fhort, the Villages all around were in a flame, and the Streets of Narva were filled with Country Women, who fate under the Eves of Houses crying, with their Children and Houfhold Goods by them, their Husbands and Brothers being all in Arms, pursuant to the King's Placart, which was fixed up in the Market-place. Our Ship carried off about an hundred of these Women and Children, with their Beds, Pots, Spits, &c. landing them at Revel: And one of our Sailors married one of these Women there, though he had never seen her before the came on board us, and was to stay but two or three days with her after Marriage; he was either a Dutchman or Lubecker. I never reflect upon this difmal (horrid) fcene, without calling to mind Milton, Book 11. line 638.

He look'd, and faw wide Territory Spread
Before him, Torens and Rural Works between.
Cities of Men with lofty Gates and Tow'rs,
Concourfe in Arms, fierce Faces threat'ning War,
Giants of mighty Bone and bold Emprize ;
Part weild their Arms, part curb the foaming
Steed

Single or in Array of Battle rang'd,
Both Horfe and Foot, nor idly muft'ring stood;
One way a Band felect from Forage drives
A herd of Beeves, fair Oxen and fair Kine

From

From a fat Meadow ground; or fleecy Flock,
Ewes and their bleating Lambs, over the plain
Their booty; fcarce with life the Shepherds fly,
But call in aid, which makes a bloody fray,
With cruel tournament the Squadrons joyn;
Where Cattle paftur'd late, now scatter'd lyes
With Carcaffes and Arms the enfanguin'd Field
Deferted: Others to a City ftrong

Lay fiege, encamp'd; by Battery, Scale, and Mine,
Alfaulting; others from the Wall defend
With Dart and fav'lin, Stones, and fulph'rous
Fire;

On each hand flaughter and gigantick deeds.
In other part the fcepter'd Heralds call
To council in the City Gates: Anon

Grey-headed Men and grave, with Warriours mix'd,

Affemble, and Harangues are heard, but foon In factious oppofition, till at laft

Of middle age one rifing, eminent

In wife deport, spake much of Right and Wrong,
Of Justice, of Religion, Truth and Peace,
And Judgment from above: Him old and young
Exploded, and had feiz'd with violent hands
Had not a Cloud descending snatch'd him thence
Unfeen amid the throng; fo violence
Proceeded, and Oppreffion, and Sword Law
Through all the Plain, and refuge none was

found.

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14.We

14. We got fafe the next day to Revel, (formerly a Hanfe Town,) another Port on the fame fide of the Baltick Sea, and found it confiderably larger than Narva. It was then full of Soldiers, and the young King of Sweden's Royal Standard was most pompously displayed in the Marketplace; they being in weekly expectation of his Perfon, and General Officers, with Forces numerous enough to raise the Siege of Narva: And indeed the event did foon after make it appear, that their Hopes, though very fanguine, were yet well grounded; For the Vant-guard of his Army alone, beat the whole Muscovite one, killing and taking Prisoners, most of the Generals, inferior Officers, and common Soldiers too.

15. Revel Port was very little better than an ordinary open Bay then: But I have been informed, that after it fell into the hands of the Czar Peter the Great, he fixed a Wooden Pier upon a Sand-bank in the Sea, that would render the Harbour fafe by breaking the Waves. This Pier confifted of the longest and largest Pine-trees joined together in the strongest manner, and was fo contrived, that if any part of the Work failed, the defect might be amended without much damage to the reft. The Sea there freezes violently a good way from the Shore; and as foon as the Ice was thick enough (i. e. when it was froze to the bottom) it was fet up and joined well toge

ther

ther upon the Ice, where it stood erect all Winter; and there coming on a gradual thaw next Spring, the whole Fabrick funk as gradually down, with little or no detriment. The Sea is there frozen as far as Eye can reach.

16. I confulted the Author of the Life of Peter the Great, about this Pier, who does not fo much as once mention it; neither does Captain Perry, though he was fo long Engineer to him, and of course must have a hand in his great Projects of this kind: However, the latter gives us an account of the Building of Cronflot Castle, near Petersburgh, which was founded in much the fame manner, viz. It ftands on a Sand-bank in the midst of the Sea, about a Cannon-fhot from the Island of Retufari, and a mile from the Coast of Ingria; The Foundation of it was laid in Winter, upon the Ice, with Boxes made of strong Timber, and filled with Stone, on which the rest was afterwards built with Timber filled up with Earth. This Caftle is round, with three Galleries about it, above each other, and well furnished with Cannon.

17. We did not stay above two or three days at Revel, before we set fail on our return to Copenhagen, where we faw an English Man of War riding at Anchor before the Mouth of the fine Harbour, on purpose to fee the Danish Fleet unrigged and laid up for the year: She was one of the eighteen

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eighteen mentioned in paragraph the fixth, and who were commiffioned by King William, to prevent the Danes from attacking Sweden at so favourable a juncture, as when Livonia was invaded by the Muscovite. I could with heartily, that the fame care had been taken fince, to stop the Progrefs of the Rufian Arms: For though their prefent Empress is in ftrict Alliance with us; yet I dread the confequences of their future Power. We did not touch again at Elfinore, but continued our Voyage without stopping, till we caft Anchor in Yarmouth Road.

18. N. B. The Straits between Schonen, and Denmark are froze over every Winter, and a great fingularity of the Baltick Sea, as well as of the Mediteranean, is, That there is very little if any Tide at all in it: And as the Water is not disturbed and muddied thereby, so you may distinctly see a Stone which is no bigger than my Head lay at the bottom, in fix or feven fathom of Water. Give me leave to add, That there is the self fame transparency in the Sea, between Nevis and the Salt-pond Hills in Saint Chriftopher's, where the Tides are scarce perceptible; and farther still, that it is matter of wonder to me, that the Adriatick Sea fhould have very regular Tides, when the Mediteranean has none, according to the common opinion, which opinion I think justly questionable.

Good