had been recommended to him by his ambassador. That the only thing that could be disagreeable to me in his society was, his too great relish for wine. He told me to be cautious of offering him any means of exceeding; and told me moreover, that the cause of his quitting his own country, where he had been of the corps of chasseurs nobles, was a quarrel and a duel, in which, I understood, he had killed his man ; and the cause of his being in Portugal, the accidental capture of a ship in which he was a passenger. And upon the whole, that unless rendered dangerous by wine, his disposition was kind and amiable; and all this I found afterwards to be true.

When the gaoler first presented me to him, and asked his consent that we should live together, he was reading in his bed. There was in his countenance, a look of sullen indignation, which softened greatly towards me. We were recommended to each other as two grandees of different countries, but under a common misfortune; and I had the satisfaction to find him as well pleased as I was with the new arrangements.

But his dislike to the Portuguese was immoderate; and as often as the turnkeys came at night to ring the iron bars, and wish us good rest, or with similar offensive compliments, to examine if we were in our beds in the morning; still more, whenever he sat down to table, he was unable to contain himself; less so still when they went through the daily exer-cise of Godliness, in obliging the prisoners to sing prayers. On these occasions, one of the keepers stood

over them with a stick, and wherever there was any lagging of devotion, he quickened it with a blow. This instrument you may suppose produced an effect more strong than pleasing; to express which, there is no term of music or other art that I know of. I never could distinctly hear the more delicate modulations in which I had doubtless a great loss. Nor could I distinguish the words, but I imagined they were Latin, and as such, entitled to respect. Taken altogether with the clinking of the chains, and the sound of the cudgel, it was very far short of what we may conceive of choiring angels. The thing might please God Almighty, inasmuch as it was done with that intention; but it certainly contributed nothing to the recreation of my afflicted companion, the noble Dane, whose gratification it was evident had not been at all consulted.

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Another institution which displeased him, and me no less, was in a strong building touching this gaol, and I believe making part of it, and projecting from it at a right angle. This was a place of surety, for locking up married ladies, such as the wives of seacaptains, and others, who went on voyages; to be kept safely until the return of their husbands. had more than once an opportunity of seeing some of them, when on certain holy-days, and Sundays, they were allowed to come for a few minutes to a balcony which looked into a waste piece of ground. And I could not but have a fellow-feeling for them : for if beauty was the crime for which they suffered, P

I can, with my hand upon my heart, and with all truth and certainty, bear witness in their favor, that they were as innocent of the charge, as I was of high

treason.

My situation however was changed for the better, in so much that John, who was hitherto excluded, was now permitted to imprison himself with me. He was allowed also to go out to the market: but as he did not know a word of the language, I could profit little by that indulgence. I desired him to go rather to the Exchange, and enquire from any English gentleman he might happen to see there, whether there were any passengers arrived by the packets, and if possible, to have some news of his mistress. He did so, and was questioned in his turn. He had the satisfaction to hear some persons express themselves with courage and indignation at the treatment I had suffered; but he had also more occasions than one to prove how thick the black spell of terror was cast around me. For, in this country, as it had been in mine, to communicate with a secret prisoner, is to brave destruction. I shall relate to you a short anecdote, which may very well serve to illustrate this ob

servation.

Whilst I was locked up with the free-mason, I heard two men talking without upon a terrace opposite the window: they did not see us, for there were two buttresses or blinds built up to prevent any communication with other parts of the prison: but, as I heard them abusing the minister, and calling him by the gross epithet of filho da puta (son of a wh-e) I

thought that those who disrespected him so much, might have some feeling for such as he oppressed. I called to them, and requested they would speak to me. They came, and at first were affable enough. They asked me, if I was a Frenchman, supposing me probably to be only a prisoner of war? I answered, that I was not, but an unfortunate stranger, put into secret without any crime or charge whatever; and that I could not even have the satisfaction of getting any person to speak to: nor I either, says one of them, will not speak to you, and in an instant they both disappeared.

After being now for so long a time deprived of all means of writing, paper, pen and ink, were now set designedly before me; I did not attempt to profit by it, as I feared to commit any person in my misfortunes, and had made up my mind to wait patiently. the denouement.

There was employed to sweep the room, and afterwards through negligence or intention, to keep the key, a Russian, convicted of robbery. He had been a sailor in the English navy, and spoke English fluently he also spoke the Portuguese sufficiently, and the Danish and German, besides his own, and possibly some other languages. He made no denial of his crime, which was that of having taken a man's watch, and pushed him in the water. He contented himself, which was better, with giving it a favorable version, and a delicate turn. He was notwithstanding of an order superior to the rest. He was zealous and compassionate, even without interest. He often

entreated me to be kind to the unfortunate gentleman beside me, and was officious in stealing a cup of tea to my first companion, M'Dermott. He at differ⚫ent times borrowed money from me, to lay out in candles and tobacco, in which articles he dealt but always, unless when he had an unfortunate run at play, repaid me honorably. He gave me once a particular proof of his skill in his art: for, after telling me a touching story of a poor prisoner in secret, who wished to write to his wife, he borrowed a little silvered ink-bottle from my secretary, which had been shortly before restored to me; and, having lost that, he borrowed the sand bottle, its companion, as a model, to have it replaced, leaving me in some regret for my loss, but in grand admiration of his talents and

resources.

He, besides, possessed a subtle diplomatic cast of mind; and seeing my reluctance to write, he was employed to bend me to the purpose in hand. Are you not, says he, a British subject; and have you not your minister to apply to? No British subject can be arrested here, but by the warrant of the Judge Conservador; and if he is, the English minister has but to speak one word, and he is set at liberty. I speak from what I know, says he; for I have seen many English prisoners here, and that has always been the case. You must have committed some terrible crime, and ran away from your country without any passport, and that makes afraid to speak.

you

I listened, with astonishment, to a discourse so ingenious; and answered, blurly, that I had com