force of fuperftition, a thought luckily fuggefted itfelf to me, to counterfeit that St. James had ap peared to me in a vifion, and had pomifed me the victory. While I was ruminating on this, the bifhop of Najara came opportunely to me. As I did not intend to communicate the fecret to him, I took another method, and inftead of anfwering any thing the bishop faid to me, I pretended to talk to St. James, as if he had been really prefent; till at length, after having fpoke thofe things, which I thought fufficient, and thanked the faint aloud for his promife of the victory, I turned about to the bishop, and embracing him with a pleafed countenance, protefted I did not know he was prefent; and then informing him of this fuppofed vifion, I asked him, if he had not himself feen the faint? He anfwered me, he had; and afterwards proceeded to affure me, that this appearance of St. James was entirely owing to his prayers; for that he was his tutelar faint. He added, he had a vifion of him a few hours before, when he promised him a victory over the infidels, and acquainted him at the fame time of the vacancy of the fee of Toledo. Now this news being really true, tho' it had happened fo lately, that I had not heard of it, (nor, indeed, was it well poffible I fhould, confidering the great distance of the way) when I was afterwards acquaint⚫ed with it, a little staggered me, though far from being fuperftitious; till being informed, that the bifhop had loft three horfes on a late expedition, I was • fatisfied

THE next morning, the bishop, at my defire, • mounted the roftrum, and trumpeted forth this vi'fion fo effectually, which he faid he had that even ing twice feen with his own eyes, that a spirit began to be infufed though the whole army, which • rendered them fuperior to almost any force: the bifhop infifted, that the leaft doubt of fuccefs was giv ing the lie to the faint, and a damnable fin, and he took upon him in his name to promise them vic

THE army being drawn out, I foon experienced the effect of enthusiasm, for having contrived another ftratagem to ftrengthen what the bishop had faid, the foldiers fought more like furies than men. My ftratagem was this: I had about me a dexterous fellow, who had been formerly a pimp in my amours. Him I dreffed up in a strange antic drefs, with a pair * of white colours in his right hand, a red cross in his left, and having diguised him fo that no one could know him, I placed him on a white horse, and crdered him to ride to the head of the army, and cry out, Follow St. James! Thefe words were reiterated by all the troops, who attacked the enemy with fuch intrepidity, that notwithstanding our inferiority of numbers, we foon obtained a complete victory.

THE bishop was come up by the time that the enemy was routed, and acquainting us, that he had. met St. James by the way, and that he had inform⚫ed him of what had past, he added, that he had exprefs orders from the faint, to receive a confiderable fum for his use, and that a certain tax on corn and wine fhould be fetled on his church for ever; and laftly, that a horfeman's pay fhould be allowed for the future to the faint himself, of which he and his fucceffors were appointed receivers. The army received thefe demands with fuch acclamations, that I was obliged to comply with them, as I could by no means difcover the impofition, nor do I believe I fhould have gained any credit if I had,

I HAD now done with the faint, but the bishop. had not; for about a week afterwards, lights were ⚫feen in a wood near where the battle was fought; and in a fhort time afterwards, they difcovered his tomb at the fame place. Upon this, the bishop made me a vifit,, and forced me to go thither to build a church to him, and largely endow it. In a word, the good man fo plagued me with miracle after miracle, that I was forced to make interest

4

This filly story is told as a folemn truth, i. e. that St. James. really appeared in the manner this fellow is defcribed, by Mariana, 17. §78.

with

with the pope to convey him to Toledo, to get rid

of him.

BUT to proceed to other matters.-There was an inferior officer, who had behaved very bravely in the battle against the Moors, and had received feve ral wounds, who folicited me for preferment; ⚫ which I was about to confer on him, when one of my minifters came to me in a fright, and told me, that he had promised the poft I defigned for this man to the fon of count Alderedo; and that the count, who was a powerful perfon, would be greatly dif obliged at the refufal, as he had fent for his fon from school to take poffeffion of it. I was obliged ¿ to agree with my minifter's reafons, and at the fame time recommended the wounded foldier to be preferred by him, which he faithfully promised he would but I met the poor wretch fince in Elyfium, who informed me he was afterwards ftarved to death.

4

NONE, who hath not been himself a prince, nor any prince, till his death, can conceive the impofitions daily put on them by their favourites and minifters; fo that princes are often blamed for the faults of others. The count of Saldagne, had been long confined in prifon, when his fon 1). Barnard del Carpio, who had performed the greatest actions against the Moors, entreated me as a reward for his fervice to grant him his father's liberty. The old man's punishment had been fo tedious, and the fer'vices of the young one fo fingularly eminent, that I was very inclinable to grant the request: but my minifters ftrongly oppofed it. They told me, My glory demanded revenge for the dishonour offered to my family; that fopofitive a demand carried with it rather the air of menace than entreaty. That the vain detail of his fervices, and the recompence due to them, was an injurious reproach. That to grant what had been fo haughtily demanded, would argue in the monarch both weakness and timidity; in a word, that to remit the punishment inflicted by my predeceffors, would be to condemn their judgment. Laftly, one told me in a whisper, his whole family are enemies to your house. By these

N 6

" means

means the minifters prevailed. The young lord took the refufal fo ill, that he retired from court, ⚫ and abandoned himself to defpair, whilft the old one languished in prifon. By which means, as I have fince difcovered, I loft the ufe of two of 1ay best • fubjects.

To confefs the truth, I had, by means of my minifters, conceived a very unjust opinion of my whole people, whom I fancied to be daily confpiring against me, and to entertain the most difloyal thoughts; when in reality (as I have known fince my death) they held me in universal respect and efteem. This is a trick, I believe, too often played with fovereigns, who, by fuch means, are prevented ⚫ from that open intercourfe with their subjects, which as it would greatly endear the perfon of the prince to the people, fo might it often prove dangerous to a minifter, who was confulting his own intereft only at the expence of both. I believe I have now recounted to you the most material paffages of my life; for, I affure you, there are fome incidents in the lives of kings not extremely worth relating. Every thing which paffes in their minds and families, is not attended with the fplendor which surrounds their throne: indeed, there are some hours wherein the naked king and the naked cobler can * fcarce be diftinguished from each other.

HAD it not been, however, for my ingratitude to • Bernard del Carpio, I believe this would have been my laft pilgrimage on earth: for, as to the ftory of St. James, I thought Minos would have burst his fides at it but he was fo difpleased with me on the other account, that, with a frown, he cried out, Get thee back again, king. Nor would he fuffer me to fay another word.*

С НА Р.

CHA P. XVIII.

Julian pales into a fool.

HE next vifit I made to the world, was per

T formed in France, where I was born in the

court of Lewis III. and had afterwards the honour to be preferred to be fool to the prince, who was furnamed Charles the Simple. But in reality, I know not whether I might fo properly be faid to have acted the fool in his court, as to have made fools of all others in it. Certain it is, I was very far from being what is generally understood by that word, being a moft cunning, defigning, arch knave. I knew very well the folly of my mafter, and of many others, and how to make my advantage of this knowledge. I was as dear to Charles the Simple, as the player Paris was to Domitian, and, like him, bestowed all manner of offices and honours on whom I pleased. This drew me a great number of ⚫ followers among the courtiers, who really mistook me for a fool, and yet flattered my understanding. There was particularly in the court a fellow, who had neither honour, honefty, fenfe, wit, courage, beauty, nor indeed any one good quality either of mind or body, to recommend him: but was at the fame time, perhaps, as cunning a monfter as ever lived. This gentleman took it into his head to lift • under my banner, and purfued me fo very affiduoufly with flattery, conftantly reminding me of my good fenfe, that I grew immoderately fond of him: for though flattery is not moft judiciously applied to qualities which the perfons flattered poffefs, yet as, notwithstanding by being well affured of my own parts, I paft in the whole court for a fool, this flattery was a very fweet morfel to me. I therefore got this fellow preferred to a bishopric, but I loft my flatterer by it, for he never afterwards faid a civil thing to me.

I NEVER baulked my imagination for the groff. nefs of the reflection on the character of the greateft noble, nay even the king himself; of which I

⚫ will