he purchased at Plaistow; previous to which he difpofed of all the copies, as well as plates, of his works. The converfation of a few select friends, and the perufal of a few select books, were the amufement of the evening of his life; and now and then he made an excurfion to fome of the principal cities in England, particularly to Bristol, Bath, Exeter, and Norwich. Mr. Edwards was of a middle ftature, rather inclined to corpulence of a liberal difpofition, and a cheerful converfation. All his acquaintance experienced his benevolent temper, and his poor neighbours frequently partook of his bounty. His diffidence and humility were always apparent, and to perfons who had a taste for ftudies congenial to his own he was a moft entertaining as well as communicative companion. Some years before his death the alarming depredations of a cancer, which baffled all the efforts of phyfical fkill, deprived him of the fight of one of his eyes: he alfo fuffered much from the flone, a complaint to which at different periots of life he had been fubject. Yet it had been remarked, that in the fevereft paroxyfms of mifery he was fcarcely known to utter a fingle complaint. Having completed his 80th year, emaciated with age and ficknefs, he died on the 23d of July 1773, defervedly lamented by a numerous acquaintance. He left two fifters, to whom he bequeath ed the fortune acquired by affiduous application to his favourite purfuits; they died lately, within a few hours of each other, and were buried together. His Femains were interred in the church-yard of Weltham, his native parish, where his executors have erected a stone, with the following infcription, to perpetuate to pofterity his skill as an artist. EPITAPH. Here lies interred The Body of GEO. EDWARDS, Esq; F. R. S. Who departed this Life the 23d Day of July 1773, Aged 81 Years; Formerly LIBRARIAN To the ROYAL COLLEGE of PHYSICIANS, In which Capacity, Some Account of the Death, &c. of the Abbé Laurence Ricci, General of the Jefuits, at the time of their Diffolution; with an authentic Copy of a Declaration, left by him in writing, concerning the Crimes imputed to himself and his Order; collected from Letters written from Rome upon that Occafion. L : AWRENCE Ricci was born at Florence, the 2d of Auguft, 1703, of an illuftrious family he entered into the Society of Jefus in the year 1720, and was made General of it on the 21ft of May 1758. After the deftruction of the fociety, he was fent prifoner to the Cafle of St. Angelo, on the 22d of September 1773, where death put an end to his fuffering life. a His laft illness was but of a few days: the eighth was the laft of pain and life, loaded with weight of years, rendered more weighty by many heavy croffes, and by a variety and long feries of afflictions; with accumulated woe on the latter period of them, by the fuppreffion of his order; by the calumnies cast on it and himfelf; by the imprisonment of his own perfon, and a long, painful, and clofe confinement, efpecially for the firft eighteen months of it; under this complication of years and forrows, he was little able to support a violent attack of an inflammatory fever. The relief and fuccours which his Holiness vouchfafed to afford him in his fick ftate, by giving in charge to his own phyfician, Doctor Sallicetti, to leave no endeavours untried for his recovery, were without effect. Bleeding was repeated to the fourth time, and blifters were applied, but it foon appeared that all means to fave his life were unavailing. The firft fymptoms of his dif ease discovered themselves on Thursday evening, November 16. After having taken his walk, ac cording to his cuftom, on the ter race of the caftle, on his return to his apartment he was feized with a chillness and a cold, which immediately became very violent. The fever foon increased upon bim. On Saturday evening his life was judged to be in danger; and, on the Friday following, the 24th of November, a little after noon, at a time when all oppofition to his enlargement feemed to be removed, he fweetly gave up foul to his Redeemer at the age of feventy-two years, three months, and twenty-two days, having liv ed fifty-five years, three months, and fix days, in religion. It had been his request, that the crucifix, which he always carried about him, fhould be delivered to his nephew; that his little wardrobe fhould be diftributed, by way of fome fmall recompence, to thofe who had ferved him; and that he should be buried at the late profeffed houfe of the Jefuits. his He retained his fenfes to the laft; and bore the pains of his illnefs, as he had done all the afflic tions of body and mind, of which the many and great injuries and affronts offered to himfelf and his order, particularly by a long and clofe confinement, must have been pro ductive, with the greatest patience and refignation. Before he took the facrament, which, as well as the extreme-unction, he called for with the greateft fervour, and re ceived ceived with the greatest devotion; judging he ought not to be wanting to himself, by a folemn declaration of his own innocence, and that of his order, which he had governed for the space of 15 years, he began to fpeak, as follows, in the prefence of the Vicegovernor of the caftle of St. Angelo, his Secretary Don Giovanni, Abbé Orlando, a ferjeant, and a corporal, the apothecary, the domeftics of the Governor Camillo and Pietruccio, nine foldiers and galley-flaves (all whofe names we could mention) who had accompanied the facrament into his apartment: "That he fincerely pardoned all thofe who had been inftrumental in the deftruction of the fociety-He did not omit to pray particularly for thofe who had reduced him to this ftate of inability and fufferings, and to implore the bleffing of heaven on them:" After which, raifing his voice, and with a remarkable firm tone, he faid, "that in the prefence of God, whom he adored in his auguft facrament, and by whom hortly he was going to be judged, he declared to the whole world, that he was entirely innocent of all that had been laid to his charge, and of whatever might have contributed to the deftruction of the Society intrufted to his care, or to his own perfonal imprifonment. He thanked God for withdrawing him from this world, and hoped that his death would procure fome alleviation to thofe who fuffered with him in the fame caufe." During his illness, feveral cardinals fent conftantly to enquire after his health; and the Pope, on fending him his apoftolical be nediction, accompanied it with the moft tender and paternal expreffions. All those who were prefent at the death of this late and last General of the fociety of Jefus, (indeed, we may fay all Rome, as they were not ignorant of the circomftances) and even to the galley-flaves of the caftle, all conceived the greateft veneration for his memory, and all look on his death as precious in the fight of God. Dr. Sallicetti declared openly, that he had been prefent at the deaths of many perfons in repute for piety and virtue, but that he had never been witness to fuch fentiments as thofe he had juft been present at. The Pope gave orders to Cardinal Corfini for the funeral of Abbé Ricci; and the will of his Holinefs was, that all fhould be done according to the quality of the fubject, and that his body fhould be depofited in the vault of the church of Jefus, near the other Generals of the Society his predeceffors. Accordingly the national church of Florence was hung with black, and on Saturday, November the 25th, two hours after fun-fet, the corpfe was conveyed in a coach attended with four flambeaux, and followed by another coach, to the faid church, where, on the morning of the day following, vefted in his facerdotal habits, he was expofed on a lofty bed of ftate, round which were burning thirty grand tapers. During this whole morning, which was Sunday November 26th, there was an extraordinary concourfe of people to this church, of all forts and conditions. Mais Was was continued to be faid at all the altars till noon. The funeral fervice was celebrated with great decency and folemnity, by the clergy who ferve that parish. The throng of people did not difcontinue, and many gave tokens of great veneration and tender affection, though curiofity perhaps was the chief motive that first led them thither. I must not pass over in filence one remarkable token of refpect given by the Bishop of Comma. chio. This worthy prelate, who is in cqual repute for piety and learning, the fame who had lately entered Rome barefoot at the head of many of his clergy, came alfo to the Florentine church, and placing himself on his knees near the Catafalque, he faid, with a voice loud enough to be heard by many, that " he did not come to pray for the foul of the deceased, but to folicit the credit of that fingularly juft man, whom he regarded as a predeftinated foel, and as a martyr." Many others feemed to think the fame, without daring to declare their fentiments fo openly. In citing this paffage, I have nothing in view but to fhew the high efteem his virtue was held in, and the homage paid to it. At mid-day the church was shut, and the corpfe withdrawn from the fight of the people. It was removed into the facrifty, where no one was allowed to enter. Towards midnight it was put into the fame coach that had brought it thither, followed alfo by the fecond, and conveyed with lighted torches to the church of the Jefuits, where every thing was ready for the bu rial, according to the Pope's orders, and the request of the venerable old man. The prefident 5 of the house faid the prayers of the church over the corpfe, before it was let down into the vault. The body was then put into a coffin, which was placed on the fide of his predeceffors Centurioni and ral of the Society of Jefas. To Vifconti, in quality of Geneferve by way of epitaph, a fcroll of parchment was fixed to the coffin, on which were written his his age, the time and place of his death, and the number of years he had been General of his order. name, Such was the end of this, the eighteenth and laft General of the Jefuits. Some death, he had the precaution to time before his draw up, write himfelf, and fign with his own hand, a declaration of his own and his order's innocence; left his laft illness fhould prevent his vindicating both by word of mouth; and he then entrufted this declaration to one of the foldiers of the castle, on whose fidelity he thought he could beft rely, and who in effect discharged his truft faithfully. This authentic piece is preferved with great care, and from this original is drawn the Italian copy, from whence are taken the French and English translations. question the authenticity of this ftill in An authentic Copy of the Proteftation which Abbé Lawrence Ricci left at his Death. "THE uncertainty of the time when it will pleafe Almighty God to to call me to himself, and the certainty that this time is not far diftant, confidering my advanced age, the multitude, the long duration and weight of my fufferings, warn me to be before-hand in the difcharge of every duty I think incumbent on me; and this precaution is the more neceffary, as it may eafily happen that my laft fickness may dilable me from doing it at the time of my death. fecond proteftation is, because I judge it neceflary for the credit of the Society of Jefus, now extinct, of which I was General. But my intention is not, that, in confequence of thefe two proteftations, any of thofe fhould be judged guilty in the fight of God, who have brought thefe difafters on the Society and myself: I fhall religiously abitain from paffing any fuch like judgments. The views of the mind of man, and the affections of his heart, are known by God. He alone fees the errors of the human understanding, and difcerns how far they are excufable. He alone penetrates the views which fet men on action, and the spirit with which he acts; Therefore confidering myself as at this inftant going to appear before the tribunal of infallible truth and justice, fuch as is the fole tribunal of God;after long and mature reflection; and after having humbly prayed to my moft merciful Redeemer and awful the affections and inclinations Judge, not to permit me, efpecially in this my last act and deed of my life, to be led away, or influenced by paffion, or by any bitternefs of heart or mind, or by any other vicious end or motive; but purely becaufe I judge it my duty to render juftice to truth and innocence ;I make the two following declarations and protefta tions: First, I declare and proteft, That the Society of Jefus, now extinct, has not given any caufe for its own fuppreffion. This I declare and proteft with that moral certainty which a fuperior can have who is well informed of what paffes in his order. Secondly, I declare and proteft, That I have not given the leaft occafion towards my own imprifonment. This I deciare and proteft with that great certainty and evidence which each one has in the confcioufnefs of his own actions. My only motive for making this of the heart which accompany the action, and from whence depends the rectitude or culpability of the exterior action; confequently, I leave all judgment to him, who avill examine the works of men, and fearch out their thoughts. (Book of Wisdom, ch. vi. ver. 4.) And, not to be wanting to my. duty as a Chriftian, I proteft, that, with the divine affiftance, I have always pardoned, and that I do now fincerely pardon, all thofe who have perfecuted me, firft by their perfecution of the Society of Jefus, and the many hardships they caufed individuals, my late fubjects, to undergo-then by the fuppreffion and extinction of it and by what foon followed, my imprifonment, with all the fufferings that have attended it, and by the injuries done to my repu tation:-thefe are known facts, and notorious to the whole world. I pray the Lord out of his pure bounty and goodnefs, and out of the |