fuggefted, not in languidly repeating those which they had learned from other people.

They valued themfelves, without undervaluing other nations. They loved to quit their own country to see and to hear, adopted eafily the manners of others, and were attentive and infinuating where-ever they went: but they loved more to return home, to repeat what they had obferved; and, among other things, to relate with astonishment, that they had been in the midft of great focieties, where every individual made his fenfe of independence to confit in keeping at a distance from another. Yet they did not think themselves entitled to hate or defpife the manners of ftrangers, because thefe differed from their own. For they revered the great qualities of other nations; and only made their failings the fubject of an inoffentive merriment.

When strangers came amongst them, they received them, not with a ceremony which forbids a fecond vifit, not with a coldness which caufes repentance of the first, not with an embarrassment which leaves both the landlord and his guest in equal mifery, but with the moft pleafing of all politeness, the fimplicity and cordiality of affection; proud to give that hofpitality which they had not received, and to humble the perfons who had thought of them with contempt, by fhewing how little they deserved it.

Having been driven from the low countries of Scotland by invafion, they, from time immemorial, thought themfelves entitled to make reprisals upon the property of their invaders; but they touched not that of each other: fo that, in the fame men, there ap peared, to those who did not look into the caufes of things, a ftrange mixture of vice and of virtue. For, what we call theft and rapine, they termed right and juftice. But, from the practice of thefe reprifals, they acquired the habits of being enterprizing, artful, and bold.

An injury done to one of a clan, was held to be an injury done to all, on account of the common relation of blood. Hence the highlanders were in the habitual practice of war: and hence their attachment to their chieftain, and to each other, was founded upon the two most active principles of human nature, love of their friends, and relentment against their enemies

But the frequency of war tempered its ferocity. They bound up the wounds of their prifoners, while they neglected their own; and, in the perfon of an enemy, refpected and pitied the ftranger..

They went always completely armed: a fashion which by accuftoming them to the inftruments of death, removed the fear of death itself, and which, from the danger of provocation, made the common people as polite, and as guarded in their behaviour, as the gentry of other countries.

From these combined circumstances, the higher ranks and the lower ranks of the highlanders alike, joined that refinement of sentiment, which, in all other nations, is peculiar to the former, to that strength and hardiness of body, which, in other countries, is poffeffed only by the latter.

To be modelt as well as brave; to be contented with the few things which nature requires; to act and to fuffer without complaining; to be as much afhamed of doing any thing infolent or injurious to others, as of bearing it when done to themfelves; and to die with pleature, to revenge affronts offered to their clan or their country: thefe they accounted their highest accomplish

ments.

1

*Their chriftianity was ftrongly tinctured with traditions de. rived from the antient bards of their country: for they were believers in ghofts: they marked the appearances of the heavens ; and, by the forms of the clouds, which in their variable climate were continually fhifting, were induced to guefs at prefent, and to predict future events; and they even thought, that to fome men the divinity had communicated a portion of his own prefcience. From this mixture of fyftem, they did not enter much into difputes concerning the particular modes of chriftianity; but every man followed with indifference of fentiment, the mode which his chieftain had affumed. Perhaps, to the fame caufe it is owing, that their country is the only one in Europe, into which perfecution never entered.

Their drefs, which was the last remains of the Roman habit in Europe, was well fuited to the nature of their country, and still better to the neceffities of war. It confifted of a roll of light woollen, called a plaid, fix yards in length, and two in breadth, wrapped loosely around the body, the upper lappet of which refted on the left fhoulder, leaving the right arm at full liberty; a jacket of thick cloth, fitted tightly to the body; and a loose fhort garment of light woollen, which went round the waift and covered the thigh. In rain, they formed the plaid into folds, and, laying it on the fhoulders, were covered as with a roof. When they were ob liged to lie abroad in the hills, in their hunting parties, or tending their cattle, or in war, the plaid ferved them both for bed and for covering; for, when three men flept together, they could spread three folds of cloth below, and fix above them. The garters of their stockings were tied under the knee, with a view to give more freedom to the limb; and they wore no breeches, that they might climb mountains with the greater eafe. The lightness and looseness of their drefs, the habit they had of going always on foot, never on horseback, their love of long journeys, but above all, that patience of hunger, and every kind of hardship, which carried their bodies forward, even after their spirits were exhausted, made them exceed all other European nations in speed and perfeverance of march. Montrofe's marches were fometimes fixty miles in a day, without food or halting, over mountains, along rocks, thro moraffes. In encampments, they were expert in forming beds in á moment, by tying together bunches of heath, and fixing them upright on the ground: an art, which, as the beds were both soft and dry, preferved their health in the field, when other foldiers lost theirs.

Their arms were a broad fword, a dagger called a durk, a target, a mufquet, and two piftols: fo that they carried the long fword of the Celtes, the pugio of the Romans, the fhield of the ancients, and both kinds of modern fire-arms, altogether. In battle, they threw away the plaid and under garment, and fought in their jackets, making thus their movements quicker, and their strokes more forcible. Their advance to battle was rapid, like the charge of dragoons: when near the enemy, they opped a little to draw breath and difcharge their mufquets, which they then dropped on the ground: advancing, they fired their pistols, which they threw, almoft at the fame inftant, against the heads of their opponents and then rushed into their ranks with the broad sword, threatening, and shaking the sword as they ran on, fo as to conquer the enemy's eye, while his body was yet unhurt. They fought, not in long and regular lines, but in feparate bands, like

wedges

1

:

and culture met with in these trial, yield, upon an average, 2 tons 3 cwt, of dry hay; a most advantageous produce, and much fuperior, all things confidered, to the general average of wheat, barley, and oats in this country. A clear profit of 2l. 155. 6d. per acre, is not gained in one farm here in forty. But the mere amount is not the only circumstance this profit is gained from an ameliorating crop, one which exhaufts the land fo little, that fcarcely any prepare better for corn. This is a point of very great importance, and it certainly is undoubted. I know from various and repeated experiments, that a very thick crop of tare-hay prepares better for either wheat or barley than a fallow, though it confifts of a year's tillage; and that the tare fallow will break up for barley and clover even in finer tilth than the tillage one. The common farmers have a very juft idea of this part of their bufinefs: from long experience they find, that fome crops exhauft the land more than others: they find that if they gain a great crop of peafe or tares, the wheat or barley that fucceeds very feldom fails of being a good crop; and this obfervation is fo ftrong and repeated, that very good farmers, who would fcorn to fow wheat after barley, would, on no account, omit sowing it af ter a good crop of tares or peafe.

:

My own particular trials give me the greatest reason to justify this practice but if it is fo beneficial to follow a feed crop of thefe vegetables with corn, how much more advantageous muft it be to cut them for hay while in their full fucculency, and before the feed is formed! In this method, the benefit the land receives from them is very great undoubtedly equal to a fallow. There is a further advantage in a crop of tare hay when compared with a fallow, highly fufficient to turn the fcale, if it did not already kick the beam, which is the quantity of manure arifing from feeding the hay. Whatever cattle are fed with it, will undoubtedly raise a confiderable portion of dung: which dung must be spread on the land, and then the barley and clover compared which grows on the tare-land fo manured, with that on the fallow unmanured. This is a point always to be carried to account when crops are under confideration that are food for cattle: for if the mere product is alone confidered, perhaps the greatest article is forgotten. This I am fure is the cafe with turnips fed on the land by theep.

But this husbandry of raifing tares for hay is, in all respects, valuable. There are many farms that have not a fufficiency of meadow ground; in which cafe fome of their occupiers have repeated the fowing of clover till the land is quite tired of it; at leaft according to the opinion of many very fenfible farmers. But fuppofing the idea to be falfe, yet the importance of being able to raise other hay befides clover, will often be indisputable.

There are a great many ufes to which tare-hay may be ap plied, fo as to pay the fair value of it,- which is (at the loweit) the average price of common hay: horfes thrive much better on it than on any meadow or pafture hay in the world. There is none exceeds it for fatting beafts of all forts, either to fat them with alone, or the more profitable method of giving it with turnips, or other green food. In that way alfo fheep much affect it, and will with turnips fcarcely ever be griped by it. All forts of young cattle thrive excellently on it. In all or any of these ufes a penetrat ing farmer can never be at a lofs to make the value of his hay by expending it at home,

I fhall

Towards the clofe of thefe Memoirs, Sir John Dalrymple prefents us with a ftriking comparifon of the fituation of Wil-liam, and the abdicated James, in a point of great confequence to their intereft. The anecdote relating to lord Shrewsbury in the following quotation, is taken from a manufcript of the late lord Balcarras, who had it originally from lord Bolingbroke; and the alternative it mentions is extremely remarkable.

It is a fingular circumftance, that, at this period, James dif trufted the fincerity of the men, on whofe affurances he proceeded, and that William made ufe of the fervices of fome, of whofe infincerity he had intelligence. When James confidered the juftice of the informations with which Marlborough supplied him, he believed that lord to be fincerely attached to him: but, when he reflected upon the breach of his promifes, with regard to the revolt of the army, he fufpected that he meant a fecond time to betray him. He fometimes believed, that Ruffel's views were not fo much directed to ferve him, as from republican principles, to degrade monarchy in his perfon: and, at other times, he fufpected, that Ruffel played a double game; if he miffed the French feet, to plead merit with him, and if he met it, to fecure the fame advantage with his rival. His fufpicions were increased by the conduct of the whigs; becaufe, although their leaders were permitted to give him affurances, from a great body of their friends, yet they were not left at liberty to give him a lift of their names. Upon William's return from Holland, after the battle of La Hogue, he reproached lord Godolphin with the correfpondence he carried on. Godolphin denied it: but the king put a letter into his hand, written by Godolphin to James, which had been stolen from that prince's cabinet, and defired him to reflect upon the treachery of thofe he was trufting, and the mercy that was shown him a generofity of proceeding which attached Godolphin for ever after to his mafter. William afked lord Shrewsbury about the fame time, "Why he had quitted his service?" Shrewsbury answered, "Becaufe his meafures had not correfponded with his promises to the nation." The king looking ftedfaftly upon him, said, “My lord, have you no other reafon?" The other answered, "He had not.' William then asked, "When he had laft feen Sir James Montgomery?" Shrewsbury faultered, but recovering himself, faid, "He could not help feeing people who called at his door, but that his principles were loyal." "I know you to be a man of honour," replied the king, "I will believe what you fay: but remember what you have faid, and that I trust to it." And, without waiting for an answer, quitted the room. It is likewife reported, that, at an after period, when it was of confequence to king William, to make the world believe he was not deferted entirely by the whigparty, he fent a colonel of the guards to let Shrewsbury know, that he had orders either to conduct him to the Tower, on account of his connections with James, or to leave with him the secretary's feals.'

Upon the whole, thefe Memoirs inform us of many facts equally curious and important to history; and they are written in general with taste and sentiment, though the stile is not void of incorrectness; and a warmth of fancy has sometimes led the author within the verge of affectation.

II. An

But as Mr. Baretti travelled through Bifcay fome years after the date of these letters, and examined it carefully, he fuppreffes the Canon's narrative, and gives us his own obfervations on that country; which, as they are diftin&t, and sensible, and as that part of the world is not much vifited by Englifhmen, muft be entertaining to his readers.

From thefe obfervations we fhall make a fhort extract on the Bifcayan tongue, which deferves fome attention, aș it differs from all the other European languages.

The most capital Bafcuenze-work is doubtless the folio Dictionary, compiled by the above named father Laramendi, a Jefuit. The dictionary bears the title of Trilingue, because it runs in Bafcuenze, Caftilian, and Latin. As it has been printed only once, it is now become fo fcarce, that I could not find a copy of it any where, much to my disapappointment, as I am informed that its preface, though penned in a moft turgid ftrain, contains a great deal of rare eru dition.

Next the Dictionary comes the Grammar, compofed by the fame author, and oddly intitled El impoffible vencido, The impoffibility conquered. In that Grammar the Bafcuenze is explained by the Caftilian. I am told it has gone through feveral editions. I have that, which was printed at Salamanca, in 1729, and have repeatedly looked into it; but not yet to any purpose, In the prologo, or preface, it is faid, that el Bafcuenze es una lengua que congenia poco con las otras, "the genius of the Bifcayan bears no great affinity to that of other languages;" and my reader will eafily give credit to this af fertion, when he is told, that you fay in Spanish, for instance, that BREAD is good para aquel que lo come," for him who eats it;" which phrafe is rendered in the Bifcayan language by one word only: jatenduenarentzat. But, though this is only one word, fays father Laramendi, we must confider it as a compound of feveral; as jaten ftands for the word comér ; du for the accufative lo; en or end for the relative arentzat for the pronoun aquél followed by the article para.

que; and

• How easily a language thus conftructed is to be learned, this only fpecimen may poffibly give an idea. But, were it ever fo eafy, no great proficiency could be made in it by ftudying it out of the country where It is fpoken, as, besides Laramendi's Dictionary and Grammar, the number of, books printed in Bafcuenze is, as I faid, quite inconfiderable. Eleven small volumes of Spiritual Difcourfes and Pious Meditations, a translation of Kempis's Imitation of Christ, another tranflation of Scupoli's Spiritual Combat, a fhort Catechifm, about half a dozen fmall Collections of Prayers in profe, and