he should visit us at the Holy City. We did not go direct to
the Holy City, but bent our course to two or three other cities which the
family were desirous of seeing; but as nothing occurred to us in these
places of any particular interest, I shall take the liberty of passing
them by in silence. At length we arrived at the Eternal City: an immense
city it was, looking as if it had stood for a long time, and would stand
for a long time still; compared with it, London would look like a mere
assemblage of bee-skeps; however, give me the bee-skeps with their merry
hum and bustle, and life and honey, rather than that huge town, which
looked like a sepulchre, where there was no life, no busy hum, no bees,
but a scanty sallow population, intermixed with black priests, white
priests, grey priests; and though I don't say there was no honey in the
place, for I believe there was, I am ready to take my Bible oath that it
was not made there, and that the priests kept it all for themselves."

CHAPTER XCIX

A Cloister--Half English--New Acquaintance--Mixed Liquors--Turning
Papist--Purposes of Charity--Foreign Religion--Melancholy--Elbowing and
Pushing--Outlandish Sight--The Figure--I Don't Care for You--Merry
Andrews--One Good--Religion of My Country--Fellow of Spirit--A
Dispute--The Next Morning--Female Doll--Proper Dignity--Fetish Country.

"The day after our arrival," continued the postillion, "I was sent, under
the guidance of a lackey of the place, with a letter, which the priest,
when he left, had given us for a friend of his in the Eternal City. We
went to a large house, and on ringing were admitted by a porter into a
cloister, where I saw some ill-looking, shabby young fellows walking
about, who spoke English to one another. To one of these the porter
delivered the letter, and the young fellow going away, presently returned
and told me to follow him; he led me into a large room, where, behind a
table, on which were various papers, and a thing which they call, in that
country, a crucifix, sat a man in a kind of priestly dress. The lad
having opened the door for me, shut it behind me, and went away. The man
behind the table was so engaged in reading the letter which I had
brought, that at first he took no notice of me; he had red hair, a kind
of half-English countenance, and was seemingly about five-and-thirty.
After a little time he laid the letter down, appeared to consider a
moment, and then opened his mouth w