28 



Critical Survey of the Works of Lessing. [Aug. 1. 



luflered an entire defeat : lie liimfclf — 

 fell. Such at lead was the rcjxirt. 



" But what if he did not fall, or at lead 

 did not pei'i/h, — if a Hilt nK)re poignant 

 fate awaited him. You recollctt that four 

 pfeudo-Scbidliuns aiofc one after another, 

 juil wlien Spam had completed the ici- 

 zure of Portu_s;a]. The three iirit were 

 notorious impoilors, and incurred the 

 fate they deler\ed : the fourth, on the 

 contrary, fays our author, conducted hi;n- 

 felf fo /kiliully, tlwt it will probably for 

 ever remain a (juellion wiiether he were 

 not the true Sebaftian. 



* He came, (continues Gcbauer,) in 

 1598, to Venice, and found credit not 

 nierely among the populace, but with 



{)crfons of condition ; efpecially as fome 

 •"ortuiiiicze who had known King Sebaf- 

 tian voluntarily telHfied that this pcrfon 

 entirely refembled hira in face, fize, juid 

 voice. He found fuch fupport as en- 

 abled hi.n to live like a man of rtuik, and 

 fuch countenance as enconraued him pub- 

 licly to announce hindelf for the true Se- 

 baftian. The Spaniih AmbalVadi^r at Ve- 

 nice, Domingo Mondoza, confequently 

 applied lo the Government tliat Sebal- 

 tian might be arrelled and formally 

 queflioncd. He related in a,reat detail, 

 that in the unfortunate battle at Alkalfar 

 he was wounded, and left for dead, and 

 had thus eicaped captivity; that with 

 Chrifto^l of Tavora he had been carried 

 in a fmall vefl'el to Algarve, where he re- 

 covered from his wounds ; but that the 

 light of thofe whom he knew being pain- 

 ful to him after fo great a difafler, he un- 

 dertook a journey into Abyliinia. He 

 crolTed the lied Sea, vifited Perfia, and 

 abode long in a cloifter of Georgia under 

 a religious habit. Here the delire of fee- 

 ing once more his country and his fub- 

 jetts became ftrong : he embarked in the 

 filack Sea for Sicily, where he landed, 

 and whence he difpatched Marco 'I'ullio 

 of Rofcnza into Portugal, determining to 

 await intelligence at Rome. On his way 

 thither he was robbed by his attendants, 

 and compelled to feek Venice, where he 

 had more hope of finding refources than 

 at Rome, and had in fa6f been immedi- 

 ately recognized. All this was no fooner 

 faid than -(.Vroxcd. He expreifed confi- 

 dence in the Venetian Go\ernnient, re- 

 called to their recoUeftion the conefpon- 

 dente he had conducted with tliem dur- 

 ing the Turkifli wur, and pleaded an elii- 

 cient zeal for their intereli^. He challen- 

 ped examination, and took a ]'leafure ia 

 indicating his perfonal pecidiarities — the 

 fliortnefs of lus left aUe, — Uie fear on his 



right brow, fuch as Sebaftian had incur- 

 red in his very childhood, — the fmgular 

 wart, or corn, on his toe. 



' The Venetian Government thought 

 fit to imprifon their guefl. The fugitive 

 Portuguese prefented petitions without 

 end for his iifjeration. King Henry IV'. of 

 Frajire applied, through his AnibalVador 

 Dufreiiie, U) the Doge, that lome decilive 

 explanation might be given, as the error 

 of the Portugue/e might be productive o(f 

 much perfonal inconvenience. The Ve- 

 netians, after three years delay, pronoun- 

 ced a fentence of banilhment, iuid aliww- 

 ed him eight days to quit the territories of 

 the Republic. The I'ortugueze now be- 

 gan to deliberate whether he ought to re- 

 turn to his country h\- way of Switzerland 

 and Fraiice, or by way of Tufcany. They 

 chofe unfortunately the latter. Sebaflian, 

 difguilcd as a monk, was no Iboner come 

 into the Florentine donunions, than ho 

 was fei/ed by order of the Grand Duke 

 Ferdinand 1., and lent to Naples to be 

 delivered up to the Spaniards. 



' On being introduced to the Spanifh 

 Viceroy, Don Ferdinand Buiz of CaJtro, 

 Count of" Lcmos, Sebaftian witl» great 

 dignity bad hiin be covered. The Count 

 inquired by what right he fo authorita- 

 tively addrelTed him .' By niy birth-right, 

 replied Sebattian. He then reproached 

 the Count for affecting ignorance, re- 

 minded iiim that the fword he then wor« 

 was a gift of Scbaffian's to the Envoy of 

 Philip, and inquired for a piece ofjewelry 

 which on the fame occafion haJd becu 

 prefented to liis fpoufe. He is faid to 

 have opened a fecret I'pring peculiar to 

 this jev\ elry. Yet the refult was, tliat Se- 

 baftian, after examination, was declared 

 to be an impoftor ; that he was led about 

 on an af? tiuough the ftreets oflSiaples; 

 and finally lentenced to the gallies. He 

 was tranlported to Spain, and lodged in 

 tlie cafile of San Lucar, whence he never 

 emerged. His vicinity excited great fer- 

 ment in Portugal. The date and maimer 

 of his death is unknown.' 



" Thus far the hiilorian. But not con- 

 tent with tlic na'ration, he undertakes a 

 circuinllantial difcullion of the quellion, 

 which is maderly in its way. Two quef- 

 tions, fays he, are to be inveftigatcd ; 

 whellier the death of King Sebaftian at 

 Alkaliar be fo far vouched thatitcannyt 

 reafonahly be called in queflion ; and in 

 cafe this remains doubtful, wiiether tl>e 

 fourth SebaiHan ought not to be reckfuicd 

 among luofe iuipoltors who have abufed 

 a famous name in order to fare I'umptu- 



ouilj. 



Til,: 



