OR,

No. 17.

VOL. I

THE subject of our engraving is the death of Charles the Bad, King of Navarre, at Pampeluna, in the year 1386; as represented in an illuminated drawing, in a MS. copy of "Froissart's Chronicle," in the British Museum. That entertaining writer gives the following account of the catastrophe:

"The kyng, being dysappointed in his determination to lay on his subjects greater taxes than they could beare, confined his Council closely in a room together, in feare of their lives; and it was supposed that by constraynt he had his desire, for he strake off thre of the heedes of such as were most contrary to his entente, to give fear

Then there

and ensample to others. fell a marveylous adventure, the which God sent like a myracle. This king of Naver well loved women, and had a fair damosell to his lover, for he was a wydower a long season. On a nyght he laye with her a space, and then retourned to his chambre in a fever, and said to his servantes, "Dresse my bedde, for I wyll rest me a season;" and so went to his bed, and trymbled for cold, and could take no heate. He was an aged man, about threscore yere of age, and his bedde was wont to be chafed with a bason with hot coles, to make him swet, whiche often tymes he used, and it dyd hym no hurte

S

At this tyme his servaunts dyd the same; but, as God wolde, or the devyll, a burnynge flame toke the shetes, in suche maner that, before he coulde be reskewed, he was burnte to the bowels, he being so wrapped betwene the shetes. He lyved fyftene dayes after, in great payne and mysery, so that physicke nor surgery coulde helpe hym, but that he dyed."

Villaret's account of the transaction which follows, was collected from various historians and records to which he had access; it is somewhat more circumstantial than that of Froissart, from which it differs in some particulars:

"One cannot help being struck with the tragical end of the king of Navarre, and acknowledging in it the traits of an invisible and terrible justice. This prince, whose memory is disgraced by a variety of crimes, being addicted from his youth to all the excesses of intemperance, was overtaken by the infirmities of premature old age, for at his death he was hardly 56. To quicken his blood, by excesşive indulgence in pleasure almost frozen in his veins, he had recourse to art; but the factitious heat he procured completed the ruin of his strength, which declined daily.

In

cult not to indulge suspicions on the tragical death of this monarch. How came it that his domestics could not extinguish the flames? Was he so detested, that not one of them was interested about his preservation? Be this as it may, so terrible a catastrophe must suggest to the reader a number of reflections."

The

DRINKING OF HEALTHS. In a book called "Healthe's Sicknesse; or, A commodious and brief discourse; prouing the drinking and pledging of Healthes to be Sinfull, and vtterly unlawful unto Christians," by Wm. Prynne, printed at London, 1628, the following anecdote occurs :-" It is recorded of Popelus the Second, King of Poland, that having incurred the displeasure of his Nobilitie, through his ill government, for which they intended to depose him, he fained himselfe to be very sicke,by his Queen's aduice; and thereupon sent for twenty of the chiefe princes of Pomerania, who had the principall voyce in the election of the Polonian kings, to come and visit him in his sickness, which they did accordingly. king, upon their coming, requested them to elect his sonne to the kingdome after his decease, which thing they answered they would willingly doe, if the rest of the nobilitie would consent unto it. The queene in the mean time provides a cup of sudden poyson, of purpose to dispatch them, and presents it to them all to drinke the king her husband's health. They, to testify their love and allegiance to the king, dranke off the cup, as their manner was, unto his health, but to their own confusion and immediate death, and to the subversion of all the stocke and race of the Polonian princes: a sodaine and fearful, yet just judg ment of God, upon these princes, who were much addicted to the drinking of healthes in former times. But loe the infinite justice of God on both hands. Out of the dead and poysoned carcasses, there issued such infinite troopes and swarmes of rattes and mice as chased Popelus, his wife, and all his children from place to place, both by sea and land, till at last they were

forced to fie to the strong Castle of Gracconia, where they were devoured, and eaten up of these rattes and mice, in despite of guard and gareisons, and all those artes and pollicies of fire and water-workes, that were used to secure them."

LETTER FROM A FRENCH OFFICER,

WHO WAS PRISONER OF WAR IN
IRELAND, IN 1759, RESPECTING

THE PERFORMERS, ON THE
DUBLIN STAGE, AT THAT

TIME.

De

I HAVE been vid my friend, Mr. Moatlie, veri often at de Comedie, vhere is dam high price; two livres and more for de gallerie; von half carry you to de opera at de Parterre; but, I am inform, dat de chef comedians trait demselve like de men of qualite, and de actrices have large sallairie, vich make de grand price. Dey be juste as vid us, some good, some baad. principals are Messrs. Barrie, Voodvar, Mosope, Spaarke. Barrie be de fine person, tall and vell made, and do veri vell in de tragedie, when he no take too much pain how he valk, staand, or torn about; dat often spail all. Voodvar, when he do vell, is de inimitable; but he chuse to please de canaile too often, vich bring de most monie. Mosope be de excellent for de tragedie, vich agree vell vid his phisonomie, person and vaice. 'Tis pity, vat I am told, dat he vas taght by anoder at de first, vich keep down his own genie. Spaarke be de camical dog, an make laaf all de varld vid his grimace. Dey could no do vidout him. Dere be oder comediens, who have deir merite. Dere is von Foote; but I no like him, for mimique de Frenchman. Dere is anoder, I forget his name, who mimique nothing but one kettledrum, romble, romble, romble, toujours.

De vomen are all, vidout exception, dam ogly, vid ded eyes, for vant of red on de cheeck, no brilliancy, no life 'tall, or concupiscence vatever; but in deir vay of playing (vich be much vorse dan de French vay) von, too, or tree, be very good actrices. Von ma

dam Fizenrie, morbleu! fright me in von tragedie. 'Tis de Franch tragedie pot in Englis, de Andromache, vich do vonderfully peint de power of love in voman's heart, in all de variete of strange pashons dat come, von after t'oder, or all togeder, vhen she resolves on von man, and no oder for spouse, Mon dieu! von time adore, von time hate de poor man; vill have him kill, because she love: den kill de man dat kill him, because she hate! veri fine all! but heven garde me from de like love. In oder parts, madam Fizenrie do vell, but is beste in von furie. Madame D'Ancere vid a leetle more red, vould be veri lovely; and is justely de Belle Angloise, but no de Franche beaute; and yet do most gaillarde among dem. She please moch all de milors always, do meny parts vel 'nough, an may have vat sallaire she please; dat is, from de maistre of de comedie as actrice.

Interesting Varieties.

GAMING REGIMEN. SIR,-Calling yesterday morning upon a friend, whom I had left the night before in perfect health, I was a little surprised to find him sitting in his great chair, wrapped up very warm, with a large basin of water-gruel, and a little red book before him. Upon my expressing some concern for this sudden alteration in his health, he took me by the hand, burst out laughing, and desired me to be under no apprehensions, for that he was as well as ever he was in all his life, but that being engaged in a party at whist that night at the Bedford coffee-house, he was only preparing himself with a little cooling physic, and refreshing his memory with Mr.Hoyle's instructions. That many persons have reduced play to a science; that on the days they propose to play, they eat very little, and drink no wine, I very well knew; but this physicking is such a refinement upon ganing, as, I think, ought to be made publicly known, to prevent many honest fellows from losing their money they cannot tell how. What chance has a man who has dined

BARBAROUS STRATAGEM OF A MOORISH PRINCE. HISTORY records a very singular and cruel scheme projected and executed by Mehemet Almhedi, king of Fez, a prince not less remarkable for his ambition than his refined craft and hypocrisy. He had a long war to maintain against some neighbouring nations, who refused to submit to his tyranny. He gained over them several victories, but having afterwards lost a battle, wherein he had exposed his troops with a blind fury, they were so dispirited, that they refused to go against the enemy. To inspire them with courage, he imagined the following stratagem:

Having assembled secretly a certain number of officers, who were best affected to him, he proposed to them considerable rewards, if they would consent to be shut up for some hours in graves, as if they had been killed in battle; that he would leave them a sufficient vent for breathing, and that when, in consequence of a superstitious device he designed cunningly to spread through the army, they should happen to be interrogated, they were to answer, that they had found what their king had promised them: that they enjoyed the rewards of martyrdom, and that those who imitated them by fighting valiantly, and should die in that war, would enjoy the same felicity. The thing was executed as he had proposed. He laid his most faithful servants among the dead, covered them with earth, and left them a small vent for drawing breath. He afterwards entered the camp, and assembling the principal chiefs about midnight: "You are," said he, "the

soldiers of God, the defenders of the faith, and the protectors of the truth. Prepare to exterminate your enemies, who are likewise the enemies of the Most High, and depend upon it you will never find so sure an opportunity of being 'pleasing in his sight. But, as there may be dastards and stupid wretches among you, who do not believe my words, I am willing to convince them by the sight of a great prodigy.

"Go to the field of battle, ask those of your brethren who have been killed this day; they will assure you that they enjoy the most perfect happiness, for having lost their lives in this war." He then led them to the field of battle, where he cried out with all his might: "O assembly of faithful martyrs, make known to us how many wonders you have seen of the most high God!" They answered, "We have received from the Almighty infinite rewards, which the living can have no idea of." The chiefs, surprised at this answer, ran to publish it in the army; and revived courage in the hearts of the soldiery. Whilst this was transacted in the camp, the king, feigning an ecstasy, caused by this miracle, remained near the graves where his buried servants waited their deliverance; but he stopped up the holes through which they breathed, and sent them to receive, in the other world, by this barbarous stratagem, the reward they had made

a declaration of to others.

YOUTHFUL DECORATION. YOUTH is itself a decoration; we mistakingly adorn that part of life which least requires it, and neglect to provide for that which will want it most. It is for that sober period; when life has lost its freshness, the passions their intenseness, and the spirits their hilarity, that we should be preparing; not to add a vacant mind to a form that has ceased to please. To provide no subsidiary aid to beauty while it lasts, and especially no substitute when it is departed, is to render life comfortless, and marriage dreary.