The spirit of party, as well as literary afcendency, appears to have burft forth early in young D'Aubigny's mind, and the incident which first excited it, probably impreffed on his mind that conftitutional antipathy to the Catholic fuperftition, which was the leading feature of his character, and determined the fate of his life. Riding with his father to Amboise, he remarked the heads of feveral Hugonots, who had been lately executed at that place; but when he heard fome of them were particular friends of his family, he exclaimed, "Scoundrels and hangmen have depopulated France! The anxious parent, alarmed for the fafety of his child, directly hurried him away. Actuated by fimilar zeal, in his future life, whenever he commanded at the taking a town, he always obliged the prifoners to make the following addition to their capitulation; nouncing for ever, and to all intents and purposes, the authority of the deteftable Council of Conftance." He alfo ftrictly obferved, after gaining any important advantage, the good old cuftom of returning thanks to the Almighty on his knees. At thirteen he became an orphan : "The good old man," fays our author, fpeaking of his father, " mended to me, with his dying breath, three things, which I hope I have not forgot; the love of truth, a zeal for religion, and an unwearied pursuit of knowledge."

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As foon as it was understood that a diffenter might be injured with impunity, he was oppreffed

as a fectary, and plundered as a minor; but escaping from a prifon in which he had been confined for rafh zeal or juvenile indifcretion, he was fent to finish his ftudies, or confirm his calviniftic principles at Geneva, and afterwards went to Lyons. At the laft of thefe places he improved himself in mathematicks, and in magic, "refolving, at the fame time, to take no advantage of his know. ledge of that myfterious art;" an art he might have added, fo dangerous at different periods to its profeffors, and fo harmless to every one befides. But whatever were his powers, his convictions, or his attainments, they were not fufficient to preferve him from poverty and diftrefs, to which the fraud of others, and his own want of conduct, had reduced him. Lively men, when dejected, are faid to be the most melancholy of ani mals; and the fubject of our prefent article, who capered, coquet, ted, danced, fung, and made more racket and noife than any mad-cap of the neighbourhood, refolved, the inftant adverfity frowned in his face, which bottle companions in all ages have confidered as a fignal for defertion, he refolved to rid himfelf of all forrow by fuicide. But previous to taking fo aweful and unwarrantable a ftep, he determined, under the combined impulfe of devotion and def pair, to afk pardon of his Maker, for the crime he was about to commit, and fell on his knees near the banks of the Saon. He was rouzed from prayer by the trotting of a horse over an adjoining bridge: thinking it his duty to

try

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try all expedients before he had recourfe to the last fatal one, and ftimulated by revolting nature, to catch even at a momentary refpite, he hurried to the spot, and fortunately discovered that the perfon on horfeback was one of his rela-, tions in the fuite of Admiral Chatillon. From this gentleman he received a fupply of money and good advice, neither of which he made a proper ufe of; for he frankly confeffes, that his induftry and application to study, confiderably relaxed; that he disliked books, and was never eafy out of company; that he had acquired the character of a facetious companion in joyous circles; a fporter of epigrams and fatirical repartee; a mimic and a buffoon; accomplishments, which we are fo ready to join in and admire, at the convivial table, although in the cool hour of reflection, we dread and avoid the perfons who poffefs them; an axiom confirmed by daily experience, which certain young men of strong animal fpirits, in the glow of a fecond bottle, and panting for diftinétion as wits and bon-vivants, will do well to recollect and apply. With fuch tendencies which had deranged his finances, the fubject of our prefent article, entered as a volunteer into the army, that laft and common refuge for violent fpirits, and what Mr. Burke calls fifcal difficulties; Guyenne, Anjou, Touraine, Normandy, and Picardy, were the fcenes of his provincial campaigns, in which the impetuofity of youth, hurried him into many imminent dangers, and hair-breadth escapes, while the flippancy of his tongue, and the eccentric livelinefs of his

manners, attracted the notice, and fometimes the difpleafure of his

officers.

On a field-day, ridiculing and cenfuring in his ufual way, the aukwardnefs of fome of his affociates, in which, though correct as to the matter in queftion, he had neither authority or right to interfere; his talking and loud laughing were remarked by the Prince of Cohdè, who demanded the name of that forward and troublesome young man. On being told, he recollected his family, fent for him, and, in a good-natured way checking his intemperate vivacity, asked the Colonel if he could fpare his young volunteer. "I will make your Royal Highnefs a prefent of him with great pleasure," replied the commanding officer, glad to get rid of an unmanageable ftripling. "A truce with making prefents, my good Colonel," cried D'Aubigny in a characteristic ftrain of youthful levity, "a truce with your prefents, you may give away a dog, or a hawk, a valet, or even a mistress, when you are tired of her, but young men of my metal are not to be difpofed of with fo little ceremony." After thanking the Prince for his kind intentions, he politely declined his offer, and retired.

At the age of nineteen, his imagination was inflamed, and his mufe infpired by the charms of Diana Salviati, but, like other romantic heroes, he met with dif ficulties; flender finances, and dif ference in religious opinions, proved a bar to fuccefs in his first love, which communicates a blifs on its approaches, a lover only can

defcribe,

defcribe, and which, it is faid, even a lover can feel but once." This disappointment," he obferves,

was fatal to the beautiful Diana, who drooping like a flower nipped by untimely froft, at length died of a broken heart." I have seen in an old collection of French poetry, a fong called Le Printemps de D'Aubigny, the ftanzas of which are ftrongly marked with ardent defire and violence of paffion, fuch as a man of his fiery temperament, must naturally have felt."

In his twentieth year, he was introduced to Henry the Fourth, as a young man whom neither difficulty, diftrefs, danger, hunger, thirst, or cold, would prevent from doing his duty; but as a drawback from this recommendation, it was added, that he would not bear reftraint or oppofition, and would, on every occafion, and whatever the confequence, always fpeak his mind. He escaped almost miraculously the maffacre of St. Bartholomew, having, by accident or from bufinefs, left Paris only a few hours before that volcano of popery and hell burft forth. This tragedy is never mentioned without an obvious reflection, directly prefenting itself to my mind; the circumftance to which I refer, is the trifling and ineffectual refiftance made by the unfortunate victims, or the few of their relations who escaped. That in almoft every instance they were flaughtered at an unguarded moment, without previous alarm, and for the moft part without apt weapons in their hands, is, I acknowledge, a fufficient reafon; but if one individual escaped, he was deficient in his duty to God, as well as man,

in not devoting the fhort remainder of a life, deprived by murderers of all his friends and all his fatisfactions, in devifing means of fweeping, in terrible and comprehenfive ruin, the perpetrators of that abomination from the face of the earth.

The fame Being who hath pronounced, that the department of vengeance is his, hath alfo emphatically decreed, "That he who fheddeth man's blood, BY MAN fhall his blood be fhed;" a cool, a premeditating cool murderer, walking the world not only in credit, but, as was the cafe with the St. Bartholomew affaffins, with glee and boafting to his grave, is an outrage on morality, and almost an argument against a Divine Providence. Had I been one of the miferable furviving remnant of those men whofe infants, wives, parents and relations, had been butchered by the merciless ruf. fians, neither books, nor business, nor pleasure, neither royal frowns, or female fmiles, should have turned me afide from the measure of juft revenge; I would have ftrained every nerve to prevent, by fignal and memorable example, by fire, by fword, by fraud, or by force, a repetition of such enormities, fhould fimilar men, with fimilar principles, at any future period predominate; for I again repeat (though mine has been checked as fuperfluous, illtimed, and unneceffary zeal) I again repeat, fupported by evidence prefenting itself on every fide, by words and by actions, that the reftlefs, perturbed, infidious fpirit, the horrid perfecuting inquifitorial spirit of the popish

religion,

that although ingratitude has been accounted a royal vice which paid well, yet, from the nature of men and things, the faithful fervants of a king, like those of God, must have other reliances, and rewards more folacing to look forward to, than prompt and immediate retribution."

The banished courtier, with a few followers attached to his fortunes, immediately refolved on offering his fervices to Prince Cafimir, fon of the Elector Palatine; but, in his journey, like other knights errant, was again wounded by female glances from a window, as he paffed through a country town. The fair unknown, proved, on enquiry, to be Sufannah de Zezay, of the houfe of Vivonne, and a celebrated provincial toaft. A man compofed of inflammatory materials, foon found means of introduction, for, as the lover obferves,

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ment amoureux." His expedition to the Palatinate was given up, and, for a time, his military ardor cooled; the lady was afterwards his wife, and is often praised by him for obedience, that firft of duties in a married woman;' which, in the cafe of D'Aubigny, it probably was, as oppofition appears to have always rouzed him to an extravagant pitch of fury and resentment.

With fuch fpirits, it feems the wifeft and kindest part of friendfhip and affection, in irritable mo ments, to avoid difcuffing difputa ble points, and to endeavour, if poffible, by diverting attention to other channels, and by the fafcination of female converse, to foothe

and foften, rather than fan the flames of difcontent, by ill-timed appeals, and unavailing expoftulation, however reasonable ́and right. Peculiar tempers I would treat like bodily difeafes, by abftinence, by regimen, and diet; and the medical man, who would order a patient with weak ancles, to run a race, or prescribe for a nervous hysterical woman, novels, tragedy, and green tea, would furely deferve reprehenfion. To many of my female readers, recommending condefcenfion and fubmiffion, even when they are the party aggrieved, will probably appear a mortifying leffon; but the advantage it will give them in the cool hours of reflection, and the glory of felf-conqueft, will make ample compenfation for the facrifice. A neglect or contempt of this apparently trifling point, has, in a thousand inftances, hurried youth, beauty, and accomplifhment, to feparation, infamy, and Doctor's Commons, while the plainest and most homely creatures alive, without one attraction, corporal or mental, by attending to this, "which, though no science, far outweighs them all," have paffed through life with ease, fatisfaction and comfort.

Letters in the mean time were delivered to D'Aubigny from the king, which (affecting the pride of injured worth) he threw, unopened, into the fire; mixing however a little worldly policy with his refentments; and after repeated invitation, and affurances, that his offences fhould be overlooked, the truant returned to his master, but found that the Catholics, in his abfence, had been bufy with

Henry,