⚫ longer) for the fake of the true religion (as fhe called it) for which he was, without doubt, a great faint. The zeal of ⚫ the old lady made me fmile, at which fhe grew angry; but on my prefenting her with a gratuity for fhewing me thefe facred remains, as the often called them, we became good friends again. I then afked her the reafon, why they did not inter his Majefty, and not fuffer him to be exposed there, as an unhappy monument of his folly; or otherwise to put up a new fet of hangings, as thofe at present were grown old and rufty, and made but a very mean appearance. She answered me with a frown, and in an angry tone, that he was to lie in that manner till his corpfe could be conveyed to England, in order for its being interred with •his royal ancestors in Westminster-Abbey; and to have a religious proceffion from the Tower of London to the faid Abbey.

P. 51. I paid a vifit to the convent of the Carthufians *. This order was formerly one of the ftricteft in all the Romifh church.-The Monks were permitted to speak to each other one day only throughout the year: but by this reftriction, fome funk into the deepest melancholy, and others •hanged themselves. The Pope of thofe days, taking thefe things into his confideration, indulged them with greater liberties; and, ever fince, they have been permitted to con• verfe together on every Thursday, but at no other time. Every Monk has a fmall house, at about twenty yards diftance from each other: thefe houses form a large fquare, ⚫ with a piazza entirely round it, where they generally walk: ⚫ their apartments are kept very neat; their fhirt is made of

coarfe hair; their outward garment, which is made of fine ⚫ white flannel, has a decent appearance; and, notwithstanding their total abftinence from flefh, they look hearty and chearful. They are permitted, however, at any time to ⚫ converse with a stranger; I spent an hour with one of them, whose converfation and behaviour were thofe of a gentle• man, which I did not expect to meet with in the feverity of a cloister.-They lay their own cloth, dine alone in ⚫ their apartments, and receive their provifions by the help of a machine, which turns round, and is fixed in the wall. • Monafteries and Abbeys, instead of promoting religion, abuse it, and are founded neither in reafon nor Chriftianity. What

For a fuller account of the Carthufians, fee R. Hofpinianus, de Orig. Monachat, p. 309-311.

• fervice

⚫ service can it be to mankind, to have fo many persons of ⚫ both sexes, fecluded for ever from the reft of their fellow⚫ creatures, and maintained like fo many idle drones, by the • mistaken piety and folly of others.?

P. 78. From Avignon, I fet out for Aix, the road to which lies through the most beautiful country I ever faw: you pafs ⚫ over feveral downs, covered with lavender, thyme, rofemary, and other fweet aromatic herbs: the vallies are filled with groves of olive, and almond-trees, &c. intermixed with vineyards.The air of Aix is esteemed the best in France, ⚫ which draws abundance of quality, efpecially foreigners, to <refide here. It is feldom without fome English families. The fituation is another great inducement, having on one fide a beautiful plain, abounding with vineyards, orange, olive, fig, and almond-trees; and on the other fide, at a fmall diftance, very high mountains. It is a parliament town, genteelly built, and the streets are large, and well laid out. The Cour, or public walk, is very beautiful, much refembling the Mall, in St. James's Park; there are four fine fountains, at proper diftances, continually playing; the trees on each fide form a bower, which agreeably fhelters you from the heat of the fun. Behind the trees are two rows of well⚫ built houses; fo that, altogether, it is one of the pleasantest ftreets I ever met with. Of a fummer's evening, it is full of polite company."

P. 84. The French, in general, are lively, and full of gaiety, in a greater degree than any nation, I believe, upon earth; owing, in a great measure, to the purity of the air, ⚫ and charming temperature of their climate. They are loquacious, free, and open, at their first acquaintance, when you fee the whole of them, for they feldom improve afterwards. They are inconftant, and full of levity. Their nobleffe are the politeft in Europe, but their civility is at⚫tended with little fincerity. They are fond of outside shew and grandeur, and delight in making a figure at the Capital for a few months; tho' they live but meanly the rest of the year, at their country-feats. The women are very free in their behaviour, and have an air of eafe and gracefulness peculiar to themselves are extremely talkative, and of an infinuating difpofition. In fome parts of France they may be reckoned handfome, but, on the whole, are vaftly inferior, in point of beauty, to the English ladies. They are naturally coquettes, and given to intrigue. They deform nature by art, and paint their faces moft extravagantly; and want that bloom which is fo confpicuous in our lovely

coun

⚫ countrywomen. The common people are the poorest, and at the fame time the merrieft, in the world. They feem ⚫ very devout in their churches, except on feftivals, when they are too much taken up in admiring the mufic and trappings of the church. They are in general complaifant, tho' too ⚫ often hot and fiery. In war, greedy of glory, and brave at the first onfet; but, if once repulfed, they feldom rally. They go on like thunder, and come off like smoke. In politics the French facrifice all to the glory of their Monarch; this is their darling paffion, in the profecution of which, they regard neither oaths, nor the most folemn -treaties; and being flaves themfelves, would gladly reduce • mankind to their own miferable condition. The neighbouring nations, but especially the English, cannot be too much on their guard against the perfidy and ambitious defigns of the • French.'

P. 96. Their public executions at Sienna, are the ftrangest in the world: I fhall therefore give the Reader an account of the ceremonies obferved at the hanging of two Sbirries, or Baillies. As foon as a perfon is committed to prifon, (if his crime deferves it) he never comes from thence, till he goes to be executed, and is not allowed a fair public trial, as in England. Nay, when condemned, he does not know that he is to die, nor the day when, till about nine o'clock the preceding night. I was an eye-witnefs of the following ceremony. A fupper being prepared for the criminals, the goaler in the evening goes into the cell, according to his ufual custom, to give them water, &c. on his returning back, he leaves the door a little open, which is the fatal fign of their exit the next morning; the prifoners perceiving the door not quite clofe fhut, and uncertain whether it is the dread fig. nal, or whether left open through forgetfulnefs and neglect, ⚫ one of them trembling crept out of the dungeon in a state of fufpence, if poffible, more terrible than death itself, and comes into a lofty hall, or very large room in the prison, C with hopes of finding a door open, or fome convenient place, whereby they might make their efcape: to that end, he foftly fearches about, almoft in the dark, there being no other light, than that of a small glimmering lamp, which afforded but juft fufficient light to make this gloomy, melancholy fcene appear more difmal and fhocking; after fearching fome time, he finds all barricaded too faft; his hopes then fail him, and every moment he expects the dreadful ceremony is going to be performed, of which he foon had f too certain proof; for prefently a little fquare window opens,

large

large enough for a man to put his head through, from which he hears one call with a loud voice, Chi è là? that is, Who is there? the prifoner in his fright does not anfwer, but endeavours foftly to return to his cell; but before he can accomplish it, he hears the fame terrifying voice again, to which he answers; the goaler then informs him, that it is the will of God, and the Great Duke, that they muft die the next morning, and that the company of death • were ready to affift them all night, in order to make their peace with God, and prepare themselves for another world; ⚫ this company of the dead are between thirty and forty in number, and all of them perfons of quality; their outward gar⚫ment is made like our tallow-chandlers frocks, but of black linnen, and a hood of the fame over their heads, two holes • being cut for their eyes, with a large black ftraw hat on, three or four yards in circumference, which, altogether, < made them resemble so many devils; they continue the whole night with the prifoner, or prifoners, (according as it hap-. pens) praying and exhorting them to repentance; this cha⚫ritable office of the noblemen pleased me greatly, but their charity and humanity ftops not here; for, at their own expence, they bury all who are accidentally killed, if their friends are unable, and all perfons executed, and accompany them to the grave. In the morning, about ten o'clock, the prifoners were brought out, and the black company < walked two and two before them; a prieft attended each • prifoner, talking to them all the way, and a large crucifix was carried before them; they walk in proceffion round the fquare or piazza, and stop at a little open chapel, where the prieft at the altar repeats feveral prayers, the prifoners kneeling all the while on the fteps of the door; when he fays the Lord's prayer, and when he comes to those words, • lead us not into temptation, they are ordered immediately to rife up; for if they were permitted to stay till the priest had • pronounced that part which follows, deliver us from evil, they could not, according to the law of the country, have been hanged: the goaler is obliged to take particular care not to let them continue to hear the above words. this chapel they are conducted to another; and after having faid fome more prayers, a man brings a piece of black cloth, with a death's head, and bones, painted on it, and ties it over ⚫ the prisoners eyes; fo that after this, they never fee any more in this world: they are then led through St. Mark's gate to the gallows, which is about half a mile diftant from the

From

⚫ town.

⚫ town.

After praying again for fome fhort time, they ⚫ mount a ladder, and juft as they are going to be turned off, 6 a man, who has a basket filled with several forts of drams, gives a glass to each of the prisoners, in order, as they say, to fupport their fpirits; but, in my opinion, it would have ⚫ been more seasonable in their long proceffion from the prison to the gallows, than at the very moment they were launch⚫ing into eternity. As foon as they were turned off the ladder, the executioner gets upon their fhoulders, fliding down them, and by his weight puts them fooner out of their mifery. A prieft then directly afcends the ladder, and makes a long fermon, on the gallows, to the populace, which is generally large on thefe occafions: they hung till fun-fet, when they were taken down, and buried."

Page 134. The Carnival at Florence is a time of great di verfion, which continues generally three weeks, or a month; ⚫ when almoft every body appears in mask, as, indeed, the Florentines generally are, being a very artful, cunning people*. they all affemble in the afternoon in the fquare or piazza • Santo Croce, which is railed in after the fame manner as Bloomsbury-fquare in London; fometimes to the number of ⚫ ten thousand mafks and upwards, richly dreffed in jewels, &c. ⚫ and appear in the characters of Emperors, Kings, Turks, Devils, &c. in abundance, just as fancy dictates to them; nay, they endeavour to confound the diftinction of fexes; the men fometimes, by way of frolic, drefs themselves like • Venetian courtezans; and the ladies appear in the charact⚫ers of young officers, rakes, &c. I faw the marchioness of · R-c-rdi, a lady of the greatest quality and beauty in all Florence, drefied like a gentleman, in a rich fuit of black velvet, without any mafk on, and made a very fine figure: • no prieft dares to be prefent at these diversions in mask, on penalty of being fent even to the inquifition; that holy, or rather infernal office, employ a number of fpies, who in⚫ termix with the company, in order to discover if any priests ⚫ are amongst them; and, on the contrary, there is a penalty on any of thefe fellows if they thould feize on a wrong perfon: a Gentleman laid a trap for one, which happily fucceeded to the fatisfaction of all prefent, he had got a piece of a prieft's old gown, artfully put at the bottom of his domino; and thofe having eyes like hawks,

The Authors of the Delices d' Italie, give a different character to the Florentines: which fee, P. 203, tom. I.

• foon