to Stockholm after her abdication) not all the power of the king of Sweden fhall fave your life, though you fhould take fhelter in his

arms."

In the affair of the Franchises, the pretended rights of which the afferted with great haughtiness, the wrote thus to the pope's officers: "Take my word, that those whom you have condemned to die, fhall, if it please God, live fome time longer, and if it happens that they die a violent death, be affured they shall not die alone."

A mufician having quitted her fervice for that of the duke of Savoy, she was so transported with rage as to difgrace herfelf by these words, in a letter written with her own hand: He lives only for and if he does not fing for me, he fhall not fing long for any body. It is his duty to live only in my fervice; and if he does not, he fhall forely repent it."

me;

Bayle was alio threatened very feverely, for having faid that the letter which Chriftina wrote, upon the revocation of the edict of Nantes, was a remain of Proteftantism: but he made his peace by apologies and fubmiffion."

Upon the whole, fhe appears to have been an uncommon mixture of faults and great qualities, which, however it might excite fear and refpect, was by no means amiable. She had wit, tafte, parts, and learning; he was indefatigable upon the throne, great in private life, firm in misfortunes, impatient of contradiction; and, except in the love of letters, incon. stant in her inclinations. The moft remarkable inftance of this ficklenefs is, that after he had abdi: cated the crown of Sweden, fhe

intrigued for that of Poland. She was, in every action and purfuit, violent and ardent in the highest degree; impetuous in her defires, dreadful in her refentment, and fickle in her conduct. She says of herself, "That she was miftruft ful, ambitious, paffionate, haugh ty, impatient, contemptuous, fatyrical, incredulous, undevout, of an ardent and violent temper, and extremely amorous;" a difpofition, however, to which, if the may be believed, her pride and her virtue were always fuperior. In general, her failings were those of her fex, and her virtues the virtues of ours.

Some letters published at Amfterdam in 1759, and at Geneva in 1761, faid to be private letters of Chriftina, and dedicated to the king of Pruflia, are wholly fpurious.

been fo highly extolled; and often cenfured with more justice. But to be born and called to contribute to the happiness and even the instruction of a whole nation, and yet decline it, is, in my opinion, refufing to do that good which you wifh to do. Your philofophy, is founded in a love to mankind permit me then to tell you, that to refufe to ferve mankind, whilft it is in your power, is to miss your aim. I know you too well to be a good man, to afcribe your re fufal to vanity. I know that the fole motive of it is the love of eafe, and leifure to cultivate letters and the friendship of thofe you efteem. But what is there in this objection? Come, with all your friends; I promife both them and you, every conveniency and advantage that depends upon me; and perhaps you will find more liberty and eafe here, than in your native country. You refufed the invitation of the king of Pruffia, notwithstanding your obligations to him; but that prince has no fon. I own to you, that I have the education of my fon fo much at heart, and I think you so neceffary to it, that perhaps I prefs you with too much earneftnefs. Excufe my indifcretion for the fake of the occafion of it; and be affured that it my efteem for you that makes me fo urgent. Moscow, Nov. 13, 1762.

is

CATHERINE.

In this whole letter I have argued only from what I have found in your writings you would not contradict yourself.

An authentic and literal translation

of the Dey of Tunis's letter to his majesty King George III. on bis acceffion to the throne.

THE greatest of the princes of

the nations of the Meffiah, and the greateft of the governors of the affairs of the Nazarenes, the most mighty, noble, and our high and great friend, the new George the Third, whofe end may be in bliss, and after our best wishes and prayers for his health and felicity, I am to acquaint my dear friend, that your majefty's English conful of the city of Tunis, by name Charles Gordon, received from the kingdom of London a letter, the contents of which was, that his majefty George the Second's appointed time being finished, he is paffed into life eternal; that in his place, your majefty George the Third had afcended the throne; this news being dispatched on purpofe to be communicated to the governor of Tunis.. His excellency Ally Bafha, which we was ac quainted with in this year feventyfour, in the latter end of the month of Gimadit (June) fo that ancient friendship fubfifts the fame from your majefty, may the God of the world prolong your majesty's life with joy, felicity, and ftrength for ever, and maintain the friendfhip, with the greateft ftrength, Amen. And on confideration of the ancient friendship this friendly letter is wrote, and fent, I hope, by the will of God, on the receipt, that in every form, the friendship articles, and former promifes, will not be changed nor altered, but that the advantageous harmony and friendship will be

aug

May it pleafe my king and mafter, Vouchfafe to ftayne thy royal couch with the poor inklings of thy fervant and handmaide, whome, nathleffe, thou haft moft graciously daygned to raife unto thy royal couche, as Abraham did his handmaide Hagar; though I with not to fhare her misfortune, and to be driven from my mafter's prefence. Could my unworthy pen give a decent colouring to thy Jane's affection, then might words, whiche be the painting of thoughtes in the true hearte, do juftice to the loyal love fhe beareth unto thy worthy perfonne.

But how can the black rivulet, which my pen is eager to drinke, be worthily enabled to exprefs, in becomynge terrmes, the ocean of love, that aboundythe in my true hearte! Woulde to my Savioure, that this ocean of love were not troubled with winds, which blow therein and rayfe the waves of affiction within my moody foul.-I am encompaffed by three potent enemyes; albeit, not the flesh, the worlde, and the devil, unless lord Haftings be refembled to the firft, for he worketh to withdraw my love from thee, and in thy abfence to difplace thee from the throne

whereon the king is established in my hearte.

The royal partner of thy bofom, the queen, may indeed be likened unto the world, for fhe encompaffeth me round with fpies, who watche out for my thoughts.And though I will not be fo harfhe in my thought or deed, to fay thy noble brother Gloucester be, in any fhape, like unto the devil, yet I do verily believe he be more dangeroufe than the other twain, though he beareth him towardly. There be fome, and divers fome, who fay he wifheth not well unto thy government, nay unto thy children. Among the reft, the noble lord. Haftings doubted very much, and wifheth thee long to reign, in order that thou mayeft the better furvive to establish thy royal iffue. Believe what I write cometh from my true heart's affection, and with comfort to the wounded spirit of thy loyal fervant, JANE SHORE.

The laft will and teftament of the famous George Pfalmanazar, a reputed native of the island of Formofa, in the Eaft-Indies.

THE laft will and teftament of

me a poor finful and worthlefs creature, commonly known by the affumed name of George Pfamanazar.

Thy ever bleffed and unerring will, oh! moft gracious, though offended God, be done by me and all the world, whether for life or death,

Into thy all merciful hands I commit my foul, as unto a moft gracious Father, who, though juftly provoked by my paft vain and wicked life, but more efpecially fo during the wild fallies of a rash and

unthinking part of it, has yet been graciously pleafed, by thy undeferved grace and mercy, to preferve me from the reigning errors and herefies, and the more deplorable apoftacy and infidelity of the prefent age, and enabled me to take a conftant and stedfast hold on the holy author of our falvation, thy ever adorable and divine Son Jefus Chrift, our powerful and meritorious redeemer, from whofe alone, and all-powerful interceflion and merits, (and not from any the leaft inherent righteoufnefs of my own, which I heartily abhor as filthy rags in thine all purer eyes) I hope and beg for pardon and reconciliation, and for a happy refurrection unto that bleed immortality to which we are redeemed by his most precious and ineftimable blood. I likewife blefs and adore thy infinite goodnefs for preferving me from innumerable dan gers of body and foul, to which this wretched life, but more particularly by my own youthful rafhnefs and inconfideration might have expofed me, had not thy divine Providence interposed in such a wonderful manner, justly challenges my deepest admiration and acknowledgment: particularly I am bound to bless thee for fo timely nipping that ambition and vain-glory, which had hurried me through fuch scenes of impiety and hypocrify, and as the most effe&tual antidote against it, next to thy divine grace, haft brought me not only to prefer, but to delight in a ftate of obfcurity and lowness of circumftances, as the fureft harbour of peace and fafety; by which, though the little I have left in my poffeffion, be dwindled to fo little value as to be but a poor acknowledgment for the fer

vices which I have received from my friend hereafter named, to whom I can do no lefs than bequeath it all, yet I hope the will may be accepted for the deed, and that the divine Providence will fupply to her what is wanting in me. And now, O Father of mercies, I beseech thee for thy dear Son's fake, so to direct me by thy grace through all these future concerns of this life, that, when, where, or in what manner foever it shall please thee to call me out of it, I may be found ready and willing to refign my foul, worthlefs as it is of itself, to thee who gaveft it; and my death, as well as my latter end may be fuch as may tend all poffible ways to thy glory, the edification of thy church, and my own eternal comfort. And in hopes there is nothing in this my last will that is not agreeable to thine, I leave it to be executed after my death by my worthy and pious friend Sarah Rewalling, of this parish of St. Luke, in Middlefex, in the manner hereafter mentioned, viz.

I defire that my body, when or wherever I die, may be kept fo long above ground, as decency or conveniency will permit, and afterwards conveyed to the common burying ground, and there interred in fome obfcure corner of it without any further ceremony or formality than is ufed to the bodies of the deceafed penfioners where I happen to die, and about the fame time of the day, and that the whole may be performed in the lowest and cheapest manner. And it is my earnest request that my body be not inclosed in any kind of coffin, but only decently laid in what is called a fhell, of the loweft value, and without lid of

other

other covering which may hinder the natural earth from covering it all round.

The books relating to the Univerfal History, and belonging to the proprietors, are to be returned to them according to the true lift of them, which will be found in a blue paper in my account-book; all the reft, being my own proper ty, together with all my houthold goods, wearing apparel, and whatever money shall be found due to me after my decease, I give and bequeath to my friend Sarah Rewalling above named, together with fuch manufcripts as I had written at different times, and defigned to be made public, if they fhall be deemed worthy of it, they confifting of fundry effays on fome difficult parts of the Old Teftament, and chiefly written for the ufe of a young clergyman in the country, and fo unhappily unacquainted with that kind of learn ing, that he was likely to become the butt of his fceptical parishioners, but being, by this means, furnished with proper materials, was enabled to turn the tables upon them.

But the principal manufcript I thought myfelf in duty bound to leave behind, is a faithful narrative of my education, and the fallies of my wretched youthful years, and the various ways by which I was in fome measure unavoidably led into the bafe and fhameful impotture of paffing upon the world for a native of Formofa, a convert to christianity, and backing it with a fictitious account of that ifland, and of my own travels, converfion, &c. all or most of it hatched in my own brain, without regard to truth and

honefty. It is true, I have long fince difclaimed even publicly all but the fhame and guilt of that vile impofition; yet as long as I knew there were ftill editions of that fcandalous romance remaining in England, befides the feveral verfions it had abroad, I thought it incumbent on me to undeceive the world, by unravelling that whole myftery of iniquity in a pofthumous work which would be lefs liable to fufpicion, as the author would be far out of the influence of any finifter motives that might induce him to deviate from the truth. All that I shall add concerning it is, that it was begun above twenty-five years ago with that view, and no other, during a long recefs in the country, accompanied with a threatening dif cafe, and fince then continued in my most ferious hours, as any thing new prefented itself; fo that it hath little elfe to recommend it felf but its plainness and fincerity, except here and there fome ufeful obfervations and inuendos on those branches of learning in which I had been concerned, and particu larly with fuch excellent improvements as might be made in the method of learning of Hebrew, and in producing a more perfe& body of univerfal history, and more anfwerable to its title than that which hath already paffed a second edition. And thefe, I thought, might be more deferving a place in that narrative, as the usefulness of them would, in a great measure, make amends for the Imall charge of the whole. If it therefore shall be judged worth printing, I defire it may be fold to the highest bidder, in order to pay my arrears for my lodgings and to defray my fu

nerals