were actually in the convent! We knew not how they had obtained an entrance, but were thunderstruck at the fact, for many of our men were separated in various parts of the building, and were in danger of being cut off before they could join us. Our danger was very great, and nothing but the most cool and determined courage could now save our little band; our consciousness of our imminent danger made us act with promptitude, and so we retreated into what we conceived was the securest portion of the building. As some of our men were surprised by the Spaniards, and contested the ground with them, they succeeded considerably in retarding the movements of the enemy. We were unfortunate, however, in losing five gallant fellows in this way; they fell bravely defending a narrow passage by which the Spaniards were approaching us; they succeeded, notwithstanding, in procuring sufficient time for the rest of us to collect and fall back, through a gallery, to a large room, where, we thought, from its peculiar position, we could make our best defence.

This room was long and spacious: it was the apartment used as a refectory where the whole body of the gentle inmates of the establishment assembled, and which they often used also as a place for exercise in the rainy months. It was now to become the scene of most mortal strife. It was amply spacious for double our numbers to have full and unfettered use of our weapons, and here, as our last retreat, we prepared ourselves for a manly and desperate resistance. This apartment could not be approached unless through a long and narrow gallery which was attached to the exterior of the building. At the end of this gallery was the door into the refectory, and along this gallery it was absolutely necessary for our opponents to approach, so that our position was one in which the few could resist the many with advantage. We hastily removed all the furniture of our apartment into this place, in order to act in the double capacity of a temporary barricade, and a means of contracting still more the passage by which alone the Spaniards could have access to us. All this we succeeded in effecting before the morning, and we anticipated an attack as soon as day-light should enable our assailants VOL. II.

to do so; it was therefore, as may be readily believed, with some excitement we heard a commotion throughout the convent immediately before day-break. Every individual was in an instant examining his weapons, to ascertain that they were in proper order, and all seemed, by their high spirits, to be prepared for a desperate struggle; and, of all men breathing, they were, perhaps, the best suited for the closehanded conflict which they were anticipating. After a short space of intense anxiety and excitement, we were able to ascertain that the commotion was among the religious of the convent, and that all our alarm was created by the fair nuns attending their morning devotions and exercises, rather than by the ungentle Spaniards for whose throats we were preparing our weapons. This discovery, as may well be supposed, caused some merriment among us.

They did not, however, keep us much longer in suspense, for shortly after day had fully shone into our fatal apartment, we could perceive that our assailants had commenced their operations, such as they were, in the gallery, and were flinging the furniture, we had placed in it, over the railing into the court below. By these means they reached our door at the end of the gallery, and proceeded to burst it in. I shall never forget the scene at this moment. I was, as may well be imagined, somewhat excited as we heard them effecting their work of demolition, and then bursting the doors of our apartment; but I was perfectly col lected throughout indeed it is still vividly in my recollection, that just as the last dash was made, I stood narrowly observing our little party, and the thoughts that then passed through my mind are yet freshly impressed on my memory. I was standing with ten men at one side of the door, and Calcraft with ten men at the other side, so that no man could enter the room without running the gauntlet of all our bayonets. There we stood, resolved to defend the pass to the last, and then with our eyes fixed on the door, we observed the most profound silence. Seyton stood, with the remainder of our men, fronting the entrance, as cool and collected as I have ever seen him, when drilling the men on the deck of the Dolphin. There he stood, with

4 A

his cutlass in one hand, and his pistol in the other, and his eye fixed on the door, and the only charge he gave us was, that we should act with steadiness and coolness; there could not possibly be a body of men, who, for their number, were better suited for the work that was before them-they were always habituated to such close-handed conflicts in boarding the many vessels they had captured at sea, and being now in high spirits, and confident from former invariable success, they stood welcoming the struggle which commenced on the dashing in of the door.

The moment the door gave way, which it did with a tremendous crash,a powerful looking fellow dashed in, armed with a murderous iron crow-bar, but the gallant fellow dropped in the instant, for he received a pistol-shot right in the forehead from Calcraft, and he fell dead on the spot; they all rushed after him into the door-way, and the foremost of them fell on the threshold, being literally impelled on our bayonets, and as their bodies lay on the ground, and as the Spaniards were pushing on from behind those who were before them, in the hope of overpowering us by numbers, the foremost of them tripped on the bodies and fell, and were instantly bayonetted by our men, so that in less than one minute from the dashing in of the door, the entrance which was very narrow was blocked up by the dead bodies of our assailants. This, however, was not known to those who were far behind, and they therefore still pushed forward till they got so crowded and confused at the doorway as to be unable to do anything with effect. At this moment Seyton, who had stood hitherto cooly looking on at our work, as if watching for his time, sprung forward and laying hold on one of the dead bodies, that choked the entrance, dragged it into the apartment-his example was at once followed by us, so that the entrance could be passed immediately; he had observed that the assailants were now so crowded in the narrow gallery, that they could not possibly use their weapons with effect, and he therefore dashed at them himself, and thus, in one instant, we, who had been the assailed, became the assailants in our turn. The work was horrific; crowded and pressed together, and unable to use their arms, they were utterly powerless and unresisting; it was

literal butchering, for they could not resist us, and they either fell upon the spot without a blow in their defence, or flung themselves over the railings of the gallery into the court-yard below; it was a horrible scene, and it scarcely occupied two minutes when the whole gallery was cleared of our assailants; the greater portion of them fell back upon the various passages through the body of the convent, and so passed our reeking weapons, for we were too few to follow, or hope to contend with such numbers, except in some confined place like this gallery. Many were the gallant young fellows they left all gashed and mutilated in this fatal spot, while we were able to congratulate ourselves on returning into our apartment on finding that we had not lost a single man in this desperate ren

contre.

All this took place early in the morning, and, for the remainder of the day, they did not attempt the renewal of the attack, but, as evening came on, we observed that they were very active in their movements, and we therefore boded some new attempt during the night, or perhaps on the following morning; meantime an incident occurred of a very unexpected and singular nature that completely altered our plans; it had scarcely become dark when one of the nuns appeared at the door of our room, and communicated the fact, that the Spaniards were about to undermine the floor of our apartment by removing the walls on which the ends of the timbers rested, that they were engaged at this work already, and there was no possibility of our escaping a merciless destruction unless by immediate flight in the darkness and confusion of the night, as it was their intention to complete this design before morning. On communicating this very important intelligence, she asked for Calcraft and me by name, and withdrew with us a little way along the gallery to a door leading into a small room; here we found my gentle friends, Martha De Vega, and another of the nuns; it is unnecessary to state all that passed at this singular meeting, but it ended by our pledging our honour to protect her, and her sister, and five other novices and nuns, who had resolved to fly from the convent and to take that opportunity of doing so; and, as they desired to join their

respective families, or to settle in particular places, we were to secure the co-operation of Seyton and our whole party; they then hastily communicated the plans by which their flight and our escape were to be accomplished together.

In a few minutes one of them returned, and led us all, as silently as possible, into the small room off the gallery, and thence through several apartments and passages till we found ourselves in the little chapel of the convent, where the other gentle fugitives were waiting for us; we then entered a small door and went through a long underground passage that opened in a dark shrubbery very near the house in which the six confessors lived. On emerging into the open air, we exchanged a few hasty words of mutual congratulation, and then hastened our steps to the mountains; we did not pause a moment, for our fair companions threw no obstacles in the way of a most rapid flight, so that we

reached our next post before day-light was well shining on the mountains. We had here no less than eight hundred men, and were in the immediate vicinity of our main force ;-thus our escape was completed.

The story of our escape was soon circulated through the army, and it need scarcely be added, that we were fully enabled to redeem our pledge to our gentle fugitives. Isabel De Vega married one of our officers, and two other novices followed her example by wedding, one of them, a merchant, and the other, a person possessed of some property, who had lately joined the army as a volunteer. Poor Martha De Vega did not leave her sister for some time, and having gradually declined every day, we buried her within three months of the night of our escape; the other nuns proceeded in a merchantman to the United States, and I never learned their fate. RENE.

We were pretty well tired when we arrived at our hotel, and took our ease until a late hour next morning; when having breakfasted, we set off to see a collection of pictures, belonging to a private gentleman, of the euphonious appellation "Van Laucker," who liberally opens his house to all respectable strangers, affording free ingress to his good paintings. Being somewhat of an artist himself, he has had taste to guide him in his purchases, and accordingly his catalogue affords no mean show of famous names. It would be useless to mention such as pleased us, as the collection is little known to our countrymen. The best we shall merely mention :- -A Lion attacking a Horseman, by Rubens; which is one of the finest paintings, in colouring and expression, that I had seen. There were plenty by Wouvermans, with a white horse of course in each. Some very good by Cuyp; but we must not pass over a "Dead Game" by Weemint, which absolutely required to be touched to prove that it was a painting. Even with a powerful glass, the deception was perfect. It would be endless to enumerate all; we shall therefore drag you with us to the "Museum." The entrance to this collection is through a well laid out garden, with statues, amongst which is the tomb of Isabella of Burgundy, who, jumping into some canal to save her dog, went to the bottom with it in her arms; both are here represented in marble. The first rooms contain the first attempt at painting in Holland and Flanders, chiefly in water colours. These are of sacred subjects, and are remarkable for their great antiquity, but especially to be observed for the total defiance of all rules of perspective here evinced. One, of the procession to Calvary, particularly amused us. The buildings and background essentially Dutch-the city of Jerusalem a fac-simile of Antwerp-every house and church-steeple crowned with crosses-the Roman soldiers dressed as Flemings, and Simon the Cyrenian as a beer-drinking Belgian, with breeches open at the knees,

rigged out aloft with a round jacket and rounder corporation ;-the effect of the whole being most ludicrous. This was painted in 1551, by Pierre Brangel. There were some good paintings by Quintyn Metsys-of whom more anon. You may recollect the strictures of Sir Joshua Reynolds on these. One is the " Martyrdom of St. John," in a cauldron of boiling oil.— Concerning this Sir Joshua says, "that the figure of St. John seems to be starved;" and he is right, the figure is unmeaningly collapsed. His remark on the savage features of the two men who feed the fire is also just, for they wear a preternatural and diabolical fury and distortion, which appears out of the way and foolish. We might object, too, to the placid, nay pleasing expression of the saint's face-as if he were taking a bath, at 98°, instead of boiling in such a horrible manner.We may say here, once for all, that in almost all the " Martyrdoms,"-and they are many,-the painter gives an expression of pleasure rather than pain. This may be in accordance to the received accounts of their deaths in their published "Lives;" but it seems to us that were "martyrdom" thus easy and painless, it would not be counted worthy of its high estimation. The "noble army" appear to us to have earned their crown of rewards, by triumphing, to the last, over the pains of death in all their horrible variety. Whether the divine peace of soul which all good men receive at their dying moments be able to shed such placid smiles over the countenance of the body, then being consumed by hideous tortures, is a question on which we shall not enter; however, we think not. Another, and to our minds, a better picture, is "the presenting the head of the Baptist to Herodius." In this painting, the expression of satisfied revenge is well mingled with a natural feminine disgust at such a bloody sight. We liked this more than its companion, "the St. John." One other picture we may mention, out of this vast collection, more on account of a legendary

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tale connected with it, than any very extraordinary merit of its own. It is the Fall of the Angels," by Franz Floris. Here are the bodies of men joined to swine's snouts, eagle's beaks, &c. with terminations of fishes, serpents, birds of Paradise-very appropriate and such other grotesque bizarraries. On the thigh of one devil is a beautifully painted bee, whereon my story hangs. This Floris had a daughter, well-looking and virtuous, and she had an eye, which eye she cast on a certain blacksmith of Antwerp, by name Metsys, and at once lighted a fire in his heart, which blown by the bellows of love, quickly rivalled his professional blaze in his forge. But the papa Floris would not hear of such a match for his child, and his dutiful child vowed she would have none other than her man of metal; at which the painter stormed and raved, but all in vain. Things went on thus, and at last old Floris told the loving smith that when he could paint as well as himself, he should have his daughter. What cannot love do! He in this case made strange metamorphosis. The anvil grew up into the easel-the hammer and pincers took the form of pencils-his cooling trough subsided into a pallet-and the red hot coal quietly was transformed into a cake of flame-colour paint, giving up its hissing abhorrence of water, and in a loving manner yielding its beauties to the softening efforts of its ancient enemy. All went on well. Love was the master, so all went on quickly; and after a few years, a tall handsome young man walked into the studio of old Floris, who had left this painting of the " Angels" on the casel. The stranger quietly walked up, and with a master-hand, added to the tortures of the damned the additional pang of a huge bee, stinging in an unnameable part. Old Floris, when he saw it, was delighted, and introduced the great stranger to his daughter, who recognised her lover, who claimed his bride, who, blushing, received her papa's consent, who was right glad to receive as a son-in-law, a man who excelled himself.

It was a comfort to turn from these productions of a wild fancy to the noble works of Rubens and Vandyck. The paintings of these are above my powers of description, and have been

too often sung and said, to bear further repetition now. Suffice it, that we were entranced with wonder and delight before "The Crucifixion," and if we made no audible tokens of our pleasure, we are sure that our gratification was depicted in our countenances. Here again we may make one other general remark on the paintings of this solemn subject. In almost all which we have seen, the spear wound is on the right side. Now it is a proof of the surety of the death, that the wound was in the pericordium, whence flowed the blood and waternecessarily, therefore, from the left side. A good picture of the "Death of Rubens," by the present Master of the Academy, Van Bréé, is a painting of great merit. The faces of the family are said to be portraits, copied from Rubens' own paintings. This was painted for the King of Holland, who presented it to this Academy. Some noble portraits by Vandyck, especially one of N. Rockix, and one of Scagria, the former of these is reckoned the best in the Museum. The room is filled with paintings of the deeds and miracles of the old monastic order to whom this building had belongedthe "Recollets," some time since suppressed.

Leaving the Museum, we examined some tablets to the memory of the great Flemish masters, and with our hearts full of admiration at their noble productions, we proceeded to the Church of Saint James. The attraction here is the chapel of Rubens, under which the remains of this great painter lie in peace, with the kindred dust of his family. This little recess, dignified with the name of "chapel," is adorned with a large painting by the "Master," containing the portraits of himself, his wives, his mistress, and some children, oddly enough painted as a holy family. There are also some admirable portraits by Vandyck, and a crucifixion, worthy of the highest praise. Amongst other beauties, we may mention an exquisite alto relievo, very small, of the crucifixion, by Schemakers. It is only about 22 inches long, and every figure is elegantly and perfectly finished. In one of the side chapels, we were struck with a curious example of the "embodying" powers of a sculptor's mind. A large female figure was looking intently up, with an