BEAUTIES OF MODERN LITERATURE. MEMOIRS OF A TRAVELLER AT REST. TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH. CONJECTURE attributes this work to a gentleman of high birch, who, during his political career, attended embassies, frequented several European Courts, and collected in every place a variety of anecdotes, which he connected together into one story, asssuming the fictitious name of Duchillou. We will follow his course from the moment he embarks in English affairs, as it may prove gratifying to British readers to catch some glimpses of the light which he throws on the characters of some of their most distinguished countrymen. PART II-CHAP. I. raised him above difficulties, and gave him the consciousness of being born for great enterprises. Free from ambition, he retired soon after his marriage to the island of Bute, which made part of his domains. There he tasted the sweets of varied study and the bliss of a peaceful life, divided between the cultivation of his lands, his books, and his family: and there he would have spent the whole of his existence, had not the descent of the Protender in Scotland, in 1745, compelled him to change all his plans. At that period all the Scotch nobility attached to the reigning House of England, left their country to drive away every suspicion of treachery, and Arriving in London, I went to Mr. Upton, shew their love for the King. Lord Bute, alwho told me all he had done to promote my inthough wearing the name of Stuart, and one of terest. Though an heir to four thousand a year the heads of that illustrious family, repaired imhe was very poor, as an avaricious brother enmedi tely to London, and tendered his services joyed all the fortune of the family; that circumto his Sovereign; the Court was then divided in stances had led him to accept of the office of Setwo parties, that of the King, and that of the retary to Lord Bute's brother who was sent to Prince of Wales, who often opposed the meaTurin as an Extraordinary Envoy; but he soon sures of his royal father. The latter was repented the sacrifice he had made of his liberty, pleased with his Lordship, and courted his and determined to break his engagement. In or- friendship on so many occasions, by the flatterder to fulfil this intention without causing anying distinctions which he bestowed upon him, trouble to the Minister, he thought of recommending me as a Chaplain, intending, when half way to the place of our destination, to excuse himself, as well as he could, from acting as a Secretary, and proposing me in his stead. It was necessary for me to enter the church; but, as he had often seen me study the Greek and Hebrew languages, and the sacred commentators, he had no doubt of my being able to pursue the clerical carcer. I thanked Mr. Upton for this proof of his friendship, and found no difficulty in the execution of his design. He presented me to Mr. Mackenzie, our principal; I was approved of, took orders, and in a fortnight entered on my employment, and was ready to depart. It will not be improper, before I leave Eng. land, to inform my readers of the situation in which the persons stood with whom I was engaged. that the Earl soon renounced all other connec tions, and yielded willingly to his inclination for a prince who loaded him with honours and caresses. By degrees he became so necessary to the affairs and amusements of the Heir Apparent, that the Court could not support his absence. The death of that Prince, which happened a few years after, far from diminishing his credit, exalted it still higher than before. The Princess of Wales granted him entire confidence, and required his advice not only on her own affairs, but on the education of the Prince of Wales her son. She served him so warmly near the king, that he was named first gentleman of the bed-chamber; but that dawn of favour awoke the jealousy of several other courtiers, and fostered the germ of animosity which afterwards rose so high against him. As George the Second advanced in age, the influence of the young Prince and Princess of Lord Bute's air was noble, his manners easy, Wales, the latter of whom had the ascendancy his shape elegant; his capacious mind possessed of a mother over him, increased. Ministers began the clear light of understanding, and the treasures to respect that court; and its great oracle, Lord of extensive knowledge; the elevation of his soul || Bute, enjoyed from it the largest share of credit. It was about this time that his brother, Stuart Mackenzie, was chosen for an Extraordinary Envoy to the Court of Turin. of English noblemen, pale and fit gued, their hair disordered, and their stockings upon their heels. It was in that state we traversed the town, drums beating, in the middle of the garrison, ranged in two lines, to the great satisfaction of some wity officers whom the contrast did not || fail to strike. The Prince left the Lady at the gate of the inn, to give her time to rest, after having invited the company to dinner; but Mr. Mackenzie had suffered so much by the unpleasantness of his pompous reception, that he gave up his first intention, which was to have stopped a day at Calais, and hurried on his departure. I was sent to present his excuses to the Prince, and we set off immediately to avoid a dinner, a ball and a play, which French politeness had preWe pursued our journey through France and Savoy, and reached Turin without any other remarkable adventure. Mr. Mackenzie was, of all the men I have known, the one who united the best qualities with the smallest defects. His prudence prevented him from venturing into wild probabilities of chance, and his wisdom threw a clear light upon the mazy paths of success. To do good was his delight, and to hide it his care; and if he was fond of distinctions, it was to make his friends enjoy the fruits of it, public credit. He had a fund of honour and veracity rarely found in the age in which he lived, and which never failed him in the most embarrassing circumstances. Humane, charitable, and generous, he united with learning, a noble and easy deport-pared for us. ment with a cheerful temper in society; the noisy pleasures of the world, and numerous assemblies, had little interest for him who preferred to bend his mind to the study of the sciences, in which he made a rapid progress, especially in mathematics, algebra, and astronomy. His wife, Lady Betty Mackenzie, was daughter to the well-known Join Duke of Argyle and Greenwich, who appeared for the space of thirty years with such distinction at the head of the British armies and in the high chamber of Parliament. She possessed an air of dignity and kindness which won universal respect and attachment, and it was easy to perceive in her a wish of pleasing, so natural and so true, that she would have delighted, had she not even attempted it by every possible means. || We left London in October 1758. England was then at war with France, and a numerous train of young gentlemen, who took advantage || of the permission Mr. Mackenzie had obtained, || to traverse the French dominions, attended the steps of the embassy. Our landing at Calais, after a long and violent gust of wind, offered a very ridiculous scene. The Prince de Croy, who commanded in Picardy, and was then stationed in Calais, willing to receive the English Minister with all the honours which his politeness could invent, waited in the harbour, with part of the garrison, to hand Lady Mackenzie out of the ship. We had been unluckily so much tossed during the night, that no one thought of dress, as it had been resolved, in consequence of present circumstances, to enter the town in private. Imagine, therefore, the Prince de Croy, frizzled and powdered at eight o'clock in the morning, giving his hand to Lady Mackenzie in her night cap, at the head of all the officers of his garrison. Mr. Mackenzie, confused at such a reception, following, his head bent down, enveloped in a large cloak, and his hat stuck at the top of his night-cap, accompanied by a dozen CHAP. II. The King of Sardinia* is the natural ally of the King of England; they have nothing to dread from each other, and their good intelligence is useful to both; an English Mini ter is therefore always seen with pleasure at this court, and finds no difficulty in being beloved. Mr. Mackenzie kept a large establishment at Turin, and his wife received company in a high style; they often had numerous assemblies, gave balls and public entertainments, so that their house soon became the rendezvous of the best of society. The Chevalier Ossorio was then first Minister, the Count de Mercy was the Ple nipotentiary Minister of the Queen, M. de Chauvelin Ambassador from France, the Marquis de Carraccioli Extraordinary Envoy of the king of Naples, and the remainder of the diplo matic body, though inferior in rank, was not ill composed. The Chevalier Ossorio was an Italian by birth; he had followed Victor when this sovereign gare up the title of King of Sicily, and after having been his minister, served his son, Charles Emanuel, in several courts, especially at that of London, where he remained fifteen years; he had been raised to the post of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, which was looked upon at Turin as the first and most important station of the kingdom. The Chevalier had genius and talent, more even than was necessay for the government of an inferior state; his views extended too far for his court; but they were wisely restricted by Charles Emanuel. His two rivals in public credit were the Marquis de Breille, great Equerry, who had been governor to the Duke of Savoy, and the Compte de Bogin, Minister at war, who *This was written in 1775. had become so useful in his department that he was absolutely necessary. The Marquis Solar de Bruille was of noble birth, his titles to favour were his long services in the army and in the ministry, and the excellent education he had given to the Duke of Savoy, whom he rendered an accomplished prince. He enjoyed the full confidence of his pupil, and the esteem of the king, who did not like him, but acknowledged his merit. I never knew a nobleman who had seen more, and profited by what he had seen, as much as the Marquis; he had spent his infancy with his father, who then was resident in London as Sardinian ambassador; he had served under Prince Eugene, and had been successively minister of the king his master to Naples, Rome, Vienna, and had been employed in various negotiations. Wit, vivacity, || and politeness were blended in him, and though eighty years old, his memory preserved all the treasures it had collected. In a word, the advantages he derived from an intimate acquaintauce with the great men of his age, rendered his conversation interesting and instructive; I had the pleasure to enjoy it during my long abode at Turin; I was honoured with his friendship, and I often spent three hours with him which seemed to flee away like rapid moments. He often related curious anecdotes, which served to correct the errors of the writers of his time. He had little estimation for Voltaire as an historian, and accused him of having sometimes followed his own ideas, and preferred doubtful appearances to real truth. Of this he gave me two instances which I cannot forbear quoting. Being once contradicted on some circumstances of the detention of Alexis, son to the Czar Peter, by a gentleman who brought forward Voltaire as an authority. "Allow me to know this point better than your Voltaire," exclaimed the Marquis with vivacity, "I was then the minister of my Sovereign at Naples, and it was I who was secretly charged to solicit the detention of that unfortunate Prince." Speaking one day of the death of Peter the Great, I mentioned the will which had been brought before the Russian Senate, and the existence of which Voltaire denied in his history of Russia, "I have better authorities to give you," answered the Marquis, "than Voltaire and his history. When ambassador at Vienna, I was intimately connected with the Russian ambassador, who told me more than once that he was alone with the Empress Catherine in the room of the Czar when he died. Before she made his dissolution known she wished to ascertain whether he had made any will, and finding none in his bureau, they agreed together to compose one, which she dictated to that nobleman, who was entirely devoted to her interests, and it is the will which has since been printed. I had promised secrecy to the ambassador, and I mention it now because I know he died several years ago." Another time, as we were talking of the avarice of the Duke of Marlborough, I said that I could not believe what was reported of him, that one night, in a tête-a-tête, he had put out one of the wax candles which lighted his room. "It is nevertheless true," said the Marquis quickly, "I was with him: Prince Eugene sent me one night to inform him of a disposition he had made for an attack the next morning. The Duke was in bed, being awakened, I was introduced to him, and a valet de chambre placed two wax-lights on a table by the side of the bed. At the beginning of the conversation, which seemed of a nature to last long, the Duke of Marlborough put the extinguisher on one of the wax candles, and continued to listen with deep attention." The Marquis de Bruille might have been called with truth the living history of half an age; he was among the few who have observed for a long time the great springs of the balance of Europe, and was, more than any, able to judge of their energies. The Comte de Bogin had ascended every step of the war office, and had at length reached the last. He was a man of a haughty spirit, of an unbending firmness in the exercise of his employment, who spared no one, and who, in all his measures, considered only the good of the thing, without any wish er apprehension of satisfying or offending any person in power; he was a man such as the King of Sardinia wanted. The revenues of this prince were not large enough to reward a numerous nobility, entirely devoted to his service, and being desirous of rendering them all contented, he made use of the authority of his minister to conciliate the impotence of his means with his inclination to bestow favours. Charles Emanuel III. was undoubtedly one of the wisest and most just princes of Europe. He governed his kingdom as a father governs his family, and it may be said that he himself adminis tered justice in his dominions. One of the means he took to insure its being scrupulously granted to every individual, was that of dedicating two hours, morning and evening, to private audiences. I have seen his anti-chamber crouded with merchants, mechanics and countrymen; every one was admitted and heard in his turn. If any complained of the iniquity of a judge, and brought proofs against him, the king quickly and impartially relieved his wrongs and punished the offender. I was myself witness to an instance of his equity, which I will relate. [To be continued.] SIR, STATE OF SOCIETY AND MANNERS. MANNERS OF THE INDIANS. IN proportion to the progress of European commerce in Indostan, we have been enabled to correct or complete their narratives; for about half a century we have been familiarly acquainted with those institutions which for such a length of time have remained concealed. It is my intention to give only a sketch of the manners of the Indians, otherwise I could fill several volumes on that subject. Not so much at a loss for materials as which to select, I have consulted men of abilities who have lived several years in Indostan; in giving the result of their observations, I shall confine myself principally to what has not hitherto been known. I shall take an Indian from his cradle and follow him through every circumstance of life to his death. I shall take one of the middling class, in which primitive purity of manners is always more accurately preserved. This class is seldom displaced by revolutions; it always remains the same, between the corruption which frequently sways the higher ranks, and the brutality of the vulgar, which is incessantly perverting the spirit of institutions. The birth of a child amongst the Indians is a day of thanksgiving. They thank the Gods for this augmentation of their tribe or family; but childbed being considered a pollution, the father, attended by Bramins, purifies the house by sprinkling it several times with water. Every one is particularly careful to rub his head with oil, and to wash himself. The Indians are unacquainted with the use of the cradle, and swathing clothes, which only prevent the infant's powers from unfolding themselves, are utterly unknown on the shores of the Ganges. Immediately after their delivery, which the Indian wo men bear far better than those of Europe, and which is rendered less painful by the climate, a midwife carries the new-born infant to the river, or to a pond, to wash it. Its bed, from the very first day, is a carpet spread upon the ground, and it derives its constant support from the bosom that gave it life. child's head the sacred water of the Ganges; six months after, the relations are invited to assist at a ceremony which consists in giving the infant, for the first time, some rice prepared with milk and sugar to eat. A child goes without any kind of clothing till the fourth or fifth year. He plays about the house with his brothers and sisters, entirely naked like himself. Thus their powers develope much earlier than amongst us. You see none of them carried about in their mothers arms after the sixth month. By crawling upon the ground, they learn at length to support themselves on their legs, and to walk without the assistance of leading-strings. Their understanding unfolds itself as early as their bodily powers. They are more forward at six than ours are sometimes at ten years of age. The instruction of a boy consists only in learning reading, writing, and arithmetic; he is taken to a school, where, without either books or paper, he makes a surprising progress. The tutor assembles his pupils under the shade of a palmtree before the door of his house, and places before each of them a small heap of sand; after having levelled it at top, he writes on it with his finger a letter of the alphabet. The child copies it; and when he has learnt its forms, he repeats his lesson during the day, always pronouncing what he traces in the sand. After learning the alphabet, the master teaches him how, by a slight alteration in the form of a letter, to compose a syllable from it; how by a like alteration, the gender, number, case or time of a radical word is determined, without being tormented with long rules of grammar, which the Indians have not in their language. When a child knows how to trace words in the sand, he learns to do the same with a bodkin on palm leaves, which the Indians use instead of paper. The same method is pursued in teaching children arithmetic in a very short time; and with the most simple rules they resolve the most difficult questions with wonderful facility. In merchants' countinghouses only two persons are employed in the most important accounts, the memory of the one serves as a table for the other; the former always repeating exactly the result of the calculations of the second, which he keeps setting down. The 10th day after its birth, the relations and friends of the family assemble to give the child a name, which is commonly that of some God, who is to be its guardian angel whilst on earth. Before they give a new-born infant a name, the Bramins consult the planets; and if their influ-Besides this, boys are likewise instructed in the ences appear unfavourable, they have recourse to various ceremonies to avert their effect. They invoke the God Yamen, offer sacrifices, pour on the Persian language, which, throughout all Indostan, is the language of the court and people of fashion, like French in the north of Europe. in all their charms; for nature has been more bountiful to the fair sex in these climates than in ours, and there is no such thing as an absolutely ugly woman to be met with. All the requisites for the toilette of our women are to them utterly useless. Beauty seeks its graces in the same quarter whence religion derives sanctification; and water, which purifies the soul, is the only resource applied to by the women to preserve and to improve the attractions of youth. Of all other sciences they remain totally igno- | obliged to have recourse to art in order to appear rant. The Hindoos have not the smallest idea of painting or sculpture, as the grotesque figures in their pagodas clearly evince. Their only music is a discordant noise produced by the harsh sound of various instrumen's; their singing is without harmony; their dancing ridiculous gesticulation accompanied with grimaces and contortions, without scarcely ever changing their places. Their poetry is a perfect guimaufry, a collection of phrases without rhyme; indeed it would be indecent for a well-educated young man to learn things of that kind; it is enough that a few individuals of an inferior cast are instructed therein, and can exhibit their abilities for a trifling consideration; the boys are more solicitous to learn to ride on horseback. The education of girls is confined to forming them to become good mothers and amiable wives; they likewise give them some knowledge of religion and morality. The principal beauty of young girls consisting, in the opinion of the Indians, in having a delicate complexion, they are carefully kept from the rays of the sun. The custom of anointing themselves with oil, as related by the generality of travellers, is practised only among the inferior casts, amongst those who support themselves by labour, and who actually expose their children to the sun after besmearing them as above mentioned, which gives them a colour nearly approaching to black; whereas, on the other hand, the complexion of the women has in general a transparency and a lustre which allows the eye to trace the course of the blood underneath a delicate skin, and on a neck moulded by the Graces. The samne precautions are taken with regard to boys, not only with a view to preserve their beauty, but likewise to give them an effeminate and indolent appearance, which in their opinion is the surest mark of opulence and noble birth. The girls are early instructed in the art of pleasing they are taught to comb their hair smooth, to perfume it with oils and costly essences, to make it fall gracefully down their backs in long tresses, adorned with gold chains; they study to blacken the inside of their eye lids, which gives them a languishing air, and makes their large black eyes beam with greater lustre : they learn to stain the nails of their fingers and toes red, to show through a transparent muslin the finest neck imaginable, and under this elegant drapery to expose to view a small bare foot, the toes and ancles of which are still more loaded with rings and bracelets than even the hands and Upon the whole, you meet no where with more perfect cleanliness than among the Indians. It is true, at the first glance, it appears di-gusting and filthy to see a beautiful Indian woman mixing up her victuals and feeding herself with her fingers; but when you know that this right hand, which serves both for spoon, knife, and fork, touches nothing impure, that they never omit washing themselves with the most scrupulous attention both before and after meals, your disgust ceases, and you discover even a certain grace in this method of eating. Cleanliness is enjoined them by their religion, or rather constitutes part of their faith, upon the principle that a person physically impure, must likewise be so morally. The religion of the Indians consists in a great measure of rites, which seem to have been prescribed to mankind in these climates for the preservation of heath and life. They never receive any formal instruction even in the ceremonies and precepts of religion. They imitate what they see their parents do, and the example of the father of a family is the principal instruction the latter bestows on his children. Being accustomed to live upon simple food, and for the most part on vegetables, they acquire an equality of temper. They are mild, benevolent, exempt from strong passions, and nature has inspired their hearts with the knowledge of and distinc tion between good and evil. They seem to inhale morality with the air they breathe under the paternal roof. They are virtuous as much through habit as by choice; they are not commanded to love their parents, yet you no where meet with more dutiful and affectionate children. There are things which, although not forbidden by the laws, are however the object of general contempt. Their morals are preserved much more by the influence of domestic prejudices than by that of legislation. An Indian is seldom a man of erudition, but he is perfect master of what he has once learned; the little opportunity he has of consulting books causes him to exercise his intellectual faculties the more; you do not see in India a multitude of collections, of dietionaries, made but to cherish indolence, and con taining only the shreds of science. The memory |