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may recomand me to all your folkys and my wellwyllers.

And I pray God fend yow you herts defyr.

I fent my Coufin Dawbeney 5 by Calle's man, for to buy for him fuch gear as he needeth; and, Mo. ther, I pray you this bill may re❤ commend me to my Sitters both,

Wretyn at Bruggys the fryday and to the Mafter, my Coufin Daw next aftyr Seynt * Thom's

Yo'. Sone and humbyll Servnt,

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beney, Sir James, Sir John Stylle, and to pray him to be good Mafter to little § Jack, and to learn him well; and I pray you that this bill me to all your Folks, and to my Well Willers; and I pray God fend you your heart's defire.

Patton, ye ponger. may recommend

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Written at Bruges the Friday next after Saint Thomas.

Your Son and humble Servant,
J. PASTON, the Younger,

Bruges, Friday, 8th of July, 1468, 8 E, IV.

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trinkets, brided and bridled it fo handfomely, and indeed became herfelf fo well, that the king faid, if he was unmarried he would not give her, but keep her himself. The marriage dinner was kept in the great chamber, where the prince and the duke of Holft and the great lords and ladies accompanied the bride. The ambaffador of Venice was the only bidden guest of strangers, and he had place above the duke of Holft, which the Duke took not well.

But after dinner he was as little pleafed himfelf; for, being brought into the closet to retire himself, he was there fuffered to walk out his fupper unthought-of. At night there was a mask in the hall, which, for conceit and fashion,

*This must mean either the 3d or 7th day of July, the one being the Tranlation of St. Thomas the Apostle, the other of St. Thomas a Becket. I be, lieve it means the latter.

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was fuitable to the occafion. The actors were, the Earl of Pembrook, the Lord Willoby, Sir Samuel Hays, Sir Thomas Germain, Sir Robert Cary, Sir John Lee, Sir Richard Prefton, and Sir Thomas Bager. There was no small lofs that night of chains and jewels, and many great ladies were made fhorter by the fkirts, and were well enough ferved that they could keep cut no better. The prefents of plate, and other things given by the noble. men, were valued at 2500l. but that which made it a good marriage was a gift of the king's, of 500l. land for the bride's jointure. They were lodged in the council chamber, where the king, in his fhirt and night gown, gave them a reveille matin before they were up, and spent a good time in or upon the bed, chufe which you will believe. No ceremony was omitted of bride cakes, points, garters, and gloves, which have been ever since the livery of the court; and at night there was fewing into the sheet, cafting off the bride's left hofe, with many other pretty forceries.

New year's day paft without any folemnity, and the exorbitant gifts that were wont to be used at that time are so far laid by, that the accustomed prefents of the purfe and gold was hard to be had without afking.

The next day the king plaid in the presence, and, as good or ill luck feldom comes alone, the bride. groom, that threw for the king, had the good fortune to win foool. which he had for his pains."

On the Drefs and Ornaments of the anticnt Mexicans.--From the Hij

tory of Mexico, tranflated from the Italian of Saverio Clavigero, by Mr. Cullen.

HE Mexicans were lefs fin.

"THE

gular in their dress than in their food. Their ufual habit was quite fimple, confifting folely of the maxtlatl and tilmati in the men, and of the cueitl, and the bupilli in the women. The maxtlatl was a large belt or girdle, the two ends of which hung down before and behind to cover the parts of shame. The tilmatli was a fquare mantle, about four feet long; the two ends were tied upon the breaft, or upon one shoulder, as appears in our fi. gures. The cueitl, or Mexican gown, was alfo a piece of fquare cloth, in which the women wrapped them. felves from their waifts down to the middle of the leg. The buepilli was a little under veft, or waistcoat, without fleeves.

The dress of the poor people was made of the thread of the maguei, or mountain palm, or at beft the cloth of coarse cotton; but those of better flation wore the finest cotton, embellished with various colours, and figures of animals, or flowers, or wove with feathers, of the fine hair of the rabbit, and adorned with various little figures of gold and loofe locks of cotton hanging about the girdle or maxilail. The men used to wear two or three mantles, and the women three or four vefts, and as many gowns, putting the longest undermoft, fo as that a part of each of them might be feen. The lords wore in winter waistcoats of cotton, interwoven with foft feathers, or the hair of the rabbit. Women of rank wore, hefides the huepilli, an upper vett, fomething

fomething like the furplice or gown of our ecclefiaftics, but larger and with longer fleeves.

Their fhoes were nothing but foles of leather, or coarfe cloth of the maguei, tied with ftrings, and only covered the under part of the foot. The kings and lords adorned the ftrings with rich ribbands of gold and jewels.

All the Mexicans wore their hair long, and were dishonoured by being fhaved, or having it clipped, except the virgins confecrated to the fervice of the temples. The women wore it loofe, the men tied in different forms, and adorned their heads with fine plumes, both when they danced and when they went to war.

It would be difficult to find a nation which accompanied fo much fimplicity of drefs, with fo much vanity and luxury in other ornaments of their perfons. Befides feathers and jewels, with which they used to adorn teir clothes, they wore ear rings, pendants at the under lip, and many likewife at their hofes, necklaces, bracelets for the hands and arms, and also certain rings like collars about their legs. The ear.rings and pendants of the poor were fhells, pieces of cryftal, amber, or fome fhining lit tle ftone; but the rich wore pearls, emeralds, amethyfts, or other gems, fet in gold,"

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MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.

Various Particulars relative to the Keligion of the Mexicans. From the Hiftory of Mexico, by Abbè D. F. S. Clavigero, tranflated from the Original Italian, by C. Cullen, Efq.

the child invited the fuperior to an entertainment, who usually deputed one of his fubjects. The deputy brought the child to him, upon which he took the boy in his arms, and offered him with a prayer to Quetzalcoatl, and put a collar a

First, concerning their different Ré- bout his neck, which was to be

"A

ligious Orders.

*

MONGST the different or ders or congregations both of men and women, who dedicated themielves to the worship of fome particular gods, that of Quetzal coat is worthy to be mentioned. The life led in the colleges or mo. nafteries of either fex, which were devoted to this imaginary god, was uncommonly rigid and auftere. The drefs of the order was extremely decent; they bathed regularly at midnight, and watched till about two hours before day, finging hymns to their god, and obferving many rules of an auftere life. They were at liberty to go to the mountains at any hour of the day or night, to fpill their blood; this was permitted them from a refpect to the virtue which they were all thought to poffefs. The fuperiors of the monafteries bore alfo the name of Quetzalcoatl, and were perfons of fuch high authority, that they vifited none but the king when it was neceffary. The members of this religious order were deftined to it from their infancy. The parents of

worn until he was feven years old. When the boy completed his fecond year, the fuperior made a small in. cifion in his breaft, which, like the collar, was another mark of his deftination. As foon as the boy attained his feventh year, he entered into the monastery, having first heard a long difcourfe from his parents, in which they advertised him of the vow which they had made to Quetzalcoatl, and exhorted him to fulfil it, to behave well, to fubmit himself to his prelate, and to pray to the gods for his parents and the whole nation. This order was called lamacazcajotl, and the members of it Ilamacazque.

Another order, which was called Telpochtliztli, or the youths, on account of its being compofed of youths and boys, was confecrated to Tezcatlipoca. This was also a def. tination from infancy, attended with almoft the fame ceremonies as that of Quetzalcoatl; however, they did not live together in one communi ty, but each individual had his own home. In every diftrict of the city they had a fuperior, who governed them, and a house where they al

* Qeuetzalcaail, or Feathered Serpent, god of the air.

fembled

fembled at fun-fet to dance and fing the praises of their god. Both fexes met at this dance, but without committing the fmalleft diforder, owing to the vigilance of the fuperiors, and the rigour with which all mifdemeanors were punished.

Among the Totonacas was an order of monks devoted to their god. defs* Centeotl. They lived in great retirement and aufterity, and their life, excepting their superstition and vanity, was perfectly unimpeachable. None but men above fixty years of age, who were widowers, eftranged from all commerce with women, and of virtuous life, were admitted into this monaftery. Their number was fixed, and when any one died another was received in his ftead. These monks were fo much esteemed, that they were not only confulted by the common people, but likewife by the first nobility and the high-prieft. They liftened to confultations, fitting upon their heels, with their eyes fixed upon the ground, and their anfwers were received like oracles even by the kings of Mexico. They were employed in making hiftorical paintings, which they gave to the highpriest, that he might exhibit them to the people."

Concerning the common Sacrifice of

human Victims.

"But the most important duty of the priesthood, and the chief ceremony of the religion of the Mexicans, confifted in the facrifices which they made occafionally to obtain any favour from Heaven, or in gratitude for thofe favours which they

had already received. This is a fubject which we would willingly pafs over, if the laws of hiftory permitted, to prevent the difguft which the defcription of fuch abominable acts of cruelty muft caufe to our readers; for although there has hardly been a nation which has not practifed fimilar facrifices, it would be difficult to find one which has carried them to fo great an excefs as the Mexicans appear to have done.

We are ignorant what fort of facrifices may have been practised by the ancient Toltecas. The Chechemecas continued long without ufing them, having at first neither idols, temples, nor priefts, nor of fering any thing to their gods, the Sun and Moon, but herbs, flowers, fruits, and copil. Thofe nations never thought of facrificing human victims, until the example of the Mexicans banished the first impref. fions of nature from their minds. What they report touching the crigin of fuch barbarous facrifices we have already explained; namely, that which appears in their history concerning the first facrifice of the four Xochimilcan prifoners which they made when in Colhuacan. It is probable, that at the time when the Mexicans were infulated in the lake, and particularly while they remained fubject to the dominion of the Tepanecas, the facrifice of human victims must have happened very feldom, as they neither had prifoners, nor could purchafe flaves for facrifices.

But when they had enlarged their dominions, and multiplied their victories, facrifices became frequent, and on fome fefti. vals the victims were numerous.

* The goddess of the earth, and of corn, called likewise Topacajobua, i. e. the who fupports us.

I 4

The

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