Passing two or three days here," (the Castle of Merlow,) "it happened one evening, that a daughter of the dutchess" (of Montmorency), "of about ten or eleven years of age, going one evening from the castle to walk in the meadows, myself with divers French gentlemen attended her, and some gentlewomen that were with her. This young lady, wearing a knot of ribband on her head, a French chevalier took it suddenly, and

with the point thereof in the body; and he that can do this handsomely is sure to overcome his adversary, it being impossible to bring his sword about enough to defend himself, or offend the assailant. And to get this advantage, (which they call in French, gagner la crouppe,) nothing is so useful as to make a horse to go only sideward, till his adversary be past him; since he will, by this means, avoid his adversary's blow or thrust, and on a sudden get on the left hand of his adversary, in the manner I formerly related.

But of this art let Labrone and Plurinel be read, who are excellent masters of the art; of whom, I must confess, I learned much; though, to speak ingenuously, my breaking two or three colts, and teaching them afterwards those airs of which they were most capable, taught me both what I was to do, and made me see mine errors, more than all their precepts."-Ib. 48.

Monsieur,

fastened it to his hatband; the young lady, offended herewith, demands her ribband, but he refusing to restore it, the young lady addressing herself to me, says, I pray get my ribband from that gentleman.' Hereupon, going towards him, I courteously, with my hat in my hand, desired him to do me the honour, that I may deliver the lady her ribband, or bouquet, again; but he roughly answering me, Do you think I will give it you, when I have refused it to her?' I replied, Nay, then, Sir, I will make you restore it by force.' Whereupon, putting on my hat, and reaching at his, he, to save himself, ran away, and after a long course in the meadow, finding that I had almost overtook him, he turned short, and running to the lady, was about to put the ribband on her hand, when I, seizing upon his arm, said to the young lady, 'It was I that gave it.' • Pardon me,' says she, it is he that gives it me.' I said then, Madam, I will not contradict you; but if he dare say that I did not constrain him to give it, I will fight with him.' The French gentleman answered nothing thereunto for the present;

and so conducted the young lady again to the castle. The next day I desired Mr. Aurelian Townsend to tell the French cavalier, that either he must confess that I constrained him to restore the ribband, or fight with me. But the gentleman, seeing him unwilling to accept of this challenge, went out from the place; whereupon I following him, some of the gentlemen that belonged to the Constable taking notice hereof, acquainted him therewith; who, sending for the French cavalier, checked him well for his sauciness in taking away the ribband from his grandchild, and afterwards bade him depart his house; and this was all that I ever heard of the gentleman; with whom I proceeded in that matter, because I thought myself obliged thereunto by the oath taken when I was made Knight of the Bath.”*

* This oath is one remnant of a superstitious and romantic age, which an age, calling itself enlightened, still retains. The solemn service at the investiture of knights, which has not the least connection with any thing holy, is a piece of the same profane pageantry. The oath being no longer supposed to bind, it is a str nge mockery to invoke Heaven on so trifling an occasion. It would be more strange, indeed, if every

"The third that I questioned in this kind: was a Scotch gentleman, who, taking a ribband in the like manner from Mrs. Middleton, a maid of honour, as was done from the young lady above-mentioned, in a back room behind Queen Anne's lodgings at Greenwich, she likewise desired me to get her the said ribband. I repaired, as formerly, to him in a courteous manner, to demand it; but he refusing, as the French cavalier did, I caught him by the neck, and had almost thrown him down, when company came in and parted us. I offered, likewise, to fight with this gentleman, and came to the place appointed by Hyde-Park; but this, also, was interrupted, by order of the lords of the council, and I never heard more of him.”*

knight, like the too conscientious Lord Herbert, thought himself bound to cut a man's throat every time a miss lost her top-knot.-Herbert's Life, p. 60.

* Lord Herbert's Life, page 62. The clergy, both of our own country and France, have ever been strenuous remonstrants, in their sermons and publications, against duelling; but with success very disproportioned to their earnestness. The war between religion

The duel to which the following letter relates is of a different complexion to any of Lord Herbert's rencounters. It took place between Lord Bruce and Sir Edward Sackville (afterwards Baron of Kinross), in 1613; and appears to have been one of the most bloody recorded in history. It terminated in the death of Lord Bruce; who was actuated by an unquenchable thirst of

revenge.

The

and reason, and human passion, will generally terminate in the triumph of the latter. Though the understanding may be convinced, the flaming carnal principle will still be unquenched. In Jeremy Taylor's Life of Christ, he has answered the duellist's argument, drawn from the force of human passions, with equal force and simplicity. "Flesh and blood cannot bear the insult," says the duellist. "True," replies the bishop; "but recollect, that flesh and blood shall not see the kingdom of God." Sometimes, however, the pulpit exhortation of a good divine was not without its influence on the perverse spirit of these men of honour, as they have been erroneously called. Bayle tells us, he had heard that Michael le Faucheur (in the seventeenth century) preached one day with so much eloquence against duelling, that the Marshal de la Force, who was present at the sermon, protested, before some men of the sword, that if a challenge were sent him, he would not accept it. ---Dict. vol. iii. page 18.