affair of the divifion of Poland; but he took the leaft part poffible in that affair The world will be aftonifhed, when the particulars of this bufinefs come to be known, as none has ever been fo mifreprefented and diftorted by political motives. I collected at Vienna fome very extraordinary documents relative to this matter, which I will communicate to you when we meet. Thus far is notorious to all mankind, that in this famous partition, the king had not a third of what fell to Ruffia, nor a quarter of what Auftria had. A ftronger proof of the king's moderation, and of his pacific difpofition, it is impoffible to give. Poffibly the divifion would have been a little more equal if ever the parties had come to blows.

In the last Bavarian war, he again obferved the fame wonderful moderation. The cause of his taking up arms was, to restore the house of Wittelsbach to its inheritance, and to maintain the conftitution of the empire; which, as a member of that body, he was bound to protect. He asked nothing for himself, and did not go a step farther than he was forced to, by the strongest neceffity. No monarch ever went into

in the welfare of a common farmer, as in the flourishing of the greatest house of trade in his dominions. It is his greateft pride, and his greatest pleasure, to read in the yearly lifts, that the population of his country has increased. He has not been seen fo cheerful for many years, as he was upon finding, by the lift given in laft year, that the number of the new-born children within the year far furpaffed the number of the dead. A king who has this way of thinking, is a warrior only when necef fity compels him to it. His Lacedemonian armies only ferve the purpofe of enabling him to cultivate his country in peace, and to bring his law-fuits with his neighbours to a speedy conclufion. They are evidently not the end of his government, but the means; and it is only thofe who are contented with viewing the outfide of things, and do not look into the fprings of the Pruffian government, who think them the great object."

Character of the late Empress Queen Maria Therefa.- From the jamė work.

HE bright fides of this em

and greater difintereftedness, than the king of Pruflia did on this occafion. Since the twenty years he has given himself to philofophy, he has let feveral other occafions go by, which would not have been miffed by another monarch who had had the fame powers of war in hand as he had, and the warlike difpofition commonly attributed to him.

No prince can manifeft more regard for mankind, than what is thewn by the king of Pruffia every day. He interefts himself as much

ing, that one can hardly obferve the darker ones. In private life, indeed, fuch small spots would appear not only venial, but in fome degree refpectable; but it is the misfortune of greatnefs, that the smallest weaknefs of the governor has often a fenfible influence on the happiness of the governed, fo that the leaft perfonal vices are often the greatett political defects.

Whoever fees the empress now, discovers that the has been a beau

ty.

ty. Within these few years fhe has begun to be fubject to fome of the infirmities of advancing age; but the best judges ftill difcern a ftrong conftitution and lively temperament in her. I faw her for the first time in the church of the Auguftine Friars, where the was attending a religious ceremony, and immediately recognised her, not so much by her likeness to her pictures (from the truth of which age has of courfe taken a great deal), as by the air of majefty which strikes every one who has the honour to approach her. She has the ftrongeft paffions, but has never been fubdued to the leaft unworthinefs, by thofe to which nature in general the most inclines, and which her conftitution the more particularly exposes her to. Poffibly the is an only, most certainly a fingular inftance of a princess, over whom religion and honour have had more influence than the demands of an impetuous conftitution, and the allurements of unlimited power. This probably arofe from her having herself chofen her husband, who was the man of his day most likely to fecure the affections of a woman. To him he was paffionately devoted; but her affections never wandered a step beyond the bounds of the ftricteft decorum. Vainly has fcandal endeavoured to find out anecdotes to feed on in her life. Ten well-made ftrong children yet living, are fo many witneffes that her husband poffeffed all her love. At his death, the forbad herself all farther thoughts of the paffion, and made a vow to lament him for ever; a vow to which the has religiously adhered. She is always dreffed in black, and wears no ornament of any kind.

Her warm love, however, made her husband pafs many a weary hour. It was impoffible for jealoufy not to have great power over a heart, the violence of whose motions was only kept in by a fenfe of religion. It is not very certain whether he had ever real grounds for fufpicion; but every body at Vienna remembers that a certain lady was obliged to leave it, becaufe the emperor, who was very courteous towards every body, but particularly fo to the ladies, had made her fome common-place, unmeaning compliments.

She

The emprefs's benevolence, of which religion is the principle, approaches almoft to profufion. refufes relief to none of those who ftand in need of her affiftance; and the meaneft of her fubjects finds the way to make his diftreffes known to her. Her steward has hardly any thing to lay before her, but accounts of charities. Her liberality particularly thews itfelf towards widows. efpecially fuch as are of high birth. Many perfons, among ft whom are widows of minifters of ftate, receive penfions of 6000 guilders (300l.) from her. Her partiality to high birth makes her defirous that every person should live up to his, or her rank. With refpect to the public foundations of charity, he behaves as an empress fhould do. The library, schools, hofpitals, and poor-houtes, coft her immenfe fumns. I am affured, that the debts the has contracted by this liberality amount to upwards of twenty millions of guilders; and one of my friends informed me, that the gives away three millions per annum in private charity.

Who now would imagine that, under fo worthy a character, merit

often

often ftarves, whilft large'fums are lavifhed upon the worthless? Who would imagine, that the prejudices of religion could have fo far gotten the better of her natural difpofition, as to make her refuse affifting an officer who had been crippled in her fervice, unless he embraced the Roman Catholic religion? After feveral conversations with the priest fent to him by the emprefs, this gentleman plainly perceived that he muft turn fcoundrel, to be relieved. He determined therefore to quit Vienna; which he did, and went to Holland, where he died a general officer. Since the prefent emperor has begun to have an influence in bufinefs, merit has no longer any fuch oppreffion to fear, but it must ftill make ufe of all its weight to break through this fpecies of obftacles, which however at all times are more the work of the priests, than of the empress.

Her impetuous temper often breaks out into grófs gufts of paffion and anger; but as foon as the storm is paft, the endeavours to make amends for the mischief or injury the may have done whilst it raged. I was told an anecdote, which if not entirely true, yet gives a great infight into this part of her character. An officer, who had a favour to afk, had his name written down in the lift of those who wanted audiences. He waited a long time, till his turn (which is religiously obferved) came to be introduced. At length he was called in, but he had hardly made his obedience to the emprefs, according to the Spanish etiquette, when the broke out into fuch a form of opprobrious abufe, as almoft made him fink to the ground. Her vivacity made her eyes roll with fire,

and the motion of her arms was rendered fo quick by it, that the man was afraid the might do a litthe execution upon him, with her own high hand. Twice or thrice he attempted to put in a word, but the form of the monarch's indignation was too ftrong to be controlled, and he was forced to wait till fhe was fairly out of breath. He then mustered up all his courage, and faid, "Surely your ma jetty muft have forgotten I am "N. N."

As foon as the found that he had been mistaken in the perfon, the made him a formal excufe, and her defire to set all things right again carried her fo far another way, that the fettled an handsome penfion on him. She is by no means proof against pride, but is proud of the dignity, and the greatness of her houfe. She weeps tears of joy as often as the hears how her children, particularly the emperor and the queen of France are beloved by all the world. This family pride, joined to her quick feelings, are the cause why the confiders all the princes who have been at war with her, at any time, as her perfonal enemies, and has never forgiven any of them. The emperor's laft wife, who was a Bavarian princefs, had cause to regret her father's having attempted to rob the emprefs of Bohemia, Upper Auftria, and the Imperial Crown. She made her feel the fuperiority of the house of Auftria, over the houfe of Bavaria. Thus far is true, but the fables which have been raifed on this foundation are too wild even to deferve a ferious refutation.

Fame has not reported falfely of this great princefs. She is a true woman, and it is by the amiable paffions

principal cause of it was owing to the avarice of the great landlords, particularly of the priests, he endeavoured to take off the fervitude of the lower orders; but his mother's attachment to the nobility prevented a measure, which would have made a country fo favoured by nature as Bohemia is, one of the moft flourishing in the world. The emprefs made it a matter of confcience to deprive a finall part of her fubjects of the least part of their income by fuch a measure, but never bethought herself, that the nobility and priests confumed in idleness the fweat and blood of fo many thousand people.

ed there, than any against which the commiffion of chastity is directed. I know a woman, who in order to get herself and her handsome daughter a maintenance, procured the latter an engagement upon a fmall theatre, which hardly brings her in enough to buy pins for her hair. We know that at Páris the theatre is more a title to a maintenance than a maintenance of itfelf; but there is this difference betwixt the countries, here the mother carries her cheap daughter from a rehearfal to church, where both tell their beads with down-caft eyes, and the most pious looks, in order to bring themselves into a reputation of fanctity with the police. By this means, perfons who love their pleaíures, and yet with to be well with the emprefs, know no better way of compaffing both these objects, than by vifiting the churches. Another inftance of hypocrify. There is a well known man of letters here, who translated a prayerbook from the French, and dedicated it to the empress as an original compofition, with the view of obtaining a place, together with the prefent cuftomary upon those occafions. The plan fucceeded; the emprefs confidered him as a pious man, and he had a reward; but he was fo loft to fhame, as to make fport of the good woman's credulity in the circle of his friends. The fame thing takes place with regard to the prohibition of books. The queen would fink to the ground, if the could fee one of the thousand private libraries in Vienna, 'which contain all the heretical, and all the fcandalous writers which the conceives her college of cenfure, and

A defpotic prince, who has not a fufficient knowledge of the world, to fee through the people who furound him, is the most dependant man in his country. Notwithstanding all her attention to fo many various matters, and notwithttanding all her power, the good emprefs cannot prevent herself from being cheated by all who approach her. She imagines that the prevents every fin by her establishments of chastity, and does not know how many adultreffes the makes by them. She would indeed be astonished, if the could fee only a part of the horns, which the men of this place carry about with them under their peruques. It is faid, that the emprefs infifts upon the young women, particularly thofe who are brought up in the There fianum, tying their hair, &c. in a particular manner; but, notwithitanding thefe ribbands of chastity, I have been affured by a counteís, who was brought up in this femiBary, that grocer vices prevail

her