Some further Particulars I soon after had from Colonel _Syburg"s_ Gentleman; who seeing me at the Play-house, challenged me, tho" at that Time unkown to me. He told me, that the Night preceeding the unfortunate Catastrophe of his Master, he was waiting on him in the Casemet, where he observed, sometime before the rest of the Company took notice of it, that General _Richards_ appeared very pensive and thoughtful, that the whole Night long he was pester"d with, and could not get rid of a great Flie, which was perpetually buzzing about his Ears and Head, to the vexation and disturbance of the rest of the Company, as well as the General himself; that in the Morning, when they went upon the Battery, under which the Mine was, the General made many offers of going off; but Colonel _Syburg_, who was got a little merry, and the rest out of a Bravado, would stay, and would not let the General stir; that at last it was propos"d by Colonel _Syburg_ to have the other two Bottles to the Queen"s Health, after which he promised they would all go off together.
Upon this my Relator, _Syburg"s_ Gentleman, said, he was sent to fetch the stipulated two Bottles; returning with which, Captain _Daniel Weaver_, within thirty or forty Yards of the Battery, ran by him, vowing, he was resolv"d to drink the Queen"s Health with them; but his Feet were scarce on the Battery, when the Mine was sprung, which took him away with the rest of the Company; while Major _Harding_ now a Justice in _Westminster_ coming that very Moment off Duty, exchang"d Fates.
If Predestination, in the Eyes of many, is an unaccountable Doctrine, what better Account can the wisest give of this Fatality? Or to what else shall we impute the Issue of this whole Transaction? That Men shall be solicited to their Safety; suffered to survey the Danger they were threatened with; among many other Tokens of its approaching Certainty, see such a Concourse of People crowding to be Spectators of their impending Catastrophe; and after all this, so infatuated to stay on the fatal Spot the fetching up of the other two Bottles; whatever it may to such as never think, to such as plead an use of Reason, it must administer Matter worthy of the sedatest Consideration.
Being now pretty well recover"d of my Wounds, I was by Order of the Governor of _Valencia_, removed to _Sainte Clemente de la Mancha_, a Town somewhat more Inland, and consequently esteem"d more secure than a Semi-Seaport. Here I remain"d under a sort of Pilgrimage upwards of three Years. To me as a Stranger divested of Acquaintance or Friend (for at that instant I was sole Prisoner there) at first it appear"d such, tho" in a very small compa.s.s of Time, I luckily found it made quite otherwise by an agreeable Conversation.
_SAINTE Clemente de la Mancha_, is rendered famous by the renown"d _Don Michael Cerviantes_, who in his facetious but satyrical Romance, has fix"d it the Seat and Birth Place of his Hero _Don Quixot_.
The Gentlemen of this Place are the least Priest-ridden or Sons of Bigotry, of any that I met with in all _Spain_; of which in my Conversation with them I had daily Instances. Among many others, an Expression that fell from _Don Felix Pacheco_, a Gentleman of the best Figure thereabout, and of a very plentiful Fortune, shall now suffice. I was become very intimate with him; and we us"d often to converse together with a Freedom too dangerous to be common in a Country so enslav"d by the Inquisition. Asking me one Day in a sort of a jocose manner, who, in my Opinion, had done the greatest Miracles that ever were heard of? I answer"d, Jesus Christ.
"It is very true," says he, "Jesus Christ did great Miracles, and a great one it was to feed five Thousand People with two or three small Fishes, and a like number of Loaves: But _Saint Francis_, the Founder of the _Franciscan_ Order, has found out a way to feed daily one hundred Thousand Lubbards with nothing at all"; meaning the _Franciscans_, the Followers of Saint _Francis_, who have no visible Revenues; yet in their way of Living come up to, if they do not exceed any other Order.
Another Day talking of the Place, it naturally led us into a Discourse of the Knight of _la Mancha, Don Quixot_. At which time he told me, that in his Opinion, that Work was a perfect Paradox, being the best and the worst Romance, that ever was wrote.
"For," says he, "tho" it must infallibly please every Man, that has any taste of Wit; yet has it had such a fatal Effect upon the Spirits of my Countrymen, that every Man of Wit must ever resent; for," continu"d he, "before the Appearance in the World of that Labour of _Cerviantes_, it was next to an Impossibility for a Man to walk the Streets with any Delight, or without Danger. There were seen so many Cavaliero"s prancing and curvetting before the Windows of their Mistresses, that a Stranger would have imagin"d the whole Nation to have been nothing less than a Race of Knight Errants. But after the World became a little acquainted with that notable History; the Man that was seen in that once celebrated Drapery, was pointed at as a _Don Quixot_, and found himself the Jest of High and Low. And I verily believe," added he, "that to this, and this only we owe that dampness and poverty of Spirit, which has run thro" all our Councils for a Century past, so little agreeable to those n.o.bler Actions of our famous Ancestors."
After many of these lesser sorts of Confidences, _Don Felix_ recommended me to a Lodging next Door to his own. It was at a Widow"s, who had one only Daughter, her House just opposite to a _Francisan_ Nunnery. Here I remain"d somewhat upwards of two Years; all which time, lying in my Bed, I could hear the Nuns early in the Morning at their _Matins_, and late in the Evening at their _Vespers_, with Delight enough to my self, and without the least Indecency in the World in my Thoughts of them. Their own Divine Employ too much employ"d every Faculty of mine to entertain any Thing inconsentaneous or offensive.
This my Neighbourhood to the Nunnery gave me an opportunity of seeing two Nuns invested; and in this I must do a Justice to the whole Country, to acknowledge, that a Stranger who is curious (I would impute it rather to their hopes of Conversion, than to their Vanity) shall be admitted to much greater Freedoms in their religious Pageantries, than any Native.
One of these Nuns was of the first Quality, which render"d the Ceremony more remarkably fine. The manner of investing them was thus: In the Morning her Relations and Friends all met at her Father"s House; whence, she being attir"d in her most sumptuous Apparel, and a Coronet plac"d on her Head, they attended her, in Cavalcade, to the Nunnery, the Streets and Windows being crowded, and fill"d with Spectators of all sorts.
So soon as she enter"d the Chapel belonging to the Nunnery, she kneel"d down, and with an appearance of much Devotion, saluted the Ground; then rising up, she advanced a Step or two farther, when on her Knees she repeated the Salutes: This done she approached to the Altar, where she remained till Ma.s.s was over: After which, a Sermon was preach"d by one of the Priests in Praise, or rather in an exalted Preference of a single Life. The Sermon being over, the Nun elect fell down on her Knees before the Altar; and after some short mental Oraisons, rising again, she withdrew into an inner Room, where stripping off all her rich Attire, she put on her Nun"s Weeds: In which making her Appearance, she, again kneeling, offer"d up some private Devotions; which being over, she was led to the Door of the Nunnery, where the Lady and the rest of the Nuns stood ready to receive her with open Arms. Thus enter"d, the Nuns conducted her into the Quire, where after they had entertained her with Singing, and playing upon the Organ, the Ceremony concluded, and every one departed to their proper Habitations.
The very same Day of the Year ensuing the Relations and Friends of the fair Novitiate meet again in the Chapel of the Nunnery, where the Lady Abbess brings her out, and delivers her to them. Then again is there a Sermon preach"d on the same Subject as at first; which being over, she is brought up to the Altar, in a decent, but plain Dress, the fine Apparel, which she put off on her Initiation, being deposited on one side of the Altar, and her Nun"s Weeds on the other. Here the Priest in Latin cries, _Utrum horum mavis, accipe_: to which she answers, as her Inclination, or as her Instruction directs her. If she, after this her Year of Probation, show any Dislike, she is at Liberty to come again into the World: But if aw"d by Fear (as too often is the Case) or won by Expectation, or present real Inclination, she makes choice of the Nun"s Weeds, she is immediately invested, and must never expect to appear again in the World out of the Walls of the Nunnery. The young Lady I thus saw invested was very beautiful, and sang the best of any in the Nunnery.
There are in the Town three Nunneries, and a Convent to every one of them; _viz_. one of _Jesuits_, one of _Carmelites_, and the other of _Franciscans_. Let me not be so far mistaken to have this taken by way of Reflection. No! Whatever some of our Rakes of the Town may a.s.sert, I freely declare, that I never saw in any of the Nunneries (of which I have seen many both in _Spain_ and other Parts of the World) any thing like indecent Behaviour, that might give occasion for Satyr or Disesteem. It is true, there may be Accidents, that may lead to a Misinterpretation, of which I remember a very untoward Instance in _Alicant_.
When the _English_ Forces first laid Siege to that Town, the Priests, who were apprehensive of it, having been long since made sensible of the profound Regard to Chast.i.ty and Modesty of us Hereticks, by the ignominious Behaviour of certain Officers at _Rota_ and _Porta St.
Maria_, the Priests, I say, had taken care to send away privately all the Nuns to _Majorca_. But that the Heretick Invaders might have no Jealousy of it, the fair _Curtezans_ of the Town were admitted to supply their Room. The Officers, both of Land and Sea, as was by the Friars pre-imagin"d, on taking the Town and Castle, immediately repair"d to the Grates of the Nunnery, toss"d over their Handkercheifs, Nosegays, and other pretty Things; all which were, doubtless, very graciously received by those imaginary Recluses. Thence came it to pa.s.s, that in the s.p.a.ce of a Month or less, you could hardly fall into Comany of any one of our younger Officers, of either sort, but the Discourse, if it might deserve the Name, was concerning these beautiful Nuns; and you wou"d have imagin"d the Price of these Ladies as well known as that of Flesh in their common Markets. Others, as well as my self, have often endeavour"d to disabuse those Glorioso"s, but all to little purpose, till more sensible Tokens convinced them, that the Nuns, of whose Favours they so much boasted, could hardly be perfect Virgins, tho" in a Cloyster. And I am apt to think, those who would palm upon the World like vicious Relations of Nuns and Nunneries, do it on much like Grounds. Not that there are wanting Instances of Nunneries disfranchis"d, and even demolish"d, upon very flagrant Accounts; but I confine myself to _Spain_.
In this Town of _la Mancha_ the _Corrigidore_ always has his Presidence, having sixteen others under his Jurisdiction, of which _Almanza_ is one.
They are changed every three Years, and their Offices are the Purchase of an excessive Price; which occasions the poor People"s being extravagantly fleeced, nothing being to be sold but at the Rates they impose; and every Thing that is sold paying the _Corrigidore_ an Acknowledgment in specie, or an Equivalent to his liking.
While I was here, News came of the Battle of _Almanar_ and _Saragosa_; and giving the Victory to that Side, which they espous"d (that of King _Philip_) they made very great Rejoycings. But soon, alas, for them, was all that Joy converted into Sorrow: The next Courier evincing, that the Forces of King _Charles_ had been victorious in both Engagements. This did not turn to my present Disadvantage: For Convents and Nunneries, as well as some of those Dons, whom afore I had not stood so well with, strove now how most to oblige me; not doubting, but if the victorious Army should march that way, it might be in my Power to double the most signal of their Services in my Friendship.
Soon after an Accident fell out, which had like to have been of an unhappy Consequence to me. I was standing in Company, upon the Parade, when a most surprizing flock of Eagles flew over our Heads, where they hover"d for a considerable time. The Novelty struck them all with Admiration, as well as my self. But I, less accustomed to like Spectacles, innocent saying, that in my Opinion, it could not bode any good to King _Philip_, because the Eagle compos"d the Arms of _Austria_; some busie Body, in hearing, went and inform"d the _Corrigidore_ of it. Those most magisterial Wretches embrace all Occasions of squeezing Money; and more especially from Strangers.
However finding his Expectations disappointed in me, and that I too well knew the length of his Foot, to let my Money run freely; he sent me next Day to _Alercon_; but the Governor of that Place having had before Intelligence, that the _English_ Army was advancing that way, refus"d to receive me, so I return"d as I went; only the Gentlemen of the Place, as they had condol"d the first, congratulated the last; for that _Corrigidore_ stood but very indifferently in their Affections. However, it was a warning to me ever after, how I made use of _English_ Freedom in a _Spanish_ Territory.
As I had attain"d the Acquaintance of most of the Clergy, and Religious of the Place; so particularly I had my aim in obtaining that of the Provincial of the _Carmelites_. His Convent, tho" small, was exceeding neat; but what to me was much more agreeable, There were very large Gardens belonging to it, which often furnished me with Sallading and Fruit, and much oftner with Walks of Refreshment, the most satisfactory Amus.e.m.e.nt in this warm Climate. This Acquaintance with the Provincial was by a little Incident soon advanced into a Friendship; which was thus: I was one Day walking, as I us"d to do, in the long Gallery of the Convent, when observing the Images of the Virgin _Mary_, of which there was one at each end; I took notice that one had an Inscription under it, which was this, _Ecce, Virgo peperit filium_: but the other had no Inscription at all; upon which, I took out my Pencil, and wrote underneath, this Line:
_Sponsa Dei, patrisque parens, & filia filii_.
The Friars, who at a little distance had observed me, as soon as I was gone, came up and read what I had writ; reporting which to the Provincial, he order"d them to be writ over in Letters of Gold, and plac"d just as I had put "em; saying, doubtless, such a fine Line you"d proceed from nothing less than Inspiration. This secur"d me ever after his and their Esteem; the least advantage of which, was a full Liberty of their Garden for all manner of Fruit, Sallading, or whatever I pleased: And as I said before, the Gardens were too fine not to render such a Freedom acceptable.
They often want Rain in this Country: To supply the Defect of which, I observed in this Garden, as well as others, an Invention not unuseful.
There is a Well in the Middle of the Garden, and over that a Wheel with many Pitchers, or Buckets, one under another, which Wheel being turned round by an a.s.s, the Pitchers scoop up the Water on one Side, and throw it out on the other into a Trough, that by little Channels conveys it, as the Gardiner directs, into every part of the Garden. By this Means their Flowers and their Sallading are continually refresh"d, and preserved from the otherwise over-parching Beams of the Sun.
The Inquisition, in almost every Town in _Spain_ (and more especially, if of any great Account) has its Spies, or Informers, for treacherous Intelligence. These make it their Business to ensnare the simple and unguarded; and are more to be avoided by the Stranger, than the Rattle Snake. Nature have appointed no such happy Tokens in the former to foreshew the Danger. I had Reason to believe, that one of those Vermin once made his Attack upon me in this place: And as they are very rarely, if ever known to the Natives themselves, I being a Stranger, may be allowed to make a guess by Circ.u.mstances.
I was walking by my self, when a Person, wholly unknown to me, giving me the civil Salute of the Day, endeavour"d to draw me into Conversation.
After Questions had pa.s.sed on general Heads, the fellow ensnaringly asked me, how it came to pa.s.s, that I show"d so little Respect to the Image of the crucify"d Jesus, as I pa.s.s"d by it in such a Street, naming it? I made Answer, that I had, or ought to have him always in my Heart crucified. To that he made no Reply: But proceeding in his Interrogatories, question"d me next, whether I believ"d a Purgatory? I evaded the Question, as I took it to be ensnaring; and only told him, that I should be willing to hear him offer any Thing that might convince me of the Truth, or Probability of it. Truth? He reply"d in a Heat: There never yet was Man so Holy as to enter Heaven without first pa.s.sing through Purgatory. In my Opinion, said I, there will be no Difficulty in convincing a reasonable Man to the contrary. What mean you by that, cry"d the Spy? I mean, said I, that I can name one, and a great Sinner too, who went into Bliss without any Visit to Purgatory. Name him, if you can, reply"d my Querist. What think you of the Thief upon the Cross, said I? to whom our dying Saviour said, _Hodie eris mec.u.m in Paradiso_.
At which being silenced tho" not convicted, he turned from me in a violent Rage, and left me to my self.
What increas"d my first Suspicion of him was, that a very short time after, my Friend the Provincial sent to speak with me; and repeating all Pa.s.sages between the holy Spy and me, a.s.sur"d me that he had been forc"d to argue in my Favour, and tell him that I had said nothing but well: _For_ says he, _all ought to have the Holy Jesus crucified in their Hearts_.
"Nevertheless," continu"d he, "it is a commendable and good Thing to have him represented in the high Ways: For, suppose," said he, "a Man was going upon some base or profligate Design, the very Sight of a cruficied Saviour may happen to subvert his Resolution, and deter him from committing Theft, Murder, or any other of the deadly Sins." And thus ended that Conference.
I remember upon some other occasional Conversation after, the Provincial told me, that in the _Carmelite_ Nunnery next to his Convent, and under his Care, there was a Nun, that was Daughter to _Don Juan_ of _Austria_; if so, her Age must render her venerable, as her Quality.
Taking notice one Day, that all the People of the Place fetch"d their Water from a Well without the Town, altho" they had many seemingly as good within; I spoke to _Don Felix_ of it, who gave me, under the Seal of Secrecy, this Reason for it:
"When the Seat of the War," said he, "lay in these Parts, the _French_ Train of Artillery was commonly quarter"d in this Place; the Officers and Soldiers of which were so very rampant and rude, in attempting to debauch our Women, that there is not a Well within the Town, which has not some _French_ Mens Bones at the bottom of it; therefore the Natives, who are sensible of it, choose rather to go farther a field."
By this Well there runs a little Rivulet, which gives head to that famous River call"d the _Guadiana_; which running for some Leagues under Ground, affords a pretence for the Natives to boast of a Bridge on which they feed many Thousands of Sheep. When it rises again, it is a fine large River, and after a Currency of many Leagues, empties it self into the _Atlantick_ Ocean.
As to military Affairs, _Almanar_ and _Saragosa_ were Victories so compleat, that no Body made the least doubt of their settling the Crown of _Spain_ upon the Head of _Charles_ the Third, without a Rival. This was not barely the Opinion of his Friends, but his very Enemies resign"d all Hope or Expectation in favour of King _Philip_. The _Castilians_, his most faithful Friends, entertain"d no other Imagination; for after they had advis"d, and prevail"d that the Queen with the Prince of _Asturias_ should be sent to _Victoria_; under the same Despondency, and a full Dispiritedness, they gave him so little Encouragement to stay in _Madrid_, that he immediately quitted the Place, with a Resolution to retire into his Grandfather"s Dominions, the Place of his Nativity.
In his way to which, even on the last Day"s Journey, it was his great good Fortune to meet the Duke of _Vendome_, with some few Troops, which his Grandfather _Lewis_ XIV. of _France_ had order"d to his Succour, under that Duke"s Command. The Duke was grievously affected at such an unexpected Catastrophe; nevertheless, he left nothing unsaid or undone, that might induce that Prince to turn back; and at length prevailing, after a little Rest, and a great deal of Patience, by the Coming in of his scatter"d Troops, and some few he could raise, together with those the Duke brought with him, he once more saw himself at the Head of twenty thousand Men.
While Things were in this Manner, under Motion in King _Philip"s_ Favour, _Charles_ the third, with his victorious Army, advances forward, and enters into _Madrid_, of which he made General _Stanhope_ Governor.
And even here the _Castilians_ gave full Proof of their Fidelity to their Prince; even at the Time when, in their Opinion, his Affairs were past all Hopes of Retrieve, they themselves having, by their Advice, contributed to his Retreat. Instead of prudential Acclamations therefore, such as might have answered the Expectations of a victorious Prince, now entering into their Capital, their Streets were all in a profound Silence, their Balconies unadorn"d with costly Carpets, as was customary on like Occasions; and scarce an Inhabitant to be seen in either Shop or Window.
This doubtless was no little Mortification to a conquering Prince; however his Generals were wife enough to keep him from shewing any other Tokens of Resentment, than marching through the City with Unconcern, and taking up his Quarters at _Villa-verda_, about a League from it.
Nevertheless King _Charles_ visited, in his March, the Chapel of the Lady _de Atocha_, where finding several _English_ Colours and Standards, taken in the Battle of _Almanza_, there hung up; he ordered "em to be taken down, and restor"d "em to the _English_ General.
It was the current Opinion then, and almost universal Consent has since confirm"d it, that the falsest Step in that whole War was this Advancement of King _Charles_ to _Madrid_. After those two remarkable Victories at _Almanar_ and _Saragosa_, had he directed his March to _Pampeluna_, and obtain"d Possession of that Place, or some other near it, he had not only stopt all Succours from coming out of _France_, but he would, in a great Measure, have prevented the gathering together of any of the routed and dispers"d Forces of King _Philip_: And it was the general Notion of the _Spaniards_, I convers"d with while at _Madrid_, that had King _Philip_ once again set his Foot upon _French_ Land, _Spain_ would never have been brought to have re-acknowledged him.
King _Charles_ with his Army having stay"d some Time about _Madrid_, and seeing his Expectations of the _Castilians_ joining him not at all answered, at last resolved to decamp, and return to _Saragosa_: Accordingly with a very few Troops that Prince advanced thither; while the main Body, under the Command of the Generals _Stanhope_ and _Staremberg_, pa.s.sing under the very Walls of _Madrid_, held on their March towards _Aragon_.
After about three Days" March, General _Stanhope_ took up his Quarters at _Breuhiga_, a small Town half wall"d; General _Staremberg_ marching three Leagues farther, to _Cisuentes_. This choice of Situation of the two several Armies not a little puzzled the Politicians of those Times, who could very indifferently account for the _English_ General"s lying expos"d in an open Town, with his few _English_ Forces, of which General _Harvey"s_ Regiment of fine Horse might be deem"d the Main; and General _Staremberg_ encamping three Leagues farther off the Enemy. But to see the Vicissitudes of Fortune, to which the Actions of the bravest, by an untoward Sort of Fatality, are often forced to contribute! None, who had been Eye-witnesses of the Bravery of either of those Generals at the Battles of _Almanar_ and _Saragosa_, could find Room to call in question either their Conduct or their Courage; and yet in this March, and this Encampment will appear a visible ill Consequence to the Affairs of the Interest they fought for.
The Duke of _Vendome_ having increas"d the Forces which he brought from _France_, to upwards of twenty thousand Men, marches by _Madrid_ directly for _Breuhiga_, where his Intelligence inform"d him General _Stanhope_ lay, and that so secretly as well as swiftly, that that General knew nothing of it, nor could be persuaded to believe it, till the very Moment their Bullets from the Enemy"s Cannon convinc"d him of the Truth. _Breuhiga_, I have said, was wall"d only on one Side, and yet on that very side the Enemy made their Attack. But what could a Handful do against a Force so much superior, though they had not been in want of both Powder and Ball; and in want of these were forc"d to make use of Stones against all Sorts of Ammunition, which the Enemy ply"d them with?
The Consequence answered the Deficiency; they were all made Prisoners of War, and _Harvey_"s Regiment of Horse among the rest; which, to augment their Calamity, was immediately remounted by the Enemy, and march"d along with their Army to attack General _Staremberg_.
That General had heard somewhat of the March of _Vendome_; and waited with some Impatience to have the Confirmation of it from General _Stanhope_, who lay between, and whom he lay under an Expectation of being joined with: However he thought it not improper to make some little Advance towards him; and accordingly breaking up from his Camp at _Cisuentes_, he came back to _Villa viciosa_, a little Town between _Cisuentes_ and _Breuhiga_; there he found _Vendome_ ready to attack him, before he could well be prepared for him, but no _English_ to join him, as he had expected; nevertheless, the Battle was hot, and obstinately fought; although _Staremberg_ had visibly the Advantage, having beat the Enemy at least a League from their Cannon; at which Time hearing of the Misfortune of _Breuhiga_, and finding himself thereby frustrated of those expected Succours to support him, he made a handsome Retreat to _Barcelona_, which in common Calculation is about one hundred Leagues, without any Disturbance of an Enemy that seem"d glad to be rid of him. Nevertheless his Baggage having fallen into the Hands of the Enemy, at the Beginning of the Fight, King _Philip_ and the Duke of _Vendome_ generously returned it unopen"d, and untouched, in acknowledgement of his brave Behaviour.
I had like to have omitted one material Pa.s.sage, which I was very credibly informed of; That General _Carpenter_ offered to have gone, and have join"d General _Staremberg_ with the Horse, which was refus"d him.
This was certainly an Oversight of the highest Nature; since his going would have strengthen"d _Staremberg_ almost to the a.s.surance of an intire Victory; whereas his Stay was of no manner of Service, but quite the contrary: For, as I said before, the Enemy, by re-mounting the _English_ Horse (which perhaps were the compleatest of any Regiment in the World) turn"d, if I may be allowed the Expression, the Strength of our Artillery upon our Allies.
Upon this Retreat of _Staremberg_, and the Surprize at _Breuhiga_, there were great Rejoicings at _Madrid_, and everywhere else, where King _Philip"s_ Interest prevailed. And indeed it might be said, from that Day the Interest of King _Charles_ look"d with a very lowering Aspect. I was still a Prisoner at _la Mancha_, when this News arriv"d; and very sensibly affected at that strange Turn of Fortune. I was in bed, when the Express pa.s.s"d through the Town, in order to convey it farther; and in the Middle of the Night I heard a certain _Spanish_ Don, with whom, a little before, I had had some little Variance, thundering at my Door, endeavouring to burst it open, with, as I had Reason to suppose, no very favourable Design upon me. But my Landlady, who hitherto had always been kind and careful, calling Don _Felix_, and some others of my Friends together, sav"d me from the Fury of his Designs, whatever they were.
Among other Expressions of the general Joy upon this Occasion, there was a Bull-Feast at _la Mancha_; which being much beyond what I saw at _Valencia_, I shall here give a Description of. These Bull-Feasts are not so common now in _Spain_ as formerly, King _Philip_ not taking much Delight in them. Nevertheless, as soon as it was publish"d here, that there was to be one, no other Discourse was heard; and in the Talk of the Bulls, and the great Preparations for the Feast, Men seem"d to have lost, or to have lay"d aside, all Thoughts of the very Occasion. A Week"s time was allow"d for the Building of Stalls for the Beasts, and Scaffolds for the Spectators; and other necessary Preparations for the setting off their Joy with the most suitable Splendour.
On the Day appointed for the bringing the Bulls into Town, the _Cavalieroes_ mounted their Horses, and, with Spears in their Hands, rode out of Town about a League, or somewhat more to meet them: If any of the Bulls break from the Drove, and make an Excursion (as they frequently do) the _Cavaliero_ that can make him return again to his Station among his Companions, is held in Honour, suitable to the Dexterity and Address he performs it with. On their Entrance into the Town, all the Windows are fill"d with Spectators; a Pope pa.s.sing in grand Procession could not have more; for what can be more than all? And he or she who should neglect so rare a Show, would give Occasion to have his or her Legitimacy call"d in Question.