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the street where he had formerly refided; he found it, but no trace of his houfe remained; one of the public edifices occupied the fpot where it had ftood.

10. He now faw nothing which brought to his recollection, either that particular quarter, the city itself, or the objects with which he was formerly acquainted. The houses of his nearest neighbors, which were fresh in his memory, had affumed a new appearance.

II. In vain were his looks directed to all the objects around him; he could difcover nothing of which he had the finallest remembrance, Terrified, he stopped and fetchcd a deep figh. To him what did it import, that the city was peopled with living creatures? None of them were alive to him; he was unknown to all the world, and he knew nobody; and whilst he wept, he regretted his dungeon.

12. At the name of the Baftile, which he often pronounced and even claimed as an asylum, and the fight of his clothes which marked his former age, the crowd gathered around him; curiofity, blended with pity, excited their attention. The most aged asked him many questions, but had no remembrance of the circumftances which he recapitulated.

13. At length, accident brought to his way an ancient domeftic, now a fuperannuated porter, who, confined to his lodge for fifteen years, had barely fufficient ftrength to open the gate. Even he did not know the mafter he had served; but informed him that grief and misfortune had brought his wife to the grave thirty years before; that his children were gone abroad to distant climes, and that of all his relations and friends, none now remained.

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This recital was made with the indifference which people difcover for events long paffed and almost forgotten. The miferable man groaned, and groaned alone. The crowd around, offering only unknown features to his view, made him feel the excefs of his calamities even more than he would have done in the dreadful folitude which he had left.

15. Overcome with forrow, he prefented himself before the minifter, to whofe Humanity he owed that liberty which was now a burden to him. Bowing down, he faid, "Retore me again to that prifon from which you have taken me. I cannot furvive the lofs of my nearest relations; of my

friends;

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friends; and in one word, of a whole generation. Is it poffible in the fame moment to be informed of this univerfal deftruction and not to wifh for death?

16. "This general mortality, which to others comes flowly and by degrees, has to me been inftantaneous, the operation of a moment. Whilft fecluded from fociety, I lived with myfelf only; but here I can neither live with myself, nor with this new race, to whom my anguish and defpair appear only as a dream."

17. The minifter was melted; he caused the old domeftic to attend this unfortunate perfon, as only he could talk to him of his family.

18. This difcourfe was the fingle confolation which he received: for he fhunned intercourfe with the new race, born fince he had been exiled from the world; and he paffed his time in the midst of Paris in the fame folitude as he had done whilst confined in a dungeon for almost half a century.

19. But the chagrin and mortification of meeting no perfon who could fay to him, "We were formerly known to each other," foon put an end to his existence.

ACCOUNT OF COLUMBUS.

To Chriffopher Columbus, a native of Ge

noa, is defervedly afcribed the first discovery of America: an event, which opened to mankind a new region of science, commerce, and enterprise; and stamped with im mortality the name of its projector.

2. He was born in the year 1447. He early fhowed a capacity and inclination for a fea-faring life, and received an education which qualified him to purfue it. At the age of fourteen, he went to fea, and began his career on that element, where he was to perform exploits, which should aftonish mankind.

3. He made a variety of voyages to almoft every part of the globe, with which any intercourfe was then carried on by fea; and became one of the most skilful navigators in Europe. But his active and enterprising genius would

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not fuffer him to reft in the decifions, and tamely follow the track of his predeceffors.

4. It was the great object in view at this time in Eu rope, to find out a paffage by fea to the Eaft-Indies. The Portuguefe, among whom he now refided, fought a new route to thefe defirable regions, by failing round the fouthern extremity of Africa.

5. They had confumed half a century in making various attempts, and had advanced no further on the western thore of Africa than just to cross the equator, when Colum bus conceived his great defign of finding India in the west. The fpherical figure of the earth, which he understood, made it evident to him, that Europe, Afia, and Africa, formed but a fmall portion of the globe.

6. It was an impeachment of the wifdom and beneficence of the Author of nature, to fuppofe that the vast space, yet unexplored, was a wafte, unprofitable ocean; and it appeared neceffary, that there fhould be another continent in the weft to counterpoife the immenfe quantity of land, which was known to be in the east.

7. In the fea, near the western iflands, pieces of carved wood, and large joints of cane had been discovered ; and branches of pine trees, and the bodies of two men, with features different from the Europeans, had been found on the fhores of those islands after a courfe of wefterly winds.

8. Thefe reafonings and facts, with fome others, convinced Columbus that it was- poffible to find the defired land by failing in a wefterly direction. He had a genius of that kind, which makes ufe of reafoning only as an excitement to action. No fooner was he fatisfied of the truth of his fyftem, than he was anxious to bring it to the teft of experiment; and fet out on a voyage of difcovery.

9. His first step was to fecure the patronage of fome of the confidcrable powers of Europe, capable of undertaking fuch an enterprifc. Excited by the love of his country, he laid his fcheme before the Senate of Genca, offering to fail under their banners. But they, ignorant of the principles on which it was formed, rejected it as the dream of a vifionary projector.

10. He next applied to John II. king of Portugal. But he being deeply engaged in profecuting difcoveries along the

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coaft of Africa, was not inclined to encourage the undertaking of Columbus; yet he meanly fought to rob him of the glory and advantages of his fcheme, by privately dif patching a fhip to make a difcovery in the west.

II. When Columbus was acquainted with this perfidious tranfaction, he quitted the kingdom with indignation, and landed in Spain in 1484. Here, after feven years painful folicitation at court, and furmounting every obftacle, which ignorance, timidity, jealoufy, and avarice could lay before him, he obtained his request; and Ferdinand and Ifabella, who then reigned together, agreed to be patrons of his enterprife.

12. It was ftipulated between him and them, that he fhould be admiral in all thofe iflands and continents he fhould difcover, and have the office hereditary in his family; that he fhould be viceroy of the fame for life, and enjoy a tenth of all the merchandize which fhould be found.

13. Three fmall veffels were fitted out and victualled for twelve months, furnished with ninety men, and placed under his command. With this little fleet he fet fail from Palos on Friday the 3d of August, 1492; and taking a wefterly courfe, boldly ventured into the unknown ocean.

14. He foon found that he had unforfeen hardships and difficulties to encounter from the inexperience and fears of his men. Το go directly from home into a boundless ocean, far from any hope of relief, if any accident fhould befal them, and where no friendly port nor human being, were known to exift, filled the boldeft feamen with apprehenfion.

15. What greatly added to their terror, was a new and extraordinary phenomenon, which occurred on the 14th of September. The magnetic needle varied from the pole, and as they advanced, the variation increased. Nature feemed to be changed; and their only guide through the trackless waters, to prove unfaithful.

16. After twenty days, the impatient failors began to talk of throwing their commander into the fea, and of returning home. Their murmurs reached his ears; but his fertile mind fuggefted an expedient in every extremity. By foothing, flattery, and artifice; by inventing reafons for

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every uncommon appearance, and deceiving them in the fhip's reckoning, he kept them on fixteen days longer.

17. On the night of the 11th of October, he himself difcovered a light, which appeared to move; and the next morning gave them the joyful fight of land. It proved to be the ifland Guanahana, one of the cluster, called BahaThus in the space of thirty fix days, and the fortyfifth- year of his age. Columbus completed a voyage, which he had spent twenty years in projecting; which opened to. the Europeans a new world, and made the name of Columbus immortal.

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18. With tears of joy and tranfports of congratulation, the crews of the fhips fang a hymn of thankfgiving to God. After touching at feveral iflands, and leaving a fmall colony, he returned to Spain. On his return he was overtaken by a ftorm, which became fo furious that his deftruction feemed inevitable. The crews abandoned themselves to defpair,. and expected every moment to be swallowed up in the waves. 19. In this extremity, he gave an admirable proof of his, calmnefs and forefight. He wrote a fhort account of his voyage on parchment, inclosed it in a cake of wax, which he put into a tight cafk, and threw into the fea, in hopes that fome fortunate accident would preferve a depofit of fo. much importance to the world. The ftorm however fubfided, and he arrived at Palos in Spain on the 15th of March, 1493.

20. The populace received him with acclamations; and the King and Queen, no less astonished than delighted with: his fuccefs, had him conducted to court with a pomp fuitable to the event, which added fuch distinguished luftre to their reign. His family was ennobled ; and his former privileges and offices confirmed to him.

21. He foon failed on a fecond expedition to the new world, with a fleet of feventeen fhips, having on board 1500 people, and all things neceffary for eftablishing plantations. After difcovering many iflands of the Weft-Indies, and fubmitting to every labor and vexation in attempting to fettle his colony, he returned to Spain in 1498, to counteract the intrigues and efforts of his enemies in the Spanish court. 22. He made two more voyages, in which he touched at most parts of the Weft Indies, difeovered the continent, aud

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