eaufed to be laid before them the head of Abenhamet, the poignard found in his bofom, and the habit of a slave, in which he was difguifed. These proofs, added to the attack on the palace, and the teftimony of the formidable Zegris, either perfuade or intimidate the judges. No one dares to undertake the defence of Zoraida, and the transitory compaffion of the multitude vanishes in the moment of its birth. The judges, urged by the law, the witneffes, and the proofs of guilt, at length pronounce the dreadful fentence, which; for ever banishes from Granada the tribe of the Abencerrages, and condemns the queen to perish in the flames, unless, within three days, the shall find warriors who may triumph over her accufers. The palace of Albayzin, in which my father refided with his family, is fituated on the fummit of an eminence, at fome diftance from the Alhambra. We were the laft who received intelligence of these fatal events. Almanzor, on hearing the dreadful tidings, reproached himself with the death of Abenhamet, and flying to the prifon where the queen was confined, demanded to speak to her. Boabdil, from whom an order must be obtained, dared not refufe Almanzor. Mulei Haffem, Moraima, and myself, accompanied my brother, and arrived at the moment when the wretched Zoraida had learned at once the fentence of her judges, and the death of Abenhamet. No, my lord, I will not endeavour to defcribe to you the dreadful fituation in which we found her. Stretched on the marble pavement, with her eyes wildly ftaring, her hair dishevelled, he uttered inarticulate cries which feemed not to resemble a human voice. Her hands, her feet, her whole body, were agitated with a dreadful trembling. Her countenance fcarcely exhr ited the veftiges of her former features. The faithful Ines, drowned in tears, feated near her, fupported her lan guid head on her bosom, covered it with kiffes and tears, and endeavoured to hold her hands, which convulfive motions inceflantly forced from her. We haftened towards her, but the scarcely recollected us. Without anfwering us, or repelling our em braces, the fuffered us to bear her to a couch, on which we fupported her in our arms. The head of Zoraida refed on the white hairs of the ve nerable Mulei: Almanzor, standing, with his hands clafped, furveyed her in filence, and remained motionless and thoughtful. The whole day elapfed, and we were unable to restore her to fenfe, Her attendant Ines requested us to leave her to take fome repofe. My brother, refolved to accomplish the generous defign he meditated, left us to feek in the fatal court of the lions the bleeding remains of the Abencerrages. He caufed them to be conveyed without the city, to a diftant valley, paid them the laft duties, and concealed in a thick wood the grave he had dug for Abenhamet. While he difcharged this melancholy office, Mulei Haffem and Moraima returned to the palace; but I, notwithstanding the entreaties of Ines, ftaid with Zoraida, and would not leave her a fingle moment; when Ines threw herself at my feet, and, in the moft paffionate manner thus addreffed me: "If, indeed you are affected with fuch lively emotion, and feel fo much pity for the wretched fate of my unhappy miftrefs, you will doubtlefs give me your affistance. I can fave her from death. Swear to me, by all that is dear to you, that you will not betray the fecret I am about to confide to you." I raised her up, encouraged her, and promifed eternal fecrecy. Im mediately-fhe took my hand, join d it to that of the queen, and preffing both to her heart: 1 Liften Liflen to me, faid fhe, and may you approve the defign with which Heaven inspires me. Zoraida has only two days allowed her to find four warriors who may combat in her defence. Her deteftable accufers are the terror of Granada, and the favourites of the king. No Moor will dare to oppofe them; the bravest will dread the anger of Boabdil as much as the ftrength of their adverfaries. Zoraida must perish if we look for her defenders among the Granadines only. I am a Spaniard and a Christian. I know the courage and gallantry of the valiant knights of my country, and especially do I know the prowess and the honour of that Gonzalo, whofe name alone has made your armies tremble, and whofe virtues, and whofe humanity perhaps exceed his valour. Let the queen write to Gonzalo; let her call heaven to witness the juftice of her caufe, and cemmit her d.fence to him. You will foon fee him appear alone, or followed by other heroes; you will fee him triumph, and restore to my amiable miftrefs that life and honour of which the muft otherwife be deprived. Let me Thus fpoke the lovely Ines. Zoraida fcarcely heard her. die, faid fhe; I wifh, I folicit death. I have caufed the death of the most 1 men. Let them be enforced to ac knowledge your innocence; let them publish it, let them revere it; then may you die. Moved by these words, pronounced in an elevated tone of voice, the queen embraced her a tendant, and yielded to her counfels. The fear of dishonour restored to her that ftrength which had deserted her. She confidered with me the bold project of Ines, and we weighed together all its difficulties. War was declared. Ifabella and Ferdinand advanced to befiege us; Gonzalo could not, without extreme danger, venture to appear within our walls. His arm, however formidable it might be, could not withstand four Zegris. It was neceflary that he fhould have three companions, and the fear of difpleafing their fovereigns would prevent all the Cafti lians from accompanying him. Notwithstanding, however, thefe dif couraging reflections, notwithstanding fo little hope could be entertained of fuccefs, the queen approved the plan. Time was precious, and fhe immediately wrote to Gonzalo in the following words: four of the most valiant of the Ze "You are the enemy of the Moors; Iam their unfortunate queen, and fend to implore your fuccour. I am condemned to death, but I call to witness the God whom I adore, virtuous, the most affectionate of and the God whom you adore, that men; Abenhamet died for me; I de I am polluted with no guilt. With fire, I with, to follow him, I ought-in two days I must expire in the You ought to vindicate your ho- flames. This fate I can only avoid hour, interrupted the youthful cap- by the victory of four warriors over tive; you ought to defend to the grave pure and unpolluted, as you have lived. Can you permit that your memory fhould be polluted with the fufpicion of a crime? Can you confent that ignominy fhould accompany your last moments; that the horrid name of adulerefs fhould defie the tone placed over your grave? Daughter of ibrahim, your life is yours, but your honour is God's, and you are accountable for it to gris. I have chofen Gonzalo for my defender; if this hero, for the first time fhould refufe his fuccour to innocence, I thall believe that Heaven has decreed my deftruction, and fubmit to death without a mur mur. ZORAIDA, QUEEN OF GRANADA." As foon as this letter was fealed, I fought in the prison a Spanish cap young, ftout, and vigorous, got up, and seized one of the robbers by the hair of his head, and pulled him out of their fledge; and, keeping his Hive, whofe ransom I paid, only ask- | ing from his gratitude that he would carry the letter to Gonzalo. I confided to him the important fecret of which he was the bearer, and in-hold, drove out of their reach, dragftructed him in what manner he fhould addrefs the noble Spaniard. That fame night I accompanied him to the gates of the city, where a fleet courfer of my brother's awaited him by my orders, and I did not leave him till I had feen him take the road for the camp of the Chriftians. More at ease, but fill agitated and trembling, I returned to the queen to inform her what I had done. She embraced me, fhedding a flood of tears. The faithful Ines endeavoured to confole her, and recall her courage. She repeatedly calculated what time would be neceffary for our meffenger to arrive in the Chriftian camp-when Gonzalo might be expected; and confident that that hero would fuffer himself to be detained by no obstacle, fhe affured us that we fhould fee him in Granada early on the third day. (To be continued.) A Gentleman of the name of Knipercron, whofe father had been refident from Sweden before the war, told me how the czar himfelf had been attacked in his younger days: his majefty frequented their house very often, and always fhewed a great regard for their family. One evening, the czar intending them a visit, being only attended by two fervants, the one riding before, and the other standing behind the fledge, up comes a fledge with eight Rafbonicks in it, and were just going to faften his fledge to theirs with a grapling iron, which they commonly make use of on these Occafions; but the czar being then 80 ging the fellow along with him till he reached the refident's houfe, which was not far, and entered, to their great furprize, all in a fweat, ftill holding the fellow by the hair. He ordered the gates to be immediately fhut, that none of the servants might go out till he had examined the robber. When the fellow underftood that it was the czar they had attacked, he fhook and trembled, faying, if they had known who he was, they would not have meddled with him, and then begged he might be put to death, without being put to the torture. To this his majesty confented, on condition he difcovered the rest of his gang; but this the fellow would not do, without a promife of his life and a reward, which was alfo granted him, and he went with a detachment of foldiers to the rendezvous of his companions, and coming to the house, he called to them to open the door. On hearing his voice they directly opened it, and n rushed the foldiers, and feized not teen others of the fame gang, who only his feven accomplices, but thirwere foon after all executed, except the informer. "At another time, the czar was attacked on his way from Moscow to Novogorod, when he was attended by four fervants only. Going from Twer, he was stopped by a strong party of Rafbonicks, on which he immediately jumped out of his fledge, with a fword drawn in one hand, and a cocked pistol in the other, and told them he was the czar,afking them what they wanted? They replied they were poor fellows reduced to great want, and as he was their lord and mafter, he was the properest perfon to relieve them : he told them he had no money about him; to which they anfwered, if he had, they they would take none from him, but Urius, prior of Ulm, who was defired that he would give them a confecrated the first abbot, in the written order to the governor of year 1020, got the abbey exempted Novogorod for what fum he pleafed from epifcopal jurifdiction, and ento bestow upon them, begging that compaffed that and the town with a it might be fuch as would relieve wall and ditch; the ruins of which them from their ftraits. The czar in feveral places are ftill to be seen, then asked them, if one thousand and the abbots afterwards were made rubles would be fufficient; and on parliamentary barons. But in the their faying it would, he wrote an reign of king Henry VIII. it shared order for that fum payable at fight, the common fate of all religious and for which they directly difpatch-houles, and the prince put an end to ed one of their number, who very all its glory. foon returned with the money: they then obliged the czar to return to Twer, and to pledge his royal word not to profecute, or even enquire after them, promifing to amend their lives and become good fubjects for the future. Instead of proceeding to Novogorod, the czar returned back to Mufcow." ACCOUNT of St. EDMUND'S-BURY T ABBEY, SUFFOLK. [With an elegant Engraving.] HIS abbey, once fo famous, was firft built of wood by Sigebert, king of the East Angles, foon after Christianity was planted here; and when finithed (about the year 638), that king retired into it, and hut himself from the world. King Edmund, from whom the town takes its name, began to reign over the East Angles, in the year 85, in the fourteenth year of his age, and reigned fifteen years; being killed anno 870, as fuppofed, at Hoxne, at twenty-nine years old, and his corpfe was thirty three years after removed to Bury. The abbey was much enriched thereby, and the monks, who were of the Benedicine order, found means, about the year 1012, to get it entirely to themfelves, excluding the feculars; and the king Canute, in the fourth year of his reign, founded a more magnificent church, in honour of St. Edmund, which was finished in twelve years, and dedicated to Chrift, St. Mary, and St. Edmund. When the abbey was in its profperity, there was a chapel at every one of its five gates, and the town abounded with chapels and oratories. It is poffible there might be hofpitals; for there was an hofpital of St. Peter's without Rifby gate; an hofpital of St. Saviour's without North-gate; an hospital of St. Nicholas at or near Eaft-gate; and God's houfe or St. John's at the South-gate; a college of priests with a guild, to the holy or fweet name of Jefus, the fituation of which we cannot find; and a houfe of grey friars at Babwell, or the Toll-gate. But at this time there are only two churches, which indeed are very beautiful and flately, and ftand in the fame church-yard; the one dedicated to St. Mary, the other built in the reign of Edward VI. to St. James. The latter has a convenient library; and at the Weft end of the South aifle are interred the bodies of the late lord chief baron Reynolds, and his lady, to whose memories two large monuments are erected. The church of St. Mary has on the north fide of the altar (to which we approach by a fine afcent of fix fteps), the tomb of Mary, queen of France, fifter of Henry VIII. and wife of Charles Brandon, duke of Suffolk. Her coffin is of lead, and has this infcription onit; Mary Queen, 1533, of France, Edmund H -.There are other handfome monuments in this church. ALEXIS: |