cannot sufficiently repeat to you. The World has formed of this Monarchy a Notion of Power, which exists only in the Fancies of those, who have no Knowledge of it.
Russia
is, I must own, of a vast Extent, and I even believe, that neither
Europe,
nor the
Indies,
nor any other Part of the World, contains a Country in that Point equal to it. You may judge of this by its Length, if you consider the Distance between
Riga,
and the
Eastern
Extremity of the Continent of
Kamtschatki,
lately discovered; and by the Latitude of it, which extends from the Province of
Gilan,
on the
Southern
Coasts of the
Caspian
Sea, to the Streights of
Nassau.
The prodigious Extent of this Empire, must necessarily be a Burthen to it, and renders it (if I may be allowed the Expression) heavy and unfit for Motion. If, on the other Hand, we enter into a particular Account of the Parts, of which it is composed, we meet with immense Desarts, Marshes without End, and very large Forests. It will, therefore, upon an exact Calculation, be found, that
Germany
contains twice as many Inhabitants as
Muscovy.
To this add the Pusillanimity of the
Muscovites,
who are by no Means a People to be dreaded by other Nations.
Nam si homines, vix sunt homines hoc nomine digni.
Were we to give Credit to what is inserted in certain Gazettes, I know, we should have Room to believe, that the
Muscovites
have actually formidable Armies on foot, consisting of regular Troops. But believe me, Sir, those Reports are entirely groundless, and only fit to seduce the unknowing Part of Mankind. I wish they would shew me, where all these Troops are. In the Year 1733, I saw the State of the
Muscovite
Troops, and if they amount at present to 100,000 Men, they must have been considerably augmented. But, supposing, that there is actually at present that Number of regular Troops in
Muscovy,
must they not necessarily be divided and distributed into several Places? You are not ignorant of the indispensible Necessity they lye under, of keeping always a pretty large Body in
Persia,
and that a Removal of them from that Country, even in Time of Peace, would be attended with some Danger. The
Persians
have of late been pretty well experienced in War, and, should they happen to make Peace with the
Turks, Koulikan
would, without doubt, undertake the Conquest of those fine Provinces, which the
Muscovites
have, by Usurpation, made themselves Masters of. What ought we to think of this Behaviour of the
Muscovites,
with Regard to the
Persians?
Under the specious Pretence of lending their Aid to a King, oppressed by a rebellious Subject, they enter the Country, where they are received like generous Friends, and at the same Time treacherously seize whatever they think most commodious for them.
Besides the Body of Troops, which the
Muscovites
cannot avoid maintaining in
Persia,
they are obliged to keep another on Foot in the Kingdom of
Astracan,
which is surrounded by
Tartars,
who are Neighbours they have always Reason to be apprehensive of. The Troubles, that Kingdom was so lately involved in, are still fresh in every one's Memory. An handful of Men spread a general Confusion, and made terrible Ravages there. Another Motive, that must induce the
Muscovites
to keep Troops in the Kingdom of
Astracan,
is, because the
Tartars
of
Baskir,
and those of
Uffi,
who were antient Possessors of this Country, might otherwise rise in Rebellion, some Time or other, and revenge themselves on the
Russians.
During my stay at
Casan,
I had an Opportunity of seeing some of that Nation, and if we may judge by their Phisiognomy, they do not seem destined to bow their Necks long to the
Muscovite
Yoke. But let us go back, and stop at the River
Don,
where the
Koban Tartars,
who are not far distant from thence, make frequent Incursions, and very much molest the
Muscovites.
If those People are not kept in awe, they may certainly penetrate as far as
Weronezt,
and venture at last on some important Enterprize to succour their Brethren, the
Crim-Tartars.
If we go on into the
Ukraine,
we shall find, that Country cannot remain long in the Hands of the
Russians,
unless it be secured by a considerable Body of good Troops. In those Parts the
Muscovites
must have a watchful Eye over the Motions of the
Turks,
the
Crim
and
Budziack-Tartars,
and even of the
Cosacks,
who may, soon or late, rise in Arms, and, as they have formerly done, withdraw their Allegiance.
Thus you see, that, if the
Muscovites
maintain, as they must do, a Body of regular Troops, in each of those Places, and especially in
Persia,
and the
Ukraine,
their Army of an hundred thousand Men, will be reduced to a very small Number. To these you may add the Troops, which are actually in
Poland;
30,000 Men, which they are to send to the
Emperor
's Aid on the
Rhine,
and lastly the numerous Garrisons, which must necessarily be kept in most of those Places, which have been taken from
Sweden.
But, supposing, that the
Muscovites
had really as many Troops, as they are said to have, where will they find Money to pay them? The Revenues of that vast Monarchy do not amount to above ten or twelve thousand Crowns. How is it possible, with a Sum so inconsiderable, to maintain 3, or 400,000 Men by Land, and, besides this, a formidable Fleet at Sea?
These Particulars may serve to shew, that I am not mistaken, in exclaiming against the Rumour spread in
Europe,
of the Power of this Nation. The Gazetteers are excusable, as they publish those Reports on a Mis-Information; but what Judgement can we form of the
Muscovites,
who, tho thoroughly acquainted with the State of their Affairs, the Number and Quality of their Troops, and the Weakness of their Finances, dare to attempt the Execution of the Projects now on the Carpet? Believe me, Sir, and give me leave to repeat it once more, that they will never obtain the Ends they have in View:
They seem, however, to bid very fair for it, at this time.
Spes improbissimas complectuntur insperata assecuti.
What Projects the
Muscovites
may have formed for this Campaign, I am wholly ignorant of; but this I know, that they were the last Year obliged, for the Reinforcement of their Troops, to draw all had from their Inland-Countries; Insomuch, that none but Invalids remained at
Muscow,
tho a considerable Body always us'd to be kept on Footthere. At
Petersburg
remained only the Guards and two Battalions of Peasants, just taken from behind their Ovens; hence it was, that the Number of the ordinary Guards could not be compleated, and that even mine was lessened, for I was left in the Hands of three Men, who were not relieved in near two Months.
Their Manner of doing Duty in
Muscovy
is pretty singular. Those, who, like me, have been Eye-Witnesses, may have an Idea of the Troops of this Country, and of the Officers, who command them. A Soldier on Duty never knows when he is to be relieved, and, as for the Officers, they are generally ignorant of the first Rudiments of War, which those of other Countries are so well acquainted with. A Centinel very seldom executes the Orders, he receives from his Sergeant. They never hesitate at placing a drunken Soldier on Duty; and frequently a whole Guard, Officers, as well as Soldiers, are drunk, and incapable of attending their Duty. Nothing is more common, than to see a mutinous Soldier fall to Blows with his Sergeant, and the latter is often obliged to put up with them, without daring to complain. The Quarrels which happen every Day among the Officers or the Soldiers, are never terminated otherways, than by Fisty-Cuffs, or Cudgels; for there is a Law in
Muscovy,
as I observed in a former Letter, whereby the Subjects are forbid to draw their Swords, which Law is always most religiously observed. The only Thing, which appears laudable, is, that these Troops are never suffered to be idle, and at
Petersburg
I remember to have seen fifteen Battalions employed at a Time, and not a single Man remaining at the Corps de Garde. Guards are placed every where, and there is not the least thing done without such a Security. Foreign Ministers, of what Rank soever they be, never fail of being attended by some of them. You may judge, after this, how safely their Money must be guarded in
Muscovy.
I assure you, that a Commissioner, who has only a dozen Bags of Copper-Money in his Chest, will at least have a Guard of six Men. Such is the Employment of the greater Part of a large Garrison, whilst the rest are continually occupied in cleaving and cutting Wood for their Fuel. This they call keeping their Troops in Exercise, and always ready for Battle, and imagine they are performing Wonders!
I could enlarge farther on this Subject, but fear this Letter is already too long. I must therefore conclude, Sir, tho I do it with Reluctance, assuring you, that I am, and shall always be, wholly Yours,
Dum memor ipse mei, dum spiritus hos regit artus.
LETTER VIII.
SIR,
YOU very justly censure the Stile of my Letters; the Faults are as visible to me as to you, but I do not find it so easy to avoid them. The Reasons I told you before, which you cannot be ignorant of. My Condition will not allow me to be very nice in the Choice of my Words, nor to give a just Turn to my Periods.
Animum, non carmina jacto.
In my last I informed you, how I was apprized of the War being kindled in
Poland,
and that King
Augustus
had acceeded to the Throne. The same Person told me, that the
Muscovites
had invested
Dantzick,
and that King
Stanislaus
was block'd up in that City. As I neglected no Opportunity of learning the publick News, I heard, that Count
Munich
was departed for the Camp before
Dantzick;
that a large Body of Troops was ordered to march from
Poland;
and that all who were at
Muscow,
were to come to
Petersburg.
Orders were even sent to my Guard, to prepare for a March, which I found they were not the best pleased with. They were continually observing, that a bloody War would soon ensue, that a large Body of
French
Troops was already arrived in
Poland,
and preparing to march directly to
Moscow.
In vain I represented to them the Impossibility of it, by Reason of the vast Distance the
French
are at, they persisted this News was but too true, and that I ought no longer to doubt it. By their Discourse, I perceived, how much they were afraid of coming to blows with the
French.
You must know, the Warriors in
Muscovy
all equally wish for Peace, and that no one here is a Soldier by Inclination. They ingenuously confess their Aversion to War, and that, were they not forced to enter into military Service, they would never do it voluntarily. If the Officers themselves were allowed to do it, they would certainly resign their Posts. From hence you may judge, what Opinion we ought to have of these Troops.
The Intelligence I received from my Guard served only to encrease my Desire of hearing more News; but nothing appeared so difficult, as to find the Means of satisfying my Curiosity. After many Reflections, it came into my Head to send for Mr.
De L'Isle
's Cook, not doubting, but that he would give me a thorough Knowledge of every Thing. In order to this, I asked for several Things, which I pretended to have urgent Occasion for, and for which I knew my Guard would not disburse any Money. This succeeded to my Wish. They went immediately to Mr.
De L'Isle,
who instantly sent his Cook with all I asked for. I acquainted this Man with my earnest Desire of seeing him, to be informed of the Posture of Affairs in
Europe,
and begged he would visit me frequently, to impart to me all he might learn. He promised faithfully to gratify my Desire, and he was as good as his Word.
By this Means, I was informed of many Things, some of which were agreeable, while others gave me Uneasiness. The Affection I always bore to Arms revived in me, when I found War declared on all Hands, and this, at the same Time, made me more sensibly feel the Weight of my Miseries. But with Pleasure I heard, that the
French
had distinguished themselves from the Beginning of the War, and the Progress, they had made, did, I must own, far exceed my Hopes. I remember to have said, in a former Conversation with you, that as the Enemies of
France
could not gain their Ends by a War, they were endeavouring to subdue that Nation by a Peace. My Conjectures were groundless, and it is with Joy I find my self mistaken. Who would ever have thought, that what is the general Cause of the Decay, and total Subversion, of the most powerful States, could never produce either of those fatal Effects in
France?
Were Luxury and Indolence ever carried to so great an Excess in any Country in the Universe, as in this very Kingdom? The
French,
in the mean Time, so immerged in Voluptuousness, those illustrious Youths so intent upon the Finery of their Attire, and so attached to the Pursuit of their Pleasures, have given the most evident Proofs of their Valour and Bravery, at the Battles of
Parina
and
Guastalla,
and at the Siege of
Philipsburg.
They may justly be said to have shewn a Prodigy of Valour, and to have acted like Heroes. This Phenomenon is extraordinary, and perhaps without a Precedent. The Reflections I have made on this Subject would lead me too far from my main Design, should I undertake to communicate them all to you.
My Thoughts were not however so wholly taken up with the News I heard in my Prison, to hinder me from considering seriously how to procure my Liberty.
A Month was now pass'd, since I presented my Petition, and I had as yet received no Answer. I seemed to be buried in Oblivion, and the Ministers appeared resolved to let me die in Slavery. They continued to treat me with unprecedented Rigour, and I could neither obtain an Interpreter, nor Permission to speak to the Ministers. Whatever Request I made was sure to meet with a Refusal. I esteemed it a great Piece of Injustice, that they so obstinately denied to see the Reasons I had to offer in my Justification.
As I had some Room to think, that the Gentlemen of the Senate had intercepted my Petition, I resolved to draw up another. The Execution of this Project was attended with some Difficulty by Reason of the Orders, which had been given, narrowly to watch my Motions, and of the Number of my Guard which had been augmented. This could not however discourage me from pursuing my Design. I entrusted my Petition, after I had sealed it, to two Sergeants, whom I charged to carry it instantly to the
Czarina
's Council. An officious young Fellow, who came almost every Minute into my Chamber, to see whether my Guards had a strict Eye over me, was greatly surprized, when he saw, that I had found Means of writing without being perceived by any one. He swore and made a terrible Uproar, threatning my Guard that they should be punished for their Negligence. They assured him, with horrid Imprecations, that they were not privy to it. After a long Consultation they took my Petition at last, and promised to execute the Commission faithfully. The Sergeants returned, notwithstanding this Promise, in half an Hour, and gave my Paper to the Soldier who was on Duty, with a reiterated Charge, not to suffer me to write any more. This ill Success did not dishearten me. My Guard, on their Part, doubled their Attention, and even endeavoured to surprize me by Stratagems. They pretended to be asleep and watched me through their Cloaks, with which they cover'd their Heads.
This Scene was comical enough, and afforded me much Diversion. I was extreamly delighted to see them fall from a feigned Sleep into a real and profound one. I cannot conceive how they came to think of this Expedient. For the
Muscovites,
of all People, are the most expert in the Art of Sleeping. I may venture to say, that of all the Nations I know, not one is so subject to Sleep, as the
Muscovites
are. Not contented with the Night, which, in the Winter-Season, is very long, in their Country, they take, throughout the whole Year, an Afternoon's Nap, of several Hours. This Custom is common to every
Muscovite,
and 'tis that probably, which makes them so stupid. The whole Life of a Soldier is spent in Eating and Sleeping. They even indulge themselves in the latter, whilst they are on Duty. The Time of their standing Centry, which is for six Hours together, is indeed, too long. When an Officer surprizes a Soldier asleep, which I have frequently seen, he does not make a Crime of it; but only awakens him, by saying, How now, Centry? Are you asleep? How the
Muscovite
Soldiers behave in the Field, I know not; but most certain it is, that they can never forbear slumbering, if they are several Hours on Duty. You need not, therefore, wonder, if I could impose upon my Guard, and find all the Time requisite, to write a new Petition, without their Knowledge. After having drawn several Copies, I sealed them, and threw them out of the Window, into a Place, where I saw a great Thorow-fare. These Papers were directed to the Empress herself, but I could never find, that any Thing came of them. This is common in
Muscovy,
where it is difficult to obtain Justice.
Hos scelerum ritus.
I cannot, with any Certainty, impute this to any particular Person. Shall I accuse the Cabinet-Council or the Members of the Senate? I have Room to believe them all equally guilty, and the Usage I have met with at their Hands, but too plainly proves it. The Reasons that induce me to attribute it to them, are these: The Petition, which I sent my self, as Prisoner of State, to Her Imperial Majesty's Council, was either intercepted, or communicated to the Ministers. If you suppose it to have fallen into their Hands, may I not reasonably accuse them of the greatest Injustice, as they would neither give Ear to my oral Remonstrances, nor permit me to write? But, if my Petition was intercepted, may I not conclude, that the Ministry is under no fixed Regulation? Since I was looked upon as a Person, entrusted with some Commission, dangerous to the State, my Petition might be presumed to contain some Affairs of the greatest Importance. It being, on the other Hand, directed to the Empress herself, how durst they presume to open and intercept it? A Proceeding of this Kind can never be in any Nation, where all Laws, divine and human, are not trod under Foot. In so unhappy a Situation, my Uneasiness was beyond Expression. Thus confined in a Prison, where I was used like the most vile of Men, I knew not what Means to have Recourse to, to procure my Releasement.
Quoe res in se neque consilium, neque modum habet ullum, eam consilio regere non potes.
As I was not so rigid a Stoic, as to resolve upon spending the Remainder of my Days in a Prison, a Desire after Liberty prompted me to think of new Expedients to free my self from Slavery. I soon formed another Scheme, the Execution of which appeared to me very easy. This was, to kill one of my Guard, who always accompanied me alone to an Apartment, whither I went to ease Nature. I continued to think seriously of executing this Design, as desperate as it was. My Sword was, as I mentioned before, at my own Disposal, and nothing seemed to me less difficult, than to make my Escape from my Prison, after having given the Blow. The only Obstacle, I saw, was, how to find a Place in the City to which I might safely retire. I might, in any other Country have relied on a Protection in the House of a foreign Minister, in which I could securely have taken Refuge; but I knew the
Muscovites
too well, not to be acquainted how light they make of the Law of Nations. I resolved, however, as I was destitute of any other Means, to retire to the House of the
Prussian
Envoy, where I proposed more Safety to my self, than any where else. All Matters were already disposed for an Enterprize so dangerous, and so different from the many others, I had, in vain, attempted, when I begun seriously to reflect on the Action, and upon second Thoughts resolved to delay it for some Time. I was shocked at the bare Thought of killing a Man in cold Blood, and protest, that, had not the Uneasiness caused in me by so long an Imprisonment, and by the bad Treatment, I met with, from the
Muscovites,
compelled me to it, I should never have formed such a Design. I therefore thought it my Duty, patiently to bear the Weight of my Miseries, and to stay for some other Opportunity of recovering my Liberty, without being obliged to commit a Crime, and without running the Hazard, I was going to expose my self to.
I received, in the mean Time, frequent Intelligences of what passed at the Siege of
Dantzick.
I was informed by my Guard, that their Countrymen strove by all possible Means to make themselves Masters of that City, and that they hoped to put an End to the War, by seizing the Person of King
Stanislaus.
I could not be prevailed on, as I knew the
Muscovite
Troops, to believe, that they would ever bring about an Enterprize of that Kind. I imagined, besides, that, if the City should not be in a Condition of being defended, it would infallibly be relieved with formidable Succours, and thereby the
Muscovites
be obliged to retreat. I was told, that
Sweden
was equipping a considerable Fleet, and that a large Body of Troops was forming in
Finland.
This Step, said to have been taken by
Sweden,
appeared to me very reasonable, and I had many Inducements to make me give Credit to these Intelligences. And the
Swedes
could in Reality not meet with a more favourable Opportunity, of retrieving the Losses they had sustained, and revenging themselves on the
Muscovites.
Nothing could, in my Opinion, at that Time, be attended with less difficulty than the Execution of this Project. The
Swedes,
needed only to march directly to
Wibourg,
and I am well assured, that at the first Rumour of it at
Petersburg,
that Capital would soon have been abandoned, and the whole Court have retired to
Muscovy.
What I here advance is pretty well founded, and I even believe, Sir, it is the only and best Means that could be taken. My Reasons are these: The
Muscovites
had, at the Time I am speaking of, only eight or ten Battalions, and one Regiment of Cavalry, to oppose the
Swedes;
for herein consisted all that remained for the
Czarina
's Guard. Had I not, therefore, Room to think, that a Step like this ought to be taken by
Sweden?
I had formed such pleasing Hopes of their succeeding therein, that I had even projected, to be one among them, assoon as they should enter
Petersburg.
The Execution of this Enterprize would not have been very difficult. I might have cleared the Way for my self with my Sword and Pistols. My Guard were not to be greatly feared; and, had I met with any Resistance from them, I should soon have found Means of subduing them. My Mind was, during some Time, wholly taken up with these pleasing Expectations: I observed through the Windows of my Prison, what passed in the City, and when any one came into my Prison, I could not dissemble my eager Desire of hearing News. My Uneasinesses all vanished in Hopes of seeing this Grand Event. Nothing could have pleased me more, than to see the
Muscovites
upon the Point of quitting their Capital, to avoid the Pursuits of an Enemy, justly enraged. With Pleasure I view'd the approaching Moment, when they would be obliged to renounce all their great Enterprizes.
My Conjectures, Sir, proved, however, groundless, my Hopes were vain, and the Event has but too plainly demonstrated, how grosly I was mistaken. You will undoubtedly say, that my Imaginations were at that Time, like those of a Person, in the other World. I confess, I was deceived, but who would ever have believed, that the Affairs of
Poland
would have turned out to the Advantage of the
Russians?
Am I the only one, who entertained the Notions, I then did? What were your Thoughts, Sir? Could you ever have imagined, that the City of
Dantzick
would surrender to the
Muscovites?
That the
Swedes
would continue inactive? And that all the other Potentates should not make the least Attempt to oppose the unjust Pretensions of the
Muscovites?
I cannot but continue in my Surprize, when I consider this general Inactivity of the Rest of the
Northern Princes.
Are then the
Swedes,
who were formerly so warlike a People, now degenerated? Could they ever have met with a more favourable Juncture to retrieve their Losses? The
Muscovites
being still the very same, as they were in the Times of
Charles
XII, their declared Enemy, they had nothing to fear from that Quarter. Let them but recollect the famous Battle of
Narva,
where a handful of valiant
Swedes,
routed an Army of one Hundred Thousand
Russians.
But you will perhaps ask, is there no Difference between the present
Muscovite
Troops, and those, who fought the Battle of
Narva?
There is, I must own, some, but let us only examine, wherein it consists. The present
Russian
Soldiers are better cloathed, and provided with better Arms than in the last War; but they are, in every other Respect, still the same Men, and have neither more Courage, nor more Experience to boast of. Believe me, had the
Swedes
put it to the Trial, the Perdition of the
Muscovites
would have been inevitable. They were far from being in a Condition to oppose an Enemy, by whom they had so often been conquered, and, at the same Time, carry on a War with the
Poles.
You will, perhaps, object, that Part of the Troops employed at the Siege of
Dantzick,
and some of those who were dispersed in
Poland,
might have been recalled. But, Sir, that Objection can be of no weight with you. All the
Muscovite
Troops, which are dispersed in
Poland,
are highly necessary there, and, notwithstanding their large Number, would have been few enough, had not there been Divisions among the
Poles
themselves. You may again object, they had another Body of Troops in the
Ukraine,
which they might have recalled, and placed in the Heart of the Empire. But in this Case, how would they have been safe against the
Turks
and
Tartars,
who threatned them with an Invasion? Let us even suppose, that they had resolved to recall those Troops, were they not too far distant from the Capital, to arrive in Time, and prevent its surrender to the Enemy? All these Things induce me to believe, that the
Muscovites
relied on the Faith of the Treaties, subsisting between them and
Sweden,
and, that they had been assured, that no Attempt should be made, contrary to their Interests. They seem nevertheless to have carried their Confidence too far, and a strong Body of Troops, sent to
Finland,
would have contributed not a little to establish their Alliance with
Sweden,
and to secure their Frontiers from any Insult. But the
Muscovite
Ministry probably esteemed these Precautions needless, and is undoubtedly ignorant, that
Utcunque se res inclinat, ita ambulant foedera.
They are so elate on their Prosperity, and their Vanity is so excited by a Success, only owing to Chance, that they forget their Interests in Matters of the greatest Importance.
Melius, pejus, prosit, obsit, nil vident, nisi quod lubet.
I need not expatiate on the Event of this Affair, but be that as it will, it must be allowed, that the
Muscovites
have on this Occasion exposed their Sovereign and the whole Nation, to too great a Danger. Had
Sweden
more narrowly watched her Interests,
Petersburg
must have yielded to her superior Power, and none of the great Projects, formed by the
Muscovites,
would have taken Place. The Admiralty of
Petersburg,
you know, takes Charge of whatever relates to the
Russian
Maritime Assairs. If therefore this Capital had fallen into the Hands of the
Swedes,
of what Use would not
Cronstadt,
with all the Ships which lye there, have been to them? The taking of this City only, would, I am well assured, have been attended by the Loss of all the Conquests the
Muscovites
have made, and consequently have driven them back within those Bounds, to which it is the Interest of several Princes, if not of all
Europe,
to confine them. Hence you may see, what Danger the
Muscovites
have exposed themselves to by an unheard of Negligence, and by not foreseeing a Storm, which might have fallen upon, and overwhelmed them. Had the Administration of Affairs been in the Hands of the native
Muscovites,
as it is of Foreigners, so notorious a Blunder would not have surprized me, and I could even have alledged the true Cause of such a Procedure.
I believe, I have already, in some of my former Letters, observed, that the
Muscovites
could never approve of any of the Regulations made by
Peter
the Great, their Sovereign, and that the most honourable Employments are such a Burthen to them, that they never accept of them but with the utmost Reluctance. Most of them very loudly declare, that the Obligation they are under, of serving, be it by Sea, or Land, is only an Addition to their Slavery. In this Way of thinking, which shews their Cowardice and Indolence, they look on their Navy, and all the Conquests they have made, as the two principal Sources of all the Evils they labour under. They wish for nothing so earnestly, as a considerable Change in the State, which may subvert all the Innovations, and enable them to lead a lazy, inactive Life. Believe me, what I here advance, is far from being a Paradox, for nothing would be easier to methan to evince the Truth of it. I remember, that, during the Siege of
Dantzick,
itwas a general Wish, with every one, that it might not be taken. The Hatred they bear to the Foreigners, who formed this Project, and especially to him, who was entrusted with the Execution of it, contributed not a little to their being so singular in their Wishes; but the principal Object of their Desires was, for ever to quit a Country, which they greatly abhor, and to return, into their ancient native Country, where they might offer themselves a Sacrifice to Fire and Laziness, their favourite Idols.
You may conclude, Sir, from what I have said, how reasonably my Hopes were founded, of receiving from the
Swedes
an Opportunity of recovering my Liberty. My Disappointment must, therefore, be imputed to my evil Stars, and to the Inactivity of the
Swedes.
Whilst I was flattering my self with these vain Hopes, I happened to think of an Expedient of causing my self to be taken Notice of, and preventing my being buried in eternal Oblivion, which you will think very odd. As I was one Day leaning on my Window, with my Mind employed on a thousand various Thoughts, I saw the
Czarina
at a Distance, with a large Number of Attendants, passing through a Street, which must necessarily lead her close by my Prison. In order to shew my self to that Princess, and to all her Court, I leaned out of the Window, as far as ever I could, and threw up my Morning Gown, which fell into Rags, and could not but excite the Curiosity, of those, who saw it. I know not, whether the Empress perceived me, as she was in her Coach, but all her Attendants cast their Eyes on me, and viewed me very attentively.
This was the only Advantage I reaped from an Attempt, of which I had formed great Hopes. My Time I spent, as usual, in eating and drinking, tho always very moderately; in walking up and down my Chamber, and sometimes in reflecting seriously on my Condition. I was, at the same Time, exposed to fresh Trials, in which I stood in Need of all that Moderation which you have been frequently pleased to call Stupidity. As the Regiments of
Astracan
and
Ingria
were on their March, and only her Majesty's Body-Guards remained in the City, they were obliged to send some Peasants to my Prison, who were lately sent for from their Villages, and whose rustick Deportment was highly disagreeable to me. My Philosophy was, on many Occasions, of little or no Service, and I was obliged sometimes to come to Blows, to keep them within Bounds. The Soldiers, who were my Guard before, and who were obliged to follow their Regiments, were much more tractable, and civilized; but these Peasants, were all barefaced Rascals, ripe for any Villany. Hence you may form an Idea of a great Part of the Rest of the Nation. I have, however, observed some Disparity among the People of this vast Empire. The Inhabitants of
Muscow,
and those who live within fifty Leagues of that City, are the most unsociable of Human Kind, and hardly deserve the Name of Men. As I removed from that Part of the Country, I found by Degrees the People less Rustick, more Humane, and consequently more fit to be ranked among Men, than the Inhabitants of
Muscow,
and the adjacent Places. The least barbarous of the
Russians
are those who live in the most remote Forests, and are, in their Actions, guided by the mere Instinct of Nature.
Besides the Inconveniencies I laboured under on Account of my new Guard, I was, at the same Time, deprived of the kind Visits of Mr.
De L'Isle
's Servant, who was taken with a fit of Sickness, which confined him at home. This Accident hindered me a long Time, from hearing any other News, but what my Guard and my Stewards were pleased to impart to me. Nothing afforded me greater Comfort, in so doleful a Situation, than the Liberty I had of looking out at my Window, where I could view the finest Part of the City. On one Side of my Prison, I had the Prospect of a large Garden and Palace, which formerly belonged to the unfortunate Prince
Menzikoff,
and which, at present, serves as an Academy for the Cadets. I had every Day the Pleasure of seeing those young Persons perform their Exercises; but have been since informed, that the State entirely neglects to give them an Education becoming them; and hence the Advantage, expected from that Establishment, is frustrated. The
Muscovites
are grosly mistaken, when they imagine, that the only Qualification requisite to make a good Soldier, and a Great Captain, is the Art of performing the Exercises, and knowing all the Motions of military Discipline. All those, who are arrived to any Perfection in the military Art, have had Recourse to other Sources, and learned Rudiments, very different from those taught in
Muscovy.
The Prime Ministers have never sufficiently weighed one Point, which is, that they have always been too hasty, and endeavoured to run before they could creep, in all their new Establishments, and hence it is, that they have frequently neglected the most essential Matters. Instead of founding an Academy of Sciences, and educating a Body of Cadets, they ought to have established Colleges and Schools, there to have taught the grand Principles of Religion and Morality. There they should have begun the Reform they proposed; and, indeed, if due Care is not taken in the Education of Youth, how can the Nation possibly be extricated from that Barbarity, in which it has been, for so many Ages, involved? But I shall wave these Reflections, which are a little too serious, and perhaps not very pertinent.
Such were the Objects, that presented themselves to my View in one of the Chambers of my Prison, I come now to the other, from which I descried the Admiralty, and another very large Edifice, intended for Her Imperial Majesty's Palace, not finished, but carrying on with great Assiduity. I received the more Pleasure from the Prospect of these Buildings, as I daily saw Crowds of People there, and continual Changes in the Decorations. Though so many different Objects diverted me for a Time, yet I could not but make serious Reflections on the Causes of what I every Day beheld, and was most struck with. I was in the utmost Consternation at seeing the Admiralty, when I begun to consider, how a Nation, like the
Russian,
could equip and maintain so numerous a Fleet. A single Man, said I, to my self, may perform Wonders, when his Genius is such, as to qualify him for every undertaking, and he enjoys, at the same Time, a sovereign Authority. Such was
Peter
the Great, who, notwithstanding the insuperable Difficulties, which he could not but foresee, and actually met with, was never discouraged, but continued to pursue his Aim, even to the last Moment of his Life. His Successors have endeavoured to Walk in his Steps, but with little Success. The Aversion, all
Muscovites
in general bear to the Sea, has always been, and ever will be, one of the greatest Obstacles to the Accomplishment of so great a Work. Those among them, who have Employments in the Navy, lament their Fate, and look upon themselves as miserable Slaves, condemned to the Gallies. I leave you to judge, whether the maritime Forces of this State can possibly subsist long? I may perhaps be mistaken, but I am persuaded their Navy will fall away to nothing. It was, some Time since, on a Footing very different from what it is now. All those fine Edifices, which by that
Czar
's Order, were built at
Cronstadt,
have, by an unpardonable Neglect, already been suffered to dilapidate, and this I my self have, with some Indignation, been an Eye-Witness of. You will, moreover, upon an Examination of the Plan, that great Prince formed for the Building of
Petersburg,
find only Part of it duly executed. He proposed, in order to accustom his Subjects to Water, to open a large Number of Canals through the City, and this very thing has, in several Places, been neglected. That glorious Emperor would, during his Life, never permit any Bridge to be laid a-cross the River, or his Subjects to make use of Oars in passing over. By this, they were laid under a Necessity of learning how to manage a Sail, if they wanted to go from one Part of the City to the other. These Regulations are now entirely abolished. The Admiralty I have not seen, but if I may give Credit to the Persons employed there, every Thing is in a terrible Disorder. A Report is however current in the Publick News, that they levied several thousand Seamen for this Campaign. The
Baltick
is not very large, and we shall consequently soon know, how they are to be employed. I shall, therefore, give Credit to all that is said about them, till we are better informed.
As for another Fleet, which is said to be intended for the
Caspian
Sea, I much doubt of the Truth of that Report, since there is not yet a single Vessel on that Sea. I know, that this Project was formed by
Peter
I. and have my self seen five or six Ships at
Casan,
of a particular Structure, designed for those Seas, but they are left on the Stocks, and there probably they will still remain. Besides, the Seamen which were to be employed on that Occasion, were recalled to
Petersburg,
towards the Conclusion of 1733, and set out on their Journey at the same Time I did. Be therefore assured, Sir, that if there are, at present, any Vessels on the
Caspian
Sea, they are at best, only some large Barks, built after the Manner of the Country, and made use of for the Traffick of private Persons. To this I may add, that those Barks are so far from being fit to keep the Sea, that I have strong Reasons to doubt, whether any one of them ever sailed to
Astracan.
Their Structure is very uncommon, and I believe it will be somewhat new to you, if I tell you, that the Carriages in those Parts have two Poles, and the Barks two Helms. But this does not facilitate their Motion, which I my self have but too much experienced.
This may give you an Idea of the Fleet on the
Caspian
Sea. A flourishing Commerce might, I grant, be established there: But, to bring about an Enterprize like that, the
Muscovites
must be less stupid, and the Ministry of that great Monarchy made up of abler Persons. But nothing seems more surprizing, than that, as they are themselves incapable of carrying on such a Commerce, they will not permit Foreigners to do it. The
English
and
Dutch,
it is well known, have made several Attempts to establish a Trade in this Country, but, notwithstanding the considerable Advantages the
Muscovites
might have gained thereby, those Endeavours have all been fruitless. Be not, therefore, deluded, the
Muscovites
have no such Fleet in
Asia,
the Rumour is groundless, and only published with a View of imposing upon the World. But if they actually had such a Fleet, I know not the least Benefit they could receive from it. It cannot be said to be intended for Commerce, since their Trade consists only in Salt Fish, which is vended at
Astracan.
Nor have we more Reason to believe, that they propose to make Use of it, in defending, in Case of Necessity, the Conquests they have made in
Persia,
as they can neither land on the Coasts of the Province of
Kilan,
nor on a great Part of those of
Schirvan.
The Water is too shallow on the former, and the Ground of the latter is by no Means fit for any Ship to Anchor in. It would be more advisable for the
Muscovites
to keep a good Army on Foot, in those Parts, than to have a Fleet there; for, unless they restore that Country voluntarily, it is to be presumed, that the former Possessors will not fail to surprize them, and force them to return what they have made themselves Masters of, contrary to the Laws of Nations.
I had almost forgot to tell you, that there is, on the
Caspian
Sea, a Kind of small Fleet mann'd by the Subjects of the
Muscovite
Empire, I mean those bold and resolute Pirates, the
Cosacks
of
Jaick,
who, during the Summer Season, cruize, with a large Number of Barks; on the Eastern Coasts of that Sea. They pillage and ransack whatever they meet with; and as the Spoils these People make are their only Support, they know neither Friend nor Ally, where their Interest is concerned; nay, it frequently happens, that they have no Regard for the
Muscovites,
who fall into their Hands. Perhaps it is to these Barks the
Muscovites
have given the Appellation of a Fleet, and in that Case I cannot but agree with them, that they have one: I should only desire them to explain their Meaning more clearly, when they publish News of that Kind, and not endeavour to impose on the Publick.
I did not intend, Sir, to detain you with so long Digressions, and should be at a Loss to account for my being thus tedious. Are not all these beautiful Objects, which my Chamber-Windows present to my View, the Occasion of it? But the Enquiry is hardly worth the Labour, and besides,
I am fessa labat mihi pondere cervix.
LETTER IX.
SIR,
I Should be glad to know, what you think of my long Silence. You have undoubtedly supposed me once more lost, or at least, that I have met with some fresh Adventure. But be not uneasy, Sir, neither of these is the Case. You need only recollect the deplorable State I have been reduc'd to, and then you'll not find it difficult to guess at the Cause. Whoever, like me, has had the Misfortune to swallow a large Dose of Poison, cannot expect but to lead afterwards a lingring Life. I still continue weak, and am hardly able to apply my self to any Thing. I was some Days ago seiz'd with so great a Heaviness, that I thought I had lost the Use of all my Limbs. My Mind seemed on that Occasion to receive Impressions from my Body, and appeared as it were annihilated. I cannot, I assure you, conceive the Cause of these Symptoms, and very much doubt, whether the most able Physicians can account for them. But most certain it is, that they must have been produced by some subtle Poison, known only to the
Muscovites.
But why do I tire you with this shocking Subject. Let us mention it no more. For I ought perhaps to think my self happy in feeling the Effects of it.
In my last, I informed you, how I diverted my self in my Prison. I spent my Time there, as I told you before, sometimes in making serious Reflections on the State of my Affairs, and sometimes in considering on Means, whereby to deliver my self from my Captivity. I was at a Loss what Course to take, and knew not what to rely on, when I received Orders to prepare to appear before the Senate. This agreeable News I received on the 18th of
June.
Be pleased, Sir, to take Notice of this Epoch, which, as I believe I have observed before, is very remarkable. Having been conducted to the Senate-Chamber, I there saw an Assembly of seven or eight Lords, all sitting round a Table, and seeming to expect me with some Impatience. I was so far from being intimidated at the Sight of these Gentlemen, that it encouraged me to approach them without being dejected, or expressing the least Submission. They gave me a very cold Reception, in a Manner seemingly perplexed. They hardly dared to lift up their Eyes. After a Moment's Silence, one of them, who had formerly been condemn'd to the Scaffold, to leave his Head in the Hands of the Executioner, was the first, who spoke, and accosting me, told me in
Italian,
that, as they were informed, that I demanded a Hearing, they had sent for me, to know what I had to alledge in my own Behalf. I answered, that as I saw no End of my Imprisonment, nor could conceive the Motives of so tedious and insupportable a Captivity, I had resolved, three Months before, to present a Petition, whereby I desired to be heard what I had to say in my Justification. That I now re-iterated the same Demand, and that the Justice of my Cause, and the Equity of the Assembly, removed all Doubts of not obtaining an immediate and entire Satisfaction. But replied he, what is your Design, what is it you intend to write? Nothing, answered I, but what is necessary to justify my Proceedings and Conduct. Could you not, said he, do this by Word of Mouth, and what induces you to desire, to do it in Writing? I told him, I was at that Instant ready to vindicate my self, if they thought fit: But that I believed, I could represent Things to them in a clearer Light, in Writing, and that they might then make their Report of it to the
Czarina,
from whom I had Reason to expect immediate Redress. This they were obliged to put to the Vote, and to consult among themselves, what would be most proper in this Case. After having made me wait a long Time, they told me at last, I should have Necessaries for Writing, and that, the next Morning, they would receive my Plea. I returned them Thanks, and promised to begin it immediately, and be ready for the appointed Hour. Being asked by one of those Gentlemen, whether I understood no other Language but the
Italian,
I answered that I was likewise versed in the
French;
whereupon he desired, I would likewise draw up a Copy of my Representation in that Tongue.
No sooner was I returned to my Prison, than I was supplied with all Things requisite for writting, and instantly begun to draw up my two Copies. As I had not much Time to spare for the Completion of this Work, I was obliged to be expeditious, and the Length, together with the Stile of it, may give you Room to judge how great a Hurry I was in. No one appeared the next Morning to fetch my Paper, nor was it sent for, till the Day following. Such are the Proceedings of the
Muscovites,
they act in every Thing with an unheard of Slowness, and I thought my self well off, to find, that it was not postponed for several Weeks.
I beg leave here to transcribe this Writing entire, and to send it you very near the same, as it was presented to the Senate, though you have, in my preceding Letters, already seen a Part of what was contained therein. I shall be glad in the Sequel to know your Opinion of it, and whether the Reasons I there alledge were not sufficient for my Justification.
Fata volentem ducunt, nolentem trahunt;
Sed quo fata trahunt virtus secura sequetur.
"I set out from
France,
about the Beginning of the Year 1733,
sic jubente fata.
All
Europe
was then in a profound Peace. The principal Motive of my Departure from that Country was, to avoid a Marriage, which I should have been inevitably obliged to. I travelled through
Germany,
without being provided with any Pass, or being ever asked for one in any Place whatsoever. Being arrived at
Dantzick,
I was forced to make some Stay there, till I could meet with the Convenience of a Ship, to carry me to
Petersburg,
whither I intended to go. I lodged at the House of an
Italian,
named
Brunati,
who then lived at
Dantzick,
and continued there during my Stay in that City. As I proposed to be there
incognito:
I pretended to be an
Italian
Merchant, and went by the Name of
Roccaforte.
When I was just going to leave that Place, I was told, that I must provide my self with a Pass, and that it was absolutely necessary, as I designed for
Russia.
I applied hereupon to the Magistracy of
Dantzick,
and to the Person who is entrusted with the Direction of the Affairs of
Russia
in that City."
"Thus provided with two Passes, I departed from
Dantzick,
and arrived at
Petersburg
about the Middle of
June.
My Landlord recommended me, by Letter, to the Acquaintance of Mr.
Mariotti.
To this Gentleman I freely opened my Mind, and acquainted him with my Resolution of entring into military Service. I told him, that I was not a Merchant, but a Soldier, and a Person of Distinction. As I was determined not to discover my real Name, I took Care to pass by no other, but that of
Roccaforte.
Mr.
Mariotti
apprized me of the great Difficulties I should meet with in the Execution of my Design, but when I told him, that Mr.
Avolio
had offered me his Service, he promised to send for him to his House, and to treat with him on that Head. We met all three at the appointed Hour, and those Gentlemen being both of the same Opinion, I was obliged to think of some other Expedient."
"I was soon fixed in my Choice, and determined to go in Quest of Employment into
Persia.
I had been informed, that the Prince of
Hesse-Homburg,
commanded there, and, as I was not ignorant of his many excellent Qualities, I had Room to think, that he would grant me his Protection. This Resolution was confirmed by a singular Adventure, which at the same Time caused me to hasten my Departure. As her Majesty was one Day returning from a Review, which had been taken on the Meadow, on the side of her Summer-Palace, I was walking along the little Canal, which separates the Meadow from the Garden, and there I sat down, with a Book in my Hand, at the Root of a Tree. Whilst my Mind was wholly intent on what I read, Her Majesty, accompanied by only three or four Persons, came into a Walk of the Garden, directly oposite to the Place where I sat, without my perceiving her. One of that Princess's Retinue came at the same Time to the Banks of the Canal, and made Signs to me to rise, telling me, that Her Majesty was there. I immediately obeyed, and after having made a very low Bow, I retired some Steps backwards, with a Design to depart. The same Person, who had spoken to me, returned, in the very Instant, and asked me, by her Majesty's Command, whether I was an
Italian?
I answered,
Son Italiano
(I am an
Italian
) and instantly retired. I was greatly amazed, not being able to comprehend, how the
Czarina
could take me for an
Italian.
Had not the Canal hindered me from approaching that Princess, I should perhaps have taken Advantage of so lucky an Incident, and have thrown my self at her Feet, to beg some Employment of her, since I was in so great an Uncertainty of obtaining any elsewhere."
"I went, after this Adventure, to Mr.
Mariotti,
and begged of him to procure me an Opportunity of departing speedily, I sold, in the mean Time, Part of my Equipage, to have wherewithal to bear my Charges. As I had Occasion for a fresh Pass, I went my self to the College of Commerce, to ask for one, which they granted me by the same Name of
Roccaforte.
Whilst I was employed in making Provisions for my Journey, I was informed, that some Professors of the Academy were preparing for an immediate Journey to
Casan,
from whence they were to go to
Kamtschatki.
This Opportunity was too favourable to be neglected; I therefore made Enquiry directly, to whom I must apply my self, to be admitted into their Company. I was recommended to Mr.
De l'Isle,
whom I thereupon visited. This learned Professor gave me a very kind Reception. He told me, he was not to go the Journey himself, but that his Brother was. Having applied to him, he approved of my Resolution, and promised me all the Service in his Power. The two other Professors received me with equal Civility. Having got every thing ready for my Journey, Mr.
Dela Croyere
sent me a Message, to come to his House, with all my Baggage, in Order to depart the next Day. Our Journey was, nevertheless, delay'd, and Mr.
De l'Isle
and his Wife took me, in the mean Time, in the most obliging Manner imaginable, into their House. I discovered to Mr.
De l'Isle,
in the Conversation I had with him, my earnest Desire of undertaking the Journey to
Kamtschatki,
but being informed, that I must apply to the Senate for that Purpose, I thought no more of it. It would have been impossible to remain unknown, as I desired to be, if I had applied to the Senate. Some other Difficulties occurring, with Regard to my Journey with the Professors, I resolved to set out before them, with only one Servant, whom
Mons. de la Croyere
had been so kind as to give me."
"I met these Gentlemen at
Bronnits,
from whence I continued my Journey with them to
Casan.
At my Arrival, I immediately made Enquiry whether any Ship was ready to fail for
Astracan.
The Season being too far already advanced, my Enquiries were in vain. In this Juncture, I thought of another Expedient, and having met with a small Vessel, which seemed to be convenient, I had resolved to embark in it. The imminent Danger, I was going to expose my self to, was so plainly represented to me, by those, to whom I communicated my Design, that they, at last, prevailed upon me to alter my Mind. After having well weighed the Matter, I thought it more convenient to take the Journey by Land, and to wait some Time longer. As I had heard a very good Character of the Governour of
Casan,
I thought it my Duty to pay my Respects to him. When I accosted him, I gave him my Pass, and, acquainting him with my real Quality, I told him, that I was nothing less than a Merchant, and that I thought it a Matter of little Importance to the Publick to know my real Name and Condition, that I was determined to repair to
Persia,
and to offer my self to the Prince of
Hesse Homburg,
to serve under him, in Her Majesty's Troops. He bemoaned my Fate, and, at the same Time, promised to procure me the first Opportunity for my Departure. He desired to know my Name, and took it down in Writing. Having asked his Leave to visit him now and then, he replied, he should look upon it as an Honour; and assured me I might rely on his Protection."
"Having taken this Step, I went to
Mons. de la Croyere,
resolved to acquaint him with what had passed. But, I was hardly got into his Apartment, when the Major of the Place came to arrest me, by the Governor's Order, and seized my Sword. Nothing was found about me, or in my Trunk, which could give any Grounds for Suspicion. In short, after three Days, I was carried to
Muscow,
and from thence to
Petersburg.
All these Circumstances being well averred, and there being none of them which can admit of the least Doubt, the next Enquiry is, whether there was any Room to suppose me a Criminal, or that I had any other Intention, than that of being employed in Her Majesty's Service. This Enquiry may be made in the following Manner, which will, at the same Time, give sufficient Proofs for my Justification."
"I observed above, that I quitted
France,
at the Beginning of the Year 1733, at a Time, when all
Europe
was in Peace. This first Remark is an incontestable Proof, that I could not be charged with any secret Commission from the Court of
France,
to the Prejudice of that of
Russia.
But supposing even, that I had not left
France,
till after the Face of Affairs was changed in
Poland,
by the Death of King
Augustus,
can it be presumed, that I should be made Choice of, at so important a Juncture? Ought I, not, on the other Hand, to have taken other Measures, than those, which it is evident I did take, and should I not have been more cautious, and reserved in all my Proceedings? My Behaviour was certainly not like that of a Person, who endeavoured to impose upon others. How can any one, moreover, be supposed to be an Emissary, who is not in the least acquainted with the Language of that Country, to which he is sent, and neither provided with any Retinue, nor even with an Interpreter? Persons, entrusted with the Management of State-Affairs, are, I believe, seldom sent into a foreign Country, without being furnished with Money, or, at least, Credit. But I came into
Muscovy,
without either. This last is a most convincing Proof, and merits some Regard. But let us go yet farther, and examine all my Steps."
"The sole Motive of my Departure from
France,
was to avoid a Marriage which I must otherwise have engaged in. That I quitted upon no other, but some such Inducement, is sufficiently proved by the Manner, wherein I retired from all the World, from my most intimate Friends, and from my Domesticks, abandoning, at the same Time, all I possessed. I know not, whether any Enquiries have been made after me, but if there has, there can have been no other Answer, but that I disappeared at the Beginning of 1733, and that none had since been able to get Information, whither I was retired, It is well known, what Reply I made to the Question, which was put to me at Her Majesty's Palace, when I was ordered to name the Person, who was the Occasion of my Flight. I told the Gentleman, who was so inquisitive on that Head, that the Sex claimed a particular Respect, though it often merited not our least Regard. I here beg leave to add, that if a Declaration of that kind could even procure my Liberty, or save my Life, I should not consent to make it; and were I to be guilty of so base an Action, I should think my self deserving of the most rigorous Treatment from Her Majesty. But what, after all, would a Confession of that Kind avail? It would be needless for me to name the Person my self, if the Affair is publickly known, as others may be applied to for that Intelligence. But if, on the contrary, this Adventure is not come to any one's Knowledge, if I am the only Person acquainted with it, I think my self obliged in Honour and Conscience to keep it secret. But supposing, I should name the Lady, would my Confession be credited, or would she herself be applied to, to relate the Correspondence that had been between her and me? Should the Boldness or Insolence be carried so far, I believe the Attempt▪ would be fruitless, and turn to the Confusion of him who should make it."
"It seems needless to make any Mention here of my Journey through
Germany,
since most of the States, through which I passed, are her Majesty's Allies and Confederates. I shall only take Notice of my Stay at
Dantzick,
where I was known to the Gentleman who there administers the Affairs of
Russia.
I led a very retired Life, in that City, and conversed, to the best of my Knowledge, with no other Person, there, but those of the House, where I lodged. I went a few Days after my Arrival, to pay a Visit to Her Majesty's Resident in that City, I even had frequent Opportunities of seeing him, afterwards, and from him I received a Pass at my Departure. If all these Proceedings be considered, can it be inferred from hence, that I was, at that Time, charged with any secret or dangerous Commission?"
"Let my Behaviour at
Petersburg
be next examined. I repaired, on my Arrival into that Capital, to Mr.
Mariotti,
to deliver a Letter, which had been given me, and begged at the same Time, he would procure me a Lodging near his House; I then, according to the Custom of the Country, carried my Pass to the Magistracy, before I went to my Lodging; when I went from thence to the Custom-House to take out my Baggage, I met with
Mons. Avolio,
who ossered me his Service. As that Gentleman was not acquainted with me, he immediately enquired, what Profession I was of, and whether I was not come to
Petersburg
with a View of following that of a Fencing-Master. I answered, smiling, that I knew how to use my Sword, in my own Defence, but was not a Person who would instruct others in that Art. He then, in very obliging Terms, repeated his Offers of Service, but I told him, that I could not accept of them yet, but should, in the Sequel, be glad of the Honour of a longer Conversation with him. Let any one judge, by these Circumstances, whether I endeavoured, at that Time, to be concealed, as was, without Grounds, intimated in the Examination I passed in Her Majesty's Palace. But let us view what followed. I took Mr.
Mariotti
aside, the next Morning, and fully entrusted him with the Situation of my Affairs. The only Secret I was unwilling to disclose to him, was, my real Name. As I was determined to enter into Her Majesty's Service, I took his Advice, how to proceed in that Case. When he endeavoured to represent the great Difficulties I should meet with in my Design; I told him, that
Mons. Avolio
had offered me his Service, and that I doubted not, but he would act in my Behalf; in short, in the Conference I had with these two Gentlemen, they agreed in their Opinions, that my Project could not succeed. Hereupon I resolved to go into
Persia,
and desire no other Favour of them, but that of recommending me to their Friends. Is any one of these Circumstances capable of grounding a Suspicion of my being an Emissary?"
"During my Stay at
Petersburg,
I own that I passed by a fictitious Name, but did not, however, conceal my self from any one, and every Body there might judge of every Step I took. I frequented the House of Mr.
Mariotti,
with him I dieted, and conversed familiarly, with whomsoever I there met with. I never failed being at the Catholick Church, and visiting the Fathers who officiated there, and this I did at Times when those Places were frequented by a great Concourse of People. I discoursed indiscriminately with every one, owned my self to be an
Italian,
and my being come from
France
was concealed from none. I walked through every Part of the City, was present at all Reviews, and a Spectator of all the Exercises performed by the Troops; I was, in fine, so far from endeavouring to remain unknown, that I even exposed my self to the Eyes of the
Czarina.
All that can be inferred from these Things, is, that I concealed my Name, and, as I could not appear in a Manner suitable to my Birth, kept within the Bounds, to which the Situation of my Affairs had reduced me."
"When I sought for an Opportunity of departing from thence, I was informed that the Professors were likewise preparing for a Journey; to these Gentlemen I made pressing Instances, to admit me into their Company, which they granted. I should, without Doubt, have carefully avoided being one of that Party, had I intended to remain unknown. Satisfied with what I thought I had obtained, I retired to the House of Mr.
De l'Isle,
in Expectation of my Departure; here I saw every one who came thither, conversed with them, and, as our chief Discourse generally concerned
France,
they might easily guess, by what I said on that Subject my self, that I was thoroughly acquainted with the
French
Court, and had spent great Part of my Life in that Country. My Consultation with Mr.
De l'Isle,
about the Journey to
Kamtschatki
was by no Means feigned, and I was fully resolved to undertake it, my only Aim, at that Time, being to retire into a Country where I might live unknown to every one. Would a Person charged with any Commission have acted a Part like this? I am plainly justified by the bare Consideration of these Facts."
"But to this it is objected, that taking Passes in a fictitious Name manifestly proves my Guilt. By a Regulation established throughout the whole Kingdom, I could not obtain a fresh Pass, without producing, at the same Time, that which I had brought from
Dantzick.
Since therefore I was unwilling to be known by my real Name, I was obliged to continue to pass for a Merchant, and to retain the Name of
Rocceforte.
This Accusation is certainly without Foundation, and thus I reply to it."
"I could not, in the Situation I was in, and being so desirous of executing the Resolution I had taken of entring into the Service, avoid a Discovery of my real Quality, and was obliged to profess my self a Soldier, and to quit my Character of a Merchant. Privileges of this Kind have been always allowed to Travellers, the Law of Nations no ways oppose it, there is no Law that forbids it, it is authorized by the Custom of all
Europe,
and in short Princes sometimes afford us Precedents of what I have done. Unless a Traveller applies his Pass to a bad Purpose, he has never been thought criminal for making use of a fictitious Name. Can it be proved, that I have made any Attempt to prejudice the State? The publick Affairs are no ways concerned in the Change of my Name; that is my Affair only."
"But it may be again objected, what Occasion had I to take a Pass for
Muscow,
when I designed to go else where? This Accusation is no better grounded, than the others; for, in the first Place, when I required a Pass for
Muscow,
I intended to take that Route, and should actually have done it, had not some new Difficulties, which I could not foresee, induced me to change my Resolution. In the second Place, when I produced my Pass, I was told, that it would be needless to take any other, and that with this I should find an uninterrupted Passage throughout
Russia;
and lastly, as my first Pass had cost me five or six Rubles, and I was not very flush of Money, I thought I might dispense with purchasing, at so dear a Rate, what I had no Occasion for."
"I shall not enter into a Discussion of what pass'd on my Journey from
Petersburg
to
Casan.
Whoever desires to know that, need only peruse my Journal on that Head, which may be found amongst my Papers. There may be seen an Account of the most remarkable Adventures I met with on that Journey, none of which can give any one Room to think me a suspected Person."
"Before I conclude this State of my Case, it will be proper to make some Enquiry into my Conduct at
Casan,
and this Article likewise merits some Consideration. No sooner was I arrived in this City, than my Friends represented to me a thousand Difficulties, which attended the Voyage I was going to undertake; they remonstrated the bad Season of the Year, the Dangers I was going to expose my self to, the Want of convenient Boats, and at last prevailed upon me to make a much longer Stay in that City, than I had proposed. Not thinking it, in the mean Time, proper to pass for an unknown Person, I went to visit the Governor, and opened my Mind to him. I frankly told him who I was, represented to him the Situation of my Affairs, acquainted him with my Designs, begged he would grant me some Persons to serve for Guides, and, that he might have no Room to doubt of my Sincerity, offered him my Sword, and told him, that I was ready to be his Prisoner, till he could be better informed of my Quality."
"This would certainly have been the most imprudent Step I ever made, had I intended to engage in any Undertaking contrary to the Interests of
Russia.
I was besides under no Obligation of going to pay my Respects to the Governor. I might even have been at
Astracan
before that Time, by only hiring a small Vessel in any of the Cities I passed through, which would have carried me thither much sooner, than by the Way of
Casan;
where I was oblig'd to make a long Stay. Nothing hinder'd me, moreover, from setting Sail immediately after my Arrival at
Casan,
since I met with a small Vessel, and many People offered me their Service to conduct me either by Land or Water. But instead of laying hold of these Conveniences, I unfortunately went to visit the Governor, who instantly caused me to be Arrested, and afterwards to be cast into Prison. Such was my Adventure at
Casan,
and it was that occasioned my Detention."
"The last Thing I have to say in Vindication of my self is, that had I known my self guilty of any Crime, I could many ways have avoided being carried from
Casan
to
Petersburg;
nothing could have been more easy. For I may venture to say, without injuring my Guard, that they were willing to allow me a reasonable Liberty, and placed an entire Confidence in the Promise I had given them, not to endeavour making my Escape. I regarded them rather as my Servants, than as my Guard. Their Arms and my Sword were always in my Sled, and in Case of Necessity, I could have made Use of them. I was entirely at Liberty in the Nighttime, which my Attendants always spent in a profound Sleep. I might easily have taken my Flight, whilst I was among the
Scheremiss-Tartars,
and have retired to a Place of Safety. Besides, had I been willing to offer Violence, Courage would not have been wanting, I might have easily routed my three Soldiers. As for those, who conducted me from
Muscow
to
Petersburg,
they hardly deserve to be mentioned. Let it suffice for their Character, that they were Drunkards, and notorious Thieves, who robbed me of whatever they could. As they were neither cloathed nor armed, nor behaved, in any other Respect, like Soldiers, I know not whether I may properly regard them as such. If I was guarded by these Scoundrels on my Journey to
Petersburg,
it must be imputed to my own Willingness, as they were undoubtedly incapable of keeping me Prisoner."
"The Justice of my Cause is so plainly demonstrated by these several Facts, that I doubt not of obtaining my Liberty so soon as they are submitted to Her Majesty's Judgment. The Piety, Justice and Clemency of that Princess is so well known to me, though a Stranger, that I am assured, she will never suffer a rigorous Imprisonment to be inflicted on a Person, who came into her Dominions with no other Design, than that of devoting the remaining Part of his Life to her Service. Most certain it is, that since the first Minute of my Captivity, I have been treated with as much Severity as if I had acted openly to the Prejudice of the State."
This, Sir, is the History of my Captivity; I leave you to judge, upon this Account, of the Justice of my Cause. Declare your Opinion sincerely, and tell me without Ceremony, whether you think me guilty? Ought I, do you think, to be detained in Prison, to be sent into
Siberia,
or to be restor'd to my Liberty. I am so well assured of your Judgment and Equity, and of the Evidence of the Reasons I here alledge, that I doubt not of your deciding the Matter instantly in my Behalf. I shall tell you in the Sequel the Event of this Memorial.
As I expected soon to know my Fate, after I had delivered this Writing, my Thoughts, in my Prison, were wholly employed upon procuring some safe Retreat, where I might pass my Time agreeably. Retirement and Ease were now the only Objects of my Wishes. I was in the mean Time greatly perplexed in making Choice of a Place for my future Abode.
France,
the finest Country in the Universe, represented itself to me with most attracting Charms, but the Adventure, which caused my Departure from that pleasant Abode, suffered me not to satisfy my Inclination. All, I could hope for, was, to live there unknown in some retired Place, till some fortunate Event could give another Turn to the State of my Affairs. I should have formed a Project very different, had I been in a better State of Health. As I was not far distant from
Poland,
I should have taken the Resolution to go thither in Quest of Employment. O! with what Pleasure should I then have embraced an Opportunity of bearing Arms against the
Muscovites,
my greatest Enemies! They have given me Provocations more than sufficient to prompt me to a Revenge of all the bad Usage I have received from their Hands. But unhappily for me, by reducing me to a Condition, which leaves me no Room to hope ever being able to bear the Fatigues of War, they have deprived me of that Satisfaction. My Strength could not but be enervated, and my Health entirely destroyed, by the Uneasiness os Mind, which they continually gave me, by the Hunger, which they obliged me to labour so long a Time under, and by the Poison they gave me.
I diverted my self with all these pleasing Hopes, though I was not yet assured of obtaining my Liberty. And I had really Reason to fear, that they would propose to me to remain in
Muscovy,
and to serve in the Army. A Proposal of this Kind would, I confess, have involved me in a fresh Perplexity. I should, on the one Hand, have never prevailed upon my self to pass my Time in
Muscovy,
and a Refusal of their Offer, might, on the other, have been very dangerous. But lest I should be put to a Non-plus, in Case they should make that Proposal, I resolved to excuse my self on Account of the infirm State of my Health, which disabled me from bearing Arms.
This Resolution being taken, I had nothing to do but to be easy, and wait with Patience for whatever might befal me. I shall send you many more Particulars, by the first Courier, but you must not yet expect to hear an End of my Misfortunes.
Multa diuque tuli, sed plura supersunt.
LETTER X.
SIR,
M Y last, without Doubt, removed all your Uneasiness on my Account, and gave you some Hopes of seeing me again very soon. I told you, at the same Time, that nothing new had befallen me. The Impatience and Concern you express, for which I cannot but reprove you, only augment my Distress, and aggravate my Grief. You remind me of all my former and present Sufferings in Terms so pathetick, and so moving, that I cannot but be greatly affected therewith. All you say of the Pleasures we have formerly enjoyed together, does not alleviate my present Misery. Forbear, I beseech you, Sir, to recall past Joys to my Mind, and cease to expatiate on my Misfortunes, and the doleful Circumstances of my Adventures.
Cur me querelis exanimas tuis?
Which of us two is the most to be pitied? Which has most Cause to wish my Liberty? The Absence of a Friend, who always had, and still retains a most tender regard for you, is, I must own, afflicting. But, however doleful your Condition may be, mine is much more so. You have, at least, the Comfort of being able to ease your Mind a thousand Ways; but my Fate is very different from yours. Confined in a narrow Prison, I see no one, to alleviate my Grief, and am, at this very Time, uncertain whether I have more Grounds for Hope or Fear. You desire to know the final Term of my Miseries, as if it were in my Power to fix it. I pleased my self indeed with the Hopes of seeing them speedily ended, but an Accident, which has just happened, has in a Measure frustrated all my Designs. Give me Leave to relate this Catastrophe, and the Manner how it came to my Knowledge.
The Desire I had of being thoroughly acquainted with the Publick Affairs was one Day revived, when early in the Morning I several Times heard the Noise of Cannon. I would not however have you think it uncommon to be entertained in this Country with that Kind of Harmony. We are every Week diverted with several Discharges of the Artillery. The Revielle and Tap-tow are always expressed by firing Cannon, and the Time of repairing to Court is made known in the same Manner. A surprizing Quantity of Powder is consumed in this City. It is made use of on all Days of Rejoycing, which are here very frequent, on all Festivals, and on innumerable other Occasions. It may, perhaps, be intended to stifle the terrible Noise and Uproar made at those Times by Drunkards. But let us leave this Conjecture, and enquire into the Reasons of a Discharge of the Cannon so early. As this was neither the Reveille nor the Tap-tow, nor was it the Time of Resorting to Court, I immediately concluded, that some extraordinary Accident must have been the Occasion of it. The Situation of the Affairs of
Poland,
at that Time, gave me directly some Suspicion, and as I was highly concerned for those Matters, I could not be at Ease till I was farther informed. Above all, I feared this Event, be what it would, might prejudice my Affairs, and, at the same Time, frustrate all my Hopes.
The Sequel but too plainly proves how well my Fears were founded, but I was not apprized of the Matter so soon as I wished to be. In vain I asked my Guard, and begged they would inform me of what had happened. I found it impossible to get any Intelligence. I prevailed upon one of them to go and enquire, what it was; but he soon returned as wise as he went. I was very uneasy all that Day, and spent it with an Impatience I am not accustomed to. My Corporal, who was my chief Steward, came the next Day and told me, with a smiling Countenance, that the City of
Dantzick
was surrendered to the
Muscovites.
I was thunder-struck at this News, which I could never have expected, it surprized me, and gave me very uncommon Emotions. Having, however, recovered my self a little, and taken Time to consider, I begun to doubt of the Truth of the Fact. I asked my Corporal, whether King
Stanislaus
was taken, but of this he pretended to be intirely ignorant. His Answer served only to encrease my Uneasiness. Dubious of the Condition, to which that Prince might be reduced, I begun to bemoan his Fate, I entreated the Corporal to go out immediately, and to procure an exact Account of all the Circumstances of that great Event, and give me a Relation of what he could learn. In order to encourage him to a faithful Discharge of his Commission, I gave him some Pieces of Silver, and promised him more on his Return. But neither this little Present, nor my Promises, were prevalent enough to make him more speedy; he did not return till the next Day, when he informed me, that King
Stanislaus
had been taken out of a Cellar, where he lay concealed. This ridiculous Circumstance made me not give Credit to his News. And how could I with any Probability imagine, that King
Stanislaus
would suffer himself to be seized in that Manner? He added, that several
French
-Men had been taken Prisoners, and would soon be brought to
Petersburg.
Several other Circumstances he related seeming as improbable, made me suspend my Judgment upon the rest. But nothing convinced me more than a second Discharge of the Artillery, which I took for a clear Demonstration. I then no longer doubted of what had been told me. I believed, that King
Stanislaus
was really fallen into the Hands of the
Muscovites,
and that the
French
were made Prisoners of War. All this put me into so great a Disorder, that my Guard began to perceive it. You know how zealous I have been, and always shall be, for the Interest of
France.
I feared, on the other Hand, that this Disaster of the
French
would give some fatal Turn to my Affairs, and prove an Obstacle to my wished for Releasement. I not only found, that the
Swedes
were out of the Question, but likewise that the Project which I had before formed, of retiring to the House of some Foreign Minister, could not be executed without great Danger, and running the Hazard of being imprisoned for the rest of my Life. I was well enough acquainted with the
Muscovites
to know, to what Excess of Insolence one fortunate Event could carry them. Whilst they are in Prosperity, they neither regard the Laws of Nations, nor publick Faith, nor, in short,
Quoecunque Altaria tangunt.
As I had given my Corporal a fresh Commission to enquire after all the publick News, he informed me, that the second Discharge of Artillery was, as well as the former, on Account of the taking of
Dantzick,
that the
French
Prisoners were arrived at
Cronstadt,
that the Commander in chief, and a large Number of Officers, were already arrived at
Petersburg,
and lastly, that they were that Day to dine at Court. He added, that King
Stanislaus
was not taken, but, as it was certain, that he was still in
Dantzick,
he would not fail of being made Prisoner, as the
French
were, and that he could never find Means of escaping from the narrow Search that was made after him. I had now no longer Room, to doubt of the Truth of the greatest Part of these Circumstances, tho they all appeared very strange to me. How, said I, within my self, could so strong a City as
Dantzick,
a Place so well defended, fall into the Hands of the
Russians?
Is it possible, that the
French
Troops could surrender themselves Prisoners of War, and that King
Stanislaus
could neglect repairing to some Place of Safety?
The Advice, my Corporal had given me, of the Arrival of the
French
Officers at
Petersburg,
raised in me an exceeding great Desire of seeing them, and, to obtain this Satisfaction, I placed my self constantly at my Windows, in Hopes of seeing some one by Chance pass by my Prison. In this I happened to succeed, and saw the chief of them in Her Majesty's Coach; I knew them even by their Aspect, but could not possibly distinguish any one of my Acquaintance. I met soon after with an Opportunity of satisfying my Curiosity. Mrs.
De l'Isle
's Cook being recovered from his Indisposition, paid me a Visit; I immediately asked him a Thousand Questions about the present State of Affairs, and tho he was not able to satisfy me in every Point I enquired after, yet he acquainted me thoroughly with many Things, which I was before ignorant of, and which I had not been able to learn either of my Guard, or their Corporal. He informed me that King
Stanislaus
had fortunately made his Escape from
Dantzick,
but that nobody yet knew what was become of him: That the
French
Troops, which were come to the Relief of
Dantzick,
had been repulsed, and obliged, after several fruitless Attempts, to capitulate, they not being numerous enough to render their Enterprize successful. I wished earnestly to know what Steps the
Swedes
had taken, and what passed in other Parts of
Poland,
but my Intelligencer could not satisfy my Curiosity on either of those Heads.
He confirmed, in a second Visit, his former Advice, that King
Stanislaus
was no longer at
Dantzick,
and that he was thought to be in Safety in some Part of the King of
Prussia
's Dominions. Tho the Situation of that Prince's Affairs appeared to me very melancholy, I could not but esteem him happy in having delivered himself from so imminent a Danger, and escaped all the Pursuits of the
Muscovites.
I could hear nothing of the
Swedes,
but that they continued very peaceable, without determining in Favour of either Party, or that any one could penetrate their real Designs. He told me the Names of the
French
Officers, who had been taken Prisoners, and, among others, nam'd
Mons. de la Motthe,
who was at the Head of them, and is an old Acquaintance of mine. I leave you to jndge, how much I lamented the Fate of those Gentlemen, who are thus reduced to the Necessity of giving up their Swords into the Hands of the
Muscovites.
Strange Fate! that Soldiers so brave, as they, should be obliged to submit to Slaves so vile! I cannot here omit the Recital of a Story, which I have heard, and appears to me very singular, if we may venture to give Credit thereto. In the first Interview the
French
Officers had with the
Muscovite
Generals, the latter, addressing themselves to
Mons. de la Motthe,
expressed a very great Surprize, that the
French
should attack their Intrenchments without a single Discharge of Cannon. To this,
Mons. de la Motthe
is said to have replied; that was a common Method with the
French.
The
Muscovite
Generals, if this Story be true, must certainly know very little of the present Method of making an Attnck; and for their better Instruction on that Head, it might not be amiss to send them, into
Poland,
some of those
Carabiniers,
who were at the Battle of
Guastalla.
The Cook, from whom I received my Intelligences, informed me, moreover, that the Articles of Capitulation granted to the
French
Troops had been violated, and that the
Marquis de Monti
had, notwithstanding the sacred Character, wherewith he was invested, been put under Confinement. Had any other Nation, besides the
Muscovites,
been accus'd of these Proceedings, I readily confess, I should not have so easily given Credit to the Report of them: But I was thoroughly acquainted with the Conduct and Policy of those Gentlemen, and not ignorant that nothing was to them either venerable or sacred. Was not, therefore, my Censure just. When I observed before, that the
Muscovites, Quaecunque Altaria tangunt,
whilst flushed with Success. This may be called a glorious Beginning of a War. To break through the principal Articles of a Capitulation, to arrest an Ambassador, and to detain him, so long, under a rigorous Imprisonment! Are not these Things without a Precedent, in a civilized Nation? Are they so very blind, that they cannot perceive the Irregularity of their Conduct? The Time may come when they will perhaps have Reason to repent of it. Those, in whose Hands the Administration of Affairs in that Country is, ought, in my Opinion, to proceed with more Circumspection. If they will have no Regard to the Honour of the Nation, or its Interests, they ought at least to have the Glory of their Sovereign at Heart, and not expose it in so flagrant a Manner. They have prevailed on Her Majesty, by their evil Counsels, to commit an Act of Injustice, not only unparalleled, but wholly inconsistent with her natural Candour. And what can be more vile, than to treat a brave Officer, who is only guilty by having served his Master with Fidelity, in so worthless a Manner? Have they any Thing to alledge against his Conduct? And with what Views do they thus detain him? If I may give Credit to what I have been told at
Dantzick,
the Imprisonment of that Minister crys for Vengeance, and this Action must be looked upon as the blackest and most unjust, that can be perpetrated. The Inhabitants of
Dantzick
inform me, that he kept within the Bounds of his Ministry, and ought he consequently not to meet with the Treatment prescribed, in that Case, by the Law of Nations. But let us, for a Moment, suppose he actually had exceeded the Bounds of his Character, must he, for that, be deprived of all Liberty? He would, in any other Country, if he had required it, have been set free, on his Parole of Honour. But the
Muscovites
do not act in this Manner, they obstinately persist in the Practice of their barbarous Customs, and little Regard what other Nations would do, in a parallel Case. It is accounted a Crime in the Marquis
De Monti,
that he shewed so great a Zeal for the Service of his Master, and was so firmly attached to the Prince, to whom he was sent. I should expatiate too much on this Affair, were I to make all the Reflections it would admit of: I proceed, therefore, to what relates to my self, which I intend for the Subject of this Letter.
After having exhausted my Intelligencer's whole Fund, I drew from him a Promise to visit me oftner, and give me an exact Account of whatever he could learn. This honest Man did really exert himself, on this Occasion, and was of great Service to me, during the whole Time of my Captivity. The Pleasure I received from hearing the publick News, did not, however, abate the earnest Desire I had to recover my Liberty. To my Sorrow I found, that no Answer was made to my Representation, tho it had been so long presented. The first Mention I heard of it was by my Steward, who told me, a Report was current, that I should soon be released. This News I the more readily believed, as I thought, that after I had so clearly vindicated my self, they had no farther Reason to detain me in Prison. I was afterwards informed, that my Memorial had been referred to the
Czarina
's Cabinet Council, and that from thence I was to expect a final Determination. The Members of the Senate, as, I think, I observed before, are regarded only as mere Underlings, entirely under the Influence of the Ministers, who are Foreigners. These latter govern with an absolute Power, all is under their Management, and their Disposal; and this gave me Room to think, that from them I was to expect my Liberty.
My Affairs were retarded by the
Czarina
's Departure into the Country, for the Summer-Season. Her Majesty was accompanied by the whole Court, and the Ministers of the first Rank. At this Time, I was once more obliged to remove to another Prison. I was carried to the very Place, where the Senate assembles. This removal occasioned me to remark in my Journal, that I had been led
ab Herode ad Pilatum,
I might have added,
a Pilato ad Calvarium:
For, after all the Miseries I had undergone, I had only this last Step to take. The Motive, that induced them to remove me from my former Prison, very plainly demonstrates, how little they were concerned for my Life. The Members of the Senate being apprized, that the House, where they met, was in a ruinous State, thought proper to quit it, and to assemble in that, wherein I was confined. What think you, Sir, of this Expedient, to rid themselves of a Man, whom they had already obliged to pass
per ignem & aquam,
but both without Success. They probably thought, that after I had withstood Poison, endured the Fatigue of a long and toilsome Journey, laboured under Famine, and all the Miseries, I had been exposed to, they had no other Means left of hastning my Death, than by burying me alive under the Ruins of an old decayed Building. Their black Design, happily for me, proved abortive; for Providence, which had hitherto, almost miraculously, preserved my Life, continued still favourable to me, and so disposed Matters, that what was intended to be the Cause of my Perdition, turned to my Advantage, and served only to render my Confinement more agreeable.
I soon found my self beset, in my new Apartment, by all kinds of Artificers, Architects, Joyners, Carpenters, Masons, and other sorts of People, who were continually going in and out of my Chamber. With Pleasure I saw so great a Concourse of People, which, at any other Time, would have been troublesome to me. I made frequent Enquiries, what Condition the Building was in, and whether I was not in Danger of being crushed under the Ruins of it: Thus I continued in constant Fear, though I was told I might depend on my Safety. I entertained no great Opinion of the
Muscovite
Architects, and the Person, to whose Direction this Work was entrusted, appeared to me not the best qualified, to judge of the Danger, I was exposed to. As he spoke
Italian,
I was curious to know by what Means he learnt that Language. He told me, he had travelled into
Italy,
and, on his Return, entered into the Service of an
Italian
Architect, who had instructed him both in his Language and Art. His Skill in the latter was not so great, that I could depend on his Word; I therefore examined every Part of the Building my self, and, with a Plummet in Hand, shewed my unexperienced Engineer those Places which were in the most ruinous Condition. He complyed pretty readily with my Directions, and it happened fortunately for me, that he followed them, in Regard to the Arched Roof of a large Hall, which stood in Need of Shoring: For had he executed his first Plan, and neglected the Measures I pointed out to him, that Roof would certainly have fallen, and drawn after it the other Parts of the Building, which were all in a tottering Condition.
Employments of this kind, on which I spent the best Part of my Time, afforded me a very great Pleasure. I may truly say, that the
Muscovites
are very ignorant of any Thing relating to Edifices of Stone, but must do them the Justice, to acknowledge, that they are very expert in whatever relates to Carpentry. They know the Use of no other Instrument, but the Axe, and this they handle with so much Dexterity, that not a single Nail is made use of in the Structure of their largest Houses. These Buildings are made of large Pieces of Timber, joined together, in such Manner, that, in Case of Necessity, they may, without much Trouble, be loosened, and afterwards replaced as they were before. Hence you may easily judge, that all these Buildings are portable. Whoever is minded to remove from one part of the City to the other, immediately lays his House on Carts, and transports it, with little Expence, wherever he thinks fit. All Buildings in
Muscovy
are erected in this Manner, excepting some Churches, and most of the Convents of the Monks, who always take Care to be the best accommodated every where. I have even seen some fortified Cities, the Walls of which are only made of Wood. Houses of this Kind, in so rigid a Climate, as that of
Muscovy,
may be thought to be as cold, as Ice-Houses; but I'm convinced, by Experience, of the direct contrary, and can assure you, that they are all very warm, nay even hot to Excess.
Muscovy
may, in this Regard be esteemed not a cold Country, as it is generally supposed, but a Country abounding with Fire and Smoak. There is hardly a House in
Russia
where the Heat is not intolerable, in the Winter, as well as the Summer. We may therefore very reasonably conclude, that this contributes not a little to render the
Muscovites
lazy and sluggish.
You see, Sir, how little my Troubles hindered me from making Observations in
Muscovy.
I might extend them yet farther, on the Manners of the
Muscovites,
as well as their Customs; but I fear, I shall engage in too many Subjects at once, and thereby neglect the principal Occurrences of my Captivity. Give me, therefore, leave to return to what more nearly concerns my self.
Whilst I employed my self in Architecture, my Steward informed me, that my Releasement was now talked of in good Earnest, and that I had nothing to do, but to be of good Heart.
Mons. de L'Isle
and his Spouse sent me Word, at the same Time, that they thought my Affairs in a very good Situation, and that they did not doubt of seeing speedily my Troubles at an End. But the Joy, I conceived, at hearing this agreeable News, was of a short Duration. I was soon afterwards told, that I must not hope for any Answer to my Memorial, till her Majesty's Return. I had enough to do, to appease the first Transports into which this second News threw me, but Reason at last got the better, and gave me Resolution, patiently to expect whatever might befal me.
I received, in the mean Time, numerous Presents from Mrs.
De L'Isle,
who frequently sent me her Cook. This generous Lady loaded me with her Benefactions, and used her utmost Efforts to alleviate the Burden of my Captivity. Her Cook, for his Part, neglected nothing that might give me a clear Insight into the most important Transactions of
Europe.
By his Means, I learned, that two notable Battles had been fought, those of
Bitonto,
and
Parma,
and that the Surrender of
Philipsburg
was hourly expected. Such Successes rejoiced me extreamly. I could not, however, but secretly envy the immortal Glory, acquired by so many brave Officers of my Acquaintance. He, likewise, told me, that King
Stanislaus
was in Safety at
Konigsberg,
that the taking of
Dantzick
had neither weakened nor dejected his Party, and that this City would be restored for a Sum of Money. I never doubted, but the
Muscovites
would exact exorbitant Sums from the Inhabitants of
Dantzick,
which I knew to be the principal Object of their Enterprize. I was informed, moreover, by the same Messenger, that all the
French
Officers were set out for
Narva,
where the Prisoners of War were guarded by two Battalions of
Muscovites.
An accidental Thought came, on this Occasion, into my Head, which you perhaps will regard as strange and whimsical. I had been assured, that the
French
Troops made a Body of about two thousand Men, a Number little inferior to that of the
Muscovites,
by whom they were guarded: I was not unacquainted with the intrepid Courage of the former, and too well convinc'd of the Cowardice of the latter, and the bad Discipline they are under. Having considered these Things, I said within my self, might not the
French
Prisoners find Means to cut off their Guard, to disarm and massacre them, and then to force themselves a Passage, thro the Country. I was not ignorant of the Difficulty which must needs attend the Execution of that Enterprize: But the Place occupied by the
French,
near
Narva,
has always been fertile in extraordinary Events, and I was confirmed in my Opinion by recollecting the Retreat of ten thousand
Greeks,
under
Xenophon.
The
Greeks
of those Days were certainly not more valorous than the
French
now, and the Route these latter must take to arrive at a Place of Safety, is not by far so long as that, taken by the former. The
French
would thereby have acquired immortal Glory, and the Retreat would have gained as universal an Applause, as the World to this Day gives to the ten thousand
Greeks
commanded by
Xenophon.
Let me entreat you, before you censure this Scheme as impractible, to examine in the Maps, whether the Route, which the
French
must have taken to join the Troops of King
Stanislaus,
would have rendered the Undertaking utterly impossible. Had they exerted their Valour, and undergone some Fatigues, I am well assured they would soon have executed this important Enterprize. As for the
Muscovites,
by whom they were guarded, nothing could have been more easy, than to have got rid of them, and was you as well acquainted with that Nation, as I am, you would be entirely of my Opinion. But to convince you yet more of what I here advance, permit me to add a Word or two more, of the Military State of
Muscovy.
As I suppose you to be already acquainted with their Battalions and Squadrons, I shall not take Notice of either of them. They consist of a large Number of Soldiers, but of very few Officers. All these Soldiers have of late been very well cloath'd, and their Arms are pretty good, excepting their Swords. They retain, notwithstanding this, a certain Air, which is by no Means to their Advantage, and which none of them have ever been able to shake off. They make a wretched Appearance, and are far from being dextrous. They are well enough made, very robust, and advantageously shaped, but they are, if I may Use the Expression, lifeless Bodies which are not put in Motion, without great Difficulty. As for their Discipline, they are constantly exercised, and handle their Arms pretty well: But when they come to give Fire, their Emulation only consists, in endeavouring to make the most Noise, without ever concerning themselves, whether they hit the Mark, or their Shot is lost.
They have always appeared to me very much embarrassed, when they perform their Evolutions.
Nothing surprizes me more, than to see what a Value they set upon their Grenadoes; for not a Day of Exercise passes, but they throw a prodigious Number of them, and they take a particular Care to choose the most able Men for Grenadiers. They have hardly any Regard for their Swords, and all that I have seen, in the Hands of my Guard, during the whole Course of my Captivity, are round-pointed. I could not forbear smiling at the Manner whereby they account for this: Those pointed Swords, say they, are useless, as long as we have Bayonets. Poor, ignorant Wretches, not yet to know what Use may be made of a Sword! The
Swedes
have, nevertheless, formerly taught them the Benefit of this Weapon, which I wonder to find they have so soon forgot. It is not my Design here to censure this their Custom, as 'tis not very material, how they Act, provided they know, how to make an Attack, and to defend themselves.
But this is not all. The
Muscovite
Troops discover neither Emulation, Valour, nor Conduct, Qualities, inseparable from a good Soldier. Neither Officers, nor Soldiers, are ever seen to aim at distinguishing themselves by any conspicuous Action. Neither one nor the other have any Motive for engaging in Military Service, but that of obeying the Orders of their Sovereign. Thus have I shewn you, in few Words, what Idea we can have of the
Muscovite
Troops. I have formerly told you their Number, let us now therefore examine what regards their Maintenance.
The Apparel of the
Muscovite
Troops is pretty good, but their Pay is very bad. Those, who are garrisoned at
Petersburg,
have only an Allowance of Bread, and about fifteen
French Deniers per diem.
Those, who are in the Inland Countries, are obliged to be contented with only seven or eight
Deniers,
a very poor Pay indeed. The Allowance of the Officers is likewise, very moderate, and far from being sufficient to enable them to keep a tolerable Table. However trifling this their Pay may seem, it suffices nevertheless for them, and a larger Salary would be needless. The
Muscovites
are content with a very little. Their ordinary Food is only Bread, with a little Salt, and some Water. When they have no Bread, they eat Pease, Beans or Vegetables. They are out of Danger of being starved with Hunger, for if they are destitute of Bread, Meat and Pulse, they can browse upon Grass, and eat all kind of Roots, without the least Inconvenience attending it. Bodies so robust might form excellent Troops, were it possible to inspire them with other Souls, and other Minds. The Horses in
Muscovy
are endued with very near the same Qualities as the Men; for they feed upon whatever they meet with, and are not the less vigorous.
Hence you may judge, how easily a good General, at the Head of the
Muscovite
Troops, might support his Army; he would neither stand in need of Bread, nor Cattle; a few Pulse, some Herbs and Roots would be more than sufficient, and these Provisions may be had every where, with little Trouble and Expence. 'Tis happy for the neighbouring Nations, that those Troops will never be able to render themselves formidable, and though their Fame in
Europe
is at present very great, yet the Time will come, when their Weakness and Impotence will be universally known. There are not wanting those, who for some Time past have entertain'd too favourable an Opinion of this Nation. There was hardly a single
Muscovite
Soldier, before the Siege of
Dantzick,
who had ever seen a Musket fired, and the World has nevertheless loaded them with Praises, which they by no Means deserve. People may entertain what Notion they please of these Soldiers, but I should be glad to see their Performances in a Battle, and till then, I shall hardly be inclined to bestow any Encomiums on them. I believe, they may stand their Ground, for a Time, for they are sturdy enough; but, at the same Time, it is more than probable, they will not be for fighting.
Peter
I. after the Battle of
Narva,
where all his Army was routed, was thoughtful of an Expedient to hinder his Troops from taking to their Flight, but could find no better than that of forming a kind of second Line, behind each Battalion and Squadron, whom he strictly enjoined, to fire upon every one, that should be so cowardly as to retreat. This Precaution will, in all Probability, be still made Use of, to force their Soldiers to stand their Ground, and not be so easily broken. When they see themselves between two Fires, they may sometimes perhaps be obliged, to make a Virtue of Necessity. But can you imagine, that Troops, who stand in Need of such a Spur, can ever fight with Courage and Vigour. I much doubt, or believe rather, that these poor
Muscovites,
seeing themselves between two Fires, will rather submit to be massacred and cut to Pieces, without making any great Resistance. But instead of detaining you with these Conjectures, let us rather examine the great Exploits performed by these Troops, since their coming into
Poland.
In my Passage through
Dantzick
I was informed, as I believe I told you before, that the
Muscovites
had not distinguished themselves by any one conspicuous Action, during the Siege of that City. This is so true, that in the Course of six or seven Months, they could not even gain the Outworks of the Place, though they are at some Distance from the Town, and only fenced with Pallisedoes. What valiant Deed have they rendered themselves famous by, since the Surrender of that City? They have pursued, and endeavoured, by Force, to reduce the Troops, who followed the Party of King
Stanislaus;
but hitherto their Efforts have been fruitless. The Troops of King
Stanislaus,
which the
Muscovites
attempted to overthrow, hardly deserve the Name of regular Troops. The
Muscovites,
on the contrary, had, in diverse Places, several large Bodies of Troops, in the Field, which were more than sufficient, for a greater Enterprize. The Troops of King
Stanislaus,
notwithstanding this, keep their Ground in
Poland,
traverse the whole Country, in the very Sight of the
Russian
and
Saxon
Armies, intercept their Convoys, and have insulted, and even beat their Enemies in several Skirmishes. Hence you may judge, what the Event would have been, if a Body of about fifteen thousand
French
Foot, had joined the
Polish
Cavalry. The
Muscovites
would, beyond all Doubt, have soon be enrouted, and the
Poles
might justly have said,
Jam Scythoe laxo meditantur arcu
Cedere Campis.
What I here assert would infallibly have happened, and we should soon have seen the
Muscovites
under a Necessity of evacuating
Poland.
A General who is but never so little acquainted with the
Russian
Troops, would meet with no great Difficulty in subduing them. He need only to attack and press upon them vigorously, without giving them Time to recollect themselves, and then harrass them by Marches, and Counter-Marches, which would infallibly draw them into several Blunders. Let them but be fatigued and tired out, with continual Motion, Day and Night, for some Time, and you may depend upon seeing these Grass-Eaters, at other Times so vigorous, lye sprawling on the Ground, and giving way to all-powerful Sleep. There is not a Nation in the World, that require more frequent and longer Sleep than the
Muscovites.
I am sure, that if after they have been thus kept in Motion, an Enemy should fall upon and surprize them, he would find them all in a profound Sleep. As they know their Infirmity in this Respect, they commonly take Care, to fortify their Entrenchments sufficiently, or to gain some advantageous Post. The Conduct of a General consists, therefore, in this Case, in dislodging and decoying them into a Place, where they may be attacked; after which, nothing farther is requisite, than to advance towards them briskly, with Sword in Hand, to attack them vigorously, and to fall upon them, without regarding their first Fire. And, in this Manner, they are certainly routed, beyond a Possibility of rallying. But I have detained you long enough on this Subject; and I likewise, hear a Discharge of Artillery, which probably proclaims the
Czarina
's Arrival. Rejoice with me, who am on the Point of seeing my Miseries, and my Adventures at an End. My next Letter will bring you nothing but agreeable Tidings. What a Happiness it will be to me, to quit a Country in which I have endured innumerable Troubles and Missortunes! I now please my self with the Hopes of finding soon some agreeable Solitude, where I may
Ducere sollicita jucunda oblivia vitoe.
LETTER XI.
SIR,
B EFORE I begun to write this Letter, I intended only to advise you, that I was freed from my Captivity, and upon the Point of quitting
Muscovy.
Upon second Thoughts, I altered my Design, and believed it proper to continue the History of my Captivity, and to inform you of the Issue of my Adventures. The Perusal of this last Letter will, perhaps, give you Cause to be surprized at the Constancy, with which I have undergone so many different Trials, as would, perhaps, have thrown any one, but my self, into Despair; I have many a Time earnestly wished you an Eye-Witness of the Evils I have struggled with, and of the Heroick Courage with which I have born them. I am not induced to speak in this Manner, either out of Presumption, or with any Design of attracting your Praises: The Familiarity, you Honour me with, is such, that I may tell you my Mind without any Disguise, and you know me so well, that you cannot think me capable of deceiving you. I am not ignorant, and I think it my Duty to acknowledge, that the Hand of the Almighty, after having humbled me, has graciously vouchsafed me Relief, to prevent my total Fall. 'Tis the same Hand, that loosened my Chains, after having suffered me to be bound with them, and after a rigid Captivity has set me at Liberty, that, in fine, after having led me to the very Brinkof the Grave, has restored me, as it were by a Miracle, to my Health. These Calamities, which I have undergone, seem, by a providential Disposition, to have been intended to recall me from my past Errors.
Hinc omne Principium, huc refer exitum.
But to continue the Sequel of my Adventures, and leave these Reflexions. In my last I informed you, that it had been signified to me, I could not be released from Prison, and obtain my entire Liberty, till the
Czarina
's Return, and that, with the utmost Impatience, I waited for the happy Moment. This gave me Room to hope, that my Liberty would then, in good Earnest, be thought of. I found, nevertheless, maugre all these Promises, no small Difficulty, to bring my Affairs to an End. I could not conceive how they could be so long put off, after having been in the Hands of such eminent Ministers. The Matter was not of so great Importance, but they might have been concluded in one Day. The only Points they had to examine, were, whether I was to be deemed a Criminal in
Muscovy,
for having had an Adventure in
France,
and whether I ought to be detained Prisoner, for having travelled by a fictitious Name? These were, in Reality, all the Crimes I could be accused of, and for which I had been arrested.
Whilst I was thus in Hopes every Minute of being set at Liberty, I was seized with a fresh Distemper, which was the more fatal, as I had not then perfectly recovered my former Strength. A certain kind of Wine, which had been given me to drink, without my perceiving immediately that it was damaged, caused this Indisposition. I was soon reduced to a very pitiful State. My Sickness was violent, it increased daily, and I had no Prospect of any Remedy. Since they were so cruel, as to refuse me a Physician, at a Time, when I stood yet more in Need of one, I could not expect they would grant me that Favour now. After having, for some Days, endured the most exquisite Pains, I found my self at last necessitated to demand an Interpreter.
I obtained one at Length, after many Prayers and Intreaties, who came to me on the 18th of
September.
Take Notice, I beseech you of this Epoch, and recollect, what I mentioned of it formerly. I thought proper to acquaint this Person with my Condition: I told him, that I had Occasion for a Physician, and should be glad, if Mr.
Du Vernoi,
Professor of Anatomy, might be permitted to visit me. I had the Pleasure, the next Day, of seeing Mr.
Du Vernoi
come into my Prison, accompanied by my Interpreter. I leave you to judge how much I rejoiced to see him. I thought my self happy in being allowed to converse with a reasonable Creature, a Satisfaction, I had not enjoyed for a very long Time. His Presence only was in Part my Cure: But I represented my Case to him, and he assured me, that I should have all the Assistance I might stand in Need of. The Interpreter, who stayed with us, whilst I discoursed with this Gentleman, acquitted himself of his Commission, with a most surprizing Dexterity. He had doubtless been charged to hearken attentively to whatever was spoke, in Order to make his Report of it afterwards: For, when I chanced to drop a few
Latin
Words, which were unintelligible to him, he desired to know what I said. I satisfied his Curiosity, and even added, that I had no Secret to communicate to any one, and that the only Thing I had long earnestly wished for, was, to inform the
Czarina,
and her Ministers, of all my Affairs. Diffidence is really carried to too great a Height in
Muscovy,
even in Matters of the least Importance.
Mr.
Du Vernoi
retired, after a pretty long Visit, with a Promise to return, and keep me Company all the next Day. This Favour, which I little expected, occasioned me to think, that I should now meet with different Treatment, and not fail of being soon set at Liberty. But these Hopes, which appeared so well grounded, were of a very short Duration. Mr.
Du Vernoi,
who had promised to visit me the next Day, never came, and in vain I expected him the Day following; in short, I saw him no more during my Captivity. I could never be apprized by any one what could be the Cause of this Disappointment. Mr.
Du Vernoi
was a Gentleman of too much Discretion to mention it to me, but I could easily conceive the Motive. As I was well assured, that this celebrated Anatomist, would have performed his Promise, I soon conjectured, that he had received an Order to the contrary, of which I am persuaded for the following Reason: In the Conversation I had with him, I entered into a circumstantial Account of the Disease I had laboured under, at my Departure from
Muscow,
without, however, mentioning my Suspicion of having been poisoned. The Interpreter, who heard, all I said, may be presumed to have acquainted the Ministers therewith, and they being apprehensive this Mystery of Iniquity would be detected, enjoined Mr.
Du Vernoi
to pay me no farther Visits. To supply the Want of a Physician, they sent me some Medicines, by an unknown Person. I resolved not to make Use of any of their Drugs, but to wait for my Cure from the Strength of my Constitution only. The Relief I every Day received from Mr.
De L'Isle
and his Spouse, and which sufficed for the best Part of my Necessities, contributed not a little to the Recovery of my Health. I may justly say, that to them I am indebted for my Life; for, had I not met with this Succour, from their Hands, I must infallibly have sunk under the Weight of my Miseries.
The
Muscovites
not only refused me what was requisite for my Health, as well as my Food, but likewise suffered me to be almost naked. This cruel Treatment obliged me once more to ask for an Interpreter. My Request was complied with, and I desired him to remonstrate to those Gentlemen, that
"since the Proofs I had given of my Innocence appeared to them not sufficiently convincing, for my Releasement, and since the Motive of Christian Charity was not strong enough to induce them to grant me the Assistance, requisite for my Health, I hoped at least, that they would so far regard the Glory of her Majesty's Name, as not to reduce me to so miserable a Condition, to be even destitute of wherewithal to cover my Nakedness, and that, in short, they would order the Cloaths, which were in my Trunk, to be delivered to me, for my Use."
This Interpreter returned the next Morning, and, in Answer to my Desire, said, that a Present of ten Rubles had been ordered for cloathing me. Dissatisfied with this Answer, I told him, that I did not want their Money, and that, if they would not grant me my Cloaths, I begged they would send me a Taylor, whom I might order to make me what I stood in Need of. The Interpreter retired, and I saw, after this, neither a Taylor, nor my Cloaths, insomuch, that I was obliged to remain in my Prison half naked, tho the cold Season was already pretty far advanced.
It may not be improper here to take Notice, that nothing could be done without the precise Order of the Senate, and that consequently it is they who have been the Cause of all the bad Treatment I have met with. These Gentlemen were, at that same Time, once more pleased to oblige me to shift my Prison, and as they begun to feel the Cold in the new Apartment they were in, removed to their former House, which had been repaired, and sent me to that, which they left. This last Change was no Inconvenience, for I was in a larger Place, where I enjoyed a greater Tranquility.
I silently pass by a large Number of Occurrences of little Importance, as I hope, that this Letter will be the last, which I shall write to you; for I should never have done, were I to attempt an accurate Account of every Circumstance of my Captivity. I shall rather now entertain you with an Account of my Releasement, and the Means, that were made Use of to procure it. I shall with much greater Pleasure relate these Circumstances, and inform you of the happy Hour when I heard this good News, than of the Calamities I have undergone since the Reginning of my Imprisonment.
It was the 16th of
October,
when Word was brought me, that I should soon be set at Liberty. This News, which was certainly the most agreeable I ever received in my Life, was communicated to me, that Day, very early, by a
German
Secretary, who was accompanied by an Interpreter. He told me in the
Czarina
's Name, that I was released, and that a hundred Rubles had been granted for my Travelling Charges. I returned these Gentlemen Thanks for the Trouble they had taken, assuring them at the same Time, that I should receive whatever should be offered me, by Her Majesty's Order, with a most profound Deference. They asked me then, whether I had any further Commands, to which I replied, that I desired nothing else, but that they would prepare the necessary Passes for my speedy Departure. This was all the Discourse I had with those Messengers. But I repeated my Entreaty to the Interpreter, to procure me the Key of my Trunk, in order to come at some Cloaths, that I might pay a Visit to my Friends. He promised instantly to comply with my Desire.
Here I imagine I see you congratulating me, with a smiling and satisfied Countenance, on this happy Change, but moderate, I beseech you, for some Time at least, your Transports of Joy. This News was still only an Amusement. In vain I expected, during the whole Day, to see them come and open my Trunk, and discharge my Guard. I eat nothing but a Morsel of dry Bread; for as I proposed to Dine with Mr.
De L'Isle,
I had provided nothing. The next Day I saw none but my Steward, who gave me some Victuals, without telling me a Word of what had passed. At Length, on the 18th, that remarkable Epoch, I was honoured with a kind of Ambassy, consisting of an Interpreter, three or four Clerks, and several other Persons. The Interpreter broke Silence and said, that he brought a hundred Rubles, to give me as a Present from her Majesty. I answered, that I should receive them with a profound Respect, and that he need only lay them on the Table. This he refused to do, under Pretence, that I must first count them. To this, I replied, that it would not become me to be so scrupulous in what I received as a free Gift: But he having renewed his Instances, and told me, that he must have a Receipt, I no longer hesitated at doing what he desired. He then gave me the Key of my Trunk, which I opened in his Presence, shewing him, that there were a Sword and two Pistols. I would gladly have prevailed on him to discharge my Guard, but he gave me to understand, that he could not take so much upon himself, having received no Orders for that Purpose. He then asked me, what Route I intended to take, when I departed, and whether I chose to go to
Dantzick,
or
Lubeck.
I answered, that my Design was not to repair to either of those Cities, and that I should chuse to travel by Land, not by Sea. He told me, that I would not be permitted to go by Land, and that Orders had already been given for my imbarking.
This Procedure appeared very singular, and even extravagant; upon which I told my Interpreter, that I would write two or three Words, to beg, that this Order might be countermanded. He told me, that he could not take any Writing from my Hands. I desire then, said I, you would tell those who sent you, that I little value my Liberty, if it cannot be granted me, but on Condition of my going to Sea, in the infirm State of Health I am reduced to, and in so advanced a Season, that my Life would be endangered by such a Voyage, which I could never believe to be her Majesty's Intention. Whilst I was thus discoursing with him, he took Occasion to ask, what induced me to refuse a Post in the
Russian
Army. I perceived by the Manner, wherein he asked this Question, that it was only to pump me, I, therefore, gave him no other Reply, than that I did not desire any Employment, and that my Sickness had rendered me incapable of Service. This last Question gave me very great Uneasiness, for I should have been very sorry, to be obliged to remain in
Muscovy.
But thus our Conversation ended.
In this Manner I was set at Liberty, as they called it, though I was still accompanied by my Guard, of whom one had always his Sword drawn. My Steward came soon after the Interpreter was gone, and told me, that I must no longer expect to be dieted as I had been, but must provide my self with all Necessaries. I was, at first, concerned at this News, but, when I considered, that Mr.
De L'Isle
and his Lady would not fail to continue their kind Assistances, I resolved to acquaint them with all that had passed, and beg they would favour me with a Visit. My Steward, who undertook to carry this Message himself, apprized them of my Desire, and they soon came to see me.
O qui complexus & gaudia quanta fuere.
This Interview made me forget all I had suffered in
Muscovy.
I then recollected all the Tokens of Friendship I had received from those generous Persons, in order to express my grateful Acknowledgments. I was so touched with a Sense of their Benefactions, that I could not forbear shedding some Tears. They both answered the Protestations I made, in Terms, which still augmented my Tenderness. After the first Transports of Joy, which Hearts susceptible of a real Friendship always feel on the like Occasions, Mrs.
De L'Isle
was thoughtful of giving me fresh Marks of her Benevolence. As she knew, that I was on the Point of undertaking a long and fatiguing Journey, she desired to see the few Cloaths they had left me, and having found my Linnen in a frightful Condition, she sent the greatest Part of it to her House to be mended, that it might serve me during my Journey. Could Friendship be carried to a greater Height? But what farther Kindness did not she shew me, even till the very Moment of my Departure! She paid me many charitable Visits, provided me with Diet, and all other Necessaries, and in short, omitted Nothing, wherein she could be in the least serviceable to me. Having been informed, that I eagerly wished, to know what had passed in
Europe
during my Pilgrimage and Captivity, to satisfy my Curiosity on that Head, she found Means of conveying to me all the News-Papers. The Service she did me, on that Occasion, was one of those, of which I was most truly sensible.
This first Visit was pretty long, and they came the very next Day again, accompanied by Mr.
Du Vernoi.
I told this Gentleman, that I did not, in the least, doubt but he would have continued to visit me, had he not been forbid, and that I thought my self never the less oblig'd to him. They spent great Part of that Day in my Chamber, and nothing could be a greater Satisfaction to me, than an Opportunity of conversing with so agreeable Company, after having been, during the Space of more than a Year, as it were deaf and dumb. I might then very justly say:
Verba intermissa retento.
Not a Day passed but they visited me, and especially Mrs.
De L'Isle,
who gave me each Time some new Marks of her Benevolence.
Nothing hindered the Completion of my Happiness, but the Resolution that had been anew taken, to oblige me to go away by Sea. The Weather happened luckily for me to be very frosty at the Time of my intended Departure, insomuch, that those who had already laid out my Way, were obliged to change their first Design, and to grant what I had so earnestly desired. The River was in a few Days frozen up, and the Way to
Croonstad,
which I was to have taken, was no longer practicable. Providence seemed designedly to frustrate all the wicked Designs of my Enemies, and to perform continual Miracles in my Behalf.
Nemo tam pater quàm Deus.
Pleased with the Change, which had happened, I thought of nothing more than making the necessary Preparations for my Departure. I only feared, the
Muscovites
would find some Pretence or other for laying fresh Obstacles in my Way. They had deceived me so often, that I could no longer depend on their Word. And, indeed, though it had already been declared to me, in her Majesty's Name, that I was at Liberty, and that, to defray the Expence of my Journey, the Sum of 100 Rubles had been given me, I was still confined in my Prison, and continued to be under the Inspection of a Guard, who watched all my Steps. I could not, I confess, conceive the Cause of this Proceeding: I was told, on the one Hand, that I was entirely released, and my Guard, on the other Side, received strict Orders, not to let me go out of their Sight. I looked upon the Liberty they had given me to make use of my Sword and Pistols, as a Snare, laid for me, to draw me into some Quarrel, that they might have a fresh Pretence, to detain me in Prison. They sent, besides, many People into my Prison, and especially my late Steward, to persuade me to enter into Service in the
Czarina
's Troops. These Persons I looked upon as so many Spies, whom I had Reason to distrust. However, not to provoke their Rage, I alledged the same Excuses, which I had before made to the Interpreter, without expressing the least Discontent at the Usage I had received. They thought, perhaps, that, since I came into
Muscovy
with a View of procuring some Post in the Army, I should not refuse to accept of an advantageous Offer. But these Gentlemen were grossly mistaken, I should rather have chosen to spend the Residue of my Days in a Desart, than to live among them. This may perhaps be the Effect of Prejudice, but I look upon
Muscovy
as a Place of Banishment, where some few Foreigners are the only sociable Creatures, that are to be met with.
Such was the Situation of my Affairs, when Mr.
De L'Isle
and his Wife, who still continued to visit me, invited me to dine with them, and spend a Day at their House. They probably knew, that Favour would not be denied me, and that I should obtain it without any Difficulty. I therefore made the Request, and found it immediately complied with. My former Steward, with several others, were ordered, the first Day of my going abroad, narrowly to watch my Steps. Just before I went out of my Prison, I told him, that I hoped I might now have a Barber, and not be at the Trouble of shaving my self. To this he replied, that he knew not whether I could be allow'd one, but that he would go and enquire. At his Return, he told me, I might be shaved, but must leave my Sword in my Chamber. I obeyed, and went to Mr.
De L'Isle
's, where I had the Pleasure of spending the rest of the Day.
I cannot express the Joy, with which I was received in that House, where even the Servants endeavoured to outvie each other in rendring me their Services. I had, that Day, no Cause to complain of the Behaviour of my Guard, but they afterwards carried their Insolence to such an Excess, that I resolved to go out no more. At the same Time, I acquainted the Ministers with all that had passed, declaring, that I chose rather to continue in my Prison, than to be thus exposed to the abusive Treatment of my Guard, who had not the least Regard for me, and behaved as disrespectfully to the Persons, to whose Houses I was invited. As I received no Answer, I chose to remain quietly in my Chamber, 'till I could obtain Leave to go abroad alone. Orders were a few Days after given to my Guard to sheath their Swords, and to withdraw into my Anti-Chamber. This was the first Time, during a whole Year, that I had been alone, without any one to inspect my Actions. It is somewhat uncommon, that a Person, confined to a narrow Prison, should so ardently wish to be deprived of all Company: But this was, nevertheless, my Case; for an entire Solitude was to me much more agreeable, than to be always infested with the Company of those Animals.
All necessary Preparations were, in the mean Time, made for my Journey, and nothing farther was wanting for my Departure, but the Passes they had promised me. Some Papers, which I had been robbed of at
Casan,
were still in the Hands of the
Muscovites.
But they were not so very momentous, as to give me any Uneasiness. I had already, for several Days, made pressing Instances for Leave to depart, but having met with no Answer, I wrote a short Memorial, wherein
"I remonstrated to those Gentlemen, that a longer Stay would put me to greater Expences, and that I should be thereby reduced to a Want of Money for my Journey. I likewise begged, that they would procure me Passes from the Ministers of those Princes, through whose Dominions I was to pass, in Order to return to
Italy.
I desired, in the last Place, that they would restore my Papers, and, if they thought, that the short Journal from
Petersburg
to
Casan
contained any Thing mysterious, they were welcome to keep it. I said the same with Regard to another Paper, in which I had made several Observations on the
Wolga,
and told them, that they were extracted from
Olearius.
"
After I had finished this Memorial, I would have given it to an Interpreter, who came for a fresh Receipt for the 100 Rubles, which the
Czarina
had presented me with. But he refused to receive it, and I was obliged to tell him the Contents of it. I was too well acquainted with the
Muscovites,
to be in the least surprized at this Procedure, I easily guessed at the Inducements they had not to hear me. Give me Leave to acquaint you with this whole Affair, which is of no great Honour to these Gentlemen.
You may remember, I told you before, that I had been robbed of Part of those Cloaths and Effects, which were locked up in my Trunk. In order therefore, to prevent my coming to any Expostulation on that Head, they thought proper to forbid every Body to receive any Representation or Writing from my Hands. They supposed, without Doubt, that the Sum given me, was more than sufficient to make good the Loss I had sustained, by what had been taken from me. But they were strangely mistaken, for the Damage was very considerable. This, Sir, was the only Motive, that induced them not to give Ear to me, and to refuse the Acceptance of any Papers I might offer. Such is the Treatment, a Stranger is to expect in
Muscovy,
where it is a very difficult Matter to procure Justice. But I was their Pastime, on many other Occasions, and I may truly say, that I was their Victim, from the first Hour of my Captivity, till the Moment of my Departure. Besides the many Instances I have given you of this, I beg leave to mention one more.
More than a Month had passed since it had been signified to me, that I was at Liberty, and yet Icould not be permitted to quit the Country. This Slowness of proceeding made me very uneasy, and gave me some Suspicions. I feared a Proposal of staying in
Muscovy,
and was not ignorant of the Danger that would attend a Refusal of an Offer in their Troops.
On the 22d of
November,
it was at last told me, I might set out directly. This Message was brought me by my former Steward, who at the same Time asked me how many Horses I would have. I told him, that I should have Occasion for four, but was resolved not to go, till I had received my Writings, and the necessary Passes. An Interpreter came, the next Day, to bring me 50 Rubles, which he had been ordered to give me, and assured me, that the following Day was fixed upon for my Departure. I answered, that the Sum, which the
Czarina
had already been pleas'd to send me, was sufficient to defray the Expence of my Journey, but when he replied, that he offered me this farther Sum by Her Majesty's Order, I could not but accept of it, with Deference, and give him a Receipt for it. I had too great a Veneration for the Name of the
Czarina,
not to receive most submissively whatever could be offered me by her Orders; otherwise, I assure you, I should have flatly refus'd this Money, as I was not destitute of wherewithal to supply all my Wants.
As I no longer doubted of going the next Day, after the Assurances I had just before received, I gave immediate Notice thereof to Mr.
De L 'Isle,
and his Spouse, who came directly with Mr.
Du Vernoi,
to spend the Day with me. Though I had now Reason to think my self at the Height of my Wishes, yet my parting from them very much affected me. The Regret with which I left Mr.
De L'Isle
and his Spouse, was the greater, as I had no Hopes of ever seeing them again, nor of giving them any Tokens of my Friendship and Acknowledgement. Mrs.
De L'Isle,
not satisfied with the Favours she had till then bestowed on me, would again furnish me with a large Quantity of Provisions.
Every Thing was ready for my Departure, the next Day, which was the 24th, when a Messenger came and told me, that I must still wait till the 26th, which was to be the Day of my entire Deliverance. My Papers were sent me at Ten in the Morning, but they retained Part of them, with the Journal, I mentioned above. I was then asked, when I intended to set out, and, having answered, the sooner the better, they said they would go and fetch the Horses. As for the Passes which I had so often demanded, they promised indeed, that I should have them, but never performed their Promise. Was not this an Instance of crying Injustice, thus to oblige a Man to travel without a Pass, in the Situation which the Affairs of
Europe
were then in? Their being themselves so scrupulous on that Head, makes me the more astonished at it, for if a Stranger happens unfortunately to come into their Country, without being provided with one, he is sure to be exposed to Slavery for several Years. The only Pass I could obtain was in the
Muscovite
Language, and you shall soon see, what Terms it was conceived in. But I must leave this Subject, and proceed to an Account of my Journey.
I set out from
Petersburg
at four o' Clock, in a Sled, and took the Road for
Narva,
from whence having continued my Journey, with Speed and Success, I arrived at
Riga,
on the third of
December,
in the Afternoon. The Person who had been appointed my Guide, carried me to the House of General
Felkersham.
That Gentleman gave me a very kind Reception, and treated me in a Manner, that shewed the Difference between a
German
and a
Muscovite.
After the first Compliment, he told me, that I need only appoint the Time, when I intended to continue my Journey, and he would give the necessary Orders. I replied, that I was entirely dependant on his Pleasure, but since he was so kind as to give me my Choice, I begged he would let me depart as soon as possible. He answered in the most obliging Terms, that I might go instantly, if I pleas'd, but that he hoped, I would, at least, honour him with my Company that Night. I signified to him, that I was not in a Condition to accept so kind an Offer, and being very weary, begged he would permit me to look out for a Lodging, that I might immediately go to Rest. After having renewed his Intreaties, he suffered me to go, and by his Order I was lodg'd in a House near his, where he sent me a very elegant Supper. Every Thing was prepared for my Departure the next Morning. As I had no Time to lose, I repaired immediately to the General, to take my Leave of him, and to express my most grateful Acknowledgments. He introduced me into his Lady's Apartment, to drink a Dish of Tea. I there found two very beautiful and accomplished Ladies, which made me not a little ashamed, to appear in their Presence, in a Dress little better than that of a Savage. After having breakfasted, I I retired, very well satisfied with the Reception I had met with.
I then set out with a Secretary, a well-bred Man, who had Orders to accompany me as far as the Confines of
Livonia.
So great a Thaw had happened, that in crossing the
Dwina,
I found the Water a Foot deep above the Ice, insomuch that I travelled that Day more by Water, than by Land. I lay by that Night, and when I was about to depart, the next Morning, Mr. Secretary, in a very polite Manner, addressed himself to me, and paid me a
Muscovite
Compliment, which he had probably been charged with. He delivered to me a
German
Pass, and told me, that, by Her Majesty's Order, he gave me Notice, I was now entirely at Liberty, but that I was forbid ever to set Foot in the
Muscovite
Dominions again. At first, this Compliment greatly enraged me, but I had a sufficient Command over my Passion, to moderate it, and not to give him the Answer it deserved. I only told him, that they had Room to think such a Prohibition needless, but since it had been thought necessary, he might assure his Masters, that the
Czarina
's Orders should be punctually observed.
What think you, Sir, of this last Step? Was this a Compliment to make to a Man, whom they had found as innocent as a Lamb? I ought to have informed those Gentlemen, that, if it should ever be my Fate to come into their Country again, it should be in so good Company, that they would find it a little more difficult to seize my Sword, than at my Arrival at
Casan,
and that I never intended to appear again in
Muscovy,
unless it was with Fire and Sword. But am I not to blame, to wish them Harm? Was it not a great Favour to permit me thus to go out of their Country, and did I not quit it at an easy Rate, after having been in Danger of being shut up and buried there for Life? For, by the
Muscovite
Politicks, a Man is to be irretrieveably undone, after they have proceeded so far, as to abuse him, as they had done me, without a just Pretence; unless they would endeavour to detain him by such kind Treatment as might make him forget all that is past. They have therefore not used me with that Rigour, which is prescribed by their Politicks, and I ought consequently to acknowledge my self obliged to them. I am not less beholden to them for suffering me to depart: For the Life, I could have led in
Muscovy,
I should have esteemed as a continual Death. They probably thought, that an
Italian
could never pardon them for the bad Usage he had received from their Hands, and, following the Maxims of a salutary Policy, they chose rather to have an Enemy without Doors, than in their own Country. They judged it perhaps likewise improper, to detain a Man, who would not be governed by their Pleasure, though a Slave, and who might some Time or other find Access to a Person, from whom they carefully conceal those Things, which she ought to be best acquainted with. To all these Motives may be added, that the
Muscovites
are already burthened with many Strangers, whom they mortally hate, and that they are very unwilling to see any more settled among them. But be that as it will, I am resolved to forget them, and to abandon them to their own Remorse; if they are capable of having any.
Here I should conclude my Letter, and the Recital of my Adventures; for, since the
Muscovites
will not be farther mentioned, you must not expect to hear any Thing extraordinary, or that may excite your Curiosity. But,
Restabat Fatis aliquid,
of which I must give you an Account.
After having left my Secretary, I proceeded to
Mittau,
the Capital of
Courland,
where I was obliged to stop. As I found it impossible to travel any farther in a Sled, because of the Thaw, I was necessitated there to hire a Wheel-carriage. I got one made after the Manner of the Country, to carry me as far as
Memmel,
the first City in
Prussia.
In this Journey I met with diverse Adventures. The first of these appears somewhat Romantick, but is nevertheless very true. Being arrived, the first Day, towards the Evening, at an Inn, which was the only one, in a vast Forest, I was going instantly to Bed, without my Supper, the House not affording any Thing. No sooner was I gone into my Chamber, than I heard a great Noise at the Door of the House, and fancied I heard somebody speak
French.
I went out immediately, and having asked whether I had not heard
French
spoken, I was answered in the Affirmative. I then addressed my self to these Strangers, saying, Come in, Gentlemen, this indeed is a very bad Inn, you will find nothing to eat here, but you will meet with a Person, who will be very glad of your Company. I saw, at the same Time, a Man of a graceful Aspect entring, but as he had a large Cap on, I could not well distinguish his Face. When we paid each other our mutual Compliments of Civility, I thought I heard a Voice, well known to me, and mine had the same Effect on him. After having view'd each other attentively, we both recollected our selves, and embraced one another, not without being struck with Surprize, at meeting in this Place. This Accident seemed to give him some Disquiet, for he had strong Reasons, not to discover himself to any Body. He begged I would entirely forget his Name, after which we discoursed together, and had many Subjects to entertain each other upon.
I asked him several Questions very pressingly, and he satisfied my Curiosity in many Points. He happened, fortunately for me, to have some good Provisions, which furnished us a comfortable Supper, and then we went to Rest. As he came from the same Country, which I had just before left, and intended to go the same Way, which I took, we set out together the next Morning, and put up at the same Inn at Night. When I, however, perceived, that he could not recover from his first Uneasiness, and found, besides, I was a Burden to him, I resolved to wish him a good Journey, and parted with him the more willingly, as my Horses, being not so good as his, could hardly keep Pace with him.
You expect perhaps some farther Account of this Adventure, but I am tied down to Silence, and will perform the Promise I made of inviolable Secrecy; which, if I should not, I must unavoidably inform you of certain Matters, which are still of too great Importance. An Adventure very different from this, will be better worth your Notice, by which you may see, what a Man must expect, who has once begun to be unfortunate.
The tenth Day a general Thaw ensued, and the Roads were extreamly bad. Having met with Places, that appeared very dangerous, I sent my Postilion to sound them, and he found that they could not be passed with Safety. We went a great way about in Search of another Passage. My Guide, who thought he had found a good one, led me into a kind of Pit, the only one, perhaps, in the whole Country, in which we were almost buried, with our Horses and Carriage. It was not without great Difficulty we got out, and it was a singular good Fortune, that we did not lose our Lives by this Accident. To suffer Shipwreck by Sea, to be cast away in a Lake, or in a River, are Things common: Accidents of that Kind happen daily: But to meet with that Misfortune by Land, in the midst of arable Ground, this can never happen to any one, but him, who
Minxit in patrios cineres.
In this Condition, I was obliged to travel, four or five Hours-Journey, before we came to an Inn. That we came to was tolerably good, and I was obliged to stay there three Days to cleanse my self. My Goods were all entirely spoiled, and especially my Writings, which I regretted more than all the rest. I arrived, however, the 15th at
Memmel,
where I was obliged to take a Sled to go to
Konigsburg.
There could not possibly be a worse Way than this proved. The Ice was in many Places cracked, and sometimes so covered with Water, that it was not possible to get forwards. I never, in my Life, had so painful and fatiguing a Journey; and I cannot better compare the Danger I was in, than to that of being obliged to stand one's Ground, against a Battery of well-placed Cannon. Nevertheless, the same Supreme Being, who, for some Time, had only laid a heavy Burden upon me with one Hand, to relieve me with the other, conducted me safe to
Konigsburg,
the last Day of the Year 1734.
When I came into the City, I found I was a Spectacle to every Body; for I pretty much resembled either the Prodigal Son, or some Fugitive Slave. I was carried before General
Cat,
who doubtless perceived the Confusion I was in, to appear before him, in that Equipage, and, therefore, was so good to dispatch me immediately. I took my Lodging in the first Inn I came at, and, at my Entrance into it, offered up my Prayers to Heaven, to vouchsafe me some Rest from my Labour.
Contenti nostris, Di, precor, esto, malis.
Being arrived at
Konigsburg,
I thought it was now out of the Power of the
Muscovites
to give me any new Uneasiness: But I found my self mistaken, and met with a fresh Instance of their Malice and Baseness. The Case was this. I have already told you, that at my Departure from
Petersburg,
I required several Passes, which were refused me, and that they only gave me one in the
Muscovite
Tongue. At
Riga,
they gave me another in
German,
of which I understood as little as of the former. When I came before General
Cat,
at
Petersburg,
I shewed him these Passes; and notwithstanding the powerful Reasons which might have induced him to make me pass a strict Examination, he took no Notice of the Passes, but gave me Leave to go and repose my self.
The next Morning, I gave them to my Landlord, who had Orders to demand them from me, and to examine them. What he did with them, I know not; but when he returned them, he asked me if I knew their Contents; upon which, telling him, I was wholly ignorant thereof, he promised to get them translated for me. He soon returned with the Translations; but how great was my Surprize, when casting an Eye upon them, I found, that the
Muscovites,
not contented with having forbid me, by the Mouth of their Secretary, ever to set-Foot into their Dominions again, had even inserted the same Compliment in their Passes. Tho' a long Captivity, and other ill Usage I had already met with, in
Muscovy,
had accustomed me to bear every Thing patiently, it was impossible for me to put up quietly with this. I had Reason to fear, that General
Cat,
after having seen the Contents of these Passes, might take me for a Person who had been guilty of some enormous Crime in
Muscovy,
and had been shamefully banished for it. This lay the heavier upon me, as I was very much tired, and withal, in Want of Money, and, therefore, under a Necessity of making some Stay at
Konigsburg.
All my Thoughts were taken up with this preposterous Event, which struck at my Reputation. From this Moment I forgot all the other Evils I had suffered, the Dangers I had been exposed to, the Captivity I had undergone, the Indignities which had been offered me; nay, the very Prison it self, which had brought me to the Brink of the Grave; all this, I say, was as nothing to me, in Comparison with the melancholly State I was now reduced to. I want Terms to express the Vileness of this Action.
With this extraordinary
Catastrophe,
I shall finish the Narrative of my Adventures. The Compliance which is due to the great Intimacy and Friendship that is between us, has engaged me in it: But for a fuller Account of them, I must reserve it till I have the Happiness of embracing you. I am now, Dear Sir, just upon my Departure to be with you, since you invite, and so earnestly press me to it. I shall once more give my self up to the Mercy of an Element, which seems to threaten me with new Misfortunes. Heaven sure is provoked against me, and I fear that
Fata mihi totum me sint agitanda per orbem.
FINIS.