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THE LIBRARY
OF
THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES
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BROTHERS OF THE BEUEDIC TIXE MOTTASTI RY |
MCXSTT BE^GER
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I'KMXTKI) EOR T.BOy«,LI : I)r.ATH III 1-1.
£ 8 1821.
TO
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THE MEMORY
MUNGO PARK,
attttfrota* i>f sntetvvtoe
INSCRIBED,
THli
Umi) anertiotca.
ANECDOTES OF ENTERPRISE.
By the hand of a soldier I will undertake it."
all's well that ends well
CAPTAIN CAREW.
At the siege of Tortona, the commander of the army
which lay before the town ordered Carew, an Irish
officer in the service of Naples, to advance with a
detachment to a particular post. Having given his
orders, he whispered Carew, " Sir, I know you to be
a gallant man ; I have therefore put you upon this
duty. I tell you in confidence, it is certain death to
you all. I place you there to make the enemy spring
a mine below you." Carew made a bow to the ge-
neral, and then led on his men in silence to the
dreadful post. He there stood with an undaunted
countenance ; and having called to one of his sol-
diers for a draught of wine, " Here," said he, " I
drink to all those who bravely fall in battle." For-
tunately at that instant Tortona capitulated; and
Carew escaped that destruction which he had so
nobly displayed his readiness to encounter at the call
of honour.
u 2
4 PERCY ANECDOTES.
LET HIM THAT LOVES ME, FOLLOW ME.
" Armies of fearful harts will scorn to yield,
If lions be their captains in the field."
ALLEYN.
Francis I. of France had not reached his twentieth
year, when he was present at the celebrated battle of
Marignan, which lasted two days. The Marshal de
Trivulce, who had been in eighteen pitched battles,
said, that those were the play of infants ; but that
this of Marignan was the combat of giants. Francis
performed on this occasion prodigies of valour j he
fought less as a king than as a soldier. Having per-
ceived a standard-bearer surrounded by the enemy,
he precipitated himself to his assistance in the midst
of lances and halberts. He was presently surrounded ;
his horse pierced with several wounds ; and his casque
despoiled of its plumes. He must have been inevi-
tab!}* overwhelmed, if a body of troops detached from
the allies had not hastened to his succour. Francis
hazarded this battle against the advice of his generals ;
and cut short all remonstrance by the celebrated ex-
pression, which became afterwards proverbial, "Let
him that loves me, follow me."
EARL OF DERBY.
In the memorable reign of Edward III., when feats
of valorous enterprise were so frequent, the Earl of
Derby, one of the bravest warriors of the age, wus
sent with an army to France. Count de Lisle, the
French commander, had ordered twelve thousand
ENTERPRISE. 5
men to assemble secretly in the neighbourhood of
Auberoche ; and immediately- invested the place.
With four engines they threw showers of stones within
the walls, and forced the garrison to take shelter under
ground. The Earl of Derby, with three hundred men
at arms, and six hundred archers, advanced through
bye- ways to its relief. At supper time they burst into
the French camp : the general and principal officers
were killed or taken at table ; and the archers with
their arrows instantly dispersed every small body of
the enemy as soon as it was formed. The news had
now reached the other half of the besieging army,
and the conquerors had still to contend against an
enemy six times their number. The victory was se-
cured by the garrison from the castle, who in the heat
of the contest charged the rear of the French. Of
the twelve thousand men, very few escaped. Nine
earls and viscounts were made prisoners ; nor was
there a man at arms among the English, who did not
return with two or three barons, knights, or esquires,
as his share of the captives.
A DOUGLAS ! A DOUGLAS !
When Edward III. made his first expedition against
the Scots, and had proceeded as far as Durham, and
was for several days unable to find them, he offered
a free pardon, and a reward of oflOO for life, to any
person who would bring him intelligence of the Scots.
The first account which he did receive of them was in
a way little expected. While the two armies were
laying on opposite sides of the river Wear, in the
middle of the night an alarm was created by shoots of
b 3
6 PERCY ANECDOTES.
' A Douglas ! a Douglas ! die, ye English thieves."
That gallant chieftain had passed the river at a dis-
tance with two hundred followers, and entering the
rear of the camp, galloped towards the king's tent,
the cords of which he cut with his own hand. He
killed about three hundred men, and then effected his
retreat in safety.
PRINCE MAURICE OF NASSAU.
At the battle of Nieuport, in the year 1 600, Prince
Maurice sent away his ships, that there might be no
means of retreat for his troops ; in leading them to
engage, he said, " My friends, you have Nieuport
behind you, which is in possession of the enemy ; the
sea on your left ; a river on the right ; and the enemy
in front : there is no other way for you to pass, but
over the bodies of these men." By this heroic reso-
lution he gained a battle which saved the republic,
and did himself the highest honour.
THE GREAT DUKE OF ARGYLE.
At the siege of Mons, during the glorious career of
Marlborough, the Duke of Argyle joined an attacking
corps when it was on the point of shrinking from the
contest ; and pushing among them, open-breasted, he
exclaimed, " You see, brothers, I have no concealed
armour ; I am equally exposed with you ; I require
none to go where I shall refuse to venture. Remember
you fight for the liberties of Europe, and the glory
of your nation, which shall never suffer by my beha-
viour ; and I hope the character of a Briton is as
ENTERPRISE. 7
dear to every one of you." This spirit animated the
soldiers ; the assault was made, and the work was
carried.
SHERE AFGUN.
Shere Afgun, or the Overthrower of the Lion, so
dignified from his having in his youth killed a lion
with his own hands, was born of noble parents in
Tuicomania. He first served with uncommon renown
under Shaw Ismael, the third of the Sufveye line, and
afterwards with increasing reputation in the wars of
the Emperor Akbar of India. He distinguished
himself in a particular manner under Khan Rhanan,
at the taking of Suid, by exhibiting prodigies of
personal strength and valour. Preferments were
heaped upon him, and he was in high esteem at court
during the life of Akbar, who loved in others that
daring intrepidity for which he himself was renowned.
When at the height of his reputation, Shere mar-
ried Mher ul Nissa, or the Sun of Women, the daugh-
ter of Chaja Niass, the high treasurer of the empire.
This lady, who excelled in beauty all the damsels of
the East, had captivated the heart of Selim, the prince
royal ; and the prince had even gone so far as to
apply to his father, Akbar, for permission to espouse
her ; but the emperor, aware that she had been be-
trothed to Shere, sternly refused to commit a piece of
injustice, though in favour of the heir to his throne.
The prince retired abashed, and Mherul Nissa became
the wife of Shere.
Akbar died, and Selim ascended the throne. The
passion for Mher ul Nissa, which he had repressed
from respect fur his father, now returned with
8 PERCY ANECDOTES.
redoubled violence. He was afraid to go so far
against the current of popular opinion, as openlv to
deprive Shere of his wife ; but he resolved to leave
no base art untried to get his rival out of the wav,
when he reckoned upon his triumph being secure.
The first plot which he laid against the life of the
brave Shere, was distinguished for the depth of its
perfidy. He appointed a day for hunting, and ordered
the haunt of an enormous tiger to be explored. Newa
was soon brought that a tiger of immense size was
discovered in the Forest ]S"idarbari. This savage, it
was said, had carried off man}- of the largest oxen
from the neighbouring villages. The emperor directed
thither his march, attended by Shere Afgun and all
his principal officers, with their train of dependants.
Having, according to the custom of the Mogul Tartars,
surrounded the ground for many miles, they began to
move towards the centre on all sides. The ti^er was
roused ; his roaring was heard in all quarters, and the
emperor hastened to the place.
The nobility being assembled, the emperor called
aloud, " Who among you will advance singl}-, and
attack this tiger?" They looked on one another in
silence ; then all turned their eyes on Shere Afgun.
He seemed not to understand their meaning. At
length three Omrahs started forth from the circle ;
and sacrificing fear to shame, fell at the emperor's
feet, and begged permission to try singly their strength
against the formidable animal. The pride of Shere
Afgun rose. He had imagined that none durst
attempt a deed so dangerous. He hoped that after
the refusal of the nobles, the honour of the enter-
prise would devolve of course on his hands. But
ENTERPRISE. 9
three had offered themselves for the combat, and they
were bound in honour to insist on their prior right.
Afraid of losing his former renown, Shere Afgun
began thus in the presence: " To attack an animal
with weapons, is both unmanly and unfair. God has
given to man limbs and sinews, as well as to tigers ;
he has added reason to the former, to conduct his
strength." The other Omrahs objected in vain, " that
all men were inferior to the tiger in strength, and
that he could be overcome only by steel." " I will
convince you of your mistake," Shere Afgun replied ;
and throwing down his sword and shield, prepared
to advance unarmed.
Although the emperor was in secret pleased with a
proposal full of danger to Shere, he made a show of
dissuading him from the enterprise. Shere was de-
termined. The monarch with feigned reluctance
yielded. Men knew not whether they ought most
to admire the courage of the man, or to exclaim
against the folly of the deed. Astonishment was
painted in every face ; every tongue was silent.
Writers give a particular, but incredible, detail of the
battle between Shere Afgun and the tiger. This
much is certain, that after a long and obstinate struggle,
Shere prevailed ; and though mangled with wounds
himself, laid at last the savage dead at his feet. The
thousands who were eye-witnesses of the action, were
almost afraid to vouch for the truth of the exploit with
their concurring testimony. The fame of Shere was
cncreased, and the designs of the emperor failed for
the moment. But the determined hatred of the latter
stopped not here ;- other plans of destruction were
contrived by his parasites against the unfortunate Shere ;
and to one of these he at last fell a victim.
10 PERCY ANECDOTES.
He had retired from the capital of Bengal to
Burdwan. He hoped to live here in obscurity and
safety with his beloved Mher ul Nissa. He was de-
ceived. The Subahdar of Bengal had received his
government, for the purpose of removing the unfor-
tunate Shere, and he was not unmindful of the con-
dition. Settling the affairs of his government at
Rajeinabel, which was at that time the capital of
Bengal, he resolved with a great retinue to make the
tour of the dependant provinces. In this route he
came to Burdwan. He made no secret to his prin-
cipal officers, that he had the emperor's orders for
despatching Shere. That devoted amyr hearing that
the Subahdar was entering the town in which he
resided, mounted his horse, and with two servants
only went to pay his respects. The Subahdar received
Shere with affected politeness. They rode for some
time side by side, and their conversation turned upon
indifferent affairs. The Subahdar suddenly stopped ;
he ordered his elephant of state to be brought; which
he mounted, under a pretence of appearing with
becoming pomp in the city of Burdwan. Shere stood
still when the Subahdar was ascending; and one of
the pikemen pretending that Shere was in the way,
struck his horse, and began to drive him before him.
Shere was enraged at the affront ; he knew that the
pikemen durst not have used the freedom without his
master's orders ; he saw plainly that there was a design
laid against his life. Turning therefore round upon
t lie pikeman, he threatened him with instant death.
The man fell on the ground, and begged for mercy-.
Swords were drawn. Shere had no time to lose: he
ENTERPRISE. 11
spurred his horse up to the elephant on which the
Subahdar was mounted, and having broken down the
ambhary, or castle, cut him in two : and thus the
treacherous Cuttub became the victim of his own zeal
to please the emperor. Shere did not rest here ; he
turned his sword on the other officers. The first that
fell by his hands was Aba KhaH, a native of Cashmire,
who was an amyr of five thousand horse. Four other
nobles shared the same fate : death attended every
blow from the hand of Shere. The remaining chiefs
were at once astonished and frightened ; they fled to
a distance, and formed a circle around him. Some
began to gall him with arrows; others to fire with their
maskets. His horse at length having been shot with
a ball in the forehead, fell under him. The unfortu-
nate Shere, reduced to the last extremity, began to
upbraid them with cowardice. He invited them
severally to single combat ; but he begged in vain.
He had already received some wounds : he plainly
saw his approaching fate. Turning his face towards
Mecca, he took up some dust with his hand ; and for
want of water, threw it by way of ahlution upon his
head. He then stood up, seemingly unconcerned.
Six balls entered his body in different places before
he fell. His enemies had scarcely courage to come
near till they saw him in the last agonies of death.
They praised his valour to the skies ; though in adding
to his reputation, they took away exceedingly from
their own.
Who that pities the fall of the brave and unfortu-
nate Shere, can help feeling doubly sorry, when they
learn that the woman whose beauty was his ruin, had
not a tear to shed to his memory ! The officer who
12 PERCY ANECDOTES,
succeeded the deceased Subahdar in the command of
the troops, hastened to the house of Shere, afraid that
Mher ul Nissa, in her first paroxysms of grief, might
make away with herself. The lady however bore
her misfortune with more fortitude and resignation.
She showed no willingness whatever to follow the
fashion of her countrywomen on such tragical occa-
sions ; she even pretended, in vindication of her
apparent insensibility, that she was acting in obedience
to the injunctions of her deceased lord. She alleged
that Shere, foreseeing his own fall from the machi-
nations of the emperor, had conjured her to yield to
the desires of the monarch without hesitation. The
reasons which she said he gave, were as feeble as the
fact itself was improbable— he was afraid that his
own exploits would sink into oblivion, without they
were connected with the remarkable event of giving
an empress to India.
Empress, the faithless widow became ; and for many
years, under the celebrated name of Noor Jehan, she,
conjointly with Selira, ruled the empire of India. A
circumstance so uncommon in an Asiatic government,
is thus recorded on the coin of that period : " By
order of the Emperor Jehangire, gold acquired a
hundred times additional value by the name of the
Empress Noor Jehan" {Light of the World).
ENTERPRISE. 13
PHILIP OF MACEDON.
" A commander must
Use pretty cheats; dark stratagems devise."
alleyn's cressey.
Philip of Macedon won Prinassus by the following
stratagem. He attempted first to undermine the city,
but found the ground so rocky, as to resist his most
vigorous and repeated efforts. He still however per-
severed, and commanded his pioneers to make a more
than ordinary bustle and noise below ground. In the
night he caused earth to be secretly brought from a
distance, and raised enormous mounds at the entrance
of the mine, in order to inspire the besieged with the
belief that the work went forward with astonishing
rapidity. At length he informed the townsmen, that
two acres of their wall were undermined, and stood
upon wooden props, to which if he set fire and entered
by a breach, they might expect no mercy. The
Prinassians were deceived, and surrendered at dis-
cretion to an enemy, who could not with his utmost
exertions have taken the town by real force.
HORATIUS COCLES.
The Romans beaten by Porsenna, King of the
Etrurians, fled in disorder to Rome, with the enemy
close at their heels. When they reached a bridge
over the Tiber, which gave them an open entrance into
Rome, the Etrurians pressed so hard on them, that
there was the most imminent danger of both friend
c
14 PERCY ANECDOTES.
and foe entering the sacred city together. One man
alone of all the Romans conceived the possibility of
stemming the tide of pursuit ; and discarding all
considerations of personal hazard, he nobly resolved
to devote himself to the glorious achievement. He
turned round on the pursuing host as they were enter-
ing on the bridge, and with his single arm maintained
the pass against them; he fought with incomparable
skill and valour, laid several of the enemy dead at
his feet, and wounded many more. Meanwhile his
countrymen were actively employed in cutting down
the wooden bridge behind him ; and keeping up the
fight till he saw this accomplished, he then leaped into
the Tiber, armed as he was, and swam in safety to the
opposite bank, having only received one wound in
his thigh from an Etrurian javelin. The name of this
patriot and hero was Horatius Codes. The consul
Poplicola, in gratitude for the service he had per-
formed, proposed to the Roman people, that each of
them should give him as much as would maintain him
for a day, and that he should besides have as much of
the public lands as he could compass in one day with
a plough. Not only were these rewards cordially
granted him, but a statue was ordered to be erected
to his honour in the Temple of Vulcan.
BRIDGE OF INSPRUCK.
An instance of daring enterprise somewhat similar
to the preceding, but differing in its result to the
individual, occurred at the bridge of Inspruck in the
Tyrol, during the late war. Steep rocks, fringed with
brush-wood, rose above the bridge ou the southern
ENTERPRISE. 15
side, which the Tyrolese occupied. From these rocks
they kept up an irregular fire on the French infantry,
who were endeavouring to make their way through
the defile ; and so great was the slaughter, that in a
very short time the road was literally blocked up with
dead bodies. In this emergenc} 7 , an officer of the
Bavarian dragoons volunteered to gallop over the
bridge with his squadron, and dispossess the peasantry
who occupied the opposite cliffs. The Tyrolese, per-
ceiving the cavalry winding up the ascent, set fire to
the bridge, and, in a very short time, the flames spread
rapidily along the fir beams on which it was supported.
Not deterred, however, by this circumstance, nor by
the dreadful fire which the peasantry directed towards
this point, the brave horseman pressed forward, and
spurring his horse with much difficulty over the dead
bodies of his comrades, dashed into the midst of the
flames. The eyes of both armies were anxiously
turned upon this brave man, and the hoofs of his horse
were just touching the rocks on the opposite side,
when the burning rafter broke,and he was precipitated
from an immense height into the torrent beneath. A
momentary pause, and a cessation from firing, ensued,
till the heavy splash in the deep ravine below an-
nounced his fate ; and instantly a loud shout from the
whole Tyrolese army re-echoed through the impend-
ing rocks, announced to the neighbouring vallies, that
the French army was stopped at the important defde.
SPECKBACHER, TYROLEAN LEADER.
When the Austrians abandoned the Tyrol to the
merciless invasion of the French in 1809, Speckbachcr
c 2
16 PERCY ANECDOTES.
and Hofer, the two leaders of the Tyrolese, retired to
their respective vallies, and roused the peasantry to a
continuance of the war by their eloquence and their
example. Speckbacher undertook himself to convey
the intelligence of the ardour which prevailed in his
vallies across the Inn, that was then occupied by the
French troops. He set out accordingly, accompanied
by his tried friends, George Zoppell and Simon Lechner,
and endeavoured to penetrate across that part of the
valley which seemed most weakly guarded. But in
the middle of the night, while they were treading softly
through a broken tract of rocks and underwood, they
came upon a detachment of one hundred Bavarian
dragoons. They had gone too far to recede ; but
nevertheless they hesitated for a moment before they
ventured to attack their opponents, who were leaning
on their arms round a blazing fire, with their horses
standing on the outside of the circle. Being deter-
mined, however, to risk every thing rather than aban-
don their purpose, they levelled their rifles, and by the
first discharge killed and wounded several of the
enemy. During the confusion which ensued upon
this unexpected attack, they loaded their pieces, and
hastily mounting the cliffs, fired again before their
numbers were perceived. The Bavarians, conceiving
that they were beset by a large body of the peasantry,
fled in all directions ; and Speckbacher, with his brave
associates, succeeded in penetrating before morning to
the outposts of their countrymen.
ENTERPRISE.
PASSAGE OF THE GRANICUS.
When the Persians under the generals of Darius
had assembled a great army, and taken post on the
banks of the Granicus, Alexander the Great was under
the necessity of engaging them in the very position
they had selected, in order to open his way into Asia*
Many of his officers were apprehensive of the depth
of the river, and the rough and uneven banks on the
other side. Others thought that a proper regard should
be paid to a tradition with respect to the time ; for
the kings of Macedon never were accustomed to march
out to war in the month of Daisius. Alexander cured
them of this superstition, by ordering that month to be
called the second Artemisius ; and when at last Parme-
nius objected to Ins attempting a passage so late in the
day, he exclaimed, "The Hellespont would blush, if,
after having passed it, I should be afraid of the
Granicus." He immediately threw himself into the
stream with thirteen troops of horse, and in spite of
the enemy's arrows and of the vapidity of the river,
which often bore him down or covered him with its
waves, he persevered with undaunted resolution till
he gained the opposite bank, which was extremely
slippery and dangerous. He now was compelled to
an engagement with the enemy under great disadvan-
tages, as they attacked his men as fast as they came
over, before he had time to form them. The Persian
troops charged with great fury ; numbers pressed hard
on Alexander, whom they distinguished by his buckler
and his crest ; his cuirass was pierced by a javelin
at the joint, and two officers of great distinction,
c 3
18 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Rhoesaces and Spithridates, attacked him at once.
One of them cut off his crest with a battle-axe, and
was going to repeat the stroke, when the celebrated
Clitus prevented him, by running him through the
body with his spear. Alexander despatched the other.
While the cavalry were righting with so much fury,
the Macedonian phalanx passed the river, and joined
in the conflict. The enemy did not make much
longer resistance, but soon fled, all but the Grecian
mercinaries, who making a stand upon an eminence,
desired Alexander to give his word of honour that
they should be spared. Alexander, however, instead
of giving them quarter, advanced to attack them, had
his horse killed under him, and in this rencontre lost
more men than in all the rest of the battle.
The Persian army is said to have consisted of
600,000 men, while that of the Macedonians did not
exceed 30,000. The Persians lost in the battle 20,000
foot, and 2500 horse ; whereas Alexander had no
more than thirty-four men killed. To do honour to
their memory, he erected a statue to each of ihem
in brass, the workmanship of Lysippus ; and that the
Greeks might have their share in the glory of the
day, he sent them presents of the spoil. To the
Athenians in particular he sent three hundred bucklers.
Upon the rest of the spoils he put this pompous in-
scription, Won by Alexander, the sort of Philip, and lite
Greeks, (excepting the Lacedemonians ) orer the Barba-
rians in Asia.
ENTERPRISE. \0
PASSAGE OF THE SOMME.
The passage of the Somme b}' Edward III. was
a feat of gallant enterprise. The English marched at
midnight, and arriving before the water was sufficient!}'
low, had the mortification to behold, a little after sun-
rise, the opposite bank lined with twelve thousand men,
under the command of Godemar du Fay. In this
distressing situation they waited for some hours. About
ten o'clock it was reported that the tide was out :
Edward gave the word of command, in the name of
God and St. George ; and the men at arms plunged
into the river. About the middle they were met by
the French cavalry ; but the English fought with
the courage of despair ; and the enemy were routed,
with the loss of two thousand men.
RETREAT OF THE TEN THOUSAND.
Xenophon accompanied Cyrus, the younger, in
the expedition against his brother Artaxerxes, King
of Persia. In the army of Cyrus, Xenophon showed
that he was a true disciple of Socrates, and that he
had been educated in the warlike city of Athens.
After the decisive battle in the plains of Cunaxa, and
the fall of young Cyrus, the prudence and vigour of
his mind were called conspicuously into action. The
ten thousand Greeks who had followed the standard
of an ambitious prince, were now at a distance of
above six hundred leagues from their native home, in
a hostile country, and surrounded on every side by a
20 PERCY ANECDOTES.
victorious enemy, without money, without provisions,
and without a leader. Xenophon was selected from
anion" the officers to superintend the retreat of his
countrymen ; and though he was often opposed by
malevolence and envy, yet his persuasive eloquence
and unceasing activity convinced the Greeks of the
justness of their choice, and that no general could
extricate them from every difficulty better than the
disciple of Socrates. To every danger he rose su-
perior ; across rapid rivers, through vast deserts, and
over lofty mountains ; exposed continually to the
attacks of a vigilant enemy ; without any other re-
sources than his own prudence and the devotion of his
troops : he succeeded at last, after a perilous march
of two hundred and fifteen days, in restoring his
countrymen to their native home,
CAPTURE OF SARDIS.
Polybius, in his seventh book, gives a remarkable
account of the capture of Sardis. This tows had been
blockaded two years by Antiochus the Great, when
Lagoras of Crete suggested the idea of carrying it by
scaling a wall, built on the top of a rock extremely
high and steep, at the bottom of which the people
threw down the carcases of their dead horses. Lagoras
asked for two officers to assist him in the scheme. The
three waited one dark night, and took fifteen of the
stoutest and bravest men of the army to carry the
ladders, and scale the walls ; with thirty more to lay
in ambush in the ditch, and assist them. Lagoras
and his party scaled the rock, and reached the nearest
ENTERPRISE. 21
gate, and let in an army of two thousand men, who
look the town in an instant.
CAPTURE OF THE ISLAND OF SARK.
Sir Walter Ralegh relates, that the Island of tJark,
adjoining to Guernsey, was surprised by the French,
and could never have been recovered from them by
force, being inaccessible on all sides, and having
plenty of corn and cattle upon it to feed its defenders.
In the reign of Queen Mary, however, an ingenious
gentleman of the Netherlands succeeded in restoring
it to the English crown, by the following happy ex-
pedient : " With one ship of a small burden," says
Sir Walter, " he anchored in the roads, pretended
that his supercargo had died on board, and besought
the French, who were only about thirty in number, to
permit that the deceased should be buried in hallowed
ground, in the chapel of the Isle, offering a present
to the French of such commodities as were on board.
The French consented, upon the express condition,
that the captain and his mourners should come on
shore without any weapon, not even so much as a
knife. Matters being thus far arranged, the Flemings
put a coffin into their boat, not filled with a dead
carcase, but with swords, targets, and harquebusses.
The French received them at their landing ; and after
searclung them every one, so narrowly, that they
could not hide a pen-knife, gave them leave, with
great difficulty, to draw their coffin up the rocks.
Meantime some of the French took the Flemish boat,
and rowed on board the ship, to fetch the commo-
dities promised, and what else they chose. J3ut to
22 PERCY ANECDOTES.
their great surprise, on boarding the ship, they were
seized and put in irons. The Flemings had by this
time carried their coffin to the chapel ; and shutting the
door of which, they armed themselves with weapons
from the coffin, and sallied forth on the few remaining
French, who ran to the cliffs, and called to their com-
panions on board to hasten to their aid. But seeing
the boat return filled with Flemings, they gave up all
idea of resistance, and yielded up themselves and the
place."
CAPTURE OF FORT BORGIE.
During the time that the English army was en-
camped before Fort Borgie, in the East Indies, one
Strahan, a common sailor belonging to the Kent,
one of the ships in Admiral Watson's fleet, having
been rather elated with grog, strayed by himself
towards the fort in the night, and imperceptibly got
under the walls. Being advanced thus far without
interruption, he determined to scale the breach that
had been made by the cannon of the ships ; and having
luckily got upon the bastion, he there discovered
several Moors sitting on a platform, at whom he
flourished his cutlass and fired his pistol ; and then
after having'given three loud huzzas, cried out, " The
place is mine." The Moorish soldiers immediately
attacked him : he defended himself with incomparable
resolution ; but in the rencontre had the misfortune
to have the blade of his cutlass broken about a foot
from the hilt. This misfortune, however, did not happen
till he was on the point of being supported by two or
three other sailors who had accidentally straggled to
ENTERPRISE. 23
the same part of the fort. On hearing Strahan's
huzzas, they immediately ascended the breach, and
echoing the triumphant sound, roused the whole
army, who presently fell on pell raell, without orders
and without discipline, following the example of the
sailors. This attack, though made in such confusion,
was attended with no other ill consequences but the
death of Captain Campbell. Captain Coote com-
manded the fort for that night, and at daylight saluted
the admiral.
Strahan, the hero of this adventurous action, was
brought before Admiral Watson, who, notwithstanding
the success that attended it, thought it necessary to
show himself displeased with a measure in which the
want of all discipline so notoriously appeared ; he
therefore angrily asked Strahan what he had been
doing? The poor fellow, after making a bow, scratching
his head with one hand, and twirling hi3 hat upon
the other, replied, " Why to be sure, your honour, it
was I who took the fort; but I hope there was no
harm in it." The admiral, with difficulty, was pre-
vented from smiling at the simplicity of Strahan's
answer ; and the whole company were exceedingly
diverted with his awkward appearance and his lan-
guage, in recounting the several particulars of his
daring exploits. The admiral expatiated on the fatal
consequences that might have attended his irregular
conduct ; and then, with a severe rebuke, dismissed
him, hinting that he should be punished for his
temerity. Strahan, amazed to find himself blamed
where he expected praise, had no sooner gone from
the admiral's cabin, than he muttered, " If I am
flogged for this here action, I'll never take another
24 PERCY ANECDOTES.
fort as long as I live." Poor Strahan received the
admiral's pardon ; but not being qualified, as we are
told, for any higher function than that of a common
sailor, he served in that capacity in all Admiral Po-
cocke's engagements ; and after receiving a severe
wound, became a pensioner on the chest at Chatham.
He was living in 1773, and acting as a sailor in one of
the guard ships at Portsmouth.
SIEGE OF JERUSALEM.
When besieging Jerusalem, the Emperor Titus en-
couraged his soldiers to attack a wall of the tower
Antonia ; but dismayed at the greatness of the danger,
all declined. At last, a Syrian, named Sabinus, re-
markable for strength and courage, but of so small
stature, that he was deemed unfit to appear in the
ranks, volunteered to make the assault, and was
joined by eleven more, who were emulous of his
heroic daring.
" This man," says Josephus, " holding his shield
in his left hand above his head, and with his drawn
sword in his right, approached the wall about the
sixth hour of the day. On every side the Jews
threw darts and stones at him, which struck to the
ground some of his associates ; but Sabinus himself
reached the 'top of the wall in safety, and put the
Jews to flight. In the moment of victory, he was
however levelled to the ground by a huge stone ; on
perceiving which, the Jews rushed upon him in every
direction ; and though he long and nobly defended
himself, even in that unfavourable posture, he fell at
last a sacrifice to his impetuosity and courage."
ENTERPRISE. 25
More Romans having, in the meantime, ascended
the wall, the Jews were compelled to retire into
the Inner Temple, where they sustained the combat
from the ninth hour of the night, to the seventh hour
of the following day, when the Romans were ulti-
mately forced to retreat. Julian, a Centurion, who
was standing at Titus's side, beholding this disaster,
instantly leaped down from the wall on which he
stood, and attacking with his single arm the pursuing
foe, he filled them with such sudden astonishment, as
if some more than mortal being had descended in the
midst of them to decide the combat, that they in-
stantly fell back on all sides, and many in the confu-
sion were trodden under foot by their terrified com-
panions. The brave Centurion, however, having his
shoes covered with nails, his feet slipped when run-
ning upon the pavement, and his armour in the fail
making a noise, his enemies turned round, and before
he could recover himself, pierced him to death with
their spears.
COLUMBUS.
Columbus, after his discovery of America, was per-
secuted by the envy of the Spanish courtiers, for
the honours which were heaped upon him by the
sovereign ; and once at table, when all decorum
was banished in the heat of wine, they murmured
loudly at the caresses he received, having, (as
they said) with mere animal resolution, pushed his
voyage a few leagues beyond what any one had
chanced to have done before. Columbus heard
them with great patience, and taking an egg from the
26 PERCY ANECDOTES.
dish, proposed that they should exhibit their ingenuity
by making it stand on an end. It went all round,
but no one succeeded. " Give it me, gentlemen,"
said Columbus ; who then took it, and breaking it at
one of the ends, it stood at once. They all cried out,
" Why, I could have done that." " Yes, if the
thought had struck you," replied Columbus; "and
if the thought had struck you, you might have dis-
covered America."
MEXICAN YOUTHS.
After the death of Montezuma, the Mexicans took
possession of a high tower in the great temple, which
overlooked the Spanish quarters, and placing there a
garrison of their principal warriors, not a Spaniard
could stir without being exposed to their missile
weapons. From this post it was necessary to dis-
lodge them at any risk. Juan de Escobar thrice
made the attempt, but was repulsed. Ferdinando
Cortes, sensible that not only the reputation, but
the safety of his army, depended on the success
of this assault, ordered a buckler to be tied to his arm,
as he could not manage it with his wounded hand,
and rushed with his drawn sword into the thickest of
the combatan.ts. Encouraged by the presence of
their general, the Spaniards returned to the charge
with such vigour, that they gradually forced their way
up the steps, and drove the Mexicans to the platform
at the top of the tower. There a dreadful carnage
began ; when two young Mexicans of high rank, ob-
serving Cortes as he animated his soldiers by Ins
voice and example, resolved to sacrifice their own
ENTERPRISE. 27
lives, in order to cut off the author of all the calamities
which desolated their country. They approached
him in a suppliant posture, as if they had intended to
lay down their arms ; and seizing him in a moment,
hurried him towards the waHs, over which they
threw themselves headlong, in hopes of dragging
him along to be dashed to pieces by the same fall.
But Cortes, by his strength and agility, broke loose
from their grasp ; and the gallant youths perished in
this generous though unsuccessful attempt to save
their country.
RACE FOR A CROWN.
In the year 776, on the death of Premislaus, or
Lescus I. King of Poland, the people to determine
who should succeed, appointed a race ; and declared
whoever won it, should be king. On this, one of the
candidates secretly strewed iron hooks in certain
parts of the course, by which, on the day of com-
petition, the horses of all the other candidates were
lamed ; while he, knowing how to avoid them, came
first to the goal. The fraud, however, being dis-
covered, he was killed on the spot, and a poor fellow,
called Lescus, who had run the race on foot, being
next to the impostor, the people saluted him prince.
It is said that he always kept his mean clothes, to
remind him of his humble origin. The throne de-
scended to his son and grandson ; when a new election
taking place in 820, the Poles exalted to the royal
dignity, Piastus, a wheelwright.
i> 2
28 PERCY ANECDOTES.
REWARD OF INDUSTRY.
" This is the only witchcraft I have used."
SHAKESPEARE.
Plhry tells us of one Cressin, who so tilled and
manured a piece of ground, that it yielded him fruits
in abundance, while the lands around him remained
extremely poor and barren. His simple neighbours
could not account for this wonderful difference on any
other supposition, than that of his working by en-
chantment ; and they actually proceeded to arraign
him for his supposed sorcery, before the justice seat.
'* How is it," said they, " unless it be that he
enchants us, that he can contrive to draw such a
revenue from his inheritance, while we, with equal
land?, are wretched and miserable r" Cressin was his
own advocate ; his case was one which required not
either ability to expound, or language to recommend.
" Behold," said he, " this comely damsel ; she is my
daughter, my fellow labourer ; behold, too, these im-
plements of husbandry, these carts, and these oxen.
Go with me, moreover, to my fields, and behold there
how they are tilled, how manured, how weeded, how
watered, how fenced in ! And when," added he,
raising his voice, " you have beheld all these things,
you will have beheld all the art, the charms the
magic, which Cressin has used!"
The judges pronounced his acquittal, passing a
high eulogium on that industry and good husbandry
which had so innocently made him an ol>j( ct of
suspicion and envy to his neighbours.
ENTERPRISE. 29
FISHER-BOY OF NAPLES.
In the year 1647, there lived at Naples a poor
fisher-boy of the name of Tomaso Anello, vulgarly
corrupted into Masaniello. He was clad in the
meanest attire, went about barefoot, and gained a
scanty livelihood by angling for fish, and hawking
them about for sale. Who could have imagined that
in this poor abject fisher-boy, the populace were to
find the being destined to lead them on to one of the
most extraordinary revolutions recorded in history ?
Yet so it was. No monarch ever had the glory of
rising so suddenly to so lofty a pitch of power, as
the barefooted Masaniello. Naples, the metropolis
of many fertile provinces, the queen of many noble
cities, the resort of princes, of cavaliers, and of
heroes. Naples, inhabited by more than six hundred
thousand souls, abounding in all kinds of resources,
glorying in its strength. This proud city saw itself
forced, in one short day, to yield to one of its
meanest sons, such obedience, as in all its history it
had never before shown to the mightiest of its liege
sovereigns. In a few hours the fisher lad was at the
head of one hundred and fifty thousand men ; in a
few hours there was no will in Naples but his ; and,
in a few hours, it was freed from all sorts- of taxes,
and restored to all its ancient privileges. The fishing
wand was exchanged for the truncheon of command ; the
sea-boy's jacketfor cloth of silver and gold. He made
the town be entrenched ; he placed sentinels to guard
it against danger from without ; and he established a
system of police within, which awed Ihe worst bau-
r> 3
30 PERCY ANECDOTES.
ditti in tlie world unto fear. Armies passed in review
before him : even lieets owned its sway. He dispensed
punishments and rewards with the like liberal hand ;
the bad he kept in awe ; the disaffected he paralyzed ;
the wavering he resolved by his exhortations ; the bold
\sere encouraged by his incitements ; the valiant
made more valiant by his approbation.
Obeyed in whatever he commanded, gratified in
whatever he desired, successful in whatever he at-
tempted, never was there a chief more absolute, never
was an absolute chief for a time more powerful. He
ordered that all the nobles and cavaliers should deliver
up their arms, to such officers as he should give com-
mission to receive them. The order was obeyed. He
ordered that men of all ranks should go without cloaks,
or gowns, or wide cassocks, or any other sort of loose
dress, under which arms might be concealed ; nay,
that even the women, for the same reason, should throw
aside their farthingales, and tuck up their gowns
somewhat high. The order changed in an instant the
whole fashions of the people, not even the proudest
and the fairest of Naples daughters daring to dispute
in the least the pleasure of the people's idol. Wot
was it over the high and noble alone that he exercised
this unlimited ascendancy. The " fierce democracy"
were as acquiescent as the titled few. On one occa-
sion, when, the people in vast numbers were assembled,
he commanded with a loud voice, that every one pre-
sent should, under pain of rebellion and death, retire
to his home. The multitude instantly dispersed. On
another, he put his finger on his mouth to command
silence ; in a moment every voice was hushed.
The reign <>f this prodigy of power was indeed
[.MLRPRISE. 31
short, lasting only from the 7th tiil the 16th of July,
1647 ; when he perished, tfce victim of another revo-
lution in affairs. It was a reign marked too with
many atrocious excesses, and with some traits of in-
describable personal folly ; yet as long as it is not an
every-day event for a fisher-boy to become a king,
the story of Masaniello of Naples must be regarded
with equal wonder and admiration, as exhibiting an
astonisliing instance of the genius to command, ex-
isting in one of the humblest situations of life, and
asserting its ascendancy with a rapidity of enterprise
to which there is no parallel in history.
AMAZONIAN PRISONERS.
In the eleventh year of the Hegira, the Mahonmu dan
Arabians carried the success of their arms so far, as to
lay 'siege to the famous and populous City of Damas-
cus. The Grecian emperor, Heraclius, made however
such preparations for its relief, that the Arabians were
shortly induced to raise the siege. The inhabitants
of Damascus were so elated at the departure of the
enemy, that they despatched a strong force to harass
them in their retreat. This force fell with great fury on
the rear guard of the Mahommedan army, and suc-
ceeded in carrying oft' all their women, children, and
treasure. The Christian officers having divided the
women and booty among them, retired to their tents
to take a little refreshment. In the meantime the
prisoners, who were all placed in one tent, discoursed
on the extraordinary allotment which had been jusl
made of them in their own presence. One of the
chief women, named Caulah, addressed hex fellow
32 PERCY ANECDOTES.
prisoners in the following terms •• " What think you of
the wretched fate we are threatened with ? Shall we
suffer ourselves to be given up to these infidels ? Ah !
why shall we not rather choose to die, than become
(he slaves of such idolaters ?"
" Alas ! what can we do ?" answered Ofteirah,
another of the prisoners. " We are quite defenceless,
and have no hopes of getting arms into our pos-
session."
" How !" replied the bold Caulah, briskly ; " what
prevents us from seizing the pickets of the tents, and
making use of them to repel these infidels ? Come,
let us forthwith take up the only weapons we can
procure. Let us stand close to each other, and dispose
ourselves in a circle, that we may make head on all
sides. Perhaps Heaven will assist us to beat our
enemies ; but if our prayers are not heard, we shall
however die nobly."
The prisoners unanimously came into Caulah's
design ; they instantly tore up the pickets of the
tents, and made ready to repel all who should dare to
attack them.
A Grecian soldier was the first that felt their fury.
Xot imagining that these women could seriously think
of defending themselves, he jeered them for their dis-
play of resistance ; but, to his misfortune, having
approached too near them, Caulah gave him a blow
with her picket, which laid him lifeless at her feet.
Some comrades of the unfortunate soldier, in order
to revenge his death, fell on the women sword in
hand ; but were repulsed with a valour which filled
them with astonishment and shame.
The noi.«e of the affray brought the Grecian geueral
EMLRPRISF.. 33
and his officers out of their teuts : the general
ordered a party of horte to surround the Amazonian
band, and feign an attack, with a view of intimi-
dating them. The first that advanced, however, fell
victims to their fury : they smote the horses on their
fore legs, and the greater part of them either falling
or rearing on end, threw their riders, who perished
under the hands of these heroines. The general,
transported with passion at the spectacle, ordered his
men to dismount, and attack them sword in hand.
He set the example himself; alighted from his horse,
and advanced in order to give the first blow. The
women stood the attack with the bravery of the most
intrepid soldiers. The Greeks, ashamed of meeting
with a repulse, returned to the charge, and would
doubtless have cut the gallant band in pieces ; when
all at once a great noise was heard in the camp. It
was the noise of a large detachment of Arabians, who
had made a forced march, in the hopes of retaking
the prisoners and booty. The Grecians were now
doubly attacked; and after losing their general, who
was transfixed with a lance by the brother of Caulah,
they were finally obliged to abandon in disgrace the
field where they had pitched their tents as conquerors.
COUNTESS DE MONTFORT.
When the dispute arose concerning the succession
to the Dukedom of Bretagnc, in the middle of the
fourteenth century, the interests of John de Montforf
were supported by the courage and perseverance of
his wife, Jane, sister to the Earl of Flanders. As
soon as she heard of her husband's captivity, she
34 PERCY ANECDOTES.
presented her infant son to the citizens and garrison
of R#nnes, and exhorted them to defend the cause of
the child, the only male issue, besides his father, of
their ancient princes. During the winter, she retired
to the fortress of Hennebon : and in the spring, when
Charles de Blois, with a numerous array, invested
the fortress, the heroine, on horseback, and in armour,
directed and encouraged the garrison. On one occa-
sion during an assault, she sallied out at the opposite
gate, set the camp of the besiegers on fire, retired to
the neighbouring castle of Aurai, and shortly after
fought her way back into Hennebon. The same lady
afterwards, with a small force of archers and men at
arms, besieged and took the city of Yannes.
MAGDALENE DE ST. NECTAIRE.
Magdalene de St. Nectaire, the widow of Gui
de St. Exaperi, was a protestant, and distinguished
herself very much in the civil wars of France. After
her husband's death, she retired to her chateau at
Miremont, in the Limousin, where, with sixty young
gentlemen, she used to make excursions upon the
catholic armies in the neighbourhood. In the year
1375, M. Montel, governor of the pro%ince, having
had his detachments often defeated by this extraor-
dinary lady, took the resolution to besiege her in her
chateau with fifteen hundred foot and fifty horse. She
sallied out upon him, and defeated his troops. On
returning, however, to her chateau, and finding it in
the possession of the enemy, she galloped to a
neighbouring town, Turenue, to procure a reinforce-
ment for her little army. Montel watched for her in
ENTERPRISE. 35
a defile ; but his troops were defeated, and himself
mortally wounded.
BLACK AGNES.
During the war which Edward III. maintained in
Scotland, part of the English army, led on by Mon-
tague, besieged Dunbar, which the Countess of March,
commonly called Black Agnes, defended with un-
common courage and obstinacy. This extraordinary
woman exhibited her scornful levity towards the
besiegers, by ordering her waiting maids to brush from
the walls the dust produced by their battering engines,
and this in sight of the English ; and when a tre-
mendous warlike engine, called a sow, approached the
walls, the countess called out, '* Montague, beware !
your sow shall soon cast her pigs !" which she verified,
for an immense mass of rock, thrown from a lofty
tower, accompanied her threat, and crushed the
ponderous missile, and the besiegers which it con-
tained.
SIEGE OF ALEPPO.
When the Mahommedan army was besieging
Aleppo, during the reign of the Caliph Omar, they
lay a long time before the place without being able to
force the walls, from their great strength. A man,
whose name was Dames, of gigantic stature and re-
markable cunning, requested of the commander, Abu
Obediah, the assistance of thirty other men ; which
being granted, he then requested the command to
raise the siege, and to remove with his army to about a
PEKCY ANECDOTES.
leagues distance* In the night, Dames went out several
times, and brought in five or six of the besieged. He
afterwards takes from his knapsack a goat's skin,
with which he covered his back and shoulders ; took
a dry crust in his hand, crept as near to the castle as
he could ; if he beard any noise, or suspected any
person to be near, to prevent being discovered, he
made such a noise with his crust, as a dog makes
ihat is gnawing a bone. The rest of his com-
pany came after some time, skulking, and often
creeping along, at other times walking. About sun-
rise, he sent to his commander to send him some
horse ; when they came to the castle, they found it
inaccessible However, Dames was resolved to leave
nothing untried, and before the next night surveyed'
the walls ; and having found a place where he thought
he could easiest get up, he sat down upon the ground,
ordered another to sit on his shoulders, and so on,
until seven of them had got on each other's shoulders ;
the uppermost then stood up, as did the rest ; till at
length Dames himself stood up, and bore the weight
of the whole. The man who was uppermost reached
by this means the battlement, where he found a
watchman drunk and asleep, whom he seized, and
bound hand and foot. Dames and his whole party
then got quietly up, and thus eventually gained
the city.
ENTERPRISE. 37
ROYAL FEMALE PIRATE.
Avilda, daughter of the King of Gothland, con-
trary to the manner and disposition of her sex, exer-
cised the profession of piracy, and was scouring the
seas with a powerful fleet, while a sovereign was
offering sacrifices to her beauty at the shrine of love.
King Sigar perceiving that this masculine lady was
not to be gained by the usual arts of lovers, took the
extraordinary resolution of addressing her in a mode
more agreeable to her humour. He fitted out a fleet,
went in quest of her, engaged her in a furious battle,
which continued two days without intermission, and
thus gained possession of a heart to be conquered
only by valour.
CONJUGAL AFFECTION.
That hazardous undertaking, as Dr. Robertson has
justly termed a voyage down the river Maragnon, to
which ambition prompted Orrellana, and to which
the love of science led M. Condamine, was under-
taken in the year 1769 by Madame Godin des Odonais,
from conjugal affection. The narrative of the hard-
ships which she suffered, of the dangers to which sru
was exposed, is a singular and affecting story, exhi-
biting in her conduct a striking picture of the forti-
tude which distinguishes one sex, mingled with the
sensibility and tenderness of the other.
On the 1st of October, 1769, Madame Godin de-
parted from Riobamb;/
Laguna, on her way to I 'ran. sband,
38 PERCY ANECDOTES.
accompanied by her brothers ; Sieur R. a physician,
and his servant ; her faithful negro, and three female
Indian domestics ; together with an escort of thirty-
one Indians to carry herself and her baggage, the
road being impassable even for mules. Scarcely had
Madame Godin reached Canclos, when the Indians
deserted her ; but she still determined to brave every
danger. There remained only two Indians in the
village who had escaped the small-pox, which lately
raged there. They had no canoe, but they offered
to construct one, and to conduct her to the mission of
Andoas, about twelve days journey lower on the
river Bobanaza, a distance of about one hundred and
fifty leagues. Madame G. paid them in advance ;
and the canoe being finished, the party quitted
Canclos. Having sailed two days, they stopped to
pass the night on shore. Next morning the two
Indians disappeared : they were now not only obliged
to proceed without a pilot, but the canoe began to
leak, which obliged them to land, and erect a tem-
porary hut, within five or six days journey from
Andoas, to which place Sieur R. proceeded with his
servant, assuring Madame Godin and her brothers,
that in less than fifteen days they should have a canoe
and Indians. After waiting twenty-five days in the
utmost anxiety, and losing all hope of relief from
that quarter, they made a raft, upon which they placed
all their provisions and effects, and proceeded slowly
down the river ; but the raft striking against a tree,
the whole party were plunged into the river ; happily,
however, no one perished. They now resolved to
pursue the banks of the river on foot. What an
enterprise ! The borders <>f this river are covered
ENTERPRISE. 39
with a wood, rendered impervious to the rays of the
sun by the herbs, brambles, and shrubs that creep up
the trunks, and blend with the branches of the tree .
Taking all their provisions, they commenced their
melancholy journey ; but observing that following
the course of the river considerably lengthened their
route, they entered into the wood, and in a few days
lost their way. Though now destitute of provisions,
oppressed with thirst, and their feet sorely wounded
with briars and thorns, they continued to push for-
ward through immeasurable wilds and gloomy forests,
drawing refreshment from the berries and wild fruit}
they were able to collect. At length, exhausted by
hunger and fatigue, their strength failed them; down
they sunk, helpless and forlorn. Here they waited
impatient for death to relieve them from their misery.
In four days they all successively expired, except
Madame Godin, who continued stretched beside her
brothers, and the corses of her companions, for forty-
eight hours, deprived of the use of all her faculties.
At last Providence gave her strength and courage to
quit the melancholy scene, and attempt to pursue her
journey. She was now without stockings, bare-footed,
and almost naked ; two cloaks, which had been torn
to rags by the briars, afforded her but a scanty cover-
ing. Having cut off the soles of her brother's shoes,
she fastened them to her feet, and took her lonely
way. The second day of her journey she found
water; and the day following, some wild fruit and
green eggs ; but so much was her throat contracted
by the priTation of nutriment, that she could hardly
swallow such a sufficiency of the sustenance which
chance presented to her, as would support her emaciated
e 2
40 I'ERCY ANECDOTES,
frame. On the ninth day she reached the borders of
Bobana/a, where she fortunately met two Indians, who
conveyed her in a canoe to Andoas ; thence she pro-
ceeded to Laguna ; and there procured a passage for
France ; where she at last arrived in 9afety, and found
in the approving smiles of that husband for whom
she had undertaken so dangerous an enterprise, an
ample consolation for all the toils and hardships she
had undergone.
MIRACULOUS SHOT.
The hero of this little narrative was a Hottentot,
of the name of Von Wyhk, and we give the story of
his perilous and fearful shot in his own words : " It
is now," said he, " more than two years since, in the
very place where we stand, I ventured to take one of
the most daring shots that ever was hazarded ; my
wife was sitting in the house near the door, the children
were playing about her. 1 was without, near the house,
busied in doing something to a waggon, when sud-
denly, though it was mid-day, an enormous lion ap-
peared, came up, and laid himself quietly down in
the shade, upon the very threshold of the door. My
wife, either frozen with fear, or aware of the danger
attending any attempt to fly, remained motionless in
her place, while the children took refuge in her lap.
The cry they uttered attracted my attention, and I
hastened towards the -door ; but my astonishment may-
be well conceived, when 1 found the entrance barred
in such a manner. Although the animal had not
seen me, escape, unarmed as I was, appeared impos-
sible. Yet I glided gently, scarocly knowing what
ENTERPRISE. 41
I meant to do, to the side of the house, up to the
window of my chamber, where I knew my loaded
gun was standing. By a happy chance, I had set it
in a corner close by the window, so that I could reach
it with my hand ; for, as you may perceive, the
opening is too small to admit of my having got in ;
and still more fortunately, the door of the room was
open, so that I could see the whole danger of the
scene. The lion was beginning to move, perhaps
with the intention of making a spring ; there was no
longer any time to think ; I called softly to the
mother not to be afraid, and invoking the name of
the Lord, fired my piece. The ball passed directly
over my boy's head, and lodged in the forehead of
the lion, immediately above his eyes, which shot forth
as it were sparks of fire, and stretched him on the
ground, so that he never stirred more."
SIR RICHARD ARKWR1GHT.
When Sir Richard Arkwright went first to Man-
chester, he hired himself to a petty barber ; but being
remarkably frugal, he saved money out of a very
scanty income. With these savings he took a cellar,
and commenced business ; at the cellar head he dis-
played this inscription : " Subterranean shaving with
keen razors, for one penny." The novelty had a very
successful effect, for he soon had plenty of customers ;
so much so, that several brother tonsors, who before had
demanded twopence a piece for shaving, were obliged
to reduce their terms. They also styled themselves
subterranean shavers, although they all lived and
worked above ground. Upon this Arkwright deter-
42 PERCY ANECDOTES.
mined on a still farther reduction, and shaved for a half-
peony. A neighbouring cobler one day descended the
original subterranean tonsor's steps, in order to be
shaved. The fellow had a remarkable strong, rough
beard. Arkwright beginning to lather him, said, he
hoped he would give him another halfpenny, for his
beard was so strong it might spoil his razor. The cobler
declared he would not. Arkwright then shaved him for
the halfpenny, and immediately gave him two pair of
shoes to mend. This was the basis of Arkwright's
extraordinary fortune ; for the cobler, struck with
this unexpected favour, introduced him to the inspec-
tion of a cotton machine invented by his particular
friend. The plan of this Arkwright got possession
of; and it gradually led him to the dignity of
knighthood, and the accumulation of half a million
of money.
JULIUS CESAR.
Julius Caesar was on one occasion obliged by a
sudden eruption of the enemy into Alexandria, to fly
for safety to his ships. He leaped into a boat, but was
followed by such numbers of his men, that the boat
was in danger of sinking. Caesar immediately threAv
himself into the sea, and swam to one of his ships at
a considerable distance, cutting the waters with one
arm, and holding his writings with the other above
water, to preserve them from injury ; drawing at the
same time his general's coat after him with his teeth,
that the enemy might not have to boast the possession
of so honourable a spoil.
ENTERPRISE. 43
ELEPHANT HUNT.
We extract the following interesting narrative from
a private letter from India : " For some days before
our arrival at A , we had intelligence of an im-
mense wild male elephant being in a large grass swamp
witliin five miles of us. He had inhabited the swamp for
years, and was the terror of the surrounding villagers,
many of whom he had killed : he had only one tusk ; and
there was not a village for many miles round, that did
not know the Burrah ek durt ke Hathee, or the large
one-toothed elephant ; and one of our party, Colonel
S , had the year before been charged, and his
elephant put to the right-about, by this famous, fellow.
We determined to go in pursuit of him ; and accord-
ingly, on the third day after our arrival, started in the
morning, mustering between private and government
elephants, thirty-two, but seven of them only with
sportsmen on their backs. As we knew that in the event
of the wild one charging, he would probably turn against
the male elephants, the drivers of two or three of the
largest were armed with spears. On our way to the
swamp, we shot a great quantity of different sorts of
game that got up before the line of elephants ; and
had hardly entered the swamp, when, in consequence
of one of the party firing at a partridge, we saw the
great object of our expedition ; the wild elephant got
up out of some long grass, about two hundred and fifty
yards before us, when he stood staring at us, and flap-
ping his huge ears. We immediately made a line of the
elephants, with the sportsmen in the centre, and went
strait up to him, until within a hundred and thirty
44 PERCY ANECDOTES.
yards ; when fearing he was going to turn from us, all
the party gave him a volley, some of us firing two,
three, and four barrels. He then turned round, and
made for the middle of the swamp. The chase now
commenced ; and after following him upwards of a
mile, with our elephants up to their bellies in mud,
we succeeded in turning him to the edge of the
swamp, where he allowed us to get within eighty
yards of him, when we gave him another volley in bis
full front ; on which he made a grand charge at us,
but fortunately only grazed one of the pad elephants.
He then again made for the middle of the swamp,
throwing up blood and water from his trunk, and
making a terrible noise, which clearly showed that
he had been severely wounded. We followed him,
and were obliged to swim our elephants through a
piece of deep stagnant water, occasionally giving
shot ; when making a stop in some very high grass,
he allowed us again to come within sixty yards, and
got another volley, on which he made a second charge
more furious than the first ; but was prevented making
it good, by some shots fired when very close to us,
which stunned and fortunately turned him. He then
made for the edge of the swamp, again swimming a
piece of water, through which we followed with con-
siderable difficulty, in consequence of our pads and
howdahs having become much heavier, from the soak-
ing they had got twice before ; we were up to the
middle in the howdahs, and one of the elephants
fairly turned over, and threw the rider and his guns
into the water. He was taken oft" by one of the pad
elephants, but his three guns went to the bottom. This
accident took up some time, during which the wild
enterprise. 45
elephant bad made his way to the edge of the swamp,
and stood perfectly still, looking at us, and trumpeting
with his trunk. As soon as we got all to rights, we
again advanced with the elephants in the form of a
crescent, in the full expectation of a desperate charge ;
nor were we mistaken. The animal now allowed us to
come within forty yards of him, when he took a very
deliberate aim at his head, and on receiving this fire,
he made a most furious charge ; in the act of which,
and when within ten yards of some of us, he received
his mortal wound, and fell as dead as a stone. Mr.
B , a Civilian, has the credit of giving him
his death wound, which, on examination, proved to be
a small ball from a Joe Man ton's gun over the left eye,
for this was the only one of thirty-one that he had
received in the head, which was found to have entered
the brain. When down, he measured in height
twelve feet four inches ; in length, from the root
of the tail to the top of the head, sixteen feet ; and
ten feet round the neck. He had upwards of eighty
balls in his head and body. His only remaining tusk,
when taken out, weighed thirty-six pounds, and when
compared with tame ones, was considered small for
the size of the animal. After he fell, a number of the
villagers came about us, and were rejoiced at the death
of their formidable enemy, and assured us, that during
the last four or five years, he had killed nearly fifty
men. Indeed, the knowledge of the mischief he had
occasioned, was the only thing which could reconcile
us to the death of so noble an animal. Colonel
S , an old and very keen Indian sportsman,
declared, that he had never seen or heard of any thing
equal to this day's sport."
46 PERCY ANECDOTES.
SLIDE OF ALPNACH.
For many centuries the rugged flanks and deep
gorges of Mount Pilatus were covered by impenetrable
forests : lofty precipices encircled them on all sides.
Even the daring hunters were scarcely able to reach
them, and the inhabitants of the valley never con-
ceived the idea of disturbing them with the axe.
These immense forests were therefore allowed to grow
and perish, the most intelligent and skilful considering
it quite impracticable to avail themselves of such in-
accessible stores.
In November, 1816, Mr. John Rulph, of Reutin-
gen, in Switzerland, and three Swiss gentlemen, en-
tertaining more sanguine hopes, drew up a plan of a
slide founded on trigonometrical measurements ; and
having purchased a certain extent of the forests from
the Commune of Alpnach for six thousand crowns,
began the construction of it.
The Slide of Alpnach is formed of about twenty-
five thousand large pine trees, deprived of their bark,
and united together without the aid of iron. It
occupied about one hundred and sixty workmen during
eighteen months, and cost nearly one hundred thousand
francs (.£4166.) It is about three leagues, of forty-
four thousand English feet long, and terminates in the
Lake of Lucerne. It has the form of a trough about
six feet broad, and from three to six deep. Its bottom
is formed of three trees, the middle one of which has
a groove cut out in the direction of its length for
receiving small rills of water, for the purpose of
diminishing the friction. The whole of the slide is
ENTERPRISE. 47
sustained by about two thousand supports, and, in
many places, is attached in a very ingenious manner
to the rugged precipices of granite. The direction of
the slide is sometimes straight and sometimes zig zag,
with an inclination of from 10° to 18° ; it is often
carried along the sides of precipitous rocks, and some-
times over their summit ; occasionally it goes under
ground, and at others over the deep gorges by scaffold-
ings one hundred and twenty feet high.
Before any step could be taken in its erection, it
was necessary to cut several thousand trees, to obtain
a passage through the impenetrable thickets ; and as
the workmen advanced, men were posted at certain
distances, in order to point out the road for their re-
turn. Mr. Rulph was often obliged to be suspended by
cords, in order to descend precipices many hundred
feet high to give directionsj having scarcely two good
carpenters among them all, the rest having been hired
as occasion offered. All difficulties being at length
surmounted, the larger pines, which were about one
hundred feet long, and ten inches thick at their smaller
extremity , ran through the space of three leagues, or nearly
nine miles, in three minutes and a half, and during
the^r descent appeared to be only a few feet in length.
The arrangements were extremely simple. Men were
posted at regular distances along the slide ; and as soon
as every thing was ready, the man at the bottom
called out to the next one above him, " Lachez," (let
go ;) the cry was repeated, and reached the top of the
slide in three minutes : the man at the top of the slide
then cried out to the one below, " II vient," (it comes ;)
as soon as the tree had reached the bottom and
plunged into thelake, the cry of" Lachez"was repeated
48 PERCY ANECDOTES.
as before. By these means a tree descended every
five or six minutes. When a tree, by accident, escaped
from the trough of the slide, it often penetrated by its
thickest extremity from eighteen to twenty-four feet
into the earth ; and if it struck another tree, it cleft it
with the rapidity of lightning.
Such is a brief account of a work undertaken and
executed by a single individual, and which has excited
the wonder and astonishment of every one who has
seen it.
We regret to add, that this magnificent struc-
ture no longer exists, and scarcely a tree is to be
seen on the flanks of Mount Pilatus. Political
events having taken away the demand for timber,
and another market having been found, the operation
of cutting and transporting the trees necessarily
ceased.
HANNIBAL'S PASSAGE OVER THE ALPS.
The passage of Hannibal over the Alps in Italy,
has always been considered as one of the greatest
achievements that an enterprising commander ever
accomplished. To attempt to transport an army of
twelve thousand men, at an inclement season of the
year, over mountains hitherto considered as im-
passable, could only have suggested itself to a mind
which no danger nor difficulty could appal.
In the first part of the ascent, Hannibal was led by
some hostages, which the treacherous Gauls had
given him as pledges of their pacific disposition.
For two days these hostages marched at the head of
the army ; but when it had got into a hollow way,
ENTERPRISE. 49
overlooked by steep and craggy rocks, faithless to their
engagement, they, in concert with others of their coun-
trymen, who had laid concealed, fell suddenly upon the
troops in front, flank, and rear. The greatest number
attacked the rear ; and the arm} 7 would have been
utterly destroyed, says Pohybius, if Hannibal, who all
along retained some doubts of these barbarians, had
not taken his precautions to guard against them, b} T
placing his baggage and his cavalry in the van, and
his heavy armed infantry in the rear guard, who re-
ceived the shots of the enemy. Notwithstanding
this, he lost a great number of men, horses, and beasts
of burden ; for the Gauls having possessed themselves
of the cliffs, rolled upon the Carthagenians huge
stones, which occasioned exceeding terror among
them. Hannibal was obliged, with one half of his
army, to remain all night in the open air upon a rock,
to defend the horses and beasts of carriage, as they
filed along through the straight below. The next
day, the enemy having retired, Hannibal rejoined his
horse and baggage, and continued his march. At
length, after nine days, from the commencement of
the ascent, he gained the summit of the mountains.
Here he staid two days, that those of his men who
with infinite toil had climed to this height, might
take breath; and that his sick and wounded, who
were still behind, and moving slowly on, might have
time to crawl up. While the troops continued here,
they had the agreeable surprise of seeing many of
the horses and beasts of burden which had fallen in
the way, or had by fear been driven out of it, and
were thought lost, arrive safely at the camp, having
followed the track of the army.
F
50 PERCY ANECDOTES.
It was now the end of autumn, and abundance of
newly fallen snow covered the top of the mountain.
Hannibal perceiving his soldiers to be extremely dis-
couraged by the sufferings they had already under-
gone, and by the apprehension of those that were to
come, called them together, and led them to a conve-
nient spot for taking an extensive view of the plains
below. " There," said he, " cast yoar eyes over
those large and fruitful countries. The Gauls who
inhabit them are our friends. They are waiting for
us, ready and impatient to join us. You have scaled
not only the rampart of Italy, but the walls of Rome
itself. What remains, is all smoothness and descent.
One battle gained, or two at most, and the capital of
Italy will be ours."
The next day he broke up his camp, and began to
descend. The way was so steep and slippery in most
places, that the soldiers could neither keep on their
feet, nor recover themselves when thev slipped ; and
the ground being covered with snow, it was difficult
to keep the right path ; while if they missed it, they
fell down frightful precipices, or were swallowed up
in depths of snow. The soldiers bore all these
dangers and difficulties with great fortitude ; but at
length they came to a place much worse than any
they had before met with, and which quite took away
their courage. The path, for about a furlong and a
half, naturally very steep and craggy, was rendered
much more so by the late falling of a great quantity
of earth, so that neither elephants nor horses could
pass. Here, therefore, their progress was arrested ;
when Hannibal wondering at this sudden halt, run to
the place, and having viewed it, plainly saw there was
ENTERPRISE. 51
no possibility of advancing further that way. His
first thought was to try another route, but this was
found equally impracticable ; for although the newly
fallen snow yielded good footing for the soldiers and
horses that marched foremost, yet, when it had been
so trampled upon that the feet of those who followed
came to the hard snow and ice under it, they could
not keep their feet, but were often lost in pits
and precipices. It was necessary therefore to seek
some other expedient
Hannibal next caused all the snow to be removed
that lay upon the ground near the entrance of the
first way, and there pitched his camp. He then gave
orders to cut out a winding path in the rock itself ;
and this work was carried on with such diligence and
vigour, that at the end of one day, the beasts of
burden and the horses were able to descend without
much difficulty. He immediately sent them forward,
and removing his camp to a place that was free from
snow, put them to pasture. It now remained to en-
large the way, that the elephants might pass. This
task was assigned to the Numidians, and it took up
so much time, that Hannibal did not arrive with his
whole army in the plains below, on the confines of
Insubria, till four days after he began to descend.
He had been fifteen days in passing the Alps.
Livy tells us, that Hannibal softened the rock by
pouring vinegar upon it, after it had first been made
hot under flaming piles of huge trees. M. Rollin
credits this story, and quotes Pliny to prove, that
vinegar has the force to break stones and rocks.
That this story is fabulous few will doubt ; for not to
mention the difficulty of procuring vinegar in sufficient
f2
52 PERCY ANECDOTES.
quantity, a better authority than Livy, Polybius,
assures us, that Hannibal had no wood to make a fire
with ; that there was not a tree in the place where
he then was, nor near it.
PASSAGE OF THE DESART.
Colonel Capper, in his Journal of the Passage to
India, through Egypt, and across the Great Desart,
relates the following interesting anecdote : " January
24th, in the morning, Captain Twyss came and told
us he should sail for Bassora the next day. He had
six English passengers with him, that were going over
the Desart, and also M. Borel de Bourg, the French
officer, who had been plundered and wounded in the
Desart. M. Borel wishing to hear the latest news
from Europe, and, perhaps, being desirous of con-
versing with a person who had lately travelled the
same route As himself, came and spent the evening
wiih me at the broker's house. I told him that I
was no stranger to what had befallen him in the
Desart, and easily prevailed upon him to give me an
account of his adventures.
" The particulars of the business upon which he
was sent, he of course concealed ; but, in general
terms, he informed me, that soon after the engage-
ment between the two fleets near Brest, in July, 1788,
Monsieur Sartine, his friend and patron, ordered him
to carry dispatches over land to India. I think he
said he left Marseilles on the 3rd of August ; but
owing to the stupidity of the captain of the vessel,
and to contrary winds, he did not arrive at Latchiea
before the end of the month, whence he immediately
ENTERPRISE. 53
proceeded to Aleppo. The French consul could not
collect more than twenty-five guards to attend him
across the Desart, with whom, on the 14th of Sep-
tember, he commenced his journey. He met with no
serious molestation until he was within fifteen days
of Bassora, when, early one morning, he perceived
himself followed by a party of about thirty Arabs,
mounted on camels, who soon overtook him. As they
approached, he, by his interpreter, desired them either
to advance or halt, or to remove to the right or left
of him, for he chose to travel by himself. They
answered, that they should not interfere with him,
and went forward at a brisk rate. M. Borel's people
then suspected them of some hostile design, and told
him to be upon his guard. In the evening, between
four and five o'clock, he observed them halted, and
drawn up, as if to oppose him ; and in a few minutes,
three other parties, consisting also of about thirty
each, appeared in sight in opposite directions, seem-
ingly inclined to surround him. From these ap-
pearances naturally concluding their intentions to be
hostile, and of consequence, his situation desperate,
he thought only of selling his life as dear as possible.
He was armed with a double-barrelled fuzee, a pair of
pistols, and a sabre. As he kept marching on, he first
fell in with the party in the front, who fired at him,
which he returned as soon as he came within musket
shot of them, and killed the Sheick. When he had
discharged his fire arms, before he could load them
again, several of the Arabs broke in from different
sides, and cut him down. Stunned with the violence of
the blow, he knew nothing of what passed afterwards,
until about an hour before day-break next morning,
f3
54 PERCY ANECDOTES.
when lie found himself entirely naked on the ground,
a quantity of blood near him, and part of the flesh of
his head hanging upon his cheek. In a few minutes
he recollected what had passed ; but as he could feel
no fracture nor contusion in the skull, he began to
hope that his wounds were not mortal. This however
was only a transient gleam of hope, for it imme-
diately occurred to him, that without clothes or even
food, he was likely to suffer a much more painful
death. The first objects which attracted his attention
when he began to look about him, were those who
had been killed on both sides in the action j but, at
the distance of a few hundred yards, he soon after-
wards perceived a great number of Arabs seated
round a large fire. These he naturally supposed
were his enemies ; he nevertheless determined to go to
them, in hopes either to prevail upon them to spare
his life, or else to provoke them to put an immediate
end to his miseries. Whilst he was thinking in what
manner, without the assistance of language, he should
be able to excite their compassion, and to soften their
resentment against him for the death of their compa-
nions, which he had heard that people seldom forgive,
it occurred to him that they paid great respect to old
age ; and also, that they seldom destroy those who
supplicate for> mercy ; whence he concluded, that if
he should throw himself upon the protection of the
oldest person among them, he might probably be
saved. In order to approach them unperceived, he
crept towards them upon his hands and knees ; and
when arrived within a few paces of their circle, having
singled out one who had the most venerable ap-
pearance, he sprang over the head of one of the circle,
ENTERPRISE. 55
and threw himself into the arms of him whom he had
selected as his protector. The whole party were at
first astonished, not having the least notion of his
being alive ; but when their surprise subsided, a
debate arose, whether or not they should allow him
to live. One of them, who had probably lost a friend
or relation, drew his sword in a great rage, and was
going to put him to death; but his protector stood up
with great zeal in his defence, and would not suffer
him to be injured ; in consequence of which, his ad-
versary immediately mounted his camel, and, with a
few followers, went off. The Sheick, for so he hap-
pened to be, perceiving Monsieur Borel entirely
without clothes, presented him with his abba, or outer
cloak, invited him to approach the fire, and gave him
coffee and a pipe ; which an Arab, when he is not on
the march, has always prepared. The people finding
Monsieur Borel did not understand Arabic, enquired
for his interpreter, who was found asleep, and slightly
wounded.
" The first demand the Arabs made, was for his
money and jewels, which, they observed, Europeans
always have in great abundance, but which are con-
cealed in private drawers that none except them-
selves can discover. He assured them these opi-
nions were erroneous with respect to him, for that he
was not a rich merchant, but only a young soldier of
fortune, employed to carry orders from his govern-
ment in Europe, to their settlements in India ; but if
they would convey him to Graine, a place near
Bassora, on the sea coast, on their arrival there,
and on the receipt of his papers, he would engage to
pay them two hundred sequins, about one hundred
56 PERCY ANECDOTES.
pounds sterling. After a few minutes consultation
with each other, they acceded to his proposals, re-
turned him his oldest Arabian dress, and during
the rest of his journey treated him with kindness and
attention."
TIGER IN HIS DEN.
While the British army was laying at Agoada, near
Goa, in the East Indies, in 1809, a report was one
morning brought to the cantonments, that a large
Cheetur had been seen on the rocks near the sea.
About nine o'clock, a number of horses and men
assembled at the spot where it was said to have been
seen, when, after some search, the animal was dis-
covered to be in the recess of an immense rock ; dogs
were sent in, in the hope of starting him, but without
effect, having returned with several wounds.
Finding it impossible to dislodge the animal by
such means, Lieutenant Evan Davies, of the 7th regi-
ment, attempted to enter the den, but was obliged to
return, finding the passage extremely narrow and
dark. He attempted it however a second time, with
a pick-axe in his hand, with which he removed some
obstructions that were in the way. Having proceeded
a few yards, he heard a noise, which he conceived to
be that of the animal. He then returned, and com-
municated with Lieutenant Threw, of the artillery,
who also went in the same distance, and was of a
similar opinion. What course to pursue was doubtful ;
some proposed to blow up the rock, others smoaking
him out. At length a port fire was tied to the end
of a bamboo, and introduced into a small crevice
ENTERPRISE. 57
which led towards the den. Lieut. Davies went on
his hands and knees down the narrow passage which
led to it ; and, by the light of his torch, he was
enabled to discover the animal. Having returned, he
said he could kill him with a pistol ; which being pro-
cured, he again entered the cave and fired ; but with-
out success, owing to the awkward situation in which
he was placed, with his left hand only at liberty. He
next went with a musket and bayonet, and wounded
the animal in the loins ; but he was obliged to retreat
as quick as the narrow passage would allow, the tiger
having rushed forward, and forced the musket back
towards the mouth of the den. Lieut. Davies next
procured a rifle, with which he again forced his way
into the cave, and taking a deliberate aim at the tiger's
head, fired, and put an end to its existence. This
gallant officer afterwards fastened a strong rope round
the neck of the tiger, by which he was dragged out,
to the no small satisfaction of a numerous crowd of
spectators. The animal measured seven feet in
length.
ESCAPE FROM INDIANS.
In the year 1759, the Mikmak Indians, who inha-
bited the province of Nova Scotia, committed great
barbarities upon the then recently settled colony of
Checjbuctow. All the English residents whom they
could lay hands on, were tormented according to
their Svage customs. Some of the tribes, on a parti-
cular lght, having defeated the militia party of
Captain°ike, (whom they scalped and tomahawked)
assemble with the prisoners they had made on the
58 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Dartmouth shore, and there began their horrid rites
in view of the opposite town of Halifax. The victims
were successively stretched in their frames, called
squares, stuck full of lighted pine splinters, and
thus miserably destroyed. One of the prisoners, of
the name of Wheeler, had already suffered greatly
by their cruelty, and was nearly half scalped. Whilst
he waited his own turn of death, with the execution
of his companions before his eyes, he determined to
make an effort to avoid their fate ; and desired per-
mission to draw on one side, avowing a cause of
urgent necessity. This being a request that the
savages never refuse, an Indian was appointed to
guard him. The bleeding and almost naked sufferer
having concealed a knife, diverted the attention of
the Indian, and plunged it into his body. This being
done, he hastened into the adjoining woods, wildly
flying through such thickets as in that country are
scarcely penetrable except by Indians. His escape
soon dispersed his exasperated enemies and their dogs
in various directions after him. Exhausted as he was
with pain and fatigue, he still contrived to keep them
at a distance, being aided by the darkness of th<
night. He had gone several leagues, when he cane
to the mouth of the inlet to the sea, known by tie
name of Cole-harbour. Over the entrance to ms
inlet runs a bar, with, at all times, a dangerous *irf,
which at this moment was encreased by the om-
inencement of a heavy gale. The raging of tte sea
was prodigious : his pursuers gained upon him The
unhappy fugitive was hemmed in. With the iingled
energy of hope and despair, he threw himsel'into the
surf, and most miraculously reached the opposite
ENTERPRISE. 59
shore, while some of his enemies perished in attempt-
ing to follow him. He lay for a long time on the
btach, almost dead with fatigue and loss of blood.
His courage however soon revived, and he persevered
through the woods towards Laurence-Town fort, com-
manded by Lieutenant Newton of the 46th regiment
Day-light discovered itself, when Wheeler came up to
the pickets of the Block House j and at the same
instant, some of his pursuers made their appearance at
an opposite point, having vainly taken a circuitous
route to intercept their intended victim.
EARL HOWE.
Earl Howe, when not more than eighteen years of
age, was lieutenant of a sloop of war. An English mer-
chantman had been captured at the Dutch settle-
ment of Eustatia, by a French privateer, under the
guns and protection of the governor. Lieutenant
Howe, at his own earnest request, was sent with
orders to claim her for the owners. This demand not
being complied with, he desired leave to go with the
boats, and attempt cutting her out of the harbour.
The captain represented the danger of so adventurous
a step ; and added, that he had not sufficient interest
to support him in England, on a representation of the
breach of neutrality. The lieutenant then requested
that he would quit the ship for a short time, and
leave the command to him. This being done, the
gallant lieutenant went with the boats, cut out the
vessel, and restored it to the proprietors.
In 1775, Lord Hawke gave the following seaman-
like testimony to the merit of Lord Howe, in the
60 PERCY ANECDOTES.
House of Lords. " I advised his majesty," said he,
" to make the promotion (to be Vice- Admiral of the
Blue). I have tried my Lord Howe on important oc-
casions ; he never asked me how he was to execute any
service, but always went and performed it."
GENERAL MEADOWS.
At the siege of one of the forts of Tippoo Sultan,
the breach was found practicable, and the storming
party ordered for two o'clock in the morning. General
Meadows determined to be one of it ; but when he came
to the breach, finding it impossible to get up without
assistance, he called out to the soldiers, " Bravo, my
fine fellows, well done ; but is there none of you that
can stop to help up your little general ?" " Oh !" replied
an Irish grenadier, "is it you, general' then, by
the powers, we'll not go without you. I'll help you
up, let what will come of it ?" And he was as good
as his word.
The same general, with a small army, was once
surrounded by a superior force, in the Coimbatorc
country, and all his communications cut off. Colonel,.
afterwards General, Sir John Floyd, was despatched
in quest of him, and so arduous was the enterprise,
that he actually passed three days without eating.
He at length met two native horsemen of General
Meadows' body guard, from whom he received such in-
formation of the general's situation, as enabled him to
join him at Velladi. The meeting of these officers may
well be conceived, after each had foreboded the worst
fate for the other ; General Meadows fled into Floyd's
arras, and exclaimed, with his usual wit and spirit.
ENTERPRISE. 61
" My dear colonel, your's is the feat, and mine the
defeat."
General Meadows gave out in general orders, that
the word difficulty was unknown in the military dic-
tionary, and among such troops as he then had the
honour to command. He did but justice to his gallant
comrades ; for led on by the brave Floyd, they cut
their way through Tippoo's grand army, and before
their swords all difficulties vanished.
LORD NELSON.
When Nelson was second lieutenant on board the
Lowestoffe, they came up with an American letter of
marque. The first lieutenant was ordered to board
her, and immediately went below to put on his hanger;
but it was mislaid, and could not immediately be
found. In the meantime Captain Locker came on
deck ; and extremely anxious that the prize should be
instantly taken in charge, as he apprehended it must
otherwise founder, he exclaimed, " Have I no officer
in the ship will board the prize ?" Lieutenant Nelson,
with his usual goodness of heart, still waited for the
return of his superior officer ; but on hearing the
master volunteer his services, immediately hastened to
the gangway, and getting into the boat, said, " It is
my turn now ; if I come back, it is yours." The
opportunity did not occur to the master, as Nelson
took possession of the prize.
MAJOR RENNEL.
At the siege of Pondicherry, Major Rennel, then
a midshipniau, discovered the first symptoms of his
G
62 PERCY ANECDOTES.
enterprising genins. Some sloops of war belonging
to the enemy having moored beyond reach of our
guns in shallow water, Mr. Rennel requested of the
captain of his ship the use of a boat ; which, as the
night was far advanced, was at first refused ; but the
young midshipman repeating his importunity, and
being a great favourite, the commander at length con-
sented. Mr. Rennel accordingly departed, no one
knew whither, and accompanied, according to his de-
sire, by only a single sailor. After some interval he re-
turned, and eagerly informed the captain, that having
observed the tide was unusually high, he thought that
there might be sufficient depth of water to reach the
sloops of the enemy ; and that he had borrowed the
boat to make the experiment, which had fully answered
his conjecture. Having implored his superior officer
to lose no time in availing himself of this discovery,
the former complied, and the attempt was crowned
with success.
GUYTON DE MORVEAU.
On the 25th of April, 1784, M. Guyton de Mor-
vean, accompanied by the President Virly, ascended
from Dijon in a balloon, which he himself had con-
structed, and repeated the experiment on the 12th of
June following, with a view of ascertaining the possi-
bility of directing aerostatic machines by an apparatus
of his own contrivance.
When Prince Henry of Prussia passed through
Dijon, he begged Guyton to tell him frankly what had
been his sensations during the ascent. " We felt as
tranquil," answered the philosopher, " as when sitting
ENTERPRISE. 63
in our cabinets." The prince thought he knew man-
kind too well to believe this assertion, and quitted the
room with some tokens of displeasure at what he con-
sidered as ostentations fortitude j but he was soon
reconciled, when Guy ton explained the difference
between the sensations experienced in the case in
question, which were the effect of personal resolution,
and of the confidence placed in the means of safety,
and those he felt in looking down from a high steeple,
when his head invariably became giddy, and he trem-
bled for his existence.
FLYING.
" Thus did of old the adventurous Cretan dare,
With wings not given to man attempt the air."
Knolles, in his History of the Turks, gives the
following relation, ludicrous enough in every thing but
the termination, of an attempt of flying made at Con-
stantinople about the year 1147, during the visit of
Clisasthlan the Turkish sultan, to Emanuel the Greek
emperor.
" Amongst the quaint devices of many for solemn-
izing of so great a triumph, there was an active Turk,
who had openly given it out, that against an appointed
time, he would from the top of a high tower in the tilt
yard, fly the space of a furlong j the report whereof
had filled the city with a wonderful expectation of so
strange a novelty. The time prefixed being come,
and the people without number assembled, the Turk,
according to his promise, upon the top of a high
tower showed himself, girt in a long and large white
o 2
64 PERCY ANECDOTES.
garment, gathered into many plaits and foldings, made
on purpose for the gathering of the wind; wherewith
the foolish man had vainly persuaded himself to have
hovered in the air, as do birds upon their wings, or to
have guided himself, as are ships with their sails.
Standing thus hovering a great while, as ready to take
his flight, the beholders still laughing, and crying out,
' Fly, Turk ! fly ! How long shall we expect thy
flight?' The emperor in the meantime still kept
dissuading from so desperate an attempt ; and the
sultan, betwixt fear and hope, hanging in doubtful
suspense what might happen to his countryman. The
Turk, after he had a great while hovered with Ids arms
abroad (the better to have gathered the wind, as birds
do with their wings), and long deluded the expectation
of the beholders, at length finding the wind lit, as he
thought, for his purpose, committed himself with his
vain hope into the air; but instead of mounting aloft,
this foolish Icarus came tumbling down with such
violence, that he broke his neck, his arms, his legs,
with almost all the bones of his body."
A similar attempt is related in Scottish history to
have been made from the battlements of Stirling Castle ;
but the adventurer in that instance was less unfortunate ;
he fell upon a dunghill.
More recently a Saxon clergyman, enlightened
doubtless by the aids of modern science, is said to
have actually succeeded in accomplishing the appa-
rently chimerical project. In the foreign journals of
1817, there was the following announcement: "Flying
Machine— A country clergyman in Lower Saxony
has been so happy as to succeed in accomplishing the
invention of an air-ship. The machine is built of light
ENTERPRISE. 65
wood ; it is made to float in the air, chiefly by means
of the constant action of a large pair of bellows of
a peculiar construction, which occupies in the front
the position of the lungs, and the neck of a bird on ihe
wing. The wings on both sides are directed by thin
cords. The height to which a farmer's boy (ten or
twelve years of age) whom the inventor has instructed
in the management of it, has hitherto ascended with
it, is not considerable, because his attention has been
more directed to give a progressive than an ascending
motion to his machine."
ORIGIN OF THE PERCYS.
It is related in Speed's history, that the Castle of
Alnwick being besieged by Malcolm, King of the
Scots, and in imminent danger of falling into his
hands, a young English gentleman rode forth from
the town, holding a bunch of keys suspended from
the end of a small spear, which he carried in his
hand. His appearance with such a token of sub-
mission was exultingly hailed in the enemy's camp ;
and on being introduced to the Scottish sovereign, he
lowered the lance, as if intending to make his ma-
jesty a tender of the key of the castle ; when all of
a sudden he made such a home thrust at Malcolm,
that running the spear into his eye, he laid him dead
on the spot. Amidst the momentary astonishment
and confusion which this daring action occasioned,
he found an opportunity to remount his horse ; and
favoured by its swiftness, escaped back to Alnwick
Castle in safety. " And from this desperate action,"
says Speed, " came the name of Percy," or Pierce-eye.
o3
66 PERCY ANECDOTES.
All this is very curious ; but unfortunately lor the
credit of Speed in this instance, it happens to be
nothing more than a witty fable ; nor is there any
thing so highly honourable in the story, as to make
a Percy regret that it should be so. It is true that
a disaster of the kind here described is said to have
happened to King Malcolm III. in the year 1093 ;
but the officer that slew him was, according to the
ancient chronicle of Alnwick Abbey, in the Harleian
MSS. at the British Museum, No. 692, named Ham-
mend, and had no connexion or affinity with the
Percy family ; which had not the least interest in
Northumberland till near two hundred years after, in
the reign of King Edward II. The Percy famity,
so renowned not only in the annals of England, but
also in the history of Europe, is descended from one
of the Roman chieftains, who came over with William
the Conqueror in the year 1066. This family has
preserved the memory of their ancestors for two cen-
turies earlier, deriving their descent from Mainfred, a
Danish chieftain, who made irruptions into France
before the year 886, which was the era of Rollo's
expedition, that ended in the conquest and peopling
of Normandy in 912. The grandson of Mainfred,
like other Roman families, derived his name from his
principal residence in France. In Lower Normandy
are three towns, or villages, of the name of Perc}',
the chief of which is situated near Yilledieu, in the
district of St. Lo ; and from these it was that the
family took the name of De Pekcy.
ERPKISE. 67
GRATEFUL MINSTREL.
A rainstrel called Blondel, who owed his fortune
to Richard Coeur de Lion, animated with tenderness
towards his illustrious master (who on his return from
the crusades had been imprisoned by the emperor),
was resolved to go over the world, until he had disco-
vered the destiny of this prince. He had already
traversed Europe, and was returning through Ger-
many, when at Lintz, in Austria, he learnt that there
was near that city, at the entrance of a forest, a strong
and ancient castle, in which there was a prisoner
who was guarded with great care. A secret impulse
persuaded Blondel that this prisoner was Ri<
he went immediately, to the castle, the sight of which
made him tremble ; he got acquainted with a j
who often went there to carry provisions, anu
tioned him ; but the man was ignorant of the name
and quality of the prisoner. He could only inform
him, that he was watched with the most exact atten-
tion, and was suffered to have no communication with
any one but the keeper of the castle and his servants.
He told him that this castle was a horrid abode ; that
the staircase and the apartments were black with age ;
and so dark, that at noon-day it was necessary to
have lighted flambeaux to find the way along them.
He added, that the prisoner had no other amusement
than looking over the country through a small grated
window, which served also for the light that glimmered
into his apartments.
Blondel listened with eager attention, and medi-
tated several ways of coming at the prisoner ; but
08 PERCY ANECDOTES.
ail in vain. At last, when he found that from the
height and narrowness of the window he could not
get a sight of his dear master, for so he firmly believed
him to be, he recollected a French song, the la>t
couplet of which had been composed by Richard,
and the first by himself. After he had sung with
a loud and harmonious voice the first part, he sud-
denly stopped, and heard a voice which came from
the castle window, "Continue, and finish the song."
Transported with joy, he was now assured it was the
king, his master, who was confined in this dismal
castle. The chronicle adds, that one of the keeper's
servants falling sick, Blondel got himself hired in
his place ; and thus at last obtained personal access
to Richard. The nobility of England were informed
with all expedition of the situation of their monarch,
and be was released from his confinement by the
payment of a large ransom ; though but for the ex-
traordinary perseverance of the grateful Blondel, he
might have wasted out his days in the prison to which
he had been treacherously consigned.
SIR WALTER RALEGH.
Fuller, in his Worthies, gives the following account
of Sir Walter Ralegh's first rise in life.
"This Captain Ralegh," he says, " coming out of
Ireland into the English court in good habit, (his
clothes being then a considerable part of his estate)
found the queen walking, till meeting with a dirty
place, she seemed to scruple going over it. Presently
Ralegh cast and spread his new plush cloak on the
ground, whereon the queen trod gently, rewarding
ENTERPRISE. Ob*
him afterwards with many suits for his so free and
seasonable tender of so fair a foot-cloth.
"An advantageous admittance into the lirst notice
of a prince, is more than half a degree of preferment.
When Sir Walter found some hopes of the queen's
favour reflecting on him, he wrote on a glass window
obvious to the queen's eye—
' Fain would I climb, but fear I to fall.'
" Her majesty, either espying or being showed it,
did under- write —
• If thy heart fail thee, climb not at all.' "
How great a person in that court this knight did
afterwards prove to be, is scarcely unknown to any.
THE GREAT CONDE.
The military life of this great commander was a
succession of enterprises. He was always on the
offensive, braving every danger, and yet always suc-
cessful. He commanded at the battle of Rocroi,
when he was not more than twenty-one years of age ;
and by his quickness in perceiving at once both the
danger and the remedy, and by an activity which
carried him to all places at the very instant when his
presence was wanted, he in a manner gained the
battle himself. It was Conde who, %\ ith the cavalry,
attacked and broke the Spanish infantry, till then
invincible. As strong and as closely united as the
celebrated ancient phalanx, it opened itself with an
agility which the phalanx had not, and thus suddenly
made way for the discharge of eighteen pieces of
cannon that were placed in the midst of it. The
70 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Prince of Conde surrounded and attacked it three
times ; and at length victory decided in his favour.
In the attack on the camp of Merci at Fribourg,
the following year, which was renewed three successive
days, the prince threw his staff of command into
the enemy's trenches, and marched, sword in hand, to
regain it, at the head of the regiment of Conti. This
bold action inspired the troops with redoubled ardour,
and the battle of Fribourg was gained.
BATTLE OF MALPLAQUET.
In this celebrated battie, so glorious to the British
arms, the Prince of Orange was the most daring of
all the commanders engaged in the dreadful conflict.
He led on the first nine battalions under a tremendous
shower of grape and musquetry. He had scarcely
advanced a few paces, when the brave Oxenstiern
was killed by his side, and several aides-de-camp
and attendants successively dropped as he advanced.
His own horse being killed, he rushed forward on
foot ; and as he passed the opening of the great
flanking battery, whole ranks were swept away ; yet
he reached the entrenchment, and waving his hat, in
an instant the breast-work was forced at the point of
the bayonet by the Dutch Guards and Highlanders.
But before they could deploy, they were driven from
the post by an impetuous charge from the troops of
the French left, who had been rallied by Marshal
Boufflers. At this moment the corps under Dohna
moved gallantly against the battery on the road, pene-
trated into the embrasures, and took some colours ;
but ere they reached the front of the breast-work,
ENTERPRISE. 71
were mowed down by the battery on the flank. A
dreadful carnage took place among all the troops in
this concerted attack ; Spaar lay dead upon the field
of battle ; Hamilton was carried off wounded ; and
the lines beginning to waver, recoiled a few paces.
Calling up fresh spirit to recover from this repulse, the
heroic Prince of Orange mounted another horse ; that
was also shot under him ; still his energy remained
unshaken ; on foot he rallied the nearest troops ; and
seizing a standard from the regiment of Mey, marched
almost alone to the entrenchment. He planted the
colours upon the bank, and called aloud, " Follow
me, my friends, here is your post I" His gallant troops
followed their leader. Again the onset was renewed,
but it was no longer possible to force the enenvy ; for
the second line had closed up, and the whole breast-
work bristled with bayonets, and blazed with lire.
Although again repulsed, the Prince of Orange would
not be dissuaded from returning once more to the
charge ; and at length actually carried the seeminglv
impregnable entrenchment.
KING OF TRISTAN D'ACUNHA.
In the year 1811, an American sailor of the name
of Jonathan Lambert, accompanied by two other
Americans, and an English sailor of the name of
Thomas Currie, and a boy, a native of Minorca,
took possession of the three islands named Tristan
d'Acunha, situated midway in the South Atlantic,
between the Cape of Good Hope and the Brazil coast.
Lambert took possession of the islands in a verv formal
manner ; but after remaining some months, he and the
72 PERCY ANECDOTES.
tu o Americans, under pretence of fishing and collecting
wreck, took the boat and left the island. Before he
quitted, he left on the island a document, by which In-
constituted himself sole monarch of this group of
islands. The following is an extract from this curious
manifesto :
" Know all men by these presents, that I, Jonathan
Lambert, late of Salem, in the state of Massachusetts,
United States of America, and citizen thereof, have
this fourth day of February, 1811, taken absolute
possession of the Island of Tristan d'Acunha, so
called, viz. the Great Island, and the other two, known
by the names of Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands,
solely for myself and heirs for ever, with the right of
conveying the whole, or any part thereof, to one or
more persons, by deed of sale, free gift, or otherwise,
as I, or they (my heirs) may hereafter think fitting or
proper."
King Jonathan then proceeds to give new names to
the islands, which are to be denominated the Islands
of Refreshment; fixes the seat of government; and
adds:
"And I do further deciare, that the cause of the
said act set forth in this instrument, originated in the
desire and determination of preparing for myself and
family a house, where I can enjoy life, without the
embarrassments which have hitherto constantly at-
tended me ; and procure for us an interest and pro-
perty, by means of which a competence may be ever
secured, and remain, if possible, far removed beyond
the reach of chicanery and ordinary misfortunes."
ENTERPRISE. 73
GENERAL PUTNAM.
Few men have been more remarkable than General
Putnam, for the acts of successful rashness to which
a bold and intrepid spirit frequently prompted him.
When he was pursued by General Tyron at the
head of fifteen hundred men, his only method of
escape was precipitating his horse down the steep
declivity of the rock called Horseneck ; and as none
of his pursuers dared to imitate his example, he
escaped.
But an act of still more daring intrepidity, was his
venturing to clear in a boat the tremendous waterfalls
of Hudson's river. This was in the year 1756, when
Putnam fought against the French and their allies, the
Indians. He was accidentally with a boat and five
men on the eastern side of the river, contiguous to
these falls. His men, who were on the opposite side,
informed him by signal, that a considerable body of
savages were advancing to surround him, and there
was not a moment to lose. Three modes of conduct
were at his option— to remain, fight, and be sacrificed ;
to attempt to pass to the other side exposed to the full
shot of the enemy ; or to sail down the waterfalls,
with almost a certainty of being overwhelmed. These
were the only alternatives. Putnam did not hesitate,
and jumped into his boat at the fortunate instant, for
one of his companions, who was at a little distance,
was a victim to the Indians. His enemies soon ar^
rived, and discharged their muskets at the boat before
he could get out of their reach. No sooner had he
escaped this danger through the rapidity of the CHrrent,
74 PERCY ANECDOTES.
hut death presented itself under a more terrific form*
Bocks, whose points projected above the surface of
the water j large masses of timber that nearly closed
the passage ; absorbing gulfs, and rapid descents, for
the distance of a quarter of a mile, left him no hope
of escape but by a miracle. Putnam however placed
himself at the helm, and directed it with the utmost
tranquillity. His companion* saw him with admiration,
tenor, and astonishment, avoid with the utmost ad-
dress the rocks and threatening gulfs, which they
every Instant expected to devour him. He disap-
peared, rose again, and directing his course across
the only passage which he could possibly make, he
at length gained the even surface of the river that
flowed at the bottom of this dreadful cascade. The
Indians were no less surprised. This miracle asto-
nished them almost as much as the sight of the first
Europeans that approached the banks of this river.
They considered Putnam as invulnerable ; and they
thought that they should offend the Great Spirit, if
they attempted the life of a man that was so visibly
under his immediate protection.
Soon after Mr. Putnam removed to Connecticut,
the wolves, then very numerous, broke into his sheep-
fold, and killed sewn fine sheep and goats, besides
wounding many lambs and kids. This havoc was
committed by a she-wolf, which, with her annual
whelps, had -several times infested the vicinity. The
young were commonly destroyed by the vigilanee of
the hunters ; but the old one was too sagacious to
come within gun shot ; upon being closely pursued,
she would generally fly to the western woods, and
return the next winter with another litter of whelps.
ENTERPRISE. 75
This wolf at length became such an intolerable
nuisance, that Mr. Putnam entered into a combination
with five of his neighbours to hunt alternately until
they could destroy her. Two, by rotation, were to be
constantly in pursuit. It was known that, having lost
the toes of one foot by a steel trap, she made one
track shorter than the other. By this peculiarity, the
pursuers recognized in a light snow the route of this
destructive animal. Having followed her to Connec-
ticut river, and found she had turned back in a direct
course towards Pomfret, they immediately returned,
and by ten o'clock the next morning the bloodhounds
had driven her into a den, about three miles from Mr.
Putnam's house. The people soon collected with dogs,
guns, straw, lire, and sulphur, to attack the common
enemy. With these materials, several unsuccessful
efforts were made to force her from the den. The dogs
came back badly wounded, and refused to return to
the charge. The smoke of biasing straw had no
effect ; nor did the fumes of burnt brimstone, with
which the cavern was filled, compel the wolf to quit
her retirement* Wearied with such fruitless attempts,
which had been continued until ten o'clock at night,
Mr. Putnam tried once more to make his dog cuter,
but In vain. He proposed to his negro servant to go
down into the cavern, and shoot the wolf ; but he
declined the hazardous enterprise. Then it was that
Mr. Putnam, declaring that he would not have a coward
in his family, and angry at the disappointment, re-
solved himself to destroy the ferocious beast, or perish
in the attempt. Mil neighbours strongly remonstrated
against the pcriluui undertaking ; but he, knowing
that wild aniraaU are intimidated by Are, and having
ft f
76 PERCY ANECDOTES.
provided several slips of birch bark, the only com-
bustible material which he could obtain, that would
alFord light in this deep and darksome cave, prepared
for his descent. Having divested himself of his coat
and waistcoat, and fixed a rope round his body, by
which he might, at a concerted signal, be drawn from
the cave, he entered head foremost with the blazing
torch in his hand.
The aperture of the den, on the east side of a very
high ledge of rocks, was about two feet square ;
thence it descended obliquely fifteen feet ; then run-
ning horizontally about ten more, it ascended gradually
sixteen feet towards its termination. The sides of this
subterranean cavity were composed of smooth and
solid rocks, which seem to have been driven from
each other by some earthquake. The top and bottom
were of stone, and the entrance in winter, being co-
vered with ice, exceeding slippery. The cave was
in no place high enough for a man to stand upright,
nor in any part more than three feet wide.
Having groped his passage to the horizontal part
of the den, the most terrifying darkness appeared
in front of the dim circle of light afforded by his
torch. It was silent as the tomb ! None but mon-
sters of the desart had ever before explored this
solitary mansion of horror. Mr. Putnam cautiously
proceeded onward ; came to the ascent, which he
mounted on his hands and knees, and then disco-
vered the glaring eyeballs of the wolf, which was
sitting at the extremity of the cavern ; startled at the
sight of the fire, she gnashed her teeth, and gave a
sullen growl. As soon as he had made the discovery,
he gave the signal for pulling him out of the cave.
ENTERPRISE. 77
the people at the mouth of the den, who had listened
with painful anxiety, hearing the growling of the wolf,
and supposing their friend to be in the most imminent
danger, drew him forth with such celerity, that his
shirt was stripped over lih head, and his body much
lacerated. After he had adjusted his clothes, and
loaded hi9 gun with nine buck shot, with a torch in
one hand and his musquet in the other, he descended
a second time ; he approached the wolf nearer than
before, who assumed a still more fierce and terrible
appearance, howling, rolling her eyes, and gnashing her
teeth. At length dropping her head between her legs,
she prepared to spring on him. At this critical mo-
ment he levelled his piece, and shot her in the head.
Stunned with the shock, and nearly suffocated with
the smoke, he immediately found himself drawn out
of the cave. Having refreshed himself, and permitted
the smoke to clear, he entered the cave a third time,
when he found the wolf was dead ; he took hold of
her ears, and making the necessa-y signal, the people
above, with no small exultation, drew Mr. Putnam
and the wolf both out together.
SCOTCH ADVENTUKEBS.
The character which the Scotch have acquired,
beyond almost any other people, tor the art of pushing
their fortune abroad, was never perhaps more, singu-
larly illustrated than by the following anecdote, which
Dr. Anderson relates in hia " Dee," on the authority
of a baronet of scientific eminence!
The Jtussians and Turks in the war of 17M, having
*Ym'f\(<il themscitCfiongenottghfa th( <:< mi test, agreed
■ 3
7S PERCY ANECDOTES.
to treat of a peace. The commissioners for this
purpose were, Marshal General Keith, on the part of
Russia ; and the Grand Vizier, on that of the Turks.
These two personages met, and carried on their nego-
ciations by means of interpreters. When all was
concluded, they rose to separate ; the marshal made
his bow with his hat in his hand, and the vizier his
salam with his turban on his head. But when these
ceremonies of taking leave were over, the vizier turned
suddenly, and coming up to Marshal Keith, took him
cordially by the hand, and in the broadest Scotch
dialect, declared warmly that it made him " unco
happy to meet a countryman in his exalted station."
Keith stared with astonishment, eager for an explana-
tion of this mystery, when the vizier added, " Dinna
be surprised, mon, I'm o' the same country wi' your-
sell. I mind* weel seeing you, and your brother,
when boys, passin' by to the school at Kirkaldy ;
my father, sir, was bellman o' Kirkaldy."
What more extraordinary can be imagined, than
to behold in the plenipotentiaries of two mighty
nations, two foreign adventurers, natives of the same
mountainous territory ; nay, of the very same village!
Y\ hat, indeed, more extraordinary, unless it be the
spectacle of a Scotchman turned Turk for the sake
of honours, held on the tenure of a caprice from
which even, Scotch prudence can be no guarantee !
ESCAPE OF THE PRETENDER.
After the battle of Culloden, which terminated all
his hopes of success, the Pretender determined to
endeavour to effect his escape to France. Having
ENTERPRISE. 79
dismissed the two troops of horse by which he was
attended, and parted with his friends, he made the
best of his way to Long Island, where lie expected
to find a ship that would carry him to France.
After encountering many difficulties, and often suf-
fering for the want of provisions, he reached it ;
but here his situation became still more dangerous ;
his escape had become known to the king's army,
and troops were sent in every direction in quest of
him. The condition of Charles then seemed to be
altogether desperate ; a number of men in arms, said
to be fifteen hundred or two thousand, were marching
backwards and forwards through the Long Island in
search of him ; and it was surrounded on every side
by cutters, sloops of war, frigates, and forty-gun
ships. A guard was posted at every one of the
ferries ; and nobody could get out of the island with-
out a passport. In this perilous state Charles remained
from the first week in June, to the last ; but informed
of every movement of the troops, he often passed
and repassed them in the night, and his hair-breadth
escapes were innumerable. From perils so imminent,
he was at last delivered by a young woman moved
with compassion, the characteristic of woman kind.
Her name was Flora Macdonald, the daughter of
Macdonald of Melton, in the Isle of South Uist.
Miss Macdonald, who was related to Clan Ronald,
had come to visit his family at Ormaclade, and was
living with them, when Colonel O'Neil came there,
and talking of the distresses of Prince Charles, whom
he had constantly attended since he came to the
Long Island, Miss Macdonald expressed the most
earnest desire to see him, saying to the colonel, that
80 PERCY ANECDOTES,
if she could be of the smallest service in preserving
him from his enemies, she would do it most gladly.
Colonel O'Neii said that she could be of the greatest
service, if she would take him with her to Skye as
her maid, dressed in woman's clothes. Miss Mac-
donald thought the proposition fantastical and dan-
gerous, and positively refused to agree to it. Soon
after this conversation, Colonel O'Neii brought Charles
to her brother's farm, where Miss Macdonald was.
Charles seemed to be in bad health ; he was thin,
and emaciated, but possessed a degree of cheerfulness
incredible to all but such as saw him. Miss Mac-
donald seeing him in this condition, instantly agreed
to conduct him to the Isle of Skye in the manner
Colonel O'Neii had proposed ; and set out for Clan
Ronald's house, to provide every thing that was ne-
cessary. From her step-father, who commanded the
Macdonald militia in South Uist, she procured a
passport for herself, a man servant, and her maid,
who in the passport was called Betty Burke, and
recommended by Captain Macdonald to his wife as
an excellent spinner of flax, and a roost faithful ser-
vant. A boat with six oars was procured ; and about
eight o'clock in the evening they embarked, and
reached Skye in safety. From Skye, where Miss
Macdonald left him, Charles sailed to Lochnevls, a
lake in the main land, where he was put on 6hore on
the 5th of July. Here a great number of the king's
troops were stationed, the officers of which were ac-
quainted with the landing of Charles, and determined
to prevent his escape. Charles having made himself
known to Macdonald of Glenaladale, he, in company
with another Macdonald, after consulting withCharles,
ENTERPRISE. 81
resolved to attempt bringing him through the line of
posts. Along this line sentinels were placed, so near
one another in the day time, that nobody could pass
without being seen ; and when it began to grow dark,
fires were lighted at every post, and the sentinels
crossed continually from one fire to another, so that
there was a time when both their backs being turned,
a person might pass unseen. Between two of these
fires there was a small brook, which had worn a
channel among the rocks. Up the channel of this
brook Charles and the two Macdonalds crept ; and
watching their opportunity, passed between the two
sentinels. After having crossed the line of posts,
the Macdonalds had determined to conduct Charles
to the Rossshire Highlands ; but were advised by a
friend whom they met to take him to the great hill,
Corado, which lies between Kintail andGlenmoriston,
where they would find seven men, upon whom the
prince might absolutely depend, for they were brave
and faithful, and most of them had been in his army.
They did so, and found the men living in a cave;
they immediately recognized Charles, and fell upon
their knees, and gave him a most hearty welcome.
Charles was then in great distress ; he had a bonnet
on his head, and a wretched yellow wig ; a clouted
handkerchief about his neck ; a coat of coarse dark
coloured cloth ; a Stirling tartan waistcoat, much
worn ; a pretty good belted plaid; turban hose; and
highland brogues, tied with thongs, so much worn,
that they would scarcely stick upon his feet. His
shirt, and he had not another, was of the colour of
saffron. With these people Charles staid some time,
and they very soon provided him with clean linen ;
82 PERCY ANECDOTES.
for a detachment of the king's army, commanded by
Lord George Sackville, being ordered to march from
Fort Augustus to Strathglass, the attendants of Charles
were informed of it ; and knowing that the detach-
ment must pass at no great distance from their
habitation, they resolved to place themselves be-
tween two hills near the road to Strathglass. The
detachment passed ; and some officers' servants fol-
lowing ut a considerable distance, the highlanders
fired at them, and seized some portmanteaus, in
which they found every thing that Charles stood in
need of.
Charles remained in the cave with these men five
weeks and three days ; and they then conducted him
in safety to a place called Corineuir, and from thence
to Lettermlik, a remote place in the great mountain
Benalder, where a habitation called the Cage was
fitted up by Ch'ny, in which he and Lochiel had
lived some time. Charles remained here until the
13th of September, when a message came from
Cameron of Clunes, to acquaint him that two French
frigates were arrived atLochnanuagh, nearBorradaile,
to carry him to France. Charles set out immediately,
and travelling by night only, arrived at Borradatlu on
the 19th of September. The next day he embarked,
with about a hundred other persons who had been
engaged la. the rebellion, and reached Morlaix in
nine days.
WILLIAM HUTTON.
The name now inscribed, presents an eminent In-
c el tkc force of persevering talent. Tin- minute-
ENTERPRISE. 83
ness of the following extracts from Mr. Button's
diary of his own life, is necessary to develope fully
the excellent and encouraging example which they
afford.
1746. — An inclination for books began to expand ;
but there, us in music and dress, money was wanting.
The first article of purchase was three volumes of the
Gentleman's Magazine, 1742, 3, and 4. As I could
not afford to pay for binding, I fastened them to-
gether in a most cobbled style. These afforded me
a treat.
I could only raise books of small value, and these
in worn-out bindings. I learned to patch, procured
paste, varnish, &c. and brought them into tolerable
order ; erected shelves, and arranged them in the best
manner I was able.
If I purchased shabby books, it is no wonder that
I dealt with a shabby bookseller, who kept his work-
ing apparatus in his shop. It is no wonder, too, if by
repeated visits I became acquainted with this shabby
bookseller, and often saw him at work ; but it is a
wonder and a fact, that I never saw him perform one
act, but I could perform it myself, so strong was the
desire to attain the art.
I made no secret of my progress, and the bookseller
rather encouraged me, and that for two reasons : I
bought such rubbish as nobody else would, and he
had often an opportunity of selling me a cast-off tool
for a shilling, not worth a penny. As I was below
every degree of opposition, rivalship was out of the
question.
The first book I bound was a very small one,
Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis. I showed it to the
84 PERCY ANECDOTES.
bookseller. He seemed surprised. 1 could see jealousy
in his eye. However lie recovered in a moment,
and observed, that though he had sold me the books
and tools remarkably cheap, he could not think of
giving me so much for them again. He had no doubt
but that I should break.
He offered me a worn down press for two shillings,
which no man could use ; and which was laid by for
the fire. I considered the nature of its construction,
bought it, and paid the two shillings. I then asked
him to favour me with a hammer and a pin, which he
brought with half a conquering smile and half a sneer.
I drove out the garter-pin, which being galled, pre-
vented the press from working, and turned another
square, which perfectly cured the press. He said in
anger, " If I had known, } T ou should not have had it."
However, I could see that he consoled himself with
the idea that all must return in the end. This proved
for forty-two years my best binding press.
I now purchased a tolerably genteel suit of clothes,
and was so careful of them, lest I should not be able
to procure another, that they continued ray best for
five years.
It was now time to look out for a future place of
residence. A large town must be the mark, or there
would be no room for exertion. London was thought
of, between' my sister and me, for I had no soul else
to consult. This was rejected for two reasons ; I
could not venture into such a place without a capital,
and my work was not likely to pass among a crowd
of judges.
3Iy plan was to rix upon some market town, within
a stage of Nottingham, and open a shop there on the
ENTERPRISE. 85
market day, till I should be better prepared to begin
the world at Birmingham.
I fixed upon Southwell as the first step of elevation.
It was fourteen miles distant, and the town was as
despicable as the road to it. I went over at Michael-
mas, took a shop at the rate of twenty shillings a
year, sent a few boards for shelves, a few tools, and
about two hundred weight of trash, which might be
dignified with the name of books, and worth perhaps
a year's rent of my shop. I was my own joiner, put
up the shelves and their furniture, and, in one day,
became the most eminent bookseller in the place.
During this rainy winter, I set out at five every
Saturday morning, carried a burden of from three
pounds to thirty ; opened shop at ten, starved in it
all day upon bread, cheese, and half a pint of ale ;
took from one to six shillings, shut up shop at four,
and by trudging through the solitary night and the
deep roads five hours more, I arrived at Nottingham
by nine, where I always found a mess of milk por-
ridge by the fire prepared by a valuable sister.
Nothing short of a surprising resolution, and rigid
economy, could have carried mre through this scene.
On the 10th of April, 1750, I entered Birmingham
for the first time, to try if I could be accommodated
with a small shop, If I could procure any situation,
I should be in the way of procuring a better. On the
11th I traversed the streets, agreed with Mrs. Dix for
the lesser half of her shop, No. 6, in Bull Street, at
one shilling a week, and slept at Lichfield, in my way
back to Nottingham.
It happened that Mr. Rudsdall, a dissenting mi-
nister of Gainsborough, with whom my sister had
86 PERCY ANECDOTES.
lived as a servant, now declined housekeeping, his
wife being dead. He told my sister that he should
part with the refuse of his library, and would sell it
me. She replied, " He has no money." " We will
not differ about that. Let hira come to Gainsborough,
and he shall have the books at his own price." I
walked to Gainsborough on the loth of May, staid
there the 16th, and came back on the 17th.
The books were about two hundred pounds weight.
Mr. Rudsdall gave me his corn chest for their deposit,
and, for payment, drew the following note, which I
signed :
" I promise to pay to Ambrose Rudsdall, one
pound seven shillings, when I am able."
Mr. Rudsdall observed, " You need never pay this
note, if you only say you are not able." The books
made a better show, and were more valuable than all
I had besides. My brother came to see me about six
weeks after my arrival, to whom I observed, that the
trade had fully supported me. Five shillings a week
covered every expense, as food, rent, washing, lodging,
&c. Thus asolitary year rolled round, when a few young
men, of elevated character and sense, took notice of
me. I had saved about twenty pounds, and was be-
come more reconciled to my situation. The first who
took a fancy to me was Samuel Salte, a mercer's ap-
prentice, who, five years after, resided in London,
where he acquired ,,£100,000. He died in 1797.
Our intimate friendship lasted his life.
In this first opening of prosperity an unfortunate
circumstance, occurred, which gave me great uneasi-
ness, as it threatened totally to echpse the small
prospect before nae. The overseers, fearful I should
ENTERPRISE. 87
become chargeable to the parish, examined me, with
regard to my settlement, and with the voice of
authority, ordered me to procure a certificate, or they
would remove me. Terrified, I wrote to my father,
who returned for answer, " That All-Saints, in Derby,
never granted certificates."
I was hunted by ill nature two years. I repeatedly
offered to pay the levies, which was refused. A suc-
ceeding overseer, who was a draper, of whom I had
purchased two suits of clothes, value ,,£10, consented
to take them. The scruple exhibited a short sight, a
narrow principal, and the exultations of power over
the defenceless.
In 1756, Robert Bage, an old and intimate friend,
and a paper maker, took me to his inn,where we spent
the evening. He proposed that I should sell paper
for him, which I might either buy on my own account,
or sell on his by commission. As I could spare one
or two hundred pounds, 1 chose to purchase ; there-
fore appropriated a room for the reception of goods,
and hung out a sign, " The paper warehouse." From
this .small hint, I followed the stroke forty years, and
acquired an ample fortune.
CORNISH WANDERER.
Mr. Wilson, a gentleman of Cornwall, who inherited
an estate of about oflOOO per annum in that county,
at the age of twenty-three, and in the year 1741, the
year after his father's death, set off for the conti-
nent on his travels. He rode on horseback, with one
servant, over the greatest port of the world. He first
viewed every European country ; in doing which, ho
88 PERCY ANECDOTES.
spent eight years. He then embarked for America ;
was two years in the northern part, and three years
more in South America ; where he travelled as a
Spaniard, which he was enabled to do, from the
facility with which he spoke the language. The cli-
mate, prospects, &c. of Peru, enchanted him so much,
that he hired a farm, and resided on it nearly twelve
months. His next tour was to the East ; he passed
successively through all the territories in Africa, to
the south of the Mediterranean, Egypt, Syria, and all
the dominions of the Grand Seignior; went twice
through Prussia, through the northern and southern
provinces ; over Hindostan, and part of Siam and
Pegu, and made several excursions to the boundaries
of China. Pie afterwards, on his return, stopped at
the Cape of Good Hope, and penetrated some dis-
tance into Africa ; and on his return to the Cape, he
took the opportunity of a ship going to Batavia, and
thence visited most of the Islands in the Great Indian
Archipelago. Returning to Europe, he landed at
Cadiz, and travelled over land to Moscow, in his way
to Karoschatka. In 1783, he was at Moscow,
healthy and vigorous, and though then in his sixty-
sixth year, was preparing for a journey to Siberia.
THE NEW RIVER.
During the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and James I.
acts of parliament were obtained for the better sup-
plying of the Metropolis with water ; but the enter-
prise seemed too great for any individual, or even for
the city collectively, to venture upon, until Mr. Hugh
Middleton, a native of Denbigh, and goldsmith of
ENTERPRISE. 8U
London, offered to begin the work. The Court of
Common Council accepted his offer ; and having
vested him with ample powers, this gentleman, with
a spirit equal to the importance of the undertaking!
at his own risk and charge, began the work. He had
not proceeded far, when innumerable and unforeseen
difficulties presented themselves. The art of civil en-
gineering was then little understood in this country,
and he experienced many obstructions from the oc-
cupiers and proprietors of the lands through which
he was under the necessity of conducting this stream.
The distance of the springs of Amwell and
Chad well, whence the water was to be brought, is
twenty miles from London ; but it was found ne-
cessary, in order to avoid the eminences and valleys
in the way, to make it run a course of more than
thirty-eight miles. " The depth of the trench," says
Stowe, " in some places, descended full thirty feet, if
not more ; whereas, in other places, it required as
sprightful arte againe to mount it over a valley, in a
trough betweene a couple of hils, and the trough all
the while borne up by wooden arches, some of them
fixed in the ground very deepe, and rising in height
above twenty-three foot."
The industrious projector soon found himself so
harassed and impeded by interested persons in Mid-
dlesex and Hertfordshire, that he wus obliged to
solicit a prolongation of the time, to accomplish his
undertaking. This the city granted, but they refused
to interest themselves in this great and useful work,
although Mr. Middleton was quite impoverished by
it. He then applied, with more success, to the king
Hlmserf; who, upon a moiety of the concern being
i 9
90 PERCY ANECDOTES.
made over to hiru, agreed to pay half the expense of
the work already incurred, as well as of the future.
It now went on without interruption, and was finished
according to Mr. Middleton's original agreement with
the city ; when, on the 29th of September, 1613, the
water was let into the bason, now called the New
River Head, which was prepared for its reception.
By an exact admeasurement of the course of the
New River, taken in 1723, it appeared to be nearly
thirty-nine miles in length ; it has between two or
three hundred bridges over it, and upwards of forty
sluices in its course ; and in divers parts, both over
and under the same, considerable currents of land
waters, as well as a great number of brooks and
rivulets, have their passage.
This great undertaking cost half a million of money,
and was the ruin of its first projector ; some of whose
descendants have received a paltry annuity of ,,£20
from the City, that was so much benefited by the
work, by which they were rendered destitute.
The property of the New River is divided into
seventy-two shares ; for the first nineteen years after
the finishing of the work, the annual profit upon each
share scarcely amounted to twelve shillings. A share
is now considered to be worth ,£11,500, and they
have been sold as high as ,,£14,000.
CAPTURE OF CU1DAD RODRIGO.
The capture of Cuidad Rodrigo, in the late war in
Spain, deserves to rank with the proudest deeds of
the British array ; it being probably the only well
authenticated instance of a retrenched breach, fully
ENTERPRISE. 91
manned, and prepared for defence, being carried by
an effort of cool and deliberate courage, against a
brave and skilful enemy. Lord Wellington, who di-
rected the siege, observing strong indications of an im-
mediate advance of the enemy to relieve the place,
decided upon giving the assault as soon as the
breaches should be judged practicable. In conse-
quence, such were the exertions made to push forward
the attack, that two good breaches were effected on
the thirteenth day, notwithstanding the garrison fired
above 11,000 large shells, and nearly an equal number
of shot, without a single round being fired against the
defences in return. General Picton's division was
directed to assault the larger, and General Crawford's
division the lesser ; whilst the demonstration of an
escalade to divert the attention of the garrison,
was directed to be made on the opposite side of the
place, by a body of the Portugueze under General
Pack. At 9, a. m. the leading brigade of each divi-
sion most cheerfully moved forward, preceded by
parties of sappers, carrying some hundred bags filled
with hay, which they threw into the ditch, to lessen
its depth. Major General M'Kinnon's first descended
opposite the great breach ; at which moment hundreds
of shells and various combustibles, which had been
arranged along the foot of the rubbish, prematurely
exploded, and exhausted themselves before the troops
arrived within the sphere of their action. The men
gallantly ascended the breach against an equally
gallant resistance ; and it was not until after a sharp
struggle, that the bayonets of the assailants prevailed,
and gained them a footing on the summit of the ram-
part. There, behind an interior retrenchment, the
9-2 PERCY ANECDOTES,
garrison redoubled their defensive efforts ; but nothing
could long resist the ardour of the attacking columns,
*nd the French gave way at the very moment that
the lesser breach was forced ; then being attacked on
both flanks, they took refuge in the town, where they
were pursued from house to house, till all the sur-
CAPTURE OF THE CHESAPEAKE.
The national vanity of the Americans never re-
ceived a rebuke more severe or merited, than in the
engagement between the Shannon and the Chesa-
peake. This action was fought off Boston, and was
witnessed by thousands of the inhabitants ; and so
con6dent were these good citizens of the success of
their countrymen, that a supper was ordered, to wel-
come them on their victory, to which the captured
British officers were to be invited, no doubt to give
additional grace to the triumph.
The commander of the Shannon, Captain Broke,
had long been anxious to engage the Chesapeake,
although she was superior in tonnage, number of guns,
weight of metal, and compliment of men. Accord-
ingly, while laying off Boston, in June, 1813, Captain
Broke sent a challenge to Captain Lawrence, of the
Chesapeake*, to meet " ship to ship, to try the fortune
of their respective flags." The letter was written in
a very gentlemanly style, with great candour and
spirit ; it concluded in the true spirit of a British
sailor anxious only for a battle, " Choose your terms,
but let us meet."
Before the challenge reached the Chesapeake, she
ENTERPRISE. 93
was observed to be under weigh. She came down upon
the Shannon's quarters with three ensigns flying.
She had also flying at the fore, a large flag, inscribed
with these words : " Free trade and sailors' rights ;"
upon a supposition that this favourite American motto
might paralyze the efforts, or damp the energy, of the
Shannon's men. The vessels were soon in action ;
the shot of the Shannon was very destructive. After
ten minutes fighting, Captain Broke perceived that
the Chesapeake's quarter deck division were deserting
their guns ; he instantly called out, " Board !" and ac-
companied by the first lieutenant and twenty men,
sprang upon the Chesapeake's quarter deck. Here
not an officer or a man was to be seen; upon her
gangways about twenty Americans made a slight re-
sistance. These were instantly driven towards the
forecastle, where a few endeavoured to get down the
fore hatchway, but in their eagerness, prevented each
other; a few fled over the bows, and reached the
main deck, and the remainder laid down their arms.
The Chesapeake's fore top was now stormed by Mid-
shipman Smith and his top men, about five in
number; who either destroyed or drove on deck all
the Americans there stationed. This gallant young
officer had deliberately passed along the Shannon's
fore-yard, which was braced up to the Chesapeake's,
also braced up, and thence into her top.
After those on the forecastle had submitted, Cap-
tain Broke ordered one of his men to stand sentry
over them ; and sent most of the others aft, where the
conflict was still going on. He was in the act of
giving them orders to answer the fire from the Chesa-
peake's main top, when three treacherous Americans
94 PERCY ANECDOTES,
seeing they were superior to the British then near
theru, had armed themselves a fresh. Captain Broke
parried the middle fellow's pike, and wounded him in
the face ; but instantly received from the man on the
pikenian's right, a blow with the butt-end of a musket,
which bared his skull, and stunned him. Determined
to finish the British commander, the third man cut
him down with his broadsword ; and at that very
instant, was himself cut down by one of the Shannon's
seamen. Captain Broke and his treacherous foe now
lay side by side ; each, although nearly powerless,
struggling to regain his sword, when a marine de-
spatched the American with his bayonet. Captain
Broke was severely wounded by this affair ; and while
a seaman was tying a handkerchief round his com-
mander's head, he called out, (pointing aft) " There,
sir, there goes up the old ensign over the Yankee
colours." The captain saw it hoisting, and was in-
stantly led to the quarter deck, where he seated him-
self upon one of the carronade slides.
Even after the British colours were flying on board
the Chesapeake, some of her men kept firing up the
main-hatchway, and killed a British marine. It was
then, and not till then, that Lieutenant Falkiner, who
was sitting on the booms, very properly directed three
or four muskets that were ready, to be fired down.
Captain Broke told him to summon them to surrender
if they desired quarter. He did so, and they replied,
** We surrender," and all hostility ceased. Between
the discharge of the first gun, and the period of Cap-
tain Broke's boarding, eleven minutes only elapsed ;
and in four minutes more, the Chesapeake was com-
pletely his.
ENTERPRISE. 95
RECAPTURES.
In the year 1760, the ship Good Intent, from
Waterford, was taken by a French privateer off
Ushant, who took out all the crew, except five men
and a boy, over whom they placed nine Frenchmen.
While navigating the vessel to France, four of the
English formed the design of regaining possession of
the vessel. One Brieu tripped up the heels of the
Frenchman at the helm, seized his pistol, and dis-
charged it at another ; making at the same time a
signal to his three comrades below to follow his
example; they did so, and soon overcame them, the
Frenchmen crying for quarter. None of the British
sailors could either read or write, and were quite ig-
norant how to navigate the vessel ; but Brieu steered
at a venture, and arrived safe at Youghall, in Ireland,
in the gaol of which place he lodged his prisoners.
In 1794, the Betsey of London, in her return from
Jamaica, parted from her convoy in the Gulph of
Florida, and was captured off the Lizard by a French
frigate. The captain and crew, with the exception of
the mate, carpenter, cook, and boy, and Mrs. Williams,
a passenger, were taken out of the Betsey by the
Frenchmen, and a lieutenant and thirteen men put
on board to take charge of the prize. Three days
after, the ship being driven by heavy gales of wind
in sight of Guernsey, a plot was laid for securing the
Frenchmen, and retaking the ship. Mrs. WHliams
counterfeited being ill, on purpose to draw the atten-
tion of the lieutenant, while the cabin-boy removed
the fire arms, &o. This being effected, she prepared
96 PERCY ANECDOTES.
herself with extraordinary resolution for the event.
At eleven o'clock at night, when the lieutenant was
asleep in his birth, and others of the French were
between deck, in the fore part of the ship, the sig-
nal was given, and Mrs. Williams locked the lieu-
tenant in the cabin, and stood at the door with a pistol
in her hand, to prevent its being opened by force. In
the meantime, the French on deck were thrust down
the fore hatch- way by the three men. A fine breeze
brought them into Cowes Road in twelve hours ; and
Mrs. Williams was found standing sentinel, with a
pistol in her hand, at the cabin door, when a boat's
crew went on board. Thus, by the spirited exertions
of a woman and three brave fellows, a ship and cargo,
worth ,,£20,000, was rescued from the enemy.
DESCENT ON CAPE BRETON.
While General Wolfe was busy superintending the
embarkation of the troops, he ordered Major Scott
to support a detachment of one hundred men, who
had been sent forward to climb the rocks. The
major pushed on with the division under his com-
mand ; but his own boat arriving before the rest, and
being staved to pieces on the rocky shore, he was
obliged to land, and climb the steep by himself. He
was in hopes that the hundred men who had been
sent before him were engaged by this time with the
enemy ; but on ascending, he found no more than
ten, who had stopped short in their career till their
comrades should join them. Small as this number
was, Major Scott resolved with them to get to the
top of the rocks. On reaching the pinnacle, he found
ENTERPRISE. 97
himself opposed by about sixty Frenchmen and ten
Indians ; and before he could establish a footing, two
of his men were killed and three wounded. Still the
brave major would not even in this extremity abandon
a post on which the success of the whole enterprise
depended. He desired his five remaining followers
not to be dismayed ; and even went so far as to
threaten that he would fire upon the first man that
flinched. In the mean time he had three balls lodged
in his clothes ; and would have had all the enemy
upon him at once, had it not been for a copse that
was between them, and through which he kept them
at bay. At length some of his detachment joined
him ; and advancing on the enemy, he drove them
before him, and took possession of the battery.
EXTRAORDINARY EXPEDITION.
" The Argonautic vessel never past
With swifter course along the Colchian main,
Than my small bark, with fair and steady blast,
Convey'd me forth, and reconvey'd again."
STOREK.
When the treaty of marriage was pending be-
tween Henry the Seventh and Margaret, the Dow-
ager of Savory, Thomas Wolsey, Rector of Redgrave,
in the Diocese of Norwich, was proposed as a fit
person to be sent on the business to that princess's
father, the Emperor Maximilian. The king had not
before particularly noticed Wolsey ; but after con-
versing with him on the subject, he was satisfied with
his qualifications, and commanded him to be in rea-
diness for the embassy.
98 PERCY ANECDOTES.
The court was then at Richmond ; from which
Wolsey proceeded with his despatches to London,
where he arrived about four o'clock in the afternoon.
He had a boat waiting ; and in less than three hours
was at Gravesend. With post horses he got next
morning to Dover ; reached Calais in the course of
the afternoon ; and the same night arrived at the
imperial court. The emperor informed that an extra-
ordinary ambassador had come from England, imme-
diately gave him audience ; and the business being
agreeable, was quickly concluded. Wolsey without
delay returned. He reached Calais at the opening of
the gates ; found the passengers going on board the
vessel that brought him from England ; embarked,
and about ten o'clock was landed at Dover. Relays
of horses having been provided, reached Richmond
the same evening. Reposing some time, he arose and
met the king as he came from his chamber to hear
the morning service. His majesty, surprised, rebuked
him for neglecting the orders with which he had
been charged. " May it please your highness," said
Wolsey, " I have been with the emperor, and executed
my commission to the satisfaction, I trust, of your
majesty." He then knelt, and presented Maximilian' s
letters. Dissembling the admiration which such un-
precedented expedition excited, the king enquired if
he had received no orders by a pursuivant sent after
him ? Wolsey answered, that he had met the mes-
senger as he returned ; but having preconceived the
purpose for which he was sent, he had presumed of
his own accord to supply the defect in his credentials ;
for which he solicited lus majesty's pardon. The
king, pleased with this foresight, and gratified with
1
ENTERPRISE. 99
the result of the negociation, readily forgave his
temerity ; and commanding him to attend the council
in the afternoon, he desired that in the meantime
he would refresh himself with repose.
Wolsey at the time appointed reported the business
of his mission with so much clearness and propriety,
that he received the applause of all present ; and the
king, when the Deanery of Lincoln became vacant,
bestowed it on him unsolicited.
From being dean, Wolsey became bishop ; from
bishop, archbishop ; from archbishop, cardinal ; and
as cardinal, the proudest subject of one of the
proudest monarchs that ever swayed the sceptre of
England.
INTREPID MARINER.
"For some time past," says a letter from Oslend,
of the 10th of January, 1819, " we have seen in our
ports the most intrepid mariner perhaps that ever ex-
isted. He is an Englishman ; who in a small and frail boat,
about sixteen feet in length, and from four to seven
in breadth, undertakes alone the voyage from England
to Ostend ; where he takes on board a cargo of the
produce of the country, which he carries to England
in his boat. What is most astonishing, is, that neither
the high sea, nor the inclemency of the season, stops
this hardy mariner. Let us imagine a man entirely
alone in the open sea, guiding a little boat which
hardly rises six inches above the surface of the ocean,
exposed to the rain, to the winds, and above all, to
the intense cold; and then we may form some judg-
ment how for the habit of industry, or the love of
k 2
100 PERCY ANECDOTES.
gain, will operate on the human mind. In his last
voyage hither he was tliree days in the passage, and
did not stop the whole time. He has contrived an
ingenious method to steer his frail vessel. Placed in
the front of the boat with his back to the prow, he
guides the helm by means of two ropes, which go the
whole length of the boat, and thus manages his sculls
without leaving his place. As the ice might accu-
mulate against the sides of the boat, he has taken
care before putting out to sea, to grease all the sides,
so that the water may not adhere to them. In this
manner he traverses the ocean, without troubling him-
self about the many dangers to which he has been
or may in future be exposed."
VENTRLLOQUIAL GALLANTRY.
Brodeau, a learned critic of the sixteenth century,
gives a curious account of the enterprising schemes
practised by a ventriloquist who was valet-de-chambre
to Francis the First. The fellow, whose name was
Louis Brabant, had fallen in love with a young, hand-
some, and rich heiress ; but was rejected by the parents
as an unsuitable match for their daughter, on account
of the lowness of his circumstances. The young
lady's father dying, he paid a visit to the widow, who
was totally ignorant of his singular talent. Suddenly,
on his first appearance, in open day, in her own house,
and in the presence of several persons who were with
her, she heard herself accosted in a voice resembling
that of her dead husband, and which seemed to pro-
ceed from above, exclaiming, " Give my daughter in
marriage to Louis Brabant; he is a man of great
ENTERPRISE. 101
fortune, and of an excellent character. I now endure
the inexpressible torments of purgatory, for having
refused her to him. If you obey this admonition, 1
shall soon be delivered from this place of torment.
You will at the same time provide a worthy husband
for your daughter, and procure everlasting repose to
the soul of your poor husband."
The widow could not for a moment resist this dread
summons, which had not the most distant appearance
of proceeding from Louis Brabant ; whose counte-
nance exhibited no visible change, and whose lips
were close and motionless during the delivery of it.
Accordingly she consented immediately to receive
him for her son-in-law. Louis's finances, however,
wete in a very low situation, and the formalities
attending the marriage contract rendered it necessary
for him to exhibit some show of riches, and not to
give the ghost the lie direct. He accordingly went to
work upon a fresh subject, one Cornu, an old and
rich banker at Lyons, who had accumulated immense
wealth by usury and extortion, and was known to be
haunted by remorse of conscience on account of the
manner in which he had acquired it.
Having contracted an intimate acquaintance with
this man, he one day, while they were sitting together
in the usurer's little back parlour, artfully turned the
conversation on religious subjects, on demons, and
spectres, the pains of purgatory, and the torments of
hell. During an interval of silence between them, a
voice was heard, which to the astonished banker
seemed to be that of a deceased father, complaining,
as in the former case, of his dreadful situation in
purgatory, and calling upon him to deliver him in-
k 3
102 PERCY ANECDOTES.
stantly thence, by putting into the hands of Louis
Brabant, then with him, a large sum for the re-
demption of Christians then in slavery with the Turks ;
threatened him at the same time with eternal pu-
nishment, if he did not take this method to expiate
likewise his own sins. Louis Brabant arfected a due
degree of astonishment on the occasion, and fuither
promoted the deception, by acknowledging his having
devoted himself to the prosecution of the charitable
design imputed to him by the ghost. An old usurer
is naturally suspicious. Accordingly the wary banker
made a second appointment with the ghost's delegate
for the next day ; and to render any design upon him
utterly abortive, took him into the open fields, where
not a house, or a tree, or even a bush, or a pit, was in
sight, capable of screening any supposed confederate.
This extraordinary caution excited the ventriloquist
to exert all the powers of his art. Wherever the
banker conducted him, at every step his ears were
saluted on all sides with the complaints and groans
not only of his father, but of his deceased relations,
imploring him in the name of every saint in the
kalender, to have mercy on his own soul and theirs,
by eifectually seconding with his purse the intentions
of his worthy companions. Cornu could no longer
resist what he conceived to be the voice from heaven,
and accordingly carried his guest home with him,
and paid him down ten thousand crowns ; with which
the honest ventriloquist returned to Paris, and married
his mistress.
ENTERPRISE. 103
THE SERPENT OF RHODES.
In the fourteenth century, an amphibious animal, a
sort of serpent or crocodile, caused much disorder in
the Island of Rhodes by its depredations, and several
inhabitants fell victims to his rapacity. The retreat of
tliis animal was in a cavern, situated near a morass at
the foot of Mount St. Etienne, two miles from Rhodes.
It often came out to seek its prey, and devoured
sheep, cows, horses, and even the shepherds who
watched over the flocks.
Many of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem had
essayed to destroy this monster ; but they never re-
turned. This induced Phelion de Velleneuve, the
grand master of Malta, to forbid all the knights, on
pain of being deprived of their habit, from attacking
it, or attempting any further an enterprise which ap-
peared to be above human powers.
All the knights obeyed the mandate of the grand
master, except Dieu Donne de Gozon, a native of
Provence, who notwithstanding the prohibition, and
without being deterred by the fate of his brethren,
secretly formed the daring design of fighting this
savage beast, bravely resolving to deliver the Isle of
Rhodes from such a calamity, or to perish in the
attempt. Having learnt that the serpent had no scales
on its belly, upon that information he formed the plan
of his enterprise. From the description be had received
of this enormous beast, he made a wooden or paste-
board figure of it, and he endeavoured to imitate its
terrific ciies. He then trained two young mastiffs to
run to his cries, and to attach themselves immediately
104 PF.RCY ANECDOTES,
to the belly of the monster ; whilst he, mounted on
horseback, his lance in his hand, and covered with his
armour, feigned to give it blows in several places.
The knight employed himself many ■ months, every
day, in this exercise, at the Chateau de Gozon, in
Languedoc, to which he had repaired ; and when he
had trained the mastiffs sufficiently to this kind of
combat, he hastened back to Rhodes.
Having first repaired to church, and commended
himself to God, he put on his armour, mounted his
horse, and ordered his two servants to return to France,
if he perished in the combat ; but to come near him
if they perceived that he had killed the serpent, or
been wounded by it. He then descended from the
mountain of St. Etienne, and approaching the haunt
of the serpent, soon encountered it. Gozon struck it
with his lance, but the scales prevented its taking effect.
He prepared to redouble his blows, but his horse,
frightened with the hisses of the serpent, refused to
advance, and threw himself on his side. Gozon dis-
mounted, and accompanied by his mastiffs, marched
sword in hand towards this horrible beast He struck
him in various places, but the scales prevented him
from penetrating them. The furious animal by a
blow of his tail knocked down the knight, and w ould
certainly have devoured him, had not his two dogs
fastened 'on the belly of the serpent, which they
lacerated in a dreadful manner. The knight, favoured
by this help, rejoined bis two mastiffs, and buiied
his sword in the bod\* of the monster ; which being
mortally wounded, rushed on the knight, and would
have crushed him to death by its weight, had not his
servant", who were spectators of the combat, come to
ENTERPRISE. 105
his relief. The serpent was dead, and the knight had
fainted. When he recovered, the first and the most
agreeable object which could present itself to his view,
was the dead body of his enemy.
The death of the serpent was no sooner known in
the city, than a crowd of the inhabitants came out to
welcome their deliverer. The knights conducted him
in triumph to the grand master, who however con-
sidered a breach of discipline as unpardonable, even
on such an occasion ; and regardless of the entreaties
of the knight, and the important service that Gozon
had rendered, sent him to prison. A council was
assembled, who decided that he should be deprived
of the habit of his order for disobedience. This was
done ; but Velleneuve repenting of his severity, soon
restored it to him, and loaded him with favours.
Nothing could exceed the joy of the inhabitants in
being delivered from this monster, whose head they
stuck on one of the gates of the city, as a monument
of the victory of Gozon, whom they regarded as their
deliverer.
PAUL, THE TIGER HUNTER. (
Of such importance has the search for tigers, and
their consequent destruction, proved, in some parts of
Bengal, that large tracts of country, once depopu-
lated by their ravages, or by the apprehensions to
which the proximity of such a scourge naturally must
give birth, have by persevering exertion been freed
from their devastations. The accomplishment of
this change has been chiefly attributed to a German
of the name of Paul, who was for many years em-
I0€i PERCY ANECDOTES.
ployed as superintendent of the elephants at Daud-
pore, generally from fifty to a hundred in number.
Paul possessed a coolness and presence of mind,
which gave him a wonderful superiority in every
thing relating to tiger-hunting. He rarely rode but
on a bare pad, and ordinarily by himself, armed with
an old musket, and furnished with a small pouch,
containing his powder and ball. His aim was at the
head or heart of the tiger, and in general hi3 shots
took effect. He is believed to have killed more tigere
than any hundred persons in India. He once killed
five in the same day ; four of these were shot in less
than an hour, in a patch of grass not exceeding three
or four acres, where only one was supposed to be con-
cealed. He was remarkable for killing such tigers as
charged ; on these occasions he always aimed at the
thorax, or chest; and he was so dexterous, that he
never had an elephant injured under him.
VETERAN CORPS.
During the American war, eighty old German
soldiers, who after having long served under different
monarchs in Europe, had retired to America, and
converted their swords into plough-shares, voluntarily
formed themselves into a company, and distinguished
themselves 'in various actions in the cause of inde
pendence. The captain was nearly one hundred
years old, had been in the army forty years, and
present in seventeen battles. The drummer was
ninety-four, and the youngest man in the corps on
the verge of seventy. Instead of a cockade, each
mftn wore a piece of black crape, as a mark of soi-
ENTERPRISE. 107
row for being obliged, at so advanced a period of life,
to bear arras. " But," said the veterans, " we should
be deficient in gratitude, if we did not act in defence
of a country which has afforded us a generous asy-
lum, and protected us from tyranny and oppression."
Such a band of soldiers never before perhaps appeared
in a field of battle.
PORTUGUEZE CHAMPION.
During the last campaign in Portugal, while the
French were on the banks of the Zezere, a Portugueze
peasant from the neighbourhood of Thomar, of amaz-
ing muscular strength, became so annoying to them,
that they offered a very high reward for his head.
This man was accustomed to penetrate by night to
their very encampment at Thomar. During one month
he killed with his own hand upwards of thirty French
soldiers, and carried off at different times fifty horses
and mules. He lived in a cave, in a retired and un-
known part of the mountains, but regularly brought
his booty to Abrantes, where he sold it. He was a
man of most determined ferocious look, and of un-
common daring. The poor inhabitants of the neighbour-
hood used to flock to his habitation, with the secret of
which they were well acquainted, and then thought
themselves in perfect security under his protection.
CANAL OF LANGUEDOC.
The canal of Languedoc, or as it is sometimes
called, the canal of the Two Seas, forms a junction
between the Ocean and the Mediterranean, and wa~>
108 PERCY ANECDOTES.
first projected under Francis I., but begun and finished
under Louis XIV. This amazing undertaking, which
does honour to the able minister Colbert, and to
Requet, the engineer, who conducted the work, was
begun in 1666, and finished in 1681. It reaches from
Xarbonne to Thoulouse, and has established a ready
communication between the two fertile provinces of
Guienne and Languedoc.
Above 12,000,000 cubic feet of earth, and more
than 30,000 cubic feet of solid rock, have been re-
moved, to excavate the bed of this canal ; it has on it
one hundred and fourteen locks ; sixteen prodigious
large mounds have been raised to divert the course of
useless waters, and twenty-four spacious drains have
been made to empty it, when in danger of being too
full. On a moderate computation, there are above
240,000 cubic feet of stone work in these erections,
including a projection into the sea of 200 fathoms,
and a pier of 5000 fathoms more, which secures the
port of Cette, and renders it a very commodious
harbour.
In some places the canal is conveyed by aqueducts,
over bridges of incredible height and strength, which
give a passage to other rivers under them. But what
seemed most extraordinary at the time was, that near
the town of Beziers, it was conveyed under a mountain
by a tunnel 720 feet in length, cut into a lofty arcade,
principally lined with free-stone, except towards the
ends, where it is only hewn through the rock, which
is of a sulphurous substance.
The expense of this great work was 13,000,000 of
livres, about 540,000 sterling ; of which the king
contributed 7,000,000, and the Province of Languedoc
the rest.
ENTERPRISE. 10!)
GENEROUS INTREPIDITY.
In August, 1777, a vessel from Rochelle, laden
with salt, and manned bv eight hands, and two pas-
sengers on board, was discovered making for the
pier of Dieppe. The wind was at the time so high,
and the sea so much agitated, that a coasting pilot
made four fruitless attempts to get out, and conduct
the vessel safe into port. Boussard, a bold and intrepid
pilot, perceiving that the helmsman was ignorant of
latent danger, endeavoured to direct him by a speak-
ing trumpet and signals ; but the captain could
neither see nor hear, on account of the darkness of the
night, the roaring of the winds, and the extraor-
dinary swell of the sea. The vessel in the meantime
grounded on a flinty bottom, at the distance of
thirty toises from the advanced mole.
Boussard, touched with the cries of the unfortunate
crew, resolved to spring to their assistance, in spite
of every remonstrance, the entreaties of his wife and
children, and the apparent impossibility of success.
Having tied one end of a rope round his waist, and
fastened the other to the mole, he plunged headlong
into the boisterous deep. When he had got very
near the ship, a wave carried him off, and dashed him
on shore. Twenty times successively was he thus
repulsed, rolled upon flinty stones, and covered with
the wreck of the vessel, which the fury of the waves
tore rapidly to pieces. He did not, however, abate
his ardour. A single wave dragged him under thr
ship— he was given up for lost, but he quickly
emerged, holding in his arms a sailor, who had been
110 PERCY ANECDOTES.
washed overboard. He brought him on shore mo-
tionless and just expiring. In short, after an infinity
of efforts and struggles, he reached the wreck, and
threw his rope on board. All who had strength
enough to avail themselves of this assistance, tied
it about them, and were successively dragged to
land.
Boussard, who imagined he had now saved all the
crew, worn down by fatigue, and smarting from his
wounds and bruises, walked with great difficulty to
the light-house, where he fainted through exhaustion.
Assistance being procured, he began to recover. On
hearing that groans still issued from the wreck, he
once more collected the little strength that was left
him, rushed from the arms of those that succoured
him, plunged again into the sea, and had the good
fortune to save the life of one of the passengers, who
was lashed to the wreck, and who, in his languid
state, had been unable to profit by the assistance
administered to his companions.
3Ions. de Crosne, the Intendant of Rouen, having
stated these circumstances to M. Neckar, then di-
rector-general of the finances, he immediately ad-
dressed the following letter to Boussard, in his own
hand writing :
"brave man,
" I was not apprized by the Intendant till the day
before yesterday, of the gallant deed you achieved on
the 31st of August. Yesterday I reported it to his
majesty, who was pleased to enjoin me to communi-
cate to you his satisfaction, and to acquaint you, that
he presents you with one thousand livres, by way of
gratification, and an annual pension of three hundred
ENTERPRISE. Ill
livres. Continue to succour others when you have it
in your power ; and pray for your good king, who
loves and recompenses the brave."
RUNNING FOR LIFE.
On the arrival of the exploratory party of Messrs.
Lewis and Clarke at the head waters of the Missouri,
one of their number, of the name of Colter, observing
ths appearance of abundance of beaver, got per-
mission to remain and hunt for some time, which he
did, in company with a hunter named Potts. Aware
of the hostility of the Blackfeet Indians, one of whom
had been killed by Lewis, they set their traps at
night, and took them up early in the morning, re-
maining concealed during the day. They were exa-
mining their traps early one morning in a creek,
about six miles from that branch of the Missouri
called Jefferson's Fork, and were ascending in a
canoe, when they suddenly heard a great noise, re-
sembling the trampling of animals ; but they could
not ascertain the fact, as the high perpendicular
banks on each side of the river impeded their view.
Colter immediately pronounced it to be occasioned
by Indians, and advised an instant retreat ; but was
accused of cowardice by Potts, who insisted that the
noise was caused by buffalos, and they proceeded
on. In a few minutes afterwards their doubts were
removed, by a party of Indians making their ap-
pearance on both sides of the creek, to the amount of
live or six hundred, who beckoned him to come on
shore. As retreat was now impossible, Colter turned
ihe head of the canoe to the shore, and at the mo
l 2
112 PERCY ANECDOTES.
meat of its touching, an Indian seized the rifle be-
longing to Potts • but Colter, who is a remarkable
strong man, immediately retook it, and handed it
to Potts, who remained in the canoe, and on re-
covering it pushed off into the river. He had scarcely
quitted the shore, when an arrow was shot at him, and
he cried out, " Colter, I am wounded." Colter re-
munerated with him on the folly of attempting to
escape, and urged him to come on shore. Instead of
complying, he instantly levelled his rifle at an Indian,
and shot him dead on the spot. This conduct, si-
tuated as he was, may appear to have been an act of
madness, but it was doubtless the effect of sudden,
but sound enough reasoning ; for if taken alive, he
must have expected to be tortured to death, according
to the Indian custom. He was instantly pierced with
arrows so numerous, that, to use the language of
Colter, " he was made a riddle of." They now
seized Colter, stript him entirely naked, and began
to consult on the manner in which he should be put
to death. They were first inclined to set him up as a
mark to shoot at ; but the chief interfered, and seizing
him by the shoulder, asked him if he could run fast ?
Colter, who had been some time amongst the Kee
Catsa, or Crow Indians, had in a considerable degree
acquired the Blackfoot language, and was also well
acquainted with Indian customs ; he knew that he
had now to run for his life, with the dreadful odds of
five or six hundred against him, and these armed
Indians ; he therefore cunningly replied, that he was
a very bad runner ; although lie was considered by
the hunters as remarkably swift. The chief now com-
manded the party to remain stationary, and led
ENTERPRISE. 113
Colter out on the prairie, three or four hundred yards,
and released him, bidding him save himself if he
could. At that instant the war whoop sounded in the
ears of poor Colter, who, urged with the hopes of pre-
serving life, ran with a speed at which he was himself
surprised. He proceeded towards the Jefferson's
Fork, having to traverse a plain six miles in breadth,
abounding with the prickly pear, on which he was
every instant treading with his naked feet. He ran
nearly half way across the plain, before he ventured to
look over his shoulder, when he perceived that the
Indians were very much scattered, and that he had
gained ground to a considerable distance from the
main body ; but one Indian, who carried a spear, was
much before all the rest, and not more than a hun-
dred yards from him. A faint gleam of hope now
cheered the heart of Colter; he derived confidence
from the belief that escape was within the bounds of
possibility, but that confidence was nearly fatal to
him ; for he exerted himself to such a degree* that the
blood gushed from his nostrils, and soon almost co-
vered the fore part of his body. He had now arrived
within a mile of the river, when he distinctly heard
the appalling sound of footsteps behind him, and every
instant expected to feel the spear of his pursuer.
Again he turned his head, and saw the savage not
twenty yards from him. Determined, if possible,
to avoid the expected blow, he suddenly stopped,
turned round, and spread out his arms. The Indian,
surprised by the suddenness of the action, and per-
haps at the bloody appearance of Colter, also at-
tempted to stop; but exhausted with running, he fell
whilst endeavouring to throw his spear, which stuck
l 3
114 PERCY ANECDOTES.
in the ground, and broke in his hand. Colter in-
stantly snatched up the pointed part, with which he
pinned him to the earth, and then continued his
flight. The foremost of the Indians, on arriving at
the place, stopped till others came up to join them,
when they set up a hideous yell. Every moment
of this time was improved by Colter, who, although
fainting and exhausted, succeeded in gaining the
skirting of the cotton wood trees, on the border of the
Fork, to which he ran, and plunged into the river.
Fortunately for him, a little below this place there
was an island, against the upper point of which a
raft of draft timber had lodged; he dived under the
raft, and after several etfbrts, got his head above
water amongst the trunks of trees, covered over with
smaller wood to the depth of several feet. Scarcely
had he secured himself, when the Indians arrived on
the river, screeching and yelling, as Colter expressed
it, " like so many devils." They were frequently
on the raft during the day, and were seen through
the clinks by Colter, who was congratulating himself
on his escape, till the idea arose that they might
set the raft on fire. In horrible suspense he remained
until night ; when hearing no more of the Indians, he
dived from under the raft, and swam instantly down
the river to a considerable distance, when he landed,
and travelled all night. Although happy in having
escaped from the Indians, his situation was still
dreadful ; he was completely naked, under a burning
sun; the soles of his feet were filled with the thorns
of the prickly pear; he was hungry, and had no
means of killing game, although he saw abundance
around him, and was at a great distance from the
ENTERPRISE. 115
nearest settlement. Almost any man but an American
hunter would have despaired under such circum-
stances. The fortitude of Colter continued unshaken.
After seven days sore travel, during which he had no
other subsistence than the root known by naturalists
under the name of psoralea esculenta, he at length
arrived in safety at Lisa's fort, on the Bighorn branch
of the Roche Jaune river.
LEANDER OUTDONE.
A young man, a native of the island of St.
Croix, in the course of the summer of 1817, swam
over the sound from Cronenburgh to Graves, and thus
considerably outdid the unfortunate Leander, whom
love nightly tempted to traverse the Hellespont. The
direct distance from Abydos to Sestos is only an
English mile ; and allowing for the drifting effect of
the current, not more to a swimmer than four miles.
But the distance between Cronenburgh and Graves
is at least six English miles. When Lord Byron and
Lieutenant Ekenhead repeated the feat of Leander,
they took an hour and ten minutes in doing it ; the
Dane did not accomplish his task in less than two hours
and forty minutes. A Danish officer and three men
followed him in a boat, and never lost sight of him.
In the middle of the Sound he had to contend with a
high sea which dashed over him.
PEARL FISHING.
Few objects of commercial enterprise are attended
with greater danger and fatigue than fishing for pearls,
116 PERCY ANECDOTES.
as practised in the bay of Condatschy in Ceylon,
The pearl fishery begins in the month of February,
and ends early in April. All the barks being assem-
bled in the bay, they depart together on the firing of
a gun about six o'clock in the morning, and return
the same day. Each bark carries twenty men, and
a tindal or master, who acts as pilot Ten of the
crew are attached to the oars, and assist the divers
in coming up again. The divers descend five at a
time ; and when the first five are up, the others re-
place them, diving alternately, merely taking suffi-
cient time to recover their breath.
To hasten the descent of the diver, a large piece
of granite is tied round his waist when he enters
the water. Accustomed to this exercise from their
earliest infancy, the divers are not afraid to dive from
four to ten fathoms. When one of the divers is upon
the point of going down, he seizes with the toes of
the right foot the cord attached to one of the stones
just mentioned, while upon those of the left he takes
a bag-net. Being thus prepared, he takes another
cord in his right hand, and closing his nostrils
with the left, descends into the ocean, to the bottom
of which he is rapidly drawn by the stone. He then
puts the bag-net before him, and with as much
promptitude as address, he collects as large a number
of oysters as possible during the time he remains
under the water, which is generally about two minutes ;
there are some who can stay five minutes; and a
diver from Anjango, engaged in this fishery in 1797,
was able to remain six minutes under water.
When the diver wishes to ascend, he gives the
signal for assistance, by pulling the cord which he
ENTERPRISE. 117
holds in his left hand. By these means he is up in a
moment, and is received into the bark. The stone
which the diver leaves at the bottom is drawn up
after him, by means of the cord attached to it.
The efforts made bv the divers are so great, that
when they come up, blood frequently gushes from
their mouths, ears, and nostrils. This however does
not prevent them from diving again in their turn ;
they frequently dive from forty to fifty times a day,
and bring up a hundred oysters each time.
What the divers fear most, is to meet with a shark
while at the bottom. This terrible creature is com-
mon to the seas that line the coasts of India, and is
an object of continual alarm to those who venture
into the water, though some divers have the address
to evade the shark, and continue their time under-
neath. But the terror which they labour under is
generally so great, and the chance of escape so rare,
that guided by superstition, the Indians are never con-
irnt without having recourse to supernatural means,
to secure themselves from an enemy so formidable.
LEDYARD.
Few individuals have exhibited the passion of
adventure in a higher degree than the unfortunate
Ledyard, and still fewer who in the indulgence of that
passion have gone through greater hardships and
perils.
Capable of strong endurance ; enterprising beyond
all ordinary conception, yet wary and considerate;
calm in his deliberations, guarded in his measure*,
attentive to all precautions, he appeared to be formed
118 PERCY ANECDOTES.
by nature for achievements of hardihood and difficulty,
" My distresses," said he on one occasion, " have
been greater than I have ever owned, or even will own
to any man. I have known hunger and nakedness
to the utmost extremity of human suffering ; I have
known what it is to have food given me as charity to
a madman ; and I have at times been obliged to
shelter myself under the miseries of that character
to avoid a heavier calamity. Such evils are terrible
to bear, but they never have yet had power to turn
me from my purpose."
In the humble situation of a corporal of marines,
to which he submitted rather than forego an opportu-
nity of rare occurrence, he made with Captain Cook
the voyage of the world ; and feeling on his return
an anxious desire of penetrating from the north-
western coast of America, which Cook had partly ex-
plored, to the eastern coast, he determined to traverse
the vast continent from the Pacific to the Atlantic.
Ocean. With no more than ten guineas in his purse, he
departed from England on this arduous enterprise
towards the close of the year 1786 ; and after more
than a year's hard travel, he had reached the coast of
the Kamtschatkan sea ; when, for reasons never ex-
plained, he was seized by order of the Empress of
Russia ; stripped of his clothes, money, and papers ;
conveyed in a sledge through the deserts of Northern
Tartary to jMoscow ; and thence to the town of Tolo-
chin, on the frontiers of the Polish dominions ; where,
at parting with his conductors, he was advised to make
the best of his wa}' home to England, if he wished to
escape hanging in Russia.
On his arrival in England , he immediately waited
ENTERPRISE. 119
cm Sir Joseph Banks, on whose generosity he had
repeatedly drawn in the course of his travels, for his
means of subsistence. Sir Joseph, knowing his dis-
position, and conceiving that he would be gratified by
the information, told him that he could recommend
him, he believed, to an adventure almost as perilous
as that from which he had just returned. He then
communicated to Ledyard the wishes of the Associa-
tion for discovering the Inland Countries of Africa.
Mr. Ledyard replied, that it had always been his
determination to traverse the continent of Africa as
soon as he had explored the interior of North America.
Sir Joseph accordingly furnished him with a letter of
introduction to Henry Beaufoy, Esq. an active member
of the association. On waiting upon Mr. B., that
gentleman spread before him a map of Africa ; and
tracing a line from Cairo to Sennar, and thence west-
ward in the latitude, and supposed direction, of the
Niger, informed him that this was the route by which
he was anxious that Africa might, if possible, be ex-
plored. Mr Ledyard expressed great pleasure at the
prospect of being employed in this adventure. Being
asked " when he would be ready to set out?" " To-
morrow morning," was the answer of this bold and
indefatigable man.
SIEGE OF ST. SEBASTIAN.
On the 31st of August, 1813, a little before noon,
the columns of the British army advanced to the
assault of St. Sebastian. The enemy on their ap-
proach explored two mines on the flank of the front
line of works, which blew down a wall under which
120 PERCY ANECDOTES.
the assailants were passing ; luckily, however, the
troops not being in very close order, few were buried,
and they reached their point of attack with little
loss. .Many desperate efforts were made to carry the
breach ; but each time, on attaining the summit, a
heavy and close fire from the entrenched ruins within
destroyed all who attempted to remain, and those at
the foot fell in great numbers from the flank fire.
To supply these losses, fresh troops were sent forward
with laudable perseverance as fast as they could be
filed out of the trenches ; and a battalion of Portu-
gueze gallantly forded the Uremea, in face of the
enemy's works ; the whole of which were strongly
lined with men, who kept up an incessant fire of
musketry, particularly from a rampart more elevated
than the spot where the breach had been formed.
Sir Thomas Graham (now Lord Lyndoch) seeing this,
trusted to the well-known accuracy-^pf the artillery
to open upon that spot over the heads of the assail-
ants. This they did with much effect ; nevertheless,
two hours of continued exertion had fruitlessly passed
away, and the troops were yet on the face of the
breach falling in great numbers, without being able
to establish themselves on its summit; when a quan-
tity of combustibles exploded within, which shook
the firmness of the defenders. They began to waver,
and the assailants redoubled their efforts to ascend.
The most advanced works where successively aban-
doned by the garrison ; and ultimately the retrench-
ment behind the breach. The troops immediately
pushed up in great numbers, assisted each other over
the ruins, and descended into the town ; after which,
every attempt to check them behind various interior
ENTERPRISE. 121
defences was in a moment defeated, and the garrison
were driven into the castle.
On the 9th of September, heavy batteries of mor-
tars opened on the castle of St. Sebastian ; which
being too small to admit of any cover being thrown up
to lessen the effects of the shells, did not long resist.
After enduring the bombardment for two hours, the
garrison, reduced to thirteen hundred effective men,
with five hundred sick and wounded, surrendered pri-
soners of war.
OBEDIENCE OF ORDERS.
A naval commander, in the reign of Queen Anne, was
ordered to cruize with a squadron within certain li-
mits on the coast of Spain. Having received information
that a Spanish fleet was in Vigo, beyond his limits, lie
Tesolved to risk his personal responsibility for the good
of his country ; he accordingly attacked and defeated
the Spanish fleet, with uncommon gallantry. When
he joined the admiral under whom he served, he was
ordered under arrest, and was asked " If he did not
know that, by the articles of war, he was liable to be
shot for disobedience of orders ?" He replied with
great composure, that he was very sensible that he
was, but added, " The man who is afraid to risk his
life in any way, when the good of his country requires
it, is unworthy of a command in her majesty's service."
EQUALITY IN DANGER.
The French General Cherin was once conducting
a detachment through a very difficult defile. He
122 PERCY ANECDOTES.
exhorted His soldiers to endure patiently the fatigues
of the march. " It is easy for you to talk," said one
of the soldieTsnear him ; " you who are mounted on a
fine horse— -but we poor devils !" On hearing these
words, Cherin dismounted, and quickly proposed to
the discontented soldier to take his place. The latter
did so ; but scarcely had he mounted, when a shot
from the adjoining heights struck and killed him.
" You see," says Cherin, calling to his troop, " that
the most elevated place is not the least dangerous."
After which he remounted his horse, and continued
the march.
LITERARY INDUSTRY.
Stowe, the famous historian, devoted his life and
exhausted his patrimony in the study of English
Antiquities ; he travelled on foot throughout the
kingdom, inspecting all the monuments of antiquity,
and rescuing what he could from the dispersed libra-
ries of the monasteries. His stupendous collections,
in his own hand-writing, still exist, to provoke the
feeble industry of literary loiterers. He felt through
life the enthusiasm of study; and seated in his
monkish library, living with the dead more than with
the living, he was still a student of taste ; for Spenser,
the poet, visited the library of Stowe, and the first
good edition of Chaucer was made so chiefly by the
labours of our author. Late in life, worn out by study
and the cares of poverty, neglected by that proud
metropolis of which he had been the historian, yet
his good humour did not desert him ; for being afflicted
with sharp pains in his aged feet, he observed that " his.
ENTERPRISE. 123
affliction lay in that part which formerly he had made
so much use of." Many a mile had he wandered, many
a pound had he yielded, for those treasures of anti-
quities which had exhausted his fortune, and with
which he had formed works of great public utility.
It was in his eightieth year that Stowe at length
received a public acknowledgment of his services,
which will appear to us of a very extraordinary
nature. He was so reduced in his circumstances, that
he petitioned James I. for a licence to collect alms for
himself ! " as a recompense for his labour and travel
of forty-Jive years in setting forth the Chronicles of
England, and eight years taken up in the Survey of the
Cities of London and Westminster, towards his relief,
now in his old age ; having left his former means of
living, and only employed himself for the service and
good of his country." Letters patent under the great
seal were granted. After a penurious commendation
of Stowe's labours, he is permitted " to gather the
benevolence of well-disposed people within this realm
of England ; to ask, gather, and take the alms of all
our loving subjects." These letters patent were to be
published by the clergy from their pulpits ; they pro-
duced so little, that they were renewed for another
twelvemonth ; one entire parish in the city contri-
buted seven shillings and sixpence ! Such, then, was
the patronage received by Stowe, to be a licensed
beggar throughout the kingdom for one twelvemonth !
such was the public remuneration of a man who had
been useful to his nation, but not to himself !
m 2
124 PERCY ANECDOTES.
NOBLE RETALIATION.
One "of the finest actions of a soldier of which
history makes mention, is related in the history
of the Marechal de Luxemburg. The Marechal, then
Count de Boutteville, served in the army of Flanders
in 1675, under the command of the Prince of Conde.
He perceived in a march some soldiers that were
separated from the main body, and he sent one of his
aides-de-camp to bring them back to their colours.
All obeyed, except one, who continued his road.
The Count, highly offended at such disobedience,
threatened to strike him with his stick. "That you
may do," said the soldier with great coolness, " but
you will repent of it." Irritated by this answer,
Boutteville struck him, and forced him to rejoin his
corps. Fifteen days after, the army besieged Fumes ;
and Boutteville commanded the colonel of a regi-
ment to find a man steady and intrepid for a coup-
de-main, which he wanted, promising a hundred
pistoles as a reward. The soldier in question, who
had the character of being the bravest man in the
regiment, presented himself, and taking thirty of
his comrades, of whom he had the choice, he exe-
cuted his commission, which was of the most ha-
zardous nature, with a courage and a success that
were incredible. On his return, Boutteville, after
having praised him highly, counted out the hundred
pistoles he had promised. The soldier immediately
distributed them to his comrades, saying, that he had
no occasion for money ; and requested that if what
lie had done merited any recompense, he might be
ENTERPRISE. 125
made an officer. Then addressing himself to the
Count, he asked if he recognized him ; and on
Boutteville replying in the negative, " Well," said
he, " I am the soldier whom you struck on our
march fifteen days ago. Was I not right when I
said that you would repent of it?" The Count de
Boutteville, filled with admiration, and affected al-
most to tears, embraced the soldier, created him an
officer on the spot, and soon made him one of his
aides-de-camp.
JOAN OF ARC.
" My courage try by combat, if thou dar'st,
And thou shalt find that I exceed my sex :
Resolve on this : thou shalt be fortunate
If thou receive me for thy warlike mate."
SHAKESPEARE. HENRY VI.
Among the extraordinary events that are recorded
in history, few can equal those that respect Joan of
Arc, who was the immediate cause of that astonishing
revolution in the affairs of France, which terminated
in the establishment of Charles VII. on the throne of
his ancestors, and the final expulsion of the English
from that kingdom. At the time this heroine first
made her appearance, so low was the power of the
Dauphin, that not a single place belonged to him, but
the town of Orleans alone, which was then closely
besieged by the English ; nor did there appear the
slightest probability that ever he could procure an army
strong enough to raise the siege of that city, on which
alone his all depended.
Joan of Arc was born at Dauremy, a village near
m 3
126 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Vancouleurs in Lorraine, about the year 1412. Her
father was a peasant, and gave her an education suited
to his rank in life. She left her parents at an early
age, and became servant at an inn, where she acquired
a complete knowledge of horsemanship. It was here,
too, that she first thought of her mission ; and it arose
from all the news she had heard of the affairs in Franc .
at the inn. Her imagination took fire ; and she looked
upon herself as a girl destined by heaven to rescue
France out of the hands of the English.
After much difficulty and application to various
individuals, she at length got access to the king, before
whom she appeared dressed as a warrior. The king
heard her with patience, and then sent her to his
parliament at Poictiers, where she was closely ex-
amined by many doctors in theology. At length they
determined to advise his majesty to put confidence in
her, and attempt to execute what she proposed. She
now completed her equipments, appointed Jean Dolan,
as famous for his courage as his prudence, her squire;
and Louis de Comptes her page. She then asked for
a sword which had been more than a century in the
tomb of a knight, behind the altar of St. Catherine at
Feirbois. She pretended to have had a knowledge
of it by revelation, and that it was only with this
fatal sword she could extirpate the English. She
ordered a banner to be made for her, on which was
represented God coming out of a cloud, holding a
globe in his hand ; it was ornamented with fleurs-de-
lis. Her helmet was surmounted with a plume of
white feathers ; her horse was also white ; and she
surpassed all by her beauty, and the skill and address
with which she managed him.
ENTERPRISE. 127
On the 29th of April, 1429, Joan of Arc appeared
before Orleans with twelve thousand men. She wrote
a letter to the Duke of Bedford, then "Regent of France*
warning him to give up France to its rightful heir ;
but the English were so enraged at seeing a girl sent
to fight them, that they put the heralds in prison.
The Count de Durois, who commanded in Orleans,
made a sally with all his garrison, in order to facilitate
the entry of provisions ; and the French, persuaded
that this heroine was sent from heaven to their assist'
ance, resumed fresh courage, and fought with so
much vigour, that she and her convoy entered the
town.
The English sent back one of the heralds, of whom
she demanded, " What says Talbot ?" (Sir John
Talbot ;) and when he informed her that he, as we lias
all his countrymen, spared no abuse in speaking of her,
and declaied if they caught her they would burn her ;
" Go back again," says she, " and doubt not but thou
wilt bring back with thee thy companion ; and tell
Talbot, that if he will arm himself, I will do the same,
and let him come before the walls of the town, and if
be can take me, he may burn me ; and if I discomfit
him, let him raise the siege, and return unto his own
native country."
Soon after her arrival at Orleans, she made an attack
on fort St. Loup, which she carried sword in hand, as
well as the bulwarks of St. John, and of the Augus-
tins. In one of the assaults on the English, she re-
ceived a dangerous wound in the neck ; and as a large
quantity of blood issued from it, her followers began
to fear for her life ; but she, to reanimate them, said
128 PERCY ANECDOTES.
" it was not blood, but glor} r , that flowed from her
wound."
The siege of Orleans was raised the 8th of May.
Joan of Arc carried the news to the king, and entreated
him to come and be crowned at Rheiras, then in
possession of the English. The siege of Gergeau
was next undertaken ; when after laying eight days
before'the town, which was most vigorously defended,
Joan of Arc went into the ditch with her standard in
her hand, at that part where the English made the
most vigorous defence ; she was perceived, and a
heavy stone thrown upon her, which bent her to the
ground ; notwithstanding which she soon got up, and
cried aloud to her companions, " Frenchmen, mount
boldly, and enter the town, you will find no longer any
resistance." Thus was the town won.
She next took possession of Auxerre, Troyes, and
Chalons, thus opening for the king the road to Rheims,
which city flung open its gates as soon as he appeared
before it ; and the next day, the 17th of July, he was
crowned. The Maid of Orleans assisted at the cere-
mony in her armour, with her standard in her hand.
The judges interrogated her, ** How she dared to come
to the coronation with her banner in her hand ?" To
which she answered, " That it was but justice that the
banner which had its share of the labour, should also
share in the .honour."
Joan of Arc having accomplished the object of her
mission, raising the siege of Orleans, and crowning
the king at Rheims, wished to return to her parents ;
but her presence inspired too much confidence, and
had been attended with too great success, for this to
ENTERPRISE. 129
be permitted. She therefore accompanied the king to
Crepi, to Senlis, and afterwards to Paris. Here she
displayed her wonted courage, but received a severe
wound. In the siege of Compeigne in 1430, she made
a sally at the head of a hundred men oyer the bridge,
and twice repulsed the besiegers ; but seeing a very
strong reinforcement coming against her, she began
her retreat ; and although it was late, and she and her
troops were surrounded, yet after performing prodigies
of courage, she disengaged her company, who fortu-
nately re-entered the town. The heroine remained at
the rear to facilitate their retreat, and when she wished"
to enter, the gates where shut; she immediately turned
round to her enemies, and charged them with a courage
worthy of a better fate. She seemed not to expect any
assistance, and suspected some treachery, for when
she made the sally she exclaimed, " I am betrayed I"
During the time she was defending herself, her horse
stumbled, and she fell. This obliged her to surrender
herself to Lionel Vasture of Vendome, who gave her
up to John of Luxemburg. This nobleman, forgetting
the respect a brave man should show to courage, and
regardless of the sex of his captive, basely sold her to
the English for ten thousand livres. From the moment
she was a prisoner, this heroine was forgotten. The
king made no attempts to redeem her ; and although
at the time he had many English prisoners of the
highest rank, he did not offer one of them in exchange
for her. This neglect of Joan of Arc will be an eternal
blot on the memory of the ingrate Charles VII.
On Joan being made a prisoner, the English in-
dulged in as great rejoicings as if they had conquered
the whole kingdom. TheDuke of Bedford thought it
130 PERCY ANECDOTES.
proper to disgrace her, in order to reanimate the
courage of his countrymen ; and this heroine was con-
demned at Rouen by Cauchon, Bishop of Beauvais,
and five other French bishops, to be burnt alive for
magic and heresy. During her confinement in prison,
she leaped from the top of the tower of Beaurevoir,
in hopes of escape ; but she was retaken, and her cruel
sentence put in execution on the 21th of May, 1431.
She was quite undaunted at the sight of the stake and
scaffold, which she mounted as boldly as she had
formerly done the breach at an assault.
Thus perished this extraordinary girl, in the nine-
teenth year of her age. Her execution was as dis-
graceful to the English, as the cold neglect with which
she was treated in her misfortunes was to the French
monarch.
SURPRISE OF BREDA.
Prince Maurice of Nassau, in 1590, formed the
design of surprising Breda. To accomplish it, he
filled a vessel with turfs, which, for want of wood,
they burn in the low countries. Under these turfs
were concealed sixty-eight chosen men, commanded
by Heran^ieres, a gentleman equally brave and intel-
ligent. The vessel arriving at the canal at the foot
of the citadel, is visited ; the inspectors find nothing
but turfs, pi which the garrison was in want, and
therefore gave permission for their being landed. It
was time that the expedition was finished ; for the
vessel began to take water on all sides, and the soldiers
who were at the bottom of the hold suffered great
inconvenience. One of them not being able to
ENTERPRISE. 131
suppress his cough, and fearing to discover his com-
panions hy the noise that he made, had the courage
to present his sword, and to beg of them to run him
through the body. But to prevent the garrison hearing
any thing, the sailors put themselves to work the pump
without intermission, until the porters had finished
their work, and the soldiers were out of the place
where they had been confined. Nothing then ob-
structed their enterprise ; the Spaniards were sur-
prised, and the place taken.
SURPRISE OF SCHENEK.
In 1702, some French marauders plotted together
before the opening of the campaign, to surprise the
fort of Schenek, where the inhabitants of the country
had deposited their most valuable effects. For this
purpose they separated into two troops, of which one
pretended to be Hollanders. They marched by dif-
ferent roads, and managed so well, that they met in
sight of the fort. They appeared to charge on each
other with great vigour and animosity. The false
Hollanders gave way, and left many of their com-
rades as dead ; the rest fled towards the fort, and
prayed the Flemish to save their lives. On the
gates being opened, they rendered themselves masters,
introduced their comrades, and gained an immense-
booty.
GUSTAVUS VASA.
This hero, who rescued his country from a foreign
yoke, was allied to the royal family of Sweden. On
132 PERCY ANECDOTES,
the invasion of that country by Christiem II. in 1518,
Gustavus Vasa was one of the six hostages whom he
took back to Denmark, and failing in detaching him
from his allegiance to his country, he gave an order for
his death ; but afterwards changed it to imprisonment
in the castle of Copenhagen. Eric Banner, a Danish
nobleman, feeling compassion for the sufferings of the
young Swede, obtained leave to take him to a fortress
in Jutland, of which he was the governor. Here
Gustavus passed his time in comparative satisfaction,
until he heard of the accession of Christiem II. to
the Swedish crown, when his heart burnt within him,
and he was resolved to use every effort to recover the
lost liberties of his country. He escaped to Lubec ;
but soon found that the Danes were in quest of him,
which obliged him to assume the habit and manners
of a peasant. In this disguise he passed through all
quarters of their army, in a waggon loaded with hay,
until he reached an old family castle at Suderraania.
He despatched letters hence to his friends, hoping to
rouse them to an attempt for the recovery of their
liberty ; but meeting with little success among the
great, he next tried the peasantry ; he visited their
villages by night, harangued them at their festive
assemblies, but without effect, as they uniformly told
him it was in vain for them to attempt to better their
condition, for " peasants they were, and peasants they
msut remain'." Gustavus next determined to try the
miners of Delecarlia. He penetrated the mountains
of that remote province, and was obliged for a scanty
subsistence to enter himself as a common labourer at
a mine. Here he worked within the dark caverns of
the earth ; but the fineness of his linen soon led some
ENTERPRISE. 133
of his fellow labourers to suspect that he was more
than what he seemed.
By the advice of a friend, at whose house he con-
cealed himself, Gustavus repaired to Mora, where
an annual feast of the peasantry was held. There,
as his last resource, he displayed with so much nature,
eloquence, and energy, the miseries of his country,
and the tyranny of Christiern, that the assembly in-
stantly determined to take up arms, and adopted him
as their leader. While their hearts were glowing with
an ardent patriotism, Gustavus led them against the
governor's castle, which they stormed, and took or
destroyed the whole garrison. Success encreased his
forces ; multitudes were eager to list under the banner
of the conquering hero, Gustavus. At the head of his
little army he overran the neighbouring provinces, de-
feated the Archbishop of Upsal, and advanced to
Stockholm. Christiern, who had in vain attempted
to stop the progress of Gustavus by the threat of
massacreing his mother and sisters, at length put the
dreadful menace in execution. The cruel deed ani-
mated Gustavus to a severer revenge. He assembled
the States of Sweden at Wadstena, where he was
unanimously chosen administrator ; and after a variety
of military transactions, he laid siege to Stockholm.
Stockholm surrendered. The Danes were completely
expelled from Sweden. Gustavus was raised to the
throne in the year 1523, and peace and order restored
to his long afflicted country.
134 PERCY ANECDOTES.
BOLD COUP-DE-MAIN.
The Great Conde speaking of the intrepidity of
soldiers, says, that laying before a place that had a
palissado to be burnt, he promised fifty louis to any
one who should carry it by a coup-de-main. The
danger was so apparent, that the reward did not
tempt any one. " Sir," said a soldier more courageous
than the rest, " I will relinquish the fifty louis that
you promise, if your highness will make me serjeant
of my company." The prince, pleased with the
generosity of the soldier, who preferred honour to
money, promised him both. Animated by the reward
that awaited his return, he resolved to gain it, or die
a glorious death. He took flambeaux, descended
into the ditch, reached the palissado, and set it on
fire in the midst of a shower of musketry, by which
he was slightly wounded. All the army witnesses
of this action seeing his return, cheered him, and
heaped on him loud praises ; when he perceived that
he had lost one of his pistols. A soldier offered him
others. " No," said he, "I will never be reproached
that these rascals got my pistol." He went to the
ditch again; exposed himself to a hundred discharges
of musketry ; regained his pistol, and returned in
safety.
BRIDGE OF WICH.
The Spaniards driven from Maestricht, in 1576, by
tin inhabitants, still remained masters of Wich, a
weak part of the town, and separated from the rest
ENTERPRISE, 135
by the Meusc. The vanquished humiliated at an
affront, which they attributed solely to their negli-
gence, sought to repair it immediately. The only
obstacle was a few cannon placed on the bridge,
which connected the two towns. To avoid this
danger, they determined to place in their front the
women of Wich. With this rampart they entered
upon the bridge ; and under cover of these strange
shields, fired on the citizens ; who unable to defend
themselves without drawing on their parents, or at
least on the women of their own party, quitted their
post, took refuge in their houses, and abandoned the
field of battle to the Spaniards.
SIR FRANCIS DRAKE.
Besides his daring exploits against the Spaniards,
Sir Francis Drake is renowned for having been the
first Englishman who circumnavigated the globe.
The expedition he proposed to Queen Elizabeth was
a voyage into the South Seas, through the Straits
of Magellan. The project was favourably received
at court, and the means of attempting it soon fur-
nished. The fleet with which he sailed on this extra-
ordinary enterprise consisted of the Pelican, of one
hundred tons, commanded by himself; the Elizabeth,
of eighty tons ; the Marygold, a bark, of thirty tons ;
the Swan, a fly boat, of fifty tons ; and a pinnace of
fifteen tons. On board this fleet were embarked one
hundred and sixty-four men. The fleet sailed from
Falmouth on the 13th of December, 1577. On the
13th of March, Drake passed the equinoctial line ; and
on the 15th of April made the coast of Brazil, in I;<*
n 2
136 PERCY ANECDOTES.
30°, and entered the river de la Plata. Here he took
the crews and stores out of two of his vessels, and
destroyed them. On the 20th of August he entered
the Straits of Magellan ; and on the 2.3th of Sep-
tember he also entered the South Sea, having separated
from the rest of his squadron, which he never after-
wards rejoined. But notwithstanding this diminution
of his strength, he pursued his voyage with undaunted
resolution, coasting along the rich shores of Chili
and Peru ; and taking all opportunities of capturing
Spanish ships, or of attacking their settlements on
shore, until his crew were satisfied with the booty
they had made. He then coasted the shore of North
America to the latitude of 48°, endeavouring to find
a passage northward into the Atlantic ocean ; but
being disappointed in his object, he shaped his course
for the Moluccas, and thence homewards. On the
15th of June he doubled the Cape of Good Hope,
having then but fifty-seven men on board his ship, and
three casks of water. After having crossed the line,
he steered for the coast of Guinea ; which he readied
on the 10th of July, and there watered. He finally
entered the harbour of Portsmouth on the 25th of
September, 1580. In this voyage he completely
circumnavigated the globe, and brought home im-
mense wealth.
In the month of April in the following year, the
queen honoured Drake with a visit on board his ship
at Deptford, and conferred on him the honour of
knighthood, in testimony of her entire approbation
of his conduct. She likewise gave directions for the
preservation of his ship, that it might remain a mo-
nument of liis own and his country's glory; but in
ENTERPRISE. 137
process of time the vessel decaying, it was broken
up ; and a chair made of the planks was presented to
the University of Oxford, where it is still preserved.
MILITARY DEVOTION.
In the war of La Vendee, General Kleber with
four thousand men was completely surrounded by an
overwhelming force of the enemy ; and saw no other
way of saving his little band, except by stopping for
a short time the passage of the Vendeans through a
narrow ravine, which was all that was between the two
armies. He called an officer to him, for whom he had
a particular friendship and esteem. "Take," said he
to him, "a company of grenadiers ; stop the enemy
before that ravine ; you will be killed, but you will
save your comrades." " General, I shall do it," re-
plied the officer ; who received the order to immo-
late himself with as much calmness, as if it had been
a simple military evolution. The prediction of Kleber
was but too fatally verified. The brave officer arrested
the enemy's progress, but perished in the achieve-
ment.
A similar instance of devotion was exhibited in the
affair of Saumur, 3rd of June, 1793. General
Coustard gave orders to a corps of cavalry to carry
an enemy's battery, which prevented his going to the
succour of the left of the army. " Where are you
sending us ?" asked Weissen, the commander of the
corps. " To death .'" replied Coustard ; " the safety
of the republic demands it." Weissen stopped to
hear no more ; but charging at the head of his cavalry,
gained possession of the battery ; the infantry how-
n 3
138 PERCY ANECDOTES,
ever refusing to advance to his support, the advantage
was but momentary ; the enemy returned in over-
powering numbers, and the brave Weissen, and almost
every one of his intrepid band, perished in the unequal
conflict
AD3IIRAL BLAKE.
The life of a British sailor may be said to be a life
of enterprise ; this character, however, belongs more
particularly to some of our admirals, by whose noble
daring, the most gallant exploits have been achieved,
and the naval glory of Britain exalted to the highest
pitch. Among tbose who, at an early period of our
naval history, contributed much to this end, none was
more distinguished than Admiral Blake, who, although
embracing the profession of a sailor, late iu life, made
the English feared and respected in every quarter of
the globe.
Blake's first naval adventure was driving the re-
mains of the revolted fleet, under Prince Rupert,
from the coast of Ireland, and then following it into
the Mediterranean. On his return from this service
in February, 1751, he captured a French man of
war, of forty guns. Blake first hailed the French
captain to come on board his ship ; which being com-
plied with, he asked him if he was willing to resign
his sword ? The Frenchman replied, that he was not ;
upon which Blake generously told him to return to
his own ship, and fight as long as he was able. The
captain took him at his word, made dispositions for
action, and after fighting very bravely for two hours,
struck. He then repaired a second time on board
ENTERPRISE. 139
Blake's ship, and presented his sword to the victo rious
admiral.
In 1656, Blake having received intelligence that
the Plate fleet had put into the harbour of Santa
Cruz, in the Island of Teneriffe, he immediately pro-
ceeded thither ; and on his arrival discovered six
galleons, with other vessels, lying in the port, before
which a boom was moored. The port itself was well
fortified, being defended by a strong castle, well sup-
plied with artillery, and seven forts united by a line
of communication, well manned with musqueteers.
The Spanish governor thought the place so secure, and
his own dispositions so excellently made, that when
the master of a Dutch ship desired leave to sail,
because he was apprehensive that Blake would attack
the ships, the Spaniard answered with great confi-
dence, " Get you gone if you please, and let Blake
come if he dare." Blake reconnoitered the position
of the enemy, and seeing the impracticability of
bringing off the vessels, resolved to attempt to destroy
them. Commodore Staynerwas entrusted to lead this
bold and desperate attack. With a small squadron
he forced his passage into the bay, while some other
ships kept up a distant cannonade on the castle and
fort ; and the wind blowing fresh into the bay, he was
soon supported by Blake and the rest of the fleet.
The Spaniards made a brave resistance ; but all their
efforts were unavailing, and they had the misfortune
to see their whole fleet destroyed.
140 PERCY ANECDOTES,
IRISH SOLDIER.
During the late war in Portugal, and while tire
army was on its march from Almendralejo to Merida,
an Irish soldier having drank rather freely, quitted the
ranks. He had scarcely done so, before he fell into
a sound sleep, from which he did not awake till very
late in the evening. Alone, and in an uninhabited
part of the country, the poor fellow knew not whither
to turn himself. He upbraided himself for his mis-
conduct, and fancied himself already condemned by
a court-martial, and the sentence ready to be carried
into execution. To a village on his left he directed
his steps, to see if some friendly individual would
plead for him at head-quarters. In this viilage he
was informed there were two French soldiers con-
cealed. A thought darted across his mind, that if he
could get them secured, he would be able to carry
them into Almeida as prisoners, and thereby procure
his pardon. In an instant he loaded his musket,
proceeded to the house where the Frenchmen ^3^,
disarmed them, and in two hours after marched them
off in triumph. Some officers of the 71st regiment
seeing a British soldier with two Frenchmen, as pri-
soners, coming from the opposite side of the river,
where none of the allied troops were at that time
quartered, asked the soldier, " What men are these
you have got?" The Hibernian replied, "By St.
Patrick, your honours, I cannot tell, but I believe they
are Frenchmen."
ENTERPRISE. 141
GIBRALTAR.
The very name of Gibraltar revives in the bosom
of every Briton the spark of military ardour. It
is justly considered as the brightest jewel of the
British crown, which no boon, however splendid
and valuable, could induce the nation ingloriously to
barter.
The importance of this fortress, which is considered
by Europe as the key to the Mediterranean sea, does
not seem to have been duly estimated by the Spa-
niards until they lost it ; not even by the English,
who became masters of it more through accident than
design. Sir George Rooke had, in the year 1704,
been sent into the Mediterranean with a strong fleet, to
assist Charles, Archduke of Austria; but was so li-
mited by instructions, as to be unable to effect any
enterprise of importance. Unwilling to return to
England with a powerful squadron without having
achieved something, he called a council of war, and
it was determined to attack Gibraltar.
On the 21st of July, 1704, the fleet reached the
bay, and 1800 men, English and Dutch, commanded
by the Prince of Hesse d'Armstadt, were imme-
diately landed on the Isthmus. On the 23rd, the
ships commenced a brisk cannonade on the New Mole,
which in five or six hours drove the enemy from
their guns in every quarter, but more completely
from the New Mole head. Captain Whitaker, with the
armed boats, was ordered to possess himself of that
post; but Captains Hicks and Jumper, who lay with
their ships nearest the mole, eager to share in every
142 PERCY ANECDOTES,
part of the glory, pushed ashore in their barges before
the other boats could come up. On their landing,
the Spaniards sprung a mine upon them, which blew
up the fortifications, killed two lieutenants and forty
men, and wounded sixty. The assailants, however,
kept possession of the work, and being joined by
Captain Whitaker, boldly advanced, and took a
small bastion, half way betwixt the mole and the
town. The Marquess de Salines, who was governor,
being again summoned, thought proper to surrender,
and the British colours for the first time waved over
the rock of Gibraltar.
No sooner were the Spaniards acquainted with the
loss of this important fortress, than they made every
effort to regain it. Foiled in several attempts, the}'
formed the extravagant and desperate scheme of sur-
prising the garrison, although a British admiral was
then before the town. On the 31st of October, five
hundred volunteers took the sacrament, never to
return till they had planted the Spanish flag on the
battlements of Gibraltar. This forlorn hope was con-
ducted by a goatherd, to the south side of the rock,
near the Cave guard. They mounted the rock, and
during the first night lodged themselves unperceived
in St. Michael's cave. On the succeeding night they
scaled Charles the Fifth's wall, and surprised and
massacred the guard at Middle Hill. By the as-
sistance of ropes and ladders they got up several
hundreds of the party appointed to support them ;
but being by this operation discovered, a strong de-
tachment of grenadiers marched up from the town,
and attacked them with such spirit, that one hundred
and sixty of them were killed, or forced over the pre-
ENTERPRISE. 143
cipice ; and a colonel and thirty officers, with the re-
mainder, taken prisoners.
Since that period several attacks have been made
on Gibraltar, with no better success ; but the greatest of
all was the memorable siege of 1781-2, when France
and Spain brought before it the most tremendous
force ever employed in any modern siege. General
Elliott, whose name has been immortalized and iden-
tified with the event, was at this time Governor of
Gibraltar, with a garrison of near 6000 men. The
Spanish army, consisting of 14,000, was encamped
within a mile and a half of the gates, and had con-
structed the most extensive works. These General
Elliott determined if possible to destroy ; and ac-
cordingly, on the night of the 27th of November, a
sortie was made from the garrison, the enemy sur-
prised, and their works set on fire and blown up. All
this was effected in less than two hours, and with the
loss of one man only, who being the first to mount
a battery, encountered the Spanish captain of artillery,
whom he wounded ; but being wounded also, he
could not be got off before the flames had reached
him. The works thus destroyed had cost the Spaniards
the enormous sum of thirteen millions of large piastres,
equal to three millions sterling.
The Spanish monarch, mortified at the disgrace
brought on his arms, and the great loss that he had
sustained by this sortie, publicly declared his deter-
mination to have Gibraltar at all events, cost what it
would. It was now determined to make the grand
attack by sea and land, which had been so long pro-
jected ; and the command of this mighty enterprise
was given to the Duke de Crillon. From the arriva'
144 PERCY ANECDOTES,
of this commander, the most active preparations were
made in constructing batteries, which, however, were
frequently destroyed by the garrison. The whole
force of the allied crowns seemed to have been con-
centrated in this spot, and such a naval and military
spectacle is scarcely to be equalled in the annals of
war. Their naval force consisted of forty-four large
ships of the line, three inferior two-deckers, ten bat-
tering ships, five bomb-ketches, a great number of
gun and mortar boats, a large floating battery, many
armed vessels, and nearly three hundred boats. The
land batteries were furnished with two hundred and
forty-six pieces of cannon, mortars, and howitzers ;
and the combined army now amounted to forty
thousand.
On the 13th of September the grand attack was
made by sea ; and met by the garrison by a brisk fire
of red-hot balls. After a few hours, the admiral's
ship was observed to smoke, and eight more of the
ships took fire in succession. Several of the battering
ships exploded in the course of the following day ;
the remaining eight ships also blew up with terrible
explosions. Brigadier Curtis, with his squadron of
gun-boats, exerted himself most gallantly in the cause
of humanity, and saved upwards of three hundred
persons from the ships which were on fire, who must
otherwise inevitably have perished. Lord Howe
afterwards 'arrived with a fleet, and reinforced the
garrison. The Spaniards, after the failure of their
grand attack, kept up a petty warfare until February,
1782, when the news of preliminaries of a general peace
having been signed at Paris, terminated hostilities.
ENTERPRISE. 145
SIEGE OF HAERLEM.
Haerlem, threatened with being invested by the
Spaniards in 1573, found the means of ascertaining
the efforts that other towns, their allies, were making
in their favour. The inhabitants had by a precaution
known to the ancients, and very common in the Le-
vant, trained pigeons to pass between the cities of the
confederation. Every time that it was necessary to
convey information, a letter was attached under the
wing of one of these birds, which was let loose. It
never failed to fly direct to Haerlem. In this manner
the citizens and the troops, to whom it announced
prompt and powerful succours, were encouraged to
make a brave defence.
FEMALE RESOLUTION.
Dumont, whose " Narrative of a Thirty-four Years'
Slavery and Travels in Africa," has recently been
published, relates the following anecdote of a female
during the siege of Gibraltar, in 1782 : " The Count
d'Artois came to St. Roch, to visit the place and the
works. I well remember that his highness, while
inspecting the lines in company with the Duke
de Crillon, ' both of them with their suite alighted,
and all lay flat on the ground, to shun the effects of a
bomb that fell near a part of the barracks where a
French woman had a canteen. This woman, with
two children on her arm, rushes forth, sits with the
utmost sangfroid on the bomb shell, puts out the
match, and thus extricates from danger all that were
o
146 PERCY ANECDOTES.
around her. Numbers were witnesses of this inci-
dent ; and his highness granted her a pension of three
francs a day, and promised to promote her husband
after the siege. The Duke de Crillon imitated the
prince's generosity, and insured to her likewise a pay-
ment of five francs a day.
FRENCH TRUMPETER.
In the war on the Rhine, in 1794, the French got
possession of the village of Rhinthal by a very curious
ruse de guerre of one Joseph Werck, a trumpeter.
This village was maintained by an Austrian party of
six hundred hussars. Two companies of foot were
ordered to make an attack on it at ten o'clock at
night. The Austrians had been apprised of the in-
tended attack, and were drawn up ready to charge on
theassailingparly. Onperceivingthis, Werck detached
himself from his own party, and contrived by favour
of the darkness to slip into the midst of the enemy ;
when taking his trumpet, he first sounded the rally,
in the Austrian manner, and next moment the retreat ;
the Austrians, deceived by the signal, were off in an
instant at full gallop ; and the French became masters
of the village without striking a blow.
CHARLES THE TWELFTH.
When Charles had not as yet attained the years of
manhood, his youth and inexperience encouraged the
Kings of Poland, Denmark, and the Czar of Russia,
to enter into a confederacy against him, for the pur-
pose of wresting from him those dominions which had
ENTERPRISE. 147
been ceded to his father and grandfather. The
youthful monarch was not disconcerted at the news
of this powerful league ; he seemed rather to rejoice
that an opportunity would be afforded him of dis-
playing his hitherto latent courage and abilities.
When the designs of the confederacy were certainly
known, a Swedish council was convened, at which the
king attended, and was for some time a silent spec-
tator of their proceedings. In the midst, however, of
their discussions he rose, and with a dignified air,
declared that he had determined never to engage in
an unjust war ; but having been drawn into one by
the ambitious views of an enemy, he would never
delist till he had humbled and ruined him. " It is,"
says he, " my resolution to go and attack the first who
shall dare to avow his designs ; and when I have-
conquered him, I trust the others will be intimidated."
This declaration, so unexpected on the part of his
council, was followed by a total change of conduct in
the young prince. He gave up all his former amuse-
ments, and renounced those habits and indulgences
which might seem to withdraw his attention from the
more important concerns of his country.
As soon as Charles was informed of the invasion of
Livonia by a Saxon army, he quitted his capital,
and embarking his troops at Carlscroon, sailed for
Denmark, and proceeded at once to Copenhagen.
The vessel had scarcely touched the ground, when he
leaped into the se;i, sword in ham!, followed by his
guards and chief officers ; and advancing iu the midst
of a shower of musket shot, he asked of the general
who stood next to him, " What the whistling was
which he heard 5 " " It is the noise of the bullets fined
o 2
148 PERCY ANECDOTES.
at you," replied his general. " This then," said the
king, " shall henceforth be the music in which I shall
delight."
How truly he spoke, his after life amply testified.
The Danish capital submitted almost instantly to his
arms ; and in a few weeks the world beheld with sur-
prise, a youth of only eighteen years of age dictating
a peace on terms the most honourable to himself, and
disgraceful to the confederacy against him.
ABYSSINIAN BRUCE.
Mr. Bruce was about to retire to a small patrimony
he had inherited from his ancestors, in order to em-
brace a life of study and reflection, nothing more
active appearing within his power, when the cele-
brated Lord Halifax represented to him, that nothing
could be more ignoble than at such a time of life ; at
the height of his reading, health, and activity ; to turn
as it were peasant, and bury himself in obscurity and
idleness ; that though war was then drawing fast to
an end, full as honourable a competition remained
among men of spirit, which should acquit themselves
best in the dangerous line of useful adventure and
discovery.
Lord Halifax adverted then to the field which Africa
presented for discovery ; and it is not a little curious,
that though the discovery of the source of the Nile,
Bruce's grand achievement, was also a subject of the
conversation, it was always mentioned to Mr. B. with
a kind of reserve, as if it were a thing only to be ex-
pected from a more experienced traveller. " Whether,"
^ays Bruce, " this was but another way of exciting
ENTERPRISE. 149
the attempt, I shall not say ; but my heart in
that instant did me justice to suggest, that this too
was either to be achieved by me, or remain as it had
done for these last two thousand years, a defiance to
all travellers, and an opprobrium to geography."
When Bruce arrived at the long desired spot, the
sources of the Nile, 14th of November, 1770, " It is
easier," he says, " to guess, than to describe the si-
tuation of my mind at that moment ; standing on that
spot which had baffled the genius, industry, and
enquiry of ancients and modems, for the course of
near three thousand years. Kings had attempted
this discovery at the head of armies ; and each expe -
dition was distinguished from the last only by the
diiference of the numbers which had perished, and
agreed alone in the disappointment which had uni-
formly followed them all. Fame, riches, and honour,
had been held out for a series of ayes, to every
individual of the Myriads these princes commanded,
without having produced one man capable of grati-
fying the curiosity of his sovereign, or wipin
this stain on the enterprise and abilities of mankind ;
or adding this desideratum for the encouragement
of geography. Though a mere private Briton, [
triumphed herein my own mind over kings and die':r
armies."
From this feeling of exultation, a momentary
transition took place in Bruce's mind to a sentiment
of indifference, which he thus naturally and forcibly
describes.
" Although at this moment in possession of what
had for many years been the principal object of my
ambition and wishes ; indifference which, from the
o 3
150 PERCY ANECDOTES.
usual infirmity of human nature follows, for a time
at least, complete enjoyment had taken place of it.
The marsh and the fountains, upon comparison with
the use of many of our rivers, became now a trifling
object in my sight. I remembered that magnificent
>cene in my own native country, where the Tweed,
Clyde, and Annan, rise in one hill ; three rivers I now
thought not inferior in beauty to the Nile, preferable
to it for the cultivation of those countries through
which they flow ; superior, vastly superior, to it in the
virtues and qualities of the inhabitants, and in die
beauty of its flocks, crowding its pastures in peace,
without fear of violence from man or beast. I had
seen the rise of the Rhine and Rhone, and the more
magnificent sources of the Soane. I began in my
sorrow to treat the enquiry about the source of the
Nile, as a violent effect of a distempered fane v.
' What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba,
That he should weep for her?' "
After all, die mere achievement of discovering the
source of the Nile is nothing, compared with the ex-
traordinary powers which Bruce exhibited among the
savage nations, with whom he was obliged to sojourn
in the course of his undertaking. On this subject a
recent traveller has left the following warm testimony,
which is the more to be regarded, that it was the result
of personal observation.
" Acquainted," says Burckardt, " as I am with the
character of the Nubians, I cannot but sincerely ad-
mire the wonderful knowledge of men, firmness of
character, and promptitude of mind, which furnished
Bruce with the means of making his way through
ENTERPRISE. 151
these savage inhospitable nations, as an European.
To travel as a native has its inconveniences and diffi-
culties ; but I take those which Bruce encountered
to be of a nature much more intricate and serious, and
such as a mind at once courageous, patient, and
fertile in expedient, alone could have surmounted."
PRINCE OF ENTERPRISE.
If ever there was a man who had a just title to this
denomination, it was Horatio Nelson. We men-
tion him by the name in which he may be said to have
" put on immortality." Most truly was it once said,
in apology for directing a letter simply to Horatio
Nelson, Genoa — Sir, there is but one Horatio
Nelson tn the world !"
The whole life of this extraordinary man was one
continued blaze of heroic enterprise ; he was ever
panting after deeds of surpassing daring. He was
never at ease, but in the midst of the battle and the
tempest ; he seemed to have no joy but in the
mightiest of dangers ; he made a sort of child's play
of probabilities ; and with a giant's strength wrestled
with impossibility itself.
From the despatches and letters of Nelson which
are extant, a perfect text work for the philosophy of
enterprise might be formed. The many noble im-
pulses, many aspiring resolves, in which they abound-
all so pure, so patriotic, so worthy of the dignity of
our nature — present lessons which no commentary
could exhaust, nor lapse of time depreciate.
"Oh ! how I long," said he, in a letter to his wife,
while yet only a captain in that navy which he
152 PERCY ANECDOTES,
was destined to lead to so ruany unrivalled triumphs,
" to be an Admiral, and in the command of an
English fleet ! I should soon either do much, or be
ruined. Mine is nut a disposition for tame measures."
In the partial engagement to which Admiral Hotham
brought the French fleet in April, 1793, Nelson went
on board the admiral's ship as soon as the firing grew
slack in the van, and the Ca Ira and Censeur had
struck, when he proposed to the admiral to leave
his two crippled ship.-, the tsvo prizes, and four frigates,
to themselves, and to pursue the enemy. The admiral,
however, much cooler than his captain, observed, " We
must be contented ; we have done very v> ell." " Now,"
says Xelson in a letter, in which this interview is re-
lated, " had we taken ten sail, and allowed the
eleventh to escape, when it had been possible to have
got at her, I could never have called it — well done"
The broad principle on which Nelson acted through
the whole course of his professional career, and which
all naval men ought to keep ever present in tfkir
memories, is thus emphatically laid down in another
letter which he wrote to Count Mocenigo at Corfu.
" In sea affairs nothing is impossible, und nothing im-
probable."
A presentiment of his future renown, was always
the predominant passion of his soul. " One day or
other," said he, when writing to his wife, 2nd of
August, 1796, " I will have a gazette for myself; I feel
that such an opportunity will he given me. I cannot,
if I am in the field of glory, be kept out of sight."
When it was resolved to withdraw our fleet from
the Mediterranean, in consequence of the expected
junction of the French and Spanish squadrons, the
ENTERPRISE. 153
feelings of Nelson were much irritated at the idea of
such a retreat ; and in another letter to his wife he
thus poured them forth. " We are all preparing to
leave the Mediterranean. They at home do not
know what this fleet is capable of performing — any
thing, and every thing. Much as I shall rejoice to see
England, I lament our present order in sackcloth and
ashes, so dishonourable is it to the dignity of England,
whose fleets are equal to meet the world in arms."
A genius of the towering order of Nelson's, was
fitted to prosper only when left to itself. As his
actions were beyond those of ordinary men, so were
his notions of what could and ought to be acted. His
mind created for itself opportunities of distinction,
in what to others were situations of forlornness and
despair. We find accordingly, that on the first occa-
sion in which he signalized himself on a grand scale,
he was, though in a subordinate command, the entire
architect of his own glory. A great opportunity
presented itself to him ; and at the hazard of incurring
the greatest penalty which a breach of discipline can
entail, he had the noble daring to seize it. On the
14th of February, 1797, the signal was flying from
the whole fleet to tack in succession ; when it came to
Nelson's turn, as commodore of the rear division,
to obey the order, he saw at once that by doing so
the whole advantage of cutting the enemy's line would
be lost ; without hesitation therefore he resolved t«»
disregard the signal ; he ordered his ship to be wore ,
and the other ships of his division following the ex-
ample of their leader, eight of the enemy's ships
were thus cut off, forced to come to an engagement,
and four of them captured.
154 PERCY AXECDOTllS.
The late Mr. Clerk, of Eldin, author of the admi-
rable Essay on Naval Tactics, and the undoubted
inventor of the manoeuvre of cutting the line, to which
the British navy owes so many of its triumphs, used
to take great pleasure in quoting this achievement as
an unanswerable exemplification of the excellence of
his system. Indeed the manoeuvre of Nelson was no
more than a very exact solution of one of the problems
proposed in Mr. Clerk's Essay.
A similar thing occurred in the action off Copen-
hagen, 1st of April, 1801. Before victory had de-
clared itself in favour of the British, and when to
retire would have been discomfiture and disgrace,
Admiral Parker made the signal (No. 39) for the
engagement to cease. When the signal was reported to
Nelson, then walking on deck, he continued his walk,
and appeared to take no notice of it. The lieutenant
meeting his lordship at the next turn, asked " "Whether
he should repeat it?" Lord Nelson answered, " No,
acknowledge it." On the officer returning to the
poop, his lordship called after him, " Is No. 16
(signal for close action, which had been flying from
the beginning) still hoisted?" The lieutenant answered
in the affirmative. Lord Nelson said, " Mind you
keep it so !" He now walked the deck considerably
agitated, which was always known by his moving the
stump of his right arm. After a turn or two, he said
to Captain Foote in a quick manner, " Do you know
what's shown on board the commander in chief?
No. 39 ?" On Captain F.'s asking what that meant,
Nelson answered, " Why to leave off action. Leave
off action!" herepeated. "No, never while an enemy's
flag is flying." He also observed to Captain Foley,
ENTERPRISE. 155
"You know, Foley, I have only one eye. I have
a right to be blind sometimes." And then with an
archness peculiar to his character, putting the glass to
his blind eye, he exclaimed, " I really do not see the
signal."
Immediately before the last great engagement, in
which " God gave us victory, but Nelson died," he
asked Captain Blackwood " What he should consider
as a victory ?" Captain B. answered, " That con-
sidering the handsome way in which battle was offered
by the enemy, their apparent determination for a fair
trial of strength, and the proximity of the land, he
thought if fourteen ships were captured, it would be a
glorious result." Nelson replied, " I shall not, Black-
wood, be satisfied with any tiling short of twenty."
" I was walking with him," continued Captain Black-
wood, " on the poop, when he said, ' I'll now amuse
the fleet with a sigoal ;' and he asked me ' if I did not
think there was one yet wanting ?' I answered, that I
thought the whole of the fleet seemed very clearly to
understand what they were about, and to vie with
each other who should first get nearest to the Victory
or Royal Sovereign. These words were scarcely
uttered, when his last well known signal was
made, England expects every man to do his
SIR ALEXANDER BALL.
Lord Nelson first became acquainted with Sir Alex-
ander Ball at St. Omer in France, in 1783. They
parted in some degree prejudiced against each other.
After a long interval they again met, when Captain
156 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Ball was attached to the squadron, which Earl St.
Vincent, in 1798, sent up to the Mediterranean under
Sir Horatio. The prejudice which he had imbibed at
St. Omer still remained ; and on his first interview
with Captain Ball, Nelson observed, "What do you
expect by going with me ? do you wish to get your
bones broken ?" " I did not, sir," replied Captain
Ball, " come into service to save my bones ; I know^
you are going on a perilous service, and I am therefore
happy to go with you ?" During the subsequent
tempest in the gulf of Lyons, the talents and greatness
of mind of Captain Ball won the heart of Nelson ;
and from that time the utmost intimacy and mutual
regard existed between these officers.
SIR JAMES YEO.
Sir James Yeo, when a lieutenant on board the
Loire, in 1805, distinguished himself by landing, and
taking possession of the Spanish fort of Muros, by
storm, with a force of only fifty men. This action is
thus described by Captain Maitland :
" Having landed under the small battery on thapoint,
it was instantly abandoned ; but hardly had he time
to spike the guns, when at the distance of a quarter
of a mile, he perceived a regular fort, ditched, and
with a gate, which the enemy (fortunately never sus-
pecting our landing) had neglected to secure, open a
fire upon the ship ; without waiting for orders, he
pushed forward, and was opposed at the inner gate by
the governor, with such troops as were in the town,
and the crews of the French privateers. From the
testimony of the prisoners, as well as our own men, it
ENTERPRISE. 157
appears that Lieutenant Yeo was the first that entered
the fort ; with one blow he laid the governor dead at
his feet, and broke his own sabre in two. The other
officers were despatched by such officers and men of
ours as were most advanced, and the narrowness of the
gate would permit to push forward. The remainder
instantly fled to the further end of the fort, where
from the ship we could perceive many of them leap
from the embrasures upon the rocks, a height of above
twenty-five feet."
SERINGAPATAM.
The capture of Seringapatam was as important in
its consequences, as it was glorious in its achievement.
The strength of the fort was such, both from its na-
tural position, and the stupendous works by which it
was surrounded, that all the exertions of the brave
troops who made the attack were required to place it
in our hands.
On the 30th of April, 1799, the English batteries
opened on the fort ; and by the 3rd of May so much
of the walls was destroyed, that General Harris de-
termined on assaulting the place on the following
day. Accordingly the troops intended to be employed
were stationed in the trenches, early in the morning of
the 4th, that no extraordinary movemeut might lead
the enemy to expect the assault. At one o'clock the
troops moved from the trenches, crossed the rocky bed
of the Cavery under an extremely heavy fire, passed
the glacis and ditch, and ascended the breaches in the
fausse braye and rampart of the fort ; surmounting in
the most gallant manner every obstacle which the
158 PERCY ANECDOTES.
difficulty of the passage, and the resistance of the
enemy, presented to oppose their progress. Major
General Baird had divided his force for the purpose
of clearing the ramparts to the right and left. One
division was commanded by Colonel Sherbrooke ; the
other by Lieutenant Colonel Dunlop. Both corps,
although strongly opposed, were completely successful.
Colonel Dunlop was disabled by a wound he received
in a personal conflict with one of Tippoo's sirdars,
who assailed him with his scimitar about half way up
the breach, making a desperate cut at the colonel,
which he was fortunate enough to pass, and return
with a cut that laid the breast of his antagonist open.
The Sirdar, although moTtally wounded, made another
blow at Colonel Dunlop, which struck him across the
wrist of the right hand, and nearly cut it through.
The Sirdar then reeled back, and fell on the breach,
where he was bayoneted by the soldiers as they
passed. Colonel Dunlop still went on at the head of
his men, until he ascended to the top of the breach,
where he fell from the loss of blood, and was carried
off to the rear by some soldiers.
Resistance continued to be made for some time from
the palace of Tippoo Sultan, after all firing had
ceased from the works ; but nothing could withstand
the impetuosity of our troops, and every part of the
city was soon in our power.
The forlorn hope in the assault was led by a serjeant
of the light company of the Bombay European regi-
ment, who volunteered his services on the occasion.
He was a Scotchman of the name of Graham. He
ran forward to examine the breach ; and mounting it,
pulled off his hat, and with three cheers called out,
ENTERPRISE. 159
" Success to Lieutenant Graham !" (alluding to his
having a commission if he survived.) He then rejoined
his party, and with them remounted, holding the
colours in his hand. Upon reaching the rampart, he
stuck the colour staff* in it, exclaiming with enthusias-
tic ardour, " I'll show them the British flag !" At this
moment the gallant Graham received a shot through
his head, and fell on the ramparts.
During this assault, Tippoo hurried along the north-
ern ramparts to the breach, where he fired several
times on the assailants with his own hands, and wilh
considerable success ; and when abandoned by his
men, he did not attempt to escape, but rushing on-
ward, received two musket balls in his body ; his
horse also being wounded, sunk under him, and he fell
to the ground. It is related, that an English soldier
offering to pull off the sword belt of the Sultan, which
was very rich, Tippoo, who still held his sabre in his
hand, made a cut at him with all his remaining strength.
The man wounded in the knee, put his firelock to his
shoulder, and the Sultan receiving the ball in his
temple, instantly expired.
MAJOR GENERAL GILLESPIE.
At the attack on Kalunga in the Nepaul war,
after the retreat had been sounded a second time,
Major Ludlow took post in some ruined huts imme-
diately under the wall of the fort, and considerable
apprehensions were felt for him and his party, who
were likely to be cut off. At this instant General
Gillespie saw that it was requisite to do something to
save this little band of heroes ; and being greatly
p 2
160 PERCY ANECDOTES.
vexed at the failures of the storming party, he turned
to an officer standing by him, and said, "Sir, I will
take that post, or die before it." He then gave some
orders ; and addressing himself to the brigade major,
said, " Now, sir, I am at your service." After this
he went on most gallantly, waving his hat and cheering
the men, until he was shot through the heart, and fell
without uttering a syllable.
MUNGO PARK.
The world have read with wonder the narrative of
the extraordinary adventures, each of them sufficient
to appal the stoutest heart, which the lamented Mungo
Park encountered in the course of his first journey
into Africa ; and considering the well-known modesty
and discretion of his character, the reader will not
perhaps be surprised to learn, that many adventures
still more extraordinary than any which he has related
in his published narrative, were, from a motive of
prudence, suppressed.
We have been told by more than either two or
three individuals who enjoyed the pleasure of an
intimate intercourse with Mr. P. after he retired to
Fowlshields, in the south of Scotland, that they have
heard adventures recounted to them by Mr. P. which
were altogether new to them, and exceeded in interest
and singularity any thing contained in his printed
journal. Among the number was the celebrated
Walter Scott, who was naturally induced to ask Mr.
P. the reason of this omission. Mr. P. replied, " that
in all cases where he had information to communicate
which he thought of importance to the public, he
ENTERPRISE. 161
had stated them boldly, leaving it to his Teader to
give such credit to his statements as they might
appear justly to deserve ; but that he would not shock
their credulity, or render his travels more marvellous,
by introducing circumstances which, however true,
were of little or no moment, as they related solely
to his own personal adventures and escapes." To a
Mr. E , who made a similar enquiry, Mr. P.'s
answer was more laconic, but equally to the purpose.
" Sir, they were too marvellous to be believed."
Immediately on Mr. P.'s landing in England, he
hastened to London, anxious to the last degree about
his family and friends, of whom he had heard nothing
for two years. He arrived in the metropolis before day-
light on the morning of Christmas Day, 1797; and it
being too early an hour to go to the house of his
brother in-law, Mr. Dickson, he wandered for some
time about the streets in that quarter of the town where
his house was. Finding one of the entrances into the
gardens of the British Museum accidentally open, he
went in, and walked about there for some time. It
happened that Mr. Dickson, who had the care of
these gardens, went there early that morning upon
some trifling business. The reader may easily con-
ceive what must have been Mr. D.'s emotions on be-
holding, at that extraordinary time and place, the
vision, as it must at first have appeared, of his long-
lost friend, the object of many anxious reflection^,
and whom he had numbered among the dead.
When Mr. Park afterwards commenced business
as a medical man in the south of Scotland, it was the
constant observation of his friends, that his mind
was set on some far different pursuit. Mr. Walter
p 3
162 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Scott calling one day at Fowlshields, and not finding
him at home, walked in search of him along the
banks of the Yarrow, which is there a romantic
stream, running among rocks, and forming deep eddies
and pools. In a short time he found Park employed
in plunging large stones into the river, and watching
with anxious attention the bubbles as they rose to the
surface. On being asked by his friend the reason why
he persevered so long in this singular amusement, " This
was the manner," answered Park, " in which I used
to ascertain the depth of a river in Africa before I
ventured to cross it ; judging whether the attempt
would be safe by the time which the bubbles of air
took to ascend." It was not then known that Park
had any thoughts of undertaking a second mission ;
but this left no doubt in Mr. Scott's mind that he had
formed such an intention.
Notwithstanding his determination again to visit
Africa, he acknowledged that the horrors of his cap-
tivity in the Moorish camp of Benowm had never
ceased to be impressed upon his imagination. He used
often to start from his sleep in great trepidation, sup-
posing himself still a prisoner in the tent of AH.
Mr Scott declares in feeling terms the manner of
his last parting with his friend. About the time of
his quitting Fowlshields, never again to return to it,
Park paid Mr. Scott a farewell visit, and slept at
Ashesteil. The next morning Mr. Scott accompanied
him part of the way on his return to Fowlshields, and
they rode together over the wild chain of pastoral
hills which divide the Tweed from the Yarrow. Park
talked much of his new African expedition, and men-
tioned his determination of going straight from Edin-
ENTERPRISE. 163
burgh, without returning to Fowlshields, as he could
not venture to trust his own feelings, or those of his
family, with a formal parting. They were then on the
top of Williamhope ridges, a lofty hill which over-
looks the course of the Yarrow ; and the autumnal
mist which floated heavily and slowly down the valley
beneath them, presented to Mr. Scott's imagination a
striking emblem of the troubled and uncertain pro-
spect which Park's undertaking afforded. Mr. Scott
pressed on his friend the danger likely to result from
his being accompanied by a military force, which he
then thought the most unsafe mode of travelling in
Africa ; the number of the troops proposed to be
employed appearing to be inadequate for conquest,
or even for serious defence, yet large enough to ex-
cite suspicion. Park answered these objections by
describing the manner in which Africa was sub-divided,
among petty sovereigns, who were not likely to form
any regular combination for cutting him off, and whose
boundaries were soon traversed. He spoke also of
the long journeys common in those countries, and the
habit of seeing cofles, or caravans, of all nations pass
through these territories, on paying a small duty •
from which he inferred that the march of a small party,
such as that which was to be placed under his
command, would excite no serious apprehension.
This interesting conversation occupied the two friends
till they had passed the hills, and came to a road
where it had been agreed they should separate. A
small ditch separated the Muir from the road ; and in
going over it Park's horse stumbled, and nearly fell.
"lam afraid, Mungo," said Mr. Scott, " that is a
had omen." To which he answered, smiling, " Freits,
164 PERCY ANECDOTES,
(i. e. omens) follow those who look to them," With
this proverbial expression, and afraid of a formal
adieu, he rode away, and was speedily out of sight.
The eagerness with which Park set out on this
second expedition, was probably one great cause
of its melancholy termination. Instead nf waiting
till the season of the rains was over, he trusted to the
possibility of a march sufficiently rapid to enable him
to reach the Niger before they set in; unhappily they
overtook him in the midst of his journey, and the first
night of rain struck one fourth of his party with
sickness.
ISAACO, PARK'S GUIDE.
Mr. Park's guide, Isaaco, as the party were passing
one of the rivers, was very active in pushing the asses
into the water, and shoving along the canoe ; but
being afraid that they would not be all got over in the
course of the day, he attempted to drive six of the
asses across the river farther down, where the water
was shallower. When he had reached the middle of
the river, a crocodile rose close to him, and instantly
seizing him by the left thigh, pulled him under water.
With wonderful presence of mind he felt the head of
the animal, and thrust his linger into its eye ; on which
it quitted its hold, and Isaaco attempted to reach the
farther shore, calling out for a knife. But the croco-
dile returned, and seized him by the other thigh,
and again pulled him under water ; he had recourse
to the same expedient, and thrust his fingers into its
eyes with such violence, that it again quitted him ;
;»nd when it rose, it flounced about on the surface of
ENTERPRISE. 165
the water as if stupid, and then swam down the
middle of the river. Isaaco proceeded to the other
side, bleeding very much : as soon as the canoe
returned, Mr. Park went over, and found him much
lacerated ; but through the surgical assistance he
was able to afford him, bis wounds were gradually
healed.
CAPTAIN COOK.
The interests of science, as well as of commerce,
are indebted to no man more than to the illustrious
but unfortunate Cook. Before his time, almost half
the surface of the globe was involved in obscurity and
confusion ; but since then such improvements have
been made, all originating in his extraordinary exer-
tions, that geography has assumed a new face, and
become in a manner a new science ; having attained
to such completeness, as to leave only some less im-
portant parts to be explored by future voyagers.
After having twice circumnavigated the globe, in
which assiduous and perilous service little short of
six whole years had been employed, it was thought
by his country but reasonable that he should be
allowed to spend the remainder of his life in quiet ;
and to enable him to do this in the most comfortable
manner, his sovereign made ample and honourable
provision. When, however, another expedition was
afterwards resolved upon, to solve the interesting
question, whether there was a passage to the East
Indies between the northern parts of Europe and
Asia, the nation could not help universally turning
their eyes towards Cook, as the only man in whom
166 PERCY ANECDOTES.
they could put their trust for the accomplishment of
so important an undertaking. So perfectly did the
government feel that they were without any claim on
his services, that they would make no direct solici-
tation to Captain Cook on the subject ; but they took
care to put him in no doubt, that if he chose to volun-
teer his services, they would be most gladly accepted.
They consulted him on every thing relating to the
equipment of the expedition, and at last requested
him to name the person whom he judged most fit to
conduct it. In order to settle this point, Captain
Cook, Sir Hugh Palliser, and Mr. Stephens, were in-
vited to the house of Lord Sandwich to dinner. The
conversation at their meeting naturally branched into
more things than the consideration of the proper offi-
cer for conducting the expedition. Lord Sandwich
enlarged on its nature and dignity, its consequences
to navigation and science, and the completeness it
would give to the whole system of discoveries. Sir
HughPalliser and Mr. Stephens did not fail to con-
tribute their part to swell the tide of feeling. The
enthusiasm of Captain Cook became at length so
much roused by the representations he heard of the
importance and glory of the undertaking, that starting
up, he exclaimed, " I will conduct it myself !" This
was just what the parties present had desired ; his
offer was instantly laid before the king, and Captain
Cook appointed officer of the expedition.
ENTERPRISE. 107
GENERAL WOLFE.
" No tombstone need his worth proclaim,
Quebec for ever, shall record his fame ;
Quebec for ever, shall with wonder tell,
How great beneath her walls, her conq'ror fell."
ANON.
The fame which General Wolfe acquired at the
siege of Louisburg, the surrender of which was prin-
cipally owing to his bravery and skill, pointed him
out to Mr. Pitt as the most proper to command the
army destined to attack Quebec, although he was
then not more than thirty-three years of age.
Quebec was the capital of the French dominions in
North America ; it was well fortified, situated in the
midst of a country hostile to the English, and de-
fended by an army of 20,000 men, regulars and
militia, besides a considerable number of Indians.
The troops destined for this expedition consisted of
ten battalions, making altogether about 7000 men.
Such was the army destined to oppose three times
their own number, defended by fortifications in a
country altogether unknown, and in a season of the
year very unfavourable for military operations. But
this little array was always sanguine of success, for
it was commanded by General Wolfe, who had
attached the troops so much to his person, and in-
spired them with such resolution and steadiness, in
the execution of their duty, that nothing seemed too
difficult to accomplish.
On the 13th of September, 1759, the grand attack
on Quebec was made. General Wolfe landed his
168 PERCY ANECDOTES.
army on the northern shore of the river St. Lawrence.
The difficulty of ascending the hill was so great, that
the soldiers not being able to go two a-breast, were
obliged to pull themselves up by stumps and
bows of trees that covered the declivity. The French
commenced battle with a brisk fire of musquetry.
Wolfe ordered his men to reserve their fire until they
■were within forty yards of the enemy. They then
attacked with great fury, and the French gave way.
In the commencement of the battle, General Wolfe
was wounded in the wrist by a musket ball; he wiapt
his handkerchief round it, and continued to give his
orders with his usual calmness and perspicuity.
Towards the end of the engagement, he received
another wound in the breast, which obliged him to
retire behind the rear rank. Here he laid himself
on the ground ; soon after a shout was heard, and one
of the officers near him exclaimed, " See how they
run!" The dying hero asked with some emotion,
" Who run ?" " The enemy," replied the officer,
" they give way every where." The general then said,
" Pray do one of you run to Colonel Burton, and tell
him to march Webb's regiment with all speed down
to Charles river, to cut off the retreat of the fugitives
from the bridge. Now, God be praised, I shall die
happy." He then turned on his side, and imme-
diately expired.
It is a circumstance not generally kuown, but
believed by the army which served under General
Wolfe, that his death wound was not received by the
common chance of war, but given by a deserter from
his own regiment. The cause of this treacherous act
is said to have been as follows : The general perceived
ENTERPRISE. 1GV
one of the Serjeants of his regiment strike a man
under arms, (an act against which he had given par-
ticular orders,) and knowing the man to be a good
soldier, reprimanded the aggressor with much warmth,
and threatened to reduce him to the ranks. This so
far incensed the serjeant, that he took the first op-
portunity of deserting to the enemy, where he pre-
meditated the means of destroying the general ; which
he effected, by being placed in the enemy's left
wing, which was directly opposed to the right of the
British line, where Wolfe commanded in person, and
where he was marked out by the miscreant, who was
provided with a rifle piece, and unfortunately effected
his diabolical purpose.
After the defeat of the French army, the deserters
were all removed to Crown Point ; which being after-
wards suddenly invested and taken by the British
army, the whole of the garrison fell into the hands of
the captors, when the serjeant was hanged for de-
sertion ; but before the execution of his sentence, he
confessed the facts above recited.
BONAPARTE.
The first campaigns of the French after the revo-
lution, were remarkable for that sudden excitement
which precipitated towards the frontiers of France a
million of new and undisciplined men, to oppose by
their courage and enthusiasm the confederated force
of the finest troops of which Europe could boast.
The campaign of Italy presented Europe with a
spectacle still more astonishing ; in this one campaign,
which was nothing but one continued series of battles,
170 PERCY ANECDOTES.
three armies were successively destroyed ; more than
one hundred and fifty colours were taken ; fatty
thousand Austrians laid down their arms ; the whole
of Italy was conquered ; and all these prodigies were
achieved by no more than thirty thousand French,
under a young general of twenty-eight years of age !
The rapidity with which the French army moved,
far exceeded what Caesar reports of the Roman legions
in his Commentaries. The Roman legions marched
at the rate of twenty-four miles a day ; the French
marched thirty, and fought every day.
It was a common saying with the troops, " The
general has discovered a new method of making war ;
he makes more use of our legs than of our bayonets."
On a subsequent occasion, when the extreme fatigue
which the soldiers underwent was a subject of observa-
tion, Bonaparte observed, " If I force them to march,
it is to spare their blood."
At the memorable passage of the Bridge of Lodi, it
was not less the celerity and promptitude of movement,
than invincible heroism, that carried the day. The
fire of the enemy, who defended the passage with
thirty pieces of cannon, was terrible ; the head of the
charging column of the French appeared to give way.
" A moment of hesitation," says Bonaparte in his
official despatch on the occasion, " would have lost
all." " Generals Berthier, 3Iassena, Cervoni, DA1-
lemagne ; the chief of brigade, Lanne ; and the chief
of battalion, Dupat, dashed forwards at its head, and
determined the fate of the day, still wavering in the
balance." Bonaparte does not include his own name
in the list of this heroic band, though well known to
have been one of the foremost in the charge ; the
ENTERPRISE. 171
modesty which dictated this concealment, even hisre-
vilers must admire. "This redoubtable column," he
continues, " overturned all opposed to it ; Beaulieu's
order of battle was broken ; astonishment, flight, and
death, were spread on all sides. In the twinkling of
an eye the enemy's army was scattered in confusion."
" Although," he continues, " since the commence-
ment of the campaign we have had some very warm
affairs, and although the army has often been under
the necessity of acting with great audacity, nothing
has occurred which can be compared to the terrible
passage of the Bridge of Lodi.
" Our loss has been small ; and this we owe to the
promptitude of the execution, and to the sudden
effect which the charge of this intrepid column pro-
duced on the enemy."
A TRIFLING EXCEPTION.
In 1643, St. Preuil, the governor of Amiens, who
depended much on a stratagem that he had conceived
for seizing upon Arras, was anxious to engage a
soldier named Courcelles to execute it. "I have
made choice of you,"' said he to him one day," as the
most prudent soldier that I know, for a blow that will
make your fortune. The business is to surprise Arras,
and hear how I have planned it. You shall disguise
yourself as a peasant, and go and sell fruit in the
place. After you have done this some time, you
must quarrel with some person, and kill him with a
poignard. You must suffer yourself to be taken ; you
will be tried on the spot, and be condemned to be
hanged. You knew the custom of Arras is, to have
« 2
172 PERCY ANECDOTES.
their executions out of the city. It is on this circum-
stance that my design depends. I will place an
ambuscade near the gate, by which you shall be
brought out. My people will render themselves
master of those who shall come out, who belong to
the spectacle. I will march in the instant to their
assistance, and make myself master of the place ;
which as soon as I am, I shall rescue you. This is
my project : what do you say to it ?" " It is fine,"
replied Courcelles; "but the thing deserves some
consideration." " It does," said St. Preuil ; " think
of it, and to-morrow let me have your resolution."
The next day Courcelles waited on his commander.
" Well, my brave fellow," said St. Preuil, " what do
you think of my project now?" "Sir," replied
Courcelles, " it is admirable ; only I should like that
you would give me the command of the ambuscade,
and take yourself the basket of fruit."
A VETERAN HIGHLANDER.
In the battle before Quebec, which terminated in
the reduction of that town, when the command of the
army had, by the death of General Wolfe, devolved
on General Townshend, he observed an old high-
lander in front of the army, laying about with the
most surprising strength and agility, bearing down all
opposition, till almost spent with fatigue, he retired
behind a breast-work of dead bodies. After resting
a short time, he stripped off his coat which encumbered
him, and again returned to the charge with new
vigour. The general, full of admiration at his intrepid
behaviour, ordered him to be brought before him after
ENTERPRISE. 173
the engagement; and having bestowed on him the
encomiums which his gallant conduct merited, he
asked him how he could leave his native country, and
follow the fortune of war at such an advanced age !
He replied, that his hatred to the French for their
perfidious conduct on many occasions, had made him
leave his family at seventy years of age, as a volun-
teer, in order to be revenged on them before his
death ; and he hoped on that day he had not dis-
graced himself, his king, or his country. General
Townshend was so much pleased with the magnani-
mity of the brave fellow, that he brought him home
with him, and presented "him to Mr. Pitt, by whom he
was introduced to his majesty, who immediately gave
him a lieutenant's commission, with the liberty of
serving in any corps he might choose, or to retire to
his family and friends, with full pay during his
life.
The name of this gallant Highlander was Malcolm
Macpherson, of Phones, in Badenoch. His broad-
sword, with which he so nobly revenged himself on
his country's foes, had descended from father to son
as a particular legacy, for upwards of three hundred
years.
THE " NE PLUS ULTRA."
The following extraordinary advertisement has re-
cently made its appearance in the American journals,
one of which adds, that the advertiser is not only a
respectable, but a sane man. He is said to have already
got twenty volunteers for his expedition.
q 3
174 PERCY ANECDOTES.
" Light developes light, ad iiifinitum."
" St. Louis (Missouri Territory)
North America, April 10, A.D. 1818-
" To all the world — I declare the earth to be hollow
and habitable within ; containing a number of con-
centric spheres one within the other, and that their
poles are open twelve or sixteen degrees. I pledge
myself in support of this truth, and am ready to
explore the concave, if the world will support and
aid me in the undertaking.
" JOHN CLEVES SYMMES,
" Of Ohio, late Captain of Infantry."
" I ask one hundred brave companions, well
equipped, to start from Siberia, in Autumn, with rein
deer and sledges, on the ice of the Frozen Sea. I
engage we find a warm country, and rich land, stocked
with thrifty vegetables and animals, if not men, on
reaching about sixty -nine miles northward of latitude
50°. We will return in the succeeding spring.
" j. c. s."
When they do return, we shall be happy to add in
some future edition of our work an account of their
marvellous enterprise.
INDEX.
ANECDOTES OF ENTERPRISE.
Amazonian Prisoners 31
Argyle. Duke of 6
Ark wright, Sir R 41
Ball, Sir Alexander 155
Battle of Malplaquet 70
Black Agnes 35
Blake, Admiral 138
Bonaparte 169
Bridge of Inspruck 14
Wlcb 134
Bruce, Mr 148
Canal of Languedoc 107
Capture of the Chesapeake .. 92
of Cuidad Rodrigo .. 90
ofFortBorgie 22
ofSardis 20
of Sark 21
Carew, Captain 3
Charles XII 146
Columbus 25
Competition for a Crown .... 27
Conjugal Affection 37
Conde,the Great 69
Cook, Captain 163
Cornish Wanderer 87
Coup de Main 134
Drake, Sir Francis 135
Derby, Earlof 4
Descent on Cape Breton .... 96
Douglas! a Douglas! 5
Elephant Hunt 43
Equality in Danger 121
Escape from Indians 57
of the Pretender .... 78
Expedition extraordinary .... 97
Female Resolution 145
Fisher-boy of Naples 29
Flying 63
French Trumpeter 146
Generous Intrepidity 109
Gibraltar 141
Gillespie, General 1 59
Grateful Minstrel 67
GustavusVasa 131
Guyton de Morveau 62
Haerlem. Siege of 145
Hannibal 48
Hone, Earl 59
Horatius Codes 13
Hutton, William 82
Intrepid Mariner 92
Irish Soldier 140
Isaaco, Park's Guide 164
Joan of Arc 125
Julius Catsar 42
King of Tristan d'Acunha.... 71
Leander outdone 115
Ledyard 117
•• Let him that loves me, follow
me" 4
Literary Industry 122
Magdaleine de St. Nectaire.. 34
Maurice of Nassau 6
Meadows, General 60
Mexican Youths 26
Military Devotion 137
Miraculous Shot 40
Montfort, Countess de 33
Mungo Park 160
Nelson, Lord 61
"Ne plus ultra," the 173
New River 88
Obedience of Orders 121
Passage of the Granicus .... 17
of the Desert 52
of the Somme 19
Paul, the Tiger Hunter 105
Pearl Fishery lis
Percys, Origin of the 64
Philip of Macedon id
Portuguei* Champion lor
Prince of Enterprise isi
il
INDEX.
I'utnani, General 7:1
Ralegh, Sir Walter 6s
Recaptures 95
Retreat of the Teu Thousand. 14
Rennel, Major 61
Reward of Industn 28
Royal Female Pirate 37
Running for Life 111
Scotch Adventurers 77
Seringapatam 157
Serpent of Rhodes 103
ShereAfgun 7
Siege of Jerusalem 24
Aleppo 35
Siesre of St. Sebastian 119
Slide of Alpnach 46
Speckbaclur 15
Surprise of Breda 130
of Schenek 131
Tiger in his Deu 56
Triding exception 171
Ventriloquial Gallantry 100
Veteran Corps 106
Highlander 172
Wolfe, General 167
Yeo, Sir James 156
London: D. Cartwright, I'rinter, 91, Bartholomew Close.
INDEX.
ANECDOTES OF HUMANITY.
Abolition of capital Punishments64
Adopted Captives 94
Alexander, Emperor 137
the Great 9
Algerines 101
Arabian Hospitality 76
Archduke Charles 22
Augustus, Emperor 40
Battle of Camperdown 23
Beauty of Clemency 5
Beccaria 145
Begging Nun 18
Benedictine Abbot 175
Bentley 143
Benevolent Gaoler 35
Berkeley, Bishop 178
Black Prince 54
Blanche of Castile 91
Blucher, Prince 125
Brazilian Hospitality 108
British Benevolence 106
British Tar 131
Buchanan 16
Bonaparte 33
Burke, Mr 179
Caroline, Queen 81
Caesar 7
Caliph Omar 36
Catherine, Empress 13
Charles V. of France 16
Ch r, Earlof 174
Charlotte, Queen 87
, Princess 133
Christian II 152
Loyalty 130
Clarence, Duke of 43
Clarkson, Mr 121
Clerical Devotion 19
Cochrane, Lord 13G
Columbus 177
Convent Dungeon , 139
Consanguinitarium 104
Coram, Captain 89
Cowper 124
Cruelty Punished 60
Culloden Refugees 128
Dalton, General 73
Deaf and Dumb Youth 118
Delicate Beneficence 32
Denial of Mercy 164
D'Enghein, Duke 123
Digby, Lord 112
Disappointed Compassion .. 72
Du Bois, Cardinal 49
Duties of a King 126
Earthquake at Lisbon 126
Faithful Stewards 68
Faulkner, George 114
Female Infanticide 160
Fenelon 143
Filial Affection 51
Fothergill, Dr 30
Fortunate Foundling 29
Francis II 14
Frederick the Great 66
Prince of Wales .. 151
Friendless Candidates 68
Friend of the Poor 32
Fry, Mrs 156
Gagliani 107
Gainsborough 46
Gallies, the 21
Garth, Dr. ..- 70
Generous Tar 82
Genius relieved 26
George 1 42
II 42
Ml 19. K
II
INDEX.
Goldsmith, Dr 05
Good Fortune 28
tor Evil 75
Soldier 55
Gordon, Dukeof 84
Grenadier, French 138
Guise, Dukeof , 79
Hanwav, Jonas 98
Henry IV. of France 10
Highwayman, Generous 70
Hill, Rev. Holland 146
Hill, Colonel 59
Honest Poverty 148
Hood^SirS .". 167
Hospital Nuns 159
Howard 115
Humane Driver io
flume 103
Indian Captive 62
Chief 61
Widow 140
Insolvent Negro ,. 79
Irish Orange Woman 97
Jewsaved
Johnson, Dr
Joseph II
Judgment of the Areopagus..
Keith, Marshal 93
L , Duchess of....
Largorysky, Count..
Lavalette
Lesson to Conquerors
Letts bin, Dr
Lex Talonis
Live and let Live ....,
Louis XI ,
XV ,
XVI
Metellus, Triumph of 6
Mina, General 176
Mimic reclaimed M
Misanthrope 166
Misplaced Clemency 90
Moliere 101
Montesquieu 141
Mompesson, Rev. W m
Montausier, Duke de
Monks of St. Bernard....
Montagues, last of the ..
Moscow, Conflagration of
Mungo Park
Music
Mysterious Benefactor ..
Magnanimous Reproof
Maintenon, Madame
Marcus Brutus
Aurelius
Massacre of the Hugonots ..
Marseilles, Bishop of
Man of Ross
Memory todoGood
Mercy and Sacrifice
Neckar, M 21
Negro Beggar si
Nero ^.' 9
Northumberland, Duke of .. 71
Orange, Prince of C7
Orleans, Dukeof 41
Ormond, Earl of 97
Otway's Orphan 13$
Peter the Great 12, 55
Petition of the Horse 26
Philosophy of Punishments .. 4
Plague at 'Malta in
Pocket Money 174
Poor Man's Mite 09
Priuce Regent 20, 99
Prisoners set Free 119
Ransom, the 31
Redemption of Captives .... 100
Reign of Terror J47
Retribution 37
Reynolds, Sir Joshua 114
Reward of Constancy ^7
Rights of Hospitality" 29
Rigid Methodist ..* 159
Rooert King of France 171
Royal Exile (.0
Ruisiau Officer 170
Cerl's 170
Sackville, Lord George 145
Saxe, Marshal 1.6
Self Devotion 39
Seneca Indians 171
Sharpe, Granville 120
Shenstone 10s
INDEX.
of Caieta 5
— Calais 52 I
letonor the Wreck ...
e Trade, origin of the.
tb, Dr. Hugh
nish Armada
ouis 78
isieux, Bishop of Si
lev, Sir Philip -**
t 46
t=on, Archbishop 127
lire abolished 168
irn Tree 150
Ungrateful Guest
Vespasian
Victims of Treachery ,
78 Wager, Loss of the Ship
170
Way to lose an Empire 6
Weeping at a Play 83
Weimar Society 134
Wesle\,.fohn..... 106
Wheel of Fortune 117
Widow and Bishop 17
iWilberforce, William 180
Wishart 163
Woman 158
Worth of a Denier 70
Xiraenes, Cardinal si
York, Duke of,
London : D. Cartwrlght, Printer, 91, Bartholomew Close.
HILL .
BXC1 liOTBS
Oili^liYAlL AjXu MILH^f
SHOJLTO AMU REH7BEIY PEKCT
BROTHERS OF THK liK.VKDKTINK MONASTERY
L ' Q>0
I'KINTKI) I'wIJ ^BOTE'S, LITIGATE I M J.I -
SIR WILLIAM SIDNEY SMITH, K.C.B.
ETC. ETC. ETC.
VICE-ADMIRAL OFJTHE RED,
3nr clrot££ of Qaptibity
RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED,
BY HJS
MOST OBEDIENT AND
MOST HUMBLE SERVANTS,
Wtxtn anectrotM*
ANECDOTES OF CAPTIVITY.
"Empire o'er tbe sea and main,
Heaven that gave can take again;
But a mind that's truly brave,
Stands despising
Storms arising,
And can ne'er be made a slave."
LONGINUS.
The Queen Zenobia being at war with the Emperor
Aurelian, was defeated by him near Antioch, and
compelled to retire to her fortified capital, Palmyra.
The emperor sent her a written summons to surrender;
to which she returned an answer drawn up by the
celebrated philosopher, Longinus, which was couched
in terms that raised his highest indignation. The
emperor made enormous efforts to reduce the place ;
and the Palmyrians were at length obliged to open
their gates and receive the conqueror. Zenobia and
Longinus endeavoured to escape into Persia ; but
were overtaken and made prisoners, as they were
crossing the Euphrates. When the captive queen
b 2
4 PERCY ANECDOTES.
was brought before the emperor, all her fortitude for-
sook her; she laid the blame of her conduct on her
counsellors ; and particularly fixed the odium of her
affronting letter on its true author. Aurelian, who
was hero enough to conquer, but not to forgive, now
turned the whole of his vengeance on the head of the
unfortunate philosopher, who was carried off to im-
mediate execution, amid the generous condolence of
those who wept to see so much merit thus cruelly
sacrificed. Longinus met his fate with calmness.
He expressed pity for Zenobia, and comforted his
friends. He said he looked upon death as a blessing,
since it rescued his body from slavery, and gave his
soul the most enviable freedom. " This world," said
he, with expiring breath, " is nothing but a prison;
happy therefore he who gets soonest out of it, and
gains his liberty."
CAXDID CULPRIT.
The Duke of Ossuna, Viceroy of Xaples, passing
through Barcelona, went on board the Cape Galley,
and passing through the crew of slaves, he asked
several of them what their offences were. Every one
excused himself upon various pretences ; one said
he was put in out of malice, another by bribery of the
judge ; but all of them unjustly. The duke came at
last to a sturdy little black man, whom he questioned as
to what he was there for. " My lord," said he, "I
cannot deny but I am justly put in here ; for I
wanted money, aud so took a purse near Tarragona,
to keep me from starving." The duke, on hearing
CAPTIVITY. 5
this, gave him two or three blows on the shoulder with
his stick, saving, "You rogue, what are you doing
among so many honest innocent men ? Get you out
of their company." The poor fellow was then set at
liberty, while the rest were left to tug at the oar.
CAPTIVES BEFORE CYRUS.
Xenophon relates, that when an Armenian prince
had been taken captive, with his princess, by Cyrus,
and was asked what he would give to be restored to
his kingdom and liberty, he replied, " As for my
kingdom and liberty, I value them not ; but if my
blood would redeem my princess, I would cheerfully
give it for her." When Cyrus had liberated them
both, the princess was asked, " What think you of
Cyrus?" to which she replied, " I did not observe
him ; my whole attention was fixed upon the generous
man who would have purchased my liberty with his
life."
SERVILIA.
Among the numerous victims of the tyranny of
Nero, was one Bareas Soranus, a man, as Tacitus
informs us, of singular vigilance and justice in the
discharge of his duty. During his confinement, his
daughter Servilia was apprehended, and brought into
the senate to be arraigned. The crime laid to her
charge was, that she had turned into money all her
ornaments and jewels, and the most valuable part of
her dress, to defray the expense of consulting magi-
cians. To this the young Servilia, with a flood of
B 3
f) PERCY ANECDOTES.
tears replied, " That she had indeed consulted magi-
cians, but the whole of her inquiry was to know
whether the emperor and senate would afford pro-
tection and safety to her dear and indulgent parent,
against his accusers. " With this view," continued she,
" I presented the diviners, men till now utterly un-
known to me, with my jewels, my apparel, and other
ornaments peculiar to my quality, as I would have
presented my blood and life, could they have pro-
cured my father's liberty. But whatever this my
proceeding was, my unfortunate father was an utter
stranger to it ; and if it is a crime, I alone am guilty."
This pathetic appeal was lost on the sanguinary
monster ; and Servilia and her father were condemned
to die.
KING AGRIPPA.
When Agrippa was in a private station, he was
accused by one of his servants of having spoken
injuriously of Tiberius, and was condemned by the
emperor to be exposed in chains before the palace
gate. The weather was very hot, and Agrippa be-
came excessively thirsty. Seeing Thaumastus, a ser-
vant of Caligula, pass by, with a pitcher of water,
he called to him, and entreated leave to drink. Tbe
servant presented the pitcher with much courtesy ;
and Agrippa having allayed his thirst, said to him,
"Assure thyself, Thaumastus, that if I get out of
this captivity, 1 will one day pay thee well for this
glass of water." Tiberius dying, his successor, Caligula,
soon after not only set Agrippa at liberty, but made
him King of Judea. In this high situation, Agrippa
CAPTIVITY. 7
was not unmindful of the glass of water given to him
when a captive. He immediately sent for Thauruastus,
and made him comptroller of his household.
FILIAL PIETY.
Valerius Maximus relates, that a woman of dis-
tinction having been condemned to be strangled, was
delivered to the triumvir, who caused her to be carried
to prison in order to be put to death. The gaoler
who was ordered to execute her, was struck with
compunction, and could not resolve to kill her. He
chose howeverto let her die with hunger ; but meanwhile
suffered her daughter to visit her in prison, taking
care that she brought her nothing to eat. Many days
passed over in this manner, when the gaoler at length
surprised that the prisoner lived so long without food,
and suspecting the daughter, took means of secretly
observing their interviews. He then discovered that
the affectionate daughter had all the while been nou-
rishing her mother with her own milk. Amazed at so
tender, and at the same time so ingenious an artifice,
he related it to the triumvir, and the triumvir to the
prastor, who thought the fact merited stating in the
assembly of the people. This produced the happiest
effects; the criminal was pardoned, and a decree
passed, that the mother and the daughter should be
maintained for the remainder of their lives at the
expense of the public, and that a temple, sacred to
filial piety, should be erected near the prison.
8 PERCY ANECDOTES.
ESCAPE OF CAVADES.
When Cavades, King of the Persians, was deposed
and imprisoned by his subjects, his queen, who alone
remained attached to him in his misfortunes, never
failed to bring him necessaries with ber own hands,
although she was not permitted to see him. One day,
while on this visit of conjugal affection, she observed
that the keeper of the castle noticed her "very par-
ticularly, and appeared affected at her beauty and
misfortunes. She took advantage of the favourable
impression, and soothed him so far, as to be allowed
access to her husband. Her visits were at length
permitted to take place so free from observation, that
one evening she managed to change clothes with her
husband, who thus disguised, stole out of the prison
without being discovered. "When the gaoler entered,
he found his supposed prisoner in bed ; a few words
inarticulately uttered, indicated sickness as the cause;
the gaoler was satisfied, nor was the cheat discovered
till some days had elapsed, and Cavades had escaped
beyond the reach of pursuit. He fled to the King of
the Euthalites, by whose assistance he was afterwards
restored to his throne and kingdom.
BAJAZET.
Tamerlane the Great having made war on Bajazet,
Emperor of the Turks, overthrew him in battle, and
took him prisoner. The victor gave the captive
monarch at first a very civil reception; and entering
in familiar conversation with him, said, '• Now, king,
CAPTIVITY. 9
tell me freely and truly what thou wouldst have done
with me, had I fallen into thy power? Bajazet, who
was of a fierce and haughty spirit, is said to have
thus replied : " Had the gods given unto tne the
victory, I would have enclosed thee in an iron cage,
and carried thee about with me as a spectacle of de-
rision to the world." Tamerlane wrathfully replied,
" Then, proud man, as thou wouldst have done to
me, even so shall I do unto thee." A strong iron
cage was made, into which the fallen emperor was
thrust ; and thus exposed like a wild beast, he was
carried along in the train of his conqueror. Nearly
three years were passed by the once mighty Bajazet
in this cruel state of durance ; and at last being told
that he must be carried into Tartary, despairing of
then obtaining his freedom, he struck his head with
such violence against the bars of the cage, as to put
an end to his wretched life.
CHOICE OF CLOVIS.
Erchionalde, Mayor of the Palace in the reign of
Clovis II., bought from some pirates a girl of exquisite
beauty, named Bandour, or Baltide, whom he after-
wards presented to his sovereign. The monarch was
so transported with her charms, that he thought he
could not better grace his throne than by raising her
to share it along with him. History does the fortunate
fair one the justice to inform us, that while on the
throne, she never forgot having been a slave ; and that
after the death of Clovis, having taken the veil, her
mind became wholly purified from any passion for
grandeur, and she appeared almost to forget that she
had once been a queen.
1<» PERCY ANECDOTES.
ST. LOUIS.
At the unfortunate battle of Daraietta against the
Saracens, Louis IX. was taken prisoner. He bore
this reverse of fortune so nobly and so magnanimously,
that his enemies said to him, " We look upon you as
our captive and our slave ; but though in chains, you
behave to us as if we were your prisoners."
The sultan having sent one of his generals to the
king, to demand a very considerable sum of money
for his ransom, his majesty replied, " Return, and tell
your master, that a King of France is not to be re-
deemed with money ; I will give him the sum he asks
for my subjects that are taken prisoners ; and I will
deliver up to him the City of Damietta for my own
person." And such were the terms on which the
liberation of the King of France and his subjects was
afterwards effected.
JOHN, KING OF FRANCE.
" This prince," says an old French chronicler very
strongly, " vendit sa propre chair en Cencam," sold his
own flesh by auction ; for, in order to ease his subjects
from some taxes he was obliged to impose upon them
to pay his own ransom, when taken prisoner by
Edward the Black Prince, and confined in the Tower
of London, he gave his daughter Isabella in marriage
to Galeas Visconti, Duke of Milan, for a considerable
sura of money. This alliance, though beneath the
royal race of France, did honour to the sovereign
from the excellence of the motive, and could not dis-
CAPTIVITY. 11
grate the princess, as she became the fortunate in-
strument of contributing to the ease and happiness of
her country.
John had left in England two of his sons as hostages
for the payment of his ransom. One of them, the
Duke of Anjou, tired of his confinement in the Tower
of London, escaped to France. His father, more
honourable, proposed instantly to take his place ; and
when the principal officers of his court remonstrated
against his taking this chivalrous but dangerous mea-
sure, he told them — "Why, I myself was permitted
to come out of the same prison in which my son was
in consequence of the treaty of Bretagne, which he
has violated by his flight. I hold myself not a free
man at present. 1 fly to my prison. I am engaged
to do it by my word ; and if honour were banished
from all the world besides, it should have an asylum
in the breast of kings."
The magnanimous John accordingly proceeded to
England, and became a second time a prisoner hi the
Tower of London, where he died in 1384.
EDWARD OF CAERNARVON.
As the agents of Edward the Third were conduct-
ing his unfortunate kinsman, Edward of Caernarvon,
to Berkely Castle, the scene of his tragic and sorrow-
ful end, it came into their minds that to prevent his
being recognized by the people on the road, it would
be well to have his head and beard shaved. They
accordingly commanded tli< prince to alight from hi>
horse, and obliging him to sit down on a mound by
the way side, one of the escort, who officiated as
12 PERCY ANECDOTES.
barber, brought a bason of cold water taken out of
the next ditch, observing to the prince, that " for that
time any water must do." The prince, deeply af-
fected, burst into a flood of warm tears, which falling
into the dish, he pathetically observed, " Behold,
monsters, Nature supplies what you would deny."
CAMEANELUL
This celebrated Dominican Friar of Naples, dis-
tinguished himself in his youth in a public disputation
with an old professor of his order. Irritated at having
been foiled by a youth, the vindictive priest accused
Campanella of treason and heresy ; in consequence
of which, he was imprisoned twenty-seven years, and
put to the rack seven times, for twenty-four hours
each time. By the power of abstraction which his
mind possessed, he bore the tortures inflicted upon
him with the greatest fortitude. At length he was
delivered from his confinement on the solicitation of
Pope Urban VIII. in 1624 ; when he went to
Paris, and obtained the patronage of the Cardinal
Jlichelieu.
FRANCIS I.
Captivity,
That- comes with honour, is true liberty."
MASSINGER.
When Francis, after having performed prodigies of
valour and of personal courage, and after having two
horses killed under him, was taken prisoner at the
battle of Pa via, he was conducted captive to the
CAPTIVITY. 13
celebrated convent of Carthusian Friars at Pavia.
He sent to his mother, Louisa of Savoy, Regent of
France in his absence, the melancholy news of his
captivity, conceived in these dignified and expressive
terras : " Toutest perdu, madame, hormis l'honneur."
From Pavia, Francis was conducted to Madrid,
where he was closely confined, and treated with
great indignity, contrary to the advice given to
Charles the Fifth, by one of his counsellors, the Bishop
of Osma, who advised his sovereign to present Francis
with his liberty, with no other condition annexed to
it, than that of becoming his ally ; urging that it
would be an act of generosity worthy of so great a
monarch.
Francis suffered extremely from his imprisonment,
and would most probably have died from it, had not
his sister, the Queen of Navarre, visited him in his
wretched and solitary state. So much did this
behaviour endear his sister to him, that he always
called her, " son ame," " sa mignon ;" and notwith-
standing his over strict and bigoted attachment to
the Church of Rome, he permitted her to become a
Protestant, without interfering with her religious
opinions.
When Francis was at length released from his im-
prisonment, and after lie had crossed in a boat the
small river Fontarabia, which divides Spain from
France, he mounted a fleet Arabian courser that was
brought him, and drawing his sword, cried out, in a
tone of transport and exultation, "lam still a king !"
14 PERCY ANECDOTES.
YOUTHFUL VICTIM.
" I think the best grace of wit will shortly turn
into silence; and discourse grow commendable in
none only but parrots." merchant of venice.
In 1674, the Jesuits of the College of Clermont in
the Rue St. Jaques, Paris, invited the king, Louis
XIV., to witness a tragedy performed by their
scholars. These able courtiers took care to insert in
the piece several strokes of flattery, with which the
monarch was greatly pleased. When the rector of
the college was conducting the king home, a noble-
man in his train applauded the success of the tragedy.
Louis said, " Do you wonder at it ? This is my college."
The Jesuits did not lose the advantage of such a
declaration. The very same night they got engraven
in large golden letters, on black marble, Collegium
Ludovici Magni, instead of the former inscription,
which was placed beneath the name of Jesus, on the
principal gate of the college, (Collegium Claromon-
tanum Societutus Jesus) and in the morning the new in-
scription was put up in place of the old one. A young
scholar of good family, only thirteen years of age,
who was witness to the zeal of the reverend fathers,
wrote the two following verses, which he posted up
at night on the college gate.
" Abstulit hinc Jesum, possuitque insignia Regis,
impia gens ; alium nou colit ilia Deum."
The Jesuits discovered the young author ; he was
arrested and thrown into the Bastile, and condemned
to perpetual imprisonment. He was afterwards
CAPTIVITY. 15
transferred to the citadel of the Isle St. Marguerite,
but brought back to the Bastile, where he remained
until the year 1705. The death of some of his re-
latives leaving him sole heir to the family, and its
great property, the Jesuit Riquelet, then confessor of
the Bastile, remonstrated to the order on the necessity
of restoring the prisoner to liberty. The golden
shower which forced the tower of Danae, had the
same effect on the castle of the Bastile, and lie was
released, after having.been a prisoner thirty-one years.
" A welcome deed ; but, sir, it comes too late;
Like sunbeams on the blasted blossoms do
Your favours fall."
OFFENDING A KING.
The publisher of a Leyden Gazette, who had
printed a satire on Louis XIV., was secretly seized in
Holland, brought away from thence, and shut up in
a cage at St. Michael, a convent and prison on a neck
of land on the coast of Lower Normandy. This cage
was about nine feet Jong, six broad, and eight high;
not of iron, but of strong bars of wood. It stood in
the middle of a room, and as the prisoner could not
possibly escape, it was evidently intended for punish-
ment rather than security. On some of the bars were
figures and landscapes, which are said to have been
cut by this unhappy man with his nails. After many
years confinement, he died a victim of the cruelty of
Louis le Grand !
C 2
16 PERCY ANECDOTES.
BREAKING PRISON.
The prisoners in the same St. Michael which was
the scene of the preceding tragedy, once consulted
John Knox, as to the lawfulness of attempting to
escape, by breaking their prison ; which was opposed
by some of their number, lest their escape should sub-
ject their brethren, who remained in confinement, to a
more severe treatment. He returned for answer,
that such fears were not a sufficient reason for re-
linquishing the design, and that they might with a
safe conscience effect their escape, provided it could
be done " without the blood of any shed or spilt.
To the shedding of any man's blood for their freedom,
he would never consent."
PELISSON.
So great was the friendship of this elegant writtr
for his patron, M, Fouquet, Superintendant of the
Finances of France, that he not only sent petitions to
Louis XIV. iu his favour, whigh, Voltaire says, in
style and manner resemble the orations of Tully,
but contrived to be sent to the Bastile, to give him
intelligence of what had been done respecting his
trial. Whilst he was confined there, he wrote a
poem called Eurymedon ; persuaded that by a great
effort of application of mind to a particular subject
he should alone be able to soften the rigours of his
confinement. He wrote the following lines on the
walls of his cell :
" Doubles grilles a gros cloux,
Triples portes, forts verroux,
CAPTIVITY. 17
Aux ames vrairaent mechantes
Vous rcpresentez l'enfer,
Mais aux ames innocentes
Vous n'etesque du bois, des pierres, et du fer."
GENEROUS GAOLER.
On the demolition of the Bastile of Paris, there
was discovered on the walls of one of the dungeons,
the following melancholy tribute to the humanity of
a gaoler of former times. It would seem as if the
unfortunate victim, by whose hand it was traced, had
a perfect anticipation that one day or other, this
den of horrors would be laid open to the world.
Charuel, 25 March, 1719.
Charuel hie degens, haec tristia carmina fecit,
Anno J 71 9.
Dijon, mon cher Dijon ! etant de tout denue,
Dans la necessity vous m'avez secouru, &c.
(translation.)
Dijon, my dear Dyon ! you gave me succour in my
great distress. In this dismal abode you clothed my
naked body with a shirt, which had been often refused
to my entreaties. Sure you have observed the
divine precept ; may God, an hundred years hence,
reward you with a crown of glory ! And may earth for
ever preserve the memory of this generous and faith-
ful gaoler ! Happy, a thousand times happy, those
who depart from the Bastile ; but a thousand times
more happy are those to whom its threshold is un-
known — for the purest innocence will not protect
those who have once set their foot here,
c 3
Pl.UCY ANECDOTES.
GHOUL'S.
Grotius having taken part in the political disputes
which agitated his native country, Holland, in the
early part of the nineteenth century, was condemned
to imprisonment for life in the Castle of Louvestein.
The malice of his persecutors was, however, fortu-
nately disappointed by the ingenuity of his wife.
Having obtained permission to remove some books
from the prison, she sent a large chest for the pur-
pose ; but instead of books, she deposited a more
valuable treasure, the illustrious Grotius himself;
and the gaoler having no suspicion, he was by this
means enabled to make his escape.
Nothing more strongly marks the genius and forti-
tude of Grotius, than the manner in which he em-
ployed his time during his imprisonment. It does
honour to religion and to science, and eminently
proves the consolations which are reserved for the
philosopher. While in the prison of Louvestein he
resumed his law studies, which other employments
had interrupted. He gave a portion of his time to
moral philosophy, wbich induced him to translate the
ancient poets, collected by Stobaeus, and the frag-
ments of Menander and Philemon. Every Sunday
was devoted to reading the Scriptures, and to writing
his Commentaries on the New Testament. In the
course of this work he fell ill, but as soon as he re-
covered his health, he composed his treatise in Dutch
verse, on the Truth of the Christian Religion. Sacred
and profane authors occupied him alternately. His
only mode of refreshing his mind, was to pass from
CAPTIVITY. 10
Due work to another; and although his talents pro-
duced so abundantly, his confinement was not more
than two years. We may well exclaim, in a trite
expression, that " his soul was not imprisoned."
VICTIM OF ETIQUETTE.
The preposterous degree of etiquette for which
the court of Spain has always been remarkable,
proved the ruin of one of the most illustrious of
Spaniards, in the person of the Duke of Ossuna. He
was Viceroy of Naples, and greatly renowned for his
talents as a soldier and a statesman. In consequence
of some calumnious reports, he was called to court, to
give an account of his administration ; and on pre-
senting himself to the king, being troubled with the
gout, and of short stature, he carried, for matter of
convenience, his sword in his hand. His majesty, it
seems, did not like this sword in hand style of ap-
proaching him, and turning his back on Ossuna, left
the room without speaking. The duke, probably un-
conscious of the cause of the king's displeasure, was
much incensed at this treatment, and was overheard to
mutter, " This comes of serving boys." The words
being reported to his majesty, an order was given for
Ossuna's arrest. He was committed prisoner to a
monastery, not far from Madrid ; and there he con-
tinued till his beard reached his girdle. Growing
then very ill, he was permitted to go to his house at
Madrid, where he died about the year 1622.
20 PERCY ANECDOTES.
SOLACE OF READIXG.
Among the sufferers from the capricious despotism
of Henry VIII., was Thomas, Duke of Norfolk, who
would most probably have perished on the scaffold,
had not the timely death of the tyrant reserved him
for better times. One of the articles brought against
the duke was, that he had complained that he was
not of the privy council ; and that his majesty loved
him not, because he was too much loved in the
country.
In his petition to the Lords, from the Tower of
London, he requests to have some of the books that
are at Lambeth ; " for,'' adds he, " unless I have
books to read ere I fall asleep, and after I am awake
again, I cannot sleep, nor have done these dozen
years. That I may hear mass, and be bound upon
my life, not to speak to him who says mass, which he
may do in the other chamber, whilst I remain within.
That I may be allowed sheets to lie on ; to have
license in the day time to walk in the chamber with-
out, and in the night be locked in as I am now. I
would gladly have license to send to London, to buy
one book of St. Austin, de Civitate Dei ; and one of
Josephus,de Antiquitatibus ; and another of Sabellius,
who doth declare, most of any book that 1 have read,
how the Bishop of Rome, from time to time, hath
usurped his power against all princes, by their unwise
sufferance."
CAPTIVITY. 21
THE BASTILE OF SAXONY.
" This vast rock," says Trenck, " is not a fortress
that an enemy must subdue before he can conquer
Saxony. It contains but a small garrison, incapable
of making a sally ; and serves only to secure the
records of the country, and prisoners of state. Konig-
stein is the Bastile of Saxony, in which many a brave
man has pined out his life in durance. When I was
there, part of the rock was blown up to form case-
ments. In doing this, there was found a dungeon
bored in the solid stone, to the depth of sixty fathoms.
At the bottom of this dungeon appeared a bedstead,
on which a skeleton reposed, and by its side the
remains of a dead dog. Mournful sight for a heart
possessed of the feelings of a man ! How savage
the tyrant that can invent such tortures for his fellow-
creatures, and can lie down on his pillow, conscious
that in a hole like this, a man is slowly consuming
the lamp of life, feebly supported by vain hopes of
compassion. Even now," adds Trenck, " the walls
of this prison confine three persons not unworthy of
notice. One of these was private secretary to the
Court of Saxony, and in the year 1756, betrayed the
secrets of the Dresden archives to the King of Prussia.
He was taken in Poland ; and has now been four and
thirty years in a dungeon ; he still lives — but his
appearance is more that of a wild beast than of a
man.
" Another is Colonel Acton. He who is acquainted
with the secret history of Dresden, will remember the
horrid poison scheme which was detected, but was
22 PERCY ANECDOTES.
thought proper to be kept secret. Acton was chief
in this conspiracy.
" The third is a fine young Swede. Six years ago
he was arrested at Leipsic, at the private request of
the King of Sweden, and brought to Konigstein in a
mask. When he was taken, he defended himself like
a lion, claiming his right to be protected by the law
of nations. This man is excluded from the light of
day. No one sees hini; no one speaks to him; and,
on pain of death, no one must know what is his name,
who he is, or even that he is there. From what I
could learn, he is no criminal ; he has had no trial ;
but some state or love intrigue at the Swedish court,
has brought on him his fate. Pity him, reader ! he
has no deliverance to hope for, but in death ; for the
Elector has promised the King of Sweden, that he
shall never behold the beams of the sun. He is now
under thirty years of age, and the worthy governor
cannot speak of him without the tear of compassion
in his eyes : he shrugs up his shoulders, looks up to
Heaven, and says, • It is the Elector's order, and I
must obey. God help him !' "
MILTIADES.
The hero of Marathon was in his latter days fined
fifty talents for failing in an enterprise of indifferent
consequence ; and being without the means of paying
it, was committed to prison for the default, though
suffering severely at the time from a wound in the
thigh. To be grateful or generous is not among the
virtues of republics ; otherwise a draft on the ample
glory of former years might have sufficed for payment
CAPTIVITY. 23
of the tine for one miscarriage. For this paltry con-
sideration of fifty talents, the wounded Miltiades
languished in prison, till his son, Cimon, found the
means of paying the money ; but still suffering from
his wounds, and suffering probably more from justly
wounded feeling, he did not long survive his en-
largement.
FRIENDLY IMPRISONMENT.
Duncan Creach M'Gregor, alias Campbell, like
the celebrated Rob Roy, was a sort of gentleman
dealer in cattle, and much esteemed by the late Duke
of Argyle, on account of his inviolable sincerity.
His Grace had not attained the title, when in the
commencement of those intrigues that produced the
rebellion in 1745, the heir of Mamore understood
Duncan Creach was on the point of involving him-
self in the Stuart cause. He sent for the drover, and
told him he had grounds to doubt his loyalty. Duncan
was silent ; and the duke taking his silence as a tacit
acknowledgment, asked how a true protestant, a man
whose independent spirit would be tenacious of li-
berty, religious and civil, could reconcile with a due
regard to his own rights, and the rights of his coun-
trymen, an enterprise in favour of a race whose
Romish superstition and arbitrary government were
notorious ? " Sir," replied Duncan, " the heart and
head of men, far wiser than I am, are often at variance.
The head has eyes ; the heart has feeling. My head
tells me that the questions you asked were calculated
to prove me a traitor, and the arguments you have
used prove me a fool. Yet, sir, if it were needful, I
24 PERCY ANECDOTES.
would count my life cheap for your service ; and though
I can spy in my chief some things not quite to my
mind, I am bound to follow, not to question where he
would lead me. Can less fealty be due to my here-
ditary king ?" The heir of Mamore saw Duncan was
above denying his intention, yet shunned an expla-
nation, lest he might implicate others. He managed
to get an order for confining Duncan Creach M'Gregor,
alias Campbell, as a suspected person ; and by a
short imprisonment saved him from execution, or
exile. Shortly after Duncan was furnished with free
quarters in the jail of Inverary, the heir of Mamore
passed by the windows ; and Duncan, to intimate that
he knew to whom he owed his detention, called out
through the bars, " When the heart is too strong for
the head, fools are laid by the heels."
So highly was Duncan Creach esteemed for his
sincerity and uprightness, that when through the
vicissitudes of his precarious occupation he became
insolvent, several gentlemen subscribed a sum of
money to enable him to resume business. He was in
a few years enabled to repay those generous friends ;
and soon after called a meeting of his former cre-
ditors, to whom he also paid twenty shillings in the
pound.
BLACK HOLE OF CALCUTTA.
Perhaps history has never furnished a tale so full
of horror, as that of the British subjects who were
confined, and most of them suffocated to death,
in the Black Hole of Calcutta, on the capture of
that city in 17j6. The genius of tyranny could
CAPTIVITY, 25
not possibly devise a more excruciating mode
of torture and death, than what these unfortunate
victims of the fate of war experienced. Mr. Holl-
well, one of the few survivors of the melancholy
catastrophe, has given to the world an affecting nar-
rative of all the circumstances attending it ; and
though rather long for the plan of our work, it pos-
sesses a degree of tender and sustained interest which
equally forbids exclusion and abridgment.
" Figure to yourself, (says Mr. Holwell) if possible,
the situation of a hundred and forty-six wretches,
exhausted by continual fatigue and action, thus
crammed together in a cube of about eighteen feet,
in a close sultry night, in Bengal, shut up to the east-
ward and southward (the only quarters from whence
air could reach us) by dead walls, and by a wall and
door to the north, open only to the westward by two
windows, strongly barred with iron, from which we
could receive scarce any the least circulation of fresh
air.
" What must ensue, appeared to me in lively and
dreadful colours, the instant I cast my eyes round,
and saw the size and situation of the room.
"Amongst the guards posted at the windows, I ob-
served an old Jemmautdaar near me, who seemed to
carry some compassion for us in his countenance ; and
indeed he was the only one of the many in his station,
who discovered the least trace of humanity. I called
him to me, and, in the most persuasive terms I was
capable, urged him to commiserate the sufferings he
was a witness to, and pressed him to endeavour to get
us separated, half in one place, and half in another ;
and that he should, in the morning, receive a thousand
t D
20 PEHCY ANECDOTES.
rupees for this act of tenderness. He promised he
would attempt it, and withdrew ; but in a few minutes
returned, and told me it was impossible. I then
thought I had been deficient in my offer, and promised
him two thousand ; he withdrew a second time, but
returned soon, and (with I believe much real pity and
concern) told me it was not practicable ; that it could
not be done but by the Suba's order, and that no
one dared awake him. During this interval, though
their passions were less violent, their uneasiness in-
creased. We had been but few minutes confined,
before every one fell into a perspiration so profuse,
you can form no idea of it. This consequently
brought on a raging thirst, which still increased, in
proportion as the body was drained of its moisture.
Various expedients were thought of to give more
room and air. To obtain the former, it was moved
to put off their clothes ; this was approved, as a
happy motion, and, in a few minutes, I believe every
man was stripped (myself, Mr. Court, and two
wounded young gentlemen by me, excepted). For a
little time they flattered themselves with having
gained a mighty advantage ; every hat was put in
motion to produce a circulation of air, and Mr. Baillie
proposed that every man should sit down on his hams :
as they were truly in the situation of drowning
wretches, no wonder they caught at every thing that
bore a flattering appearance of saving themselves.
This expedient was several times put in practice ; and
at each time many of the poor creatures, whose na-
tural strength was less than others, or had been more
exhausted, and could not immediately recover their
legs, as others did when the word was given to rise,
CAPTIVITY. 27
fell to rise no more ; for they were instantly trod to
death, or suffocated. When the -whole body sat
down, they were so closely wedged together, that
they were obliged to use many efforts before they
could put themselves in motion to get up again.
Before uine o'clock every man's thirst grew into-
lerable, and respiration difficult. Our situation was
much more wretched than that of so many miserable
animals in an exhausted receiver ; no circulation of
fresh air sufficient to continue life, nor yet enough
divested of its vivifying particles to put a speedy
period to it. Efforts were again made to force the
door, but in vain. Many insults were used to the
guard, to provoke them to fire in upon us (which, as
I learned afterwards, were carried to much greater
lengths, when I was no more sensible of what was
transacted). For my own part, I hitherto felt little
pain or uneasiness, but what resulted from my anxiety
for the sufferings of those within. By keeping my
face between two of the bars, I obtained air enough
to give my lungs easy play, though my perspiration
was excessive, and thirst commencing. At this period,
so strong a urinous volatile effluvia came from the
prison, that I was not able to turn myhead that way,
for more than a few secouds at a time. Now every
body, excepting those situated in and near the
windows, began to grow outrageous, and many de-
lirious : ' Water ! water !' became the general
cry ; and the old Jemmautdaar before-mentioned,
taking pity en us, ordered the people to bring some
skins of water, little dreaming, I believe, of its fatal
effects. This was what I dreaded. I foresaw it
would prove the ruin of the small chance left us, and
d 2
28 PERCY ANECDOTES,
essayed many times to speak to him privately, to
forbid its being brought ; but the clamour was so
loud, it became impossible. The water appeared.
Words cannot paint to you the universal agitation
and raving, the sight of it threw us into. I had flat-
tered myself that some, by preserving an equal temper
of mind, might outlive the night ; but now the reflec-
tion which gave me the greatest pain was, that I saw
no possibility of one escaping to tell the dismal tale.
Until the water came, I had myself not suffered
much from thirst, which instantly grew excessive.
We had no means of conveying it into the prison, but
by hats forced through the bars ; and thus myself
and Messrs. Coles and Scot (notwithstanding the
pain they suffered from their wounds) supplied them
as fast as possible. But those who have experienced
intense thirst, or are acquainted with the cause and
nature of this appetite, will be sufficiently sensible it
could receive no more than a momentary alleviation ;
the cause still subsisted. Though we brought full
hats through the bars, there ensued such violent strug-
gles, and frequent contests, to get at it, that before it
reached the lips of any one, there would be scarcely
a small tea-cup full left in them. These supplies, like
sprinkling water on fire, only served to feed and raise
the flame. Oh ! my dear sir, how shall I give you a
conception of what I felt at the cries and ravings of
those in the remoter parts of the prison, who could
not entertain a probable hope of obtaining a drop,
yet could not divest themselves of expectation, how-
ever unavailing ! and others calling on me by the
tender considerations of friendship and affection, and
who knew they were really dear to me. Think, if
CAPTIVITY. 29
possible, what ray heart must have suffered at seeing
and hearing their distress, without having it in my
power to relieve them ; for the confusion now became
general and horrid. Several quitted the other window
( the only chance they had for life), to force their way
to the water, and the throng and press upon the
window was beyond bearing ; many forcing their
passage from the further part of the room, pressed
down those in their way who had less strength, and
trampled them to death. Can it gain belief, that
this scene of misery proved entertainment to the
brutal wretches without ? But so it was ; and they
took care to keep us supplied with water, that they
might have the satisfaction of seeing us tight for it,
as they phrased it, and held up lights to the bars,
that they might lose no part of the inhuman diversion.
From about nine to near eleven, I sustained this cruel
scene and painful situation, still supplying them with
water, though my legs were almost broke with the
weight against them. By this time I myself was very
near pressed to death, and my two companions, with
Mr. William Parker (who had forced himself into the
window), were really so. For a great while they
preserved a respect and regard to me, more than
indeed I could well expect, our circumstances con-
sidered ; but now all distinction was lost. My friend
Baillie, Messrs. Jenks, Reverly, Law, Buchanan,
Simpson, and several others, for whom I had a real
esteem and affection, had for some time been dead
at my feet ; and were now trampled upon by every
corporal or common soldier, who by the help of more
robust constitutions, had forced their way to the
window, atid held fast by the bars over me, till at last
n 3
30 PERCY ANECDOTES.
I became so pressed and wedged up, I was deprived
of all motion. Determined now to give every thing
up, I called to them, and begged, as the last instance
of their regard, they would remove the pressure upon
me, and permit me to retire out of the window, to die
in quiet. They gave way, and with much difficulty
I forced a passage into the centre of the prison, where
the throng was less by the many dead (then I believe
amounting to the third), and the numbers who flocked
to the windows; for by this time they had water also
at the other window.
" In the Black Hole there is a platform, raisedbetween
three and four feet from the floor, open underneath ; ex-
tending the whole length of the east side of the prison,
and above six feet wide. I travelled over the dead,
and repaired to the further end of it, just opposite the
other window, and seated myself on the platform be-
tween Mr. Dumbleton and Captain Stevenson, the
former just then expiring. I was still happy in the
same calmness of mind I had preserved the whole
time ; death I expected as unavoidable, and only la-
mentedits slow approach, though the moment I quitted
the window, my breathing grew short and painful.
Here my poor friend, Mr. Edward Eyre, came stagger
ing over the dead to me, and with his usual coolness
and good nature, asked me how I did ? but fell and
expired before 1 had time to make him any reply. I
laid myself down on some of the dead behind me, on
the platform ; and recommending myself to heaven,
had the comfort of thinking my sufferings could have
no long duration. My thirst grew now insupportable,
and difficulty of breathing much increased ; I had
not remained in this situation, I believe, ten minutes,
CAPTIVITY. 31
when I was seized with a pain in my breast, and pal-
pitation of my heart, both to the most exquisite degree.
These roused and obliged me to get up again ; but still
the pain, palpitation, thirst, and difficulty of breathing,
increased. I retained my senses notwithstanding, and
had the grief to see death not so near me as I hoped ;
but could no longer bear the pains I suffered without
attempting a relief, which I knew fresh air would and
could only give me. I instantly determined to push
for the window opposite me ; and by an effort of
double the strength I ever before possessed, gained the
third rank at it, with one hand seized a bar, and by
that means gained the second, though I think there
were at least six or seven ranks between me and the
window. In a few moments my pain, palpitation,
and difficulty of breathing, ceased ; but my thirst con-
tinued intolerable. I called aloud for ' Water, for
God's sake!' I had been concluded dead ; but as
soon as they heard me amongst them, they had still
the respect and tenderness for me, to cry out, 'Give
him water! give him water!' Nor would one
of them at the window attempt to touch it until I had
drank. But from the water I found no relief ; my thirst
was rather increased by it ; so I determined to drink
no more, but patiently wait the event ; and kept my
mouth moist, from time to time, by sucking the per-
spiration out of my shirt sleeves, and catching the
drops as they fell, like heavy rain, from my head and
face ; you can hardly imagine how unhappy I was if
any of them escaped my mouth. I came into prison
without coat or waistcoat ; the season was too hot to
bear the former, and the latter tempted the avarice of
one of the guards, who robbed me of it when we were
32 PERCY ANECDOTES.
under the veranda. Whilst I was at this second
window, I was observed by one of my miserable com-
panions on the right of me, in the expedient of allay-
ing my thirst by sucking my shirt sleeves. He took
the hint, and robbed me, from time to time, of a con-
siderable part of my store ; though, after I detected
him, I had ever the address to begin on that sleeve
first, when I thought my reservoirs were sufficiently
replenished ; and our mouths and noses often met in
the contest. This plunderer, I found afterwards, was
a worthy young gentleman in the service, Mr. Lush-
ington, one of the few who escaped from death, and
since paid me the compliment of assuring me, he
believed he owed his life to the many comfortable
draughts he had from my sleeves. 1 mention this
incident, as I think nothing can give you a more lively
idea of the melancholy state and distress we were re-
duced to. Before I hit upon this happy expedient, I
had, in an ungovernable fit of thirst, attempted a differ-
ent liquid ; but it was so intensely bitter, there was
no enduring a second taste, whereas no Bristol water
could be more soft or pleasant than what arose from
perspiration. By half an hour past eleven, the much
greater number of those living were in an outrageous
delirium, and the others quite ungovernable ; few re-
taining any calmness, but the ranks next the windows.
By what I had felt myself, I was fully sensible what
those within suffered ; but had only pity to bestow
upon them, not then thinking- how soon I should my-
self become a greater object of it. They all now found
that water, instead of relieving, rather heightened
their uneasiness ; and ' Air ! air !' was the general
cry. Every insult that could be devised against the
CAPTIVITY. 33
guard, all the opprobrious names and abuse that the
Suba, Monickshund, &c. could be loaded with, were
repeated to provoke the guard to fire upon us, every
man that could rushing tumultuously towards the
windows, with eager hopes of meeting the first shot.
Then a general prayer to Heaven, to hasten tlie ap-
proach of the flames to the right and left of us, and
put a period to our misery. But these failing, they
whose strength and spirits were quite exhausted, laid
themselves down and expired quietly upon their fel-
lows : others who had yet some strength and vigour
left, made alasteffort at the wiudows, and several suc-
ceeded by leaping and scrambling over the backs and
heads of those in the first ranks, and got hold of the
bars, from which there was no removing them. Many
to the right and left sunk with the violent pressure,
and were soon suffocated ; for now a steam arose from
the living and the dead, which affected us in all its
circumstances, as if we were forcibly held witli our
heads over a bowl full of strong volatile spirit of
hartshorn, until suffocated ; nor could the effluvia of
the one be distinguished from the other ; and frequently
when 1 was forced by the load upon my head and
shoulders, to hold my face down, I was obliged, near
as I was to the window, instantly to raise it again to
escape suffocation. I need not, my dear friend, ask
your commiseration, when I tell you, that in this
plight, from half an hour past eleven till near two in
the morning, I sustained the weight of a heavy man,
with his knees in my back, and the pressure of his
whole body on my head. A Dutch serjeant, who
had taken his seat upon my left shoulder, and a Topaz
(a black Christian soldier) bearing on my right ; all
34 PERCY ANECDOTES.
which nothing could have enabled me long to support,
but the props and pressure equally sustaining me all
around. The two latter I frequently dislodged, by
shifting my hold on the bars, and driving my knuckles
into their ribs ; but my friend above stuck fast, and
as he held by two bars, was immoveable.
" I exerted a-new my strength and fortitude ; but
the repeated trials and efforts I made to dislodge the
insufferable incumbrances upon me, at last quite ex-
hausted me ; and, towards two o'clock, finding I
must quit the window, or sink where I was, I resolved
on the former, having bore, truly for the sake of
others, infinitely more for life than the best of it is
worth. In the rank close behind me was an orficer
of one of the ships, whose name was Cary, and who
had behaved with much bravery during the siege (his
wife, a fine woman though country born, would not
quit him, but accompanied him into the prison, and
was one who survived). This poor wretch had been
long raving for water and air ; I told him I was deter-
mined to give up life, and recommended his gaining
my station. On my quitting, he made a fruitless
attempt to get my place ; but the Dutch serjeant,
who sat on my shoulder, supplanted him. Poor
Cary expressed his thankfulness, and said he would
give up life too ; but it was with the utmost labour
we forced our way from the window, (several in the
inner ranks appearing to me dead standing, unable to
fall by the throng and equal pressure around.) He
laid himself down to die ; and his death, I believe,
was very sudden ; for he was a short, full, sanguine
man. His strength was great ; and, I imagine, had
he not retired with me, 1 should never have been
CAPTIVITY. 35
able to have forced my way. I was at this time
sensible of no pain, and little uneasiness : I can give
you no better idea of my situation, than by repeating
my simile of the bowl of spirit of hartshorn. I found
a stupor coming on apace, and laid myself down by
that gallant old man, the Rev. Mr. Jervas Bellamy,
who lay dead with his son, the lieutenant, hand in
hand, near the southernmost wall of the prison. When
I had lain there some little time, I still had reflection
enough to suffer some uneasiness in the thought, that
I should be trampled upon, when dead, as I myself
had done to others. With some difficulty I raised
myself, and gained the platform a second time, where
I presently lost all sensation ; the last trace of sensi-
bility that I have been able to recollect after my
laying down, was my sash being uneasy about my
waist, which I untied, and threw from me. Of what
passed in this interval, to the time of my resurrection
from this hole of horrors, I can give you no account ;
and, indeed, the particulars mentioned by some of the
gentlemen who survived (solely by the number of
those dead, by which they gained a freer accession
of air, and approach to the windows), were so ex-
cessively absurd and contradictory, as to convince me
very few of them retained their senses ; or, at least,
lost them soon after they came into the open air, by
the fever they carried out with them.
In my own escape from absolute death, the hand of
Heaven was manifestly exerted ; the manner take as
follows. When the day broke, and the gentlemen
found that no entreaties could prevail to get the door
opened, it occurred to one of them (I think to Mr.
Secretary Cook) to make a search for me, in hopes I
36 PERCY ANECDOTES.
might have influence enough to gain a release from
tins scene of misery- Accordingly, Messrs. Lush-
ington and Walcot undertook the search, and by my
shirt discoveredme under the dead upon the platform.
They took me from thence, and imagining I had some
signs of life, brought me towards the window I had
first possession of. But as life was equally dear to
every man, (and the stench arising from the dead
bodies grown intolerable) no one would give up the
station in or near the window; so they were obliged to
carry me back again. But soon after Captain Mdls
(now captain of the company's yacht), who was in
possession of a seat in the window, had the huma-
nity to offer to resign it. I was again brought by the
same gentlemen, and placed in the window. At this
juncture the Suba, who had received an account of
the havock death had made amongst us, sent one of
his Jemmautdaars to enquire if the chief survived.
They showed me to him ; told him I had the appear-
ance of life remaining, and believed I might recover
if the door was opened very soon. This answer being
returned to the Suba, an order came immediately for
our release, it being *hen near six in the morning.
The fresh air at the window soon brought me to life ;
and a few minutes after the departure of the Jem-
mautdaar, I was restored to my sight and senses.
The little strength that remained amongst the most
robust whasurvived, made it a difficult task to remove
the dead pile up against the door ; so that I believe
it was more than twenty minutes before we obtained
a passage out for one at a time."
Of the one hundred and forty -six persons confined
in this dreadful place, one hundred and twenty-three
perished during the night.
CAPTIVITY. 37
INEXORABLE CREDITOR.
The following affecting narrative of the cruelty oi
a creditor towards an unfortunate debtor, is to be
found among the notes to a volume of American
poetry, lately published at Philadelphia by Mr.
Woodworth.
" Some years since a young man by the name of
Brown was cast into the prison of this city for debt.
His manners were very interesting. His fine dark
eyes beamed so much intelligence, his lively coun-
tenance expressed so much ingenuousness, that I was
induced, contrary to my usual rule, to seek his ac-
quaintance. Companions in misery soon become
attached to each other.
" Brown was informed that one of his creditors
wovdd not consent to his discharge ; that he had
abused him very much, (as is usual in such cases)
and made a solemn oath to. keep him in jail ' till he
rotted V I watched Brown's countenance when he
received this information ; and whether it was fancy
or not, I cannot say, but I thought 1 saw the cheering
spirit of hope in that momenf desert him for ever.
" Nothing gave Brown pleasure but the daily visit of
his amiable wife. By the help of a kind relation,
she was able to give him sometimes soup, wine,
and fruit ; and every day, clear or stormy, she
visited the prison to cheer the drooping spirits of
her husband. She was uncommonly pretty. She
seemed an angel administering consolation to a man
about to converse with angels. One day passed the
hour of one o'clock, and she came not. Brown was
£
33 PERCY ANECDOTES.
uneasy. Two, three, and four, passed, and she did
not appear. Brown was distracted. A messenger
arrived. Mrs. Brown was very dangerously ill, and
supposed to be dying in a convulsive fit. As soon
as Brown received this information, he darted to the
door with the rapidity of lightning. The inner door
was open, and the jailor, who had just let some one in,
was closing it as Brown passed violently through it.
The jailor knocked him down with a massy iron key
which he held in his hand ; and Brown was carried
back lifeless, and covered with blood, to his cell.
" Mrs. Brown died ; and her husband was denied
even the sad privilege of closing her eyes. He lin-
gered for some time, till, at last, he called me one
day, and gazing on me, while a faint smile played
upon his lips, he said, • he believed death was more
kind than his creditors.' After a few convulsive
struggles, he expired.
" Legislators and sages of America ! permit me to
ask you, how much benefit has that creditor derived
from the imprisonment, and consequent death, of an
amiable man, in the bloom of youth, who, without
this cruelty, might have flourished, even now, an
ornament and a glory to the nation ?"
A BRAND PLUCKED FROM THE BURNING.
On the breaking out of the last Cherokee war, prior
to the American revolution, Colonel Sinclair sent
Mr. David Menzies, a surgeon, to visit a gang of
Negroes at a new settlement, situated on the ©come
River, which is a stream of the Alatamahaw, and
joins a branch of the Savannah, about seventy nil. •
CAPTIVITY. 39
from the town of Augusta, in Georgia, and about one
hundred miles distant from the nearest town of the
Indians. The following account of the sufferings
which Mr. Menzies endured, is from his own pen,
and has been confirmed by the celebrated Logan, who
rescued him.
" On the night I arrived at Colonel Sinclair's plan-
tations, we were surrounded by a party of Cherokees ;
and, as we made no resistance, were all taken alive.
We were then driven away before them, laden
with pillage, into their own country, excepting two
negroes, who, being sick and unable to keep pac e
with us, they scalped and left on the path. In pro ff
ceeding to the Indian town, I understood (havin
some knowledge of their language) that thes"
Cherokees had lost in the expedition one of theie
head warriors, in a skirmish with some of our rangersr
and that I was destined to be presented to that
chiefs mother and family in his room; at which I was,
overjoyed, as knowing that I had thereby a chance,
not only of being secured from death and torture, but
even of good usage and caresses. I perceived, how-
ever, that I had much over-rated my matter of conso-
lation, as soon as I was introduced to the mother of
their hero. She sat squat on the ground, with a
bear's cub in her lap, as nauseous a figure as the ac-
cumulated infirmities of decrepitude, undisguised by
art, could make her ; and instead of courteously
inviting her captive to replace, by adoption, her slain
child, she fixed her blood- shot haggard eyes upon
me ; then, rivetting them on the ground, gurgled
through her throat my rejection and destruction.
4t The famous Logan, a chief of another territory,
£ 2
40 PERCY ANECDOTES,
some of whose hunter? were in the party who took us,
sent to interpose for my life, and offered a great
supply of gunpowder, shot, flints, provisions, and
rum for my ransom ; but his offers were refused,— -
the feast of revenge was too delicious for the old
ferocious savage. • »
" My head ran on nothing now but stones, sticks,
pitch-pine, scalping-knives, tomahawks, and the
other instruments of savage cruelty ; but I was mis-
taken in that too, and reserved, alas ! for new and
unheard of torments . These Indians, in one of their
late excursions into South Carolina, had met, it seems,
with some larded venison, which pleased their taste ;
in consequence of which they had carried off some
larding pins, as well as a quantity of bacon ; and my
Cannibal mistress had determined to make, by means
of an Indian who had seen the operation in Carolina,
an application of this discovery to human flesh.
" When it was evening, these Barbarians brought
me, entirely naked, before a large fire, kindled in the
midst of the diabolical heroine's hut, around which
the three or four other families, who were also inmates
of this Indian house, with other savages, were col-
lected, with store of rum before them, and every
other preparation towards a feast. Two young tor-
turers, having first bound me to a stake, began to
experiment on me the culinary operation of larding.
After they had larded my left side, so as to exhibit a
complete hemiplegia of bacon, they turned it close
to the fire, and proceeded on the other. This per-
formance took up much time, on account of the in-
experience of the operators, as well as my struggling,
in which I afforded infinite merriment to the old
CAPTIVITY. 41
hag and her company — the pin not merely going
through the insensible epidevmis, but lacerating also
the pyramidal papilae of the cutis, which anatomists
agree to be the seat of feeling ; and as the savages all
the while plied their rum impatiently, the whole as-
sembly were soon intoxicated.
" Fortunately at this moment an alarm was given
that Logan was arrived, and had set fire to the town ;
my executioners fled, leaving me roasting, and the
old hag and some others fast asleep. I did not let
this providential opportunity slip me ; but instantly
disengaged my right arm (at the expense of the pal-
maris brevis museli, and with a dislocation of the
eighth bone of the carpus ), and fell to untying my-
self with expedition. I then escaped into the town,
whence I dashed into the woods, having only
stayed just long enough to place some of the fire-
brands in a position to fire the cabin, and not having
forgotten to lay a small one in the lap of my inhuman
she-tyrant.
" When I perceived that I was not pursued, I
looked back, and saw with great satisfaction the
Indian town in flames. I continued my flight through
the wilderness, chiefly by night, steering south-east ;
but was soon alarmed at the immediate danger I found
myself in of starving, unprovided as I was with fire-
arms ; yet from this imminent danger I was preserved
by the very pruelty of the Indians ; nor am I ashamed
to express, that I sustained famished nature by the
bacon that was saturated with the juices of my own
body.
" I penetrated at last through all difficulties to
Augusta, where I was entertained with great huma-
e 3
42 PERCY ANECDOTES.
nity and civility by Justice Ray ; and was cured of
my wounds, and of the fever, their symptomatic
consequence. And so far am I from experiencing
any material detriment by this Indian treatment, (for
I am above accounting a few scars on my cheek such)
that I have received, I imagine, a momentous benefit
from it, as I have got entirely rid of a paralytic com-
plaint, with which I had been for years afflicted in
my left side, which was roasted."
COUNT MARSIGLI.
This distinguished soldier and philosopher com-
manded a body of infantry in the war between the
Imperialists and the Turks at the close of the seven-
teenth century. When the Turkish army had forced
the passage of the Raab, Count Marsigli, deserted by
his men and wounded, fell into the hands of the
Tartars, who sold him for a trifling sum to the go-
vernor of Temeswar. By him he was carried as a
slave to the siege of Vienna, where he was bought
by two brothers of Bosnia. On the retreat of the
Turkish army, after their defeat by Sobieski, Marsigli
was obliged to travel for eighteen successive bours,
dragged at his master's stirrup till he was almost
dead with fatigue, and narrowly escaped being mas-
sacred with the other captives. He arrived at length
at Bosnia,, where he remained in captivity till his
friends found means to relieve liim.
Two circumstances connected with the captivity of
Count Marsigli, strongly mark his generosity and
goodness of heart Being appointed the Imperial
commissioner for fixing the boundaries between the
CAPTIVITY, 43
two empires in Hungary and Dalmalia, the Count,
in 1700, with a splendid escort, travelled through the
frontiers in the execution of his trust. Arriving in
the neighbourhood where the Turkish brothers resided,
to whom he had been captive, he caused them to be
sought out and brought to him. They were in a state
of abject poverty, having been defrauded by the
bashaw of the money paid for his ransom. Looking
upon them as the preservers of his life, though from
an interested motive, he not only presented them with
his purse, but wrote in their favour to the grand
vizier, who paid a generous attention to his recom-
mendation.
The other instance is still more striking. As he
was one day at the Port of Marseilles, surveying a
galley just arrived, he recognised among the slaves a
Turk, who had been employed, when he was a cap-
tive in Bosnia, to bind him every night to a stake to
prevent his escape. The man also knew him, and
conscious that he had treated him with little humanity,
fell at his feet and implored forgiveness. The Count
raised him, relieved his necessities, and wrote to the
minister of the marine to obtain his liberty from the
king, which was granted.
FORTUNE WELL TOLD.
A young lady, a native of Martinique, and a Creole,
was on her voyage to France, with the design of
being educated there, when the merchant vessel on
board of which she was a passenger, was captured by
an Algerine cruiser, and taken into Algiers. The
fair captive was at first overwhelmed with afHiction at
44 PERCY ANECDOTES.
the prospect of captivity before her ; but as passion
gave way to meditation, it came to her recollection
that an old negress had predicted that she would
one day become one of the greatest princesses in the
world ! " Ah !" exclaimed she, for superstition was
in this instance but the hand-maid of inclination, " it
is doubtless so, I am to be a princess. Well, I must
not quarrel with fortune. Who knows what may
come out of this?" So strong did this prepossession
grow upon the young lady, that ere she reached the
Barbary shore, she was as much a fatalist in point of
resignation, as any devotee of Islamism could pos-
sibly be. The French consul at Algiers immediately
offered to ransom his countrywoman ; but no ; the
fair Creole would not be ransomed, for fear of offend-
ing fortune, by resorting to so vulgar a way of re-
covering her liberty. So to the Seragiio of the Dey
of Algiers the lady went ; and strange indeed to tell,
from his highness's seraglio, she was sent as a present
to the Grand Seignior, who was so struck with her
beauty and manners (for in both she was excelling),
that he elevated her to the dignity of his favourite
Sultana ! Such was the singular rise of the late Sultana
Valide, who died in 1818, and was the mother of the
present Grand Seignior.
GENEROUS CONQUERORS.
When the celebrated dramatist, Cumberland, was
once on a voyage to Lisbon in the Milford, she en-
gaged and captured a French frigate ; on which occa-
sion he wrote the well-known song,
" 'Twas up the wind three leagues and more,*' &c.
CAPTIVITY. 45
The sailors were delighted with the song ; hut such
was the honourable respect which they had for a
brave enemy, that nothing could induce them to sing
it aloud as long as their prisoners were on board ;
subsequently, a Milford man would sing nothing else.
SOCIVIZCA, THE GREEK ROBBER.
From the year 1745 to 1760, the Turks were greatly
annoyed on their Venetian frontier by a bandit of the
name of Socivizca, who had conceived an inveterate
animosity against the whole Ottoman race, and made
them the constant and exclusive objects of his ma-
rauding enterprises. At length pursued on every side,
and anxious for a short repose, Socivizca retired with
his family to Carlowitz, in the Austrian dominions,
where he resided for three years, distinguished during
the whole period for the must irreproachable conduct.
While living here in peace, he was betrayed into
the hands of a Turkish Pacha, who had most cruelly
put to death one of his brothers, and his wife and
children were soon after entrapped in the same
manner. Fortune had not however yet deserted Soci-
vizca. As the Turks were conducting him to Trau-
nick, he contrived to make his escape from them,
though he had still the mortification to leave his
family prisoners.
When his own safety was insured, he entered into a
negotiation with the Pacha for the liberty of his wife
and children, but in vain. All other methods failing,
he determined to write ; and his letter is a curious spe-
cimen of social feeling, operating on a rugged mind
and ardent disposition. It was in these terms :
46 PERCY ANECDOTES.
"I am informed, O Pacha of Bosnia! that you
complain of my escape ; but I put it to yourself, what
would you have done in my place ? Would you have
suffered yourself to be bound with cords like a mise-
rable beast, and led without resistance by men, who,
as soon as they arrived at a certain place, would iu all
probability have put you to death ? Nature impels
us to avoid destruction, and I have only acted in
obedience to her laws.
" Tell me, Pacha, what crime have my wife and
children committed, that, in spite of law and justice,
you should retain them like slaves ? Perhaps you
hope to render me more submissive ; but you can-
not surely expect that I shall return to you, and hold
forth my arms to be loaded with fresh chains ? No,
you do but deceive yourself, and render me more
terrible than before. Hear me then, Pacha ; you may
exhaust on them all your fury, without producing the
least advantage. On my part I declare, I will wreak
my vengeance on all the Turks, your subjects, who
may fall into my hands ; and I will omit no means of
injuring you. For the love of God, restore to me, I
beseech you, my blood. Obtain my pardon from
my sovereign, and no longer retain in your memory
ray past offences. I promise that I will then leave
your subjects in tranquillity, and even serve tbem as
a guide when necessary.
" If you refuse me this favour, expect from me all
that despair can prompt. I will assemble my friends,
carry destruction wherever you reside, pillage your
property, plunder your merchants ; and from this
moment, if you pay no attention to my entreaties, 1
swear that I will massacre every Turk that falls into
my hands."
CAPTIVITY. 47
The Pacha did not think proper to pay any atten-
tion to the letter of a highway robber, and Socivizca
was not slow in carrying into effect the vow he had
made. He desolated the country, giving proofs of a
prodigious valour ; insomuch, that the people were
obliged to entreat the Pacha to deliver them from so
great a scourge, by sending back his wife and chil-
dren. The Pacha, however, was inexorable, and it was
only by a fortunate co-operation of force and strata-
gem, of the particulars of which we are not correctly
informed, that he succeeded at last in obtaining the
liberty of his family.
Shortly after his troop took prisoner a Turk, who
had favoured the escape of one of Socivizca's brothers.
The brother, in opposition to the wish of the chief
and the rest of the band, was anxious to return the
favour. The captive was destined to die ; but the
grateful robber, while Socivizca was at prayers, a
ceremony which he never omitted before meals, set
trim at liberty ; all the band were outrageous against
the brother of Socivizca, and one of his nephews
carried his resentment so far, as to give him a blow ;
the indignant uncle drew a pistol, and killed the
aggressor on the spot ; Socivizca at the same time ex-
pelled his brother from the troop ; and after perform-
ing the funeral obsequies of his nephew, felt so great
a degree of mortification, that he determined to pass
the remainder of his days in retirement.
But the habits of a long life are not so easily
changed ; after a short retreat, Socivizca suddenly
resumed his system of hostilities against the Turks.
Yet how instructive is the sequel of this extraordi-
nary man's life ! After as many massacres and rob-
48 PERCY ANECDOTES,
bcric; as would have outweighed the souls ut a thou
sand men, he found himself in possession of no more
than six hundred sequins;; part of this sum he con-
fided to a friend, and p^Vjfcto a cousin, both of whom
absconded with their .respective deposits.
At length, in 1775, the Emperor Joseph II. passk^
by Grazach, was desirous to see him ; he had him
brought into his presence, and made him repeat the
chief events of his life ; after which, besides making
him a considerable present in money, he appointed
him to the post of Anambassa of Pandours.
RICHARD II.
When Henry of Boliugbrbke, afterwards Henry
IV., landed in England, his first object was to seize on
the person of Richard II. This was effected by the
treachery of the Earl of Northumberland, who, like
Judas, perjured himself on the body of our Lord, and
betrayed his sovereign. Richard was carried prisoner
to Flint, where he abandoned himself to those re-
flections which his melancholy situation inspired.
The unfortunate king rose after a sleepless night, heard
mass, and ascended the tower to watch the arrival of
his opponent. At length he saw the army, amounting
to eighty thousand men, winding along the beach, till
it reached the castle, and surrounded it from sea to
sea. He shuddered and wept, but was roused from
his reflections by a summons to dinner. The Earl of
Salisbury, the bishop, and the two knights, Sir Stephen
Scroop and Sir William Fcrriby, sat with him at the
same table, by his order , for since they were all com-
panions in misfortune, he would allow no distinction
CAPTIVITY. 49
among them. While he was eating, unknown persons
entered the hall, insulting him with sarcasms and
threats ; as soon as he rose,'he was summoned into the
court to receive the Duke'of Lancaster. Henry came
forward in complete armour, with the exception of
his helmet. As soon as he saw the king, he bent his
knee, and advancing a few paces, repeated his obeis-
ance. ." Fair cousin of Lancaster," said Richard,
uncovering himself, " vou arc right welcome." " My
lord," answered the duke, " I am come before my
time, but I will show you the reason. Your people
complain, that for the space of twenty, or two and
twenty years, you have ruled them rigorously ; but
if it please God, I will help you to govern better."
The king replied, " Fair cousin, since it pleaseth you,
it pleaseth me well." Henry then addressed himself
to the bishop and the knights, but refused to notice
the earl. The king's horses were immediately or-
dered ; and two lean and miserable animals were
brought out, on which Richard and Salisbury mounted,
and amidst the sound of trumpets and shouts of
applause, followed the duke into Chester.
The unfortunate Richard was afterwards conveyed
to the Tower, where he was compelled to resign his
crown ; and, lastly, he was removed to Pontefract
Castle, where he terminated his life, though in what
way seems still doubtful. It was said, that from the
moment in which he heard of the execution of his
brothers, the Earls of Kent and Huntingdon, he had
obstinately refused to take any nourishment. But
the report obtained little credit ; and though the king
repeatedly asserted his innocence, both natives and
foreigners refused to believe that the man whose am-
50 PERCY ANECDOTES,
bition had seized the crown, could feel any scruple in
taking the life of his rival. The general belief was,
that Richard had been starved to death by the orders
of Henry, and that he lingered fifteen days before he
expired. According to another account (mentioned
by a contemporary), Sir Robert Exton, with seven
assassins, arrived at Pontefract on the eighth day after
Henry had left Windsor. When Richard saw them
enter his cell, aware of their design, be darted into the
midst of them, wrested a battle-axe from one of the
number, and laid several dead at his feet. But Exton
gave him a stroke on the back of the head, which
brought him to the floor, and with a second stroke de-
prived him of life. In whatever manner he died,
Henry's agents concealed the truth with such fidelity,
that it could never be discovered.
ENZO, KING OF SARDINIA.
Enzo, King of Sardinia, being taken prisoner in
the war between Modena and Bologna, was paraded
through the streets of the latter city in great triumph.
He was afterwards condemned to pass the remainder
of his days in an honourable imprisonment ; where,
to use the words of Larabertacci, H he enjoyed every
indulgence of royalty, except his liberty." The Em-
peror Frederic (whose natural son Enzo was) used his
best endeavours, first with threats, afterwards with
unbounded offers from his treasury, to procure the
emancipation of his son ; but these sturdy repub-
licans were proof to the temptation, and constantly
refused to yield up, for any consideration, the
glory of retaining within their walls a royal captive.
Enzo, resigning at leugth the vain hopes of freedom,
CAPTIVITY. 51
devoted himself entirely to the honourable pursuits of
literature and the arts, and obtained a respectable
rank among the ancient Tuscan poets. He died in
the twenty-third year of his captivity, and was buried
at Bologna with royal honours.
THE IRON MASK.
Although conjecture has long been exhausted, as
to the identity of the person in the Iron Mask,
yet the fact of such a prisoner having been confined,
and dying in the Bastile, as first made public by
Voltaire, has since been abundantly confirmed in all
its leading points. The Journal of M. de Jonca,
who was many years Lieutenant du Roi at the Bastile,
gives an account of the prisoner being removed from
the Island of St. Marguerite, on M. de St. Mars
being appointed Governor of the Bastile. He says
the prisoner always wore a mask of black velvet, a
circumstance confirmed by several writers, although
lie has been called the Iron Mask ; and that he died
in the Bastile, and was buried on the 20th of No-
vember, 1703, in the burying place of St. Paul.
In the register of this parish there is the follow-
ing entry :
" In the year 1703, on the 19th day of November,
Marchiali, aged forty-five years, or thereabouts, died
at the Bastile. His body was interred in the burying
place of this parish of St. Paul, on the 20th of the
said month, in the presence of Monsieur de Rosarges,
Mayor of the Bastile, and Monsieur Reilli, the sur-
geon, who accordingly sign this."
Father Grisset, in his Traitv de Preuves qui servent
52 PERCY ANECDOTES.
pour ttablir la Veritt de I'Histoire, says nothing can
exceed the dependance that may be placed on die
journal of M. de Jonca. He adds, that a great
many circumstances relating to this prisoner were
known to the officers and servants at the Uastile,
when Monsieur de Launay was appointed mayor
there ; that M. de Launay told him he was informed
by them, that immediately after the prisoner's death,
his apparel, linen, clothes, mattresses, and, in short,
every thing that had been used by him, were burnt ;
that the walls of his room were scraped, and the floor
taken up ; all evidently from the apprehension that he
might have found means of writing something that
would have discovered who he was; and that Monsieur
d'Argenson, who often came to the Bastile when
lieutenant-general of the police, hearing that the gar-
rison still spoke of this prisoner, asked one day what
was said about him, and after hearing some of the
conjectures, observed, " they will never know."
It is related by others, that beside the precautions
mentioned by M. de Launay, the glass was taken
out of the window of his room, and pounded to dust ;
the window frame and doors burnt ; and the ceiling
of the room, and the plaster of the inside of the
chimney, taken down. Several persons have af-
firmed, that the body was buried without a head ;
and M. de St. Foix, in his Essais Historiques, in-
forms us, that a gentleman having bribed the sexton,
had the body taken up in the night, and found a stone
instead of the head.
Monsieur de la Grange Chaucel, who was sent pri-
soner to St. Marguerite, for writing a satire called the
Philippic, on the Duke of Orleans, speaking of the
f 3
CAPTIVITY, 53
Iron Mask, says, that "the governor behaved with the
greatest respect to the prisoner ; that he was always
served on plate, and furnished with as rich clothes as
he desired ; that, when he had occasion to see a sur-
geon or physician, he was obliged, under pain of death,
constantly to wear his mask ; but when he was alone, he
some times amused himself with pulling out the hairs of
his beard with fine steel pincers." He adds, " several
persons have informed me, that when M. de St.
Mars went to take possession of the government of
the Bastile, whither he was to conduct the prisoner,
they heard the latter say to him, ' Has the king any
intention against my life ?' and de St. Mars replied,
* No, Prince, your life is in safety ; you must only
allow yourself to be conducted.' "
One Dubuisson, who was confined at St. Mar-
guerite, says, that " he was lodged with other persons
in the room immediately above that where the pri-
soner with the mask was ; that they found means of
speaking to him by the vents of their chimnies ; and
that, having one day pressed him to tell who he was,
he refused, saying, that if he did, it would not only
cost him his own life, but the lives of those to whom
the secret might be revealed."
M. de St. Mars, in his way from St. Marguerite
to the Bastile, halted with the prisoner at his house
at Palteau. The house was afterwards bought by a
person who took its name, and who, in a letter to
M. Freron, on this subject, says :
" In 1698, M. de St. Mars was removed from his
government of St. Marguerite to that of the Bastile.
In going to this new government, he stopped with his
prisoner at Palteau. The prisoner was in a litter
f 3
54 PERCY ANECDOTES.
that went before that of M. de St. Mars, and
accompanied by several men on horseback. Sonic pea
sants that I examined, who went to pay their compli-
ments to their master, said, that while he was at table
with his prisoner, the latter sat with his back towards
the window that looked into the court; that they did
not observe, therefore, whether he ate with his mask
on, but saw very distinctly that M. de St. Mars, who
sat opposite to him, had a pair of pistols laying by
his plate. They were attended at dinner only by a
valet-de-chambre."
But Voltaire is the most circumstantial ; in his
" Age of Louis XIV." he says :
" Some months after the death of Cardinal Mazarine,
in 1661, there happened an event of which there is no
example ; and what is no less strange, the historians
of that time seem to have been unacquainted with it.
" There was sent, with the greatest secrecy, to the
castle on the Island of Marguerite, in the sea of
Province, an unknown prisoner, rather above the
middle size, young, and of a graceful figure. On the
road he wore a mask, with steel springs, that enabled
him to eat without taking it off. Those who con-
ducted him, had orders to kill him if he made any at-
tempt to discover himself. He remained there until
the governor of Pignerol, an officer of confidence,
named St. Mars, being appointed governor of the
Bastile, in 1690, brought him from thence to the
Bastile, always covered with a mask. The Marquess
de Louvois, who went and saw him at St. Margue-
rite, spoke to him standing, and with that kind of
attention that marks respect. He was lodged at the
Bastile as well as that castle would admit. Nothintr
CAPTIVITY, 55
was refused him that he desired. His chief taste was
fol lace and linen, remarkably fine. He played on the
guitar. His table was the best that could be provided ;
and the governor seldom sat down in his presence.
An old physician of the Bastile, who had often at-
tended him when he was indisposed, said that he
never saw his face, though he had frequently exa-
mined his tongue and parts of his body ; that he
was admirably well made, that his skin was rather
brown, that he had something interesting in the
sound of his voice, that he never complained, or let
drop any thing by which it might be guessed who he
was.
" This unknown person died in 1703, and was
buried in the night, at the burying ground of the
parish of St. Paul. What increases our astonish-
ment is, that when he was sent to St. Marguerite,
no person of importance in Europe was missing. Yet
this prisoner certainly was a person of importance.
See what happened soon after his arrival there. The
governor put the dishes on the table himself; retired
and locked the door. One day the prisoner wrote
something with his knife on a silver plate, and threw
it out of window towards a boat that was drawn on
shore near the bottom of the tower. A fisherman to
whom the boat belonged, took up the plate and
brought it to the governor, who, with evident asto-
nishment, asked the man if he had read what was
written on the plate, or if any other person had seen
it? He said he could not read ; that he had but just
found it, and that no one else had seen it. He was,
however, confined until the governor was certain that
he could not read, and that no other had seen
5G PERCY ANECDOTES.
the plate. He then dismissed him, saying, " It is
lucky for you you cannot read."
The Abbe Papon relates, " that a young lad, a
barber, having seen one day something white floating
on the water, took it up : it was a fine shirt, written
almost all over. He carried it to M. de St. Mars,
who having looked at some parts of the writing,
asked the lad, with an appearance of anxiety, if he
had not had the curiosity to read it ? He assured him
repeatedly that he had not ; but two days afterwards
the boy was found dead in bis bed."
M. de la Borde informs us, that $/L Linguet, in the
course of his inquiries found, that when the Iron
Mask went to mass, he had the most express orders
not to speak or show himself; that the invalids were
commanded to fire on him if he disobeyed ; that their
arms were loaded with balls ; and that he therefore
took great care to conceal himself, and to be silent.
Among the various conjectures respecting the Iron
Mask, one writer supposes him to havebeen the Duke of
Beauford, second son of Caesar, Duke of Vendome ; but
he was killed by the Turks in 1669. Another suspects
him to have been the Count de Vermandois, natural
son of Louis XIV., who died publicly with the army
in 1683. A third says it was the Duke of Monmouth,
of whose death, however, English history gives a very
satisfactory account. A fourth says it was a minister
of the Duke of Montua ; but the respect paid to
the prisoner, is sufficient to refute such an opinion.
Others have said the Iron Mask was the son of
Anne of Austria, wife of Louis XIII., and that his
father was the Duke of Buckingham, who was am-
bassador in France in 1625 ; but there is no ground
CAPTIVITY. 57
whatever for the assertion. A more prevalent opinion
is, that he was the twin-brother of Louis XIV. born
some hours after him ; and that the king, their father,
fearing that the pretensions of a twin-brother might
one day be employed to r^new those civil wars with
which France had so often been afflicted, cautiously
concealed his birth, and sent him away to be brought
up privately.
ROMAN SLAVE.
It was the custom in Rome, when a slave made an
unsuccessful attempt to regain his liberty, or was even
suspected of such a design, to mark him on the fore-
head with a red-hot iron. How capriciously and
unjustly this infamous mark was impressed, is feel-
ingly shown by the story of Restio. This man being
proscribed, and a reward offered for his head by the
triumvirs, Octavianus, Anthony, and Lepidus, he con-
cealed himself from the fury of the tyrants. A slave,
whom he had marked with the hot iron, having
found out the place of his retreat, conducted him to a
cave, and there supplied him for some time with what
he earned by his daily labour. At length a company
of soldiers coming that way, and approaching the
cave, the faithful slave, alarmed at the danger his
master was in, followed them close, and falling on a
poor peasant, killed him in their presence, and cutting
off his head, cried out, " I am now revenged on my
master for the marks with which he has branded
me." The soldiers seeing the infamous marks on his
forehead, and not doubting that he had killed Restio,
snatched the head out of his hand, and returned with.
58 PERCY ANECDOTES.
it in all haste to the triumvirs. They were no sooner
gone, than the slave conveyed his master to the sea
side, where they had the good fortune to find one of
Sextus Pompeius's vessels, which transported them
to Sicily.
EARL OF NITHSDALE.
Among the persons who were condemned to suffer
for their share in attempting to place the Pretender
on the British throne, 1715, was the Earl of JXithsdale ;
and there is no doubt but that he would have shared
the fate of the Earl of Derwentwater and the others
who suffered, had not his amiable wife effected his
escape. This circumstance, exhibiting so strong an
instance of courage and of conjugal affection, cannot
be better related than in the following extract of a
letter from the Countess of Nithsdale to her sister,
the Countess of Traquair, written in 1716.
" The next morning I could not go to the Tower,
having so many things in my hands to put in readi-
ness ; but in the evening, when all was ready, I sent
for Mrs. Mills, with whom I lodged, and acquainted
her with my design of attempting my lord's escape,
as there was no prospect of his being pardoned ; and
this was the last night before the execution. I told
her that I had every thing in readiness, and that I
trusted sh'e would not refuse to accompany me, that
ray lord might pass for her. I pressed her to come
immediately, as we had no time to lose. At the same
time I sent for a Mrs. Morgan, then usually known by
the name of Hilton, to whose acquaintance my dear
Evans had introduced me, and to whom I immediately
CAPTIVITY. 59
communicated my resolution. She was of a very tall
and slender make ; so I begged her to put under her
own riding hood, one that I had prepared for Mrs.
Mills, as she was to lend her's to my lord. Mrs. Mills
was then pregnant ; so that she was not only of the
same height, but nearly the same size as my lord.
When we were in the coach I never ceased talking,
that they might have no leisure to reflect. Their sur-
prise and astonishment when I first opened my design
to them, had made them consent without ever thinking
of the consequences. On our arrival at the Tower,
the first I introduced was Mrs. Morgan, for I was
only allowed to take one in at a time. She brought
in the clothes that were to serve Mrs. Mills, when she
left her own behind her. When Mrs. Morgan had
taken off what she had brought for my purpose, I
conducted her back to the staircase, and, in going, I
begged her to send me in my maid to dress me ; that
I was afraid of being too late to present my last peti-
tion that night, if she did not come immediately. I
despatched her safe, and went partly down stairs to
meet Mrs. Mills, who had the precaution to hold her
handkerchief to her face, as was very natural for a
woman to do, who was going to bid her last farewell
to a friend, on the eve of his execution. I had,
indeed, desired her to do it, that my lord might go
out in the same manner. Her eyebrows were rather
inclined to be sandy, and my lord's were dark and
very thick ; however, I had prepared some paint of the
colour of her's, to disguise them ; I also brought an
artificial head-dress of the same coloured hair as her's,
and painted his face with white, and his cheeks with
rouge, to hide his long beard, which he had not time
GO PERCY ANECDOTES,
to shave. All this provision I had before left in Uu
Tower. The poor guards, whom my slight liberality
the day before had endeared me to, let me go quietly
with my company, and were not so strictly on the
watch as they usually had been ; and the more so, as
from what I had told them the day before, they were
persuaded that the prisoners would obtain their
pardon. I made Mrs. Mills take off her own hood,
and put on that which I had brought for her. I then
took her by the hand, and let her out of my lord's
chamber ; and, in passing through the next room, in
which there were several people, with all the concern
imaginable said, ' My dear Mrs. Catherine, go in
all haste, and send me my waiting maid ; she cer-
tainly cannot reflect how late it is ; she forgets that
I am to preseut a petition to-night, and if I let slip
this opportunity I am undone, for to-morrow will
be too late. Hasten her as much as possible, for 1
shall be on thorns till she comes.' Every person in
the room, chiefly the guards' wives and daughters,
seemed to compassionate me exceedingly ; and the
sentinel officiously opened the door. When I had
seen her out, I returned back to my lord, and finished
dressing him. I had taken care that Mrs. Mills did
not go out crying as she came in, that my lord might
the better pass for the lady who came in crying
and afflicted ; and the more so, because he had the
same dress on which she wore. When I had almost
finished dressing my lord in all my petticoats except-
ing one, I perceived that it was growing dark, and
was afraid that the light of the candles might betray
us, so I resolved to set out. I went out leading him
by the hand ; and he held his handkerchief to his
CAPTIVITY. 61
eyes. I spoke to him in the most piteous and
afflicted tone of voice, bewailing bitterly the negli-
gence of Evans, who had ruined me by her delay.
' Then,' said I, * my dear Mrs. Betty, for the love of
God, run quickly and bring her with you. You know
my lodging ; and if ever you made despatch in your
life, do it at present, for I am almost distracted with
this disappointment.' The guards opened the doors,
and I went down stairs with him, stiH conjuring him
to make all possible despatch. As soon as he had
cleared the door, I made him walk before me, for
fear the sentinel should take notice of his gait ; but I
still continued to press him to make all the haste he
possibly could. At the bottom of the stairs I met
my dear Evans, into whose hands I confided him.
I had before engaged Mrs. Mills to be in readiness
before the Tower, to conduct him to some place of
safety, in case we succeeded. He looked upon the
affair as so very improbable to succeed, that his asto-
nishment when he saw us, threw him into such con-
sternation, that he was almost beside himself; which
Evans perceiving, with the greatest presence of mind,
without telling him any thing, lest he should mistrust
them, conducted him to some of her own friends, on
whom she could rely, and so secured him, without
which we should have been undone. When she had
conducted him, and left him with them, she returned
to find Mr. Mills, who by this time had recovered
himself from his astonishment. They went home
together, and having found a place of security, they
conducted him to it."
After being concealed a few days in London, the
Earl passed with the retinue, and in the livery, of the
t c
f>2 PEKCY ANECDOTES.
Venetian ambassador, to Dover, where, hiring a sraaJl
vessel, he escaped to Calais, and thence travelled to
Rome, where he died in the year 1744.
REPUBLICAN FATHER.
A mulatto youth one day called on a respectable .
gentleman of Baltimore, and, with tears in his eyes,
begged for assistance. " My father and mother," says
he," are about to sell me to Georgia." "Your father
and mother!" replied the gentleman, with surprise;
" what right have they to sell you ?" " My father,"
answered the boy, " is a white man, Mr. , a mer-
chant in this place. My mother is a yellow woman.
She has had several children by him, all of whom
have been sold to Georgia, but myself. He is this mo-
ment bargaining with a slave trader for me." The
gentleman promised his assistance, but too late ; the
bargain was already made. The unfortunate youth
was immediately borne off in spite of tears, execra-
tions, and entreaties, handcuffed and chained, and
driven like a brute to a distant market.
TASSO.
No incident in the life of Tasso has excited so much
interest, as, his confinement in the lunatic hospital of
St. Anne, by order of the Duke of Ferrara; and
curiosity has been on the stretch to discover what
peculiar circumstances occasioned this step to be taken.
Muratori relates a traditional story, that Tasso being
once at court in the presence of the duke, and his sister,
the Princess Leonora, unable to restrain the violenct
CAPTIVITY. 63
of his passion for the lady he approached, threw him-
•self on her neck, and embraced her witb transport.
The duke, turning to his courtiers, said, " Wbat a
misfortune tbat so great a man should have so far lost
his senses !" That Tasso was really an admirer of
the princess, is not only rendered probable by the
verses he wrote in her honour, but the fact is also
affirmed by Manso ; but as the poet had previously
given sufficient indications of mental derangement to
justify his confinement, it could scarcely require this
new circumstance to occasion it. Mr. Hobhouse, in
his " Illustrations of Childe Harold," denies the story
related by Muratori, and declares that Tasso was
confined for his political opinions ; he does not, how-
ever, adduce any evidence in support of the assertion.
But whatever causes might have occasioned the
confinement of Tasso, the measure, if intended for
his benefit, only aggravated his mental malady. Re-
garding himself as a prisoner, he fancied a variety of
causes for this treatment. Among the rest, was a
supposed charge of impiety and heresy, to obviate
which, he addressed a memorial to the congregation
of the Holy Office at Rome ; but the charge was a
mere phantom of his imagination. He also imputed
his situation to the persecution of his enemies ; and
he sent letters to his friends, to the city of Bergamo,
to the priuces of Italy, and to the emperor himself,
imploring their interference to procure his liberation.
He had at length the happiness of obtaining his libe-
ration in 1586, and removed to his old apartments at
the court.
In the hospital of St. Anne, they still show the cell
in which Tasso was confined. It is below the ground
c 2
64 PERCY ANECDOTES.
floor, and the light penetrates through a grated window
from a small yard, which seems to have been common
to other cells. It is nine paces long, between five and
six wide, and about seven feet high. The bedstead,
as they inform travellers, has been carried off piece-
meal, and the door half cut away, by the devotion of
those whom " the verse and prose" of the prisoner
have brought to Ferrara. Over the door of the cell
is the following inscription :
Rispettate, O Posteria, la celebri di questa stanza,
dove Torquato Tasso, infermo piu di tristezzache dc-
lirio, ditenuto dimoro anno VII. messi II.,scrisse verse
e prose, e fu riraesso in liberta ad instanza della citta
di Bergamo, nel giorno VI. Juglio, 1586.
" Respect, O Posterity, the celebrity of this spot,
where Torquato Tasso, infirm through grief, rather
than insanity, was confined for seven years and two
months ; where he wrote much verse and prose, and
at length received his liberty at the instance of the
city of Bergamo, on the 6th day of July, 1586."
PROSCRIBED FAMILY.
During the reign of terror in France, a family
at Marseilles became involved in the revolutionary
troubles. The eldest son fell under proscription ; but
his family were fortunate enough to avoid the vigilance
of the police, and conceal him for seven months, at
the end of which time he escaped in a vessel to Leg-
horn. The youngest son saved himself by escaping
to Paris, where he remained unknown, until the death
of Robespierre enabled him to return home.
Very soon after the departure of the eldest son, the
CAPTIVITY. 65
father was menaced with imprisonment, as having two
sons in emigration ; on which the youngest daughter
presented herself before the municipality, entreating
that her father might be suffered to remain at liberty,
and offering herself as a hostage, that he would not
commit any act contrary to the interests of the re-
public. Her offer of becoming a prisoner was accepted,
and she was conveyed to the convent of Ignorantius,
which was set apart for confining the women who were
arrested, and where eight hundred were then immured.
But though she was detained, her father was not left
at large ; he was arrested a few days after, and sent
with a number of the proscribed to confinement in
another convent. The prison of the father was at a
different end of the town. During eight months that
elapsed from this period to the conclusion of the reign
of terror, the eldest daughter's daily occupation was to
visit her father and sister in their respective prisons,
which she was permitted to do, being always searched
at her entrance, lest she should convey any thing to
them which might assist their escape. The anxiety for
her sister's life was not very great, as few women were
led to the scaffold ; but she daily entered the prison of
her father, uncertain whether she still might find him,
or whether he might not have been among the number
who were daily immolated. While at home, her sole
occupation was to endeavour to soothe and console
her mother. How miserable, how painful, was such
a state of existence ! and yet painful as it was, this
family was ultimately among the number of the for-
tunate, since no member of it fell a victim to revolu-
tionary vengeance."
g 3
GO I'ERCY ANECDOTES.
GARRISON OF NAGUR.
In 1783, the city of Nagur, in the East Indies
surrendered to the arms of Tippoo, on honourable
terms ; but these were soon broken, and the officers
of the different corps put in confinement, after being
first stripped of every thing they possessed. They
were then crowded into a stable, without any other
subsistence than rice and water. M. Querenstret,
a French officer, who had formerly been taken pri-
soner by the English, visited the officers during their
melancholy confinement, brought them presents of
vegetables and provisions, and had the generosity
to offer money to several of them, although there wa>
no chance of his ever being reimbursed.
After remaining nine days in the stable, where they
had been confined without clothes, and fettered in
pairs, like felons guilty of some atrocious crime, they
were marched a distance of two hundred and fifty
miles in twelve days. If through excess of fatigue
and suffering, any one gave vent to complaints, ho
received severe blows with a stick or firelock. One
day an officer was seized with a violent cramp ; after
the arm of his fellow prisoner had been almost broke
by the conrulsive efforts of the sick man, the iron
fetter which held them together gave way ; this was
charged as having been done intentionally ; and it
was with difficulty that the drivers could be restrained
from inflicting corporal punishment on a man who was
evidently on the verge of the grave. Many of the
party, unable to endure their hardships, fell down
motionless, and expired in their fetters, without re-
ceiving the least assistance.
CAPTIVITY. 67
When the}' reached Chitteldrough, they were
divided into two parties of thirty-four each ; their
handcutFs were exchanged for irons on their legs, of
an enormous size, and they were confined in a room
of small size; a hole in the door, and another in the
roof, being the only passage for light and air. The
place was excessively filthy ; rats ran about the prison
in large numbers, and in the most audacious manner.
Rice was still their only food ; but on the 4th of
June, they raised sufficient money to buy a sheep to
celebrate the king's birth day. Lemonade was the
richest liquor they had been able to procure ; but of
this they drank bumpers to the success of his ma-
jesty's arms, with as much hearty loyalty as any of
his subjects. In March following, they obtained their
liberation.
REV. WILLIAM JACKSON.
The trial and conviction in Ireland of the Rev. W.
Jackson for high treason in 1795, excited great sym-
pathy, on account of his situation in life as a clergy-
man of the established church, his good character,
and strict honour ; but still more from the circumstance
of his being betrayed by an infamous attorney, in
whose friendship he felt the greatest confidence, but
who urged him to the crime, that he might receive
the price of blood.
During Mr. Jackson's confinement, he was treated
with great indulgence, and had permission to see his
friends. A short time before his trial, one of these
remained with him to a very late hour of the night ;
whfen lie was about to depart, Mr. Jackson accom-
GS PERCY ANECDOTES.
panied him as far as the place where the gaoler usualiy
waited upon such occasions, until all his prisoners'
visitors should have retired. They found the gaoler
in a profound sleep, and the keys of the prison lying
beside him. " Poor fellow !" said Mr. Jackson, taking
up the keys, "let us not disturb him; I have already
been too troublesome to him in this way." He ac-
cordingly proceeded with his friend to the outer door
of the prison, which he opened. Here the facility of
escaping naturally struck him ; he became deeply
agitated ; but after a moment's pause, " I could do it,"
said he, " but what would be the consequence to
you, and to the poor fellow within, who has been so
kind to me? No, let me rather meet my fate." He
said no more, but locking the prison door, again re-
turned to his apartment. It should be added, that
the gentleman for whom such an opportunity was
sacrificed, gave a proof upon this occasion that he
deserved it; as he never uttered a syllable to dissuade
his unfortunate friend, although he knew the conse-
quences in which the escape would involve himself.
He, however, considered the temptation to be so irre-
sistible, that, expecting to find the prisoner, upon
farther reflection, availing himself of it, he remained
all night outside the prison door, with the intention,
if Mr. Jackson should escape, of instantly flying with
him from Jreland.
The fate of poor Jackson was truly melancholy.
On the morning that he was to be brought up to re-
ceive sentence, he took poison, and actually sunk in
the dock and expired. He had previously beckoned
to his counsel, Mr. Curran, to approach him ; and
making an effort to squeeze hi in with his damp and
CAPTIVITY. 69
nerveless hand, uttered in a whisper, and with a smile
of mournful triumph, the dying words of Pierre,
'■' We have deceived the Senate."
HERO OF THE BASTILE.
In the year 1785, a person of rank and fashion in
Paris became enamoured of a beautiful young girl,
the daughter of a respectable tradesman ; who, re-
fusing to encourage the nobleman's passion, was soon
after thrown into the Bastile. The lover of the girl,
the son of a wealthy citizen, and who was to have
been married to her in a few days, dreading the like
fate, made his escape to Constantinople, to serve as a
volunteer under the Grand Seignior, leaving his in-
tended bride secreted with a female friend. On the re-
volution breaking out, the young man returned to Paris,
and equally stimulated by love and liberty, was the
very grenadier who first mounted the breach made in
the Bastile, from the dungeons of which he had the
happiness of rescuing the father of his future bride.
WATER CARRIERS OF RIO JANEIRO.
Sir William Ousely, in his Travels, gives an affecting
picture of the state in which the African slaves are
kept in Rio Janeiro, where they are employed in
drawing water near the landing place. " Some,"
says he, " were chained in pairs by the wrist; others
five or six together, by links attached to heavy iron
collars. These, it was said, had endeavoured to
escape from the lash of their owners, by seeking
refuge in the woods and mountains. I remarked, that
70 PERCY ANECDOTES.
from the iron collar which was fastened round the
neck of one, proceeded a long handle (of iron also),
contrived by its projection to embarrass the wearer,
when forcing his way through forests or thickets. This
handle would afford to any European who might for-
tunately detect the poor fugitive, very easy means of
securing, and even (by immediate strangulation) of
destroying him. All these were as nearly in a state
of perfect nakedness as decency would allow ; and
many bore on their backs and shoulders, the marks
either of stripes recently inflicted, or of others, by
which their skins had long since been lacerated."
These poor wretches, while dragging an immense
cask of water from the public fountain to their master's
house, cheer each other with a kind of pleasing me-
lody ; the burden of their song is an address to the
water cask : " Come, load, come soon home."
GALLEY SLAVES OF GENOA.
Among the galley slaves at Genoa, some whose
conduct was good, were allowed to have little shops
or sheds on the quay, where they made mats, knitted
stockings, or sold pedlary goods ; and others kept little
coffee houses, or lemonadiers. They are all fixed
to their shops by a long chain, which permits their
walking about in them, and a few paces in front
About sixty years ago, there was one man who
had been chained to his little shop on the qua} 7 ,
where he had vended coffee and liquors for eighteen
years ; and by his industry acquired upwards of
forty thousand livres. He offered ten thousand to
the prince for his liberty, but the latter demanded
CAPTIVITY. 71
twenty thousand ; this the galley slave refused to
give ; he therefore continued a slave, bare-footed,
and with his head shaved, for the remainder of his
life.
CAVE OF LIFE.
In the early period of the French revolution, when
every thing was settled by the guillotine, a gentleman
of the name of Laurenson, who had been a municipal
officer of Mornand, was condemned. After judg-
ment, he was conducted to the Cave of Life, which
made him consider his emancipation as certain. A
few days after his arrival, he received a very strong
and energetic address from the inhabitants of the
Commune, who retracted % their denunciation, and
owned that they had been deceived. This important
document Laurenson now considered as of no use,
since his life was in safety, and he put it carelessly in
Lis pocket. At this instant his name was called. He
went out at the summons, when, to his astonishment,
he found himself tied to a chain, with others who
were to be led to the guillotine. Astonished, almost
stupified, scarcely knowing whether he really were to
die, or whether it was only a frightful dream, he
marched forwards. At length he was roused by per-
ceiving the address, which had dropt from his pocket,
at his feet. One of the gens-d'armes who accom-
panied the prisoners, picked it up. " Ah," said Lau-
renson, " 'tis a paper I have just received ; if my
judges could but see it, I should be saved." The
soldier immediately quitted the escort, and darting
away like lightning, hastened to the tribunal, pre-
72 PERCY ANECDOTES.
sented the address, and received an order for the pri-
soner to be released if his fate had not already been
consummated. He flew back to the scaffold. Lau-
renson was yet alive ; another moment, and he had
been lost ; forty persons were that day to be guillo-
tined ; thirty-nine had already fallen. Laurenson
was the last, and he was already bound to the plank.
Panting for breath, the soldier arrived, and called on
the executioner to stop. He produced the mandate
from the judges for the release of the prisoner ; the
officer attending read it, and ordered Laurenson to be
released. He was unbound from the plank, but was
found to be in a swoon, senseless and motionless.
He was carried to the Hotel de Ville, where he was
three times bled before he showed any signs of re-
covery; at length he opened his eyes, but they were
wild and haggard ; life re-appenred, but his reason was
entirely gone. He saw nothing but the last horrible
objects which had been presented to him. " Where
is my head ?" cried he ; " is it not upon the ground?
let them give it me back ! let them give it me back !
See you not that blood how it smokes ? it runs down
in a stream ; it runs over my shoes. See there that
gulf heaped with bloody corpses ! O save me ! save
me ! I fall, I fall into it !" His wanderings excited
at once compassion and horror ; and he was carried
to an hospital, there to be properly attended till his
reason should return.
CAPTIVITY. 73
THE CAVE OF DEATH.
In the early part of the French revolution, the
prisons of Lyons were filled with thousands of unhappy
victims. Seventy-two prisoners who were condemned,
were thrown into the Cave of Death on the 9th of De-
cember, there to wait the execution of their sentence.
This could not be the next day, because it was the
Decadi. One of the prisoners, of the name of Porral,
only twenty- two years of age, of a bold and ardent
spirit, profited of this interval to devise a plan of
escape. His sisters having, by means of a very large
bribe, obtained access to this abode of horror, began
to weep around him. " It is not now a time to weep,"
said he, "it is the moment to arm ourselves with
resolution and activity, arid endeavour to find some
way by which we can elude our menaced fate. Bring
me files, a chisel, a turnscrew, and other instruments ;
bring wine in abundance ; bring a poignard, that if
reduced to extremity, we may not perish without the
means of defence. By this grate, which looks into
the Rue Lafond, you can give me these things ; I will
be in waiting there the whole day to receive them."
The sisters retired, and in the course of the day,
at different visits, brought a variety of tools, twelve
fowls, and about sixty bottles of wine. Porral com-
municated his project to four others, bold and active
like himself, and the whole business was arranged.
The evening arrived ; a general supper was proposed ;
the last they thought they should ever eat. The pri-
soners supped well, and exhorted each other to meet
their fate the next morning with heroism. The wine
was briskly circulated, till the company were laid fast
asleep. u t
74 PERCY ANECDOTES.
At eleven o'clock the associates began their labours;
one of them was placed as a sentinel next the door
of the cave, armed with a poignard, ready to despatch
the turnkey, if at his visit at two o'clock in the morn-
ing he should appear to suspect any thing ; the others,
pulling off their coats, begau to make their researches.
At the extremity of the second cave they found
a huge door, and on this they began their opera-
tions. It was of oak, and double barred ; by degrees
the hinges gave way to the file, and the door was no
longer held by them : but still they could not force
it open, it was held by something on the other side.
A hole was made in it with the chisel, and, looking
through, they perceived it was tied by a very strong
rope to a post at a distance. This was a terrible
moment! They endeavoured in vain to cut the
rope with the chisel or file, but they could not reach
it. A piece of wax candle, however, was procured ;
and being lighted, and tied to the end of a stick, they
thrust it through the hole in the door, and burnt the
cord asunder. The door was then opened, and the
adventurers proceeded forward.
They now found themselves in another vault, in the
midst of which was a large slab of stone, which
seemed laid there for some particular purpose. They
struck upon it, and found it was hollow. This gave
them hopes that it was placed to cover the entrance
of some subterraneous passage ; perhaps it might be
one that led to the Rhone. They succeeded' in re-
moving the stone, and found, to their inexpressible
transport, that it was indeed a subterraneous passage,
and they doubted not that here they should find an
issue. They then tied their handkerchiefs together,
CAPTIVITY. 75
and one of them, named Labatre, taking hold of the
end with one hand, and carrying a light in the other,
descended to explore the place. Alas ! their hopes
were in a moment blasted ; instead of finding any
passage by which they could escape, he found this
was an old well, dried up and heaped with rubbish.
Labatre returned with a heavy heart ; some other
means must be sought.
A door at the extremity of the cave now appeared
their only resource. On this they set to work with
the same ardour, and succeeded in forcing it open.
But this led only to another vault, which served as a
depot for confiscated effects and merchandize. Among
other things, was a large trunk full of shirts. They
profited of this discovery to make au exchange of
linen ; and instead of the clean ones which they took,
they left their own, which they had worn for many
week's. Two doors beside that at which they had
entered, now offered themselves to their choice.
They began to attack one ; but they had scarcely ap-
plied the file, when they were alarmed by the barking
of a dog behind. A general consternation seized the
party ; the work was stopped in an instant ; perhaps
the door led into the apartments of the gaoler. This
idea recalled to their minds, that it was now near
two o'clock, the time of his visit. One of the party
returned towards the Cave of Death, to see whether
all was safe ; and it was agreed to suspend their
labours till his return. They had need of some
moments of rest, and they took advantage of them, to
fortify themselves for the rest of their work by taking
some wine.
h 2
76 PERCY ANECDOTES.
When the scout returned, he said that on his arrival
at the Cave of Death, he shuddered with horror to
find the turnkey there already. The man, however,
who had been left as a sentinel, had engaged him to
drink with him ; and the scout joining the party, they
plied him so well, that he at last reeled off without
much examining the cave, and was in all probability
laid fast asleep for the rest of .the night. This was
very consolatory news.
Quitting the door at which they heard the dog bark,
they applied themselves to the other. They found
here folding doors, one of which they opened, and
found themselves in a long dark passage. At the
end they perceived another door; but, listening, they
heard voices ; it in fact led to the guard-house, where
several soldiers in their national uniform were as-
sembled. This was, indeed, a terrible stroke ; had
they then got so far, only to meet with a worse ob-
stacle than any they had yet encountered ? Must all
their labours prove then at length fruitless ?
One only resource now remained, and this was a
door which they had passed on the side of the pas-
sage, and which they had not attempted, because they
conceived it must lead to the great couTt of the Hotel
de Ville, and they would rather have found some
other exit ; but,
" All desperate hazards courage do create,
As he plays frankly who has least estate :
Presence of mind and courage in distress,
Are more than armies to procure success."
In fact, having forced the door, it appeared they
CAPTIVITY. "77
"were not mistaken; that they were at the bottom of
a staircase which led. into the court. It was now half-
past four o'clock ; the morning was dark and cold,
while rain and snow were falling in abundance. The
associates embraced each other with transport, and
were preparing to mount the staircase, when Porral
cried out, " What are you about ? if we attempt to go
out at present, all is over with us. The gate is now
shut, and if any one should be perceived in the court,
the alarm would instantly be given, and all would be
discovered. After having had the courage to pene-
trate thus far, let us have resolution still to wait awhile.
At eight o'clock the gate will be opened, and the
passage through the court free. We can then steal
out by degrees ; and mingling with the numbers that
are constantly passing and repassing, we can go away
without being perceived. It is not till ten o'clock the
prisoners are summoned to execution ; between eight
and ten there will be time enough for all of us to get
away. We will return to the cave ; and when the
time of departure arrives, each of us five will inform
two others of the means of escape olFered. We shall
then be fifteen, and going out three at a time, we
shall pass unobserved. Let the last three, as they
set off, inform fifteen others, and thus in succession
we may all escape." This plan appeared judicious
and safe ; it was unanimously agreed to, and the
associates returning to the cave, made choice of those
who should first be informed of what they had done.
Montellier, a notary, and Baron de Chaffoy, to
whom the means of escape were offered, refused to
avail themselves of them, the former from a confidence
of a pardon, as he had been mistaken for his brother;
H 3
78 PtRCY ANECDOTES.
and the latter, though in the flower of his age, de-
clared all Lis ties iu the world were broken, and
that life had nothing now "to offer which could make
him desirous of prolonging it. They were both guil-
lotined the next morning.
The fate of the fifteen who fled was very dissimilar,
and the escape of the rest was prevented by the im-
prudence of one of them. The last of the fifteen, who
on quitting the cave, was, according to the plan
arranged, privately to apprise fifteen others ; instead
of doing so, cried aloud, " The passage is open ; let
him that can escape." This excited a great move-
ment among the prisoners. They arose in an instant,
doubting whether what they heard could be true, or
whether he who uttered these words was not mad.
The noise they made alarmed the sentinel without ;
he called to the turnkey ; they hastened immediately
to the cave, perceived what had been done, and
closing up the door by which the prisoners had
escaped, placed a strong guard before it Nesple,
who had excited this movement, was, with three others,
taken and executed. Another of the fugitives took
refuge in the house of a friend, in an obscure street;
but he was discovered, brought back, and guillotined.
It was not thus withPorral, the original author of
the plan. He was the first that came forth from the
cave. As he passed the sentinel in the court, he ad-
dressed him, " My good friend, it rains and snows
very hard ; were T in your place, I .would not remain
out of doors in such weather, but would go to
the fire in the guard-room." The sentinel thanked
him, and following his advice, the coast was left more
clear for the prisoners. Porral took refuge in the
CAPTIVITY. 79
house of one who was considered a good patriot, and
escaped the observation of a party of the commissaries
who entered the house. As soon as they were gone,
he began to think of making his way out of the city
as fast as possible. When he arrived at the Place
Belle-Cour, he found parties of the gendarmerie dis-
persed every where. Porral went into a house, and
making known who he was, entreated an asylum.
The inhabitants were women, timid to excess ; but
the desire of saving an innocent person, rendered
them courageous. They conducted him into a garret,
and concealed him behind some planks standing up in
a corner. The gens-d'armes arrived ; they searched
the house ; they came into the garret where Porral
was concealed. Here they found a large cask, the
top of which was fastened down by a padlock. They
asked for the key ; the women went down stairs for
it. While they were gone, one of the gens-d'armes
leaned against the planks, while a second said,
" Twould be droll enough if we were to find one of
the fugitives in this cask." " More likely plate or
money," says a third, " for it seems very heavy." The
key at length arrived ; the cask was unlocked, and
was found to be full of salt. The gens-d'armes swore
at the disappointment, visited the roof of the house,
and then retired. In the evening, Porral, dressed in
woman's clothes, with a basket on his head and another
on his arm, passed the bridge of La Guillotiere, and
quitted the city.
Gabriel, another of the fugitives, concealed himself
among the busies in the marshes of the Trevaux
Perrache, where lie was nearly frozen to death, but
he got away to a place of safety.
80 PERCY ANECDOTES.
The young Couchoux, who was one of the five that
had opened the way for escape, made choice of his
father, who was nearly eighty years of age, as one of
the fifteen; but the poor old man's legs were swollen,
and he was scarcely able to walk. "Fly, fly, my
son !" said he, " if thou hast the opportunity, fly this
instant! I command it as an act of duty, but it is
impossible that I should fly with thee. 1 have lived
long enough — my troubles will soon be finished, and
death will be deprived of its sting, if I can know that
thou art in safety." His son assured him that he
would not quit the prison without him, and that his
persisting in his refusal would only end in the de-
struction of both. The father, overcome by his duti-
ful affections, yielded, and supported by his son,
made his way to the bottom of the staircase, but to
ascend it was out of his power; he could just drag
his legs along the ground, but to lift them upwasim-
possible. His son, though low in stature, and not
strong, took him up in his arms ; the desire of saving
his father gave him strength, and he carried him to
the top of the stairs. His filial piety was rewarded,
and both escaped.
LORD MASSAREEXE.
About the year 1770, Lord Massareene being in
France, entered into a speculation with two other
persons, to supply the Swiss Cantons with salt. His
lordship was to furnish the necessary funds, and he
became thus involved in obligations, which led to his
arrest and imprisonment for very considerable sums.
Conceiving himself in a great measure a dupe, he
CAPTIVITY. 81
determined never to enlarge himself, by discharging
his debts, but repeatedly attempted his escape from
prison ; and with so much address and ingenuity,
that he was at length, for greater security, ordered to
be confined in the State Prison, the Bastile. Here
also he made several efforts to escape, but without
success ; and at last abandoning himself to despair,
he sunk into a state of the most confirmed slothful-
ness and apathy ; entirely neglected his person, and
looked forward to death alone to relieve him. When
the destruction of the Bastile, in 1789, produced the
general delivery of the victims immured in it, the
unfortunate Massareene emerged into the light of day,
with a beard of nearly three years growth. He did
not stop long on French ground, but hastened as fast
as he could to regain his native land. At Calais
he had some difficulty to procure a passage, on ac-
count of the meanness of his dress, and of the sin-
gularly haggard appearance which long confinement
had given him.
On landing at Dover, his lordship was the first to
jump out of the boat ; in the fullness of his J03',
and in gratitude to Heaven for his deliverance,
he immediately fell on his knees, and kissing the
ground, exclaimed, " God bless this land of li-
berty!"
BASTILE RELICS.
Among the papers found inM.de Launay's house,
on the day of the destruction of the Bastile, were
a variety of interesting fragments of the many tales
of woe, of which it had for more than a century
82 PERCY ANECDOTES.
been the scene — suppressed narratives of suffering*
suppressed supplications for mercy, intercepted letters*
secret orders, «Scc. Great part of them were scattered
and lost in the confusion ; and of those which were
said to have been preserved and published, many
were spurious. The following we have reason to
believe are genuine.
A MOTHER'S LAST WOIIDS TO HER CHILI).
Letter from Madame Ladcuze Laslours, an Italian
lady, who was imprisoned in the Bastile, and con-
demned to death September 26, 1669.
" MY DEAR CHILD,
C 'I have just received the sentence of death, and I
feel nothing grievous in it, but the fear, lest in dying,
the same blow in reverberation will kill you. Death
is, in one view, agreeable to me, because it is an
opportunit y of making a sacrifice to God ; in another
view, it overwhelms my soul with grief, as it obliges
me to abandon the half of myself.
"■ I have no more words to say than to bid you adieu
with my mouth. Oh ! unhappy me, that I cannot
join it to thine.
" Kiss these last characters, and so these will kiss
the hand that writes them, and the heart that speaks
to thee. Adieu for ever!
"From my prison, Friday,
September 27, 1669."
The letters from which the following are extracts,
were enclosed in separate covers, one addressed to
31. d^ Jumilhac, then governor ; and the other, accom-
CAPTIVITY. 83
panied with a memorial in the same hand, and bearing
the same signature, addressed to the celebrated
Madame Pompadour.
" MY LORD,
" Is it losing time to entreat you ? Compassion is
bestowed on animals ; I am a man. This is the
fourteenth year of my sufferings ; I beseech you to
allow me two hours a day to walk in the garden, or on
the tower. If my long misery does not induce you
to allow me this favour, at least deign to bestow it
on me fur the benefit of my eyes — I am losing my
sight.
" Here is a packet which I will be obliged to you
to deliver for me — I am dying.
" I have the honour to be, with most profound
respect, my lord, your lordship's humbie servant,
" DANRY."
" Bastile, May 1, 1762."
TO MADAME POMPADOUR.
" MADAM,
"If the zeal I have shown for the preservation of
your person has offended you, 1 now (in spirit) throw
myself at your feet to implore your mercy, and to
ask ten thousand pardons ; for the love of God, have
pity on me.
"The enclosed is a work I have performed for the
king.
"I supplicate you not to oppress me with your dis-
pleasure, for in all my misery, notwithstanding all the
ills I endure for you, ] exert my utmust to do what I
81 PERCY ANECDOTES.
think will be most agreeable to you * *
********
Recall to mind, madam, that after my lirst escape
from the Tower of Vincennes, I delivered myself up
like a Jamb. Seven years after that, finding myself
forgotten by you, I escaped a second time from the
Bastile ; when I arrived in Holland, where I thought
my person safe, my heart remained humble and
respectful towards you.
**•***#**
" Ycu see, madam, all pleads to your soul for me.
I am now in the fourteenth year of my confine-
ment. I am overcome. Deign to put an end to my
sufferings ; it is time. To all sins mercy is granted ;
let all be this day forgotten and buried in oblivion ;
have mercy on me, I who have ever wished you happi-
ness ; and I, in return, will pray to God all my life to
bestow his holy blessing on you, and all your much
loved family.
" I have the honour to be, with profound respect,
madam, your most humble and obedient servant,
- Bastile, May 1, 1672." " daxry."
It is supposed that Madame Pompadour never re-
ceived either the letter or the memorial, for the seals
were unopened.
The plan intended by the prisoner to be laid before
the king, related to subsistence in case of scarcity.
BASTILE INSCRIPTIONS.
In an interior cell, which, from the gradual declen-
sion of the tyranny that populated the place, had been
CAPTIVITY. 85
some time without an inhabitant, there was found a
feeble inscription on the stone fronting the door ; the
following were the only words distinguishable.
" Grave par l'aide d'un dent du qui je n'ai point
aucune besoin. ,, „
" LA MALHEUREUX DE PRIE.
This nobleman was in England when the celebrated
Chevalier or Madame D'Eon, was Charge d'Affaires
in this country ; and he married a lady here, who died
a melancholy death. His residence in England very
likely gave him notions of greater freedom of speech,
than was consistent with a man's safety in France
previous to the revolution. In another cell was found
the following inscription :
" Roland.
Cigit la felicite de tout mortel si recherchee,
Helas! Je suis prive de ma chere liberie," &c.
"Here is entombed happiness so eagerly sought
by mortals ! Alas ! I am deprived of liberty, sweet
liberty ! and ray only consolations are vain com-
plaints and unavailing tears! if *" * * * (some words
illegible) when you forsake us, the days lag on like
ages. Live then, (some words eifaced) if you have
had, O mortal ! the misfortune to incur suspicion,
don't imagine that you will so soon depart hence.
The hour of entrance into this fatal place is too well
known ; but no man knows when the happ^ moment
of his departure shall come."
On the walls of a third cell there was the following
just reflection :
"Nillet, imprisoned the 8th of October, 1742.
"And the monsters who had reduced these miserable
t i
86 PliRCY ANECDOTES.
victims to the most excruciating torments, to the most
deplorable despair, would yet repose every night on
beds of down ; remorse corrodes not their ferocious
souls, nor chases slumber from their eye-lids."
PRISONER FOR SIXTY-ONE YEARS.
A. M. Dussault, who had given some cause of of-
fence to Cardinal Richelieu, was consigned to the
dungeons of the Bastileon the 20th of November, 1631.
After he had been immured here about eleven years,
the unfortunate prisoner received intelligence that his
persecutor was on the point of death. He thought
that this was a moment when an appeal to his heart
and conscience might not be made in vain. He sat
down accordingly, and wrote him the following im-
pressive letter.
" Bastile, 1st December, 1642.
"TO CARDINAL RICHELIEU.
" This is a time, my lord, when a man ceases to
be cruel and unjust ; and it is when his approaching
dissolution forces him to descend into the gloomy
recesses of his conscience, to weep for the troubles,
sorrows, and misfortunes, he has caused to his fellow-
creatures. I say fellow creatures ; for now you must
be sensible of what you never «ould be convinced or
persuaded of> that the Supreme and Excellent Creator
from above, has made us all after the same model ;
and that his intention was, that men should not be
distinguished from one another but by their virtues.
You know, my lord, that for these eleven years past,
you made me suffer a thousand deaths in this Bastile,
where even felons, and the most disloyal of his ma-
CAPTIVITY. 87
jesty's subjects, would deserve pity and compassion ;
much more I, then, my lord, whom you make perish
by inches, for having disobeyed an order of yours
that would have doomed my soul to everlasting tor-
ments, and made me appear in the presence of Almighty
God, our tremendous Judge, with hands stained with
blood. Ah! were you to hear the plaints, sighs, and
groans, I incessantly heave from the dungeon you have
condemned me to, I am sure you would forthwith re-
store me to liberty. I earnestly conjure you, my
lord, to do it, in the name of that Eternal God, who
is to judge you as well as myself ; take pity on my
cruel sufferings and sorrow ; and if you wish to be
merciful before you die, give immediate orders for ruy
chains to be broken ; for when once in the power of
death, you will no longer be able to do me that justice
I can but claim from you, and you will then be per-
secuting me even after death, which God preserves you
from doing. Vouchsafe, I beseech you, to yield to
the humble prayers of a man who has always been a
loyal subject to his majesty.
" I am, my lord, wilh veneration, respect, and sub-
mission, your's, &c. dussault."
This letter was in all probability not received, as the
Cardinal died three days after that on which it was
written, and certainly without giving any orders for
the liberation of Dussault. The cardinal became
thus, as the hapless man so emphatically expressed it,
his persecutor "even after death;" and horrid indeed
was the legacy of vengeance ; for it was not till the
20th June, 1692, as appears from an inscription on
4he wall of the room in which he was confined, that
i t
88 PEKCY ANECDOTES.
Dussault recovered his liberty. He had been sixty-
one years a prisoner !
HENRY MASERS DE LA TUDE.
In the year 1749, Henry M. de la Tude, son of a
Knight of the order of St Lonis, was sent to the
Bastile, for the grave offence of having sported with
the feelings of Madame Pompadour, the celebrated
mistress of Louis XV. With the thoughtless warm
enthusiasm of a young man, he had it seems attached
himself to tbe cause of this woman in defence of her
character, against the fanatics of the day. He wished
to do her some ostensibly good office, and sighed
to render himself of consequence in her esteem.
Having heard that she was unhappy from the ap-
prehension of poison, La Tude waited on Madame
Pompadour at Versailles, to acquaiut her that he
had seen a parcel put into the post office addressed
for her ; and at the same time expressed his suspicioxis
relative to the contents of it, and cautioned the
marchioness to beware. The parcel arrived of course,
La Tude having himself put it into the post office ;
but the powder proved on chemical experiment per-
fectly innocent. The result gave the marchioness
an insight into La Tude's design ; and, offended at
his presumption, she had him sent to the Bastile as
an impostor.
La Tude with great ingenuity effected his escape
from prison ; and feeling unconscious of any crime
demanding severity of punishment, he went, and
voluntarily surrendered himself to the king. Unhappy
man ! Victim of the caprice and cruelty of a woman.
The unfeeling marchioness, piqued athis placing more
CAPTIVITY. 89
confidence in the king than herself, made such re-
presentations to his majesty, that he ordered La Tude
back to the prison, and to be immured in one of
its most dreary chambers — a dungeon ! where another
prisoner, of the name of Delegre, was also confined
by order of the marchioness.
Yet even from this impregnable fortress of barbarity,
where no wealth could bribe — where no instrument
of any kind was allowed, did La Tude and his com-
panion, without money and unaided, effect their
escape.
They had neither scissors, knives, nor any edged
instrument ; and for an hundred guineas, the turnkey
would not supply them with an ounce of thread.
Upon making the calculation of the difficulties to be
encountered, they found that they required fourteen
hundred feet of cordage ; two ladders of wood and
rope, from twenty to twenty-five feet long, and another
of an hundred and eight feet in length. It was neces-
sary to displace several iron grates from the chimney ;
and in one night to make a hole in the v\ all several feet
thick, at the distance of only twelve or fifteen feet from
a sentinel. The wooden ladder, and that of rope, when
made, must be concealed ; and the officers, accom-
panied by the turnkeys, came to visit*and search them
several times a week. They had to make and do all
these things to accomplish their design; and they had
nothing but their hands to effect it with.
The hand, to those who know its use, is the instru-
ment of all instruments. The iron hinge of the table
was, by wetting on a tiled floor, converted into a
knife. With this, bars were removed, and a saw con-
structed ; wood was concealed from the daily fuel
90 PERCY ANECDOTES.
to construct the ladders ; La Tude's portmanteau con-
tained twelve dozen of shirts, and other articles of
apparel, out of which they made the 1400 feet of
rope. The bars in the chimney took six months to
displace ; and the whole of these preparations cost
eighteen months' work, day and night.
The moment of attempting their dangerous enter-
prise now arrived ; one night, after supper, La Tude
first ascended the chimney, and drew the ropes, iron
bars, &c. up after him, leaving a sufficient quantity of
the ladder in the chimney to enable his companion
to ascend with less difficulty. Being now on the top,
they drew up the rest of the ladder ; and then de-
scended at once upon the platform, serving as a
counterpoise to each other. They next fixed their
ladder to a piece of cannon, and let it gently into the
fosse ; by which means they descended with their
iron bars, wooden ladder, and all their equipage.
Daring all this time, the sentinel was not more than
ten fathoms from them, walking upon the corridor.
This prevented them from getting up to it, to go
into the garden, as they first intended ; they therefore
were under the necessity of making use of their iron
bars. They proceeded straight to the wall which
separates the fosse of the Bastile from that of the
garden St. Antoine, between the garden and the
governor's house. In this place there formerly had
been a little fosse, a fathom wide, one or two feet
deep ; but now the water was up to their arm-pits.
The moment La Tude began to make a hole be-
tween two stones to introduce their iron bars as levers,
the round major passed by with his great lantern, at
the distance of ten or twelve feet over their heads.
CAPTIVITY. 91
To prevent their being discovered, they sunk up to
their chins in the water ; this ceremony they were
obliged to repeat every half hour when the round
came by. At length, one large stone was removed
from the wall ; they attacked a second, and after-
wards a third, with equal success ; so that before
midnight they had displaced several cart-loads of
stones ; and in less than six hours had entirely pierced
the wall, which was more than four feet and a half thick.
They drew the portmanteau through the hole, aban-
doning every thing else without regret. They then
descended into the deep fosse of the gate St. Antoine ;
whence, after a narrow escape from perishing, they got
upon dry ground, and took refuge at the abbey of St.
Germain des Prez.
La Tude fled to Holland ; but on the demand of
the King of France, he was given up by the Dutch
government, reconducted to the Bastile, and more
closely confined than ever.
On the death of Madame Pompadour, La Tude
was informed of it by a writing placed up at a window
in the street, in consequence of some papers he had
thrown from the Bastile Tower.
Most of the prisoners in the Bastile were on this
occasion liberated. The minister, Sartine, however,
refused to set La Tude free, except on a condition
which the unfortunate man thinking derogatory to his
honour, would not accede to, and he was still doomed
by the remorseless revenge of that monster of inhu-
manity, to remain a prisoner ten feet under ground,
clad in tatters, with a beard reaching to his feet, no
bed but straw, no provision but bread and water,
over-run with vermin ! Such, alas ! continued for
92 PERCY ANECDOTES.
many years the wretched situation of the unfortunate
La Tude ; whose only crime was having offended the
favourite of his sovereign !
The ultimate liberation of La Tude is not the least
wonderful part of his story. A woman, named Le
Gros, walking abroad in June, 1781, saw lying in a
comer a packet of papers, that had the appearance of
having been tumbled in the dirt. She took it up, and
returning home, read the contents. It proved to be a
memorial, stating part of the misfortunes of the Sieur
La Tude, prisoner in a dungeon ten feet under ground,
on an allowance of bread and water, for thirty-four
years !
The good woman was moved with compassion at
the recital of such cruel suffering, and was incessant
in her applications on his behalf to persons of rank ;
till at last she obtained his liberation on the 18th of
March, 1784, through the influence of Baron Breteuil,
who accompanied the glad tidings with a grant to La
Tude of a pension of four hundred livres.
COUNTESS DE LA MOTTE.
This lady, whose connection with the Cardinal de
Rohan, and the notorious Count Cagliostro, in the
affair of the diamond necklace, which occupied so
much of the public attention in the early part of the
reign of Louis XVI., was in the Conciergerie, from
which she contrived to effect her escape.
For several months the countess was in possession
of the necessary apparatus, but delayed making the
attempt, in the hope of a public liberation. At length
she determined to defer it no longer. She dressed
CAPTIVITY. 93
herself in man's clothes, cut the front part of her
hair in the shape usually worn by the jockeys in
Paris, and thus equipped, her head buried as it were
in a large round hat, half-boots on her feet, and a
small stick in her hand, she boldly ventured forth,
well armed, and resolved to die rather than be retaken.
After having opened and shut after her seven dif-
ferent gates, she at last reached an immense yard,
where there were many females belonging to the
place. She addressed herself to one of them in a
disguised voice, put a piece of gold into her hand,
and enquired the way to the chapel ; where she soon
arrived, and mixed as fast as she could with a nu-
merous company of visitors, then busy in reviewing
such curiosities as were to be seen. With the whole
group she was conveyed to the outer gate, called
Porte de Champs. There she met her faithful sister,
who, under the name of Marianne, had officiated as
her servant. They took a boat, and crossed to the
opposite shore.
Notwithstanding her enfeebled state, the countess
had strength enough to walk as far as Charenton,
where they got into a cart, which carried them three *
leagues further. She afterwards exchanged her manly
attire for the simple garb of a country girl. After
numberless fatigues, and much anxiety, avoiding the
large towns, putting up at the most wretched hovels,
travelling sometimes in carts, oftener on foot ; com-
pelled, through the inhumanity of a publican, who
would not open his door after twelve o'clock, to pass
a whole night on the naked ground in Columby
Forest, near Bar-sur-Aube, she at last reached the
city of Luxemburg, and took up her residence in a
94 PERCY ANECDOTES.
neighbouring village ; here she remained six weeks,
and then set off for London, where she arrived in
safety.
SIR WALTER RALEGH.
" His mind
Explored the vast extent of ages past,
Ami with his prison hours enrich'd the world ;
Yet found no times in all the long research,
So glorious or so base, as those he prov'd
In which he conquer'd, and in which he bled."
THOMSON.
Sir Walter Ralegh, who was frequently distin-
guished by the title of the noble and valorous knight,
and whose works have placed him in an important
rank in the history of English literature, was doomed
to pass the best period of his life in captivity. The
reign of James I. may be praised for its pacific cha-
racter ; but as long as the name of Ralegh shall be
remembered, will that reign be stained with one of
the foulest crimes a monarch could commit.
Almost immediately after the accession of King
James in 1603, Ralegh was imprisoned on a charge
of treason, tried at Winchester in November of the
same year, and condemned to die. He was however
reprieved, and confined a close prisoner in the Tower,
where he remained for upwards of fourteen years.
During his confinement, he devoted great part of his
time to his studies ; and the productions of his pen
at this time were so numerous, that he rather re-
sembled a collegian, than a captive ; a student in a
library, than a prisoner in the Tower. His principal
CAPTIVITY. 95
work, the " History of the World," was written and
published during his confinement. He was at length
released from the Tower in March, 1615 ; had the
king's commission for a voyage to Guiana, which he
made in 1617: but being unsuccessful, the old sen-
tence was revived against him on his return home,
and he was sent to the scaffold, to the eternal dis-
grace of the pusillanimous monarch, whose conduct
in this affair gained him the indignation of his con-
temporaries, and of posterity.
SPANISH CAPTIVES IN ALGIERS.
A Spanish lady, the wife of an officer, with her
son, a youth of fourteen, and her daughter, six years
old, were taken in a Spanish vessel by the Algerines.
The barbarians treated her and both her children with
the greatest inhumanity. The eldest they kept in
chains ; and the defenceless little one they wantonly
treated so ill, that the unhappy mother was often
nearly deprived of her reason at the blows her infant
received from these wretches, who plundered them of
every thing. They kept them many days at sea on
hard and scanty fare, covered only with a few soiled
rags ; and in this state brought them to Algiers. They
had been long confined in a dreadful dungeon in the
bagnio where the slaves are kept, when a messenger
was sent to the Aga, or Captain of the Bagnio, for a
•female slave. It fortunately fell to the lot of the
Spanish lady, at the instant she was embracing her
son, who was tearing himself from his mother with
haggard and disordered looks, to go to his imperious
drivers ; and while in despair she gazed on her little
96 PERCY ANECDOTES.
worn-out infant, she heard herself summoned to
attend the guard of the prison to a family that had
sent for a female slave. She obtained permission to
take her little daughter with her. She dreaded being
refused, and sent back to the horrid dungeon she was
leaving, where no deference was paid to rank, and
slaves of all conditions were huddled together. She
went, therefore, prepared to accept of any thing short
of these sufferings. She was refused, as being in
every respect opposite to the description of the
person sent for. At length her entreaties and tears
prevailed; compassion over-ruled every obstacle ; and
she, with her little girl, was accepted. But there
remained another difficulty; she had left her sou
chained in the midst of that dungeon from which she
had just been rescued. Her kind patrons soon learned
the cause of her distress ; but to send for the youth
and treat him kindly, or in any way above that of a
common slave, must hazard the demand of so large a
ransom for him and his mother, as would for ever
preclude the hope of liberty. He was, however, sent
for, and the menial offices they were both engaged to
perform, were only nominal. With circumspection,
the whole family were sheltered in this manner for
three years ; when the war with the Spaniards growing
more inveterate, the Algerines demanded the youth
back to the bagnio, to work in oiumou '.sith the
other slaves, in repairing the damages done to the
fortresses by the Spanish cannon. He was now com-
pelled to go, loaded with heavy stones, through the
whole uf the town; and at almost every step he
received dreadful blows, not being able to hasten his
pace from the great weight.
CAPTIVITY. 97
Overcome at last with ill usage, the delicacy of his
form and constitution gave way to the excessive
labour, and he one morning refused the orders of his
master, or driver, to rise from the straw on which he
was stretched, declared they might kill him if tbey
chose, for he would not even try to carry another load
of stones. Repeated messages had been sent from
the Venetian consul's, where his mother and sister
were sheltered, to the Aga, to return him ; and when
the Algerines found that they had absolutely reduced
him so near death, they thought it best to spare his
life for the sake of future ransom. They agreed,
therefore, to let him return to the Christian's. His
life was for some time despaired of ; but through the
kind attention he received, be was rescued from the
threatened dissolution. His recovery was concealed,
for fear of his being demanded back to work ; and a
few months after, the Spanish peace of 1784 being
concluded, a ransom was accepted by the Algerines
for this suffering family, and they were set at liberty.
MAGNANIMOUS CRIMINAL.
Mr. Ryland, the artist, who was executed in 1789
for forgery, so conciliated the friendship of the go-
vernor of Tothill Fields Bridewell, where he was con-
fined, that henotonly had the liberty of the whole house
and garden, but when the other prisoners were locked
up of an evening, the governor used to take him out
with him, and range the fields to a considerable dis-
tance. His friends, anticipating the consequences of
a trial at this time, concerted a plan by which Ryland
was to effect his escape in one of these excursions, and
T k
98 PERCY ANECDOTES,
which was to have been executed in such a manner,
that the exoneration of his guardian must have followed
of course. But probable as it appeared, when men-
tioned to the unfortunate man, he was so far from ac-
ceding, that he protested that if he was at tbat moment
to meet his punishment, he would embrace it with all
its terrors, rather than betray a confidence so humanely
given. He was deaf to remonstrance and entreaty,
and ultimately preferred the risk of death to a breach
of friendship.
MADAME ROLAND.
" To-day on a throne, to-morrow in a prison."
" Such," observes Madame Roland, " is the fate of
virtue in revolutionary times. Enlightened men,
who have pointed out its rights, are, by a nation
weary of oppression, first called into authority. But
it is not possible that they should maintain their
places. The ambitious, eager to take advantage of
circumstances, mislead the people by flattery ; and to
acquire consequence and power, prejudice them
against their real friends. Men of principle, who
despise adulation, and contemn intrigue, meet not
their oppressors on equal terras ; their fall is therefore
certain ; the still soft voice of sober reason, amidst
the tumult of the passions, is easily overpowered."
The resignation of the minister Roland, appeased
not his enemies ; they thirsted for his life. The
revolutionary committee sent some of their myr-
midons to arrest him ; but Roland had fled. His
wife, the heroic-minded Madame Roland, remained
alone to brave all their fury. "I/et them," she said,
CAPTIVITY. 99
'* satiate it upon me ; I defy its power, and devote
myself to death. It is incumbent on him to save him-
self for the sake of his country, to which he may be
yet capable of rendering important services." She
was sent to the Abbaye.
The wife of the keeper made some civil obser-
vations, expressive of the regret she felt when a pri-
soner of her own sex arrived ; " for," added she,
" they have not all your serene countenance." Ma-
dame Roland thanked her with a smile, while the
keeper locked her into a room hastily put in order
for her reception. " Well, then," said she, seating
herself, and falling into a strain of reflections, "I am
in prison." The moments that followed, she declares
she would not have exchanged for those which might
be esteemed by others as the happiest of her life.
I recalled the past to my mind," says she ; " I cal-
culated the events of the future ; I devoted myself,
if I may so say, voluntarily to my destiny, whatever
it might be ; I defied its rigour, and fixed myself
firmly in that state of mind in which, without giving
ourselves concern for what is to come, we seek only
employment for the present."
On rising next morning, she busied herself in
arranging her apartment. She had in her pocket
Thomson's Seasons, a work of which she was parti-
cularly fond. She made a memorandum of such other
books as she should wish to procure ; among these
were the Lives of Plutarch, Hume's History of
England, and Sheridan's Dictionary. While employed
in these peaceful preparations, she heard the town in
a tumult, and the drums beating to arras. She could
hot help smiling at the contrast. " At any rate," said
k 2
100 PERCY ANECDOTES.
she, " they shall not prevent ray living to my last
moment more happy in conscious innocence, than my
persecutors, with the rage that animates them. If
they come, I will advance to meet them, and go
to death as a man would go to repose."
To a faithful domestic, who came to visit her, she
observed, " Whenever I have been ill, I have ex-
perienced a particular kind of serenity, proceeding
unquestionably from my mode of thinking, and from
the law I have laid down for myself; or always sub-
mitted quietly to necessity, instead of revolting
against it. The moment I take to my bed, every
duty and every solicitude seems at an end ; I am
bound only to remain there with resignation and with
a good grace. I find that imprisonment produces on
me nearly the same effect ; 1 am bound only to be in
prison, and what great hardship is there in that ? 1 am
not sack very bad company for myself."
Madame Roland seemed to take a pleasure in
making trials of her fortitude, and inuring herself to
privations. She determined to make an experiment
how far the mind is capable of diminishing gradually
the wants of the body. She began by substituting,
in place of coffee and chocolate, bread and water for
breakfast. For her dinner, she had one plain dish of
meat, with a few vegetables ; and for her supper,
vegetables also, without a dessert. She relinquished
both wine and beer. As her purpose in adopting this
conduct was moral rather than economical, she ap-
propriated the sums thus saved, for the relief of those
miserable wretches who were lying upon straw ; that
while eating her dry bread in the morning, she might
CAPTIVITY. 101
have the pleasure of reflecting, that by this depriva-
tion, she was adding to their dinner.
A short time after, she was transferred to the
prison of St. Pelagie. The wing there appropriated
to female prisoners, was divided into long and very
narrow corridors, on one side of which were the
cells. Under the same roof, and upon the same line,
separated only by a thin partition of plaster, was the
respectable wife of the virtuous Roland forced to
dwell, in the midst of women of the most abandoned
characters, and exposed to every sort of insult and
contumely. " If this," observed the heroic sufferer,
" be the reward of virtue on earth, who can be
astonished at my contempt of life, or at the resolution
with which 1 look death in the face ?"
Fortitude, she justly conceived, consisted not merely
in an effort of the mind to rise above circumstances,
but in maintaining that elevation by suitable con-
duct. She divided her days with the exactest order.
In the morning she studied English, in Shaftes-
bury's Essay on Virtue, and the Seasons of Thomson;
with the former she strengthened her reason, with the
latter she charmed her imagination and delighted her
feelings. Afterwards she employed herself with her
crayons till the hour of dinner ; and the evenings she
devoted either to writing memoirs of her life, or to the
perusal of Tacitus and Plutarch. The whole of her
conduct was a striking proof how much even the
malice of. fortune is impotent, when directed against
those who have acquired the habit of exerting their
faculties, and of exercising over themselves a volun-
tary controul.
Madame Roland was at length, after five months'
k 3
102 PERCY ANECDOTES.
confinement, condemned to the scaffold. She belield
the approach of death with unaffected tranquillity.
Although passed the prime of life, she was still a
charming woman ; her person was tall and elegantly
framed ; her countenance animated and expressive, but
misfortune and confinement had impressed on her as-
pect traces of melancholy, which tempered its vivacity.
In a body moulded by grace, and fashioned by a
courtly politeness, she possessed a republican soul.
Something more than is generally found in the eyes
of women, was painted in her's, which were large,
dark, and full of softness and intelligence. Sometimes
her sex Recovered its ascendancy, and it was easy to
perceive that conjugal and maternal recollections had
drawn tears from her eyes. The woman who waited
upon her said to M. Riouffe, " Before you she is all
courage ; but in her own room she sometimes stands
for three hours together, leaning against the window
and weeping."
Nothing could exceed the heroic firmness which
she displayed on the scaffold. She suffered her hair
to be cut off, aud her hands to be bound, without
uttering a murmur or complaint. Before laying her
head on the block, she bowed to the statue of Liberty,
exclaiming, in a tone of heartfelt pathos,
" Oh, Liberty! what crimes are committed in thy name /"
MALESHERBES.
Among the magistrates who were immolated in
France during the sanguinary power of Robespierre,
was the great and virtuous Malesherbes. He was
CAPTIVITY/. 103
seized in the rural retreat to which he had retired from
the miseries of his country, along with his daughter
and his little grandchildren. When he was brought
to Paris, and conducted into the common hall of the
prison, where all the prisoners were assembled, they
were struck with astonishment, and all rose respect-
fully to support his steps as he approached ; he was
shown to the only seat which the room contained.
Malesherbes looked around, and said with a smile,
" The arm chair is due to age ; I am not sure of my
title to it, I see another old man who must take it
before me." He was condemned to death with his
whole family.
AUTHOR OF "BARON MUNCHAUSEN."
During the same reign of terror, there was among
the British subjects imprisoned in Paris, a man of a
peculiar cast of character, who, under the most uncouth
and neglected exterior, concealed one of the best of
hearts. His person was at the time meagre and
spare, and overshadowed as it generally was by a hat
of an immense military cock, formed no unapt re
presentation of Shakespeare's Pistol. The gentleman
we allude to was Mr. M , better known among
his friends by the appellation of the Baron, from his
having given to the world the wonderful exploits and
adventures of Baron Munchausen. After many vicis-
situdes of fortune in England, Mr. M. proceeded to
France, in order to offer his services to the republican
government, and soon after was presented with a
lieutenancy in the regiment commanded by another
Englishman of unfortunate memory, Colonel Oswald.
104 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Although attached in the first instance to the cause
of the revolution, Mr. M. by no means approved of
its latter stages j nor would his principles permit him
to continue in the service after the death of the king,
and the declaration of war against his own country.
H;-. resignation provoked the jealousy of the ruling
; he was arrested, and thrown into prison.
H I le confined here, he became an object of very
tender solicitude to a young French woman, who
though she moved only in the humble capacity of a
servant, had conceived a strong attachment to the
Barcn's person. Whatever money she was able to
earn by her labour, she remitted to him ; and as often
as her weekly holiday permitted, she was a regular
visitor at his prison. The privilege of receiving the
visits oi~ their friends, was after some time, however,
denied to the prisoners, and the Baron was obliged to
forego the company of his beloved Marie, con-
soling himself with the idea that thoogh out of sight,
she might still be constant to him. Nor did he Marie
any more than justice. The faithful girl continued
to send him daily supplies of every thing, even to a
little luxury, which it was in her power to procure;
and though no man in the prison was poorer than Mr.
M., few of them could boast of more personal com-
forts. The sequel of this anecdote it gives us infinite
pleasure to relate. After the liberation of Mr. M.
and soon after he had departed for England, Marie
brought him a son. On receiving intelligence of
this from a friend in Paris, Mr. M. immediately
forwarded her a supply of money for her present exi-
gences, thougii he very much inconvenienced himself.
,\or was this all. As he was the first man who had
CAPTIVITY. 105
got possession of her good graces, and as he had
made a thorough trial of her fidelity and attachment
to him, he found means of getting her over to
England ; and the humble Marie became Mrs. M.
PRISONERS AT OLMUTZ.
When the Marquess de la Fayette and several general
officers quitted the French army, then in insurrection,
after the famous 10th of August, they were seized by
the King of Prussia ; from him transferred to the
custody of Austria ; and long confined in the Castle
of Olmutz. To the honour of Madame de la Fayette,
she desired and obtained leave to share the captivity
of her husband, but other wives were less fortunate.
To maintain some intercourse with his family, M.
de Pusy, one of the imprisoned party, concealed a
tooth-pick, and mingling his spittle (and often his
tears) with soot, he contrived to write in the blank
pages and margin of some pious works which he hired
from a bookseller in the town, such information as he
desired should reach his wife. That the bookseller
had weighty reasons for tolerating the destruction of
his treatises, need not to be doubted.
But a much more remarkable circumstance attended
this imprisonment, and which displays a singular in-
stance of ingenuity. Although each of the prisoners
was kept solitary, yet their apartments were so con-
structed, that they were within hearing of each other,
when standing at the windows of their respective
chambers. To improve this advantage, they thought
of the following plan. There is at Paris a number of
tunes called airs of the Pont Neuf, or those popular
106 PERCY ANECDOTES.
ballads that were sung at corners of the streets, and
at other public places. The words belonging to these
airs were so well known, that to strike up a few of the
notes, was to recall to memory the words that accom-
panied them. The captives at Olmutz gradually
composed for themselves a vocal vocabulary, by whist-
ling these notes at their windows ; and this vocabulary ,
after a short time, became so complete, and even rich,
that two or three notes from each air formed their al-
phabet, and effected their intercourse. By this means
they communicated news to each other concerning
their families, the progress of the war, &c. ; and when
by good fortune one of them had procured a gazette,
he whistled the contents of it to his partners in suffering.
The commander of the fortress was constantly in-
formed of these unaccountable concerts. He listened,
he set spies ; but the whole being a language of con-
vention, the most practised musician would have failed
in detecting the intention and real expression of the
notes he heard. In vain was whistling prohibited ; at
length the Austrian, weary of conjecture, interposed
no further to prevent what he could not comprehend.
MORE PROVOKING THAN PAINFUL.
"Where the number of electors is so small as in a
Scotch borough, much room is afforded for intrigue
and foul play. Carrying off a delegate, is uearly as
common a prank as carrying off an heiress in another
country; and it has not unfrequently happened to a
decent Scotch baillie,to find himself gathering cockles
on the Norway shore, when he should have been
voting for a representative to the great council of
the nation, in the Town Hall of his native burgh.
CAPTIVITY. 107
An amusing affair of this sort is related, in which
the once noted Lady Wallace, sister of the late
Duchess of Gordon, figured as the gay entrapper.
General Skreene was appointed delegate for a borough
in an iuterest opposed to that of a party whose
success had Lady Wallace's best wishes. On the
eve of the election, she sent an invitation to the
general to partake of a tete-a-tete collation. The bait
was so tempting, the general went; and when he ex-
pected to be ushered into her ladyship's presence, he
found himself suddenly locked up in a suit of apart-
ments, where there was every thing convenient for
supping, sleeping, &c. ; but no means of egress,
except for a Trenck, or a De la Tude. Lady W.
amused herself in the interim in an anti-chamber,
where she stood sentinel, with writing the following
lines :
" Ah! heavy my heart, and deep my remorse is,
The woes of this gallant gay hero to note ;
Commander-in-chief of His Majesty's forces,
In durance detain'd, and depriv'd of his vote !
Hark ! how on the paunels he kicks and he scrawls !
With lily-white hands he batters the panes out ;
In accents of anguish for succour he bawls,
Heaven grant, that iu fury he beat not his brains out! "
OLD SCRAN NY.
Some years ago, the Shawano Indians being obliged
to remove from their habitations, in their way took a
Muskohge warrior, known by the name of Old Scranny,
prisoner : they bastinadoed him severely, and con-
demned him to the fiery torture. He underwent a
108 PERCY ANECDOTES.
great deal without showing any concern ; his counte-
nance and behaviour gave no indication of the pain
he suffered. He told his persecutors with a bold
voice, that he was a warrior ; that he had gained the
most of his martial reputation at the expense of their
nation ; and was so desirous of showing them in the
act of dying, that he was still as much their superior,
as when he headed his gallant countrymen against
them ; that although he had fallen into their hands, and
forfeited the protection of the Divine Power, by some
impurity or other, when carrying the holy ark of war
against his devoted enemies, yet he had so much re-
maining virtue as would enable him to punish himself
more exquisitely than all their despicable ignorant
crowd possibly could ; and that he would do so, if
they gave him liberty by untying him, and handing
him one of the red-hot barrels out of the fire. The
proposal and his method of address appeared so ex-
ceedingly bold and uncommon, that his request was
granted. Then suddenly seizing the red-hot barrel,
and brandishing it from side to side, he found his way
through the armed and astonished multitude ; leaped
down a prodigiously steep and high bank into the
river ; dived through it, ran over a small island, and
passed the ether branch amidst a shower of bullets ;
and though numbers of his enemies were in close pur-
suit of him, he got into a bramble swamp, through
which, though naked and in a mangled condition, he
reached his own country.
CAPTIVITY. 109
CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH.
The celebrated Captain John Smith, some time
President of Virginia, and one of the most extraordinary
men that ever appeared on the theatre of life, v.hen
young, served in the Transylvanian army, where -he
greatly distinguished himself. In a battle near Rolen
ton, in which the Turks and Tartars were the victors,
Captain Smith was severely wounded and taken pri-
soner. He was sold to the Bashaw Bogal, who sent
him as a present to his mistress, Tragabigzanda, at
Constantinople ; accompanied with a message as full
of vanity as void of truth, that he had conquered a
Bohemian nobleman, and presented him to her as a
slave.
The present proved more acceptable to the lady
than was intended ; and Smith became so much in
favour, that, to prevent his being ill-used or sold again,
she sent him to her brother, the Bashaw of Nalbraitz,
in the country of the Cambrian Tartars, on the borders
of the sea of Asoph. Her pretence was, that he
.should there learn the manners and language, as well
as religion, of the Tartars ; but from the terms in which
the lady wrote to her brother, he suspected she had
some other design, and resolved to disappoint her.
Within an hour after Smith's arrival, he was stripped ;
his head and beard shaved, and an iron collar put
round his neck. He was clothed with a coat of hair
cloth, and driven to labour among other Christian
slaves. He had now no hope of redemption, nor did
the condition of his fellow slaves alleviate his de-
spondency. In the depth of his distress, an opportu
110 PERCY ANECDOTES.
nity presented itself for an escape, which to a person
of a less courageous and adventurous spiritwould have
proved an aggravation of misery. He was employed
in thrashing, in a large field about a league distant
from the house of his tyrant, who, in his daily visits,
treated him with abusive language, accompanied with
blows and kicks. This was more than Smith could
bear ; therefore, watching an opportunity when no
other person was present, he levelled a blow at him
with his thrashing instrument, which stretched him
senseless on the ground. Smith then filled a bag with
grain, mounted the Bashaw's horse, and betaking him-
self to the desert, wandered for two or three days,
ignorant of the way, but so fortunate as not to meet
with a single person who might give information of
his flight. At length he came to a post erected in a
cross road, by the marks on which he found the way
to Muscovy, and in sixteen days arrived at Exapolis,
on the river Don, where was a Russian garrison. The
commander, finding that he was a Christian, received
him courteously, took off his iron collar, and gave
him letters of recommendation, by means of which
he travelled through part of Russia and Poland, till
he got back to his friends in Transylvania.
Some years afterwards, Captain Smith had a no less
miraculous escape from captivity in another quarter
of the globe. Being one of the adventurers to Vir-
ginia in 1607, and one of the principal founders of
the English colony there, he made several excursions
to explore the country. In one of these, he was taken
prisoner by the Indians, and several of his companions
CAPTIVITY. Ill
were killed. An ivory compass and dial which he
presented to the chief, afforded the Indians much
amusement. At length, curiosity being satiated, they
fastened him to a tree, and prepared to dispatch him
with their arrows. At this moment the chief holding
up the compass, which they esteemed as a divinity,
they laid aside their arms, and forming a military pro-
cession, led him in triumph to their village, Orapaxe.
After carrying him through several nations inhabit-
ing the banks of the Potowmack and Rappahanock,
and performing several strange incantations to divine
whether his intentions were friendly or hostile, they
brought him to the Emperor Powhatan, who received
him in royal state, clothed in a robe of racoon skins,
and seated on a kind of throne, elevated above the floor
of a large hut, in the midst of which was a fire ; at each
side of the prince sat a beautiful girl, his daughters,
and along each side of the house a number of his
counsellors, painted, and adorned with feathers and
shells. On the entrance of Smith, a great shout was
made ; the Queen of Apamatox brought him water to
wash his hands, and another served him with a bunch
of feathers instead of a towel. Having feasted him
after their custom, a long consultation was held ; which
being finished, two large stones were brought in, on one
of which the head of Smith was laid, and clubs were
raised to kill him- At this critical moment Pocahon-
tas, the king's favourite daughter, then only twelve
years of age, flew to Smith, took his head in her arms,
and laid her own upon it Her tender entreaties pre-
vailed ; the king consented that Smith should live to
make hatchets for him, and ornaments for his daughter.
Two dajsafter, Captain Smith was released, on th'
i %
112 PERCY ANliCDOTES.
promise of sending some presents to Powhatan and
his daughter ; which, on reaching the fort at James
Town, lie did not neglect. The Princess Pocahontas
was afterwards made a prisoner in Virginia, and
married a Mr. John llolfe, who hrought her to England.
Captain Smith, then in London, addressed a letter
to the queen, in which he stated the merits of the
Indian princess, and the eminent services she had
done to him and the colony of Virginia. She was
introduced at court, and received by the queen and
royal family with great complacency ; and she proved
herself worthy of their notice and respect. After
remaining some time in London, Mr. Rolfe was pre-
paring to return with his wife to Virginia, when she
was taken ill, and died at Gravesend, leaving an infant
son, Thomas Rolfe, from whom are descended several
families in Virginia, who held their lands by in-
heritance from the humane and amiable Princess
Pocahontas.
SLAVERY IN THE UNITED STATES.
Yes, gentle reader, in this boasted land of liberty,
negro slavery, in its most degrading form, still exists
in twelve of the American states. The poor negro is
reduced to the most servile drudgery, from which it
is almost impossible to emerge, since it is thought the
greatest degradation for a white man to have any in-
tercourse with one of the sable race. Mr. Fearon, a
writer who has discovered a strong partiality for
these trans-atlantic republicans, speaks very plainly
011 this subject. The first article of the Ohio consti-
tution declares, that " All men are born equally frte
CAPTIVITY. 113
and independent." This is the law ; at Cincinnati
Mr. Fearon discovered the practice.
" Many persons in this state," says he, " have co-
loured people, whom they call their property. The
mode in which they effect this perpetuation of slavery,
in violation of the spirit of the Ohio constitution,
is to purchase blacks, and have them apprenticed to
them. Some are so base as to take these negroes
down the river, at the approach of the expiration
of their apprenticeship, and sell them at Natchetz for
life."
Of the manner in which the slaves are treated, the
following proof, so afflicting to humanity, is related by
the same author.
"A few minutes before dinner, my attention was
excited by the piteous cries of a human voice, ac-
companied with the loud cracking of a whip. Fol-
lowing the sound, I found that it issued from a log-
barn, the door of which was fastened. Peeping
through the logs, I perceived the bar-keeper, to-
gether with a stout man, more than six feet high, who
was Colonel , and a negro boy about fourteen
years of age stripped naked, receiving the lashes of
these monsters, who relieved each other in the use of
a horsewhip ; the poor hoy fell down upon his knees
several times, begging and praying that they would
not kill him, and that he would do any thing they
liked ; this produced no cessation in their exercise.
At length Mr. Lawes arrived, told the valiant colonel
and his humane employer, the bar-keeper, to desist,
and that the boy's refusal to cut wood, was in obe-
dience to his (Mr. L.'s) directions. Colonel
said, that he did not know what the niggar had done,
l 3
114 PERCY ANECDOTES.
but that the bar-keeper requested his assistance tv
whip Caesar; of course he lent him a hand, being no
more than he should expect Mr. Lawea to do for him,
under similar circumstances*
AFRICAN LOVERS.
Among the unfortunate victims of the frightful
traffic in slaves, brought to Tripoli, in 1788, were a
beautiful black female, about sixteen years of age,
and a young man of good appearance. They had
been purchased by a Moorish family of distinction.
They were obliged to be watched night and day, and
all instruments kcj t out of their reach, as they were
continually endeavouring to destroy themselves, and
sometimes each other. Their story will prove that
friend.diip and fidelity are not strangers to the negro
race. This female, who had been the admiration of
her own country, had bestowed her heart and her
hand on the man who was then with her. Their
nuptials were going to be celebrated, when her friends
one morning missing her, traced her steps to the
corner of an adjacent wood, immediately apprehend-
ing that she had been pursued, and that she had
down to the thicket for shelter, which is the common
and best resource of escape from those who scour the
country for slaves.
The parents went directly to her lover, and told him
of their distress. He, without losing time to search
for her in the thicket, hastened to the sea side, where
his foreboding heart told him he should find her in
some vessel anchored there for carrying off slaves.
CAPTIVITY. 115
He was just easy enough in his circumstances not to
be afiaid of being bought or stolen himself, as it is in
general only the unprotected that are carried off by
these hunters of the human race. His conjectures
were just— he saw his betrothed wife in the hands of
those who had stolen her. He knelt to the robbers
who had now the disposal of her, to know the price
they demanded for her. A hundred mahboobs (nearly
an hundred pounds) was fixed ; but, alas ! all that he
was worth, did not make him rich enough for the
purchase. He did not hesitate a moment to sell his
little flock of sheep, and the small piece of ground he
possessed ; and, lastly, he disposed of himself to those
who had taken his companion. Happy that they
would do him this last favour, he cheerfully accom-
panied her, and threw himself into slavery for her
sake. This faithful pair, on their arrival at Tripoli,
were sold to a merchant, who determined on sending
off the female with the rest of the slaves, to be sold
again, she having, from her beauty, cost too much
money to be kept as a servant. The merchant in-
tended to keep the man as a domestic in his own
family.
The distressed pair, on hearing they were to be se-
parated, became frantic. They threw themselves
on the ground before some of the ladies of the
family, whom they saw passing by ; and finding that
one of them was the daughter of their master, they
clung around her, and implored her assistance ; nor
could their grief be moderated, until the humane lady
assured them that she would intercede with her
father not to part them.
116 PERCY ANECDOTES.
The black fell at the merchant's feet, and entreated
him not to separate them, declaring that if he did,
he would lose all the money he had paid for them
both ; for that although knives and poison were kept
out of their way, no one could force them to eat ; and
that no human means could make them break the
oath they had already taken in the presence of the
god they worshipped, never to live asunder.
Tears and entreaties prevailed so far with the
merchant, as to suffer them to remain together, and
they were sold to the owner of a merchant vessel,
who took them, with several others, to Constanti-
nople.
ESCAPE OF MRS. SPENCER SMITH.
In 1806, the French force under General Lau-
riston, entered Venice, and established there a new
government. Mrs. Spencer Smith, the sister-in-law
of the gallant Sir Sidney Smith, was then resident
there, for the benefit of her health, with two infant
children.
She received an order to appear before the French
police. On obeying the summons, she was declared
to be under arrest as a French prisoner, and received
an order to -depart within a week, for the city of
Bassano, the place fixed upon by the government for
her residence. She demanded to know the reason
for which she was thus treated ; and was answered,
" Your country and your ?m»ie."
A very few days after, it appeared that the order
CAPTIVITY. 117
to repair to Bassano was a mere feint, and that the
real instructions of the French police were to send
her prisoner of war to the fortress of Valenciennes !
At the moment when she was anxiously waiting to
receive a passport, to enable her to quit Venice, she
was arrested by a party of gens-d'armes, told of her
destination to Valenciennes, and placed in a state of
close confinement in her chamber, previously to being
conducted to France.
The friends of Mrs. Smith were struck with con-
sternation and grief at this change in her fate ; but,
endued herself with an admirable degree of fortitude,
she roused the courage of those who wept around
her ; nor once appeared shaken till her lovely in-
fants came running to her arms, to ask their mamma
why she was so sad ? She wished, by any sacrifice,
to preserve them from the fate to which she was
doomed. But how was this to be done ? Who was
able to help ber by saving them? In evident an-
guish she looked round on each of the small circle of
friends, who sympathized with her situation, and in
mournful silence her eyes explained her supplication
to them all.
Among the number of these friends was a young
Sicilian nobleman, the Marquess de Salvo. Overcome
by the sensations which so tender a scene excited, he
rushed from the room ; and when he had recovered
composure sufficient to return, it was to intimate pri-
vately to Mrs. Smith, that he had formed and resolved
to execute, at all hazards, the generous desi»n of
effecting the escape both of herself and of her
children.
The children not having been placed under the
118 PEKCY ANECDOTES.
immediate vigilance of the police, the marquess suc-
ceeded, without any great difficulty, in getting them
conveyed away to Gratz, where the Countess
Strazzoldo, a sister of Mrs. Smith, resided ; but he
did not think it prudent to make the attempt to effect
Mrs. Smith's own escape, till after she had left Venice,
and was on her way to the Alps.
It was necessary to the success of the project, that
the marquess de Salvo should accompany Mrs. Smith
on the road ; and nothing being more reasonable
than her request, that a friend might be permitted to
travel with her, it was readily complied with, and
the Marquess took his seat beside Mrs. Smith, in the
gondola which conveyed her a prisoner from Venice.
It was at Brescia that the marquess had determined
to accomplish Mrs. Smith's deliverance, it being the
nearest place to a neutral territory. The party were
to stop here two days. The room of the inn in which
Mrs. Smith was confined, was fifty feet from the
ground, and gens-d'armes were posted in the room
adjoining, with the door open. The Marquess de Salvo
occupied au apartment in another part of the house.
Early on the morning after their arrival, the marquess
slipped out unseen by the gens-d'armes ; and while the
police of Brescia were yet in ignorance of his arrival
with Mrs. Smith, went, and got a passport signed for
the Tyrol. From the police he hastened to survey the
outlets of the city ; but, to his sorrow, could see no
other passage than through the gates, which were all
strongly guarded. He was not, however, dismayed,
but immediately set about procuring all the means for
their escape ; a light carriage, which could travel any
where; horses, to spare them the necessity of waiting
CAPTIVITY. 119
at the post-houses; a man's dress for the disgaise of
Mrs. Smith ; and, finally, a bill of health, which would
be requisite on entering another country. Ail this he
accomplished before ten o'clock in the morning,
when he returned to Mrs. Smith, and availed himself
of an hour, while the soldiers were at the street door,
to settle with her all that was to be prepared and at-
tempted. It was agreed that he should go next day
to reconnoitre the environs of Brescia, and collect
all the information possible, respecting the places
through which it would be necessary to pass ; and
that on the ensuing night, at eleven o'clock, Mrs.
Smith was to let down a string from the window to
the ground, to which the marquess was to be ready
to tie a paper, communicating what farther discoveries
and arrangements he had made.
Returning down stairs, the marquess told the guards
that his affairs prevented him from continuing any
longer in the company of this woman ; that the slow
manner in which she travelled greatly retarded his
journey ; that he had to go to Paris with all possible
despatch, and besides, (flattering them by apparent
confidence) he assured them that he did not like to
be exposed to the stigma of being the friend of a
woman, whose arrest was demanded by the Emperor
of the French. He added, that it was his intention to
leave Brescia that very evening ; and that as he did
not like to tell the lady that such was his intention, he
begged as a favour, that they would have the good-
ness to inform her of it themselves. The guards mur-
mured their opinions to one another ; and turning
to the marquess, in a friendly tone commended his
1250 PERCY ANECDOTES.
design, and promised to be the faithful bearers of ufa
apology to the lady.
At four o'clock next morning, the marquess passed
the gates of Brescia, and directed his steps to Salo.
On his arrival there, no officer appeared at the gate
to demand his passport, nor did he perceive any
crowd of idle gazers about his chaise, to look at the
stranger, as is the custom in the small towns and
villages of Italy; circumstances which made him at
once fix on the place as one which it would bean easy
matter to pass through without observation. He then
hastened to the borders of the Lake di Garda, where
he engaged a covered boat with twelve oars, to be
ready next morning at six o'clock, for passing the lake
with all expedition.
At eleven o'clock in the forenoon nothing further
remained to be prepared at. Salo ; and as he could not
well return to Brescia before the evening, lie employed
the interval in making a ladder of rope and pieces of
wood, and succeeded in making one as long as he
thought would be required. When this important
implement was finished, he wrote a letter of in-
structions to Mrs. Smith : and, as the night closed in,
returned to Brescia, which he entered just as the
gates were shutting. He left the horse and chaise at
an inn, situated in a solitary square, telling the
ostler that he would return by three o'clock in the
morning.
It was near eleven o'clock when, dressed as a
Brescian postillion, and with the rope ladder and
lettei under his eluak, lie advanced through the most
ionelv streets, towards the inn called the Two Towers
CAPTIVITY. 121
where Mrs. Smith was. He stopped before he ap-
proached to the window : he listened for some time to
the noise of the soldiers; and after convincing him-
self that they were occupied in drinking, he drew
near and felt for the string with his hand. Having
found it, he tied the ladder and letter to it ; and on
pulling it gently, it was instantly drawn up. He then
retired, overjoyed at seeing the first danger so well
got over.
After waiting three hours, he returned under the
window, at which, shortly after, a figure presented
itself ; it was Mrs. Smith ; the marquess drew near ;
Mrs. S. asked in a low voice, " If he was her friend ?"
Do Salvo replied, " I am that friend, and wait for
you." Mr?.. Smith instantly proceeded to fasten the
ladder. "Scarcely was this done," says the marquess,
"when 1 saw Mrs. Smith take hold of the window, and
cling to the wall, pressing with uncertain foot the first
step. I perceived she was reluctant in trusting herself
upon it ; the unhappy lady stood tottering upon the
step, and seemed to tremble so much, that 1 was
afraid of her falling. But I was agreeably undeceived
when I beheld her grasping the knots of the ladder,
and boldly determined to descend. What an in-
teresting spectacle ! A forlorn woman, anxious to
escape from captivity, committing herself from a
height to ropes, which, even while they tore her de-
licate fingers, she kissed in ecstacy, because they were
instrumental to her release. And at the same time,
armed sentinels in the adjoining apartment, who were
ready to dart upon her if their sleep were interrupted
by the least noise. Happily, the silence of the night,
and its intense gloom, remained undisturbed ; and
i M
122 rEKCY ANECDOTES.
she reached the ground without receiving any essen-
tial injury.
Mrs. Smith and her gallant liberator now hurried in
breathless haste from street to street, till they reached
the summit of the fortress of Brescia. Here the violence
of Mrs. Smith's desire to save herself was such, that she
actually- offered to attempt scaling the walls ; but on
the marquess acquainting her that a chaise was in
waiting at the inn near the gates, her agitation was
somewhat calmed. They found the chaise ready,
but the hour for opening the gates had not yet
arrived ; at their earnest entreaties, however, the guard
opened them, and they passed through on the 3rd of
May, at four o'clock in the morning.
They reached Salo at half an hour after six the
same morning ; hastened on board the boat which the
marquess had engaged to convey them across the
Lake di Garda, and in eight hours more, reached the
Tyrolean frontier in safety.
CAPTAIN GOLOWNIN.
The Emperor of Russia being anxious to open y
commercial intercourse with Japan, Captain Golow-
nin was despatched there in 1811, in the sloop Diana.
On his arrival, he was enticed into a Japanese for-
tress with professions of friendship, and himself,
two of his officers, four sailors, and a Kurile pilot,
were all made prisoners. They were tied together
with cords round their breasts and necks, their hands
being first firmly secured. After being marched
to various places, for fifty days, the captives were
conducted to a prison in a city called Chakodade.
CAPTIVITY. 123
Here they underwent several tedious examinations ;
and Captain Golownin being deprived of paper and
ink, had recourse to a singular mode of keeping
a journal, somewhat similar to that of the American
Indians, with their strings of wampum. When
any thing agreeable happened to himself and his com-
panions, he tied a knot on a white thread, which
he drew out of the frill of his shirt ; and when any
thing unpleasant occurred, he made a memorandum
of it by tying a knot on a thread of black, taken
out of his neck handkerchief. These knots he fre-
quently counted over, in order to recall to mind
the events which they served to denote. At length
the prisoners were conducted to Matsmai, the capital
of an island of the same name, and literally confined
in cages, as appears by the following extract from
Captain Golownin's Narrative of his Captivity.
" In the middle of the prison were two cages
formed of spars. They were so placed as to leave a
passage between each, and also passages between them
and the walls of the prison. One cage was six paces
square, and ten feet high; the other was of an equal
breadth and height, but was eight paces long. We
three officers were put in the former ; the sailors
and Alexei were confined in the latter. The entrance
to the cage was so low, that we were obliged to creep
into it. The door was formed of massy spars, and
was fastened by a strong iron bolt. Above the door
was a small hole, through which our food was handed
to us. A guard-room was placed against the spars,
which formed the entrance side of the prison, and
which was occupied by two soldiers in the service of
the Imperial government, who were constantly on
124 PERCY ANECDOTES.
guard ; they could see us all, and seldom turned their
eyes away from us. The whole building was sur-
rounded at the distance of from six to eight paces by
a high wall or fence, with sharp pointed wooden
stakes, and in which there was a door exactly opposite
that of the prison. The outer guard consisted of
soldiers belonging to the Prince of Tzyngar. They
were not allowed to come near us, nor even to pass
within the first fence, but patrolled the rounds every
half hour. During the night they had fire, and struck
the hours with two boards ; the Imperial soldiers
visited us every half hour, walked round our cages,
and looked through the spars. The whole structure
was situated between an abrupt and deep hollow,
through which a stream flowed, and the rampart of
the castle, from which it was separated by a road of
no great breadth. At night this prison was most
horribly dismal ; we had no fire : a night lamp sup-
plied with fish oil, and placed in a paper lantern, was
kept burning in the guard room ; but the feeble glim-
mering light which it shed between the spars, was
scarcely capable of rendering any object visible to
us. The clanking noise made every half hour by
the moving of the locks and bolts when the soldiers
inspected us, rendered this gloomy place still more
disagreeable, and did not allow us to enjoy a moment's
repose."
At length, weary of confinement in this wretched
place, and without hope of a speedy liberation,
Captain Golownin, and five of his companions in
misfortune, made their escape from the cage ; but
after suffering extreme hardship, and wandering for
tMji days in the country, they were retaken, aud
CAPTIVITY. 125
again conducted to their prison. Several long and
tedious examinations ensued ; and at last they were
liberated, in consequence of the successful negocia-
tions of Lieutenant Rickord, after being confined for
two years, two months, and twenty-six days.
FREEMASONS IN PORTUGAL.
Between the year 1740 and 1750, the Freemasons
were subject to great persecutions in Portugal. A
jeweller, of the name of Moutou, was seized and con-
fined in the prison of the Inquisition, while it was
reported he had absconded with a diamond ; and a
friend of his, John Coustos, a native of Switzerland,
was aho arrested as an accessary in the imputed
robbery. The fact was, that these two persons were
the leading Freemasons in Lisbon, which constituted
their crime. Coustos was confined in a lonely dun-
geon, whose horrors were heightened by the com-
plaints, the dismal cries, and hollow groans, of several
other prisoners in the adjoining cells. He was fre-
quently brought before the Inquisitors, who were
anxious to extort from him the secrets of masonry ;
but refusing to give any information, he was confined
in a still deeper and more horrible dungeon. Finding
threats, entreaties, and remonstrances in vain, Coustos
was condemned to the tortures of the holy office.
" I was hereupon," says Coustos in his narrative,
" conveyed to the torture room, built in form of a
square tower, where no light appeared but what two
candles gave ; and to prevent the dreadful cries and
shocking groans of the unhappy victims from reaching
the ears of the other prisoners, the doors were lined
m 3
120 PERCY ANLCDOTliS.
with a sort of quilt. The reader will naturally sup-
pose, that I must be seized with horror, when at my
entering this infernal place, I saw myself surrounded
on a sudden by six wretches, who after preparing the
tortures, stripped me naked (all to my drawers) ;
when stretching me on my back, they began to lay
hold of every part of my body. First they put round
my neck an iron collar, which was fastened to the
scailold ; they then fixed a ring to each foot ; and
this being done, they stretched my limbs with all
their might. They next tied two ropes round each
arm, and two round each thigh ; which ropes passed
under the scaffold, through holes made for that pur-
pose ; and were all drawn tight at the same time by
four men on a signal made for that purpose. These
ropes, which were of the size of one's little finger,
pierced through ray flesh quite to the bone, mating
the blood gush out at eight different places that were
so bound. At my side stood a physician and a sur-
geon, who often felt my temples, to judge of the
danger I might be in.
" Finding that the tortures above described could
not extort any discovery from me, they were so in-
human six weeks after, as to expose me to another
kind of torture, more grievous, if possible, than the
former. Ti.ey made me stretch my arms in such a
manner, that the palms of my hands were turned
outward ; when by the help of a rope that fastened
them together at the wrist, and which they turned by
an engine, they drew them nearer to one another behind
in such a manner, that the back of each hand touched,
and stood exactly parallel one on the other; whereby
both my shoulders were dislocated, and a quantity of
CAPTIVITY. 127
blood issued from ray mouth. This torture was re-
peated thrice. ; after which I was again sent to ray
dungeon, and put into the hands of physicians and
surgeons, who in setting my bones put me to ex-
quisite pain.
" Two months after, being a little recovered, I was
again conveyed to the torture room, and there made
to undergo another kind of punishment twice. The
torturers turned twice round my body a thick iron
chain, which crossing upon my stomach, terminated
afterwards at my wrists. They next set my back
against a thick board, at each extremity whereof was
a pulley, through which there run a rope that caught
the ends of the chains at my wrists. The tormentors
then stretching these ropes by means of a roller,
pressed or bruised my stomach in proportion as the
ropes were drawn tighter. On this occasion my
wrists and shoulders were put out of joint."
Before he had recovered, he was again subjected
to this torture, and then remanded to his dungeon,
where he continued until their auto de ft, or gaol
delivery, when he was made to walk in the pro-
cession of the other victims of this tribunal. Being
arrived at St. Dominic's Church, his sentence was
read, which condemned him to the galley for four
years, although he had suffered the torture no less
than nine times.
After remaining at the galley some time, and with
the utmost pain and difficulty doing the labour as-
signed the slaves, that of carrying water (one hundred
pounds weight) to the prisons of the city, he was,
through the interestof the Duke of Newcastle, claimed
as a subject of Great Britain, and released on the
1*28 i'ERCY ANECDOTES.
condition of his quitting Lisbon for ever. He sailed in
a Dutch vessel for London, where he arrived safe in
December, 1744, after a long and dangerous voyage.
RICHARD SAVAGE.
Richard Savage, a man equally distinguished by
his virtues and his vices, and at once remarkable for
his weaknesses and abilities, died in the common gaol
at Bristol, where he was confined for a debt of only
eight pounds !
During his imprisonment, he frequently received
visits, and sometimes presents from his acquaintances ;
but they were quite insufficient for his subsistence,
for the greater part of which he was indebted to the
generosity of his keeper. This benevolent gaoler
treated him with the utmost tenderness and civility
during the whole of his confinement. He was sup-
ported by him at his own table, without any certainty
of recompense ; had a room to himself ; was allowed
to stand at the door of the prison, and sometimes
taken out into the fields ; so that he suffered fewer
hardships in prison, than he had been accustomed to
undergo in the greatest part of his life. The cheer-
fulness with which he bore his confinement, appears
from a letter which he wrote to one of his friends in
London, dated January 30, 1743. The following is
an extract :
" I now write to you from my confinement in
Newgate, where I have been since Monday last was
sennight, and where I enjoy myself with much more
tranquillity than I have known for upwards of a
twelvemonth past; having a room entirely to myself,
CAPTIVITY. 12D
pursuing the amusement of my poetical studies, un-
interrupted, and agreeably to my mind. I thank the
Almighty, I am now all collected in myself ; and
though my person is in confinement, my mind can
expatiate on ample and useful subjects with all the
freedom imaginable. I am now more conversant with
the Nine than ever ; and if instead of a Newgate
bird, I may be allowed to be a bird of the Muses, I
assure you, sir, I sing very freely in my cage ; some-
times, indeed, in the plaintive notes of the nightingale;
but at others in the cheerful strains of the lark.
When he had been six months in prison, a charge
of atrocious ingratitude was made against him by
Pope. Mr. Savage returned a very solemn pro-
testation of his innocence ; but appeared much dis-
turbed at the accusation. Some days afterwards he
was seized with a pain in his back and side, which, as
it was not violent, was not suspected to be dangerous ;
but growing daily more languid and dejected, on the
25th of July he confined himself to his room, and a
fever seized his spirits. The symptoms grew every
day more formidable, but his condition did not enable
him to procure any assistance. The last time that the
keeper saw him, was on July the 31st, 1743 ; when
Savage, seeing him at his bedside, said with un-
common earnestness, " I have something to say to
you, sir ;" but after a pause, moved his hand in a me-
lancholy manner ; and finding himself unable to re-
collect what he was going to communicate, said, " Tis
goue !" The keeper soon after left him, and the next
morning he died.
Such was the melancholy end of the unfortunate
Richard Savage ; and however much he may be cen-
130 l'ERCY ANECDOTES.
sured for his imprudence by some, yet, as Lis able
biographer has observed, u those are no proper judges
of his conduct, who have slumbered away their tune
on the down of plenty ; nor will any wise man pre-
sume to say, ' Had I been in Savage's condition, I
should have lived, or written, better than Savage.' "
ADOPTED SON.
At the battle of Freehold, during the first American
war, a young English officer, closely pressed by two
Abenakis Indians, with upraised hatchet, no longer
hoped for life, and only resolved to sell it dearly.
At the moment when he expected to sink beneath
them, an old Indian armed with a bow approached
him, and prepared to aim an arrow ; but having
adjusted it, in an instant he dropped his bow, and
ran to throw himself between the young officer and
his. assailants, who immediately retired with respect.
The old man took his prisoner by the hand, en-
couraged him by caresses, and conducted him to his
cabin. It was winter, and the Indians were retiring
home. Here he kept him for some time, treating him
with undiminished softness, and making him less his
slave, than his companion. At length he taught him
the Abenakis language, and the rude arts in use
among that people. They became perfectly satisfied
with each other, and the young officer was compara-
tively happy ; except at times when his heart was
wrung, to perceive the old man intently fix his eyes
on him and shed tears.
At the return of spring, the Indians returned to arms ,
and prepared for the campaign. The old man, yet
CAPTIVITY. 131
sufficiently strong to support the fatigues of war, set
out with them accompanied by his prisoner. The
Abenakis made a march of more than two hundred
leagues across the desert, till at length they arrived
within sight of an English camp ; the old Indian
pointed out to the young officer, at the same time
contemplating him wistfully, "Behold thy brothers !"
said he to him ; "behold where they wait to give us
battle ! Hear me ; I have saved thy life, I have
taught thee to make a canoe, bows, and arrows ; to
obtain the means to make them from the forest ; to
manage the hatchet, and to take off the scalp of an
enemy. What wert thou when I took thee to my
cabin ? Thy hands were those of a child ; they neither
served to nourish nor defend thee ; thy soul was in
night j thou knew nothing ; thou owest me all ! Wilt
thou, then, be ungrateful enough to join thy brothers,
and raise the hatchet against us ?"
The young Englishman vowed he would rather lose
a thousand lives, than spill the blood of one Abenakis.
The Indian looked on his prisoner with earnestness,
and in a mingled tone of tenderness and sorrow, en-
quired, " Hast thou a father?" "He was alive,"
answered the young man, " when I left my country."
" Oh, how miserable he must be !" cried the Indian ;
and after a moment of silence, he added, " Knowest
thou that I have been a father? I am so no more ! I
saw my child fall in the battle ; he was at my side.
I saw him die like a warrior ; he was covered with
wounds, my child, when he fell ! But I have avenged
him ! Yes, I have avenged him." The Indian at
pronouncing these words was much agitated ; then
turning to the East, where the sun was just rising, he
said to tiie young Englishman, " Seest thou that
beauteous sun, resplendent of brightness ? Hast thou
pleasure in seeing it?" " Yes,'"' answered he, "I have
pleasure in seeing that beautiful sky." " Ah, well !
I have it no more," said the Indian, shedding a
torrent of tears. A moment after he showed the
young officer a flowering shrub. " Seest thou that
line tree?" said he to him; " and hast thou pleasure
in looking upon it ?" " Yes, I have," he answered.
" I have it no more," returned the Indian, with pre-
cipitation ; " but as for thou — go, return to thy
country, that thy father may again with pleasure
mark the rising sun, and behold the springing flower."
THEODORE KING OF CORSICA.
This unhappy monarch, whose courage and enter-
prise had raised him to a throne, not by a succession
of bloody acts, but by the free choice of an oppressed
nation, for many years struggled with fortune, and
left no means untried which indefatigable policy or
solicitation of succours could attempt, to recover his
crown ; at length he chose for his retirement a country
where he might enjoy the participation of that liberty,
which he had so vainly eudeavcured to secure to the
Corsicans ; but his situation in London by degrees grew
wretched, and he was reduced so low, as to be several
years before his death a prisoner for debt in the
King's Bench.
Theodore told a friend of his in London, as an in-
stance of the superstition of mankind, that there was
a very high mountain in Corsica, which was carefully
avoided from a long received opinion, that whoever
CAPTIVITY) 13>
Ascended it, would be unhappy and unsuccessful in
all his future undertakings. Theodore, in order to
convince them of the weakness of such a belief,
in spite of all their remonstrances, insisted on climbing
the fatal mountain ; on the top of which he found a
beautiful plain, and a great quantity of game, so tame
that he could take them with his hands.
To the honour of some private persons, a charitable
contribution was set on foot for him in 1753. And
in 1757, at the expense of a gentleman, a marble
was erected to his memory in the church-yard of St.
Anne's, Westminster, with the following inscription:
Btav tl)ts $Iac£ t's Hnterretr,
THEODORE KING OF CORSICA,
Who died in this parish December 11, 1756,
Immediately after leaving
The King's Bench Prison,
By the benefit of the Act of Insolvency.
In consequence of which,
He registered his kingdom of Corsica
For the use of his creditors.
The grave, great teacher, to a level brings
Heroes and beggars, galley-slaves and kings ;
But Theodore this moral learn'd e'er dead,
Fate pour'd its lesson on his living head,
Bestow'd a kingdom, and denied him bread.
PARK A PRISONER AMONG THE MOORS.
During the travels of the celebrated Mungo Park
into the interior of Africa, he was made a prisoner,
and conveyed to the Moorish camp at Beuown, on
X »
134 PERCY ANECDOTES,
the borders of the Great Desert, and the residence of
Ali, the Moorish chief, or sovereign of Ludemar.
The first night he was compelled to sleep on a mat
■ hat was spread upon the sand before the tent, and
where he was summoned before the curious multitude,
and subjected to continued insult and irritation.
The Moors, though very indolent themselves, are
rigid taskmasters, and keep every person under them
in full employment. To Mr. Park was assigned the
respectable office of barber; but happening in his first
essay to make a slight incision in the head of the
young Prince of Ludemar, the king concluded that
his son's head was in very improper hands ; he was
ordered to resign his razor, and walk out of the tent.
When Ali quitted the camp of Benown, Mr. Park
was compelled to form part of his suite. During the
journey, and on their arrival at Jarra, he suffered
much from hunger and thirst ; the barbarous Moors
would not suffer his boy to fill the skin at the well,
but often beat him for his presumption ; every one
being astonisiied that a slave of a Christian should
attempt to draw water from the wells which had been
dug by the followers of the prophet.
"This treatment," says Mr. Park, "at length so
frighted the boy, that I believe he would sooner
have perished with thirst, than attempted again to fill
the skin ; he 'therefore contented himself with beg-
ging water from the Negro slaves that attended the
camp ; and I followed his example, but with very in-
different success ;. for though I let no opportunity slip,
and was very urgent in my solicitations, both to the
Moors and to the Negroes, I was but ill supplied, and
frequently passed the night in the situation of Tanta-
lus. No sooner had I shut my eyes, than fancy would
CAPTIVITY. 135
convey rae to the streams and rivers of ray native
land ; there, as I wandered along the verdant brink, I
surveyed the clear stream with transport, and hastened
to swallow the delightful draught ; but, alas ! disap-
pointment awakened me; and I found myself a lonely
captive, perishing of thirst amidst the wilds of Africa !
" One night, having solicited in vain for water at
the camp, and being quite feverish, I resolved to try
ray fortune at the wells, which were about half a mile
distant from the camp. Accordingly I set out about
midnight, and being guided by the lowing of the
cattle, soon arrived at the place ; where I found the
Moors were busy drawing water. I requested per-
mission to drink, but was driven away with outrage-
ous abuse. Passing, however, from one well to
another, I came at last to one where there was only
an old man and two boys. I made the same request
to this man, and he immediately drew me a bucket of
water; but as I was about to take hold of it, he re-
collected that I was a Christian, and fearing that his
bucket might be polluted by my lips, he dashed the
water into the trough, and told me to drink from
thence. Though this trough was none of the largest,
and three cows were already drinking in it, I resolved
to come in for my share ; and kneeling down, thrust
my head between two of the cows, and drank with
great pleasure, until the water was nearly exhausted,
and the cows began to contend with each other for the
last mouthful."
Fortunately for Mr. Park, Ali returned to the camp
at Benown, leaving him a prisoner at Jarra, which
enabled him to make his escape ; but being destitute
of a single bead, or any article of value to purchase
N 2
136 PEliCY ANECDOTES.
provisions, he suffered greatly from hunger and thirst
as lie proceeded through the Wilderness ; at onetime
he was providentially relieved by a fall of rain---at
another, a poor woman gave him a little food ; and he
vsas once hospitably received by a shepherd at a Fou-
lah village. Fortunately, he was enabled to sustain
all his privations, and prosecute the darling object of
his soul— that of further exploring the interior of
Africa.
ALGERINE SLAVES AT GENOA.
The cruelties of the Algerines to their slaves, is
amply retaliated by the Genoese on such Algerines
as fall into their hands. Dupaty, in his Letters on
Italy, in 1TS5, gives an affecting picture of the
^allies of Genoa, where " poverty and criminality are
fettered by the same chain ; those who serve the
republic, partaking of the misery of those who be-
tray it." Speaking of the Algerine Turks taken at
sea, who are condemned to the gallies at Genoa, he
says :
" • What have we here?' said I to a person who
conducted me to a kind of prison or receptacle; 'how
low, dark, and humid ! What too, 1 pray you, are
those animals lying on the ground, whose hideous
heads appealing from beneath their wretched rugs,
are covered with long and matted hair? they seem
unable to crawl ; yet what ferocity in their looks !
Ah ! do they eat only that black and hard bread ?'
' Nothing else.' ' Drink oniy that turbid water?'
' That alone.' 'Do they always lie in that state?'
' They do.' 'How long have they been here : "
CAPTIVITY. 137
' Twenty years.' ' How old are they V ' Seventy.'
' What are they V ' Algerine Turks.'
"These unhappy Mahomedans are, indeed, so en-
tirely thrust out from humanity, that they frequently
lose the spontaneous movement of their limbs ; and, in-
deed, enclosed asit were in a tomb, harden into idiotism.
" Captives under sixty, when brought from labour,
are chained in small open niches in a long wall, six
feet asunder, in such a way as scarcely to be able
either to sit or recline ; in this state, they breathe the
little air which is given to them, or rather which they
steal.
" Let me add a conclusive trait for a picture of the
gallies of Genoa. I have seen the bones and garbage
abandoned by the dogs in the streets, carried from
bench to bench, and sold to the galley slaves, who
disputed for their possession with all the rage and
selfishness of extreme hunger."
" Genoa," concludes Dupaty, emphatically, " thy
palaces are not so grand, so lofty, so numerous, or
so brilliant, as they ought to be-— they do not hide
thy gallies !"
EAST INDIAN SLAVERY.
The state of the slaves in the East, is very different
from that of the negroes in the West Indies. A man
purchased by a Hindoo, or a Mahomedan, becomes
one of his family, and is liable to no greater hardships
than the son of his purchaser, and is frequently
treated with as much consideration. The eldest
servant of Abraham's house, ruled over all that he had,
and was charged by his master with the care of pro-
viding a wife for his only son ; and the manners of
N 3
138 PERCY ANECDOTES.
the East have been so stationary, that no material
change has taken place in the situation of slaves.
All the laborious occupations of husbandry, which
European merchants force their slaves in foreign
climates to perform, have always been carried on in
the East by free-husbandmen, and all the mechanical
arts by free persons of particular classes ; so that the
slaves could only be household servants, and by being
constantly in the families to which they belonged,
they acquired claims to tenderness and consideration,
which were seldom, if ever, resisted.
NUNS OF CAMBRAY.
In the wreck of all human institutions which the
French revolution produced, when the altar and the
throne were alike overturned, and neither age, nor sex,
nor rank, was any protection, it was not to be ex-
pected that the Religieuses should alone be spared.
In the summer of 1793, the convent of the English
Benedictine Dames, at Cambray, was violated ; the
A'uns were hurried away without change of clothes,
or any other necessaries. They were then placed in
open carts, and conveyed to Corapeigne, amidst a va-
riety of insults and barbarous usage. Their place of
confinement in this town, was the Infirmary of the
Convent ; in another part of which were seventeen
Carmelite Nuns, formerly of the convent of St.
Denis, who were marked out by Robespierre, and his
sanguinary confederates, as victims for the guillotine.
They were led out to execution a few days after the
anival of the Cambray Nuns at the same prison, and
although they could not converse with them by words,
yet they took an affectionate and pious leave of them
CAPTIVITY. 139
from their windows, by the motions uf their hands.
They all died with the utmost firmness and composure,
singing the Litany of the Blessed Virgin, until the
fatal axe interrupted the voice of the last of them.
The English Nuns were for a long time in daity
expectation of meeting the same fate. When they
petitioned for a supply of clothes of which they stood
greatly in need, their keepers in the most wanton and
cruel manner answered, " that they would very soon
neither want clothes nor any thing else." At length,
however, a parcel of left-off wearing apparel, which
had been the executioner's perquisite, was sent to
them. This consisted of the dresses of the Nuns who
had so recently suffered. Such a present, however
despicable in the eyes of some, was to them more va-
luable than the robes of royalty ; they received the
clothes on their knees, kissing and bedewing them
with their tears ; and these constituted part of their
mean apparel on their return to their native country.
Great were their sufferings during their tedious con-
finement, especially from the want of bread and fuel.
These were dealt out to them in the most scanty pro-
portions, and the former was of the very worst and
most disgusting quality. Nor was it in their power,
by their needlework and industry, materially to mend
their condition. At length, the scarcity of provisions
increasing throughout every part of France, and the
absurdity of detaining in confinement so many inno-
cent sufferers, being perceived, those ladies obtained
their liberty in April, 1795, and procured passports
to return to their native country.
Of the twenty Nuns originally expelled from their
convent, five died during the rigours of their con-
finement* The rest reached England in safety, and
140 pekcy anecdotes.
settled at Woolton, near Liverpool, where the^ com-
menced a school for the education of young Catholic
ladies, oa the same plan as that established at Cambray.
BARBAROUS VICTOR.
The ferocious character of the recent war in South
America, rarely permitted sparing the life of any
prisoners that were taken by either party ; and
the chiefs themselves were often sanguinary enough
to put to death these whom the fortune of war
placed in their power. At the battle of Calaboza,
the republican General Paez having been successful
in one or two charges, by which he forced the royalists
to retreat, he was in the highest good humour, and
an officer who had been taken by his men, was brought
to him ; he was mounted. The general asked him a
few questions, and then directed his man of business
to do his duty. The Spanish officer begged hard for
his life. " Well," says Paez, " ride to yonder tree,"
pointing to one at some distance ; " and when you get
there, escape as fast as you can, and take care I do
not come up with you !" The officer obeyed, and
when he arrived at the tree, casting a glance behind
him, commenced his race. Paez pursued, and soon
overtook him, and was in the act of putting his lance
through his body. The royalist, with some presence
of mind, said, "General Paez is too noble to take
an advantage. My horse was tired, and could not
gallop ; but if you, general, will give me your horse,
and the same liberty, I think I could save ray life."
" Done !" answered Paez, and immediately the
Spaniard was mounted on his horse. The distance was
again pointed out j the officer rode to the spot, and
CAPTIVITY. 141
started afresh. Paez in the meantime had mounted
the jaded royalist charger. He started also, gained
ground, and in ahout two miles came up with the
unfortunate Spaniard, who immediately fell beneath
the point of the insurgent general's spear. The race .
was witnessed by hundreds, and the air was soon
filled with shouts of applause bestowed on the in-
trepid but sanguinary Paez.
FATAL SYMPATHY.
One of the prisoners in the Port Royal, or Port
Libre, during the government of Robespierre, had
brought a favourite dog with him to prison. The poor
animal ate, drank, and slept with its master, until
it was deprived of him by a denunciation from one of
the prison spits, and his consequent death. The dog
now became an interesting object in the prison, and
was caressed by every body. One gentleman in par-
ticular, an intimate friend of the deceased, was over-
heard by one of these guillotine providers, as he was
apostrophizing the poor beast in the following terms :
" Poor fellow, what will now become of you ? Your
friend and master is gone." The eaves-dropper came
up and said, " You, sir, who seem so much interested
in the fate of this dog and his master, look to yourself;
we shall contrive to settle your business." This threat
was verified in a short time ; the poor man's compas-
sion for the dog, cost him his life.
MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS.
During the confinement of this princess in Fother-
ingav Castle, she lamented her hard fate in some
142 PERCY ANECDOTES.
elegant verses written in French in her own hand, of
which the following is a translation :
"Alas, what am I ? and in what estate r
A wretched corse bereaved of its heart ;
An eiuptv shadow, lost, unfortunate :
To die, is now in life my only part.
Foes to my greatness, let your envy rest,
In me no taste for grandeur now is found :
Consum'd by grief, with heavy ills oppress'd,
Your wishes and desires will soon be crown'd.
And you, my friends, who still have held me dear,
Bethink you, that when health and heart are fled,
And every hope of future good is dead,
'Tis time to wish our sorrows ended here ;
And that this punishment on earth is given,
That my pure soul may rise to endless bliss in
heaven."
FORTUNATE ESCAPE.
A singular instance of escape after condemnation,
occurred during the French revolution. A number of
persons returning back to prison, after sentence was
passed on them to be guillotined the next morning,
were tied together by the hands, two and two with a
cord, and were escorted by a guard. In their way,
they were met by a woman, who with loud cries de-
clared that her husband, who was one of the party,
was a good citizen, and had been unjustly condemned.
The judge who had condemned them, passing at the
moment, ordered the man to be unbound, and after exa-
mining him, directed him to beset at liberty on the spot.
This affair having brought a number of' people to-
gether, the prisoners became mixed with the crowd,
CAPTIVITY. 143
when the companion of the man liberated finding him-
self single and unobserved, thrust his hand with the
cord round it into his breast, and hastened to the
port, which was not far off. He jumped into a boat,
and ordered the boatman to row in all baste to the
other end of the port. He had no money, and could
only give the rope by which he had been bound to the
boatman for his fare, which he accepted. The libe-
rated victim then walked off to a friend's house in the
neighbourhood, where he remained concealed for the
rest of the day. In the night he made his escape
from the town, and in a few days was in perfect
safety out of France.
SIR W. SIDNEY SMITH.
The gallant officer to whom these Anecdotes are
inscribed, in attempting to take an armed vessel out
of the harbour of Havre de Grace, in April, 1796,
was, with three of his officers and sixteen of his crew,
made prisoners. The French, happy in gaining pos-
session of so distinguished an enemy, conveyed him
to the capital, where he was kept in close confinement.
The British government, desirous of his release, sent
over Captain Bergeret, commander of Lu l'irginie,'m
July following, to be exchanged for him ; but the
Directory refused to accede to the terms; upon which
the French Captain returned to England, saying, " He
preferred death to dishonour."
After being closely confined for upwards of two
years, Sir Sidney at length made his escape in April,
1798, in the following singular manner. Some ladies
with whom he had formed an acquaintance through the
144 I'LKCY ANECDOTES.
bars of lua prison window, and who, with all the gene •
reus ardour which belongs to the female character, had
never ceased trying one scheme after another for his
liberatiun, at length conceived the bold design of
carrying him off in open day, in the name of the
government itself. They prevailed on a M. de Phe-
lipeaux, a gentleman of spirit and intrepidity, to en-
gage in the undertaking ; and M. de P. procured two
other friends,M. B***and M.L*** to assist him. An
order of the minister for the day was forged, directing
the gaoler ef the Temple to deliver to the bearers, Le
Chevalier Sidney Smith, to be transferred to another
prison ; and by the proper application of money, the
actual seal of the minister was procured to the paper.
Furnished with this order, M. B*** dressed as an
adjutant general, and M. L*** as a subaltern officer,
presented themselves at the Temple. The gaoler read
the order, examined attentively the seal of the minis-
ter, and then withdrew into a room adjoining, doubt-
less to compare it with other orders in his possession.
In a few minutes he returned quite satisfied, and de-
siring Sir Sidney Smith to be called, informed him of
the order he had received. Sir Sidney affected to be
much vexed at it, but Mr. Adjutant General begged to
assure him, with much gravity, that the government
had no desire to aggravate the hardship of his situa-
tion, and that he would be well treated in the place to
which they were going to conduct him. The gaoler
observed that the adjutant general would require six
soldiers of the guard to accompany them. The adju-
tant, without seeming in the least disconcerted, answer-
ed, that it would be as well, and gave orders accord-
ingly. On reflection, however, and as if recalling to
CAPTIVITY. 145
mind the rank of his prisoner, " Commodore," said he
to Sir Sidney, " you are a soldier ; I am one also ;
your word of honour will satisfy me. If you will give
me that, I shall be in no need of any escort." Every
oue present applauded, by their looks, this noble pro-
ceeding ; and Sir Sidney did not hesitate to give his
word of honour as required, that he would go wherever
Mr. Adjutant General chose. The gaoler then required
a receipt for the prisoner, and presented M. B. with
the book for that purpose. M. B. wrote out the dis-
charge with a firm hand, and affixed to it the signature
of L. Oger, Adjutant General. Sir Sidney, in the mean
while, was occupying the attention of the inferior
officers of the prison, returning them all a thousand
thanks for their kind conduct to him, and distributing
suitable presents among them. The adjutant general
asked if he was ready to go ? Sir Sidney replied, that
he was quite ready. Away they accordingly marched,
accompanied to the gate by the gaoler, who was un-
ceasing in his protestations of good wishes for the com-
modore, and his hopes that peace would ere long ar-
rive to set him free.
Now beyond the walls of the prison, the joy of Sir
Sidney and the exultation of his deliverers were inex-
pressible. After walking a little way, they mounted a
fiacre, and the adjutant general ordered the coachman
to drive to the Fauxbourg St. Germain. Unfortu-
nately, they had not gone far before the coach drove
over acripple that was passing, and hurt him severely.
A crowd instantly collected,and the fiacre was stopped.
To leap out and be off, was work of an instant.
The people looked at them, but said nothing ; they
contented themselves with abusing the coachman.
X o
146 PERCY ANECDOTES.
The party now agreed to separate, and meet again at
an appointed place, where M. de Phelipeaux was wait-
ing to receive them. Sir Sidney reached the place
first, and wished to wait the arrival of his two libe-
rators, in order to testify his gratitude for the inestima-
ble service they had done him ; but M. de P. informed
him that there was not a moment to lose ; he had
provided passports to Rouen, and they must depart
immediately, before his escape was known or search
made after him.
Sir Sidney's perfect knowledge of the French lan-
guage, and his unembarrassed behaviour, secured them
from suspicion, and facilitated their journey to Rouen,
with the coast adjoining, which M. de P. was well ac-
quainted with. In a small creek, they found an open
boat with oars, into which they instantly jumped, and
put to sea without loss of time. After tugging and
rowing till they were almost worn out, the Argo
frigate, Captain Bowen, hove in sight, to whom they
made the best signals in their power ; happily they
were seen, taken up, and safely landed at Portsmouth ;
from which place they immediately set off to town.
Whilst Sir Sidney was a prisoner in the Temple,
the celebrated Mrs. Cosway contrived to obtain a
sight of him from a window, and thus made an ad-
mirable sketch of his portrait as he sat by the bar of
his prison.
CAPTIVITY. 147
REDEMPTION OF BRITISH SUBJECTS BY
GEORGE II.
George II. having been iuformed that many of
his subjects had the misfortune to be taken into
slavery by the Barbary Corsairs, gave orders to Mr.
Zollicoffre, the British Ambassador at the court of the
Emperor of Morocco, to negociate for their release.
In consequence of this royal interference, one hun-
dred and forty natives of England, Scotland, and
Ireland, were liberated and brought to London in
1759. Previously to their returning to their respective
homes, the redeemed captives assembled at St.
James's Palace, and were presented to the king, to
whom they expressed their heartfelt gratitude. His
majesty asked them many questions, and ordered
them a handsome gratuity out of the privy purse.
Many noblemen and gentlemen present at this inter-
esting scene, influenced by his majesty's benevolence,
made considerable contributions to their common
stock.
It appeared from the accounts giving by these
captives, (many of whom were masters of vessels)
that slaves were treated in Barbary with a severity
and rigour unknown even in the piratical states of
Tunis, Algiers, and Tripoli. All were the property
of the Emperor of Morocco ; they were employed
without ceasing in the hardest and meanest occu-
pations, fed with a sort of coarse barley cake,
soaked in oil, which they were obliged to eat while
they were busied in their grievous drudgery. Their
lodging at night was a subterraneous cave, five fathoms
o 2
148 PERCY ANECDOTES.
deep, into which they descended by a rope ladder.
This was afterwards drawn up, and the mouth of the
cave secured by an iron grate. They were dressed
in long coarse woollen coats, with hoods, which were
the only articles of cloathing they were allowed. To
crown their misery, these ill-fated persons were har-
nessed in carts with mules and asses, and more un-
mercifully lashed than their brute companions.
GENEROUS CONFIDENCE REWARDED.
Topal Osman, when about the age of twenty-five,
was sent on a mission from Constantinople to the
Bashaw of Cairo. At Said, he embarked on board
a Turkish vessel bound to Damietta. In this short
passage the vessel was attacked by a Spanish pri-
vateer, and a bloody action ensued. Topal Osman
gave here the first proofs of that intrepidity, by which
he was so often signalized afterwards. The crew,
animated by his example, fought with great bravery ;
but superior numbers at last prevailed, and Osman
was taken prisoner, after being dangerously wounded
in the arm and thigh.
Osman's gallantry induced the Spanish captain to
pay him particular regard ; but his wounds were still
in a bad way, when he was carried to Malta, where
the privateer went to refit. The wound in his thigh
was most dangerous, and he was lame of it ever after,
whence he got the name of Topal, or Cripple.
At that time Vincent Arnaud, a native of Mar-
seilles, was commander of the Port of Malta, who,
as his duty required, went on board the privateer as
soon as she came to anchor. Osman no sooner saw
CAPTIVITY. 149
A maud, than he said to him, " Can you do a gene-
rous and gallant action ? Ransom me, and take my
word you shall lose nothing by it." Such a request
from a slave in chains, was uncommon ; but the man-
ner in which it was delivered, made an impression on
the Frenchman ; who, turning to the captain of the
privateer, asked what he demanded for the ransom ?
He answered, " A thousand sequins." Arnaud,
turning to the Turk, said, " 1 know nothing of you ;
and would you have me risk a thousand sequins on
your bare word ?" " Each of us act in this," replied
the Turk, " with consistency. I am in chains, and
therefore try every method to recover my liberty ;
and you may have reason to distrust the word of a
stranger. I have nothing at present but my bare
word to give you ; nor do I pretend to assign any
reason why you should trust to it. I can only say,
that if you incline to act a generous part, you shall
have no reason to repent it." The air with which
Osman delivered himself, so wrought upon Arnaud,
that he agreed to pay the captain six hundred sequins,
the price of Osman's liberty ; furnished him with a
vessel of his own to proceed to Damietta, and showed
him various other marks of generosity and friendship.
The French colours now protected Osman from the
privateers. In a short time he reached Damietta,
and sailed up the Nile to Cairo. No sooner was he
arrived there, than he delivered one thousand sequins
to the master of the vessel, to be paid to his bene-
factor, Arnaud, together with some rich furs ; and he
gave to the master himself five hundred crowns as a
present He executed his mission to the Bashaw of
o 3
150 PERCY ANECDOTES.
Cairo ; and setting out for Constantinople, was the
first who brought the news of his slavery.
The favour received from Arnaud in such circum-
stances made an impression upon a generous mind,
too deep ever to be eradicated. During the whole
course of his life, Osman did not cease, by letters and
other acknowledgments, to testify his gratitude.
After a rapid career of advancement, Osman at-
tained in September, 1730, the highest post in the
Ottoman empire— that of Grand Vizier. He no
sooner arrived at Constantinople to take possession of
his new dignity, than he desired the French Ambas-
sador to inform his old benefactor of his good fortune ;
and that he should hasten to Constantinople while
things remained in their present situation, adding,
that a Grand Vizier seldom kept long in his station.
In January, 1732, Arnaud, with his son, arrived
at Constantinople from Malta, bringing with him a
variety of presents, and twelve Turks whom he had
ransomed from slavery. Osman received them in the
presence of the great officers of state, with the utmost
marks of affection. Then turning to those about him,
and pointing to the ransomed Turks, " Behold," says
he, " these your brethren, now enjoying the sweets
of liberty, after having groaned in slavery : this
Frenchman is their deliverer. I was myself a slave,
loaded with chains, streaming in blood, covered with
wounds ; this is the man who redeemed and saved
me ; this is my master and benefactor ; to him am I
indebted for life, liberty, fortune, and every thing I
.enjoy. Without knowing me, lie paid for me a large
ransom ; sent me away upon my bare word, and gave
CAPTIVITY. 151
me a ship to carry me. When was ever a Mussulman
capable of such generosity ?
While Osman was speaking, all eyes were fixed
upon Arnaud, who held the grand Vizier's hands
closely locked between his own. The Vizier then
asked both fatber and son many questions concerning
their situation and fortune ; heard their answers with
kindness and attention ; and then ended with an
Arabic sentence, Allah Kerim(the providence of God
is great).
Osman caused Arnaud and his son to be amply
paid for the ransom of their Turks, and also made them
large presents of the most precious articles of the
East. As bis gratitude was without bounds, his
liberality was the same.
RASP HOUSE OF AMSTERDAM.
The celebrated Mr. Howard illustrates the good
effect of a system of labour in prison, by the follow-
ing anecdote: " I have heard that a countryman of
ours, who was a prisoner in the Rasp House at
Amsterdam several years, was permitted to work at
his own trade, shoe-making ; and by being constantly
kept employed, was quite cured of the vices that
were the cause of bis confinement. My informant
added, that the prisoner received at his release a
surplus of his earnings, which enabled him to set up
his trade in London, where he lived in credit ; and
at dinner commonly drank, • Health to his worthy
master at the Rasp House.' "
152 PERCY ANECDOTES.
TRIAL OF GRATITUDE.
Ali-ibu- Abbas, favourite of the Caliph Mamoun,
relates a story that happened to himself. " I was,
says he, " one evening with the Caliph, when a man,
bound hand and foot, was brought in. Mamoun
ordered me to keep a watchful eye over the prisoner,
and to bring him the next day. The Caliph seemed
greatly irritated, and the fear of exposing myself to
his resentment, induced me to confine the prisoner in
my haram. I asked him what country he was of? he
said Damascus, and that his habitation was in the
quarter of the Great Mosque. * May heaven/ cried
I, ' shower blessings on the city of Damascus, and par-
ticularly on your quarter— I owe my life to a man
that lived there.' These words excited his curiosity,
and I thus proceeded. ' It is many years since the
viceroy of Damascus was deposed. I accompanied
his successor ; and when we were about to take pos-
session,^ deposed governor assaulted us with superior
force. I escaped out of a window, and observing a
palace open, I supplicated the master to save my life.
He conducted me into the apartment of his women,
where I continued a month in perfect security. One
day I was informed by my host, that a caravan was
setting out for Bagdad ; and that I could not wish a
more favourable opportunity for returning home. I
had no money, and I was ashamed to own it. He
perceived my distress, but, iu appearance, took no
notice. How great was my surprise, when, on the
day of my departure, a fine horse was brought me, a
mule loaded with provisions, and a black slave to at-
CAPfiVITY. 153
tend me ! My generous host presented me at the
same time a purse of gold, and conducted me himself
to the caravan, recommending me to several of the
travellers, who were his friends. These kindnesses I
received in your city, which rendered it dear to me.
All my concern is, that I have not been able to dis-
cover my generous benefactor. I should die content,
could I find an opportunity to testify my gratitude.'
' Your wishes are accomplished,' cried my prisoner in
transport : ■ I am he who received you in my palace.'
I embraced him with tears, took off bis chains, and
inquired by what fatality he had incurred the Caliph's
displeasure? 'Some contemptible enemies,' be replied,
' have found means to asperse me unjustly toMamoun.
I was hurried from Damascus, and cruelly denied the
consolation of embracing my wife and children. As
I have reason to apprehend the worst, I request, you
to acquaint them with my misfortunes.' ' No, no,'
said I, 'you shall not die ; be at liberty from this mo-
ment. Depart immediately (presenting him with a
thousand sequins in a purse) ; hasten to rejoin the
precious objects of your affection ; let the Caliph's
indignation fall upon me ; I dread it not, if I preserve
your life.' 'What a proposal do you make !' answered
my prisoner. ' Can you think me capable of ac-
cepting it ? Shall I sacrifice that life now which I
formerly saved? Endeavour to convince the Caliph
of my innocence, the only proof I will admit of you
gratitude. If you cannot undeceive him, I will . go
myself and offer my head ; let him dispose of my
life, provided your's be safe.'
" I presented myself next morning before Mamoun.
He was dressed in a crimson-coloured mantle, a symbol
154 I'EllCY ANECDOTES.
of his anger. He inquired where my prisoner was,
and ordered the executioner to attend. ' My lord,'
said I, throwing myself at his feet, ' something very
extraordinary has happened with regard to him. Will
your majesty permit me to explain it?' These words
threw him into a passion. • I swear,' said he, 'by
the soul of my ancestors, that thy head shall pay for
it, if thou hast suffered the prisoner to escape.' ' Both
my life and his are at your majesty's disposal ; but
vouchsafe to hear me.' * Speak,' said he. I then re-
lated in what manner the prisoner had saved my life
at Damascus ; that, in gratitude, I had offered him his
liberty, but that he had refused it, from the fear of
exposing me to death. * My lord,' added I, ' he is
not guilty. A man of such generous sentiments is
incapable of committing an odious crime. Some base
detractors have calumniated him ; and he has become
the unfortunate victim of their envy.' The Caliph
was moved, and his great soul led him to admire the
heroism of my friend. ' I pardon him,' said Mamoun,
' on thy account. Go, carry the good news, and bring
him to me.' The monarch ordered him to be clothed
with a robe of honour, presented him with ten horses,
ten mules, and ten camels, out of his own stables. He
added a purse of sequins for the expense of his
journey, and gave him a letter of recommendation to
the governor of Damascus."
A DEAD SLEEP.
A tradesman of Lyons, of the name of Grivet, was,
during the reign of terror in France, sentenced to
death. He was brought into the cave of the con-
CAPTIVITY. 155
demned, where there were several others, who, with
him, were to sutler the next morning. On his arrival
they pressed round him, to sympathize in his fate,
and fortify him for the stroke he was about to en-
counter. But Grivet was calm and composed.
"Come and sup with us," said they, "this is the last
inn in the journey of life; to-morrow we shall arrive
at our long home." Grivet accepted the invitation,
supped heartily, and then, retiring to the remotest
corner of the cave, buried himself in the straw, and
went to sleep. The morning arrived ; the other pri-
soners were tied together and led away to execution,
without Grivet's perceiving any thing, or being per-
ceived. He was fast asleep. The door of the cave was
locked, and when he awoke, he was astonished to
find himself in perfect solitude. Four days passed
without any new prisoners being brought in, (a rare
occurrence !) during which, Grivet subsisted on some
provisions which he found scattered about the cave.
On the evening of the fourth day the turnkey brought
in a new prisoner, and was thunderstruck on seeing
a man, or, as he almost believed it, a spirit in the
cave. He called the sentinels, and having interrogated
Grivet, found that he had been left in the cave four
days ago. He hastened to the tribunal to excuse
himself for what had happened. Grivet was sum-
moned before it. It was a moment of lenity with
the judges, and Grivet was set at liberty.
A GOOD SANSCULOTTE.
In a gloomy chamber of a prison in Lyons, no less
than eighty persons were confined, on charges of
156 PERCY ANECDOTES.
having conspired against the safety of the republic.
A large blue cloak was suspended upon two nails
against one of the walls. This circumstance, trivial
in itself, suggested to Charbonnieres, one of the pri-
soners, the idea of attempting an escape. Behind
this cloak he busily employed himself in scraping out
the cement which held the stones of the walls to-
gether, while most of his fellow prisoners were taking
the air or sleeping. Three only of his companions
were associated in the plot ; one carried away in his
pockets the mortar as it was scraped out, which lie
scattered among the straw, while the other two were
either singing or quarrelling, to occupy the attention
of the others, and prevent their hearing Charbon-
nieres. One day, while the uproar was unusually
great, a large stone which had been detached, was
by a violent eixort of Charbonnieres, pushed through
on the other side. This was all he wanted; he came
from behind his place of concealment, and laid him-
self down on the straw.
When night came, Charbonnieres and his associates
went to explore the opening he had made, when, to
their great disappointment, they found that it only
led into a neighbouring church, then used as a mili-
tary magazine, and shut up with locks and bars,
which it was impossible to force with the instruments
they possessed. So far, however, were they from
being disheartened, that they resolved to break
through the walls of the church. With the same in-
struments which had hitherto served them, the tongues
of their buckles, and the blade of an old knife, they
began their operations in a corner of the church,
opposite to the wall of the prison. Unfortunately
CAPTIVITY. 167
the person who had the charge of the magazine,
lodged directly behind this spot. The deadened
noise which he at first heard, becoming every night
more distinct, he began to suspect what was doing,
when some fragments of stone and mortar falling
into his chamber, confirmed his suspicion. It was
midnight ; he arose hastily, and gave information of
what he had witnessed to the turnkey in waiting.
Having called a guard, they violently broke open the
doors of the chamber ; and after examining the walls,
to their utter astonishment, and that of the rest of the
prisoners, discovered the breach that had been effected
behind the cloak.
In vain did the prisoners protest their innocence —
irons were brought, and the turnkey swore they
should all be removed to solitary dungeons. The
irons were produced, and four already shackled,
when Charbonnieres suddenly started up as from a
profound sleep. With the air and manner of a
general accustomed to command, and brave every
danger, lie cried out, " Hold ! all those men whom
you have thrown into so much terror, are innocent.
But would you know the real author of the project ?
behold me, it is I ; and to no one will I yield the
honour of having conceived the idea, though I had
associates in my endeavours to carry it into execution.
The three men who still feign to sleep, have been
sharers in my labours, though they have not magna-
nimity enough to avow it." Then addressing himself
to the turnkey, he proceeded : " My interest is to
endeavour to quit this place ; yours is to detain me
and guard me well. I have fulfilled my duty ; now do
158 PERCY ANECDOTES.
yours ; bring hitlter the irons, I am prepared to receive
them."
A profound silence was observed by every one
during this harangue. Charbonnieres sat down, had
the irons fixed on his legs, and then went cheerfully
to be immured in his dungeon. He remained here
some time, but was ultimately set at liberty, as
a good Sans-culotte, without wealth, and without
crime.
MIDNIGHT.
When the unfortunate Duke d'Enghien was awaken-
ed in his cell at Valenciennes, to be led to the place
of execution, he asked the officer who brought the
order, " What do jou want?" The officer made no
answer. " What o'clock is it ?" " Midnight,"
answered the officer, with a faultering voice. " Mid-
night!" exclaimed the prince; "Oh, I know what
bringsyou here ; this hour is fatal to me — it was at raid-
night that I was taken from my house at Ettenheim —
at midnight the dungeon at Strasburgh was opened
for me — at midnight again I was taken out to be
brought here— it is now midnight, and I have lived
long enough to know how to die !"
ESCAPE OF LAVALETTE.
The device adopted by the Countess of Nithsdale
to rescue her husband from an ignominious death,
was imitated with equal success by Madame Lava-
lette, in 1815.
CAPTIVITY. 159
M. Lavalette had been condemned, for his adhe-
rence to the cause of Bonaparte, to suffer death.
The eve of the day of execution, the 24th of De-
cember, had already arrived ; and all hope of saving
him had been abandoned, except by one heroic
woman alone.
Madame Lavalette's health had been very seriously
impaired by her previous sufferings ; and for several
weeks preceding, in order to avoid the movement of
her carriage, she had used a sedan chair. About
half-past three, on the afternoon of the 23rd, she
arrived at the Conciergerie, seated as usual in this
chair, and clothed in a furred riding coat of red me-
rino, with a large black hat and feathers en her head.
She was accompanied by her daughter, a young lady
of about twelve years of age, and an elderly woman,
attached to M. Lavalette's service, of the name of
Dutoit. The chair was ordered to wait for her at the
gate of the Conciergerie.
At five o'clock Jacques Eberle, one of the wicket
keepers of the Conciergerie, who had been specially
appointed by the keeper of the prison, to the guard
and service of Lavalette, took his dinner to him, of
which Madame and Mademoiselle Lavalette, and the
widow Dutoit, partook.
After dinner, which lasted an hour, Eberle served
up coffee, and left Lavalette's apartment, with orders
not to return till he was rung for.
Towards seven o'clock the bell rang. Roquette,
the gaoler, was at that moment near the fire-place of
the hall, with Eberle, to whom he immediately gave
orders to go into Lavalette's chamber. Roquette
heard Eberle open the door which led to that chamber,
p <2
1G0 PERCY ANECDOTES,
and immediately after, lie saw three persons, dressed
in female attire, advance, who were followed by
Eberle. The person whom he took to be Madame
Lavalctte, was attired in a dress exactly the same as
she was, in every particular ; and to all outward ap-
pearance, no one could have imagined but that they
saw that lady herself passing before them. A white
handkerchief covered the face of this person, who
seemed to be sobbing heavily, while Mademoiselle
Lavalette, who walked by the side, uttered the most
la men table cries. Every thing presented the spec-
tacle of a family given up to the feelings of a last
adieu. The keeper, melted and deceived by the dis-
guise and scanty light of two lamps, had not the
power, as he afterwards said, to take away the hand-
kerchief which concealed the features of the prin-
cipal individual in the groupe ; and instead of per-
forming his duty, presented his hand 1o the person
(as he had been used to do to Madame Lavalette),
whom he conducted, along with the other two persons,
to the last wicket. Eberle then stepped forward, and
ran to call Madame Lavalette's chair. It came
instantly ; the feigned Madame Lavalette stepped
into it, and was slowly carried forward, followed by
Mademoiselle Lavalette and the widow Dutoit. When
they had reached the Quay des Orfevres, the}*
stopped ; Lavalette came out of the chair, and in an
instant disappeared.
Soon after, the keeper, Roquette, entered the
chamber of Lavalette, where he saw no one, but heard
some one stirring behind the screen, which formed part
of the furniture of the apartment. He concluded it
was Lavalette, and withdrew without speaking. After
CAPTIVITY. 161
a few minutes, he returned a second time and called ;
no one answered. He began to fear some mischief ;
advanced beyond the screen, and there saw Madame
Lavalette. " II est parti!" she tremulously ejaculated.
"Ah! madame," exclaimed Roquette, "you have
deceived me." He wished to run out to give the
alarm, but Madame L. caught hold of him by the
coat sleeve. " Stay, Monsieur Roquette, stay." " No,
madame, this is not to be borne." A struggle ensued,
in which the coat was torn ; but Roquette at last
forced himself away, and gave the alarm.
Lavalette, after having escaped from the Con-
ciergerie, was still far from being out of danger. He
had to get out of Paris ; out of France ; and a more
difficult achievement it is difficult to conceive ; for
the moment his escape was discovered, nothing could
exceed the activity with which he was sought after
by the agents of government. Bills describing his
person with the greatest exactness, were quickly
distributed all over France; and there was not a
post-master, postillion, or gens-d'arrne, on any of the
roads, who had not one of them in his pocket. La-
valette sought the means of escape, not among those
of his countrymen, whom he knew to be attached to
the cause for which he was persecuted ; nor even
to those whom affection or gratitude bound to his
family ; but among those strangers whose presence, as
conquerors, on his native soil, he had so much cause
to lament. He had heard, that to a truly British
heart, the pleadings of humanity were never made in
vain; and he was now to make the experiment in
his own person, of the truth of the eulogium. On
the 2nd or 3rd of January, he sent a person with an
p 3
162 PERCY ANECDOTES.
unsigned letter to Mr. Michael Bruce, an English
gentleman resident at Paris ; in which, after extolling
the goodness of his heart, the writer said, he was in-
duced, by the confidence which he inspired, to dis-
close to him a great secret— that Lavalette was still in
Paris ; adding, that he (Bruce) alone could save
him, and requesting him to send a letter to a certain
place, stating whether he would embark in the ge-
nerous design. Mr. Bruce was touched with com-
miseration ; he spoke on this subject to two other
countrymen, Sir Robert "Wilson and Captain Hutchin-
son ; and the result was, that the whole three joined
in a determination to afford the unfortunate fugitive
every assistance in their power to complete his escape.
The particulars of the scheme which they devised for
this purpose, it would exceed our limits to detail ;
suffice it to say, that it was crowned with perfect
success. Lavalette was conveyed in safety into a
neutral territory, where he lived in quiet obscurity,
until the fury of the part}* persecution which exiled
him having exhausted itself, we have seen him re-
stored, by a free pardon, to his country, his family,
and his friends.
It was a gratifying thing to observe, that the tri-
bute due to the conjugal heroism of Madame Lava-
lette, was universally paid, both in France and
throughout Europe ; even party animosity, which
was daily calling for the execution of the husband,
did justice to the wife. When the heads of the dif-
ferent departments were each vindicating themselves
to the king from any share in the blame of the
escape, his majesty coolly replied, "I do not see
that any body has done their duty, except Madame
Lavalette."
CAPTIVITY. 163
P. L. DUMONT.
Among the persons liberated by Lord Exmouth, on
his glorious triumph over the Algerines, was a French-
man of the name of Pierre Joseph Dumont, who had
endured a slavery of thirty-four years in Africa. He
was one of the crew of the Lievre, which was wrecked
by a storm on the coast of Africa, between Oran and
Algiers. Sixty individuals perished in the waves ;
eighty escaped to land ; out of these, about fifty were
almost instantly massacred by the Koubals, a ferocious
race, who were watching the effects of the tempest,
and in the dead of the night,r ushed down on the helpless
mariners, armed with sabre, lance, pistol, and musket.
All who escaped death from the first assault of the
savages, were seized by them next morning, while
vainly endeavouring to find a place of shelter along
the sandy beach ; each prisoner had his arms bound
across, and was then attached with a long cord to the
tail of one of the Arab's horses. In this manner the
unfortunate captives were dragged along for eight days,
without being allowed any other subsistence than bread
and water. At length they reached the mountain
Felix, and were brought before the Sheik Osman.
He inquired what country they were of; and being
told France, exclaimed, " France, without faith ; law-
less, spiteful, malignant devils ! Let them be chained."
The order was put into immediate execution. They
were first stripped of their clothes, and supplied with
nothing more than a sort of petticoat or trowsers.
They were then bound together, two and two, to a
large chain ten feet in length, and weighing about sixty
IG4 PERCY ANECDOTES.
pounds ; and thus, half naked and in irons, they were
taken to the prison appropriated for slaves.
"A little straw," says Dumont, "was allowed us
to lie on, with a stone for a pillow, and permission
to sleep, if we could.
" Although I felt my wounds extremely painful,
particularly one inflicted by a lance, I was compelled
to labour with the rest at six every morning, dragging
along my chain. Our food for the day was three ears
of Indian corn, which were thrown to us as if we
were dogs."
All the time the slaves were at work, the Koubals
formed a circle around them, not so much to prevent
their running away, as to protect them from the lions
and tigers who would otherwise devour them. "There
are always," says Dumont, " a hundred and fifty
armed men to watch over the safety of an hundred
slaves. But though the Koubals are incessantly on
the look out, it will not prevent the lion from some-
times carrying off its prey, if greatly pressed by
hunger. One remarkable circumstance is, that the
shouts and outcries of men will drive the wild beasts
back into the woods ; whereas, peals of musquetry
draw numbers of them out of the forest, as if curi-
osity formed some part of their instinct."
"But nothing," continues Dumont, "could exceed
the horrors of what we endured one day, from the
prison taking fire, with all the slaves shut up in it.
Though no lives were lost, our beards and hair were
partly consumed. The water intended for our use
was turned off, to extinguish the flames. The heat
and the torrents of smoke were suffocating, so that we
foamed at the mouth ; and, at one time, we were in
CAPTIVITY. 165
apprehension of being burnt alive. No one thought
of unloosing us, probably from a dread of some con-
fusion and disorder ; and only the usual quantities of
water were dealt out to us, at the usual times : nor
was this all ; for a liberal distribution of the bamboo
ensued, applied to some for setting fire to the place
from negligence, to others, for not foreseeing the acci-
dent, and to others for an imputed criminal intention,
as if they would take an advantage of such an oppor-
tunity to effect their escape."
After being thirty-three years in slavery, Dumont
was one of five hundred Christianswho were exchanged
for the two sons of Osman, taken prisoners by the Bey
litre. Dumont now became the slave of a new
master, but received much better treatment ; his irons
were struck off, he was clothed, and had two black
loaves, of five ounces each, and seven or eight olives,
allowed him daily.
At Algiers he remained eight months. At length,
the great deliverer, Lord Exmouth, appeared before
Algiers, and obtained the surrender of all the Chris-
tian slaves of every nation. Dumont adds,
" We were taken in by a number of English boats,
and there it was that our last chains fell off, not without
the deep sighs and regrets of three thousand rene-
gadoes, who despaired of obtaining deliverance, and
cursed the day wherein they apostatized from the
Christian faith."
JEFFERY HUDSON.
This famous English dwarf, who contributed to the
amusements of the court of Charles II., was so un-
fortunate as to be twice taken by pirates and sold to
slavery, and lastly, to terminate his life in an English
166 PERCY ANECDOTES.
prison. Jeffery, whose height did not exceed eighteen
inches, until lie had reached his thirtieth year, after
which he shot up to three feet nine inches, and who
was once actually served up to the royal table in a
cold pie, had, nevertheless, a high opinion of his own
consequence ; nor was he thought, even by others, of
insignificant consideration, having been employed as
envoy to fetch an accoucheur for the queen from
France.
Soon after his return from bis embassy, he quar-
relled at court with a gentleman of the name of Croft,
whom he challenged. Mr. Croft coming to the ren-
dezvous, armed only with a squirt, the little crea-
ture was so enraged, that a real duel ensued ; and
the appointment being on horseback with pistols, to
put them more on a level, with the first fire he shot
his antagonist dead. The duel having incurred the
displeasure of his royal mistress, Jeffery was expelled
the court, and sent to sea, when he was taken by a
Turkish rover, and sold a slave into Barbary.
He did not remain long in slavery, but returned to
England, and, in 1682, was committed to the Gate-
house, on suspicion of being concerned in the Popish
plot. In this prison he terminated his eventful life,
at the age of sixty-three.
SINGULAR COMMITTAL.
In 1717, the following singular commitment to
the Bastile, was made out by order of the Duke of
Orleans, Regent during the minority of Louis XV. of
Trance. " Laurence d'Henry, for disrespect to King
George I. in not mentioning him in his Almanack as
King of Great Britain." How long this unlucky
Almanack-maker remained in prison, is unknown.
CAPTIVITY. 167
The Register of the Bastile, when examined at the
revolution, afforded no information on the subject.
SLAVERY IN PERSIA.
The slaves in Persia are not numerous, and cannot
be distinguished by any peculiar habits or usages
from the other classes, farther, than that they are
generally trusted and more favoured by their supe-
riors. " The name of slave/' says Sir John Malcolm,
in his History of Persia, " in this country, may be
said to imply confidence on one part, and attachment
on the other. They are mostly Georgians, or Africans,
and being obtained or purchased when young, they
are usually brought up in the Mahomedan religion.
Their master, who takes the merit of their conversion,
appropriates the females to the service of his wives ;
and when the males are at a proper age, he marries
them to a female slave in the family, or to a free
woman. Their children are brought up in the house,
and have a rank only below relations. In almost
every family of consequence, the person in whom the
greatest trust is reposed, is a house-born slave ; and
instances of their betraying their charge, or abusing
the confidence that is placed in them, are very rare."
CHARLES I.
This unfortunate monarch, while a prisoner in
Carisbrooke Castle, in the Isle of Wight, being in-
formed that he was in danger of assassination, con-
certed measures for an escape ; but the governor,
Colonel Hammond, being apprised of it, disconcerted
the project ; whereupon, the king was confined a close
prisoner, and all his faithful servants discharged and
turned out of the garrison.
168 IMiRCY ANECDOTES.
Sonic time after this, he once more attempted to
escape. One Osborne, a gentleman by birth, was
appointed by Colonel Hammond as Gentleman Usher
to the King, and became strongly devoted to his
service. Osborne was one day addressed by one
Rolph, a captain in the garrison, a man of low ex-
traction, but of an enterprising temper. He pro-
posed enticing the king from the Castle, under pre-
tence of procuring his escape, in order to murder
him, which he said would be agreeable to parliament,
and the means of gaining them comfortable establish-
ments. Of this Osborne acquainted his majesty, who
directed him to keep up the correspondence, hoping
to convert the wicked intentions of this man into
the means of flight. Osborne therefore appeared to
fall into Rolph's design.
In the meantime, the king recommended him to
try two soldiers ; who not only embraced his party,
but likewise brought over some of their brethren, who
were to be sentinels near the place where the king
intended to get out; this was a window secured with
an iron bar, for the cutting of which he was provided
with both a saw and a file. His majesty with great
labour sawed this bar asunder. At midnight he came
to the window ; but on getting out, discerning more
than the ordinary sentinels, he suspected he was dis-
covered, shut the window, and retired to bed.
Rolph, who had begun to suspect that he was
likely to fall a dupe to his own artifices, from some
particulars communicated to him by a soldier, had
placed an extra guard ; and, on discovering this at-
tempt, acquainted the governor ; who on going into
the king's chamber, found him in bed, the window bar
cut in two, and taken out. Osborne fled, but after-
CAPTIVITY. \C) l J
wards laid this true state of the affair before the
House of Lords, when Rolph was committed to
prison for trial, but the grand jury threw out the bill.
The king was soon after removed to London, where
he was tried, condemned, and beheaded.
PANGS OF REMEMBRANCE.
An English gentleman travelling on the Continent,
took refuge from a storm in the house of a country-
man near Aix-la-Cbapelle. The incident brought
him into company with another gentleman who had
taken shelter there from the same cause ; he was a
man somewhat advanced in years, yet still preserving
all the stronger lines of a fine person and noble coun-
tenance. The owner of the house had a pointer dog
chained up in the apartment in which the strangers
were sitting ; and the Englishman observed that
whenever the dog rattled his chain, his fellow so-
journer turned pale, and appeared moved even to
agony. " The noise of the dog seems to affect
you, sir," observed the Englishman. " It does,"
replied the stranger feelingly ; " and had you, my
good sir, been as long confined by a chain as I have
been, you would, I believe, be as much affected as I
am, whenever the rattling of a chain sounded in
your ears. It is a weakness, I confess ; but, alas !
what else than weakness has the cruelty of his enemies
left to poor Trenck ?" An exclamation of surprise
burst from the Englishman. " Yes," continued the
stranger, "I am that Baron Trenck, of whom the
world has heard so much." The Englishman owned
the great satisfaction he had in meeting him ; and
after expressing in lively terms the sympathy which
I Q
170 PERCY ANECDOTES.
he felt for his misfortunes, intimated an earnest desire-
to know some of the particulars of his melancholy
story ; for as yet the narrative with which the public
have since become so familiar, had not been published.
The baron very courteously complied ; and left the
Englishman no cause to regret the accidental deten-
tion which thus procured him the gratification of
hearing one of the most interesting narratives of cap-
tivity in modern times, from the mouth of the heroic
sufferer himself.
VOLUNTARY CONFINEMENT.
Some time after the Eddystone Lighthouse was
erected, a shoemaker engaged to be light-keeper.
When in the boat which conveyed him thither, the
skipper addressing him, said, " How happens it,
friend Jacob, that you should choose to go and be
cooped up here as a light-keeper, when you can on
shore, as I am told, earn half-a-crown and three
shillings a day in making leathern hose (leathern pipes
so called) ; whereas the light-keeper's salary is but
<£25 a year, which is scarce ten shillings a week ?"
" Every one to his taste," replied Jacob, promptly.
" I go to be a light-keeper, because I don't like con-
finement" After this answer had produced its share
of merriment, Jacob explained himself by saving,
that he did not like to be confined to work.
At first there were only two light-keepers stationed
on this solitary pile ; but an incident of a very extra-
ordinary and distressing nature, which occurred,
showed the necessity of an additional hand. One of
the two keepers took ill, and died. The dilemma
in which this occurrence left the survivor, was sin-
gularly painful. Apprehensive that if he tumbled
CAPTIVITY. 171
the dead body into the sea, which was the only way
in his power to dispose of it, he might be charged
with murder, he was induced for some time to let
the dead body lie, in hopes that the attending boat
might be able to land, and relieve hira from the
distress he was in. By degrees the body became so
putrid, that it was not in his power to get quit of it
without help, for it was near a month before the
boat could effect a landing ; and then it was not
without the greatest difficulty that it could be done
when they did land. To such a degree was the
whole building filled with the stench of the corpse,
that it was all they could do to get the dead body
disposed of, and thrown into the sea ; and it was
some time after that, before the rooms could be freed
from the offensive stench that was left. What a situ-
ation for the solitary survivor to have been left in !
What a price did he pay for an innocent reputation!
The tale is a rival even to that of Mezentius.
IRONMONGERS' COMPANY'S FUND FOR
THE REDEMPTION OF SLAVES.
Mr. Thomas Betton, by bis will, dated 15th of
February, 1721, gave the residue of his estate to the
Ironmongers' Company, upon trust, to apply one
full half of the interest and profits thereof, to the
redemption of British slaves in Turkey or Barbary ;
and the remainder for other charitable purposes.
Mr. Betton was a Turkey merchant, who, in the
course of his life, was a captive on the coast of
Barbary ; during which period, his sufferings led him
deeply to commiserate the condition of those who
might subsequently fall into the same unhappy state.
172 PERCY ANECDOTES.
The known existence of this fund among the
tribes, operates not only as a motive for preserving
the life of the poor captive, but ensures to him also
a less rigorous measure of treatment than he would
probably otherwise experience.
We have not seen any statement of the total
number of slaves redeemed by this fund, but it cannot
but have been very considerable. The sura which
they usually allow is oflOO for each person ; but
there have been occasions in which they have given
even more, as in the recent case of the crew of the
brig Surprise, six in number, whose ransom was not
effected for less than 5000 dollars.
TRIUMPH OF HUMANITY.
The piratical aggressions of the Algerines, and the
cruel slavery to which they were for ages in the
custom of dooming their Christian captives, had, at
different times, provoked the indignation of European
powers, and brought heavy inflictions of vengeance
upon the barbarians. But to the united fleets of
Britain and the Netherlands, under the command of
Lord Exmouth, was reserved the glorious task of
completing the triumph of humanity, by forcing the
Algerine government to make a solemn renunciation
for ever, of the practice of Christian slavery.
Most truly was it observed by Lord Exmouth, in
his official despatch, announcing the victory of
Algiers, that " To have been one of the humble in-
struments in the hands of Divine Providence, of bring-
ing to reason a ferocious government, and destroy-
ing, for ever, the insufferable and horrid system of
CAPTIVITY. 173
Christian slavery, could never cease to be a source of
delight and heartfelt comfort to every individual
happy enough to be employed in it."
M. Salarae, who accompanied the expedition in
the capacity of interpreter, thus describes the anxiety
of the slaves to escape from bondage.
" When the British boats came inside the Mole,
the slaves began to push and throw themselves by
crowds, ten or twenty persons together. ' It was,
indeed/ says M. Salami, ' a most glorious and ever
memorable merciful act, for England, over all Europe,
to see these poor slaves, when our boats were shoving
with them off the shore, all at once take off their
hats, and exclaim in Italian, ' Vive il B.6 d'Ingliterra,
il padre eterno! e y l Ammiraglio Ingle se che ci ha liberate
da questo secondo inferno.' — ■ Long live the King of
England, the eternal father! and the English Admiral
who delivered us from this second hell.' "
The number of slaves liberated by Lord Exmouth,
was in all, 3003, viz. Neapolitans and Sicilians,
2056 ; Sardinians and Genoese, 463 ; Piedmontese,
6; Romans, 184 j Tuscans, 6; Spaniards, 226 ; Por-
tuguese, 1 ; Greeks, 7 ; Hamburghers, 4 ; Dutch, 28 ;
French, 2 ; Austrians, 2 ; and of the English, 18.
What a noble consummation to the glory of the
British arms ! Thousands of captives restored to
homes which they had probably despaired of ever
seeing ; to bosoms which they never hoped to press ;
many a father to the arms of a long-lost wife and
children ; many an only son to those of a widowed
mother ; and this after years of oppression, indignity,
and indeed of ceaseless agony !
Q 3
174
PERCY ANECDOTES.
ARRESTED FLIGHT OF LOUIS XVI. AND
FAMILY.
When the Royal Family of France were arrested
in their attempted flight, and were on their return
from Varennes to Paris, the Dauphin having remarked
on the buttons of M. Barnave, one of the deputies
appointed by the National Assembly to attend the
royal prisoners, the device, " To live free, or die,"
turned to his mother, and said, " Mamma, what does
that mean, to live free!" " My child," replied the
queen, "it is to go where you please." ** Ah, mamma!"
rejoined the infant quickly, ** then we are not free !"
INDEX,
ANECDOTES OF CAPTIVITY.
Adopted Son
African Lovers
Agrippa, Kin?
Algerine Slaves at Genoa.
Bajazet
Barbarous Victor
Bastile Inscriptions
Relics
of Saxony
Black Hole of Calcutta
Brand plucked from the burn-
in;:, a
Breaking Prison
Golownin, Captain 122
Grotius 18
Hero of the Bastile.
Carapanella
Candid Culprit
Captives before Cyrus
Cave of Life
Death
Charles I
Choice of Clovis ,
De la Motte, Countess
Dead Sleep
Dumont
13
4
S
71
73
167
9
'12
1.31
103
137
11
50
8
1.58
116
Fatal Svinpathy 141
Filial Piety 7
Fortune well told 43
Fortunate Escape 142
FrancisI 12
Friendly Imprisonment 23
Freemasons in Portugul 1 25
Galley Slaves of Genoa 70
Garrison of N agar t>6
Generous confidence rewarded 148
Conquerors 44
Gaoler 17
East Indian Slavery ...,
Edward of Caernarvon .,
Enzo, King of Sardinia.
Escape of Cavades ...
Lavalette ...
Mrs. S. Smith
Inexorable Creditor
Iron Mask, the
Ironiiiongers'Company's Fund
Jackson, Rev. W
Jeffery Hudson
John, King of France
La Tude, Henry Masers de ..
Longinus
Louis XIV., flight of
Magnanimous Criminal
Malesherbes
Marsigli, Count
Mary, Queen of Scots
Massareene, Lord
Midnight
Miltiades
More provoking than painful.
Munchausen, Author of
Nithsdale, Earl of 58
Nuns of Cambray 138
Offending a King 14
OldScranny 107
Pangs of Remembrance .... 169
Park a prisoner among the
Moors 133
Pclisson ">
Prisoner for Sixty-one Years . 86
Prisoners at Olmutz 105
Proscribed Family 64
Ralegh, Sir Walter 94
Rasp House of Amsterdam .. 151
Redemptionof British subjects
by George II 147
Republican Father 62
Richard II 48
Roland, Madame 98
11
Roman Slave
Sansculotte
Savage, Richard
ServiUa
Singular Committal
Slavery in Persia
the United States
Smith, Sir Sidney
, Captain John
Socivizca, the Greek Robber
Solace of Reading
INDEX.
57
Spanish Captives in Algier3..
St. Louis
9:.
10
1-,-.
Iffl
5
166
Triumph of Humanity
Theodore King of Corsica ..
172
in
un
112
149
Victim of Etiquette
Voluntary Confinement
19
m
109
45
20
Water Carriers of Rio Janeiro
C'J
Youthful Victim
14
London : D. Cartwrighr, Printer, 91, Bartholomew Close.
INDEX.
ANECDOTES OF ELOQUENCE.
Ambassador, free spoken .... 164
Arden, Sir R. P 147
Athenian Orators 151
Atterbury, Bishop 37
Audi alteram partem 22
Barrov, Dr 20
Base Brief refused 154
Beggar, candid 148
Belbaven, Lord 55
Begum Charge 99
Bench and Bar 148
Barnard, Sir John 92
Boadicea 12
Bold Appeal 120
Bossuet 18
Bourdaloue 179
Burke, Mr 66
and Fox 70
Caract.icus .. 53
Carnarvon, Earl of 34
Catholic Missionary 158
Chatham, Lord 61, 64
Chicken, the ill
Church Militants 113
Cicero 10
Corilla 173
Crillon— Kin? Clovis u
Cromwell's Chaplain 19
Curran , 177
Dagger.the 12C
Demetrius 122
Demosthenes 3
Duncan, Lord 59
Edward IV 45
Eftect' 44
Elizabeth, Queen 26
Ellenborough, Lord.
Elocution , power of
Eloquence of Silence
Erskine, Lord
Excommunication
Extemporaneous Oratory ..
Facetious Preachers 154
" Fierce Democracy" 14 1
Fisher, Bishop 87
Flechicr 48
Fletcher of Salton 22
Flood and Grattan 93
Florian 165
Foster, Judge. .* 130
Fox's India Bill 101
Frederic the Great 38, 159
Freedom of Speech 153
French Curate 46
Debates 175
Funeral Orations 13
Gift of Tongues 161
Giorgio Scali 81
Graces of Speech 150
Hannibal 121
Hartley, David 69
Henrv "IV. of France 83
Heroic Negro 159
Hint well taken 112
Hortensins 11
Horiensia 12
Hottentot Preaching 52
Hussey, Dr 130
Irapey, Sir Elijah 109
Improvisator! • 170
Independence of the Bar. ... 20
Inspiration extraordinary.... 89
Isocrates 6
Jesuit of Maranham 136
Jewel, Bishop 162
Kirwan, Dean 163
Knox, John 16, 79
Lambrun, Margaret 30
La Rue 175
Law Latin 130
Logan, the Indian 40
Long Parliament 21
Speeches 32
11
Loughborough, Lord
Magdaleine <le Savoie
Mahomet
Mansfield. Lord
Mark Anthony
Massillon
Merks, Bishop
Naval Oratory
Newspaper Literati
Orator and Tyrant
of Human Race
Oratorical Experiment
Parliament of 1794
Paris
Parliamentary Literature ....
Courtier of 1626
Patrick Henrv
Perfumery Taxes
Pericles
Peterborough, Earl of
Peter the Hermit
Philip and Athenians
Physiognomy
Pirate's Defence
Pitt and Sheridan
Plato
Political Friendships
Porteus, Bishop
Prolixity made Penal
Prompt reply
Prophesying
Prynn's Speech
Pulteney, Earl of Bath
Public Criers of Greece
Pulpit Flattery reproved ....
Quaker Preaching
INDEX.
42 Quill 108
Reporters S6
Rival Orators 63
Rochester, Earl of 164
Rouiilly.SirS 156
Royal Commissioner 23
Elocution 66
Favour 145
Saurin 19
Sewel.SirT 39
Shaftesbury, Earl of 23
Shaw, Dr 118
Sheridan, Mr 97
Single-speech Hamilton 79
SlaveTrade 160
Sleepers Reproved 177
Soldier's Appeal 145
Stafford, Earl of 84
Sylla, L 121
Symbolical Oratory 148
Taylor.Jeremy 35
Tecumseh 41
Themistocles 1 12
Thread of Discourse 11.5
Throckmorton, Sir N 32
Thurlow, Lord 139
Tillotson 47
Time and Eternity 162
Urban XL, Pope 15
Venetian Mountebank 12a
■ Pleading 143
Wav to Promotion 119
Wharton, Duke of 37
Whitfield 122
Windham, Mr 76
London: D. Cartw right, Printer, 91, Bartholomew Close.
INDEX.
ANECDOTES OF YOUTH.
Alexander the Great 6
Amyot, Bishop 20
AptVersion 140
Barretier 39
Berwick, Duke of ....: 80
Bidder, George 123
Blacket, Joseph 166
Blow, Dr 22
Bonaparte 175
Boy King 3
and Highwayman 129
Brotherly Contest 9
-Lore 166
Brown, Dr 137
Brunswick, Princes of 50
Calculating Girl 123
Campbell, Admiral 123
Capture of Paris 178
CatoofUtica 7
Charles VI. of France 102
IX. of France 14
XII. of Sweden .... 17
, Archduke 27
Chatterton 41
Child's Play 12
Prayer 61
Choice, the 16
of an Heir 13
Christmas Pie 30
Christina, Queen 73
Clive, Lord 83
Conde, the Great 79
Convict's Offspring 51
Cowley 71
Crichton, the Admirable 75
Cromwell, Oliver 20
Crotch, Dr log
Dallas, Robert Charles 91
Deaf and Dumb Girl 117
De Gneschlin 149
Dermodv 151
Dominlchirto 129
Drake, Admiral 27
Drummer Boy9 n 2
Education in the 15th Century 98
Edward VI !9
Elgin Family " 122
Ettrick Shepherd 64
Example, Force of 48
Family Scene 60
Fenelon's Pupil 113
Ferguson 125
Fenara, Lewis 113
Filial Sacrifice 10
Duly 69
Fisher, Clara 145
Florian 45
Franklin, Dr 67
Frederic the Great ug
Gaming Reproved 36
Gassendi 102
Goldsmith 61
Goldoni 121
Governess, the Poor 45
Gracchi, the n
Grotius 54
Gustavus Vasa 71
Haller 127
Handel 54
Harlow 134
Hawke, Admiral 130
Haydn $6
Henry IV. of France 73
"He never told a Lie" 47
Heroic Endurance 11
Heroism and Affection 59
Hogarth 52
Honesty the best Policy 147
Hospital, Marquess 144
Howe, Lord 47
Hungarian Prodigy 44
Ignorance of Fear 82
Ingenious Curiosity Ml
INDEX.
Infant Hero 49
Iomsburg, Youths of 13
Ireland, W. H «a
Jones, Sir \Y IIS
Juvenile Crusade 69
• Artist ISO
Preachers 174
Kutzebce 142
La Harpe 157
Le Brim 146
LeJand, Dr 150
Lesson to Kings 37
Logan, Miss T 69
Lopez de Vega 38
LouisXIII 146
XVII 171
Lubeck, Child of .. 24
Ludwig,John lie
Lully 22
Masrliabechi 129
Malkin, T. W 167
Maria deSouza 66
Michael Angelo 72
"Microcosm," the 138
Midshipman, gallant 61
— — , generous 76
Mitchell, the blind boy 161
M n,Lord 107
Morland 152
Mozart., 57
Mural Crown, the 32
Napoleon, young ISO
Nelson, Lord 85
's Midshipmen 86
Opie 62
Ostiack Boy 140
Page.the 52
Pascal 70
Paw, Sal 104
Pell'oeon Youth 36
Penny,the .' 23
Philanthropy, early IM
Philosopher Outdone 125
Pope 130
Postel 99
Presenceof Mind 24
Prince Henrv 33
HupilofZenb 12
Rauce, Abbe de 23
Roscius, the younj 102
Royal Family of Britain 135
Rustic Politeness 170
Sagacity of a Negro Bov .... 15
Sailor Boy 28
Saunders, Sir £ 115
Schiller 169
's " Robbers" 49
School Friendship 132
Scientific Sasracity 97
Scotch Sappho, the 77
Self-taught Mechanist 65
Secret well kept 31
Sheridan 63
Shuter 152
Stael, Madame de 89
Staunton, George ill
Swearina: Reproved 137
Sydney, Sir Philip 26
Tasso 53
Teaching a Cow 124
Themosflcles 11
Thurlow, Lord 84
Thucsdides 36
Turenne 17
Turkish Bov 108
Twin Brothers 29
Villiers, Lord F M
Wages like a King's 1 ;
Watts, Dr 46
White, Henry Kirke 153
Wit by the Wayside 72
Youthful Courtier 179
Zerah Colburn 109
London: D. Cartwright, Printer, 91, Bartholomew Close.
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