Chapter V: Introduction: The Manuscripts (5)

Yet we discovered a beastly proud principle that we have observed the French from the hiest to the lowest (let him be never so base or so ignorant) to carry about wt them, to wit, that they are born to teach all the rest of the world knowledge and manners. What may be the mater and nutrix of this proud thought is not difficult to ghess; since wtout doubt its occasioned by the great confluence of strangers of all sorts (excepting only the Italian and Spaniard, who think they have to good breeding at home to come and seik it of the French) who are drawen wt the sweitness of the country, and the common civility of the inhabitants. Let this we have sayd of the French pass for a definition of him till we be able to give a better.

About the beginning of September at Poictiers, we had the newes of a horrid murder that had bein perpetrat at Paris, on a Judge criminell by tuo desperat rascalls, who did it to revenge themselfes of him for a sentence of death he had passed against their brother for some crime he had committed. His wife also, as she came in to rescue hir husband, they pistoled. The assassinats ware taken and broken on the wheell. He left 5 million in money behind him, a terrible summe for a single privat man, speaking much the richness of Paris.

The palais at Poictiers (which with us we call the session) raises the 1 Saturday of September, and sittes doune again at Martimess.

We remember that in our observations at Orleans we marked that the violent beats heir procures terrible thunders and lightnening, and because they are several tymes of bad consequence, the thunder lighting sometymes on the houses, sometymes on the steeples and bells, levelling all to the ground, that they may evite the danger as much as they can they sett all the bells of the city on work gin goon.[125]

[125] Ding dong.

A man may speir at me what does the ringing of the bells to the thunder. Yes wery much; for its known that the thunder is partly occasioned by the thickness, grossness, impuritude, crassitude of the circumambient air wt which the thunder feides itselfe as its matter. Now Im sure if we can dissipate and discusse this thickness of the air which occasiones the thunder, we are wery fair for extinguishing the thunder itselfe according to the Axioma, _sublata causa tollitur effectus_, whilk maxime tho it holds not in thess effect which dependes not on the cause _in esse_ and _conservari_ but only in _fieri_: as _filius, pater quidem est eius causa; attamen eo sublato non tollitur filius quia nullo modo dependet filius a patre sive in esse sive in conservari: solum modo ab eo dependet ut est in fieri_. Yet my axiome is good in this present demonstration, since the thunder dependes on this grossenese of the air, not only in its _fieri_, but even in its _esse_ and _conservari_. But weill yeell say, let it be so, but what influence has the ringing of the bells to dissipat this grosseness: even wery much: for the sound and noice certainly is not a thing immateriall; ergo it most be corporeall: since theirfor wt the consent of the papists themselfes _duo corpora non possunt se penetrare aut esse in codem loco nuturaliter_, its consequentiall that the sound of the bells as it passes thorow the circumambient air to come to our ears and to pass thorow all the places wheir it extends its noice makes place for it selfe by making the air yeeld that stands in its way; whence it rarifies and purifies the air and by consequence disipates the crassities of the air, which occasions the thunder.

That the noice thats conveyed to our ears is corporeall and material be it of bels or of canons is beyond controversy, since _sonus_ is _obiectum sensûs corpori, ut auditus: at objectum rei corporcae oportet esse corporeum: cum incorporea sub sensibus naturaliter non cadunt_. I adde _naturaliter_, because I know _super naturaliter in beatificá visione Deus quodammodo cadet sub sensibus ut glorificatus_, according to that of Jobs with thir same wery eyes sall I see my Redeimer: yea not only is _sonus quid materiale_, but further something much more grossely material then the objects of the rest of the senses, as for instance in the discharging of a canon being a distance looking on we would think it gives fire long before it gives the crack, tho in wery truth they be both in the same instant. The reason then whey we sie the fire before we hear the crack is because the _species Wisibiles_ that carries the fire to our eyes, tho material are exceeding spirituall and subtill and are for that soon conveyed to our sight: when the _Species Audibiles_ being more gross takes a pitty tyme to peragrate and passe over that distance that is betuixt us and the canon, or they can rendre them selfes to the organ of our hearing.

But let us returne, we are informed that in Italy, wheir thunders are bothe more frequent and more dangerous then heir, they are wery carefull not only to cause ring all their bells, but also to shoot of their greatest cannons and peices of ordonnances and that to the effect mentioned. I am not ignorant but the Papists feignes and attributes a kind of wertue to the ringing of bells for the chassing away of all evill spirits if any place be hanted or frequented wt them. Yet this reason cannot have roome in our case, since ther are few so ignorant of the natural causes of thunder as to impute it to the raging of ill spirits in the air, tho the Mr. of Ogilvy at Orleans, who very wilfully whiles would maintain things he could not maintain, would not hear that a natural cause could be given of the thunder, but would impute it to evill spirits. I do not deny but the Devils wt Gods permission may occasion thunders and other tempests in the air, but what I aime at is this, they never occasion it so, but they make use of natural means; for who is ignorant but the Meteorologists gives and assignes all the 4 causes of it its efficient, its materiall, its formall and its finall.

I cannot forget the effect I have sein the thunder produce in the papists. When they hear a clap coming they all wery religiously signe theyr forfronts and their breast wt the signe of the cross, in the wertue of which they are confident that clap can do them no scaith. Some we have sein run to their beads and their knees and mumble over their prayers, others away to the church and doune before the Altar and blaither anything that comes in their cheek. They have no thunders in the winter.

Discoursing of the commodityes of sundry nations transported to France, their ordinar cxpression is, that they are beholden to Scotland for nothing but its herrings, which they count a wery grosse fish no wayes royall, as they speak, thats, not for a kings table. As for linnen, cloath and other commodities the kingdome affords, we have litle more of them then serves our oune necessity.

I was 5 moneth in France before I saw a boyled or roasted egge. Their mouton is neither so great nor so good heir as its at home. The reason of which may be the litle roome they leive for pasturage in the most parts of France. They buy a leg heir for 8 souse, whiles 10 souse.

On the 20 of August came about St. Bernard, Abbot of Clarevill,[126] his day, who founded the order of the Foullions[127] or Bernardines, whence we went that afternoon to their Convent and heard one of the order preach his panygyrick, but so constupatly that the auditory seweral tymes had much ado to keip themselfes from laughting.

[126] Clairvaux.

[127] See p. 47, note.

On the 24 of the samen ditto was keipt the Aposle St. Bartholemewes day: the morrow, 25, St. Lowis, king of France, his day, a great feste, and in that city the festivall day of the marchands (for each calling hes its particular festivall day: as the taylors theirs, the sutors theirs, the websters thers, and so furth). Every trade as their day comes about makes a sort of civil procession thorow all the streets of the toune. Instead of carrieng crosses and crucifixes, according to the custome of the place, they carry, and that on the shoulders of 4 of the principal of the trade, a great farle of bread, seiming to differ nothing from the great bunes we use to bake wt currants all busked wt the fleurs that the seasone of the year affordes, and give in winter then wt any herbe to be found at the tyme; and this wt a sort of pomp, 4 or 5 drummers going before and as many pipers playing; the body of the trade coming behind. To returne, tho this day was the feste of the marchands, yet I observed they used not the ceremomy before specified, looking on it as dishonorable and below them.

This day we went to the Jesuits Church and heard one of the learnedest of the Augustinians preach, but tediously. The nixt feste was the 8 of Septembre, _Nativité de nostre Dame_. On which I went and heard our Comoedian the Jesuit preach hir panegyrick and his oune Valedictory Sermon (for they preach 12 moneth about, and he had ended his tower[128]). He would have had us beleiving that she was cleansed from the very womb from that wery sin which all others are born wt, that at the moment of hir conception she receaved a immense degrie of grace infused in her. If he ware to draw the Horoscope of all others that are born he would decipher it thus, thou sal be born to misery, angoiss, trouble and vexation of spirit, which, on they wery first entering into this walley of tears, because thou cannot tell it wt they tongue thou sal signify by thy weiping. But if I ware, sayes he, to cast our charming Ladies Horoscope I would have ascertained then, that she was born for the exaltation of many, that she [was] born to bear the only sone of God, etc.

[128] Tour, turn

The sone he brought in as the embleme of Justice ever minding his father of his bloody death and sufferings, to the effect that he take vengeance for it even on thess that crucifies him afresh. The mother he brought on the stage as the embleme of mercy, crying imperiously, _jure matris_, I inhibite your justice, I explode your rigor, I discharge your severity. Let mercy alone triumph. Surely if this be not blasphemy I know not whats blasphemie. To make Christ only Justice fights diamettrally[129] wt the Aposle John, If any man hath sinned he has a Advocat with the father. Christ the righteous, he sayes, is not Christ minding his father continualy of this passion; its true, but whey; to incite God to wrath, sayes he. O wicked inference, horrid to come out of the mouth of any Christian save only a Jesuites. Does not the Scripture language cut thy throat, O prophane, which teaches us that Christ offereth up to his father his sufferings as a propitiatory sacrifice; and consequently to appaise, not to irritate.

[129] Diametrically. The word is indistinctly written.

His inference at lenth was thus: since the business is thus then, Messieurs, Mesdames, mon cher Auditoire, yeel do weill in all occassion to make your address to the Virgin, to invock hir, yea definitivly I assert that if any of you have any lawfull request if yeel but pray 30 dayes togither once every day to the Virgin ye sal wtout faill obtain what you desire. On whilk decision I suppose a man love infinitly a woman who is most averse from him, if he follow this rule he sall obtaine hir. But who sies not except thess that are voluntary blind whow rash, inconsiderat, and illgrounded thir decisions are, and principally that of invocking the Virgin, since wtout doubt its a injury to Christ, whom we beleive following the Scripture to be the only one Mediator betwixt God and Man. Also, I find Christ calling us to come to him, but never to his mother or to Peter or Paull.

It will not be a unreasonable drollery whiles to counterfit our Regent, Mr. James,[130] if it be weill tymed, whow when he would have sein any of his scollers playing the Rogue he would take them asyde and fall to to admonish them thus. I think you have forgot ye are _sub ferula_, under the rod, ye most know that Im your Master not only to instruct you but to chastize you, and wt a ton[131] do ye ever think for to make a man, Sir; no, I promise you no. [He killed Kincairnes father by boyling the antimonian cup, which ought only to seep in.][132] _Inter bonos bene agier_.[133] When any plead a prate[134] and all denied it, I know the man, yet _neminem nominabo_, Honest Cicero hes learned me that lesson.

[130] I have not discovered who Mr. James was.

[131] 'Wt a ton' is possibly 'with a tone,' i.e. raising his voice.

[132] Interlined.

[133] _Agier_ for _agere_.

[134] Played a trick.

We cannot forgett also a note of a ministers (called Mr. Rob. Vedderburne) preaching related me by Robert Scot which happened besyde them. God will even come over the hil at the back of the kirk their, and cry wt a hy woice, Angel of the church of Maln[moon]sy, compeir; than Ile answer, Lord, behold thy servant what hes thou to say to him. Then God wil say, Wheir are the souls thou hest won by your ministery heir thir 17 years? He no wal what to answer to this, for, Sirs, I cannot promise God one of your souls: yet Ile say, behold my own Soul and my crooked Bessies (this was his daughter), and wil not this be a sad matter. Yet this was not so ill as Mr. John Elies note of a Minister was, who prayed for the success of the Kings navy both by sea and be land.

The very beggers in France may teach folk thrift. Ye sall find verie few women beggers (except some that are ether not working stockings, or very old and weak) who wants[135] their rock in their bosome, spining very busily as they walk in the streets.

[135] wants = have not.

The French, notwtstanding all their civility, are horridly and furiously addicted to the cheating of strangers. If they know a man to be a stranger or they cause him not pay the double of what they sell it to others for, theyl rather not sell it at all, which whither it comes from a malitious humour or a greedy I cannot determine, yet I'm sure they play the fooll in it, for tho they think a stranger wil readily give them all they demand, or if he mint to go away that he'el come again; yet they are whiles mistaken. Many instances we could give of it in our oune experience, al whilk we sall bury at this tyme, mentioning only one of Patrick Humes, who the vinter he was at Poictiers, chancing to get the cold, went to buy some sugar candy. Demanding what they sold the unce of it for, they demanded 18 souse, at last came to 15, vould not bat a bottle;[136] wheirupon thinking it over dear he would have none of it, but coming back to Mr. Alex'rs he sent furth his man, directing him to that same wery chop, who brought him in that for 3 souse which they would not give him under 15. That story may pass in the company of one that understandes French, of the daughter who was sitting wt her mother at the fire, wt a great sigh cried, '_O que je foutcrois._ The mother spearing what sayes thou, she replied readily, _O que je souperois_.

[136] Bate a bodle.

On September 12 arrived heir 2 Englishmen from Orleans, who brought us large commendations from Mr. Ogilvie their, who desiring to sy the toune, I took them first up to the steeple of the place, which being both situat on a eminence and also hy of it selfe gave us a clear survey of the whole toune. We discovered a great heap of wacuities filled up wt gardens and wines, and the city seimed to us like a round hill, the top of it and all the sydes being filled wt houses. And to our wiew it seimed not to have many mo houses then what we had discovered at Orleans, for their we thought we saw heir one and their one dispersed. At Orleans we would think they lay all in a heap (lump).[137] From thence, not desiring but that they sould find the Scots as civil and obligding as any, we was at the paines to take them first to the church of Nostre Dame la grande, on the wall of which that regardes the place standes the statue of the Empereur Constantine, _a cheval_, wt a sword in his hand. From thence to Ste. Radegondes, wheir we showed them hir _tombeau_; from that to St. Croix, wheir we showed them the _empressa_ of Christs foot, of which we spake already; and from that to St. Peters, which we looked all on as a very large church, being 50 paces broad.

[137] Interlined.

In the afternoon we went to the Church of St. Hilaire, wheir at a distance we discovered the Scots walk; so called because when the Englishes ware beseiging the toune a Regiment of Scotsmen who ware aiding the French got that syde of the toune to garde and defend, who on some onset behaving themselfes gallantly the Captain got that great plot of ground which goes now under that name gifted him by the toune, who after mortified to a nunnery neir hand, who at present are in possession of it. The church we fand to smell every way of antiquity.

Heir we saw first that miraculous stone (of which we also brought away some relicts) which if not touched has no smell, if rubed hard or stricken wt a key or any other thing, casteth a most pestilentious, intollerable smell, which we could not indure. We tried the thing and fand it so. The occasion and cause of this they relate wariously. Some sayes that the stone was a sepulchre stone, and under it was buried a wicked man that had led a ill life, whos body the Dewill came on a tyme and carried away; whence the stone ever stinks in that maner since. Others say that when the Church was a bigging, the Dewill appeared to one of the maisons, in the signe [shape][138] of a mulet and troubled him; wheirupon the maison complained to St. Hilaire the Bischop, who watched the nixt day wt the maison, and the Dewill appearing in that shape he caused take him and yoke him in a cart to draw stones to the bigging of the church. They gott him to draw patiently that great stone which we saw and which stinks so, but he got away and would draw no more.

[138] Interlined.

Nixt we saw St. Hilaires _berceau_, wheirin they report he lay, a great long peice of wood hollowed (for it wil hold a man and I had the curiosité to lay in it a while) halfe filled wt straw that they may lay the softer. To this the blinded papists attributes the vertue of recovering madmen or those that are besydes themselfes to their right wites, if they lay in it 9 dayes and 9 nights wt their handes bound, a priest saying a masse for them once every day. And indeed according to the beleife of this place it hath bein oft verified. The fellow that hes a care of thess that are brought hither told us of a Mademoisselle who was extraordinarly distracted and who was fully recovered by this means. Another of a gentleman who had gone mad for love to a gentlewoman whom he could not obtaine, and who being brought their in that tyme recovered his right wits as weill as ever he had them in his dayes. Its commonly called the _berceau de fols_; so that heir in their flitting they cannot anger or affront one another worse then to cast up that they most be rockt in St. Hilaires cradle, since its none but fools or madmen that are used so.

The greatest man in the province of Poictou is the governour, who in all things representes the king their, save only that he hath not the power to pardon offenders or guilty persones. Tho a man of wast estat, to wit of 300,000 livres a year, yet he keips sick a low saile[139] that he wil not spend the thrid of his rent a year, only a pitty garde or 7 or 8 persons on foot going before his coach; and 4 or 5 lacquais behind; yea he sells vin, which heir is thought no disparadgement to no peir of France, since theirs a certain tym of the year that the King himselfe professes to sell win, and for that effect he causes at the Louwre hing out a bunch of ivy, the symbol of vin to be sold.

[139] Lives so quietly.

The King also playes notably weill on the drum, especially the keetle drumes, thinking it no disparagdement when he was a boy to go thorow Paris whils playing on the drum, whiles sounding the trumpet, that his subjects may sie whow weill hes wersed in all these warlike, brave, martiall excercises. The invention of the keetle drume we have from the Germans who makes great use of it.

The father of this present King also, Lowis the 13, could exactly frame and make a gun, and much more a pistol, with all the appartenances of it, as also canons wt all other sort of Artillerie; for he was a great engineer.

There are amongs the French nobility some great deall richer then any subject of our Kings; for the greatest subject of the King of Englands is the Duc of Ormond, or the Earle of Northumberland, nether of which tho hath above 30,000 pounds sterling, which make some 300,000 livres in french money, which is ordinar for a peir in France. The last of which, to wit, my Lord Northumberland, by reason of that great power and influence he hath in the north of England, his oune country, the parliament of England of old hath found it not a miss to discharge him the ever going their, and that for the avoiding and eviting of insurrectiones which, if he ware amongs them, he could at his pleasure raise. Surely this restraint neids not be tedious to him since he is confined in a beautiful prison, to wit, London; yea he may go thorow all the world save only Northumberland, he may come to Scotland whilkes benorth Northumberland be sea.[140] It may be it might be telling Scotland that by sick another act they layd a constrainct on that house of Huntly, the Cock of the north. If so, the French Jesuits sould not have such raison to boast (as we have heard them), and the papists sould not have so great footing in the north as they have.

[140] I have not traced the authority for this statement.

We most not forgett the drolleries we have had wt our host Mr. Daillé when I would have heard him at the _gardé robe_, to sport my selfe whiles, I would have come up upon him or he had bein weill begun and prayed him to make hast by reason I was exceedingly straitned when they would have bein no such thing, wheiron he would have raisen of the stooll or he had bein halfe done and up wt his breecks, it may be whiles wt something in them.

In our soups, which we got once every day, and which we have descryved already, such was Madames frugality that the one halfe of it she usually made of whiter bread, and that was turned to my syde of the board, the other halfe or a better part she made of the braner, like our rye loaves, and that was for hir and hir husband.

The bread ordinarly used heir they bake it in the forme of our great cheeses, some of them 12 pence, others 10 souse, others for 8. Thess for 10 souse are as big again as our 6 penie loaves, and some of them as fine.

There comes no vine out of France to forreine country, save that which they brimstone a litle, other wise it could not keip on the sea, but it would spoil. Its true the wine works much of it out againe, yet this makes that wine much more unwholsome and heady then that we drink in the country wheir it growes at hand. We have very strick laws against the adulterating of wines, and I have heard the English confess that they wished they had the like, yet the most do this for keiping of it; yea their hardly wine in any cabaret of Paris that is otherwise.

Hearing a bel of some convent ringing and ronging on a tyme in that same very faschion that we beginne our great or last bel to the preaching, I demanding what it meint, they told me it was for some person that was expiring, and that they cailed it _l'agonie_. That the custome was that any who ware at the point of death and neir departing they cause send to any religious house they please, not forgetting money, to ring a Agonie that all that hears, knowing what it means, to wit, that a brother or sister is departing, may help them wt their prayers, since then they may be steadable, which surely seimes to be wery laudable, and it nay be not amiss that it ware in custome wt us. The Church of England hath it, and on the ringing any peaple that are weill disposed they assemble themselfes in the Church to pray. In France also they ring upon the death of any person to show the hearers, called _le trespas_, that some persone is dead. The same they have in England, wt which we was beguiled that night we lay at Anick, for about 2 howers of the morning the toune bel ronging on the death of one Richard Charleton, I taking it to be the 5 howers bel we rose in hast, on wt our cloaths, and so got no more sleip that night.

Their was nothing we could render Mr. Daillé pensive and melancholick so soon wt as to fall in discourse of Mr. Douglas. He hes told me his mind of him severall tymes, that he ever had a evill opinion of him; that he never heard him pray in his tyme; all 16 month he was wt him, he was not 3 or 4 tymes at Quatre Piquet [the church],[141] and when he went it was to mock; that he was a violent, passionate man; that he spak disdainefully of all persones; that he took the place of all the other Scotsmen, that he had no religion, wt a 100 sick like.

[141] Interlined.

Its in wery great use heir for the bridegroomes to give rich gifts to the brides, especially amongs thess of condition; as a purse wt a 100 pistols in it, and this she may dispose on as she pleaseth to put hir selfe bravely in the faschion against hir marriage. We have heard of a conseillers sone in Poictiers who gave in a burse 10000 livres in gold. Yet I am of the mind that he would not have bein content if she had wared all this on hir marriage cloaths and other things concerning it, as on bracelets and rings. The parents also of the parties usually gives the new married folk gifts as rich plenishing, silver work, and sicklike.

In parties appealls heir from a inferior to a superior, if it appear that they ware justly condemned, and that they have wrongously and rashly appealed, they condeime them unto a fine called heir Amende, which the Judge temperes according to the ability of the persones and nature of the businesse: the fine its converted ether to the use of the poor or the repairing of the palais.

The Jurisdiction of thess they call Consuls in France is to decide controversies arising betuixt marchand and marchand. Their power is such that their sentence is wtout appeall, and they may ordaine him whom they find in the wrong to execute the samen wtin the space of 24 howers, which give they feill to do they may incarcerate them. Thus J. Ogilvie at Orleans.

Even the wery papists heir punisheth greivously the sine of blasphemy and horrid swearing. Mr. Daillé saw him selfe at Bordeaux a procureurs clerk for his incorrigibleness in his horrid swearing after many reproofes get his tongue boored thorow wt a hot iron.

The present bischop of Poictiers is a reasonable, learned man, they say. On a tyme a preist came to gett collation from him, the bischop, according to the custome, demanding of him if he know Latin, if he had learned his Rhetorick, read his philosophy, studied the scooll Divinity and the Canon Law, etc., the preist replied _quau copois_,[142], which in the Dialect of bas Poictou (which differes from that they speak in Gascoigne, from that in Limosin, from that in Bretagne, tho all 4 be but bastard French) signifies _une peu_. The bischop thought it a very doulld[143] answer, and that he bit to be but a ignorant fellow. He begines to try him on some of them, but try him wheir he will he findes him better wersed then himselfe. Thus he dismissed him wt a ample commendation; and severall preists, efter hearing of this, when he demanded if they had studied sick and sick things, they ware sure to reply _cacopois_. He never examined them further, crying, go your wayes, go your wayes, they that answers _cacopois_ are weill qualified.

[142] Perhaps _quelque peu_.

[143] Stupid, from doule, a fool.

We have sein sewerall English Books translated in French, as the Practise of Piety, the late kings [Greek: eikon basilikae], Sidneyes Arcadia, wt others.

We have sein the plume whilk they dry and make the plumdamy[144] of.

[144] Dried plum, prune.

The habit of the Carmelites is just opposite to that of the Jacobines,[145] who goe wt a long white robe beneath and a black above. The Carmes wt a black beneath and a white above. The Augustines are all in black, the Fullions all in white.

[145] Jacobins, Dominicans, so called from the church of St. Jacques in
Paris, granted to the order, near which they built their convent.
The convent gave its name to the club of the Jacobins at the
French Revolution, which had its quarters there.

Its very rare to sy any of the women religious, they are so keipt up, yet on a tyme as I was standing wt some others heir in the mouth of a litle lane their came furth 2 nunnes, in the name of the rest, wt a litle box demanding our charity. Each of us gave them something: the one of them was not a lass of 20 years.

Mr. Daillé loves fisch dearly, and generally, I observe, that amongs 10 Frenchmen their sall be 9 that wil præfer fisch to flech, and thinks the one much more delicat to the pallate then the other. The fisch they make greatest cont of are that they call the sardine, which seimes to be our sandell, and which we saw first at Saumur, and that they call _le solle_, which differs not from our fluck[146] but seimes to be the same. The French termes it _le perdrix de la mer_, the patridge of the sea, because as the pertridge is the most delicious of birds, so it of fisches. Mr. Daillé and his wife perceaving that we cared not for any sort of fisches, after they would not have fisches once in the moneth.

[146] Flounder.

We cannot forget a story or 2 we have heard of Capuchines. On a tyme as a Capuchin, as he was travelling to a certain village a little about a dayes journy from Poictiers, he rencontred a gentlemen who was going to the same place, whence they went on thegither. On their way they came to a little brook, over which their was no dry passage, and which would take a man mid leg. The Capuchin could easily overcome this difficulty for, being bare legged, he had no more ado but to truce up his gowen and pass over; the gentleman could not wt such ease, whence the Capucyn offers to carry him over on his back. When he was in the mides of the burn the Capucyn demanded him if he had any mony on him. The man, thinking to gratify the Capucyn, replied that he had as much as would bear both their charges. Wheiron the Capucyn replied, If so, then, Sir, I can carry you no further, for by the institution of our order I can carry no mony, and wt that he did let him fall wt a plasch in the mides of the burn. _Quoeritur_, whither he would have spleeted[147] on the regular obedience of their order if he carried the man having mony on him wholly throw the water.

[147] Split, spleeted on, departed from.

At another tyme a Capucyn travelling all alone fand a pistoll laying on the way. On which arose a conflict betuixt the flesch and the spirit, that same man as a Capuchin and as another man. On the one hand he reasoned that for him to take it up it would be a mortell sine; on the other hand, that to leive it was a folly, since their was nobody their to testify against him. Yet he left it, and as he was a litle way from it the flesch prevailed, he returned and took it up, but be a miracle it turned to a serpent in his hand and bit him.

Enquiring on a tyme at Madame Daillé and others whow the murders perpetrate by that fellow that lived at the port St. Lazare came to be discovered, I was informed that after he had committed these villanies on marchands and others for the space of 10 years and above, the house began to be hanted wt apparitions and spirits, whence be thought it was tyme for him to quatte it, so that he sould it for litle thing, and retired to the country himselfe. He that had bought the house amongs others reformations he was making on it, he was causing lay a underseller wt stone, whilk while they are digging to do, they find dead bodies, which breeds suspicion of the truthe, wheirupon they apprehend him who, after a fainte deniall, confesses it; and as they are carrieing him to Paris to receave condigne punishment, they not garding him weell, some sayes he put handes in himselfe, others that his complices in the crime, fearing that he might discover them, to prevent it they layd wait for him and made him away by the way, for dead folk speaks none.

On the 22 of Septembre 1665 parted from this for Paris 4 of our society, Mr. Patrick, David and Alex'r Humes, wt Colinton. We 3 that ware left behind hired horses and put them the lenth of Bonnévette, 3 leagues from Poictiers (it was built by admiral Chabot[148] in Francis the firsts time, and he is designed in the story Admirall de Bonnivette). By this we bothe gratified our commorades and stanched our oune curiosity we had to sie that house. It's its fatality to stand unfinished; by reason of whilk together wt its lack of furniture it infinitly comes short of Richelieu. It may be it may yeeld nothing to it in its bastiments, for its all built of a brave stone, veill cut, which gives a lustre to the exterior. Yet we discovered the building many wayes irregular, as in its chimlies, 4 on the one side and but 3 on the other. That same irregularity was to found in the vindows. In that which theirs up of it theirs roome to lodge a king and his palace. Al the chambres are dismantled, wtout plenishing save only one in which we fand som wery weill done pictures, as the present Kings wt the Queens, Cardinal Mazarin's (who was a Sicilian, a hatmakers sone) and others. The thing we most noticed heir was a magnifick stair or trumpket most curiously done, and wt a great deall of artifice, wt great steps of cut stone, the lenth of which I measured and fand 20 foot. I saw also a very pretty spatious hall, which made us notice it, and particularly Colinton, who told me that Colinton hous had not a hall that was worth, whence he would take the pattern of that. We fand it thre score 12 foot long, and iust the halfe of it broad, thats to say 36. Above the chimly of the roome are written in a large broad the 10 commandements.

[148] Philippe de Chabot, amiral de Brion. Guillaume Gouffier, amiral
da Bonnivet, was another of Francis I's admirals.

Heir we bade adieu to our commorads, they forward to Micbo that night, 2 leagues beyond Bonnevette, to morrow being to dine at Richelieu and lay at Loudun; we back to Poictiers.

Its like that we on their intreaties had gone forward to Richelieu if we had bein weill monted; but seing us all 3 so ill monted it minded us of that profane, debaucht beschop Lesly, who the last tyme the bischops ware in Scotland (when Spootswood was Archbischop) was bischop of the Isles. He on a tyme riding with the King from Stirveling to Edinburgh he was wery ill monted, so that he did nothing but curse wtin him selfe all the way. A gentleman of the company coming up to him, and seing him wt a wery discontented, ill looking countenance demanded, Whow is it, whow goes it wt you, my Lord? He answered, Was not the Dewill a fooll man, was he not a fooll? The other demanding wheirin, he replied, If he had but sett Job on the horse I am on, he had cursed God to his face. Let any man read his thoughts from that.

The richness of France is not much to be wondred at, since to lay asyde the great cities wt their trafficks, as Tours in silkes. Bordeaux wt Holland wares of all sorts, Marseilles wt all that the Levant affordes, etc., their is not such a pitty city in France which hath not its propre traffick as Partenay[149] in its stuffes, Chatteleraut in its oil of olives, its plumdamies and other commodities which, by its river of Vienne, it impartes to all places that standes on the Loier.

[149] A town in Poitou.

In France heir they know not that distinction our Civil Law makes betuixt Tutors and Curators, for they call all curators, of which tho they have a distinction, which agries weill wt the Civil Law, for these that are given to on wtin the age of 14 they call _curateurs au persones et biens_, which are really the Justinianean tutors who are given _principaliter ad tuendam personam pupilli_ and _consequenter tantum res_; thes that [are] given to them that are past their 14, but wtin their 25, they call _curateurs du causes_, consequentialy to that, _quod curatores certoe rei vel causoe dari possunt_, and wtout the auctority of thir the minors can do nothing, which tends any wayes to. the deteriorating their estat, as selling, woodsetting or any wayes alienating.

What concernes the consent of parents in the marriage of their children, the French law ordaines that a man wtin the age of 28, a woman wtin 25 sall not have the power of disposing themselfes in marriage wtout the consent of their parents. If they be past this age, and their parents wil not yet dispose of them, then and in that case at the instance of the Judge, and his auctority interveening they may marry tho their parents oppose.

When the friends of a pupil or minor meits to choose him a curator, by the law of France they are responsible to the pupill if ether the party nominat be unfitting, or behave himself fraudulently and do damnage, and be found to be not _solvendo_.

At Bourges in Berry theirs no church of the religion, since, notwtstanding its a considerable toune, their are none of the religion their, but one family, consisting of a old woman and hir 2 daughters, both whores; the one of them on hir deathbed turned Catholick when Mr. Grahame was their.

Its a very pleasant place they say, situate on a river just like the Clin heir; they call it the Endre.

Heir taught the renouned Cuiacius,[150] whom they call their yet[151] but a drunken fellow. His daughter was the arrantest whore in Bourges. Its not above 4 or 5 years since she died, whence I coniecture she might be comed to good years or she died.

[150] Jacques Cujas, eminent jurist, 1522-1590.

[151] i.e. 'still speak of there as.'

This university is famous for many others learned men, as Douell,[152] Hotoman,[153] Duarene,[154] Vulteius, etc.

[152] Possibly Douat, author of _Une centaines d'anagrammes_.
Paris, 1647.

[153] Francois Hotman, celebrated jurist, 1524-1590.

[154] Francois Duaren, jurist, 1509-1559.

The posterity of the poor Waldenses are to be sein stil in Piedmont, Merindol, and the rest of Savoy, as also of the Albigenses in Carcasson, Beziers and other places of Narbon. They are never 10 years in quietness and eas wtout some persecution stirred against, whence they are so stript of all their goods and being that they are necessitate to implore almes of the protestant churches of France. About 12 years ago a contribution was gathered for them, which amounted to neir 400,000 livres, which was not ill.

The principall trafick of Geneva is in all goldsmiths work. The best _montres_ of France are made their, so that in all places of France they demand Geneva _montres_, and strangers if they come to Geneva they buy usually 3 or 4 to distribute amongs their friends when their are at home.

In the mor southren provences of France to my admiration I fand they had and eated upright[155] cheries 2 tymes of the year, end of May and beginning of June, a little after which they are ordinar wt ourselfes, and also again in Octobre. On a day at the beginning of that moneth at dinner Mr. Daillé profered to make me eat of novelties, wheiron he demanded me what fruits I eated in the beginning of the year. I replied I had eaten asparagus, cherries and strawberries. You sall eat of cherries yet, said he, and wt that we got a plate full of parfait cherries, tho they had not so natural a tast as the others, by reason of the cold season, and the want of warmness which the others enioy. They had bein but gathered that same day; they are a sort of bigaro;[156] when the others are ripe they are not yet flourished.

[155] Perhaps standard. Compare 'upright bur,' Jamieson's _Dict_.

[156] Bigarade is a bitter orange. This may mean a bitter cherry.

The most usuall names that women are baptized wt heir be Elizabeth, Radegonde, Susanne, Marguerite and Madleine. The familiar denomination they give the Elizabeths is babie, thus they call J. Ogilvies daughter at Orleans; that for Marguerite is Gotton, thus they call Madame Daillé and hir litle daughter. Thess of the religion, usually gives ther daughters names out of the bible, as Sarah, Rachel, Leah, etc. They have also a way of deducing women names out of the mens, as from Charles, Charlotte, from Lowis, Lowisse, from Paul, Pauline, from Jean, Jeane. Thir be much more frequent amongs the baser sort then the gentility, just as it is wt the names of Bessie, Barbary, Alison and others wt us.

A camel or Dromedary would be as much gazed on in France for strangers as they would be in Scotland. In Italy they have some, but few, for they are properly Asiatick wares, doing as much service to the Persian, Arabian and others Oriental nations acknowledging the great Tartar chain as the silly, dul asse and the strong, robust mule does to the French. The camel, according to report indeniable, because a tall, hy beast it most couch and lay doune on its forward feet to receave its burden, which if it find to heavy it wil not stir til they ease it of some of it; if it find it portable it recoveres its feet immediatly.

There comes severall Jewes to France, especially as professing physick, in which usually they are profondly skilled. Mr. Daillé know on that turned protestant at Loudun. Another, a very learned man, who turned Catholik at Montpeliers, who a year after observing a great nombre of peaple that lived very devotly and honestly, that ioined not wt the Church of Rome, having informed himself of the protestants beleife, he became of the Religion, publishing a manifesto or Apology wheirin he professes the main thing whey he quites the Catholick religion for is because he can never liberate their tennet wheirby they teach that we most really and carnally eat our God in the Sacrament, from uniustice, absurdity and implication.[157]

[157] Implication perhaps means confusion of ideas.

The Laws of Spaine, as also of Portugal, strikes wery sore against Jewes that will not turne Christians, to wit, to burning them quick, which hath bein practicate sewerall tymes. On the other hand a Jew thats Christian if at Constantinople he is wery fair to be brunt also. Whence may be read Gods heavy judgement following that cursed nation. Yet Holland, that sink of all religions, permits them their synagogues and the publick excercise of their religion. They rigorously observe their sabath, our Saturdy, so that they make ready no meat on that day. If the wind sould blow of their hat they almost judge it a sin and a breach of the sabath to follow it and take it up. Their was a Jew wt us in the 1662 year of God that professed at least to turne Christian, and communicated in the Abby Church.

We may deservedly say, _omnia sunt venalia Gallis_, for what art their not but its to be sold publickly. Not so much as rosted aples ready drest, _chastans_,[158] _poirs_, rosted geese cut unto its percels, but they are crieng publicklie, and really I looked upon it as a wery good custome, for he that ether cannot or wil not buy a whole goose he'el buy it may be a leg.

[158] Chestnuts.

The prices of their meats waries according to the tymes of the year. The ordinars of some we have already mentioned; for a capon they wil get whiles 20 sous, whiles but 14 or 12.

Theirs a fellow also that goes wt a barrel of vinegar on his back, crieng it thorow the toune; another in that same posture fresch oil, others moustard, others wt a maille[159] to cleave wood, also poor women wt their asses loadened wt 2 barrels of water crying, _Il y a l'eau fresche_. At Paris its fellows that carryes 2 buckets tied to a ordinar punchion gir,[160] wtin which they march crieng _de l'eau_, which seimed a litle strange to us at first, we not crying it so at home. Also theirs to be heard women wt a great web of linnen on their shoulder, a el[161] wand in their hand, crieng their fine _toile_. Theirs also poor fellows that goes up and doune wt their hurle barrows in which they carrie their sharping stone to sharp axes or gullies to any bodie that employes him.

[159] Mell, mallet, beetle.

[160] Hoop.

[161] An el.

Their came a Charlatan or Mountebanck to Poictiers the Septembre we was their, whose foolies we went whiles to sie. The most part of the French Charletanes and Drogists when they come to a toune to gain that he get them themselfes[162] a better name, and that they may let the peaple sie that they are not cheaters as the world termes them, they go to all the Phisitians, Apothecaries and Chiurgions of the toune and proferes to drink any poison that they like to mix him, since he hath a antidote against any poison whatsoever.

[162] The meaning is, with the object of getting for themselves.

A mountebank at Montpeliers having made this overture, the potingers[163] most unnaturally and wickedly made him a poisonable potion stuffed wt sulfre, quick silver, a vicked thing they cal _l'eau forte_, and diverse others burning corrasive ingredients to drink. He being confident in his antidote, he would drink it and apply his antidote in the view of all the peaple upon the stage. He had not weill drunk it when by the strenth of the ingredients he sunk all most dead upon the scalfold or stage; he suddenly made his recourse to his antidote which he had in his hand; but all would not do, or halfe a hower it bereaved him of his life.

[163] Apothecaries.

Their are also some of them that by litle and litle assuesses themselfes to the drinking of poison, so that at lenth by a habit they are able to take a considerable draught wt out doing themselfes harme. Historians reportes this also to have bein practicate by Mithridates, King of Persia [Parthia].[164]

[164] Interlined.

Upon the founding of the Jesuits Colledge at la Fleche on made thir 2 very quick lines:

Arcum dola dedit patribus Gallique sagittam,
Quis funem autem quem meruere dabit.[165]

[165] _Dola_ is a mistake for _dona_. The pentameter does
not scan. It might be emended, _Dic mihi quis funem_.

In many places of Germany their growes very good wines, in some none at all. The Rhenish wine which growes on the renouned Rhein, on which standes so many brave tounes, is weill enough knowen. They sometymes sell their wine by the weight as the livre or pound, etc., which may seime as strange as the cherries 2 tymes a year in France. Thus they ar necessitate to do in the winter, when it freizes so that they most break it wt great mattocks and axes, and sell it in the faschion we have named.

Adultery, especially in the women, is wery vigorously punished in many places of France. In Poictou, as Mr. Daillé informed, they ignominously drag them after the taile of a mule thorow the streits, the hangman convoying them, then they sett them in the most publick part of the toune bound be a stake, wt their hands behind their backs, to be a obiect of mockery ther to all that pleases.

They that commits any pitty roobery or theifte are whipt thorow the toune and stigmatized wt a hote iron marked wt the _flower de lis_ on the cheik or the shoulder. If any be taken after in that fault having the mark, theirs no mercy for them under hanging.

Every province almost hath its sundry manner of torturing persones suspected for murder or even great crimes to extort from them a confession of the truth. At Paris the hangman takes a serviet, or whiles a wool cloath (which I remember Cleark in his Martyrologie discovering the Spanish Inquisition also mentioned), which he thrustes doune the throat of him as far as his wery heart, keiping to himselfe a grip of one end of the cloath, then zest wt violence pules furth the cloath al ful of blood, which cannot be but accompanied wt paine. Thus does the _burreau_ ay til he confesses. In Poictou the manner is wt bords of timber whilk they fasten as close as possibly can be both to the outsyde and insyde of his leg, then in betuixt the leg and the timber they caw in great wedges[166] from the knee doune to the wery foot, and that both in the outsyde and insyde, which so crusheth the leg that it makes it as thin and as broad as the loafe[167] of a mans hand. The blood ishues furth in great abondance. At Bourdeaux, the capital of Guienne, they have a boat full of oil, sulfre, pitch, resets, and other like combustible things, which they cause him draw on and hold it above a fire til his leg is almost all brunt to the bone, the sinews shrunk, his thigh also al stretched wt the flame.

[166] The torture of the boot was apparently new to Lauder, but from
his later MSS., it appears to have been in use in Scotland.

[167] Loof, palm.