Peiresc. ly with Peter A. R. Bagarr, a most skilful antiquary, who was afterwards made master of the jewels to Henry IV.

The following year he went again to Avignon, to carry on his course of law under one Peter David: who being well skilled likewise in antiquities, was pleased to see Peiresc join this study to that of the law. But Ghibertus of Naples, auditor to Cardinal Aquaviva, fed his curiosity the most, in showing him some rarities, such as he had never seen before. Ghibertus also lent him Goltzius's Treatise upon Coins, and advised him to go into Italy, especially to Rome, where he would meet with curiosities to satisfy his most ardent wishes. According ly, his uncle having procured a proper governor, he and his brother set out upon that tour September 1599; and passing through Florence, Bononia, and Ferrara, when he had staid a few days at Venice, he fixed his residence at Padua, in order to complete his course of law. But once a quarter, going to Venice to get cash for bills of exchange, he took these opportunities of introducing himself to the most distinguished literati there; and was particularly caressed by F. Contarin, procurator of St Mark, who was possessed of a curious cabinet of medals, and other antiquities, without knowing the value of them. This was fully shown to him by Peiresc, who likewise explained the Greek inscriptions upon his medals, and the monumental stones. After a year's stay at Padua, he set out for Rome, and arrived there October 1600, in order to be in time for seeing the jubilee; to celebrate which, the Porta Sancta would be opened in the beginning of the next year. He passed six months in this city, viewing the numberless curiosities there, and in cultivating the friendship of Galileo, by whom he was much beloved.. This friendship led him to carry his researches into astronomy and natural philosophy; and he was present when Fabricius ab Aquapendente, out of a parcel of eggs upon which a hen was sitting, took one every day, to observe the gradual formation of the chick from first to last. From this time it was generally acknowledged, that he had taken the helm of learning into his hand, and began to guide the commonwealth of letters.

Having now spent almost three years in Italy, he began to prepare for his departure: and in the end of 1602, having packed up all the rarities, gems, &c. which he had procured, and put them into the road to Marseilles, he left Padua, and crossing the Alps of Geneva, went to Lyons; where receiving money he made a handsome present to his governor, who took the route of Paris. From Lyons he went to Montpelier, to improve himself in the law under Julius Parius. From Montpelier he dispatched more rarieties to his uncle, who sending for him home, he arrived at Aix in No vember; but, bringing Parius along with him, he obtained leave to return to Montpelier in a few days. He waited upon Parius back again, under whom he continued pursuing his law studies till the end of 1603, when he returned to Aix, at the earnest request of his uncle, who, having resigned to him his senatorial dignity, had ever since the beginning of the year laboured to get the king's patent. The degree of doctor of law was a necessary qualification for that dignity. Peiresc, therefore, having kept the usual exercise, took that degree Jan. 18. 1604, when the aforesaid patent was given in to the senate, and ordered to be recorded: yet Peiresc

procured leave not to be presently entered into the list Peiresc. of senators. The bent of his inclination was not so much to business as to advance arts and sciences, and to assist all the promoters of learning. For this purpose, he resolved to lead a single life; so that when his father had concluded a match for him with a respectable lady, he begged to be excused..

In 1605, he accompanied G.. Varius,. first president of the senate at Aix,, who was very fond of him, to Paris: whence, having visited every thing curious, he crossed the water, in company with the king's ambas sador, 1606, to England. Here he was very graciously received by King James I.; and having seen Ox-ford, and visited Camden, Sir Robert Cotton, Sir Henry Saville, and other learned men, he passed over to Holland; and after visiting the several towns and universities, with the literati in each, he went through Antwerp to Brussels, and thence back to Paris, to see the ceremony of the Dauphin's baptism; which being. solemnized August 24. he returned home in September 1606, being expected for the ordering of the family af-. fairs.

Presently after this, he purchased the barony of Rians; and at the solicitation of his uncle, having approved himself before that assembly, he was received a senator on the 1st of July 1607. January 1608 he lost his. uncle; and the following year, falling himself into a dangerous fever, recovered by eating musk-melons before supper, for which he had conceived a longing. He was ordered by his physician to eat them before his meals without bread, and to drink a glass of pure wine upon them. He continued this method all his life afterwards: and grew so fond of them, that, though he could abstain from any other meat as he listed, yet towards them he professed he was unable to master himself. He frequently experienced, that in the musk-melon season he was never troubled with the gravel. In 1618, having procured a faithful copy of " the Acts of the Monastery of Maren in Switzerland," he published a second edition of that work. As it was written in defence of the royal line of France against Theodoric Piespordius, who had attempted to prove the title of the Austrian family to the French crown by right of succession, he was, upon this publication, nominated the same year, by Louis XIII. abbot of Sancta Maria Aqui striensis. He stayed' in France till 1623; when, upon a message from his father, now grown old and sickly, he left Paris, where he had spent seven years and some months. He arrived at Aix in October; and not long after presented to the court a patent from the king, permitting him to continue in the function of his ancient dignity, and to exercise the office of a secular or lay person, notwithstanding that, being an abbot, he had assumed the character of a churchman. To this the court of parliament not assenting, decreed unanimously, that, being already admitted into the first rank, he should abide perpetually therein; not returning, as the custom of the court was, to the inferior auditory, wherein trials are usually had of criminal cases. In 1625, he buried his father, who had been long afflicted with the gout. In 1627, he prevailed with the archbishop of Aix to establish a post thence to Lyons, and so to Paris and all Europe; by which the correspondence constantly held with the literati everywhere was much facilitated. In 1629, he began to be much tormented with the

strangury

A

Pekin.

Peiresc strangury and hæmorrhoides; and in 1631, having completed the marriage of his nephew Claudius with Margaret Alresia, a noblewoman of the county of Avignon, he bestowed upon him the barony of Rianty, together with a grant of his senatorial dignity, only reserving the function to himself for three years. But the parliament not waiting his surrendry of it, he resented that affront so heinously, that he procured, in 1635, letters patent from the king to be restored, and to exercise the office for five years longer, which happened to be till his death for being seized, June 1637, with a fever that brought on a stoppage of urine, this put an end to his life on the 24th of that month, in his 57th

year.

The character of Peiresc may be summoned up in a few words. His person was of a middle size, and of a thin habit: his forehead large, and his eyes gray; a little hawk nosed; his cheeks tempered with red; the hair of his head yellow, as also his beard, which he used to wear long; his whole countenance bearing the marks of uncommon and rare courtesy and affability. In his diet he affected cleanliness, and in all things about him; but nothing superfluous or costly. His clothes were suitable to his dignity; yet he never wore silk. In like manner, the rest of his house was adorned according to his condition, and very well furnished; but he neglected his own chamber. Instead of tapestry, there hung the pictures of his chief friends and of fa-mous men, besides innumerable bundles of commentaries, transcripts, notes, collections from books, epistles, and such like papers. His bed was exceedingly plain, and his table continually loaded and covered with papers, books, letters, and other things; as also all the seats round about, and the greatest part of the floor. These were so many "Gassendi's evidences of the turn of his mind; Life of in respect to which, the writer of his euloge compares Peiresc in him to the Roman Atticus; and Bayle, considering his English, universal correspondence and general assistance to all the Lond. Jiterati in Europe, dashed it out luckily enough, when 1657. he called him "the attorney general of the literary republic." The works which he published are," Historia provincia Galliæ Narbonensis ;" "Nobilium ejusdem provinciæ familiarum Origines, et separatim Fabriciæ;" "Commentarii rerum omnium memoria dignarum sua ætate gestarum; "Liber de ludicris naturæ operibus;" "Mathematica et astronomica varia;" "Observationes mathematicæ;" "Epistolæ ad S. P. Urbanum VIII. cardinales Barberinos, &c. ;""Authores antiqui Græci et Latini de ponderibus et mensuris;" "Elogia et epitaphia ;"" Inscriptiones antique et novæ ;" " Genealogia domus Austriacæ;" Catalogus librorum biblioth. reg. ;""Poemata varia;" "Nummi Gallici, Saxonici, Britannici, &c. ;" "Linguæ orientales, Hebræa, Samaritana, Arabica, Egyptiaca, et Indices librorum harum linguarum ;' "Observationes in varios auctores." It is remarkable, that though Peiresc bought more books than any man of his time, yet his collection left was not large. The reason was, that as fast as he purchased, he kept continually making presents of them to such learned men as he knew they would be useful to.

66

PEKIN, the capital city of the empire of China, in Asia, where the emperor generally resides. It is situated in a very fertile plain, 20 leagues distant from the great wall. This name, which signifies the northern

court, is given to it, to distinguish it from another considerable city called Nanking, or the southern court. The emperor formerly resided in the latter; but the Tartars, a restless and warlike people, obliged this prince to remove his court to the northern provinces, that he might more effectually repel the incursions of those barbarians, by opposing to them a numerous militia which he generally keeps around his person. is an exact square, and divided into two parts; namely, that which contains the emperor's palace, which is in the new city, or, as it is called, the Tartars city, because it is inhabited by Tartars ever since they conquered this empire; the other, called the Old City, is inhabited by the Chinese. The city is surrounded by a brick wall rather less than thirty feet high, and extending round a circumference of 14 English miles. The buildings within, according to Mr Barrow, are so low as to be completely hidden by the wall. They are all constructed on the model of a tent, being supported by slight wooden pillars, and concealed by a dead brick wall to the street; their roofs alone appear above this enclosure, and being arranged in straight lines throughout the whole city, gives it very much the appearance of a vast encampment. With the exception of the four great streets which lead to the gates, the rest of the city consists of very narrow lanes, and every part of it is entirely without pavement, and filled with sand or dust. There are no aqueducts, and the well water is is generally nauseous. There are no drains; and all substances that may be used as manure, being kept in the house, the whole precincts are infected with an offensive odour. The buildings are generally mean, except one or two temples. The population of Pekin has been estimated at 2,000,000, but Sir George Staunton thinks it cannot be less than 3,000,000. The first coup d'oeil of the great streets is singular and striking. "The multitude of moveable workshops," says Mr Barof tinkers and barbers, coblers and blacksmiths; row, the tents and booths where tea and fruit, rice and other eatables, were exposed for sale, with the wares and merchandise arrayed before the doors, had contracted the spacious street to a narrow road in the middle, just wide enough for two of our little vehicles to pass each other. The cavalcade of officers and soldiers that preceded the embassy; the processions of men in office, attended by their numerous retinues, bearing umbrellas,, and flags, and painted lanterns, and a variety of strange insignia of their rank and station; different trains that were accompanying with lamentable cries corpses to their graves, and with squalling music, brides to their busbands; the troops of dromedaries laden with coals from Tartary, the wheelbarrows and handcarts stuffed with vegetables, occupied nearly the whole of this middle space in one continued line, leaving very little room for the cavalcade of the embassy to pass. All was in motion. The sides of the street were filled with an immense concourse of people buying and selling, and bartering their different commodities. The buzz and confused noises of this mixed multitude, proceeding from the loud bawling of those who were crying their wares, the wrangling of others, with every now and then a strange twanging noise like the jarring of a cracked Jews harp, the barber's signal made by his tweezers, the mirth and laughter that prevailed in every group, could scarcely be exceeded by the brokers

66

Pekin.

Grosier's Description

room. The soldiers in each of the guard-rooms are Pekin obliged to answer every time the centinels on duty

in the Bank rotunda, or the Jews and old women in Rosemary lane. Pedlars with their packs, and jugglers, and conjurers, fortune-tellers, mountebanks, quack-doctors, comedians and musicians, left no space unoccupied."

"People of distinction, says Grosier, oblige all their of China. dependents to follow them. A mandarin of the first rank is always accompanied in his walks by his whole tribunal; and, to augment his equipage, each of the inferior mandarins in his suit is generally attended by several domestics. The nobility of the court, and princes of the blood, never appear in public without being surrounded by a large body of cavalry; and, as their presence is required at the palace every day, their train alone would be sufficient to create confusion in the city. It is very singular, that in all this prodigious concourse no women are ever seen; hence we may judge how great the population of China must be, since the number of females in this country, as well as everywhere else, is superior to that of the other sex.

"As there is a continual influx of the riches and merchandize of the whole empire into this city, the number of strangers that resort hither is immense. They are carried in chairs, or ride on horseback; the latter is more common: but they are always attended by a guide, acquainted with the streets, and who knows the houses of the nobility and principal people of the city. They are also provided with a book, containing an account of the different quarters, squares, remarkable places, and of the residence of those in publice offices. In summer there are to be seen small temporary shops, where people are served with water cooled by means of ice; and one finds everywhere eating-houses, with refreshments of tea and fruits. Each kind of provision has a certain day and place appointed for its being exposed to sale.

"The governor of Pekin, who is a Mantchew Tartar, is styled Governor of the Nine Gates. His juris diction extends not only over the soldiers, but also over the people in every thing that concerns the police. No police can be more active; and it is surprising to see, among an infinite number of Tartars and Chinese mixed together, the greatest tranquillity prevail. It is rare, in a number of years, to hear of houses being robbed, or people assassinated. All the principal streets have guard rooms, and soldiers patrole night and day, each having a sabre hanging from his girdle, and a whip in his hand, to correct, without distinction, those who excite quarrels or cause disorder. The lanes are guarded in the same manner; and have latticed gates, .which do not prevent those from being seen who walk in them they are always kept shut during the night, and seldom opened even to those who are known; if they are, the person to whom this indulgence is granted, must carry a lanthorn, and give a sufficient reason for his going out. In the evening, as soon as the soldiers are wanted to their quarters by beat of drum, two centinels go and come from one guard-room to another, making a continual noise with a kind of castanet, to show that they are not asleep. They permit no one to walk abroad in the night-time. They even examine those whom the emperor despatches on business; and if their reply gives the least cause of suspicion, they have a right to convey them to the guard

call out.

"It is by these wise regulations, observed with the greatest strictness, that peace, silence, and safety reign throughout the whole city. The governor is also obliged to go the round; and the officers stationed on the walls, and in the towers over the gates (in which are kept large kettle-drums that are beat every time the guard is relieved), are continually dispatching subalterns to examine the quarters belonging to the gates. where they are posted. The least neglect is punished. next morning, and the officer who was on guard is cashiered. The support of this police costs the emperor a great deal; for part of the soldiers we have: mentioned are maintained for this purpose only. They are all infantry, and their pay is generally very high. Al

The walls of the emperor's palace, including that: and the gardens, are about two miles in length. though (says Grosier) the Chinese architecture has no resemblance to that of Europe, the imperial palace of Pekin does not fail to strike beholders by its extent,grandeur, and the regular disposition of its apartments, and by the singular structure of its pavilion-roofs, ornamented at each corner with a carved plat-band, the lower extremity of which is turned upwards. These roofs are covered with varnished tiles of so beautiful a yellow colour, that at a distance, they make as splendid an appearance as if they were gilded. Below the upper. roof there is another of equal brilliancy, which hangs sloping from the wall, supported by a great number of beams, daubed over with green varnish, and interspersed with gilt figures. The second roof, with the projection of the first, forms a kind of crown to the whole edifice. The palace is a small distance from the south gate of the Tartar city. The entrance to it is through a spacious court, to which there is a descent by a marble staircase, ornamented with two large copper lions, and a balustrade of white marble. This balustrade runs in the form of a horse shoe, along the banks of the rivulet, that winds across the palace with a serpentine course, the bridges over which are of marble. At the bottom of this first court arises a façade with three doors: that in the middle is for the emperor only; the mandarins and nobles pass through those on each side. These doors conduct to a second court, which is the largest of the palace it is about 300 feet in length, and 50 in breadth. An immense gallery runs round it, in which are magazines, containing rich effects, which belong to the emperor as his private property; for the public treasure is entrusted to a sovereign tribunal called Houpou. The first of these magazines is filled with plate and vessels of different metals; the second contains the finest kinds of furs; the third, dresses lined with sable, ermine, minever, and foxes skins, which the emperor sometimes gives in presents to his officers; the fourth is the depository of jewels, pieces of curious marble, and pearls fished up in Tartary; the fifth, consisting of two stories, is full of-wardrobes and trunks, which contain the silk stuffs used by the emperor and his family; the rest are filled with bows, arrows, and other. pieces of armour taken from the enemy or presented by different princes.

"The royal hall, called Tai-hotien, or the Hall of the