CHARACTERS. 



281 



he related with great energy the 

 various distresses of the rebellious 

 angels, when driven from the pre- 

 sence of their incensed Creator. 

 ♦' They fled (said the story-teller) 

 to the extremes of the universe, 

 and hid themselves, to avoid his 

 wrath, in the most unfrequented 

 places. Some sought the deepest 

 cavenis ; some plunged in:o the 

 ocean ; as for me, I divided into a 

 well." Here the incautious narra- 

 tor, conscious of having betrayed 

 his diabolical origin, broke off short, 

 and vanished away with every 

 symptom of vexation and shame. 



.Account of James ETUce, esq. the 

 , la:e celebrated ylhyssiniun iravel- 

 ler. 



HE was born in Scotland, about 

 the year 1729, of an ancient 

 and respectable family, which had 

 been in possession for sevei^al centu- 

 ries of some of the estates which he 

 owned at the time of his decease. 

 Indeed Mr. Bruce more than inti- 

 mates that he was descended from 

 £ome ancient kings. At an early 

 period he was sent for education to 

 a boarding-school at or near Hoxton, 

 where his acquaintance commenced 

 ■with several respectable persons, and 

 particularly some of the family of 

 the Harringtons, whose fHendship 

 Le retained to the end of his life. 

 Returning to Scotland, he experi- 

 enced from his father, who had 

 given him a step-mother, a degree 

 of ill treatment which occasioned 

 him to resolve on quitting his coui- 

 try. He accordingly came to Lon- 

 don, and soon afterwards married 

 the daughter of Mr. Allen, a wine 

 merchant, with Wiiom he continued 

 the wiue-tradc during several years. 



An indisposition of his wife, which 

 terminated in her death, induced 

 him to carry her to France; and the 

 loss of her, it may be conjectured, 

 inclined him to continue his travels. 

 At the latter end of the earl of 

 Chatham's ministry, about 1761, he 

 returned from a tour through the . 

 greatest part of Europe, particularly 

 through the whole of Spain and 

 Portugal, and was about to retire 

 to his small patrimony, in order to 

 embrace a life of study and reflec- 

 tion, when chance threw him into 

 a very short and desultory conversa- 

 tion with that nobleman. He soon 

 afterwards received an intimation 

 of a design to employ him, which 

 proved abortive by the resignation 

 of his intended patron. He then 

 received some encouragement from 

 lord Egremont and Mr. George 

 Grenville, and in a short time a 

 proposal from lord Halifax to ex- 

 plore the coast of Barbary, to 

 which he acceded. The consulship 

 of Algiers becoming vacant at this 

 juncture (1763), he was appointed 

 to it, and immediately set out for 

 Italy. At Rome he received orders 

 to proceed to Naples, from whenc;e 

 he again returned to Rome. He 

 then vi-ent to Leghorn, and from 

 thence proceeded to Algiers. 



He spent a year at Algiers, and 

 having a facility in acquiring lan- 

 guages, in that time qualified him* 

 self for appearing on any part of the 

 continent without an interpreter ; 

 but at tliis instant orders arrived 

 from England for him to wait for 

 farther orders as consul. He ac- 

 cordingly remained in this post 

 until 1765. 



In June, I76t, he solicited leave 

 of absence from the secretary pf 

 state, to make some drawings of an- 

 tiquities near Tunis. He had be- 

 fore 



