perhaps it was one of those which he threatened to send to the senate at Stockholm, to which they were to apply for orders until his return, when they were impatient at his absence during his mad freaks in Turkey. As it is natural to think that great souls generally inhabit large bodies, my surprise was excited by finding that when I had completely buttoned the frock of this mighty madman upon my greyhound figure, my lungs gave sensible tokens of an unusual pressure from without. I must be indulged in giving the following extract from an account of this marvellous madcap, which was given by a person who had seen him, and who thus speaks of him : His "coat is plain cloth, with ordinary brass buttons, the skirts pinned up behind and before, which shews his Majesty's "old leather waistcoat and breeches, which they tell me are "sometimes so greasy that they may be fried. But when I

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saw him they were almost new; for he had been a gallant "a little before, and had been to see King Augustus's Queen upon her return from Leipsic, and, to be fine, he put on "those new leather breeches, spoke not above three words to

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her, but talked to a foolish dwarf she had about a quarter

of an hour, and then left her. His hair is light brown, very 66 greasy, and very short, never combed but with his fingers.

"At dinner he eats a piece of bread and butter, which he

Think of all this as applied to "the most powerful among

"the kings that worship Jesus; redresser of wrongs and inju"ries, and protector of right in the ports and republics of "south and north; shining in majesty, love of honour and

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glory, and of our sublime Porte-Charles, King of Sweden, "whose enterprizes may God crown with success."

The said blood-besprinkled gloves, and bullet-pierced hat, have furnished abundant and fatiguing sources of vague and violent disputation: pages, nay volumes, have been written, to ascertain whether the death of Charles was fair or foul: a fact to be found only in the records of Heaven, and of small import to be known here. Let the blow have been given from whatever hand it may, Sweden had good reason to bless it, and happy are those who live in times which furnish but little of such materials for the page of history as Charles supplied.

Though Charles was said to possess a great coldness of character, the following anecdote will shew that he was susceptible of flattery: Whilst the batteries of the citadel of Frederickshall were firing heavily at the enemy's trenches, a young woman who was looking at the King from an adjoining house, dropped her ring into the street: Charles observing her said, Madam, do the guns of this place always make such an uproar?” “Only when we have such illustrious visitors as your majesty," replied the girl. The King was much pleased, and ordered one of his soldiers to return the ring. This ex

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traordinary being must have sometimes excited the smiles, as he often did the tears of mankind. After the Turks, irritated by his refusal to depart, were obliged to burn his house over his head, and by main force send him to Bender, Charles XII. a fugitive, attended only by a few wretched followers, ruined, and his coffers completely exhausted, wrote to his envoy at the court of Louis XIV. to send him the exact ceremonials of that brilliant and magnificent court, that he might immediately adopt them.

Hurried away by kings, palaces, and statues, I have to my shame, (my cheek reddens whilst I write) staid thus long in Stockholm ere I noticed those, without whom a crown is unenviable, the most magnificent abode cheerless, and of whom the most graceful images of art are but imperfect imitations. The Swedish ladies are in general remarkably well shaped, en bon point, and have a fair transparent delicacy of complexion, yet though the favourites of bountiful nature, strange to relate, they are more disposed to conceal than display those charms, which in other countries, with every possible assistance, the fair possessor presents to the enraptured eye to the best advantage. A long gloomy black cloak covers the beautiful Swede when she walks, confounding all the distinctions of symmetry and deformity; and even her pretty feet, which are as neat and as well turned as those of a fine Frenchwoman, are seldom seen without the aid of a favouring

breeze. Even the sultry summer has no influence in withdrawing this melancholy drapery, but I am informed that it is less worn now than formerly: often have I wished that the silk-worm had refused his contribution towards this tantalizing concealment: occasionally the streets of Stockholm displayed some bewitching seceders from the abominable habit. This custom arises from the sumptuary laws which forbid the use of coloured silks.

The Swedish ladies are generally highly accomplished, and speak with fluency English, French, and German, and their tenderness and sensibility by no means partake of the severity of their northern latitude; yet they exhibit two striking characteristics of whimsical prudery: in passing the streets a Swedish lady never looks behind her, nor does she ever welcome the approach or cheer the departure of a visitor by permitting him to touch the cherry of her lips; the ardent admirer of beauty must be content to see that

Welcome ever smiles,

And farewell goes out sighing.

This chilling custom is somewhat singular, when it is considered that the salutation of kissing, even between man and man, hateful as it is to an untravelled Englishman, prevails almost in every part of the continent.

I was very desirous of attending the courts of justice, or as they are called the kæmners-rætter, of which there are four in Stockholm, but I found they were all close, and only the judges and parties and necessary officers permitted to enter. What a contrast to the unreserved openness with which the laws in England are administered! By unfolding the gates of justice, and displaying her in all her awful majesty, her ordinances become widely promulgated, and the respect paid to her decrees augmented by the reverence which is excited by her presence; her seat is not only the depository of the law, but of all descriptions of learning, and is a school of eloquence in which the language of the country receives its highest polish. Of what national importance the powers of an illustrious advocate may become, let those say, who have witnessed the brilliant genius, exalted persuasion and profound knowledge of an Erskine, and can trace their consequences to a country which knows how to appreciate them. The laws of Sweden are considered to be simple, mild, clear, and just, and since the labours of Gustavus III. to render them so, have been impartially administered. In civil causes each party pays his own costs; this must frequently be unjust; but whilst Sweden, however, may learn something from the manner in which the laws are dispensed in England, she presents to our admiration a spirit which we should do well to imitate: the prosecutor sustains no share whatever of the expences of prosecuting a criminal.