not have his Eyes arrested here and there by most capacious and ample Carvansera's where all distressed Foreigners and such as are destitute of a more convenient Lodging may in any of these find a Shelter and Sanctuary from the Injuries of open Air from Night-Robbers and other Inconveniencies These Carvansera's are in number Three Hundred and Three built at the Expences of Ottoman Princes and Bassa's There are also in this City Ninety Hospitals where the Poor are nourished and the Sick attended with extraordinary Piety and Care Besides all these there are Five Colleges where the Sciences are publickly profess'd and taught and where a certain Number of Young Men are educated and maintained at the Grand Signior's Cost being constant Stipendaries to the Sultan There are many such Colleges scatter'd up and down Caramania Natolia and throughout Greece and the Lesser Asia So that the Number of Students in these Countries is computed to be above Nine Thousand not reckoning those in Arabia Syria and Egypt where flourish innumerable Seminaries of Divine and Human Wisdom But to return to Constantinople the next Thing worthy of Observation is the Serayan or House of Equipages where are made all sorts of Trappings for Horses especially Saddles of immense Cost and admirable Workmanship This Place is also environ'd with high Walls and shut in with strong Gates There cannot be a more agreeable Sight to such as take Pleasure in Horses and Riding than to see Four Thousand Men here daily at Work in their Shops each striving to excel the rest in the Curiosity of his Artifice You shall see one busie in spangling a Saddle with great Oriental Pearls and Unions intermix'd for some Arabian Horse belonging perhaps to the Vizir Azem Another fitting a Curb or Bit of the purest Gold to a Bridle of most precious Russian Leather some adorn their Trappings with choice Phrygian Work others with Diamonds Rubies and the most costly Jewels of the East In a Word there is so illustrious a Variety of these Accoutrements that the Eye is astonish'd at the sight of them And I have heard many Travellers acknowledge That the like is not to be seen in any City of the World beside Constantinople I know not what may be in your Cities of Morocco and Fez in regard the Moors are great Cavaliers There are moreover two other Places in the City encompass'd with peculiar Walls In these the Jainzaries are posted who are the Guards du Corps to the Grand Signior They are under the Command of Decurions without whose Leave no Janizary dare set a Foot out of the Place Next is the Arsenal of the City built on the Sea-shore containing a Hundred and Eighty Arches under which are very elegant Portico's or Piazza's where People walk There are above Forty Thousand Men daily at Work in this Arsenal and Eighty great Gallies lie there always in Readiness for any sudden Expedition Besides there is another in the Suburbs wherein there always lie a Hundred and Fifty great Gallies on the Stocks and Sixty fitted up with all Necessaries constantly lie in the Water The Granaries or Store-Houses for Corn present themselves next They are built in a Corner of the City toward Pera where the Walls are far stronger than in any other Part and the Gates are of Iron Here is always laid up an immense Quantity of Wheat and Barly as also of other Grain as if it were to serve for many Years Yet 't is changed for new Corn every Three Years They say That in the Reign of Amurat III. there was an incredible Abundance of Millet found there whose Vertue was much admired in that it had lain there Eighty Years sound and free from any Corruption I have purposely omitted to speak of the two Royal Serails since the least of them will require a large Letter by it self to be described exactly Only this I will say in short That the least is a French League in Circuit or Three Italian Miles and the biggest wherein the Grand Signior dwells is a League and two Thirds or Five Italian Miles The former is called Eschy Saray or the Old Palace the latter is nam'd Bryuch Saray or the Great Serail If thou desirest a farther and more particular Description of these Royal Courts I will send it thee in future Dispatches For it will be too large for one In the mean Time I must not forget the Mosch of Jub where our Sultans receive the Sword when they first come to the Crown This is a Building of great Antiquity seated in the farthest Angle of the City near the Haven Over against it are the Sultan's Stables having very fair Gardens adjoin'd to them Not far from thence is the Topana or Gun-Yard where there lies a vast Number of Brass Pieces of Ordnance without Carriages Of which some are turn'd directly against the Haven As you pass from this Place it is impossible to avoid the sight of a Pillar which shoots up from the Top of a Rock at some distance from the City This Column is all of White Marble and was erected by Cn. Pompey as a Monument of his Victory over Mithridates the King of Pontus On this side of the City there is nothing hardly to be seen for eight Miles together but Houses built for Pleasure and Delight with most beautiful Groves and Gardens Over against the City stands Pera an Arm of the Sea coming between them This Suburb or Borough is inhabited chiefly by Graecians and Western Franks Round about this Suburb are many pretty Country Houses Farms and Granges most deliciously seated in the midst of high Tufts of Trees with Green Fields and Crystal Streams adjoining to them Where the Embassadors of Foreign Princes make their Abode sometimes I will not carry thee from hence to Scutari though a great and stately Village within the Liberty also of the Imperial City I will not detain thee with the Singularities of the Thracian Chersonesus or drill thee along to Calipolis though this were the first Town in Europe which Amurat took in the Year 1363. My Design is altogether at Constantinople Therefore having survey'd Pera which is also call'd Galata let us cross the Water and return again to the mother-Mother-City that we may know what manner of Government there is in it and how the Laws are executed The Chief Magistrate is called Stambol-Cadisi or Judge of Constantinople Before him are pleaded all Causes both Criminal and Civil He has four Deputies under him who separately govern the four chief Precincts of the City There is likewise an Officer called Sabassi whose Business is to take Cognizance of every ones Crime that is seised in the Streets or Houses and to refer it to the Supreme Vizir He has also four Deputies under him and all Men are bound to assist him in Case of Difficulty The Common Prison of Constantinople is divided into two Parts the Upper and the Lower The Upper is only for Civil Offences and has an airy Green Court in
like Spectacles or lastly when Her Confessor comes to visit Her At other Times She is only a Companion of Women a mere Reclufe chamber'd up in her own Melancholy Apartment without the Liberty of ranging the Palace Whereas in France the Women converse with Men and go abroad when they please with an unrestrain'd Freedom They discourse of State-Matters and of Religion they undertake to Censure both Civil and Canon Laws correct Philosophy and reform the Morals of the Ancients In a Word the French Ladies take a particular Pride in appearing very Learned and Knowing as if they had been educated in the Academies They also go a Hunting Hawking Fishing and Fowling even as the Men. There is hardly any Game or Exercise Study or Recreation which is not common to both Sexes Whereas the Spanish Females are kept in Ignorance and have no more Liberty than Captives Only as I said the Queen is permitted to see the Bull-baitings but it must be in Company with her Husband as well as other Ladies This celebrated Sport of Baiting or Coursing the Bull is so well known to thee who hast been an Eye-witness of it at Tunis and other Cities of Barbary that I need say no more of it but to observe That the Spaniards first learn'd it from the Moors when those Africans dwelt among them having Conquered that Kingdom But to return to the Servile Life which the Queens of Spain lead They are obliged to go to Bed at a certain precise Stroke of the Clock every Night with this only Difference That it is an Hour later in Summer than in Winter Besides Her there is no other Married Woman suffer'd to lie in the King's Palace so that the Queen is attended only by Virgins or Widows Neither can She her self ever Marry again after the King's Death And so naturally Jealous are the Spaniards of their Wives That if the Queen fall into any Disaster by Chance or Conspiracy as to be thrown down by her Gennet even to the breaking of Her Limbs and Hazard of Her Life none of her Pages or any other Man whatsoever dares to lift her up or any other Way assist her nay not so much as by stopping the Horse if he should drag her in the Stirrup Judge now Magnificent Vizir whether it be not a desirable Thing for a French Princess to be made Queen of Spain A Princess bred up in a Court abounding with all sorts of Gentilesses Gallantines and Delightful Liberties must needs think her self in a Monastery or some worse Place of Confinement after she has been but a Day or Two in the Court of Spain But Reasons of State supersede all these Inconveniences 'T is the peculiar Unhappiness of the Princes here in the West that they Marry for Interest more than for Love There is another Match going forward between the Dauphine of France and the Princess Ann Marie Victoire Sister to the Duke of Bavaria These Infidels are Uniting their scatter'd Strengths and Interests It looks as if they had some Secret Design against the True Believers Illustrious Prince of the Princes who serve the Grand Signior I pray that the Empire of the Faithful may be Exalted and stand firm till the Angel of the Cave sound his Trumpet Paris 10th of the 12th Moon of the Year 1679. LETTER XIV To the Venerable Mufti THat I may give thee a clearer Idea of Rome's Original it is necessary to step farther Backward in Antiquity and cast our Eyes on the Ruins of Troy set on Fire by the Greeks and laid in Ashes after a War of Ten Years to Revenge the Rape of Helena Wife to Menelaus whom Paris the Trojan Prince and Guest to Menelaus carried away with him by Force From the deplorable Flames of Troy Antenor and Aeneas escap'd and got to Sea The Former being forced by Distress of Weather on that Part of Italy which is now under the Dominion of Venice where he built Padua The Latter came with a Fleet of Two and Twenty Ships to Latium now called Campagna di Roma and St. Peter's Patrimony being the Estate of the Church At that Time Latinus the Son of Faunus or as some say of Hercules Reign'd in Latium before whom there had been but Four Kings in the Country Those were Janus Saturnus Picus and Faunus Whilst Janus Reign'd Saturn being expell'd by his Son Jupiter fled to Italy where being Hospitably receiv'd he built a Castle calling it after his own Name Saturnia At length he obtained the Kingdom of Latium which he left to his Son Picus and he to Faunus In his Time Evander sailed out of Arcadia and came to Italy Sixty Years before the Destruction of Troy He built a Town called Pallantium where afterwards Rome was built Much about the same Time the Pelagians went out of Thessaly into Epirus and Dodona first and then passing over into Italy join'd themselves with the Aboriginal Arcadians who were got thither before them These united their Forces and expell'd the Sicilians from the Country Who passing over to Trinacria or the Island of Three capes gave to it the Name of Sicilia which it retains to this Day When Evander had been Five Years in Italy Hercules with a Company of Greeks Landing on the same Shore was kindly entertained by him At length the Kingdom of Latium fell to Latinus in whose Reign Aeneas came thither and having enter'd into a League with Latinus marry'd his Daughter Lavinia From whose Name he called a Town which he built in those parts Lavinium Then Turnus King of the Rutuli being angry that Latinus had given his Daughter to a Stranger rather than to him who was a Native and to whom she was before berroth'd invaded his Country But the Rutuli were overcome in Battel and both Turnus and Latinus lost their Lives So that the Kingdom fell to Aeneas But he enjoy'd it not long For the Rutuli at Three Years End came against him under the Conduct of Mezentius King of the Tyrrhenians now call'd Toscans And Aeneas being kill'd in the Battel his Son Ascanius took possession of the Kingdom He having made Peace with Mecentius and quell'd the Rest of his Enemies built a City which he call'd Long Alba the 30th Year from the Building of Lavinium In this City of Long Alba there Reign'd after Ascanius Fourteen Kings even to the Time of Romulus and the Foundations of Rome The Fourteenth of these Kings was Amulius who over-reach'd his Brother Numitor to whom the Kingdom belong'd by Right of Primogeniture And to be secure of all Things he made Sylvia the only Daughter of Numitor a Vestal that he might have no Fear of Numitor's Posterity Yet Sylvia was got with Child by Some-body and brought forth Twins who were called Romulus and Remus These were expos'd to the wide World by the Command of King Amulius and were privately Nourish'd by Faustulus till they came of Years Then being inform'd of their Birth and Extraction with the true State of Things they slew Amulius
Mony And that Republick has held it ever since till it was lately taken from them by the Invincible Ottomans It is worth Remarks That Candia the Chief City of this Isle call'd Castro and Candax by the Greeks is a Place of that prodigious Strength that it sustain'd a Bloccade of 22 Years from 1645 to 1667 And after that a Siege of 2 Years from 1667 to 1669 In which Space of Time 't is thought 600000 Mussulmans lost their Lives before it The next Republick in Order is that of Genoua a City whose Power and Empire was far greater in former Times than it is at present For they extended their Dominions even to the Black Sea where Tanais that parts Europe from Asia pours her Waters into the Palus Maeotis Here they possess'd the City Theodosia or Caffa as 't is called at this Day They also made themselves Masters of Cyprus Lesbos Chios with other Islands in the Archipelago and even of Pera it self that Magnificent Adjunct to the Imperial City Yet from the Beginning they were Feudatories of the Roman Empire till the Year 600 of the Christians Hejira For then Lotharis King of the Lombards took the City by Force and plunder'd it But when after some Years it had recover'd its Pristine Glory again Charles I. and his Son Pepin Kings of Italy and their Successors the Kings of France bore Rule there for almost a Hundred Years placing Governours in the City who bore the Title of Counts of Genoua And when afterwards the Saracens had subdu'd Corsica Ademarus then Count of Genoua Arm'd out a Fleet of Galleys invaded the Island and having defeated the True Believers took Possession of it and reduc'd it under the Jurisdiction of Genoua whose Power at this Time was very great by Sea After the Dominion of Charles the Great his Posterity was by degrees so diminish'd that at length it became in a manner quite Extinct the more Potent among the Citizens took Turns to Usurp the Government and exercise a Tyranny over the Inhabitants Which so exasperated them that they often submitted themselves to Foreign Princes But finding still as great Inconveniences in this Dependance on Strangers at last following the Example of the Venetians they chose to themselves a Duke in the Year 1337. of the Christians Hejira Him they sent with a Fleet to Conquer Cyprus Which he accomplish'd with good Success For having taken the King and Queen of the Country Captives he imprison'd them till they agreed with him for a Yearly Tribute to be paid to the Republick of Genoua and then he restored them to their Native Possession reserving only Famagusta the Chief City of the Island to himself He enter'd also into a War with the Venetians but being overcome in Battel at his Return he was Depos'd from the Ducal Office and thrown into Prison another being Chosen in his Place This was more Fortunate than his Predecessor against the Enemy doing them many Injuries but at length was kill'd in Battel Then the Genouese Elected another Duke who going to Constantinople perform'd such Eminent Services to the Emperour in his Wars that he gave him the Island Mitylene which the Genouese held till the Year 1354. After this they Created one to Rule over them under the Title of Prince in the Year 1381. But not liking his Government they threw themselves upon the Protection of Charles VII King of France who sent thither his Deputy Being soon weary of the French Government they joyn'd themselves to the Duke of Milan under whose Patronage they liv'd till the Year 1435. and then Abdicating him they Created a Duke of their own again This rais'd Factions in the City whilst some adher'd to the French Interest and others espous'd the Duke of Milan's Cause At last they fell again under the Power of the French whom they obey'd till Andreas D'Oria having quell'd the Seditions and pacify'd the Contentions of the Freggi and Torni Two prevailing Factions in the City one consisting of the Nobles the other of the Commons he Establish'd that Liberty in the Common-wealth of Geneua which she has enjoy'd ever since till of late some new Troubles have been given 'em by the Kings of France and Spain As to the Original of the Genouese it is uncertain Strabo and others are of Opinion That this Nation descended from the Greeks Whilst Thucydides derives them from the Sicilians They were call'd Ligurians by the People of Rome And Florus mentions a certain Race of Ligurians who dwelt in the Dens and Caves of Mountains being a very Fierce and Warlike People But now adays the Genouese are a very Polite and Civiliz'd People of a Lively and Subtile Wit especially in Merchandizing by which they greatly enrich themselves They are also exceeding Industrious shunning no Labour or Danger for the Sake of Gain They appear Studious of those Things which tend to the Good of the Common-wealth yet are extremely Fickle and Inconstant given to Faction and desirous of Novelty As is manifest by what I have before related of them Which occasioned a certain King of France when one of his Lords told him That the Genouese were about to throw themselves on his Patronage Answer not without some Indignation That they might go to the Devil for Protection for I says he will have nothing to do with Men who are more unstedfast than the Waves of the Sea This Inconstancy never appear'd more plainly than in the late Conspiracy of Raggi and Torne which had like to have proved of Fatal Consequence As to Vachero and Balbi they were like the Dog in Aesop's Fables who lost the Bone to catch at its Shadow in the Water So these Sea Myrmidons were not content with the Strong Party which they had made in the City but must needs go to Corrupt the Navy too which ruin'd all their Design For the Plot was discovered by one of the Sea-Captains This Commonwealth has been afflicted with many Wars and Plagues But none of either Sort ever threatned it with so much Desolation as the Last The One having almost exhausted their Treasury and the Other as near emptied the City of its Inhabitants As for the First Misfortune the Scarcity of Mony the knew quickly how to remedy it being perfect Chymists and Masters of the Philosopher's Stone if there be any such Thing in Nature But whether there be or not this is certain That the Genouese are Old Doctors at garbling transmuting and adulterating of Metals And the Ottoman Empire has experienc'd it to the great Damage of our Merchants at Constantinople Smyrna Aleppo and other Ports where the Genouese did put off their Base Coyn to the Value of some Millions But this Cheat may cost them dear one time or other The Genouese appear at present more Inclinable to Merchandise than to War However it must be confess'd that this Commonwealth has brought forth Valiant and Expert Soldiers as is evident from the Families of the Doria's Spinola's and others who have prov'd
has thee for his Portion in this Life The Gold has no Value or Beauty when compar'd with thee The Diamond and Saphir sad and look dull and the choicest Pearls of the Orient lose their Lustre in thy Presence Doubtless Wisdom shines for ever and is incorruptible It is a pure resplendent Essence flowing from the Eternal Glory a sincere Emanation from the Divine Nature The Spotless Mirrour of God wherein he beholds his own Immortal Excollencies It is Ten Thousand Times more serene than the Light it self brigher than the Sun purer than the Sky and more sparkling than all the Host of the Stars The Glittering Crowd of Angels are edlips'd in her Presence and all the Radiant Orders of the Blessed Above serve but as Foils to set forth her Superlative and all-penetrating Coruscations God brought her forth from the Womb of his Unfathomable Depths she sprang from the Treasures which cannot be exhausted In the Morning of the World she ronz'd the benumm'd Chaos with her efficacious Beams Her Energy gave Life and Form to the confus'd and dark Abyss She shines from one Extremity of the Universe to another illuminating Infinite Spaces She is a refulgent Circle of Light whose Center is every where but whose Circumference is not to be found Ask those who pitch their Pavilions above all Worlds the outlying Camps of the Omnipotent who guard the Frontiers of the Blisful Regions and walk the Rounds of our Remotest Heaven the Coelum Empyraeum to fire its Beacons on the Discovery of any foreign Invasion threatn'd by some New Vpstart Republick of Beings hatch'd in the cold and frozen Climates of the Endless Expanse Ask those I say whether they e'er cou'd trace the Eternal Wisdom in her Flights Or find the Solitary Haunts of Everlasting Reason They may pursue the glorious Chace o'er the Untrack'd Wastes of the Unlimitted Unform'd First Matter as well as through the Fenced Fields and Parks the enclos'd Land-mark'd Grounds of this known World But all in vain There is no catching what is Infinite The Wings of all created Fancies are too short and weak The Cherubims themselves and Seraphims are far too flow to seize so swift a Prey Wisdom is wild as Chance conceal'd as Nature yet fix'd as Destiny She dwells beyond the Highest Heavens her Throne is inaccessible yet she fills all Things with her Presence She sought for a Place of Repose on Earth among the Sons of Men. She travers'd the Nations by Land and visited the Isles of the Sea She descended into the Abysses below and made her Scrutiny in the Horrid Caverns of the Clobe At length she found Rest in Abraham and pitch'd her Habitation in Ismael Because it was so determin'd of old from Sempiternal Ages and recorded in the Archives of Fate She was establish'd in Mecca the Birth-place of the Prophet and her Power is rooted in Medina Telnabi the place of his Burial The Holy Cities are ennobl'd by her Presence and she shines in the midst of an Honourable Race an Offspring born to Glory a Renowned People a Sanctify'd Pregeny a Generation of Worthies a Family of Hero's a Lineage whereon rest the Favours and Smiles of the Omnipotent Oh Arabia Well may'st thou be call'd the Happy since in thee is the Seat of the Eternal Sapience Go Mourn ye Mountains of Judaea and all ye desolated Valleys of Palestine For the Dew and the Rain have forsaken you Your Soil languishes for want of Moysture and your Glebe is dried up Your Trees wither and fade neither does the Ground bring forth any Grass or Flowers The Pastures are become like a Wilderness overrun with Bryars and Thorns and your Arable Fields are as the Lybian Wastes barren and unprofitable The Land that was once call'd Holy is now become Execrable a Habitation of Satyrs and Damons Because Wisdom has translated her Residence from Sion and the Angels have Decamp'd from the Climate of Jerusalem Rejoyce O Regions bordering on the East of the Red Sea For with you is a Great Light even the Law brought down from Heaven and the Glory of the Most High overshadows you Wisdom is exalted in Arabia she lifts up her Head above the Top of Mount of Vriel She flourishes like the Palm-Tree and spreads her Boughs as the Terebinth Many Nations rest under the Shadow of her wide-spread Branches Her Ways are Uniform and Beautiful like an Alley of Cypresses and all her Paths are sweet as a Garden of Cinnamon Myrrh and Roses Her Fruit feeds the East and the South her Salutiferous Leaves are scattered from India to the Land of the Moors where thou dwellest Her fragrant Odour is diffus'd from Pole to Pole She is the Mother of Science and Virtue in her Custody are the Springs of Life and Health of Honour and Riches She has in her Treasures lock'd up Innumerable Kinds of Felicities which she plentifully pours forth on them that obey her Inspirations She appears chearfully to them that wait upon her and no Man ever departed from her Presence but he fell into Sadness For a certain enlivening Influence flows from her Countenance a Man is ravish'd with her Conversation Her Breath is sweeter than Ambrosia or the Vapour of Eastern Incense Her Thoughts are fragrant as the Aromatick Exhalations of Nardus Onyx and Stacte All Words are too short to express her Praises neither is there any Style or Language that can describe her Incomparable Worth Therefore with Reverence I desist from saying any more at this Time on so sublime a Subject lest whilst I am prolonging the Panegyrick of Wisdom I proclaim my own Folly to a Sage who is familiar with her and best knows her Character In the mean Time Vouchsafe to accept of these Lines as a Testimony of the profound Veneration I have for thee who art known through all Africk and other Parts of the World to be One of the First Rank among Wisdom's Favourites Adieu Great Lamp of Mauritania and believe That Mahmut is no Flatterer Paris 19th of the 3d. Moon of the Year 1676. LETTER V. To the Captain Bassa IF I write often to the Bassa's of the Land I do not forget the Duty I owe to him of the Sea Only that Element has not been the Stage of so many Remarkable Actions as the other There are no Forts Castles or strong Cities built upon the Waves No settled Camps or formal Sieges unless it be upon the Frozen Seas within or near the Artick Circle And there they only imitate the Trade of War to exercise their Youth However on the other Parts of the Ocean there are flying Campagnes Battels en Passant and this Year has afforded some Marine Engagements between the French Hollanders and Spaniards not altogether unworthy of thy Knowledge On the 8th of the 1 st Moon there happened a Naval Fight between the Sieur de Quesne Lieutenant General of the French Fleets and de Ruiter Vice-Admiral of the Dutch Wherein the later suffer'd considerable Damage But far greater was
Belov'd by his Mistress Whilst the Italian takes the nearest Course to be Belov'd by her in Reality The French-man loves a Pleasant Witty Maid tho' she be Deform'd The Spaniard prefers Beauty to Wit and Good Humour The Italian is for a Female of a Timorous Spirit Whilst the German adores a Virago The French-man by his Wandring Loves of a Wise Man becomes a Fool and exchanges his Health for a Thousand Maladies The German having profusely spent all in Amorous Liberalities at length from a Fool tho late becomes a Wife Man The Spaniard undertakes Heroick Enterprizes to please his Mistress Whilst the Italian despises Honour and every Thing else that he may enjoy her Certainly the Greatest Men in the World have been subject to this Soft Passion And have sacrific'd their Reputation Glory and Vertue with their very Reason to the Regards of Love How ensnar'd was Mithridates in Pontus by a Beautiful Woman How did Hannibal suffer his Courage to be Enervated with the Luxuries of Capua So Hercules of Old left the Glorious Toils of War and suffer'd his Arms to Rust for the sake of his Iole So Vlysses was Captivated by Circe Achilles by Briseis and Caesar by Cleopatra And thou know'st that our Annals record strange Things of the Amours of our Glorious Monarchs There is no Nation free from the Sentiments of Love Yet every Age and Region vary in their Conduct toward Women Here in the West they are all for Intriguing and Gallantry They accuse the Mussulmans for having more Wives than one and for Keeping as many Concubines as they please whilst they themselves have their Wives almost in Common and Lie with every Wench that comes in their Way Adultery passes with 'em for Good Breeding and Fornication is esteem'd as Innocent an Action as Eating and Drinking Whereas thou know'st among the True Believers these Crimes are punish'd with Death Promiscuous Copulation was forbid by Moyses Jesus and Mahomet and in General by all the Prophets It is a sufficient Indulgence That every Man may Marry four Wives and enjoy as many other Women as he either Takes Captives from the Enemy in Wars or purchases with his Mony But these Infidels had rather follow the Sentiments of the Old Heathen Law-givers and the Examples of Idolatrous Nations than obey God and his Messengers They applaud Solon the Great Law-giver of the Athenians calling him a Wise Man as he was plonounc'd by the Delphick Oracle and a Generous Patriot for procuring Harlots to accompany the Youths of the City and building a Temple to Venus out of the Mony they got by Prostituting themselves 'T is certain Whores were much esteem'd in those Days among the Graecians For the Magistrates built them Publick Houses on purpose and free for all Comers They also made Laws to protect them from Injuries And so great was the Veneration that Besotted People had for them that when Perses invaded Greece the Harlots of Corinth undertook to intercede for their Country in the Temple of Venus Nay whatsoever Extraordinary Favour they had to ask of that Goddess it was done by the Mediation of the Whores And there seems some Reason on their Side since Venus her self was Translated to Heaven and made a Goddess for being the Greatest Whore and Bawd that ever liv'd She first taught the Cyprian Women to prostiture their Bodies for Gain What a Work did Aspasia make who fill'd all Greece with Whores For the Love of her and her Wenches it was that Pericles begun the Peloponesian War that lasted so many Years and is so much talk'd of in Ancient History There were also Learned Whores as Sappho the Mistress of Phaon Sempronia Leaena and Leontium Who wrote publickly in Vindication of their Lewd Practice and inveigh'd against Marriage There were also Noble Whores as Rhodope who built one of the Egyptian Pyramids with the Mony given her by the King Thais the Corinthian who was so surpassing Beautiful that she scorn'd to Lie with any but Kings and Princes But Messalina the Wife of Claudius Caesar exceeded them all in the Salaciousness of her Temper I will not omit to mention Joan Queen of Naples who caus'd her First Husband to be hang'd because he could not satisfle her Lust His Name was Andrew Son to Elizabeth Quen of Hungary Her Second Husband to repair the Fault of the First so wasted his Strength in the Conjugal Embraces that in a little Time he kill'd himself Her Third Husband was James King of Majorca whom she Beheaded for Lying with another Woman Her Fourth and Last Spouse was Otho Duke of Brunswick He liv'd to see her hang'd in the same Place where her First Husband had by her Order suffer'd the same Fate This was the Revenge of Charles Prince of Dyrachium Cousin-German to Andrew before-mention'd This Lascivious Queen would have the Company of Ten or Twelve Young Men one after another the same Night What shall I say of Semiram is Empress of the Assyrians Of Pasiphae Wife to Minos King of Crete or of an Hundred other Royal Whores When it is observable that the most Illustrious Heroes on Earth have sprung from Adulterous Beds Witness Hercules Alexander Clodoveus King of the Franks Theodoric the Goth William the Norman Raymir of Arragon and many more too tedious to be recited Nay few Kings or Princes are born of Lawful Mothers Doubtless the Infidel Nations live in great Corruption of Manners they confound and blend together Divine and Profane Maxims from whence result Monstrous and Abominable Practices and a General Uncleanness of Life in all Things But the Chaste Followers of Mahomet have all Customs in Abomination that desile the Soul and rob it of its Native Purity We obey the Traditions of Abrahim Ismael and the rest of the Holy Line who never touch'd any Women but their own Lawful Wives and Concubines resting contented with this Indulgence of the Omnipotent We put in Practice the Law brought down from Heaven and the Precepts of the Prophet which forbid all Adultery Fornication and Incest We preserve in our Veins the Pure and Unpolluted Blood of our Fathers and transmit the same to our Children and the Posterity to come That the Promises made to Abrahim the Glorious Patriarch of the East may not be disanull'd by the Sins of his Off-spring but may be verified till the Day when the Moon shall be cancell'd in the Heavens and all the Stars be blotted out Oh Sage Hamet We are of a Sacred Lineage an Illustrious Pedigree Our Progenitors were the Favourites of Heaven and Lords of the Earth by the Special Benediction of God The Light of the Eternal shines upon the Ottoman House and is reflected from thence on all the Empire I pray Heaven that we may not forfeit these Privileges by our own Folly and cause an ill Report to be whisper'd of us among the Angels Saints and Prophets and throughout the Precincts of Paradise I consign thee to the Custody of God and thy Guardian-Genius wishing
and restor'd their Grandfather Numitor to his Kingdom In the Second Year or whose Reign Romulus built the City of Rome In the Eighteenth Year of his Age Romulus was saluted King when he had kill'd his Brother Remus for leaping in Contempt over the Ditch he had made round the City Thus he Consecrated the Fortifications of the City with his own Blood But all this while Remulus had Built but the Shadow of a City since there were no Inhabitants to People and Defend it However he quickly pitch'd upon a Method to supply this Defect There was a Grove hard by which he made a Sanctuary for all Persons in Distress and who were willing to make their Fortunes upon Hazard This was proclaim'd in the Neighbouring Regions And an Innumerable Multitude of Criminals Debtors and Malecontents flock'd thirher from all Parts besides Shepherds and other Persons who only through a Natural Inconstancy sought a Change of Life So that there was a Gallimaufry of Trojans who came over with Aeneas of Arcadians who follow'd Evander and of several other Nations besides the Natives of Toscany and Latium Out of these as out of so many Elements Romulus extracted the Body of a Commonwealth But he confider'd withal that this New Republick could not subsist beyond the Age and Lives of those Men who form'd it They being without Hopes of Posterity as having no Women among them To provide for this Inconvenience they treated with the Bordering People about Marriages Which being denied them they had Recourse to Stratagems and Violence They invited the Sabines and other Neighbours to come and see some Plays which they promis'd to exhibit in Honour of Neptime The Bait took and Multitudes of both Sexes especially the Younger Sort throng'd thither to be Spectators of the Roman Novelties When on a sudden a certain Signal being given the Romans leap'd from their Places and rushing among the Strangers every Man seiz'd the Female that best pleas'd him or that first came to Hand and made her his Wife This was the Cause of speedy Wars End the Neighbouring People who had been thus robb'd of their Women took up Arms to revenge the Injury But they were â—outed put to Flight and one of their Towns laid Waste The Romans also took Rich Spoâ—s from them which they Consecrated to their Gods In the mean Time the City of Rome was deliver'd into the Hands of the Sabines by Tarpeia a Virgin Who as some say was corrupted with Gold by Tatius the Captain of the Sabines Whilst others affirm That she did it innocently and with a Design to save the City instead of betraying it For she ask'd as a Reward of her suppos'd Treason the Shields of the Sabines thinking that being thus in part disarm'd they might easily be overcome by the Romans But they sensible of her Stratagem promis'd what she demanded and performed it accordingly but in such a manner as plainly discover'd their Revenge of an Injury rather than their Gratitude for a Kindness For they threw their Sheilds so thick upon her that they press'd her to Death Then entring the City Pell-mell there commenc'd a Furious Battle between the Romans and the Sabines The Streets flowed with Blood till the Wives of the Romans for whose Sake this War began came tearing their Hair and running between the Two Armies at length brought them to a Truce and Agreement Then a Solemn League was made between Romulus and Tatius And what is more Wonderful the Sabines leaving their Native Seats came with all their Wealth to live in Rome communicating Part of their Riches to their Sons-in-Law by Way of Dowry The Forces of the Romans being thus increas'd by the Accession of the Sabines Romulus applied himself to the Publick Administration with all Care and Policy He appointed the Youth to be always in Arms on Horseback that they might be constantly upon their Guard and ready equipp'd against the Surprizes of War That the Chief Council of the Commonwealth should consist of the Seniors who were called Fathers for their Authority and Senators for their Age. Affairs being thus dispos'd One Day when there was a Full Senate Romulus being present was on a sudden taken from their Sight Some think he was Murder'd by Conspiracy and cut into Small Pieces by the Senators Others say he was Poyson'd But the General Report was that he was Deified Julius Proculus was the Author of this who taking Notice that there arose a Violent Tempest at the same Instant that Romulus disappear'd and that the Sun was just then Eclips'd insinuated to the People that Romulus was become a God Nay he took an Oath That he saw him in a much more August Form than whilst he was a Mortal And that Romulus commanded them to Adore him for a God affirming that he was called Quirinus in Heaven and assuring them that Rome should conquer the Whole Earth Numa Pompilius succeeded Romulus being invited to the Kingdom by the Romans who had a Veneration for him on the Bare Fame of his Sanctity and Religion He raught them Holy Rites and Ceremonies with whatsoever pertain'd to the Worship of the Immortal Gods He divided the Year into Twelve Months and appointed the Holy-Days He ordain'd the Pontifs Augurs Salii with other Ranks of Priests He gave them the Ancilia and Palladium which came down from Heaven And he instituted the Vestal Fire In a Word He persuaded them that whatsoever he taught them he receiv'd from the Goddess Aegeria And this wrought so Efficaciously on the Minds of the Rude and Ignorant People that they came at Length to Govern that Empire with Justice and Religion which they got by Robbery and Oppression Prince of the Mufti 's I will reserve the Rest of the Roman History for another Dispatch Paris 9th of the 2d Moon of the Year 1680. LETTER XV. To William Vospel a Recluse of Austria THY Last Letter appears Magisterial and Peremptory like a Summons from the Inquisition Thou requirest an Account of my Faith and what Idea I have of Religion suspecting that I am inclin'd to Heresie This proceeds from the Freedom I formerly took in Discoursing against the Pope's Infallibility the Newly Canoniz'd Saints and the Doctrine of No Salvation out of the Roman Church I see thy Zeal makes thee Peevish and Morose Indeed it is a Grace that soon turns sowr if it be not kept in a Clean Heart and a Temperate Air free from the Vapours of Superstition However I am willing to satisfie thy Demand as well as I can and transmit My Soul to thee in Effigie Tho' we cannot Pourtray Negatives yet every Picture has its Back-side whereon the Cunning Painter may draw the Reverse of his First Design or at least the Spectator's Imagination may supply the Painter's Office and form Idea's quite contrary to the Original Piece That thou may'st therefore the better comprehend what I am in Point of Religion and Faith I will first represent what I am not Conceive then that I am
Birth Merits Wit and Vertue The Queen did not see her Daughter-in-law till they came to Chalons and there she caressed her with all Tenderness imaginable in outward Appearance But God knows what 's in the Hearts of these Royal Souls or how long their Friendship may last The Ceremony of the Espousals was performed at that Town Yesterday by the Cardinal of Bouillon Grand Almoner of France in the Chapel of the Bishop's Palace And to Day as I have said he finish'd the whole Business in the Temple of the Virgin Mary the Chief Cathedral of this City in the Presence of the King and Queen with divers Lords and Ladies of the Court. There were other Bishops to assist him whose Titles I have forgot But I think they were of Orâ—â—ans and Condom This last makes a considerable Figure in the Kingdom and is created First Almoner to Madam the Dauphiness He appears very Zealous in Converting the Huguenots and I have a great deal more to say of him than I have Time to Write now Assure thy self That I cherish a profound Respect for thee and that as I never was so I never will be defective or tardy in sending thee thy Proportion of Western Intelligence For I must divide it among the Bassa's and other Ministers of the Port. Rest contented with thy Share and in the Name of God Farewel Paris 8th of the 3d. Moon of the Year 1680. LETTERS Writ by A Spy at PARIS VOL. VIII BOOK IV. LETTER I. To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire BY the Mosch of Sultan Jub I swear these petty Republicks of the Franks are not worth a Mussulman's Thought However to satisfie thy Curious and Inquisitive Genius I will say something of each as briefly and compendiously as I can In my Two last I discours'd of the Vnited Netherlands and the Swiss Cantons Now I will ferry thee over the Leman Lake and Land thee in Geneva the Mother Nurse and Center of the Calvinists These are a sort of Protestants dissenting from the Opinions of Luther and his Associates who was the First Author of what they call the Reformation here in Europe The City of Geneva is very Ancient and was not Young in the Time of Julius Caesar as appears by his Commentaries where he makes mention of its being seated on the River Rhosne just at the Entrance of the Leman Lake It stands very pleasantly and has a fertile Soil round about it where Ceres strives to out-do Bacchus in her Liberalities For though there be very good Vineyards in these Parts yet not in so great Plenty as to match the Abundance of Corn Pulse Hay Oats Melons and all manner of Herbs and Fruits that the Climate usually bears The Air is pure and wholsome the Winters not so cold as in Germany nor the Summers so hot as in some Parts of France The People are generally Corpulent Morose Inhospitable to Strangers especially to those of the Roman Church whom they always suspect as Spies They are very Frugal Continent and Sober And above all Things they affect a singular Gravity in their Carriage and Garb. As for Riches they can boast but little and were it not for their Art in making Silks and printing Books of which infinite Quantities and Numbers are Exported to other Nations this Commonwealth cou'd not support its own Charges Indeed their Military Strength is considerable for Bigness of the Place the City being fenc'd by Nature as well as Art with impregnable Fortifications They keep an exquisite Watch on the Walls and at the Gates Neither can any Foreigner have Entrance or Lodging there without undergoing a severe Scrutiny They have a Magazine in the City furnish'd with all sorts of Arms and with every Thing that is necessary to sustain a long Siege Add to this the Friendship and Patronage of the French Kings who have for many Years shelter'd this little Republick from the Invasions and Encroachments of the Dukes of Savoy who claim a Title to it There were formerly Three Forts near the Town in the Possession of the Savoyards which much annoy'd the Inhabitants and threaten'd the Ruin of the City it self with the Shot of great Brass Ordnance which were plac'd there for that Purpose But Henry IV. of France Took it from the Duke of Savoy and Demolish'd it in the Year 1600. He also caus'd another to be pull'd down which equally endamag'd the Opposite side of the City And a Third the Inhabitants themselves laid Even with the Ground being aided by the French If thou would'st know by what Title the Dukes of Savoy pretend a Right to Geneva I 'll tell thee in few Words In former Times there was a Feud between the Counts of Geneva and her Bishops about the Government each claiming it as his Due At length a certain Bishop procur'd the Principality of Geneva from Frederic I. Emperor of Germany This occasion'd a Civil War between him and the Count of Geneva which lasting many Years and consuming the Money and Forces of the Town the Inhabitants with the Consent of the Bishop implor'd the Protection of the Count of Savoy He rais'd an Army and march'd against the Count of Geneva taking many Towns and Fortresses from him which belong'd to the Republick Then he advanc'd with the Army near to the Walls of Geneva more like an Enemy than a Friend to the Bishop and People For not content with his new Conquests he demanded as much Money as wou'd quit the Charges he had been at in this Expedition The Bishop represented to him That he ought to be content with those Places he had won and that they should be acknowledg'd Feudatories of Savoy But this did not satisfie the greedy Count who threaten'd the City if they wou'd not reimburse him with Money The Inhabitants being poor and fearing worse Consequences shou'd they provoke this Prince too far at last agreed with him That he shou'd possess as much Rights in the City as the Counts of Geneva had done before this War begun And this was done by way of Pledge or Mortgage The Savoyard therefore entring the City with his Forces oppressed the Inhabitants with cruel Tyranny So that being provok'd to desperate Courses they conspir'd together and chose rather to call back the Count of Geneva to his Native Possession from which he had been violently cast out by the Usurping Bishop than to submit to a Foreign Jurisdiction which began so early to afflict them with insupportable Calamities But this instead of a Remedy prov'd an Aggravation of their Misfortunes For the Count of Geneva coming against him of Savoy with some Forces was overcome in Battel and so Geneva was reduc'd to greater Streights than before For the Savoyards entring the Houses of the Citizens drew the Conspirators from their lurking Holes and kill'd them committing a Thousand other Insolencies against the Inhabitants Nor did this cease till the whole Race of the Counts of Geneva was quite extinct Then Amadeus the Count of
tender am I even of Death it self the Obdurate and Inexorable Destroyer of all Mankind One of the Company that was a Priest and sat right over-against me at the Table threw his Four-Corner'd Cap at my Head whilst his next Neighbour check'd him for his Insolence But he was ' full of Fat and empty of Reason or Civility A great Hulking Fellow that makes a Figure like the Statue of Pont-Ginello at Catanea in Sicily only he is a little Taller But he has a swinging Tun of a Carcase After he had abus'd me thus he swore If he had the Chalice of the Altar in his Hand he 'd do the same thing Nay if he had the consecrated Wine in it he would turn the Blood of Christ into Poyson as he cou'd turn Wine into Blood to be reveng'd of me There was by good Chance an Armenian or Two in the Company not any of Solyman's Gang who took him up upon his Menace They challeng'd him severely to answer his Words before the Arch-Bishop of Paris But the Cunning Priest had more Wit in his Anger When he began to reflect on the bad Consequences of a Summons he crouch'd wheadl'd and fawn'd like a Spaniel So fearful are they of a Spiritual Court which is almost as bad in France as the Inquisition in Spain Then there was a Captain an Old Miles Emeritus a Pensioner who having not drank such a Quantity of Wine many a Day took my Part because he sat on my Side of the Table for he never saw me before in his Life Time as I know of However the Old Gentleman shew'd himself stout and demonstrated that he wou'd stand a Push for Souls But there was no Body wou'd oppose him save my self And I did it in Verbo Clerici not Manu or Ense Militis God knows I pray'd the Good Old Man to be pacifyed I laid my Right Hand to my Breast and heav'd both that and the other joyn'd to Heaven I invocated all the Patriarchs and Prophets I bawl'd at the Saints and Angels I summon'd God Almighty himself to appear in my Vindication But nothing wou'd do save right-down Fighting To it we went Pell-Mel The Fellows on the other Side of the Table were eager Nothing wou'd satisfie them but Blood Their Rapiers were drawn and they were upon their Pass When I started up and cri'd our aloud Gentlemen 't is the wrong Minute for ye to fight in Mars is in the 8th House in Conjunction with Saturn and in Quartile with the Sun a very Malevolent Aspect Upon this they grew all madder than before Damn that Astrologer says one Curse upon his Stomach says another till at last they all fell foul upon me only my Side-Captain stood up stifly for me I did what became a Man but 't is to his Bravery I owe my Life For one of the Opposite Sparks made a full Pass at my Breast which the Noble Old Captain parry'd with a sudden Shoot of his Arm athwart and a Dexterity which I can never admire enough I that had neither Sword nor Skill in the Science of Fencing thought it my Part to expose my Body between my seeming Friends and Enemies since all the Occasion of this Quarrel was on my Account as an Astrologer I leap'd upon the Table and seiz'd upon the Sword of my Captains Antagonist I smil'd upon him at the same Time and convinc'd him that I was not in Anger I twisted it out of his Hands with a complaisant Violence And then the Strife was appeas'd For 't was not he that began the Quarrel any more than my Old Captain but the Priest was wholly in the Fault who straggling out of his Sphere pretended to set up for an Astrologer and tell us Things that wou'd not square with Reason My Dgnet thou know'st me and all my Inclinations Thou art sensible that I cannot stoop to the Magisterial Dictates of Error nor the Bold Impositions of Ignorance Let 'em approach as near as they will to Truth on the Backside they are the further off from attaining it And so let thou and I enjoy our selves in perfect Tranquility Paris 17th of the 5th Moon of the Year 1681. LETTER IX To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire HAving in my last spoken of the present State of Venice wherein I omitted Nothing that I thought worth thy Observation I should now in Order touch upon Candin or Crete the most considerable Island that the Venetians not long ago had under their Obedience But since by the Fate of War it is fallen into the Hands of the Victorious Osmans I will say but very little of it and pass to the other Republicks of Europe There is no Doubt but since the Conquest of Candia by the Mussulmans The Imperial City abounds with Geographical Descriptions Natural Moral and Political Observations on it But perhaps they are wanting in the History of that Famous Island In Regard the Books of the Gentiles are not much Read by the True Believers And 't is from these only we can Collect the Ancient Memoirs of the Nations which were once in their own Possession This Island was once call'd Crete and said to be the Nursery of Jupiter as also his Sepulcher It obtain'd likewise the Title of Hecatompolis because of the Hundred Cities that were in it And some call'd it the Island of the Archers in Regard the Inhabitants being taught from their Infancy to handle the Scythian Bow grew so expert in that Exercise that they surpass'd all other Nations The Lacedemonians Athenians and other Renowned Commonwealths of Greece receiv'd their Laws from Men Born in this Island as Plato and Pliny testifie And yet Epimenides one of their own Poets gives them a bad Character when he says 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 They were much addicted also to all kinds of Sorcery and Enchantments A Fraudulent Race of People Covetous Greedy Idle and Ignorant of ingenious Arts and Sciences Yet notwithstanding this they were so powerful of Old That they could as with a Bridle Curb all Greece During the Reign of one of their Kings whose Name was Cydon came up the Use of Pyrrhick Measures which the Youth being Arm'd Cap-a-Pe danc'd with great Labour and Sweat And the Inhabitants have all along been so tenacious of this Custom That it is observ'd to this Day among the Rustick Candiots on their Holy-days For at such Times the Youth of the Island meet together Arm'd with a Bow in one Hand and a Naked Sword in the other with a Quiver of Arrows hanging at their Backs And thus they will Dance indefatigably in the Heat of Summer even at Noon-day when the Sun scorches all Things with Insupportable Fervors In Process of Time this Island became subject to the Grecian Empire And as such fell into the Hands of Baldwin Count of Flanders and Emperour of Constantinople Who gave it to the Marquis of Montferrat by whom it was sold to the Venetians in the Year 1194 for an Incredible Sum of
all by infinite Odds surpass'd in the Enjoyments of the Happy Souls Above There is no Number Weight or Measure of their Eternal and Superlative Felicities They pass from Joy to Joy and sport in endless Circles of Beatitude O Region ever to be desired O Gardens of Incomparable Beauty where the Liberal Monarch of the Vniverse regales the wearied Souls of Mortals with Banquets of Inestimable Price and Vnmatch'd Delicacy after their toilsome Pilgrimage on Earth If Pesteli could hear I would congratulate his Happiness instead of Condoling thy Misfortune in losing such a Husband He has escap'd the Shipwracks of this Lower World this Sea of Grief and Tragedies He 's got safe into the Harbour of Eternal Rest the Port of Peace and Landed on the Strand of the Omnipotents Serail where Guards of Angels waited on him to the Throne of Allah with Ten Thousand Thousand Flambeau's burning in the Walks of Eden But tell me Dalimalched were not you something in the Fault that the Generous Pesteli left us both so soon Did you not fret and teize his High-born Soul with Words which might have well been spar'd to a Man of so quick Sense Doubtless he needed not your fuming Lectures and more silent Discipline of Powts If he committed Faults as who does not he soon was Sensible without a Reprimand There was no Occasion to keep him half a Moon in Paroxysms of Melancholy and Grief This was too hard a Penance for his Spirit to bear But you Women have Ways by your Selves unintelligible to our Sex Your Windings and Turnings are intricate as those of Serpents Daedalus himself were he now alive though once the Glory of Labyrinth-Makers yet wou'd be puzzl'd to trace your Sex in all your secret wild unknown Meanders Ye are all the very changeable Things of the Earth No body knows what to make of ye Dalimalched I tell thee A Woman never commands a Man unless he be a Fool but by her Obedience that way she wins his Heart and makes a thorough Conquest of his Affections She wheadles him out of his Soveraignty by cunning Complaisance and proper Capitulations or at least by this Method she saves her self She will not thwart him in the Torrent of his Passion but meekly yields to the mighty Stream and will not suffer her Tongue to move but in the Eddy of his Wrath. In a Word A good Woman consults her Husband's Pleasure in all Things And if thou hast done so the World has nothing to say to thee But if otherwise I advise thee to remain a Widow lest the next Man that marries thee should revenge the Injuries my Brother receiv'd at thy Hands For this is one Way of Taming Shrews Paris 27th of the 10th Moon of the Year 1678. LETTER V. To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire I Hope thou wilt pardon me most Illustrious Minister that I have thus long delay'd to give thee a farther Account of the States of Europe But now I will proceed and according to thy Command begin where I left off Having already discours'd of Germany I will descend into the Netherlands Which is as Natural as for a Man that has Survey'd the Vpper Town of Buda or any other City seated like that to fall into the Lower For so the Netherlands seem to be a Kind of Out-lying Borough near the Suburb to the German Empire They are call'd the Netherlands by Reason of their Low Situation near the Sea Which makes the Country appear like a Marish or Moor. They contain Seventeen Provinces Ten whereof are under the Jurisdiction of the King of Spain The other Seven make up a Distinct and Independent Republick among themselves The Circumference of the Seventeen Provinces is a Thousand Italian Miles And within that Compass there are Two Hundred Wall'd Towns and Cities an Hundred and Fifty other Places which enjoy the same Privileges and Power as the Former And there are Six Thousand Villages In the Time of Julius Caesar this Tract of Ground was call'd Belgick-Gaul by the Romans It was Inhabited by a Warlike People impatient of Servitude and Stout Assertors of their Native Liberty as the same Caesar found by Experience when he Warr'd among them Nay and since that Time the Mussulmans themselves have felt their Valour Witness the Famous Expedition of Godfrey of Bullen to recover the Holy-Land out of the Hands of the Saracens And that other of Baldwin the Fleming who made himself Master of Constantinople and the Graecian Empire The Ancient Romans us'd to say That the Gauls fought for their Liberty the Germans for Booty and the Dutch for Glory and Honour Hence it came to pass that the Roman Emperors in those Days had always a Select Guard about their Persons chosen out of these Provinces Also the Hollanders and Frizlanders were call'd the Friends and Associates of the Romans But tho' these Provinces formerly had each a distinct Sovereign with a Peculiar Government and Laws yet afterwards they were all reduc'd under the Dominion of the Dukes of Burgundy From whom they devolv'd to the Arch-Dukes of Austria and last of all to the Kings of Spain who claim a Title to Ten of them at this Day But the King of France has Possession of a Great Part. As for the other Seven they are quite Emancipated and Free It being an establish'd Maxim with them That the Longest Sword gives the Best Title to a Government And for ought I see this Principle is practis'd throughout the World The Inhabitants of the Netherlands are generally Tall and Strong-body'd People Comely Civil Open-hearted Courteous Prompt and Laborious More addicted to Wine than to Women Equally forgetful of Benefits and Injuries Great Musicians Expert Sea-men Cunning Merchants Accurate Painters and very Ingenious in all Arts. They are not Jealous of their Women as most other Nations are but suffer them to Walk abroad openly and Converse with Men in the Streets Neither will any of these Females refuse an Invitation to a Bottle of Wine As soon as you come into any House the Daughter of the Family meets you with a Bottle of Wine or other Strong Beverage in her Hand and drinks it off to you And if you do not very readily answer and pledge her it passes for a Sign of Rudeness and Ill Manners These People are very Rich by Reason of their Merchandize and Traffick with other Nations for they Export the Product of their Soil and their own Manufactures Vending or Exchanging them at a Prodigious Advantage in the Remotest Regions of the Earth They have very strong Forts and Castles up and down the Country with Cities which are in a Manner Inexpugnable As for the Religion of the Netherlanders The Ten Provinces which are subject to the King of Spain or France are called Catholicks The other Seven represent the Celebrated Tower of Babel where the Languages were first Confounded as Moses relates For such is the Hotch-potch and Gallimaufrey of Religions tolerated in Amsterdam Leyden
and other Cities of Holland and in General throughout all the Seven Vnited States Neither have they much more Regularity and Order in other Matters Wonder not therefore if my Pen observes no Method in Treating of a Country which is the very Emblem Proverb and Centre of Ataxy and Confusion However I will now begin to make more Particular Distinctions than in the Former Part of my Letter Zeland has a bad Air especially in the Summer time when the Sun exhales Stinking and Infectious Vapours from the Lakes and Pools of which there is a great Number in that Province Yet it has an Excellent Soil abounding with Wheat and other Corn also with good Pasturage for Sheep and Cattel There is little more to be said of this Province Holland has this Observable in it That frequently the Earth trembles there under the Burden of Coaches Wagons Horses c. Which is an Argument that the Ground is hollow underneath and full of Caverns To confirm this Opinion they say That a Cow once falling into a Gap or Chasm in the Earth was found dead three Days afterwards in the Sea being known to the Owner to be the same Hence a Part of Holland in the Language of the Country is called Waterland Which at first Hearing sounds like a Contradiction But they mean by it a Land situated in the Waters For so indeed the whole Province appears to be divided into small Islands by Innumerable Canals Lakes and Pools that every where expose themselves to your Eye This Province deserves most properly of all the Rest the Appellation of Netherland it being sunk so very low that in many Places the Sea rises higher than it Which compels the Hollanders to fortifie their Shores with High and Strong Banks which with great Cost they continually keep repair'd They have but little Corn or Fruit of their own Growth being supply'd with those Things from Germany Poland and other Countries But there is an Immense Quantity of Grass to nourish Millions of Sheep Oxen and Horses And what I have said of these two Provinces may be in some Degree apply'd to all the Rest Frizland only excepted which is more Fertile of Corn yields Abundance of Pulse and Salt and is well cloath'd with Woods As to the Manners of these People The Zelanders are of a Ready Wit Provident and Subtile Of Stature generally very tall as will appear by a Woman of this Province whom William Count of Holland sent to the Nuptials of Charles the Fair King of France She was of so vast an Heighth and Bulk that the French look'd like Pigmies or Dwarfs in Comparison of her And such was her Strength that She could lift from the Ground a Beam and carry it on her Shoulders which Eight Labouring Men cou'd hardly stir 'T is observ'd of Geldres That it was the First of these Provinces which submitted to the Rising Fortune of the Roman Empire And again The First that shook off the Yoke when that Empire was in its Wane In Vtrecht there are Abundance of Nobles who are more Soft and Polite in their Conversation than the Rest of the Hollanders The Women of Quality there go Veil'd The Publick Affairs of all these Provinces are manag'd by those whom they call the States-General of the Vnited Provinces These are a Convention or Assembly of the Chief Nobles Principal Magistrates and most Eminent Citizens in every Province Courteous Effendi These are the Chief Things which I know of the United Provinces unless thou wouldst have me write their Compleat History Which wou'd be too tedious for Letters Accept of my Labours which tho' Mean yet are Voluntary Chearful and done at a Jerk Paris 4th of the 12th Moon of the Year 1678. LETTER VI. To the same THou wilt say I 'm all upon the Extremes In my last I dragg'd thee through the most Dirty Nasty Abject Valley of all the Earth I mean Holland with the rest of the Vnited Provinces Now I 'm going to lead thee out of those Fenny Bogs and give thee a Breathing up the Salubrious Hills and Mountains of Helvetia or Swisserland 'T is true this cannot be done without a considerable Leap over many Provinces of Germany Part of Lorrain and Alsace But having spoken formerly of the Empire and from thence in my next by a kind of Natural Descent fallen into the Low Countries the Consideration of their Form of Government put me in mind of the other Republicks in Europe Among which that of Switzerland lying next to the Vnited States I chose to make it the Subject of this Letter designing to give thee an Account of Venice Genoua Lucca and the Rest in Order Know then that Helvetia or Swisserland was once a Province of Germany but now 't is a Commonwealth subsisting by it self and not subject to any Foreign Power It is divided into Thirteen Cantons or Provinces I will not trouble thee with the Names of each Districh or with their several Characters The whole Country in general looks like a great Bunch of Rocks and Mountains separated by small but very pleasant Valleys And though the Mountains seem rough yet their Tops and Brows flourish no less with all sorts of Trees and Herbage than the fairest Plains The Inhabitants nourish abundance of Sheep on them besides Goats Hinds Horses with many other Kinds of Beasts For there is great Plenty of Animals in this Country both Wild and Tame The Air is piercing and serene the Soil though not of it self fertile yet is made so by Industry of the Inhabitants In some Parts they have Vineyards which produce a Grape of wonderful Delicacy The Wine of which is much esteem'd in those Parts The Lakes also and Rivers abound with Fish of all sorts Neither is there any Scarcity of Fowls or of any Thing else which immediately serves the Necessities of Human Life Only Things tending to Luxury and other Kinds of Wantonness are not to be found in this Happy Region It is a second Scythia or Tartary And indeed the Inhabitants of Swisserland are thought to come out of those more Northern Regions They have ever been Famous for their invincible Constancy and Valour in War Julius Caesar himself was afraid of them and built a Wall to hinder them from going into France or Gaul when he remember'd that L. Cassius a Roman Consul was Vanquish'd by them and his whole Army routed Some Authors affirm that in the Times of Old the Inhabitants of the North of Europe were so prodigiously multiplied that some of them were forced to seek new Seats Wherefore rushing through Germany and passing the Rhine they were met by the Gauls whom they Overcame and Defeated Upon which News the Neighbouring Nations being terrified sent Embassadors to them desiring Peace The Conquerors replied They came not to wage War or disturb the Peace of Mankind That they only sought a Place to live in quietly where they might manure the Ground without hurting any Body Then Helvetia was granted to them where