THE Sixth Volume OF LETTERS Writ by a Turkish Spy Who lived Five and Forty Years Undiscover'd at PARIS Giving an Impartial Account to the Divan at Constantinople of the most Remarkable Transactions of Europe And discovering several Intrigues and Secrets of the Christian Courts especially of that of France continued from the Year 1659 to the Year 1682. Written Originally in Arabick Translated into Italian and from thence into English by the Translator of the First Volume LONDON Printed by J. R. for I. Hindmarsh and R. Sare at the Golden Ball in Cornhil and at Grays-Inn Gate in Holborn 1694. Mahmut the Turkish Spy Aetatis suoe 72. TO THE READER AS superfluous as Prefaces seem yet there is one thing which makes it in a manner necessary to prefix a few Lines to this Volume in regard there is an Occasion given by the Objections some Gentlemen have been lately pleased to make against the Style of the English Translation These Persons having by a very costly Inquisitiveness found and procur'd the Italian Copy of these Letters and compar'd them with the English pick many Faults in the latter which they would fain improve to the lessening the Reputation of the Turkish Spy or at least to the heightening their own Characters as Wits and Criticks Masters of Languages and the Grand Patentees of Humane Sense In the First Place they say the Italian Translation keeps close to the Original Arabick whereas the English abounds too much with Anglicisms which are not sufficient to express the Author 's Primitive Sense How Impossible a Thing it is to please all People in Undertakings of this Nature Formerly they were offended that so many Turkish and Arabick Words were left untranslated And that being answered in the Preface to the Fourth Volume they have now form'd New Arguments out of that very Answer to assault us on the contrary Side and tax us with being too Vernacular 'T is true the Letters they have sent to the Bookseller on this Account are not subscrib'd at Length Yet by Accident one of the Gentlemen's Hand-Writing is known And tho' we acknowledge him to be an Ingenious Person and a Man of Learning yet I believe he would be unwilling his Letter should here be expos'd in Print or the Original shew'd to some that know him and perhaps may claim an Equal Rank among the Criticks But to come to the purpose I have often heard Translations blamed for keeping too close to the Original Phrase but never any before this for a Negligence that is absolutely necessary to retain the Sense of a Foreign Author All the World knows there is a vast Distance between Arabick and the Languages of Europe and if the Italian Translator was more exact in forming his Words up to a near Imitation of the Eastern Proprieties of Speech no doubt but Impartial Men will rather Censure it as a Fault than cry it up for an Excellency since nothing sounds well in any Language which is not deliver'd in the Natural Idiom Every thing ought to be writ in as Familiar a Style as we Discourse especially Letters which are but a Proxy-Method of Conversing at a Distance And he that Translates out of one Language into another ought to aim Chiefly at this That he be sure to retain the Original Sense and render it smooth and easy to the Reader The Flowers of Arabia and Italy when once Transplanted to our barren English Soil lose their Vertue and Beauty till they are Naturaliz'd What then must we expect from their Weeds Doubtless there are some Peculiarities in all Languages and to Translate Verbatim from so Remote a Tongue would sound as harsh as French does in an Englishman's Mouth when he pronounces it as 't is writ What I have more to say is that as this Volume contains a History of things transacted within the Memory of most Men now living so the Two succeeding Tomes fall down lower and nearer to the present Times Giving an Account of Events whereof many have been Eye-Witnesses and wherein not a few have had a Personal Share either by Way of Action or Suffering Profit or Damage which must needs afford Delight to thinking Men since there is nothing more Agreeable to Mortals than to reflect on the former Passages of their Lives according to that of the Poet Haec olim meminisse juvabit Besides for the farther Encouragement of the Candid Reader he may assure himself that toward the Conclusion of the Last Volume he will meet with several Secrets between the French and Turkish Courts which will discover the true Source of the Present War between the Emperor of Germany and the Grand Signior and give a Glimps of the Private Machinations and Springs which have put all Europe into the Hurly burly 't is now in I have but this more to say That we hope to be more Speedy in publishing the Remainder of these Letters than we have hitherto been in the Former Volumes Reader Adieu A TABLE OF THE LETTERS and Matters contained in this Volume VOL. I. BOOK I. LETTER I. MAhmut the Arabian at Paris to Dgnet Oglou his Friend at Constantinople pag. 1 He relates the Errours he committed in Point of Address and Carriage when he first came to Paris II. To the Reis Effendi or Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 9 Of a Fellow that dogg'd him up and down the Streets of Paris and his Apprehensions thereupon III. To Abdel Melec Muli Omar President of the College of Sciences at Fez. 14 He complains of his frequent Sadness on the Account of his Employment IV. To the Kaimacham 18 Of the Quakers in Holland England Germany and other Parts of Europe V. To the Same 23 Of the Peace concluded between France and Spain Of the Match between the King of France and the Spanish Infanta Of the Duke of Lorrain's Release and the Prince of Conde's Restauration VI. To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottomam Empire 26 He congratulates his Accession to that Dignity Of the Death of the King of Sweden and the Duke of Orleans VII To Dgnet Oglou 32 He discourses against the little Superstitions of the Mahometans Of Moses and the Jews in Egypt VIII To the Kaimacham 40 Of the Prince of Conde's Reception and Entertainment at the French Court Some Passages of his Life X. To the Same 43 Of King Charles II. his Restauration to the Crown X. To Mehemet an Exil'd Eunuch at Caire in Egypt 47 He breaks forth into melancholy Excursions XI To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 51 He relates some Passages of Henry IV's Life XII To Mustapha Berber Aga. 55 Of the Extraordinary Magnificence at the New married King and Queen's Entry into Paris XIII To Dgnet Oglou 58 Of an Earthquake at Paris XIV To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 61 Observations on the Reign of Lewis XIII XV. To Mahummed in the Desart 67 Of the Earthquake at Paris and other Parts of France
BOOK II. LETTER I. TO the Venerable Mufti 71 Of Cardinal Mazarini's Death Some Remarks on his Life II. To the Vizir Azem at the Port 75 Farther Remarks on Cardinal Mazarini III. To Pesteli Hali his Brother Master of the Customs at Constantinople 77 Of his Cousin Isouf's Residence at Astracan A Character of the Moscovites IV. To Orchan Cabet Student in the Sciences and Pensioner to the Sultan 80 He congratulates his Conversion to the Mahometan Faith V. To the Mufti 83 Of the King of France's Power to cure the King's-Evil VI. To Mirmadolin Santone of the Vale of Sidon 86 He applauds the happy Life of a Santone VII To Dgnet Oglou 90 Of Painters A Story of Martin Heemskirk Another of Giotto VIII To Lubano Abufai Saad an Egyptian Knight 97 Of the Dauphin's Birth IX To Cara Hali Physician to the Grand Signior 101 Of Hardiness Indifference and Resignation X. To the Same 106 Of Plays and an odd Accident that happen'd at one in the Presence of the King and the whole Court XI To Dgnet Oglou 113 He compains of the Slanders cast on him by some at the Seraglio XII To Abrahim Eli Zeid Hadgi Preacher to the Seraglio 116 Of the Wicked Lives of Priests and Monks XIII To the Chiaus Bassa 152 Of the French Kings Conduct and Government XIV To the Same 130 More on the same Subject Of an extraordinary Tournament or Carousal at the French Court. XV. To Zeidi Alamanzi a Merchant at Venice 135 He applauds his Sincerity in embracing the Mussulman Faith XVI To the Kaimacham 141 Of the Attempts made on the Lives of the Duke and Dutchess of Crequi XVII To Mohammed the Illustrious Eremit of Mount Vriel in Arabia 144 Of the Contradictions and Vncertainty of Antient Records c. XVIII To Hasnadar-Bassi Chief Treasurer to his Highness 148 Of the Birth and Death of Madam of France Of the Peace concluded betneen France and Spain He reflects on the English for delivering up Dunkirk to the French Of the Marriage between the King of England and the Infanta of Portugal XIX To the Kaimacham 152 He relates a strange Passage that happen'd to him in Visiting a Calabrian Traveller professing Astrology and Physick XX. To the Captain Bassa 157 Of a Wonderful Man taken up on the Coasts of North-Holland XXI To Nathan Ben Saddi a Jew at Vienna 161 He endeavours to convince him that Ismael was Heir of the Promises made to Abraham as being the First-born Son With some Recriminations on the Race of Isaac XXII To the Same 166 He discourses concerning the Origin of Nobility and Grandeur among Men. XXIII To Codarafrad Cheik a Man of the Law 173 Of a Man that was executed at Paris for asserting That he was the Son of God BOOK III. LETTER I. TO Solyman his Cousin at Chalcedon 177 He applauds his Removing from Place to Place and advises him to travel farther in the World or at least to visit his Cousin Isouf at Astracan II. To Pesteli Hali his Brother Master of the Customs at Constantinople 181 Of the Wars and Revolution in Indostan with some Remarks on the different Policy of Eastern Nations III. To Vseph Bassa 186 Of the Conversion of the Duke of Meckleburg to the Roman Faith Of the Magnificent Entry the Suis-Embassadors made into Paris IV. To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottomâ—n Empire 188 Of the King of France's Amours A pleasant Story of his Confessor V. To Pesteli Hali his Brother Master of the Grand Signior's Customs at Constantinople 191 Of Mahmut's Inclinations to travel his particular Phancy for Indostan With a Description of the Pleasures he should take in passing thither VI. To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 200 Of the Death of the Dutchess of Savoy and Carolus Josephus Brother to the German Emperor A General Character of Germany France Spain England Holland and other Parts of Europe VII To Kerker Hassan Bassa 206 He acquaints him how he had been Assassinated one Night in the Streets as he was returning to his Lodgings Of his Removal thereupon to another Part of the City VIII To Nathan Ben Saddi a Jew at Vienna 213 He informs him of the same Accident referring him for farther Instructions to Eliachim who would be shortly at Vienna IX To Zeidi Alamanzi a Merchant at Venice 216 He forbids him to send any Letters to Paris till he has receiv'd Fresh Orders from the Port. X. To Murat Bassa He complains for want of timely Intelligence from the Ministers of the Port. Of the Victories and Successes of the Ottomans in Hungary Of Count Strozzi's Arrival at Paris in Quality of Embassador from the Emperour XI To Isouf his Kinsman a Merchant at Astracan 223 A Character of Spain XII To Afis Bassa 225 Of the General Consternation in Europe upon the News of the Grand Signior's Advances into Hungary Of Cardinal Chisi's Arrival at Paris in Quality of Legate de Latere from the Pope XIII To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 228 He gives him a Character of Spain different from that he sent his Cousin Isouf XIV To Musu Ab'l Yahyan Professor of Philosophy at Fez. 233 He discourses of the various Languages of Europe A Story of a German Embassador at the French Court. XV. To Osman Adrooneth Astrologer to the Sultan at Adrianople 238 Of a Comet appearing in the Firmament From whence he takes Occasion to discourse about the Nature of Comets XVI To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 241 He informs him of the Peace made between the Pope and the King of France after the Affronts put upon the French Embassador at Rome Of the French King's Design on Africk XVII To Abdel Melec Muli Omar President of the College of Sciences at Fez. He complains that True Science is not to be found unless among the Bramins of India XVIII To Mirmadolin Santone of the Vale of Sidon 250 He asserts That Men are Partakers of the Divine Nature A Digression concerning the Ancient Religion of the Gentiles XIX To the Same 253 A Sceptical Discourse after the manner of an Epicurean Philosopher XX. To Isouf his Cousin a Merchant at Astracan 256 Mahmut complains of his Vneasiness in Paris and expresses his Emulation of the Arabs and Tartars XXI To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 260 Remarks on the Mareschal de Turenne with a Character of that Prince XXII To Orchan Cabet Student of the Sciences and Pensioner to the Grand Signior 265. Of a Paper of Verses which the King of France found one morning on his Table Of Anne Marie de Skurman the learned Maid of Saxony XXIII To the Captain Bassa 268. Of a Notable Victory obtain'd by the English under the Command of the Duke of York in a Sea Fight with the Dutch Of the King of France's Design to Vnite both Seas by Cutting a Canal through Part of his Kingdom BOOK IV. LETTER I. TO Achmet
for this Reason I count thy Predecessor a Happy Man in having the Privilege of a sweet Retirement where he may take Breath from the vain Importunity and Bustle of Mortals In the mean Time there is a Species of Felicity in thy Employment And thou can'st not be call'd Miserable so long as thou acquittest thy self fairly and enjoyest the Favour of thy Sovereign I perceive by thy Letter that thou art curious to know the Characters of Foreign States with the various Interests of Nazarene Princes The Intrigues of these Western Courts their Overtures of Peace and War And the different Laws Maxims and Customs by which the People are Govern'd Thy Conversation with Embassadors at the Port will furnish thee with Abundance of Useful Remarks in this Kind But since thou requirest me to send my Observations I will hereafter obey thy Commands in Successive Letters For this is too large a Theme for one Dispatch At present thou mayst receive and Register for true News That the Peace between France and Spain has been Sign'd by both Kings and Solemnly publish'd throughout their Territories with Inexpressible Joy and Magnificence It is certain also that the King of Sueden is dead and the Duke of Orleance Uncle to the French King Which has in some measure qualify'd the Mirth of the French on this Occasion Assuredly Human Affairs are Equally checquer'd with Good and Evil. Bliss comes not to us in Pure Unmix'd Streams Death keeps an even Pace and knocks as boldly at the Gates of Kings as at the Cottages of the Meanest Slaves It is the Part of a Wise Man to be always resign'd to Heaven and prepar'd for the worst Events As for the Best they never come amiss Paris 17th of the 3d. Moon of the Year 1660. LETTER VII To Dgnet Oglou SHall I converse with thee as Horace us'd to do with his Friends over a Glass of Generous Wine Let us lay aside Masques for a while and discourse with open Souls I believe thou hast as equal a Veneration for our Holy Prophet as I and hast been Educated in all the Tendernesses of Piety the Niceties of Divine Love as our Mollahs are pleas'd to call it We have been both of us Careful to rise before the Sun and say our Oraisons every Morning in a Demy-Trance that is Half a-sleep and Half a-wake This no doubt is a necessary Point of Piety And we have been no less sollicitous in observing the other Four Hours of Prayer Either of us wou'd have counted it an Irreligious Negligence if we had seen a Piece of Paper on the Ground and had not stoop'd to take it up with Reverence wiping off the Dirt and kissing the Tabula Rasa on which Men use to write the Name of God As if 't were not an Equal Argument of Respect to secure from Prophanation Sticks Stones Rags or any Thing whereon 't were possible to Engrave or Print the All-Mysterious Characters Nay or the very Sands themselves which as some say were the First Books on Earth However if they were not the First we are sure that in very Early Ages Men us'd to stamp their Memoirs or draw them out in perceptible Figures on the Surface of the Earth Witness the Old Ship-wreck'd Philosopher who being cast ashore in an Vnknown Land soon trac'd out the Manners of the People by certain Mathematical Impressions which he found in the Sands For he concluded these to be the very Foot-steps of Humanity and Vertue But to return to the Bus'ness of Religion We have been Obedient to the Instructions of our Fathers and Tutors Zealous in observing every Punctilio of Traditional Piety We have Fasted Pray'd Wash'd and given Alms at the Appointed Seasons and in the Manner prescrib'd by the Law All these I own are Commendable Exercises But methinks they are not the Solid and Substantial Parts of True Religion I hate Hypocrisy and the devout Wantonness of those who think to mock God with Ceremonies and Empty Forms It were much better to mix with the Idolatrous Rites of Bacchus if they deserve that Epithet and rant in Honour of Eternal Wine talk Reputed Blasphemy and reform the Model of the Vniverse I say I 'd chuse to do all this and more rather than cheat my self with Empty Hopes of gaining Paradise for acting to the Life the Shams of Pious Mimickry I would not have thee think that what I have now said proceeds from any Contempt of the Eternal Majesty By those fair Heavens above and all the Immortal Spangles of the Sky I swear there 's not a Faculty in Mahmut's Soul which is not fill'd with Gratitude and Veneration which does not burn with Flames of Sacred Love to the Adorable Fountain of All Things In a word I only strive to rescue my Friend from the Attempts of Pious Frauds the Religous Burlesques of our Mollah's and Mufti 's Believe my Dear Dgnet That there is a God a First Cause a Just Judge presiding over the World Believe also his Prophet the Holy the Beloved Mahomet the Minion as I may say of the Omnipotent But have some Faoth also for the Rest of his Messengers and Favourites Let not Hali be thought of without some Inward Flurry's of Devotition He was a Mussulman and the Fourth Cailiph tho' his Followers be damn'd Hereticks in our Divinity Had Right taken Place perhaps he had been the First of the Vicars but his Cause was superseded by his Absence Let him and that rest till the Final Inquisition And acknowledge that I have said too little for a Schiai and not too much for a Sunni I know no Reason also why we shou'd not reverence the Memories of Mercury Orpheus Cadmus Melissus Faunus and the Rest of the Ancient Sages and Lawgivers who Instructed the Nations of the Earth in the Mysteries of Religion taught them to Adore One Supreme God to believe the Immortality of the Soul and to practise Good Works What tho' the Ceremonies of their Worship were different from ours and perhaps polluted with an Unjustifiable Adoration of Images What tho' their Altars reek'd with the Blood of slain Beasts and sometimes smoak'd even with Humane Sacrifices These Barbarous Rites were not Instituted by the First Oracles of Religion Illuminated Souls Nuncio's from God to this Lower World But they were afterwards super-induc'd through the Corruption of Times the Avarice of Priests and the Superstition of the People And for ought we know our own Historians have not been Impartial in relating the Truth There is an Innate Envy between People of different Families and Nations Both We and our Fathers that descend from Abraham by Ismael and the Jews who are his Posterity by Isaac have been too favourable to the Offspring of that Beloved of God We generally entertain and cherish a Specifick Pride on the Score of our Illustrious Pedigree Especially the Jews who will not allow any People on Earth to be their Equals either in Point of Antiquity the Nobility of their Race or the Innumerable
the King as the fittest Man to succeed him in the Management of the Publick He was after the Death of Lewis XIII at first opposed by several Grandees but the Queen's Authority and that of the Prince of Conde supported him Whence arose a Common Proverb in those Days The Queen permits All the Cardinal Commands All and the Prince puts All in Execution For this last had then the Office of General This Minister was not esteem'd so Covetous as his Predecessor yet he heap'd up Vast Treasures Part of which he bestow'd in Magnificent Buildings and Furniture the Rest he sent into Italy to his Father who astonish'd at the Prodigious Quantities of Gold he receiv'd us'd to say Sure it rains Money in France However he made himself Odious to the Subjects of this Nation by his Continual Oppressions and they are glad he is gone 'T is a By-Word at Rome when any Pope dies to say Now the Dog is dead all his Malice is buried with him But I doubt it will not prove true in the Court of France at this Juncture For the King will either find a Minister Equal in Subtlety to the Deceas'd Cardinal who shall supply his Place or he will take the Administration of Affairs into his own Hands Be it which Way it will we are like to see the same Maxims pursu'd so long as Cardinal Richlieu's Memoirs are in Being who first taught this Crown to understand its own Strength Paris 14th of the 3d. Moon of the Year 1661. LETTER II. To the Vizir Azem at the Port. I Have sent a Dispatch to the Mufti acquainting him with the Death of the Cardinal Mazarini First Minister of State and the Greatest Favourite that ever liv'd Now I will inform thee of some Passages which I omitted in my Letter to that Venerable Prelate It is Necessary for me thus to distribute my Intelligence with a due respect to the different Quality of my Superiours Thou I suppose wilt require some Account of his Disposition and Morals with such a Character as may render this Great Genius familiar to thy Knowledge He seemed to place his chief Happiness in aggrandizing his Master whom he serv'd with a Zeal so pure and disinteress'd a Loyalty so Incorruptible and by such regular Methods of Prudence and Policy as if in his Days nothing were to be counted Vertue or Vice but what either favour'd or oppos'd the King of France's Interest He was of a Happy Constitution for a Courtier being by Nature Debonair Complaisant Affable and of a Sweet Deportment Yet Experience and Art taught him to improve these Advantages to the Height of Dissimulation You should see Courtesie and extraordinary Goodness flowing into every Feature of his Face You should hear Words breathing from his Mouth like the soft Benedictions of an Angel Yet at the same Time his Heart gave the Lye to Both. He meant nothing less than that a Man should find him as good as his Word He was ever ready to promise any Thing that was demanded of him But in Performance slow and full of Excuses Frugal of his Prince's Money and Liberal of his own Magnificent in his Buildings and the Furniture belonging to them Aiming in all Things to exceed other Men his Equals and in some to surpass even Mighty Princes his Superiours In a Word he was accomplish'd with all Qualifications requisite in a Fortunate Courtier and a good Statesman Yet after all this Sublime Genius yielded to Death But not like Common Mortals He died altogether like himself without so much as changing that settled Gravity and Serene Air of his Face as had been Remarkable during his Life He made the King Heir of his Estate and bequeathed abundance of Legacies To say all in Brief If he was Great in his Life he was much more so in his Death mingling his last Breath with the Sighs and Tears of the King who lamented his Departure with the Mourning of a Son for a Father Paris 26th of the 3d. Moon of the Year 1661. LETTER III. To Pesteli Hali his Brother Master of the Customs at Constantinople YEsterday a Dispatch came to my Hand from a very Remote Part of the Earth Our Cousin Isouf sent it from Astracan a Famous City for Traffick formerly belonging to the Crim Tartars but now in the Possession of the Moscovites He has been there a Considerable Time finding Profit by Merchandise For there is a vast Resort to that City from China Indostan Persia Moscovy and other Provinces of Europe and Asia The Roads to it are daily covered with the Caravans of Trading People And the River Volga can hardly sustain the Innumerable Multitude of Vessels that Transport Passengers with their Goods backwards and forwards between Astracan and the Regions round about the Caspian Sea into which that Mighty River discharges it self Isouf is Ingenious and has pitch'd upon some Advantageous Way of enriching himself which tempts him to take up his Abode in that City and there end his Travels or at least he will repose himself there till Fortune presents him with a fairer Opportunity of encreasing his Wealth In the mean Time I perceive by his Letter that he gets Money apace lives very happily and has the Wit to keep himself free from the Yoke of Marriage which embarass'd him so much formerly He soon put that troublesome Wife out of his Mind after he had Divorc'd her and he never fail'd to gratify himself with new Amours where-ever he came in his Travels He writes very Comically and I can't forbear smiling when he tells me He has had as many Concubines as the Grand Signior By which thou wilt perceive That Isouf is much addicted to Gallantry He frankly confesses That he first learned this Mode of loving at large in Persia especially at Ispahan where he says 't is a Mark of Honour for a Man to be good at Intriguing with the Ladies And he is call'd a Turk by way of Disgrace who frequents not every Evening the Gardens and Houses of Pleasure in the Suburbs But he adds that in India the Liberty of courting Women is much greater And that the very Nature of that Climate disposes a Man to this soft Passion In a word our Amorous Kinsman retains the same Humour still Yet this does not hinder him from prosecuting his necessary Affairs with Diligence and Alacrity He dispatch'd a Business for me at Archangel in Russia and another at Mosco very dexterously Which convinces me that he is not less Sedulous and Careful in Things which concern himself He says the Moscovites are the greatest Drunkards in the World Their Chief and most beloved Liquor is what the French call The Water of Life 'T is a Chymical Drink extracted from the Lees of Wine or other Strong Beverages such as thou know'st is common among the Greeks Armenians and Franks in the Levant When the Moscovites are once got into a House where this Nectar is Sold and are a little warm'd and elevated with it they will not
Second Repeal Which was granted him And then he took a wet Sponge and wip'd off all the Varnish he had daub'd on the Picture And the Crucifix appeared the same in all Respects as it was before The Pope who looked on this as a great Secret being Ignorant of the Arts which Painters use was ravished at the strange Metamorphosis And to reward the Painter's treble Ingenuity he absolv'd him from all his Sins and the Punishments due to them ordering moreover his Steward to cover the Picture all over with Gold as a farther Gratuity for the Painter And they say this Crucifix is the Original by which the most famous Crucifixes in Europe are drawn I need make no other Reflection on this Than that as the Suppos'd Murder of Jesus the Son of Mary is the Source of all the Christians Devotion so the real Homicide which this Painter committed has made it more intense and fervent by how much the Crucifixes drawn after this Pattern excel all that were seen before them in the Tragical Portraiture of the Martyr'd Messias And from this Reason it is that Painters are in so great esteem among the Italians because they form the Gods which those Infidels Adore It is no wonder therefore that the Chief Head of their Church should so easily Absolve Murder in a Painter as a Venial Sin especially when it is done in Ordine ad Deum as the Jesuits say that is to promote God's Glory as the Pope easily persuaded himself this was Since Idolatry is the main Engine which supports the State and Grandeur of the Roman Court And all the World knows that Holy City is a Type of Heaven or at least the Crafty Priests would fain represent it so My Friend thou and I have seen enough of their Tricks and Holy Frauds in Sicily Praise be to God they had not Power to pervert us Our Faith remains inviolate We still possess the Integrity of Mussulmans the Native Attach we owe to the Prophet who was sent to Exterminate Idols In a word we Adore none but One God Creator of the Worlds May that Incomprehensible for ever keep us in the same Faith and Practice till the Release of our Souls Paris 13th of the 9th Moon of the Year 1661. LETTER VIII To Lubano Abufei Saad an Egyptian Knight THIS Court is now at Fontainbleau and all seems to be dissolv'd in Joy for the Birth of a Dauphin The Queen was delivered of this Young Prince on the First Day of this Moon There 's Nothing but Feasting Dancing and Revelling on this Account with Bonefires and Congratulatory Addresses Only the Duke of Orleans the King's Brother has little Reason to be over-merry since he was the next Presumptive Heir of the Crown in Case the King died without Issue Male For the Laws of France exclude a Female from Reigning Yet this Duke dissembles his Inward Grief for being thus put by his Hopes and appears as Joyful as the Father himself He huggs and admires the Royal Babe wishing him Health and Long Life in a Compliment whom he really could rather wish out of the World or at least that he had never come into it So violent are the Temptations to a Crown so strong the Desire of Empire That the Nearness of Relation which endears the Rest of Mortals one to another enranges the Hearts of Princes from those of their own Blood if they stand in the Way of their Ambition And I can assure thee the French do not spare to say the Duke of Orleans has enough of this Vice to attempt great Things were not his Genius over-aw'd by the Matchless Fortune and Spirit of his Brother Neither is the King himself Insensible of this remembring with what Warmth the Duke received the Flattering Addresses of some Courtiers during his Brother's dangerous Sickness when the Physicians had well-nigh given him over for a Dead Man I was acquainted with this Passage but lately by Osmin the Dwarf who watches all the Motions of this Court. He tells me that the King being inform'd a Rumour was whispered among the Grandees of his Death caused them all to be sent for and to pass through his Chamber whilst the Curtains of his Bed were drawn open that they might see their Sovereign alive tho' in a bad State of Health He says moreover That the true Reason why several Lords of late have been removed from their Offices about the King is because he resented ill the too early and passionate Court they made to the Duke of Orleans on the Report of his Brother's Death 'T is natural to all Men to love themselves and to desire the Disposal of their own Affairs No Man would be content to have his Estate given away by his Servants at their own Discretion And Sovereign Monarchs are the most Jealous of all Men in such Cases Particularly the King of France is known to be a Prince very sensible of his Honour and soon touched in that Point by the least Appearance of Dis-respect in his Subjects and of Encroachment in his Neighbours As for the Duke of Orleans he is a Prince of no great Character either as a Souldier or a Statesman Neither has he been much talked of in the World till the Beginning of this Year when he Married an English Princess by Name Henrietta Daughter to the late Murder'd King of that Nation We have had another Match here also between the late Duke of Orleance's Daughter and the Prince of Toscany These things occasion various Discourse among those who pretend to weigh exactly the different Interests of Christian Courts especially of such as are concerned in the New Alliances For the Greatest Monarchs here in the West marry only for Profit and Advantage to Fortify themselves by a closer Union with the House to which they are Ally'd Whereas our Eastern Princes only indulge their Passions in the Choice of their Wives admitting none to their Embraces but the most Exquisite Beauties that can be found And where they once pitch their Phancy they neither regard Riches Honour or any other Recommendation save what their Love suggests being themselves Inexhaustible Fountains of Wealth Nobility and good Fortune to all who have the Happiness to be in their Favour They scorn to sell themselves and prostitute the Glory of their Diadems to a Foreign Prince for the Sake of a little Gold and much Trouble with a proud Female whom perhaps they never saw Yet this is the common Practice among the Princes of the Nazarene Belief Who consider not that instead of a Wife a Partner of their Empire and a Friend they often entertain a Snake a Traytor an Enemy Especially if she be a Woman of Wit and Intrigue as most of them are This made the now Queen-Mother the Relict of Lewis XIII suspected by her Husband and the present Queen of France is under the like Circumstances And it will always be so where Princes Match themselves after this manner and cannot debar their Wives from holding a
committed to able and learned Tutors and as they grow in Years encreasing also in Knowledge Wisdom and Courage they are dispos'd of every one suitable to his Capacity Some being made Ministers of State others Generals of Armies or Governours of Provinces Whereby each is put in a Condition to make Parties for himself among the Grandees and those of Inferiour Degree and to fortify his Interest in Court and City Country and Camp Thus an open Field is left for all to try their Wit and Courage in for the Sake of Inheritance and 't is more equal to let them Nobly Skirmish for a Crown and make a Warlike Lottery for Life or Death then set up one with the Advantage and Character of a Butcher and turn the Seraill ' to a Shambles always polluted with Royal Innocent Blood But every State pursues its own Maxims and there are not wanting Men of the Law who justify this Inhumane Conduct of our Sultans as the only means to prevent Publick Distractions and Civil Wars which always happen where there are many Pretenders to the Imperial Dignity As it lately fell out in the Indies I need not acquaint thee with what particular Dignities and Commands the Great Mogul invested his Four Sons Thou could'st sufficiently inform thy self of these Things when thou wast at Dehli the Capital City of Indostan Neither need I say any Thing of Rauchenara Begum or her Sister Saheb the Two Daughters of Cha Iehan Thou that hast been there in Person know'st more of these Things than I who am oblig'd to the Merchants and Travellers for all my Intelligence of the Indian Affairs But I can certify thee of something which has been transacted there since thy Return to Constantinople the Fame whereof perhaps is not yet arriv'd to the Imperial City Know then that in the Year 1655 a Rumour being spread abroad through the Provinces of India that Cha Iehan was dead each of his Four Sons began to lay about him for the Crown They did all that is usual in such Cases for Ambitious Persons to do by courting the Omrahs and Rajas with large Presents and larger Promises by obliging the Souldiery with immense Largesses in a Word by rouzing up the Friendship and Integrity of their Adherents and by winning over Strangers to their different Parties with whatsoever else was thought necessary to carry on a prosperous War against one another For the Innate Desire of Reigning had equally possess'd them all But Destiny which appoints and consummates Humane Events had reserv'd the Crown for Aureng-zebe who surpass'd all the rest in Policy and Dissimulation With profound Craft this Prince over-reach'd his younger Brother Morad-Batche and put him in Chains in the midst of Morad's own Army pacifying the Officers with Bribes and the Common Souldiers with Encrease of their Pay whilst he sent their General away Prisoner to one of his strongest Castles This was the First considerable Stroke he gave toward the gaining a Crown For now he was not only rid of one Competitor and the most dangerous of all the rest but also became Master of his Army and all his Treasure which being joined to his own put him in a Condition to pursue his good Fortune with Success Yet the War lasted almost Six Years his Brother Sultan Sujah keeping him in Play on the Side of Bengale and Sultan Dara near the Capital Cities Agra and Dehli But at last they were both forc'd to yield to the Fortune of Aurengzebe In fine he was establish'd and now sits on the Throne of his Fathers whilst they fell Sacrifices to the Jealousy and Revenge of their Victorious Brother being as I 'm inform'd taken Prisoners and afterwards poyson'd or hurry'd out of the World some other Way Thus passes away Humane Glory like a Cloud driven before the Wind or like the Smoak of a Fire which looks bright and gay for a while crackles and gives Heat to all that are near it but is either suddenly quench'd with Water or evaporates into Air and is no more remember'd Dear Pestheli consider that this Earth is not our Native Country we are Foreigners here below let us improve our selves by every Thing we encounter in Knowledge and Vertue without Learning the Vanity and Vices of Mortals Paris 4th of the 6th Moon of the Year 1663. LETTER III. To Useph Bassa HEre is great Rejoycing for the Conversion of a certain Protestant Prince to the Faith of the Roman Church They call him the Duke of Meklebourgh He is said to spring from an Ancient Race of Kings among the Vandals This Court caresses him in an extraordinary Manner as they usually do all Proselytes of his High Quality as for poor and vulgar Converts they serve only to become the Priests Slaves and Asses The King who is Styl'd the Eldest Son of the Church and therefore ought to appear a living Demonstration of her boasted Vertues has been very Liberal of his Favours to the New Devotee creating him Knight of the Holy Spirit which is the most Sublime Degree of Honour in this Kingdom next to that of being made Peer of the Realm Couriers arrive one at the Heels of another from the Duke of Beaufort who is Cruising about on the Mediterranean But I cannot get a Sight of any of them nor learn what their Expresses contain The Courtiers and Statesmen here are the very Whirl-Pools of Intelligence Whatever News is communicated to them is swallow'd up and lost for ever in profound Silence They receive all but return none again However People take the Liberty to guess every Man according to his Reason or Fancy Some say the Duke of Beaufort has engaged with a Fleet of Algerines and driven 'em into their Harbour with great Loss on their Side and Triumph on his Others laugh at this as only a Court-Romance who strive to prepossess the Nation with prosperous Stories of the King's Arms both by Sea and Land Whilst a Third Sort affirm That those Dispatches come not from the Duke of Beaufort who they say is dead being kill'd by a Cannon-Bullet in an Encounter with the Corsairs of Barbary But that they are sent from the next Chief Officers in the Thoulon Fleet to give the King an Account of his Death and receive New Orders In the mean while we are wholly taken up here at present with the Reception of the Swiss-Embassadours They made their Publick Entry into Paris yesterday after they had been magnificently entertain'd at the Castle of the Wood. A Thousand Chariots accompanied them through the Streets of Paris They are brave Jolly Persons Sons of Bacchus and Hirelings to Mars Stout in a Wine-Cellar and no Cowards in the Field Courteous Bassa Thou seest I do not forget my Friends but send to all by Turns the Advices that come to my Hands I wish thou would'st favour me with a short Sketch of thy Pleasure with the Grand Signior in the Neighbouring Plains of Adrianople Paris 10th of the 11th Moon of the Year 1663. LETTER
their Mother's Breasts Toil and Recreation with them are one and the same thing since they know no other Pleasure but what consists in Riding Fighting and Conquering or else in Death which they believe translates them to new Joys and those more poignant than they knew before Therefore they bravely court it at the Point of a Sword or the Mouth of a Cannon Nothing being more scandalous or hateful than a Coward among them I protest the very Idea of Palus Maeotis and Taurica Chersonesus with the Rest of those Horrible Fens and Marshes on the North of the Black Sea which encompass the Dominions of the Tartars affects me with a Passion or rather such a Medly of Passions as I know not how to name Those ample Desarts those untrack'd Solitudes appear to my Imagination like the Limits of this old Habitable World and the Frontiers of some new strange and unknown Region some Terra Incognita where an Universal Desolation and Silence keep their Seat for ever Where no Voices are heard but those of uncouth Satyrs Fauns and other Exotick Tenants of the Woods and Moors No other Sound but the whistling and roaring of the Winds No Prospect but that of Trees which have appear'd from the Infancy of Time and where those are wanting the Eye is wearied in a long endless Waste which nothing seems to bound but the declining Arch of distant Skies or low black melancholy Clouds skirted with Mists and Fogs Eternal Mantles of the Northern Climes This is the Figure of those solitary Tracts where I wou'd chuse to live rather than in a City which stifles me with too much Plenty of every Thing but fresh Air and honest People Isouf the Contrarieties which we find in Earthly Things give a Gust to each other And the most Magnificent Palace wou'd seem a Prison were a Man always confin'd to live in it Cousin I wish thee perpetual Liberty and Happiness Paris 7th of the 2d Moon of the Year 1665. LETTER XXI To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire AMidst the Variety of Obligations which I have to discharge I forget not to obey thy Commands I have already in my former Dispatches acquainted thee with the Characters and some Remarkable Passages of Henry IV. Lewis XIII Lewis XIV Cardinal Richlieu Cardinal Mazarini and the Prince of Conde Now I will say something of the Famous Mareschal de Turenne whose Fame reaches wheresoever the French Wars have been talk'd of for these Forty Years The Name of this great General is Henry de la Tour d' Auvergne Son to the Duke of Bouillon When his Father was near his Death he call'd for both his Sons whereof this was the youngest And among other Exhortations he recommended in a special Manner Three Things to their Practice Never to renounce or change their Religion Never to take up Arms against their Sovereign Nor to provoke the First Minister As to the First the Mareschal de Turenne has hitherto kept it inviolably but he has faulter'd in both the other having revolt-from his Master's Service during his Minority and oppos'd the Interest of Cardinal Mazarini when the Parliament persecuted that Minister However this hinders not but that he is a Great Souldier and besides he is since reconcil'd to the King He seems to be born for Martial Affairs And they relate of him That when he was but Ten Years Old and his Governour missing him had sought up and down every where for him he at length found him fast asleep on a Cannon which he seem'd to embrace with his little Arms as far as they wou'd reach And when he ask'd why he chose such a Couch to lie on he made Answer That he design'd to have slept there all Night to convince his Father that he was hardy enough to undergo the Fatigues of War though the Old Duke had often perswaded himself to the Contrary And to speak the Truth no Man was more Careless of his Body than this Prince At Fourteen Years of Age he was sent into Holland to serve in the Army under the Prince of Orange who was his Uncle There he apply'd himself to all the Discipline of War doing the Duty of a Private Soldier Which is the common Way that Cadets or Younger Brothers take to rise to the most Eminent Offices He was equally forward in Labours and Perils never shunning any Fatigue or Hazard which might bring him Glory yet he was not rash the Common Vice of Youth but temper'd all his Actions with an extraordinary Prudence and Solidity of Judgment beyond what was expected from him at those Years Yet on the other Side his Counsels were not slow and Flegmatick being of a very ready Forecast and he seldom fail'd in his Contrivances He was soon promoted to a Place of Command And the Exactness of his Conduct rais'd him a vast Reputation so that by Degrees he at last arriv'd to that Height of Power and Honour he now possess He appears Indefatigable in his Body and of an Invincible Resolution He hates Flatterers that think to gain his Friendship by praising him And is equally averse from making Use of such fawning Insinuations to others though the Greatest Princes of the Blood or the First Minister himself He has also a certain Stedfastnese of Spirit which cannot be warp'd by any Artificial Addresses though made to his own apparent Advantage if they propose to him any Thing that has the least Semblance of what is base and dishonourable Thus he wou'd never consent that the Honour of taking Dunkirk some Years ago should be ascrib'd to Cardinal Mazarini tho' that Minister privately courted him to it offering him the Greatest Commands in the Kingdom if he would do him that Service and the Mareschal knew it might prove his Ruin if he did not Yet such was his Integrity and Love to the Truth that by no means would he be brought to condescend to this Meaness of Spirit Yet perhaps it might only proceed from the Aversion which in those Days he had for the Cardinal Many times it is evident That a Natural Passion is made to pass for a Moral Vertue Besides perhaps he was unwilling to be depriv'd of the Glory due to him for that Important Service He is a Man of few words and so secret in all his Counsels that no-body knows any thing of his Designs till he puts them in Execution Every Man esteems him the most Liberal Prince of this Age having no other Regard for Money than as it serves the Necessities of his Family and enables him to oblige his Friends In a Word whatever Vices he may have he is yet endu'd with so many Good Qualities and Vertues that he is belov'd by all the Nation and in Particular Favour with his Sovereign who treats him not as a Subject but as one of his most intimate Friends May God who has rais'd up this Great Genius to aggrandize the French Monarchy continually supply the Grand Signior with Valiant and
Beig 273 Of the Death of Philip the IV. King of Spain and the Duke of Vendosme II. To William Vospel a Recluse of Austria 278 Mahmut endeavours to reclaim him from Bigottry III. To Nathan Ben Saddi a Jew at Vienna 284 He reflects on the Misna and Talmud of the Jews rehearsing briefly several ridiculous Stories out of the Latter Of a Sort of Jews in North-Asia different from the Rest of that Lineage in their Language Laws and Religion IV. To the Same 289 He gives him a more particular Account of these Jews their Customs and Manner of Life V. To Mohammed Hadgi Dervich Eremite of Mount Vriel in Arabia the Happy 295 He tells him he is in doubt of his Future State However asserts That 't is good to meditate on the last Things VI. To the Kaimacham 300 Of Mirammud the Son of the Xairiph of Salle's being taken Prisoner by the French His Character and Entertainment at the Court. VII To Hamel Muladdin Xairiph of Salle 302 He acquaints him with the same thing and advises him to send speedy Embassadors to the Court of France in Order to his Son's Redemption VIII To Pesteli Hali his Brother Master of the Customs at Constantinople 305 He informs him of the Treachery of Solyman his Cousin in employing some Armenian Merchants at Paris to pry into Mahmut's Secrets IX To Dgnet Oglou 308 More on the same Subject X. To Hamet Reis Effendi Principal Secretary of the Ottoman Empire 313 Of the Plague at London and in other Parts of England Of the Death of the Queen-Mother of France and of the Prince of Conti. XI To Nathan Ben Saddi a Jew at Vienna 317 He reproaches him with Bigottry in believing Sabbati Sevi the pretended Messias of Smyrna c. to be the True Redeemer of Israel A short history of Sabbati Sevi's Life XII To the Kaimacham 323 An Account of the Jew's Extravagances on the appearing of Sabbati Sevi as their Messias Strange Reports of the Ten Tribes that were carried away captive by Salmanassar King of Assyria XIII To Murat Bassa 327 Of a War between the French and the English Of a Marriage between the Emperour of Germany and the Infanta of Spain XIV To Pesteli Hali his Brother Master of the Customs and Superintendent of the Arsenal at Constantinople 331 He congratulates his New Advance relates the Blowing up of Rezan a City in Russia and Descants on the Day of Doom XV. To Vseph Bassa 337 Of the Continuance of the Plague in England Of the Fire at London XVI To Cara Hali Physician to the Grand Signior 341 He complains that our Knowledge of a future State is very uncertain XVII To Kerker Hassan Bassa 347 He rejoyces to hear that he is to be remov'd from Paris to a Country Life somewhere in Asia XVIII To Isouf his Kinsman a Merchant at Astracan 354 He gives him a Character of his Cousin Solyman and bids him beware of him if he should come to Astracan LETTERS Writ by A Spy at PARIS VOL. VI. BOOK I. LETTER I. Mahmut the Arabian at Paris to Dgnet Oglou his Friend at Constantinople IT makes me smile sometimes when I reflect how often I was put to it for an Address suitable to the Manners of the Nazarenes and the particular Mode of Paris when I first arriv'd at this City For thou know'st we had other Employments than to learn Fashions and Conge's at Palermo The Mind of a Slave is dejected under the Circumstances of his Captivity so that he has not Leisure to regard any Thing but how to accomplish his daily Task and to please his Patron All his Study and Care is bent upon this and there 's no Room left for Generous Thoughts Neither has he Means or Courage to venture on Projects or improve the Present Occurrences in Order to his Future Happiness Nay he hardly dares think of ever being Happy again This was my Case and I believe 't was not much better with thee Yet notwithstanding all the Rigorous Usage I had the Bastinado's Kicks Bruises Cuts and Wounds I receiv'd from the Hands of that Barbarous Giafer my Master which made me sometimes Incapable of doing him any Service by Day or of taking any Rest my self by Night I was resolv'd to find some spare Time for Books I rose Early and went Late to Sleep neglecting no Moment wherein I cou'd apply my self to Study The Acquaintance I had with that Sicilian Carpenter our Friend was of Singular Advantage to me in this Kind For thou may'st remember he was well stock'd with many Ancient and Learned Treatises He furnished me with Plutarch Polybius Strabo Pliny and other Histories All which and many more I devour'd with Greediness for I had a strong Appetite to Knowledge And after my Redemption I pass'd away some Time in the Academies where I learn'd the Knotty Tricks of Logick how to split Moods and Figures and chain one Impertinent Syllogism to the Tail of another to Eternity I also ran through a Course of Phylosophy and other Sciences Neither was I altogether Ignorant of Men For the Reading of Histories fits a Man the better to make Practical Experiments in the Affairs of the World To which also Philosophy is not a little helpful in directing our Observations on the various Tempers of People Mens Personal Dispositions and Singularities with the Humours and Customs Peculiar to this or that Nation For these things depend many Times on the Difference of the Climate the Nature of the Soil the Qualities of the Air and the Manner of their Diet. But neither History Logick or Philosophy were able to efface the Impressions of my Early Years or unteach me the Manners in which I had been Educated from my Infancy I brought Arabia and Constantinople along with me even to Paris And because I had not been used to dissemble the Profession and Carriage of a Mussulman during my Thraldom in Sicily I was at a Loss in my Deportment when I came First hither How often have I been like to discover my self by Pronouncing the Sacred Bismillah either when I sat down to Eat or put a Glass of Water to my Lips or when I begun any other Action of Importance So likewise in uttering the Handillah after a Repast or when any Thing happen'd which prompted me to praise Ged When I met any of my Acquaintance in the Streets I was apt to forget that I had a Hat on And instead of putting off that according to the Fashion of the Franks I laid my Hand on my Breast and sometimes bowed so low that my Hat fell off from my Head before I was sensible of my Error If I had Occasion to address my self to a Person of Quality I was ready to take up the Bottom of his Cloak Gown or Robe and to Kiss it in Token of Reverence as the Custom is in the East when we salute the Grandees Nay sometimes I could not forbear falling on my Knee or prostrate on the Ground before
effect which is to whet our Inventions encrease our Diligence and confirm us in our Zeal all shall go well The Soul of Man never displays her Faculties and Perfections with greater Lustre than when she is environ'd with Perils These are the Tryals of Fortitude Prudence Justice and 〈◊〉 the Vertues He that sinks under Mâ—…nes and Cross Events has either no Sâ—… or â—…s asleep Courage then Fellow-Slave and let thy Heart beat a continual Alarm Be not dismay'd at any Thing nor let Self-Love bereave thee of thy Honour But go on in thy Duty and trust thy Soul to God Thou livest in a City where Vertue and Vice are in Emulation still striving to surpass each other There are not more wicked People in the World than Venice affords nor yet more Pious and Good Follow thou the best Patterns and be happy But do nothing by bare Imitation For that 's the right Way to become a Hypocrite Let all thy Actions proceed from Vital Principles of Reason and Generosity in thy self And when thou seest rare Examples let 'em serve only to awaken and rowze thy Innate Vertue Send me no Letters till thou hast receiv'd fresh Orders from the Port. They will furnish thee with all Necessary Instructions After that let me hear from thee as often as thou wilt Thy Dispatches will be always welcome Let them contain Matter of Intelligence chiefly and that of the freshest Date Penetrate into the Counsels of the Republick where thou residest Insinuate thy self with the Senators and Grandees Dive into their Hearts and unlock their Secrets Communicate Nothing but the Truth to the Ministers of the Port or to me If thou canst Discover their Inclinations to a Peace or their Absolute Need of it thou wilt do an Acceptable Service to the Grand Signior and to the whole Empire of the Faithful For then we can bring 'em to our own Terms Zeidi to God I recommend thee desiring him to preserve thee from Wine Women and Cards which are the Three Capital Temptations of Venice Paris 1st of the 6th Moon of the Year 1664. LETTER X. To Murat Bessa I Cannot easily divine the Reasons why I am so much neglected by the Ministers of the Port. Above Four Years have pass'd away wherein many Notable Events have happened yet no-body thought it worth his Labour to inform Mahmut of any Thing So that all the Notices I could gain of Remote Transactions are owing either to the Publick News of Europe or at best to some particular Letters of Merchants residing in this City with whom I conserve an Intimacy for the sake of Intelligence and for other Causes Thus I should have been in Ignorance to this Day what Issue the Bassa of Aleppo's Rebellion had were it not for an Accidental Interview I lately had of some French Travellers who came from Constantinople These inform'd me of the sudden Fate of that Bassa when he was at the Height of all his Grandeur within a few Days March of the Imperial City at the Head of a Potent Army and just upon the Point of Accommodation with the Grand Signior They much extol his Bravery and Resolution For the French are Naturally Lovers of such as dare boldly oppose their Sovereign They equally condemn the sly Perfidiousness of Mortaza Bassa to whose safe Conduct the Generous Rebel trusted his Life and by that Easiness lost it Yet they applaud Mortaza's Loyalty Courage and Wisdom with the Eminent Services he afterwards did the Empire in leading the Army against Ragotski Prince of Transylvania which at length lifted him to the Government of Babylon All these Things had been hid from me were not the Nazarenes my Intelligencers Nor should I have known how the Rebellion was carried on after his Death by his Revengeful Nephew by the Son of Cheusaien Bassa by a Bey of Egypt and other Malecontents Yet such Passages are fit for a Man in my Post to be acquainted with that he may have a clear Idea of his Master's Circumstances and so apply himself more effectually to serve him It had not been amiss if I had receiv'd timely Intelligence of the Death of Prince Ragotski in Regard there was always a private Correspondence between him and this Court. Which ceasing by his Death it had been worth my Pains to observe whether it would be continued by his Successor or what other Measures they would take 'T is true I was acquainted with this but not by the Ministers of the Port. I heard also of all the following Commotions in Transylvania occasion'd by the different Factions of Michael Apafi and Kemini Janos the Two Rival Princes I was not sorry for this News knowing that the Divisions of the Nazarenes strengthen the Unity and Force of the Mussulman Empire I was likewise inform'd of the Fate of Mortaza Bassa of Babylon who fell a Victim to the Grand Vizier's Jealousy with many other Passages But neither from the Port nor from any other Hands could I learn the least Intelligence of the Venetian War and what Progress our Arms have made in Candia Dalmatia and the other Dominions of the Republick Which makes me conclude that either the Grand Signor's Residence at Adrianople abated his Inclinations to Martial Affairs which is also the Common Opinion of the Christians here in the West or that the War in Hungary for a while superseded all other Designs However it be 't is certain the Successes of the Ottoman Arms in taking Newhausel Leventz Novigrod and other Places of Strength with the terrible Incursions of the Tartars through Moravia and Austria put the whole German Empire into a great Consternation Embassadors are sent from the Imperial Court to all the Christian Princes imploring their Assistance in this General Danger of Europe Here is one arriv'd at this Court whom they call Count Strozzi a Person of good Address and Master of much Eloquence He has prevail'd on the French King to maintain at his own Charges Six Thousand Horse and Foot to serve against the Victorious Osmans A great many Persons of Quality have listed themselves as Voluntiers and the meaner Sort talk of nothing but marching to Constantinople and driving the Turks back to Scythia from whence they first came Courteous Bassa thou wilt laugh at the Vanity of these Infidels who consider not that by the Grace of God and Miracles of his Prophet our Emperour is the King of all the Kings on the Earth the Mightiest of the Mighty ones the Phoenix of Honour Power and Unparallell'd Majesty Brother and Companion of the Sun Moon and Stars a Prince of a Mysterious and Sublime Lineage in whom are center'd all Glory and Excellency the Shadow of God on Earth The Breath of Fame goes before the Van-Couriers of his Armies purifying all Places and filling them with Veneration and Terror The Dust that is rais'd by his Heroick Cavalry passing through the Air causes Trembling and Astonishment in the Hearts of the Christians The Infidels fall before the Fatal Cymetars of