descended from that Place They swarm up and down the Country like Caterpillars devouring the Fruits of the Earth They boast of a Profound Skill in Palmestry Physiognomy and other Sciences cheating People of their Money under the Notion of telling them their Fortunes No Body knows from whence they come or whither they go For they are as uncertain as the Wind. A Nasty Generation and the very Burden of the Land If any Creatures be oblig'd to them 't is the Mice and Rats with whom they seem to be in League For they Kill and Eat all the Cats they seize on Illustrious Minister I pray Heaven defend thee from all Sorts of Plagues and Vermin but especially from Monsters in Human Shape Paris the 26th of the 2d Moon of the Year 1655. LETTER XV. To the same AS I am alive these Gypsies have enchanted me I cannot put 'em out of my Mind And perhaps it will neither be impertinent nor troublesome to give thee a farther Information of them There are several Opinions concerning the Original of these Vagrants and they have been thought worthy to be inserted into Histories Some say they came out of Tartary or Scythia and that they first appear'd in these Parts about the Year 1417. of the Christians Hegira At which Time they enter'd into Saxony in Troops having the Passport of Sigismund King of Hungary and Son of Charles IV. They had also the Recommendations of divers other Princes who look'd on them as Holy Persons or Prophets For they pretended that they were commanded by God to travel over the Whole Earth and not to have either Houses or Lands in their own Possession And that this was enjoin'd 'em as a Penance to expiate the Sin of their Ancestors who inhabiting Egypt in the Days of Jesus the Son of Mary the Christians Messias refus'd to entertain that Holy Prophet and his Mother when they fled from the Persecution of Herod Others are of Opinion that they came first out of Persia and are of the Race of those who Adore the Fire Being forc'd once in Seven Years to make Decimations of their People and send away many Caravans to seek their Fortune in Foreign Countries Persia not being able to sustain their Numerous Progeny A Third Sort affirm That they are the Posterity of the Ten Jewish Tribes that were carried away Captives by Salamanassar King of Assyria No Body knows for certain what they are or of whence They are of swarthy Complexions wrapt up in Mantles of Cotton or Wool They speak Seven Languages profess Three Sciences obey One King or General who always travels with ' em The Italians call 'em Cingari from a Word in their Language which signifies a Kind of Water-Fowl that has no certain Nest but is forc'd every Night to seek a New Lodging For so these Egyptians rove from Place to Place The Germans call them Zingener from the Word Zindel which is the constant Appellative of the King of these Ramblers as Pharaoh was of Old among the Gypsies and Caesar among the Romans In many Things they resemble the Torlakins and Faquirs of the East boasting of extraordinary Illuminations and a constant Familiarity with God Tho' some Learned Men among the Nazarenes esteem 'em no better than a Crew of Cheats and Hypocrites Even as they do those Oriental Santones who they say under the Masque of an Uncommon Holiness commit a Thousand Villainies God best knows what Judgment is to be made either of the One or the Other But these Egyptians as they call 'em whether they are really such or no have no great Marks of Sanctity in that they are very Vnclean They seldom or never Wash themselves but like the Swine wallow in all Manner of Filthiness eating Prohibited Meats and having their Women in Common which are the Two Sources of all Impurity As to the Faquirs of the East they are strict Observers of the Law of Abstinence and Cleanness whether they be Mussulmans or the Gentiles of India And if in other Matters they may be found faulty 't is very rare And then they exceed not the Character of Humanity which thou know'st is by Nature prone to Error and subject to a Thousand Frailties and Oversights We are all Men and God does not expect our Conduct to be that of Angels His Repose is in himself and if he takes any Complacency in the Things of the World 't is in beholding every Thing act according to its Nature The exquisite Form and Symmetry of a Bee a Spider or a Pismire with the Inimitable Architecture of the Two Former and the Admirable Providence of the Latter may for ought we know afford him as much Delight as the most celebrated Beauty Strength Science and Performances of Men. For his Power and Wisdom are Equally manifest in All Things Every Creature is Perfect in its Kind onely a Wicked Man is a Blot in the Vniverse Wouldst thou know what the Western Nazarenes are most busie about at this Time 'T is the Election of a New Pope He is to be chosen by the College of Cardinals who are Princes of the Roman Church They are all shut up in a Place which they call the Conclave This is a certain Gallery in the Palace of the Vatican at Rome where every Cardinal has his Cell or Apartment by himself having onely Two Servants to attend him The Conclave is surrounded by the Roman Militia to prevent all Intercourse by Letters or other Ways between those without and those within The very Dishes which are serv'd up at the Tables of the Cardinals are narrowly search'd lest any Letters shou'd be convey'd in them The last Posts from Rome assure us That there were no less than 66 Cardinals thus shut up when they left that City And there they must remain Night and Day without taking the fresh Air or seeing any Body till they have agreed in their Election There are Two Physicians a Surgeon and an Apothecary shut up with 'em to serve 'em in Case of Sickness One of the Conclavists is the Cardinal de Retz who escap'd out of his Prison in this Kingdom and fled to Rome for Protection From whence he sent a Letter to the Arch-Bishops and other Prelates of France which being pronounc'd a Seditious Libel against the King and the Government was in the End of the last Moon burnt publickly by the King's Order and all Copies of it prohibited The King has also sent private Instructions to the Cardinals of his Party at Rome to keep a strict Watch on the Conduct of de Retz and to oppose him in all Things Here is nothing but Caballing and Intrigue among these Infidels They are good at a Stratagem and know better how to undermine one another than to face their Enemies in the open Field Which is a Character more suitable to Women than Men. Whereas thou know'st our Hero's in the East know no other Way to Honour Victory and Empire than by downright Bravery and Resolution subduing all Things
is Probable they were built before the Flood This agrees exactly with what others of our Arabian Writers have deliver'd concerning King Saurid who Reign'd in Egypt Three Hundred Years before the Deluge They relate strange Things of this Prince and among the Rest That he dreamt The Fixed Stars came down from Heaven to the Earth overturning all Things with the Violence of their Precipitate Fall Being much troubl'd at this Vision he sent for the Priests and Sages who when they were assembl'd together in the King's Palace Aclimon their Cater or Prince of the Astrologers told the King That a Year before he had seen a Vision which made a deep Impression on his Mind For the Celestial Orbs appeared to descend so low as to touch the Earth so that the Stars were mingl'd among Men. Then he lift up his Hands above his Head in his Dream to keep the Heaven from quite oppressing Mortals with its Weight Whilst I were in this Posture said he methought I address'd my self to the Sun beseeching the Resplendent God to retire with all his Glittering Train of Lights to their Ancient Stations on High Whereupon the Sun made Answer When I shall have accomplish'd Three Hundred Circuits the Heavens will return to their Proper Places When Aclimon had related this Vision the King commanded the Astrologers to erect a Scheme of the Present Configurations Above and to tell them what they Presag'd They did so and all agree'd That a Deluge shou'd First overflow the Whole Earth and that Afterwards it should be totally destroy'd by Fire Upon the hearing of this they say King Saurid commanded the Pyramids to be built carrying all his Riches into them with the Tables of the Mysterious Sciences and Laws and whatsoever was esteem'd Precious and Worthy to be preserv'd from the General Destruction And the Annals of Egypt say that he commanded these Words to be Engraven on them I Saurid laid the Foundation of the Pyramids and finish'd them in Six Years Yet I Challenge any Future King to demolish them in Six Hundred Years Tho' it be much easier to Ruine than to Build I cover'd 'em with Silks let any Man after me cover 'em with Mats if he can In thus asserting Saurid to be the Founder of the Pyramids it ought to be understood only of some of the Greatest and that other Succeeding Princes perhaps after the Flood spurr'd on with Emulation and Desire of Glory built the Rest Which is the only Way to reconcile our Arabian Writers to Herodotus Diodorus and other Historians of the West who assign Cheops or Chemnis with Cephren Chabryis and Mycerinus the Son of Chemnis as Founders of some Particular Pyramids Whilst Strabo and Pliny ascribe the Building of one to Rhodope a Famous Strumpet or at least to some of her Paramours Doubtless there is great Obscurity and Confusion in the Records of the Ancients about the Exact Time when these Illustrious Monuments were built Which yet is an Impregnable Argument of their Antiquity since when One Author asserts this or that King to have built a Pyramid Another demonstrates the Contrary by proving that that Pyramid was in Being long before the Days of the suppos'd Founder Neither can I find any Concurrence of Authorities so Rational and exactly agreeing as that of the Arabians who all Unanimously deliver as a certain Truth That these Unparallell'd Structures were built long before the Flood All which is confirm'd by the Egyptian Annals themselves pen'd by those of the Coptite Race who descended from Coptim the Son of Masar the Son of Bansar the Son of Cham the Son of Noah With whom and his Family Philemon the Good Priest made an Alliance by Marriage and in their Custody were the Records and Traditions of the Old World But if it be granted Dear Eunuch that those Histories are true which relate the Transactions of the Kings of Egypt before the Flood what Reason have we to call in Question the Fragments of Manethos a Priest of Egypt or the Genealogy and Succession of Egyptian Monarchs deliver'd by Herodotus or the Chronological Registers of Egypt unfolded by Diodorus which carry up the Reign of their Kings to above a Thousand Years beyond any other the most Early Epocha of the Creation except that of the Assyrians or the Interminable Ascent of Past Ages in the Records of the Chinese and Indians I know not what to call it whether the Cowardise of the Intellect which dare not venture to launch into so vast a Speculation or its Sloth which will not take the Pains to unfold and stretch its drowzy Faculties on the most Natural Idea in the World 'T is true indeed we cannot without some Fatigue contemplate stedfastly the Eternal Existence and Duration of Things 'T is an Immortal Thought that can transport the Soul back through such an Infinity of Ages Yet the Pleasure is Agreeable to the Undertaking Because Truth serene as the Mornings in Egypt enlightens the Prospect and tempts the Mind if 't were possible to look even beyond Eternity it self Whereas he that only confines his View to the Narrow Horizon of Particular Histories is like a Man in a Wilderness or a low and shady Vale where his Eye is curb'd with the Interposition of Thickets Uneven Ground and Envious Enclosures For such are the Dark Controversies Inextricable Difficulties and Affected Umbrages of most Writers who never durst peep o'er the Mountains of receiv'd Opinion or if they did they fearfully or maliciously hide their Discoveries from the Rest of Mortals I tell thee as God is Eternal there cannot be assign'd an Instant of Time wherein the World did not Exist For the First Matter flows as Naturally from his Essence as Light from the Sun If thou Adorest any other God but this thou wilt bâ— found in the Number of Idolaters and Infidels who pay Divine Honors to certain Mighty Angels Architects as they believe of the Vniverse They behold Houses Castles and Great Cities built by Mortals and at a certain Period ruin'd by Fire Water Earthquakes or other Accidents Or destroy'd by the Effects of War From hence they form a Notion of the World 's Original and Catastrophe They Consider the Animals Plants and Minerals That every Individual perishes in Time and that even in the Heavens there are strong Symptoms of Corruption and Alteration Hence they collect Arguments to prove the Weakness and Decay of Vniversal Nature which they Vainly compare to the Life of a Man a Beast or a Tree And as these have their Appointed Seasons of Birth Growth Maturity Decay and Death so is it with the Vniverse But all this is Sophistry or to speak more favourably we ought to charge it to the Account of short Meditation For tho' the Individuals of all Kinds are chang'd cease and disappear at their Appointed Periods Yet the Species or Kinds themselves remain for Ever before our Eyes As fast as One Man dies Another is born and so 't is with the Brutes And the
tell me have I guess'd right at the Cause of so tedious a Reservedness or no Hast thou been forc'd all this while to speak with thy Hands Feet Nose and the Emphatick Motions of thy Head and Eyes If it were so I phansie thou wert excellent Company among thy Grave Flegmatick Brethren and in a fair Way to understand the Language of the Beasts who by curvetting creeping leaping frisking their Tails and other Postures express their various Passions Desires and Necessities as Intelligibly to those who are us'd to them as we can do by the most Elegant Addresses in Words But to be serious If for the Sake of Vertue this Penance be impos'd on thee by him who Presides over thy Convent or thou hast Voluntarily undertaken so difficult a Part of Self-Denyal on the Score of Philosophy or Religion thou hast approv'd thy self wise and brave in not flinching A Coward in Religious Matters is as despicable as in the Engagements of the World 'T is Honourable to face Temptations and come off with Victory As for what thou desirest to know concerning the Sepulcher of King Childeric It is esteem'd a Piece of great Antiquity In Regard he was the Fourth Monarch of France He Reign'd over the Gauls or Franks in the Year 458. Severus being Emperour of Rome Severinus and Dagalaiphus Consuls Yet in little more than Three Years he was depos'd and banish'd by his Subjects whilst one Aegidius a Roman was Crown'd in his Stead Neither did this Man please the People so well but that after some Experience of his Oppression Avarice and other Vices they expell'd him also and recall'd their Lawful Sovereign For Aegidius had vex'd them with Unreasonable Taxes fleecing them of many Millions which he privately sent out of the Kingdom disposing of this vast Treasure at Rome and among his Friends in other Parts as a Support against Future Contingencies For he look'd for some Back-Blows of Fate Childeric therefore being restor'd to his Crown enjoy'd it till his Death which was in the Year 484. After whom succeeded in the Kingdom Clodovaeus the Great who was the First French King that embrac'd Christianity The Time when Childeric's Tomb was first discover'd was about Two Years ago when the Cathedral of Tournay wanted Reparation For as the Labourers were digging up the Old Charnel-House they encounter'd a Long Stone which giving 'em some Fatigue they broke in Pieces and found under it the Entire Skeleton of a Man lying at Length with Abundance of Greek Medals of Gold and some other Curiosities of the same Metal among which was a Ring with this Motto SIGILLVM CHILDERICI REGIS All these Reliques were at first possess'd by the Canons of that Church where they were found Of whom they were begg'd by the Arch-Duke of Austria who has them in his Custody Therefore those who told thee they are in the King of France's Hands were misinform'd themselves or design'd to abuse thee For this cannot be suppos'd during the present Wars between France and Spain When they are more ready on both Sides to plunder one another than to grant Civilities of this Obliging Nature I perceive thou art grown a great Antiquary and therefore in Token of my Esteem I have sent thee a Cabinet of such Old Things as I have scrap'd together in my Travels and during my Residence in this City The Agates which thou wilt find in the Vppermost Drawer may easily be dated by their Figures which are all after the Fashion of Gentile Rome As for the Shells in the Second I leave 'em to thy own Judgment onely this I will say That they are not Common The Third contains a Miscellany of several Antiques The Knives were us'd by the Ancient Roman Priests in their Sacrifices The Weights are at least Twelve Hundred Years Old by the Parallels which I have seen in the King's Library The Rings also are of the Parthian Make And the Arrow to which they are fasten'd retains its Oriental Venom to this Hour as thou wilt find by trying it on any Animal that deserves it But after all the Lowermost Drawer contains Nothing but Counterfeits For those Medals are the Work of Parmezan the Finest Graver in the World If thou know'st not his Character I 'll tell thee in a Word He was Famous for Imitating so Exactly the most Ancient Medals that the Transcripts cou'd not be discern'd even by the most Skillful Artists from the Originals Accept these with the same good Will as I did when they were presented to me and tell me wherein else I can gratify thy Wishes You Monasticks are infinitely Happy in the Advantages of Retirement and Tranquility You are free from the Cares which molest other Mortals The Bell rings you to Prayers and to your Repast You have Nothing else to regard but your Contemplations and Studies Many Great Lights have sprung from your Various Orders And I tell thee Father William the World will be disappointed if thou should'st prove a Dark-Lanthorn and onely be Wise for thy Self Paris 25th of the 6th Moon of the Year 1655. LETTER VI. To the most Illustrious and Invincible Vizir Azem at the Port. BY the Sound which the Sun makes at his going down I swear I was not mistaken in the Idea I had of thy Generosity And the Dispatch with which thou hast honour'd the Slave Mahmut confirms me in a perfect Security of thy Favour and Protection I shall with exquisite Diligence obey thy Orders But it cannot be attempted without vast Sums of Money And if I may be thought worthy to give Advice to my Superiours the most Effectual Way to accomplish this will be by sending one of the Principal Ministers to this Court with a splendid Embassy For this Young King expects very Honourable Addresses from all that seek his more Intimate Friendship Therefore a Chiaus wou'd be slighted on such an Occasion and marr all the Design I wou'd counsel That some-body be sent who perfectly understands the Genius of the French and the particular Aims of Cardinal Mazarini Under the Protection of such a one I shou'd be able without Hazard of a Discovery to act all that is necessary to carry on this Design with good Success Here are Abundance of needy Courtiers on whom Gold will have a powerful Influence But neither I in Person nor any one whom I shall depute can make such Tenders unless there were here some known Publick Embassador from the Grand Signior to countenance the Business For otherwise it will presently be whisper'd That some Private Agent lurks here Incognito They will start a Thousand Chimaera's of Jealousie and so I may run the Hazard of a Second Imprisonment when the Cardinal shall call to mind the Occasion of my First All that I can then say of my being a Moldavian will find no Credit and 't will be no less than a Miracle if they do not expose me to a Scrutiny for the Mark of Circumcision Which if it be found all 's betray'd and ruin'd
I do not value the Punishments they will inflict on me nor the Loss of my Life But I dread the more Important Consequences of such a Discovery the unmasking the Secrets of the Grand Signior to Infidels These are the Chief Reasons I have to offer in behalf of an Honourable Embassy As to the Person whom thou shalt think fit to employ in so Glorious a Trust I will not presume to add any Thing to what I have said already That he be a Man of Experience in the French Affairs well vers'd in the Knowledge of Christian Policy the different Interests of the Courts of Europe and one that exactly knows what Advantage to make of the New Pope For after long Debates the Cardinals have at last Elected one who has assum'd the Name of Alexander VII It is hard to judge at his First Accession to that Sovereign Chair what Interest this Prelate will embrace whether that of France or Spain Or whether his Conduct will be Neutral deporting himself with an Equal Indifference to all the Nazarene Princes whom he calls his Sons endeavouring to compose their Quarrels and unite their Forces against the Mussulmans I tell thee no body can be yet assur'd what the Temper of the Roman Mufti may prove For it is usual for the aspiring Cardinals to promise many Things in Hopes of the Papacy which they never perform when they have once obtain'd that Vncontroulable Command Dissimulation is rank'd among the Principal Vertues in the Court of Rome And he that knows not how to disguise his Affections is not thought worthy of any Important Trust Adonai the Jew has lost his Liberty in that City for being defective in this Courtly Accomplishment It seems he and some others of his Nation rail'd too passionately and openly at the Idolatry of the Romans Yet I expect daily to hear of his Releafe for I understand by a Letter from him that he was excepted out of the Number of those whose Condemnation is Irrevocable I reprov'd him for his Immorality in reflecting on the Establish'd Religion of the Country where he resides But this Kind of Arrogance is the peculiar Vice of the Hebrews They despise all other People in the World Whereas thou know'st the Impartial God respects not One Nation more than Another For they are all Equally the Works of his Hands And for ought we know he tolerates the Variety of Religions that are extant in the World with the same Indifference as he dispenses his Common Blessings to such an Infinite Number of Men of diverse Faces The Multiplicity in the Vniverse exalts the Divine Vnity which is the Root of All. And if there be Ten Thousand Myriads of Worlds they all sprang from One Cause and there they end For he is the First and Last of Every Thing Paris 2d of the 7th Moon of the Year 1655. LETTER VII To Nathan Ben Saddi a Jew at Vienna THE Egyptians have a Proverb That he who thinks and speaks of God onely when he is Melancholy sacrifices to the Planet Pharouis or Saturn and not to the most High and Exalted King of All Things who is the Fountain of Joy to Men and Angels I counsel thee not to list thy self in the Number of those who adore the Stars by cherishing sad Idea's of the ever Indulgent and Merciful Divinity Nor think thy self the less liable to this Censure because it proceeds from a Nation which was once at Enmity with the Sons of Jacub Despise not the Wisdom of that People from whom even Moses your Lawgiver learn'd all his and from whom all Nations borrow'd Improvements of Learning if they are not indebted to them for its First Rudiments By what I have said thou wilt perceive that I consult thy Happiness and wou'd have thee chase away Vain Fears and Superstitious Thoughts the mere Product of an Ill-temper'd Spleen which is the peculiar Malady of thy Nation Let thy Heart be always Chearful for God loves every Thing that he has made The Vniverse overflows with his Bounty Be not too Religious nor strain the Faculties he has given thee for thy Support and not for thy Bane I had rather hear from thee Matter of News than these dismal Scruples about thy Soul If thou art not willing to embrace the Mussulman Faith in God's Name continue to observe the Law of Moses and prosecute thy Affairs with Alacrity Thou hast been very slack of late in sending me Advices of what passes at Vienna and other Parts of Germany We have flying Reports here of the Death of Eleanora the Empress and that on the same Day whereon she died Leopoldus Ignatius Josephus the Emperour's Son was Elected King of the Romans I know not how to write to the Ministers of the Port till thou hast ascertain'd me of these Things For God's Sake be speedy in thy Dispatches and inform me what is done at the Diet of Frankfort Rowze up thy self and banish superfluous Cares Remember that as there is but One God so there is but One Law but One Thing Necessary to Man that is To live according to Reason This is Engraven in every Man's Heart and there needs no Comment to explain it Thou art a sufficient Lawgiver Rabbi Doctor and Interpreter to thy self Let not others amuse thee with Fables I will now acquaint thee with something of Certainty The French have gain'd Landrecies a Strong Town in Flanders It was surrender'd to them on the 22d of this Moon And the next Day all the Garrison marched out consisting of 1500 Men besides 300 wounded The King is gone upon this good News to view and take Care of his New Conquests For this is not the onely Town the Spaniards have lost They talk of Maubeug Bovines and Conde all which according to fresh Report are in the Hands of the French This Young Monarch is strangely Fortunate If thou canst inform me of such successful Campagnes among the People of the North fail not to do it in Season For we are not plac'd in these Stations to whistle to Sheep Paris 29th of the 7th Moon of the Year 1655. LETTER VIII To Mustapha Lulu Beamrilla a Man of the Law I Wou'd willingly be admitted into Paradise as well as other Mussulmans Neither wou'd I think speak or do any Thing which might prejudice my Title and baulk my Pretensions to Eternal Happiness This Desire is Natural to all Men And when I profess it thou may'st believe me without an Oath Yet methinks I wou'd not go Hood-wink'd to Heaven but wou'd fain enjoy the Benefit of my Sence and Reason in my Advances to that Region of Bliss I believe the Alcoran as the Oracle of God and 't is so firmly Imprinted in my Memory that I cou'd repeat it Verbatim from the Beginning to the End without missing a Versicle I give an Entire Credence to the Doctrine of the Resurrection being Naturally desirous of Immortality But I cannot entertain the gross Conceit which the greatest Part of Mussulmans have of
be the True Agreement of the Messenger of God and therefore reproach all the Moselmans with Disobedience to our Law-giver and breaking the League Sign'd and Seal'd by Him whom we call the Seal of the Prophets and Witness'd by the Four Principal Doctors Abu Becre Osman Omar and Hali. If thou wilt peruse the Enclos'd Paper it will be easy to discern Whether We are Guilty of this Violation of Faith or They. For though supposing this to be the Real Testament of the Prophet as is pretended that Favourite of Heaven grants many Articles of Peace Assistance and Friendship to the Followers of Jesus with Immunity from Taxes and Impositions Liberty of Conscience Freedom of Marriages c. Yet 't is evident that he promis'd not these Things but on certain Conditions to be observ'd on the Part of the Christians as that None of them shou'd harbour or hold Correspondence with the Enemies of the True Believers or Privately accommodate 'em with Arms Horses Money or any other Necessaries of War But on the Contrary shou'd Hospitably receive the Mofelmans into their Houses for Three Days and Protect 'em from their Enemies If therefore the Christians shou'd fail in any of these Points the Prophet declares his Covenant to be void and that they shall not enjoy the Indulgences granted therein All this thou wilt see is recommended solemnly to both Parties to be Religiously perform'd till the Final Consummation Now all the Dispute is Whether We have First trangress'd these Articles or the Nazarenes For if it can be prov'd That they are the First Aggressors then they have no Reason to complain of their Misfortunes or accuse the True Faithful of Oppression and Tyranny as they commonly do Since it is manifest that they have drawn these Evils on themselves by their Breach of Faith and Infidelity disannulling the Covenant of God and his Prophet and forfeiting the Benefits they might have claim'd by Vertue of it Be it how it will the Prophet is free from Blame Let the Guilt rest on the Persons that were Criminal I know not how it comes to pass that the Christians of this Age think and speak more Reproachfully of our Holy Lawgiver than did their Fathers who liv'd in his Time or immediately after it and who by Consequence cou'd better inform themselves of the Circumstances of his Birth Life and Renowned Actions Some Ancient Writers among the Nazarenes make Honourable Mention of Him and his Family They conceal not the Early Signs of his Heroick Vertue and the Grandeur to which he was destin'd I have read in a certain Christian Author That when the Prophet was but Nine Years Old under the Tuition of his Uncle Abu Taleb who carry'd his Glorious Charge along with him to Damascus and that whilst they were at Boz'r a Learned Monk whose Name was Bohira came out of the Convent to meet them and taking Mahomet by the Hand in the Presence of many Christians he said aloud This Youth is born to accomplish Great Things His Fame shall be spread from East to West For as he drew near this Place I saw a bright Cloud descend and cover him Sultan David also Prophesy'd of him in that which the Christians reckon the 50th Psalm and the 2d Versicle Where that Divine Poet thus Sings From Sion God hath proclaim'd the Empire of Mahomet But the Christians have Interpreted this in another Sence though the Original remains a standing Witness against ' em So Moses in the Pentateuch uttered a Mystery when he said God came from Sinai he rose up from Seir and was manifested from Mount Paran Intimating hereby the Descent of the Written Law to Moses of the Gospel to Jesus the Son of Mary and of the Alcoran to Mahomet The Messias also said to his Disciples If I go not away the Called of God will not come to You. But the Christian Interpreters wilfully hide these Things from the Vulgar lest their Eyes shou'd be open'd There appears an Obstinate Malice and Ignorance in all their Actions Who will not laugh at the foolish Spight of the Spaniards who in a certain Town had a Custom as oft as they enter'd into the Church or came out to spit on a Black Image of a Man sitting on an Ass near the Gate But a Mussulman Embassadour coming thither from the Emperour of Morocco and observing this Vain Ceremony of the People ask'd the King What Person that Statue represented He made answer That it was the Image of Mahomet the Arabian Prophet That cannot be reply'd the Embassador since our Prophet never rode but on Camels It is rather the Figure of the Messias who indeed is recorded to have rode on an Ass The King troubl'd at this Answer consulted the Priests and Learned Men who all concluded that the Embassador had spoke the Truth And therefore instead of offering any more Indignities to this Image they fell into another Extreme and built a Chappel for it burning Incense to the Senseless Stock and paying it Divine Honours Thus they Pray'd to that which but a little before they had Curs'd and turn'd into a God that which they had esteem'd almost as bad as the Devil God's Curse be on the Devil and all his Adorers But on the Holy Prophet and his Followers may Blessings shower down and rest till the Knot of the Spheres be dissolv'd Paris 14th of the 10th Moon of the Year 1656. LETTER VII To Murat Bassa KNow for Certain that Dom Juan de Braganza late King of Portugal is dead He left this World on the 6th of the last Moon after he had been tormented Ten Days with the Stone His Queen has the Supreme Power in her Hands during her Son's Minority whose Name is Dom. Alphonso This young Prince was Crown'd within a few Days after his Father's Decease to prevent the Plots of the Spaniards who support a Powerful Faction in that Kingdom of Portugal and are not without Hopes to reduce it again to the King of Spain's Obedience The World is always busy either in recovering Old lost Interests or seeking of New The Mareschal de la Ferte who was taken Prisoner by the Prince of Conde in the Battle of Valenciennes and having a Price set for his Ransom had Liberty to go whither he wou'd on his Parole either to bring the said Sum or surrender his Person by a certain Day finding himself flighted at the French Court is resolv'd to perform his Promise at the prefix'd Time and go over to the Prince of Conde's Interest who will not fail to bestow a very Honourable Command on a General of such Merits In the mean Time the Count of Harcourt plays Tricks with his Master and holds private Correspondence with the German Emperour He is a Serviceable or a Dangerous Man according as he is pleas'd or disgusted and therefore they court him on both Sides He is now at Brisac in Alsace I cannot admire a Man that is thus Industriously troublesome to his Prince without any Thing of
precise in relating the Transactions of the Twelve Tribes which descended from them even down to the Present Age. I do not insist on this to teach thee something whereof thou art Ignorant but to put thee in Mind of the Benefit and Advantage besides the vast Delight which accrues to a Nation by thus preserving the Memoirs of their Ancestors In which my Countrymen have exceeded the Fidelity and Care of all other People Had it not been for the Industry of Arabian Writers the History of the whole Saracen Empire the Succession of the Caliphs with their Wars and Conquests would have been either quite lost to this Age or at least much deprav'd and falsify'd by the Malice of Christian and Persian Authors both Equally Enemies to the Truth By which it is Evident that every Nation ought to Register their own Transactions What therefore I chiefly aim at is That the Glorious Osmans who have by their Valour enter'd into the Possessions and Territories of many Ancient Nations might also be acquainted with the Histories of those People whose Lands they Enjoy But above all I wish that after they have found a way to so much Wealth and Honour they would not lose themselves and their own Original I speak of the Turks properly so call'd the Descendants of the Scythians who by some were esteem'd the most Ancient Nation on Earth a People form'd by Nature for the Empire of the World were never Conquer'd themselves yet spread their Victories over all Asia They routed Zopyrio a General of Alexander the Great and drove back a huffing King of Egypt with Shame and Loss to his own Country In fine they were a People Naturally Just Temperate Hardy and Endu'd with all the Excellent Qualities which the Philosophy of the Greeks and Romans cou'd never Inspire into their Subjects though they aim'd at it These were the People O Oracle of Believers from whom the present Turks descend And is it not a Shame that they can give no other Account of their Ancestors but what they borrow from the Christians who in the mean Time reproach the Mussulmans with Ignorance and Barbarism 'T is for this Reason I renew the same Request to thee which I often made to thy Predecessor that Learning may be encourag'd Let all the Ancient Records and Histories of the Greeks and Romans be sought out and Translated by Men skillful in Languages into the Familiar Speech of the Ottomans Some I know are already Common among the Grandees as Herodotus Plutarch and others but let not any Credible Writer be wanting In doing this thou wilt put a Check to the Scoffs of Infidels augment the Honour and Interest of the Moselmans and leave an Immortal Name behind thee on Earth Which will make thy Joys in Paradise more sweet to an Infinity of Ages Paris 19th of the 3d. Moon of the Year 1657. LETTER XIII To the Kaimacham ALL Europe except the French and Suedes hangs down the Head for the Death of the German Emperour He went to the Immortals on the 2d Day of this Moon after a long Fit of Sickness and Forty Nine Years Life on Earth Nathan Ben Saddi the Agent of the Port at Vienna informs me That on the same Day whereon the Emperour died the Imperial Palace took Fire on a sudden and with such Impetuosity that a great Part of it was presently consum'd and the King of Hungary and Bohemia the Emperour's Son narrowly escap'd with his Life This is esteem'd a bad Omen to the Empire And without being Superstitious I can assure thee That Germany is in a very bad Condition at this Juncture The Electors are so divided on the Score of Religion and their Secular Interests and Allyances That in all Probability they will not with Ease decide the Succession The Duke of Brandenburgh having United himself to the Suedes will not consent to the Installing Leopoldus Ignatius Josephus the Emperour's Son because that Prince supports the Cause of the Poles and Danes The Palatine of Heydelberg and Duke of Bavaria are at odds about their Private Pretensions The Duke of Saxony wou'd fain be Emperour himself or have one at least of the Lutheran Religion And the Rest are so incens'd against the House of Austria that it is thought none but the Ecclesiastick Princes will vote for the King of Hungary and Bohemia So that there being no King of the Romans to claim the Succession by the Laws of the Empire the Throne is like to be Vacant yet a while Cardinal Mazarini who watches all Opportunities to Aggrandize his Master has dispatch'd away several Couriers into Germany to negotiate privately with the Electors and concert those Measures which will be most for the Interest of France And I tell thee this Minister has no small Influence on the Elector of Colen and Prince Palaetine of the Rhine Besides thou wilt say he goes the Right Way to Work when thou shalt know that he makes Use of the French Gold to compass his Designs No sooner did the News of the Emperour's Death arrive at this Court but it was observ'd the Cardinal took up a Hundred Thousand Pistoles of the Publick Banquiers in this City And every Body guess'd how 't wou'd be dispos'd The Portugueze Embassador at this Court has caus'd Extraordinary Fire-works to be play'd on the River Seyne before the Palace of the King in Honour of his Master's Coronation the Young King of Portugal But the Spaniards are preparing more destructive Fire-works on the Frontiers of that Kingdom being ready to enter it with an Army of Sixteen Thousand Men to recover the Portugueze Crown In sending thee these Intelligences Sage Minister I am not concern'd for the Infidels Who dies or who lives who rises or who falls is all one to Mahmut provided the Grand Signior's Health Life and Happiness be augmented And this I speak as an Arabian and True Believer Paris 30th of the 4th Moon of the Year 1657. LETTER XIV To Raba Mahomet General of the Ottoman Forces at his Camp near Adrianople THE Sacred Empire of True Believers is beset at this Time with Infidels Rebels and Hereticks Here are many Rumours spread abroad concerning the Persians and the Interest they have in the Bassa and Citizens of Babylon They talk also that some Male-contents design Things which ought not to be nam'd God has given me Two Ears and I hear these Discourses with both but I entertain them with one Unchangeable Judgment That they are only the Whispers of Fame which has a Thousand Double Tongues If it be true that the Four Chiauses who were dispatch'd to Babylon from the Grand Signior to confirm the Inhabitants of that City in their Allegiance and assure them of speedy Succours were Murder'd by the disloyal Citizens I doubt not but 't is as true That the Plague has consum'd the Greatest Part of the Red-heads in their Camp at Aransacat What tho' these Babylonian Mungrels cry Long Live the King of Persia The rest of the Empire
Observations of this Accident But none dares venture near enough to the Chasme to look down into it because the Earth continues breaking and falling in which makes a Noise like the Salvo's of the Janizaries when the Grand Signior visits the Arsenal One wou'd conclude by these Uncommon Symptoms that the Earth grows Ancient and Weak that her Inward Strength and Vigor decays and that we are every where in Danger of being swallow'd up I have not Time to write more it being Midnight and the Post ready to go The Almighty and All-Good God have thee in his Holy Protection Paris 30th of the 7th Moon of the Year 1656. LETTER IV. To Zornezan Mustapha Beglerbeg of Erz'ram I Will still Congratulate thy Happiness even in this Last Change of thy Fortune which though it be a Kind of Descent from the more Lofty Stations thou hast possess'd in the Osman Empire yet 't is attended with Honourable Circumstances and an Inviolable Security Thou art not out of the Sultan's Favour Banish'd to Egypt and Confin'd to a narrow Pension during thy Life as has been the Fate of several Grandees But thou art withdrawn from the Intrigues of State the Toils of War and the Plots of a Courtier 's Life to the Sweet Retirements of the Country the Peaceable Possession of a Rich and Fertile Province where thou mayst pass thy Days in Uncontroulable Ease and Felicity I am not surpriz'd at the Fall of so many Great Men at the Port nor do I much regret the Death of those who were known Enemies to the Government Yet it troubles me to think how the Brave and the Loyal had their Innocent Blood mingled with that of Traytors and Villains But these Things are unavoidable in Popular Insurrections when the Sovereign is compell'd to sacrifice to the Multitude whomsoever they require Thus fell the Illustrious Solyman among the Criminal Eunuchs though he himself was free from Stain But he was a Negro and that was his Ruine For the Malecontents cou'd not discern the Fair Qualities of his Soul Curse on that Fool Chaban Kalfa and double Curses on his Rampant Wife Mulkly Kadin who gave the First Occasions to all this Disorder and Spoil of Noble Blood I remember the honest Solyman gave me once a Hint of the Feminine Debaucheries practis'd in the Queen-Mother's Apartments But he spoke of it with so much Modesty and Reserve that it hardly made any Impression on me at that Time Otherwise I shou'd have imparted it to the Vizir Azem or some other Minister of the Divan for so am I commanded in Cases that touch the Honour and Safety of the Grand Signior And I tell thee this was none of the least Importance For as it appears the Women were undermining the most Sacred and Firmly Establish'd Government in the World They were not contented to wallow in their own Impious and Unnatural Delights but wou'd have set themselves as a Pattern to others and by Degrees have infected the whole Moselman Empire with a New Species of Debauchery Which as it began and was carried on by Embezilling the Royal Treasures selling of Places to Men of no Merit Buffoons Pimps and Asses so wou'd it have ended in enervating our Militia corrupting all the Faithful and laying the Empire naked to Infidels How many Vizirs Caimachams Captain-Bassa's and other Officers have we had this Fatal Year Among the Rest I cannot but reflect on the Poysoning of the Chiaux Bassa after he was made Vizir Azem as a Stroke of Divine Justice for having embru'd his Hands in so much Noble Blood when he enjoy'd that Dignity once before God pursues the Cruel with Invisible Scourges But what was that Achmet Bassa who took Advantage of the Sultan's Domestick Troubles and Foreign Wars to disturb his Government in Asia and raise a Rebellion which threaten'd even the Imperial City it self By the Course of his Fortune it looks as if he were not contented with his Command in Asia and therefore took this new celebrated Method to obtain a Higher Dignity viz. by Rebelling against his Master Else why was he made Bassa of the Sea in the Room of Ouroos Kienan The Bassa of Aleppo first brought into Fashion this daring Way of growing Great And if it be thus countenanc'd by the Grand Signior in all Probability he will have Reason to make Peace with the Christians that he may have Respite and Forces to employ against his own Subjects A midst all these Things Nothing afflicts me so much as the Horrible Loss our Fleet has sustain'd at Sea We have various Reports of this Combat but in general they agree That the Moselmans have lost Seventy Two Ships and Galleys with an Infinite Number of Men That the Venetians have taken the Isles of Tenedos and Lemnos and that they are advancing to besiege Constantinople This News is a great while coming to us So that if it be true and the Venetians pursu'd their Victory for ought I know by this Time the Imperial City the Refuge of the World may be laid in Ashes I have often propos'd the Necessity of Platforms along the Hellespont to guard that Important Avenue of the Sacred Port. Had they put in Practice Mahmut's Advice perhaps the Nazarenes wou'd have had no Occasion for their present Triumphs But now they Banquet in the open Streets All Christendom rings with the News of our Disgrace The Drunkards of Europe insult o'er the Professors of Sobriety Amidst their Bowls of Wine they blaspheme our Prophet and sing in the Praise of Bacchus their God They menace the Conquest of Asia and threaten to exterminate the Moselmans from the Earth Enrag'd at these Prophane Boasts I stop my Ears and turning round in a Divine Phrensy I pray that God wou'd baffle the Infidels Paris 6th of the 9th Moon of the Year 1656. LETTER V. To the most Renowned and most Illustrious Mahomet Vizir Azem at the Port. THAT Incomprehensible Majesty which has no Resemblance at whose Pleasure all Things are dispos'd and order'd in Heaven and Earth by whose particular Providence for the Good of the Osman Empire thou art exalted to this Glorious Trust to be Vicar of the Vicar of God augment thy Graces and Vertues and bless thee with Superlative Wisdom and perfect Tranquility I renew thy Accomplish'd Soul consummate in all Moral and Political Science Thou art the most Experienc'd Man in the Empire And I ceas'd to condole the late Tumults and Riots at Constantinople though their Effects were Fatal to some brave Men since thou art chosen to this Dignity from whom the whole Empire may expect not onely a serener State of Affairs during thy Administration but also a rooting up of the Causes of these Publick Distempers and of all other Evils which infest the Monarchy design'd for the Conquest and Reformation of the whole World According to the Custom of the East I approach thee not without some Present But pardon the Slave Mahmut who can send thee none worthy of thy Grandeur
I have enclos'd in a Box the true Effigies of the Present King of France with that of his Uncle the Duke of Orleans his Brother the Duke of Anjou and his Cousin the Prince of Conde as also that of Cardinal Mazarini and Queen Christina of Sueden who is now at the French Court Accept also from an Exile a little Cabinet containing Twelve Watches of so many different Contrivances according to the Circular Variation of the Moons in the Space of Thirty Four Years They are the Work of my own Hands therefore I shall not commend ' em Each is wrapt up in a Piece of Silk wherein is wrought in Arabick Letters the Method of using it Perhaps thou wilt find some Diversion in trying the Experiments mention'd in those Tables However despise not this mean Testimony of Mahmut's Respect but consider that if I come short of the Curious Artists in Europe yet my Labour is passable enough for a Moselman among whom there is scarce another Watch-maker to be found in the World If thou woud'st know the Occasion of Queen Christina's being at the French Court She came thither from Rome when the last Moon was in its Wane Her Passage was by Sea to Marseilles having touch'd at Genoua and receiv'd magnificent Gifts from the Republick but they would not permit her to land for Fear of the Plague which then rag'd in Rome and was the Cause of her leaving that City However the French shew'd no such timorous Squeamishness but receiv'd Her and her Train with open Arms. She landed at Marseilles on the 29th of the 7th Moon and when she made her Publick Entry the Consuls of that City with all the Nobles met her in Coaches the Great Guns were discharg'd to welcome her and she was caress'd with all the Demonstrations of Honor that are shew'd to the Queen of France her self in her Progresses The same Entertainment she receiv'd at Aix Avignon Lyons and in Fine all along the Road to Paris the Keys of Towns being surrendred to her for such was the King's Pleasure and a Canopy of State born over her Head when she enter'd any Town and receiv'd the Addresses and Compliments of Governours Prelates and other Great Men in Authority She was likewise Magnificently treated by Princes and the Chief Dukes of the Realm And on the 8th of the last Moon made her Entry into this City on Horse-back apparell'd like a Man Where having staid some Time she departed for Compiegne to visit the Court which resides there now It is not Suppos'd she will tarry long in France but as soon as she hears the Plague is abated in Rome and the Adjacent Parts she will return thither to pass away the Residue of her Life in that Nest of Princes and Prelates of the Nazarene Belief A little before she left Rome the Spaniards there had Conspir'd to seize on her Person as also on the Pope to have Murder'd the Portugal Embassador and set the City on Fire But the Plot was discover'd and the Conspirators put in Prison For the Sentence of Death is never pass'd in Criminal Cases among the Nazarenes without a Formal Tryal Here is a Rumour as if a Great Fire had some Moons ago broke out in Constantinople and consum'd much of that City I wonder none of my Friends nor any other residing there have sent me an Account of any such Thing Which fills me with Hopes that this Report is false From all Hands we are assur'd that the Suedes and Brandenburghers have obtain'd a great Victory over the Poles and Tartars at Warsaw the Vanquish'd having lost above Six Thousand Men on the Spot with all their Ammunition and Baggage And unfortunate King Casimir was forc'd to fly with a small Retinue towards Hungary 'T was the General Expectation of Europe that the Moscovites and Germans wou'd have done something extraordinary for the Poles and by some surprizing Action put a check to the Suedish Successes and Triumphs For when the Moscovite Embassador was at Koningsberg endeavouring to withdraw the Duke of Brandenburgh from the Suedish Interest he vomited forth terrible Menaces in Case they comply'd not with His Master's Proposals And one Day in a furious Zeal he took a large Goblet of Wine in the Elector's Presence and having drank it off to the Czars Health the Barbarian said aloud Thus shall the great Emperour of the Moscovites devour all that oppose him But now it seems these were only Empty Bravadoes and the Moscovites were resolv'd to stand by and see who got the better on 't The same may be said of the Emperour and Prince of Transylvania so of the Danes and Hollanders who now all declare for the Srrongest Party Magnanimous Vizir if the present Engagements and Wars in Dalmatia and Candy besides the Domestick Troubles of the Ottoman Empire did not wholly employ the Arms of the Moselmans doubtless 't would be an Undertaking no less Profitable than Glorious to succour the distress'd Casimir turn the Tide of the Gothish Conquests and oblige the Poles to an Eternal Fidelity and Gratitude to the Grand Signior Paris 14th of the 10th Moon of the Year 1656. LETTER VI. To Abrahim Eli Zeid Hogia Preacher to the Seraglio I Have frequent Access to the King's Library Which Favour was first granted me by Cardinal Richlieu who often employ'd me in Translating some Curious Treatises out of Arabick into French or Latin The French seem very fond of Eastern Manuscripts where ever they can meet with 'em And they have no less Regard for Men who are skill'd in those Languages That Minister especially was very Inquisitive into the Wisdom and Learning of Asia He Monopoliz'd Persian Syrian and Arabick Books and was a profess'd Patron of Linguists He coveted the Acquaintance of Strangers and Travellers that he might by their means Inform himself of the different Laws Customs and Religions of Foreign Countreys and of whatsoever was Rare and worthy of Observation in any Part of the World Hence it was that I receiv'd Evident Marks of his Esteem as soon as he knew that I understood the Greek Arabick Hebrew Turkish and Sclavonian Languages He often made use of me as I have said and gave me free Access to his own and the King's Library And tho' his Successor Cardinal Mazarini is not so much addicted to Studies of this Nature as to the Affairs of State yet he has continued to me the Priviledge of visiting this Treasury of Learned Books where I pass many Hours One Day I cast my Eyes on a Manuscript Written in Arabick and endors'd with this Title The Original Covenant of Mahomet the Prophet of the Arabians with the Professors of the Faith of Jesus and Underneath was a Latin Inscription signifying That this Manuscript was found in the Convent of Christian Friars on Mount Carmel I have Transcrib'd the Contents of this Parchment and sent it Enclos'd to thee that thou may'st judge whether it be Real or onely Counterfeit For the Nazarenes assert it to