Of the Abbe de S A D E. 1 27 



which is that which chiefly prevails at Avignon, where the poet 

 patted a confiderable part of his life, is founded on the following 

 circumftances. 



In the Ambrofian Library at Milan, there is preferved a ma- 

 nufcript copy of Virgil, which is faid to have been the proper- 

 ty of Petrarch; and on the margins of which are many 

 notes, alleged to be in the handwriting of the poet. One of 

 thefe, which is written on the firft page of the MS. is in the 

 following words : 



* " Laura, propriis virtutibus illuftris, et meis longum cele- 

 " brata carminibus, primum oculis meis apparuit, fub primum 

 " adolefcentiae mege tempus, anno Domini 1327, die 6. mentis 

 tC Aprilis, in Ecclefia Sandlae Clarke, Avinioni, hora matutina ; 

 " et in eadem civitate, eodem menfe Aprilis, eodem die fexto, 

 * l eadem hora.' prima, anno autem 1348, ab hac luce lux ilia 

 " fubtracla eft ; cum ego forte tunc Veronse eflem, heu fati mei 

 " nefcius ! rumor autem infelix per literas Ludovici mei, me 

 " Parmae reperit, anno eodem, menfe Maio, die 1 9. mane. Cor- 

 " pus illud caftilTimum atque pulcherrimum, in loco Fratrum 

 " Minorum repolitum eft, ipfo die mortis, ad vefperam. Ani- 



R 2 " mam 



* Translated. 

 " Laura, illuftrious by the virtues flxe poflefleJ, and celebrated during many 

 years by my verfes, appeared to my eyes, for the firft time, on the 6th day of 

 April, in the year 1327, at Avignon, in the church of St Claire, at 6 o'clock in the 

 morning. I was then in my early youth. In the fame town, on the fame day, and 

 at the fame hour, in the year 1348, this light, this fun withdrew from the world. I 

 was then at Verona, ignorant of the calamity that had befallen me. A letter I re- 

 ceived from my Ludovico, on the 19th of the following month, brought me the 

 cruel information. Her body, fo beautiful, fb pure, was depofited, on the day of 

 her death, after vefpers, in the church of the Cordeliers. Her foul, as Seneca has 

 faid of Africanus, I am confident, returned to heaven, from whence it came. For 

 the purpofe of often dwelling on the fad remembrance of fo fevere a lofs, I have 

 written thefe particulars in a book that comes frequently under my infpe&ion. I 



have 



