UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
AT LOS ANGELES
S*<&-< c -
LETTERS
WRITTEN DURING A SHORT RESIDENCE
SPAIN AND PORTUGAL,
3 07
LETTERS
WRITTEN DURING A SHORT RESIDENCE
SPAIN AND PORTUGAL,
ROBERT SOUTHEY.
WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF
SPANISH AND PORTUGUEZE POETRY.
BRISTOL;
PRINTED BYBULGIN AND ROSSER,
'OR JOSEPH COTTLE, B R , STO L , AN D G. G. AX D J.
ROBINSON, AND CADELL AND
DAVIES, LONDON.
1797.
5 7;
PREFACE.
I
N the following letters I have related
what I have feen. Of the anecdotes with
which they abound, there are none
of which I myfelf doubt the authentic! ty.
There are no difquifitions on commerce
and politics ; I have given fads, and the
Reader may comment for himfelf.
My poetical imitations are made with
freedom, but I have always done juftice
| to the originals by annexing them. The
5 want of proper types obliged me to
adopt in the Portugueze the improve -
ment of the Spanifh Academy, and
?*
change the c fubfcribed into z. Where
3 I have copied from early writers, the
early fpelling is preferved.
fc The journal of my road is minute :
j this minutenefs will be ufeful to thofe
a who
t-u
03
o
445294
VI
PREFACE.
who may travel the fame way, and
pleafant to fuch as are already acquain-
ted with it.
I have reprefented things as they ap-
peared to me. If any one better informed
than I am fhould find me erroneous, I
(hall beg him to apply this ftory :
A friend of mine landed at Falmouth
with a Ruffian who had never before
been in England. They travelled to-
gether to Exeter ; on the way the Ruf-
fian faw a dire cting-p oft, of which the
infcription was effaced. " I did not
think till now (faid he) that you creeled
Crucifixes in England." His companion
rectified the error, and feeing clofe by
it the waggon direclion, " take off here,"
he added " had you returned home
with this mifbke, you would have faid
'
not only that the. Englifh creeled Croffes
by the way- fide, but that flones were
placed telling the pafleriger where to take
off his hat, and where it was permitted
him to put it on again."
CON-
CONTENTS.
LETTER I.
PAGE
V OY AGE to Coruna. Appearance of the Gali-
cian Coaft. Cuftom-houfe. Accommodations.
Carts at Coruna. - - i
LETTER II.
Theatre. Drefs. Maragatos. Jealoufy of the
Government. Walk among the Mountains.
Monumental Crofles. Tower of Flercules. Mif-
cellaneous Remarks. - 9
LETTER III.
Tale from the Silva Curiofa. Epitaph. Departure
from Coruna. Road to Betanzos. Travelling
accommodations. Scenery of Galicia. Griteru.
Bamonde. - 24
LETTER IV.
Lugo. Eifhop's palace. -Ignorance of the Spanifh
Clergy. Obfervations on the praftice of con-
feflion. Biography, - 41
LETTER
viii . CONTENTS.
LETTER V.
PAGE.
Men degenerated. St. Juan de Corbo. Manilas.
Puente del Corzul. Lugares. Familiarity of the
Spanifh poor. Spanifh fyflem of univerfal fra-
ternity. Caftro, Bee-hives. Road to Villa
Franca. Palace of the Duke of Alva. Melan-
choly hiflory of a widow. - 5 2
LETTER VI.
Carcabalos. Ponferrada. Manners of the Muleteers.
Travelling accidents. Hofpitality of the Barber
at St. Miguel de las Duenas. His library. Su-
perftition. Chriftmas day. Manzanar. - 65
LETTER VII.
Situation of Gil Bias' cavern. Aftorga. Chriftmas
dinner prorogued. Caflle there. Baneza. Pu-
ente de Bifana. Benevente. Caftle of the Duke
of Offuna. - - 79
LETTER VIII.
Road to Tordefillas. Juan de Padilla. Medina del
Campo. Infcriptions. Arebalo. Embargo ex-
plained. Funda San Rafael. Guadarama. Ap-
proach to Madrid. . Q2
LETTER
CON TEN/PS. ix
LETTER IX.
PAGE.
Madrid. Mifcellaneous observations. Royal Re-
creations. - - . - 108
Eflay on the Poetry of Spain and Portugal. - 121
Analyfis of La Hermofura de Angelica. - - 131
LETTER X.
Queen of Spain. Mufeum. Fiefta de Novillos.
Progrefs of French principles. - 167
LETTER XI.
Departure from Madrid. Talaveyra de la Reyna.
Road to Naval Moral. - 115
LETTER XII.
Foreft of the JEfcurial Friars. Royal travelling.
Almaraz. Puente de Almaraz. Jarayzejo. Trux-
illo. Propriety of public infcriptions. Epitaph
on Charles V. Tale of a Spanifh ^Eroftator. 200
LETTER XIII.
Santa Cruz. Depopulation of the Province of Ef-
tremadura. Miajadas. Merida. Talaveruela.
Badajos. Royal tent of Portugal. Elvas. - 229
LETTER
x CONTENTS.
LETTER XIV.
PAGE
Eftremos. Arroyolos. Monteraor. Syftem of Hel-
vetius. Travelling misfortunes. Ventas Silvey-
ras. Ventas Novas. A Romeria. Aldea Gal-
lega. Arrival at Lifbon. - 245
LETTER XV.
Earthquake. Obfervations on the City. Meeting
of the two Courts. - - 260
LETTER XVI.
Reflections on the Monaftic life. Story of an Eng-
lifh Captain. In dilutions fomewhat fimilar to
Nunneries wanted in England. - - 271
LETTER XVII.
Portugueze account of the antiquity, climate, popu-
lation, and people of Portugal. The nine ex-
cellencies of the Portugueze language. National
enmity and charafteriftic differences. Hiflory
of the prefent war as relating to Portugal. - 280
LETTER XVIII.
>drigo in the Enchanl
Sermon on the expulfion of the Morifcoes. - 292
Adventure of Rodrigo in the Enchanted Tower.
LETTER
CONTENTS. *i
PAGE
LETTER XIX.
Jews. Lift of Penitents at the laft Auto da Ye. - 311
LETTER XX,
Madrigals. Catharine of Portugal. - - 326
.
Account of Carlos Reduzido. - - 331
LETTER XXI.
Affidavit of a ftone falling from the air. Want of
lamps. Beggars. Provifions. Vermin. Super-
ftition. Anecdotes. Snow* - 355
LETTER XXII.
Mode of butchering cattle. Anecdote from Berchtold.
Leopold Berchtold. Radji. - 365
!
LETTER XXIII.
Barbary corn. Almida Hill. Moorifh part of Lif-
bon. Lent proceflions. 373
LETTER XXIV.
Robberies. Church robberies. New Convent. St.
Anthony. Pombal. Duke of Aveiro. Ajuda,
Palace. Patriarchal Church, Watermen. Mu-
feum. Menagerie. - - 398
MEMORIAL ON THE STATE OF PORTUGAL - 408
LETTER
xii CONTENTS.
LETTER XXV.
PAGE
Road to Setuval. Arrabida Convent ; its origin and
fituation. Cavern of St. Catherine. Convent
of Brancanaz. - 464
LETTER XXVI.
Paftoral romances. Portugueze Epic Writers.
Tranflations from the Englifh. Medical igno-
rance. Mufic of the Siege of Gibraltar. Opera.
Latin writers. - - 480
LETTER XXVII.
Good Friday. Eafler Sunday. Emperor of the
HolyGhoft. Englifh Nuns. Monaftic anecdotes. 497
LETTER XXVIII.
Cintra. Infcriptions on the rock. Palace. Penha
Verde. Cork Convent. 509
f
LETTER XXIX.
Poem on Cintra. Sebaftianifis. Fifhing boats.
Police. Executions. Funerals. Purgatory.
Englifh burying-ground. Sepulchral infcrip-
tions. - 518
LETTER XXX.
Hufband of Madame Tallien. TalafTi. Prince of
Brazil. Diflike of French principles ; of Eng-
lifh influence. - ... 537
INDEX
INDEX TO THE POETRY.
PAGE
Retrofpeftive Mufings, ... xvii
Epitaph on an Aftrologer, from the Spanifla, - 27
Lines written on Monte Salgueiro, - 35
The Mufieal Afs, by Yfiarte, - 48
Sonnet, - 57
Lines upon the Widow of Villa Franca, - 3
Lines upon Chriftmas Day, - 76
To a Lock of Hair, by George of Montemayor, 87
Infcription for a Monument, where Juan de Pa-
dilla fuffered death, 95
Sonnet by Lope de Vega, . - 120
Extrafts from " The Beauty of Angelica," by Lope
de Vega, 135, 138, 141, 147
Epigram on the Real Prefence, by Luis de Leon, - 179
Sonnet on the Real Preience, by Luis de Leon, - 181
Extempore lines on quitting the Inquifition, by
Luis de Leon, - 184
To Zephyrus, by Efteban Manuel de Villcgas, 197
Dialogue between an Athenian Philofophcr and
a Chriflian Theologian, by Alonfo de Le-
defma, 215
Infcription for a Column at Truxillo, - 225
Sonnet, by Bartolome Leonardo, - 231
Ode, - 24 8
Infcription for a Buft of Danton, imitated from
Gongora, - - 270
Ode from Luis de Leon, 296
Madrigal from Quevedo, - - 326
Madrigal
xiv INDEX TO THE POETRY.
PAGE
Madrigal to St. Stephen, from Jeronymo Bahia, 328
Extrafts from Carlos Reduzido, - 333, 336, 340, 343,
To a Stream from Villegas, - - 370
Old Spanifh Ballad, - - 3 8 3
Infcription for a Tablet near the Arrabida Con-
vent, from Francifco Manuel, - 469
Mufings after vifiting the Convent of Arrabida, 476
Extra& from the Caramuru, - 488
Sonnet from the French of Madame Montreuil, - 502
Epitaph on D. Jpaon de Caflro, from the Latin, - 516
The Dancing Bear, by Yriarte, - 549
TABLE
TABLE OF DISTANCES.
leagues.
From Coruna to Betanzos 3J
Griteru 5 ;
Bamonde a
Ravadi - 2
Lugo 2
St. Juan de Corbo - 2
Manilas 3
Lugares 3
Caftro - - 2
Herrerias 3^
Villa Franca 34
Carcabalos - i
Ponferrada 3
St. Miguel de las Duenas - i
Benveveria zj
Manzanar - 3
Aftorga 4
Baneza 4
Puente de Bilana - 3
Benevente - 3i
Villalpando - 5
Villar de Frades - . 4
Vega del Toro - 2
Vega de Valdetroncos - i
Tordefillas _ 2
Ruada _ 2
Medina del Campo - 2
Artequines - "3
Aribalo - Q
Efpinofa - i^
Labajos - ^
Villa Caftin' - 2
Funda San Rafael 3
Guadarama' - 2
Efcurial to the right i
Las Rofas - - 4
Madrid 3
xvi TABLE OF DISTANCES.
leagues.
From Madrid to Moftoles 3
Naval Carnero - 2j
Cafarubios
Santu Cruz
Chrifmunda -
Maqueda -
Santa Olalla
Bravo -
Puente del Alverche
Talaveyra de la Reyna
Venta de Peralbanegas
Torralva
Calzada de Oropefa - z
Naval Moral - 4
Almaraz - 3
Venta Nueva - i
Las Cafas del Puerto - if
Jarayzejo - 2
Truxillo 4
uerto de Santa Cruz - 3
Miajadas - ~ 3
San Pedro - - 5
Merida a
Lobon 3
Talavera la Real - 2
Badajos - 3
Elvas - 3
Venta de Ponte 44
Eftremos - 2
Venta del Duque - 3
Arroyolos - 3
Montemor g
Ventas Silveyras ij
Ventas Novas - 2
Ventas de Pagoens- 3
Atalaya 4
Aldea Gallega
3" Lifbon ii feparated from Aldea Gallega by the Tagus. The
liiftance is about 12 miles.
*k* The league is four miles Engliffe.
C xvii ]
RETROSPECTIVE MUSINGS,
WRITTEN
JANUARY 15, ,1797.
OPAIN! ftill my mind delights to pidure
forth
Thy fcenes that I {hall fee no more, for there '
Mod pleafant were my wanderings. Memory's
eye
Still loves to trace the gentle Minho's courfe,
And catch it's winding waters gleaming bright
o o o o
Amid the broken diftance. I review
Leon's wild waftes and heights precipitous,
Seen with ftrange feelings of delight and dread
As the flow mules along the perilous brink
Faffed patient; and Galicia's giant rocks
And mountains cluftered with the fruitful pines,
Whofe heads, dark-foliaged when all elfe was
dim,
Rofe o'er the diftant eminence diftincl
Crefling
[ xviii ^
Ciefling the evening fky. The rain falls thick,
And damp and heavy is the unwholefome air;
I by the cheerful hearth remember Spain,
And tread with Fancy once again the ways
Where, twelve months fince, I travelled on, and
s
thought
Of England, and of all my heart held dear,
And wim'd this day were come. The mifts of
morn
(I well remember) hovered o'er the heath,
When with the earli.ft dawn of day we lefc
The folitary Venta. Soon the Sun
Rofe in his glory : fcattered by the breeze
The thin mifts roll'd away, and now emerged
We faw where Oropefa's caftled hill
Towered in the dim light dark ; and now we paft
Torralva's quiet huts, and on our way
Paus'd frequent, and look'd back, and gazed
around,
Then journeyed on, and paufcd, and gazed again.
It was a goodly fcene. The {lately pile
Of Oropefa now with all its towers
Shone in the fun-beam ; half way up the hill,
Embowered in olives, like the abode of Peace,
Lay Lagartina; and the cool frefh gale
Bending the young corn on the gradual dope
Play'd
xx
Play'd o'er its varying verdure. I beheld
A Convent near, and my heart thought that thev
Who did inhabit there were holy men,
For, as they look'd around them, all they faw
Was very good.
But, when the eve came on,
How did the lovely landfcape fill my heart !
The near afcent arofe with little rocks
Varied, and trees : the vale was wooded well
With oaks now cheerful in their wintry leave?,
And ancient cork-trees thro' their wrinkled barks
Burfting, and the rich olive* underneath
Whofe bleiTed made the green herb greener grows
And fuller is the harveft : many a ftream
That from the neighbouring hill defcended clear
Wound vocal thro' the valley : the church tower
Marking the haven near of that day's toil,
Rofe o'er the wood. But ftill the charmed eye
Dwelt lingering o'er Plafencia's fertile plain,
And loved to mark the bordering mountain's fnow
Pale-purpled as the evening dim decayed. ,
The murmurs of the goat-herds fcattered flock
Died on the quiet air, and failing flow
The
* The olive has the remarkable propeity of fertilizing
the foil it grows on.
C ]
The heavy ftork fought on the church-tower top
His *fancy-hallowed neit. Oh pleafam fcenes !
With deep delight I faw you, yet my heart
Sunk in me as the frequent thought would rife
That here was none to love me. Often ftill
I think of you, and Memory's myftic power
Bids me re-live the pad ; and I have traced
The fleeting vifions ere her myftic power
Wax weak, and on the feeble eye of Age
The faint-form'd fcenes decay. Befits me now
Fix on Futurity the fteady ken,
And tread with ileady ftep the onward road.
* The ftotk is held facrru in Spain.
LETTERS
LETTERS
I ROM
SPAIN AND PORTUGAL.
.
LETTER I.
CORUNA, Sunday, Dec. 13, 1795.
the luxury of arriving at Tartarus, if
the river Styx be as broad and as rough as the
Bay of Bifcay, and Charon's boat accommo-
dated like the Spanifh packet of Senor Don
Raimundo Arufpini ! When I firft went on
board, the mate was employed in cutting a crofs
upon the fide of his birth, and the failors were
feafting tfpon a mefs of bifcuit, onions, liver,
and horfe beans, boiled into a brown pap, which
they were all pawing out of a bucket. The
fame tafte and cleanlinefs of cookery were dif-
played in the only dinner they afforded us on
the paflage ; and the fame fpirit of devotion
B made
C ]
made them, when the wind blew hard, turn
in to bed and to prayers. The weather was
bad and I was terrified ; but, though I had not
a brafs heart, the {hip had a copper bottom ;*
and on the fifth morning we arrived in fight
of Cape Finifterre.
The coaft of Galicia prefented a wild and
defolate profpeft; a long track of done moun-
tains, one rifing above another, not a tree or
bufli upon their barren fides ; and the waves
breaking at their bafe with fuch prodigious
violence, as to be vifible many leagues diftant.
The fun fhone over the land, and half hiding
it by the morning mifts, gave a tranfitory beauty:
If the eye cannot be filled by an object of vafter
fublimity than the boundlefs ocean, when be-
held from fhore, neither can it ever dwell on a
more delightful profpecl than that of land, dimly
difcovered from the fea, and gradually grow,
ing diftincl;. We patted by the little ifland
feven leagues from Coruna, and one of our
fellow paffengers who knew the country, ob-
ferved
* I Hi robur et ass triplex
Circa peftus erat, qui fragilem truci
Commifit pelago ratcm
Primus. II OR.-
fervecl, on pointing it out to us, that it was
only inhabited by hares and rabbits. A Swede,
(who had a little before obliged me with a lec-
ture on the pronunciation of the Englifh lan-
guage) made a curious blunder in his reply :
" As for de vimmin," faid he, " dey may be
very good but de robers I fliould not like
at all."
We dropt anchor in the harbour at one
o'clock, as hungry as Englishmen may be fup-
pofed to be, after five clays imprifonment in a
Spanifh packet ; and with that eagernefs to be
on fhore, which no one can imagine who has
never been at fea. We were not, however,
permitted to land, till we had received a vifit
from the Cuftom-houfe Officers. To receive
thefe men in office, it was necefiary that Se-
nor Don Raimundo Arufpini mould pulchrify
his perfon : after this metamorphofis took
place, we were obliged to wait, while thefe
unmerciful vifitors drank the Captain's por-
ter, bottle after bottle, as faft as he could
fupply them ; and though their -official bufinefs
did not occupy five minutes, it was five o'clock
in the evening before we were fuffered to de-
B 2 part,
C 4 ]
part, and even then we were obliged to leave
our baggage behind us.
Other places attract the eye of a traveller,
but Cortina takes his attention by the nofe.
My head dill giddy from the motion of the (hip,
is confufed by the multiplicity of novel objects,
the drefs of the people the projecting roofs
and balconies of the houfes the filth of the
ilreets, fo ftrange and fo difgufling to an Eng-
lifhmah : but, what is moft ftrange, is to hear
a language which conveys to me only the
melancholy reflection, that I am in a land of
ftrangers.
We are at the Navio (the Ship) a Po s A D A kept
i>y an Italian. Forgive me for ufing the Spanifh
name, that I may not commit blafphemy againft
all Englifh pot-houfes. Our dinner was a fowl
fried in oil, and ferved up in an attitude not
unlike that of a frog, taken fuddenly with a fit
of the cramp. With this we had an omelet
of eggs and garlic, fried in the fame execrable
oil; and our only drink was a meagre wine,
price about two-pence the bottle value worfe
than nothing, which by comparifon, exalts fmall
beer
C 5 ]
beer into neftar. In this land 1 of olives, they
poifon you with the moft villainous oil ; for the
fruit is fuffered to grow rancid before the juice
is exprelfed.
You muft perceive that I write at fuch op-
portunities as can be caught from my com-
panions, for the room we fit in ferves Hkewifc
for the bed-chamber. It is now Monday morn-
ing. Oh, the mifery of the night ! I have been
fojlead, that a painter would find me an excel-
lent fubjecl: for the martyrdom of St. Bartholo-
mew. Jacob's pillow of Hone was a down;
cufhion, compared to that which bruifed my
head laft night ; and my bed had all poffjble
varieties of hill and vale, in whofe recefles the
fleas lay fafe ; for otherwife J ihould inevitably
have broken their bqnes by rolling over therm
Our apartment is indeed furnifhed with win^
dows ; and he who takes the trouble to exa*
mine, rnay convince himfelf that they have
once been glazed. The night air is very cold,
and I have only one folitary blanket; but it is
a very pretty one, with red and yellow ftripes.
Add to this catalogue of comforts, that the cats
were faying foft things in moft vile Spanifh ;
and
C 6 3
and you may judge what refrefhment I have
received from fleep.
At breakfaft they brought us our tea on a
plate by way of cannifter, and fome butter of
the country, pofitively not go-down-able. This
however was followed by fome excellent choco-
late, and I foon eftablifhed a plenum in my
fyftem.
The monuments of Spanifh jealoufy flill re-
main in the old houfes ; and the balconies of
them are fronted with a lettice more, thickly
barred, than ever was hencoop in England.
But jealoufy is out of fafhion at prefent ; and
they tell me, an almoft univerfal depravity of
manners has fucceeded. The men are a
Jew-looking race ; the little boys wear the
monkey appendage of a tail ; and I fee infants
with more feathers than a fantaftic fine lady
would wear at a ball. The women foon appear
old, and then every feature fettles into fymmetry
of uglinefs. If ever Opie paints another witch,
he ought to vifit Coruna. All ideas that you
can form by the help of blear eyes, mahogany
C 7 ]
complexion, and mrivelled parchment, muft
fall infinitely Ihort of the life.
Thefe cuftom-houfe vermin ! Carrion crows
do not love the fight of an army better than
thefe fellows the arrival of a packet. They
kept one of our companions five hours un-
rolled every fhirt, and handed a new coat round
the room, that every body might look at the
buttons ! We brought with us a round of faked
beef undre (fed, a cheefe, and a pot of butter
for our journey; and they entered thefe in
their books, and made us pay duty for them, as
though we were merchants arrived with a cargo
of provisions. I ha4 been obliged to call on
the Conful in my fea-drefs. If we had either
of us regarded forms, this would have been
very unpleafant : but I, as you well know, care
little for thefe extraneous things; and Major
Jardine is a man who attended more to the
nature of my opinions, than the quality of my
coat.
The carts here remind- me of the ancient
war-chariots, and the men ftand in them as
they drive. They are drawn by two oxen,
and
C 8 3
and the .wheels make a moft melancholy and
deteftable difcord. The Governor of this town
once ordered that they fhould be kept well
oiled to prevent this ; but the drivers prefented
a petition againft it, ftating, that the oxen liked
the found, and would not draw without it ; and
therefore the order was revoked.
'
A low wall is built all along the water-fide, to
prevent fmuggling. This town is admirably
paved j but its filth is aftonifhing, when, with
fo little trouble, it might be kept clean. In
order to keep the balconies dry, the water-
fpouts project very far : there are no vents left
in the wall, and the water and the filth lie in the
middle of the ftreets, till the fun dries, and the
winds fweep them. The market-place is very
good; and its fountain ornamented with a fine
fquab-faced figure of Fame. The fountains are
well contrived the fpouts are placed fo high
that no perfon can either dirt or deface them;
and they therefore fill their veffel by the me-
dium of a long tube, fhaped like a tobacco-
pipe.
I apply
[ 9 3
I apply to the language ; it is very eafy,
and with a little affiflance I can understand
their poetry. This, you will fay, is beginning
at the wrong end : but remember, that I am
obliged to attend to profe in converfation ;
and that " the cat will always after kind." Or,
if you like a more claffical allufion, you know
by what artifice Achilles was difcovered at the
court of Lycomedes.
Tuesday Evening, Dec. 15.
LETTER II
Tuesday Night*
1 AM juft returned from the Spanifh Comedy.
The Theatre is painted with a muddy light
blue, and a dirty yellow, without gilding, or
any kind of ornament. The boxes are engaged
by the feafon : and fubfcribers only, with their
friends
C >o 1
friends, admitted to them, paying a pefetta*
each. In the pit are the men, feated as in a
great arm'd chair; the lower clafs fland behind
thefe feats : above are the women ; for the fexcs
are feparated, and fo ftriclly, that an officer
was broke at -Madrid, for intruding into the
female places^ The boxes, of courfe, hold
family parties. The centre box, over the en-
trance of the pit, is appointed for the rnagif-
trates ; covered in the front with red fluff, and
ornamented with the royal arms. The motto
is a curious one, " Silencio y no fumar."
Silence and no fmoaking." The Comedy, of
courfe, was very dull to one who could not
underftand it. I was told that it contained fome
wit, and more obfcenity ; but the only com-
prehenfible joke to me, was "Ah !" faid in a
loud voice by one man, and " Oh !" replied
equally
* 4 maravedis make i quarto.
8g quartos i real.
4 reales I pefetta.
5 pefettas i dollar, or peflb duro, value
45. 6d. x
In fmall fums they reckon by reales, in large ones, by
dollars or doubloons. The doubloon is an imaginary
eoin, value three dollars.
C " ]
equally loud by another, to the great amufe-
ment of the audience. To this fucceeded a
Comic Opera ; the characters were reprefented
by the moft ill-looking man and woman I ever
law. My Swediih friend's ifland of hares and
rabbit$\Qtt\& not have a fitter king arid queen.
The man s drefs was a thread-bare brown coat
lined with (ilk, that had once been white, and
dirty corduroy waiftcoat and breeches ; his
beard was black, and his neckcloth and Ihoes
dirty : but his face ! Jack-ketch might fell the
reverfion of his fee for him, and be in no dan-
ger of defrauding the purchafer. A foldier was
the other character, in old black velveret
breeches ; with a pair of gaters reaching above
the knee, that appeared to bave been made out
of fome blackfmith's old leathern apron. A
farce followed, and the hemp-ftretch man again
made his appearance ; having blacked one of
his eyes to look blind. M. obferved that he
looked better with one eye than with two ; and
we agreed, that the lofs of his head would be
an addition to his beauty. The prompter (lands
in the middle of the ftage, about half way above
it ; before a little tin fkreen, not unlike a man
in a cheefe-toafter. He read the whole play
with