anfwered me, with a fneer, "My dear coufin, fince you have got into a difpute without me, you have no thing to do, but to get out of it without me likewife." Nay, when I was going away, he told me that he would confent to pay the expences of my funeral, as he had no doubt that I should be killed. Half mad, I ran to Baron Loprefti; who lent me fifty ducats, and a pair of piftols, with which I repaired gaily to the field of battle; where I found half a dozen officers of the garrifon. I was obliged to take for my fecond a fuperannuated Spanish captain, aged at least eighty years. Lieut. K-n I difabled in an inftant, by giving him a deep wound in the arm. Lieut. F- -g, taking his place, received a thrust in the belly, which brought him to the ground. Lieut. M-f, fecond of the first that had been wounded, then advanced, and told me, in an angry tone of voice, that I fhould pay dearer for him. My old Spaniard boldly offered his fervice, faying that I had done enough: but I declined his interference. I was, however, defirous of refting a moment; but Lieut. M-f, excited by his friend, would not give me time. He came furioufly on; and though I gave him two wounds in an inftant, one in the hand, and another in the belly, he still aimed to run me through the body. As I faw it was not a time to trifle, I difarmed and threw him to the ground. This left the rest no inclination to take up the quarrel; and my enemies returned to the city, with their wounds. Lieut. F-g's blood was in a very bad ftate; and his wound, though not dangerous in itfelf, threatening a gangrene, he fent for me to pay him a visit. I went; when he made many excufes, and gave me to understand, that I fhould do well to be upon my guard against my coufin; who I learnt had pro mifed this man a company, and a thousand ducats, provided he found means to rid him effectually of me. The lieutenant had, in confequence, made Lieut. K―n his affociate. After fuch perfidy, I could no longer think of vifiting my ungrateful and dangerous relation, who, thinking himfelf fure of gaining his caufe, and knowing I was acquainted with all his fecrets, wifhed me to be affaffinated, that he might be free from every kind of obligation. I refolved, after what had happened, to quit Vienna for ever. Prince Charles gave me a letter for General Brown, who then commanded near Genfa: but chufing rather to go to the Eaft-Indies, I fet off for Holland in Auguft 1748. In the mean time, my coufin's enemies procured a fentence, condemning him to pass the rest of his life at Spielberg. Providence, however, did not permit me to follow my first intention: at Nuremberg I met with a body of Ruffian troops, commanded by General Liewen, a relation of my mother. Major Butfchkow, whom I had known refident of the court of Petersburgh at Vienna, advifed me to pay him a vifit, and undertook to introduce me. The general was pleafed with me; and wishing me to enter into the Ruffian fervice, gave me a company of dragoons in the regiment of Tobolfk, but on condition that I fhould not leave him, and that I fhould write in his cabinet; to which I acceded. In Peace being foon after this concluded, the army returned to Ruffia, without having fired a fhot. paffing through Cracovia, General Liewen ordered me to conduct a hundred and forty fick, down the Viftula to Dantzick, where we were directed to wait, till Ruffian veffels came, to carry us to Riga. Soon after my arrival in that city, I made an acquaintance with Lieut. N a Pruffian Pruffian officer. He vifited me every day, and we frequently took a ride in the fuburbs of the town. I was much furprized one morning, when my fervant, who had made an acquaintance with the lieu. tenant's, told me to be on my guard against a fnare that was laid for me: Lieut. N," said he, "wifhes to entice you out of the city, that he may deliver you into the hands of the Pruffians." A plot of this kind was shortly afterwards actually attempted; which ended much to the credit of the baron, and to the confufion and difgrace of his hypocritical friend. Three or four days after this affair we failed for Riga. There we joined General Liewen, who was already waiting for us. On my arrival at Mofcow, I was very well received by the chancellor, Count B, for whom I had letters of recommendation. Oettinger, whofe friendship I had acquired, was a favourite of the minifter; and I remarked that this circumstance did me no harm in the 'count's opinion. Some days after I met Count Hamilton, with whom I had been intimately acquainted at Vienna. He was then captain of cavalry in the regiment of Bernes, and had come to Ruffia with General Bernes, who was fent thither in quality of ambaffador. I was alfo known to Count Bernes himself, who was ambaffador at Berlin in 1743, and who had feen me at that time in high favour with Frederick. Count Hamilton introduced me to the Auftrian minifter, who was pleased to conceive fo good an opinion of me, that after a few minutes converfation he endeavoured to perfuade me to enter into the Ruffian fervice, offered to fend me to Vienna with the ftrongest recommendations, and wifhed me to accept a company in his regiment. But the misfortunes of my coufin had left too deep an I was confequently carried into company, not as an adventurer, but as heir to confiderable eftates belonging to the family of the Trencks, in Hungary, and as a person who had been formerly the favourite of the king of Pruffia. I wrote a poem on the anniverfary of the Empress Elizabeth's coronation. Lord Hindford conveyed it to her hands, and availed himfelf himfelf of the opportunity to introduce me to her majefty. I re ceived a thousand marks of her favour; the recommended me to her chancellor, and made me a prefent of a gold-hilted fword worth a thou fand roubles. I was a pretty good proficient in drawing, and had free access to the houfe of the chancellor. In a short time I was employed in his cabinet, where I worked with Lieut. Col. Octtinger, then the first architect in Ruffia. I drew the plan of a new hotel which Count Bpurpofed building at Mofcow, and by thefe means obtained a great fhare of his confidence. I had been scarcely fix weeks at Mofcow, when I met with an adventure, which I will relate. One day, when at dinner at Lord Hindford's, I was feated befide a charming girl, of one of the best families in Ruffia, who, though only feventeen years of age, was deftined for the wife of an old military man of fixty. Her eyes foon told me that he would have pre ferred me to her intended husband. I was not backward in comprehending their language, ventured to intimate what I thought of the matter, and declared how much I felt myfelf interested in her fate. I was, however, much furprifed when she anfwered:O heaven!-Could you find means to fave me from the misfortune I dread? If you can, there is nothing in the world that you may not afk of me.' It is eafy to conceive the impreffion fo fudden a declaration must make on a young man of four and twenty. The young lady's perfon was as beautiful as her mind was ingenuous, and he was a princess. But the order for her marriage had already been iffued by the court, and there remained no other expedient to avoid it than a fpeedy flight, with all its attendant dangers. The place not allowing a longer explanation, I asked her, We vowed eternal love, and from Not having it in our power to delay the day fatal to our love, the marriage was celebrated with great magnificence; but I ftill remained the real hufband of the princess, in fpite of all the formalities of the Greek church. We lived happy and contented for three months, preparing the means of our future elopement. The princefs gave me her jewels, and fome thousand roubles that the had received as a prefent at her marriage, to purchase whatever was neceflary for our flight; and it would certainly have taken place, if the death In the of the lady, foon after, in the small pox had not intervened. agitations of her mind, fhe made our amour public, by calling on me to deliver her from her husband. This intrigue made a noife, and ferved to procure me another. The Countess of B was at that time the most amiable and witty wo Endowed with man of the court. a vaft and daring genius, fhe governed, in the name of her husband, the whole empire of Ruffia. She married him in the preceding reign, when he was no more than refident at Hamburgh, and fhe the widow of an inconfiderable merchant of the fame place. Count B afterwards became prime minifter, and his lady the first woman in Ruffia. She was about thirty eight years old; and, though no beauty, was ftill by no means dif agreeable. 3 A I dined I dined with her as often as I thought proper, and in company with Lieut. Col. Oettinger often drank coffee in private in her apart ment. On thefe occafions fhe never failed to fpeak to me of my intrigue with the Princefs N-, and gave me to understand that he had perceived our amours. I constantly denied every thing, although fhe mentioned circumstances that I thought fhe could have heard from nobody but my deceased friend. I did not know that the had taken the princefs's chambermaid into her service. But I foon perceived that my fecrecy had produced a good effect. About eight days after the Princefs N's death, the Countess of B invited me to come alone to drink coffee in her chamber. 1 was no fooner there than fhe began to fay fuch obliging things about my fituation, and expreffed fo much concern on the occafion, that I could no longer doubt the nature of the fentiments I had excited in her breaft. Indeed, the confeffed them herfelf without difguife. Secrecy and fincerity were the conditions of this new connexion. The countefs, to prevent a discovery, prevailed on her husband to employ me in his cabinet; fo that I paffed whole days in the house, and no mention was made of my joining the regiment of dragoons to which I belonged. It was not long before my credit with the minifter attracted notice; and my good fortune not being agreeable to the great Frederick, who had fpies on my conduct, he gave me new proofs of his refentment. Mr. G, the Pruffian minifter, availed himfelf of a plan of Cronitadt which I had copied for Lord Hindford, to charge me with being a fpy; and, but for the good offices of the Englisi minifter and the countefs, I had certainly fallen into a most dangerous fnare. It turned, however, to my advantage; for the empress fent me a prefent to confole me for the unjuft imputations which my honour had fuftain ed; and when I waited on her to return thanks, my reception was fo gracious, that I really forgot the dangers which I had escaped. Oct. 4, 1749, my cousin died in his prifon at Spielberg. By his wilt he made me his heir general, on condition that I fhould ferve no other power but the House of Austria. In March 1750, Count Bernes received a copy of the will; and, urged by his folicitations, I fet off for Vienna; where I foon fell into the labyrinth of the law, from which I found it impoffible to extricate myself. It was not in Trenck's power to prevent my inheriting his father's fortune which was entailed on me; withing, however, to give me marks of his hatred after his death, he made a will full of abfurd and contradictory claufes, which ferved the withholders of his fortune, as a pretext to strip me of it. Though Trenck was an atheist, nobody had a more ardent defire than he to acquire an extraordinary reputation; he therefore refolved to put an end to his existence, and to make himself pass for a faint at his death. For this purpose, three days before his death, when he was in the best state of health poffible, he requefted the commandant to fend to Vienna, for a confeffor, St. Francis having, as he said, declared to him, that he would die on his birth-day at noon precifely. Though every body laughed at his prediction, the capuchin friar was fent for. The day after Trenck had canfeffed himself, he exclaimed, “God be praised! my end approaches; my confeffor is juft dead, and has ap peared to me." Upon enquiry it was found that the monk was really dead. Trenck then begged all the officers of the garrifon to come to |