can't." highway; but pricked him with "Well, you must have a Timothy actually made an effort to rife; but fell down again, and uttered a difmal yell. Then his mafter exhorted him to take advantage of a park-wall, by which he lay, and raise himself gradually upon it. Crabfhaw, eying him askance, faid, by way of reproach, for his not alighting and affifting him in perfon, "Thatch your houfe with t-d, and you'll have more teachers than reachers."Having pronounced this inelegant adage, he made shift to ftand upon his legs; and now, the knight lending a hand, was mounted upon Gilbert, though not without a world of oh's! and ah's! and other ejaculations of pain and impatience. As they jogged on together, our adventurer endeavoured to learn the particulars of the difafter which had befallen the fquire; but all the information he could obtain, amounted to a very imperfect sketch of the adventure. By dint of a thousand interrogations he understood, that Crabfhaw had been, in the preceding evening, encountered by three perfons on horfeback with Venetian mafques on their faces, which he miftook for their natural features, and was terrified accordingly: that they not only prefented piftols to his breaft, and led his horfe out of the might be properly attended, till he should hear further. Then mount ing Bronzomarte, he fet out with a guide for the place he had left, not without a thoufand fears and per plexities, arifing from the reflection of having left the jewel of his heart with fuch precipitation. [To be continued.] HISTORY of the Fizier MOUAFFAC. VER the kingdom of Cafmire reigned formerly a prince named Solyman, who, in courage and abilities, furpaffed all the monarchs of his age. His chief care was to chufe wife and able minifters, and he long fought, but fought in vain, for a vizier capable of aflifting him in the weighty affairs of government. An adventurer, named Mouaffac, appearing at his court, foon attracted his attention: the luftre of his eyes denoted a fuperior genius; and the king, upon converfing with him, difcovered fuch fagacity in his anfwers, that he promoted him to the place of vizier, and found him capable of managing affairs of the higheft importance. The adminiftration of Mouaffac was unexceptionable; and he foon became fo popular, that the people, in their addreffes to the holy prophet, joined to their prayers for the fultan Solyman, prayers for the good vizier Mouaffac. But villains, when poffeffed of fhining talents, can eafily aflume the mask of virtue. In the space of a few years the virtuous Solyman found that he had received into his palace, and loaded with favours, a man guilty of the blackelt of all crimes. One night the angel Gabriel appeared to him in a dream, and poke to him as follows: An Eaftern Tale. eyes of Alla, and of his holy pro-, phet Mahomet. You have made many wife inftitutions, and your fubjects pray daily, that your reign may be prolonged: but there is one crime that you have neglected to make proper inquiry into. Murders have, with impunity, been committed in your dominions: thirty leagues from your capital lie interred the bones of the rich Rufvanzchad, who was treacherously stabbed by his gueft." This vifion made fuch an impreffion upon the mind of Solyman, that he went the next day, with his vizier Mouaffac, in order to difcover the place. When they had proceeded about thirty miles from the capital, the king, perceiving a cavern, immediately refolved to enter it, in a perfuafion that the murdered perfon was interred therein. Having defcended, he, by the light of torches, difcovered the bones of a man; and turning to Mouaffac, faid, " May Allah and our holy prophet, who have directed me to the bones, point out the villain who committed fo enormous a crime. Mouaffac, who, through policy, adhered to virtue, but was intirely void of piety, thinking himself fecure, anfwered, with the utmoft unconcern, "My lord, perhaps he. ftands before you." Hereupon a voice was heard from the ground, which uttered words that ftruck all prefent prefent with horror and astonishment: "The man, whose bones lie here, was murdered by the traitor Mouaffac, and the villain Aly, his affociate, who, by that cruel deed, poffeffed themselves of the treasure of the too credulous Rufvanfchad. Oh, Solyman, revenge his death!" The fultan immediately ordered Mouaffac and Aly to be feized; but the former, having taken poison as foon as he heard the voice, dropt down dead: the latter met with the punishment due to his crime, being impaled alive. This furprising event amazed the vulgar, whilft the fages of Cafmire received from it new conviction, that all the evil which happens in the world is fuperintended by an overruling Providence, whofe ways are not to be traced by fhort-fighted mortals. COMPENDIOUS HISTORY OF FRANCE. [Continued.] [An. 495-]Lovis, having emthe chriftian religion, concluded a firm peace with his great rival, Alaric, king of the Goths, which was effected by the mediation of Theodoric, king of the Oftrogoths, an aged monarch, renowned for his wisdom and humanity. This treaty was in a little time fucceeded by a coalition of the fubjects of Clovis with the Arborici, inhabiting that country which is now called Brabant, and the bishopric of Liege. These people, who were allo Chriftians, acknowledged the dominion of Clovis; and the Roman garrifons, on that extremity of Gaul, furrendered their ftations and fortresses on a capitulation, importing, that they fhould live according to their own laws and cuftoms; and, in cafe of a war, be allowed to carry their own enfigns. Thus the Rhine, from its mouth as far up as Strasbourg, and all the country contained between this river, the fea, the Loire, Bretagne, and the kingdom of Burgundy, acknowledged the fway of Clovis. Having, by this acquifition, fecured February 1761. his kingdom from behind, extended his dominions, and augmented his power, he liftened to the proposals of his queen's uncle, Gondegifile, who reigned at Geneva, over a small territory allotted to him by Gondebaud, king of Burgundy; who, as we have already obferved, had deftroyed his other two brothers, Gondomar and Chilperic, which laft was the father of Clotilda: Gondegifile, difcontented with the small portion which Gondebaud fuffered him to enjoy, folicited Clovis to make war upon that prince; and offered to become his tributary, provided he would affift him in obtaining poffeffion of the kingdom of Burgundy. Clovis embraced the propofal, and began to make preparations. Gondebaud suspected his defign was to invade Burgundy: but he entertained no diftruft of his brother Gondegifile, whofe affiftance he demanded. Accordingly, as foon as Clovis entered Burgundy, the two brothers joined their forces near Dijon, and advanced, each at the head of his own army, to give battle to the invader. The charge was I given given on the banks of the Oufche, a fmall river that runs into the Saone. While Clovis attacked the Burgundians in front with great fury, Gondegifile fell unexpectedly on their flank. They were immediately routed with great flaughter; and Gondebaud, with the remains of his army, hardly made shift to efcape to Avignon, whither he was purfued by the victor. After a vigorous defence, he obtained a capitulation, by which he agreed to pay a perpetual tribute; and confented that Gondegifile fhould retain poffeffion of Vienne, and feveral other places, which had surrendered to him after the battle. Clovis, having rendered the Burgundians tributary, left five thoufand Franks with Gondegifile, to affist in maintaining his conquefts, and then returned to his own dominions. His back was no fooner turned than the perfidious Gondebaud, forgetting the treaty he had figned, affembled a body of troops, furprised Vienne, murdered Gondegifile at the altar, made the five thoufand Franks prifoners, and fent them as a trophy to Alaric, and gave Clovis to understand that he would pay no tribute. Clovis, fuppofing that he depended upon receiving affiftance from Alaric, thought proper to counterballance this auxiliary, by engaging in a league, offenfive and defenfive, with Theodoric, king of the Oftrogoths, who was a crafty prince, and would have been extremely forry to fee Clovis in poffeflion of Burgundy. Nevertheless, he ftipulated that whatever conquefts might be made, even before the two armies joined, fhould be divided between them; and be gan, very flowly, to put his troops in motion. [An. 500.] Clovis, with his ufual impetuofity, invaded the dominions of Gondebaud, whom he defeated after a very obftinate difpute, and immediately reduced a good number of towns to his obedience. The Oftrogoths, hearing of this fuccefs, advanced with redoubled expedition, and claimed their fhare of the conqueft, which he gave up without hefitation. Gondebaud being once more humbled into fubmiffion, the king of the Franks refolved to execute a more important plan, which he had long in fecret projected; namely, a war against Alaric, king of the Goths, at whofe great power and credit he could not help repining. They were nearly of the fame age; and as Clovis excelled the other princes in the art of war, fo Alaric furpaffed them all in prudence, moderation, and managing the reins of government, fo as to render his people happy, and preferve the tranquillity of his kingdom. These two kings beheld each other with the eyes of emulation and jealousy, even while they maintained the appearance of friendship. Several em. baffies paffed between them, and they had a perfonal interview in an ifland of the Loire, near Amboife. They were both wife enough to fee each other's drift; and cach, while he ftrove to amufe his rival with profeffions of friendship and esteem, was privately employed in taking meafures for a rupture. At length, Clovis having received intelligence that Alaric treated underhand with Theodoric, and in the mean time had fet on foot military prepara tions, in order to invade the kingdom of the Franks, refolved to anticipate his purpose. He forthwith formed a confiderable army, and, entering Poitou, was met by Alaric in the plain of Vouille. Both armies being ranged in order of battle, the two kings, in riding along the ranks to encourage their men, happened to meet in the front of the line, and immediately rushed to the encounter with great fury, while their refpective armies waited in filent fufpence the iffue of this remarkable combat. After a violent conteft, in which they redoubled their blows with equal vigour, Clovis made one thruft at his antogonift, which penetrated his armour, and proved mortal. Alaric fell dead from his horfe. His army forthwith gave way, and were flaughtered without mercy. pital of Alaric, which was obliged to furrender. Then he took Angouleme; and, fending his army into France, repaired in perfon to Tours, where he gave audience to the ambailadors of Anaftafius, emperor of the Eaft, who fent him the marks and ornaments of the patrician and confular dignity. The emperor's chief aim, in this embasfy, was to foment the war against the Goths, that Theodoric, king of Italy, might have work enough upon his hands, to divert him from any defigns upon the Empire, in which he had lately committed fome hoftilities. Clovis, having difmiffed these ambaffadors very well fatisfied with the fuccefs of their negotiation, removed to Paris, where he fixed the capital of his kingdom. His army, however, having laid fiege to Arles, were defeated by Theodoric, and obliged to relinquish all the conquefts they had made in Provence and Languedoc, of which the other Theodoric afterwards got poffeffion. Gondebaud recovered the places he had loft in Burgundy; and a treaty of peace was concluded between the Franks and the Oftrogoths, on condition that Theodoric should retain all his conquefts. [An. 507.] The victor immediately detached his eldest fon, Theodoric, with a choice body to improve the advantage he had gained, by extending his conquefts. Accordingly that young prince proceeded with great rapidity of fuccefs between the Dordogne, the Garonne, and the Rhone. He fubdued the countries of Albi, Rouvergne, and Auvergne, and invefted Carcaffione; but was obliged to raife the fiege by Theodoric, king of Italy, who march ed in perfon to the relief of the place, at the head of a numerous army. In the mean time his father took poffeflion of Touraine, Poitou, Limoufin, Perigord, Xaintonge, and all Angoumois, except Angouleme, which was fecured by a strong garrison of Vifigoths. He reduced Bourdeaux, where he paffed the winter; and opened the campaign with the fiege of Tholoufe, the ca [An. 508.] Clovis, being at peace in this quarter, turned his arms against Bretagne, then called Britannia Armerica, which he fubdued; and from this period the fovereign of that country was obliged to lay afide his regal title, and be content with that of count. Clovis likewife abolished the appellation of king among the Alemanni, whofe chiefs afterwards aflumed the name of dukes. Indeed, the greateft part of thofe petty princes he cruelly and perfidiously deftroyed. Some |