I 
620 Bijhop B u R N E t's Travels Book It 
Man dieth without leaving a confiderable Legacy to 
fome Church or Convent. The Wealth that one fees 
in the City of Naples alone, paffeth Imagination. 
There are four and twenty Houfes of the Order of 
the Dominicans, of both Sexes, and two and twen- 
ty of the Francifcans \ feven of the Jefuits, behde 
the Convents of the Olivitanes, the ‘Theatines, the 
Carmelites, the BenediSHnes ; and above all, for Situa- 
tion and Riches, the Carthufians, on the Top of the 
Hill that lieth over the Town. The Riches of the 
Annunciata are prodigious ; it is the greateft Hofpital 
in the World ; the Revenue is laid to be four hundred 
thoufand Crowns a Year. The Number of the Sick is 
not fo great as at Milan, yet one Convenience for their 
Sick I obferved in their Galleries, which was confider- 
able, that every Bed ftood as in an Alcove, and had a 
Wall on both Sides, feparating it from the Beds on 
both Hands, and fo much void Space on both Sides of 
the Bed, that the Bed itfelf took up but half the Room. 
The young Children that they maintain are fo many, 
that one can hardly believe the Number they boaft of ; 
for they talk of Thoufands that are not feen, but are at 
Nurfe. A great Part of the Wealth of this Houfe goes 
to the enriching their Church, which will be all over 
within crufted with lovely Marble, in a great Variety 
and Beauty of Colours. The. Plate that is in the Trea- 
hiry here, and in the Dome (which hath a noble Cha- 
pel, and a vaft Treafure) and in a great many other 
Churches, is fo prodigious, that upon the modefteft 
Eftimate, the Plate of the Churches of Naples amounts 
to eight Millions of Crowns. The new> Church of the 
Jefuits, that of St. John the Apoflle, and that of St. 
Paul, are furprizingly rich. The Gilding and Painting 
that is on the Roofs of thofe Churches have coft Mil- 
lions; and as there are about an hundred Convents in 
Naples, fo every one of thefe, if it were in another Place, 
would be thought well worth feeing. 
A new Governor of the Annunciata is annually cho- 
fen, who perhaps puts into his own Pocket twenty 
thoufand Crowns ; and to make fome Compenfation, 
when he goes out he gives a vaft Piece of Plate to the 
Houfe, a Statue for a Saint in Silver, or fome Colofs of 
a Candleftick ; for feveral of thofe Pieces of Plate are 
faid to be worth ten thoufand Crowns. And thus all 
the Silver of Naples becomes dead and ufelefs. The 
Jefuits are great Aierch 3 ,nts here ; their Wine-cellar is a 
vaft Vault, and holds above a thoufand Hogfheads, 
and the beft Wine in Naples is fold by them ; yet they 
do not retail it fo fcandaloufly as the Minims do, who 
live on the great Square before the Viceroy’s Pa- 
lace, and fell out their Wine by Retail. They pay no 
Duty, have extraordinary Wine, and are in the beft 
Place of the Town for this Retail. It is true, tht Nea- 
politans are no great Drinkers, fo the Profits of this Ta- 
vern are not fo great as they would be in colder Coun- 
tries ; for here Men go for a Draught in the Mornings, 
or when they are dry ; yet the Houfe grows rich, and 
has one of the fiheft Chapels in all Naples ; but the 
Trade feems very unbecoming Men of that Profeflion, 
and of fo ftrift an Order. The Convents have a very 
particular Privilege, for they may buy all the Houfes 
that lie on either Side, till the firft Street difeontinueth 
the Houfes ; and there being fcarce a Street in Naples 
m which there is not a Convent, by this Means they 
may come to buy the whole Town : And the Progrefs 
that the Wealth of the Clergy makes is fo vifible, that 
if there is not fome Stop put to it, within an Age they 
will make themifelves Mafters of the whole. It is ama- 
zing to fee fo profound an Ignorance reign among the 
Clergy ; for though all the fecular Perfons here fpeak 
of them with all poffible Scorn, yet they are the Ma- 
tters of the People. The Women are infinitely fuper- 
ttitious, and give their Husbands no Reft, but as they 
-draw from them great Prefents to the Church. 
It is true, there are Societies of Men at Naples, of 
freer Thoughts than can be found in any other Place of 
Italy. The Greek Learning begins to flourilh there, 
the new Philofophy is much ftudied, and there is an 
AlTembly that is held in D. Jofeph Valet Library 
yvhere there is a vaft Collection of well-chofen Books) 
compofed of Men that have a right Tafte of true Lear- 
ning and good Senfe. They are ill looked on by the 
Clergy, and reprefented a Set of Atheifts, and as the 
Spawn of Pomponatius. But I found no fuch Thing ; 
for I had the Honour to meet twice or thrice with a 
confiderable Number of them during the ttiortStay that 
I made. There is a learned Lawyer, Francifeo Andria, 
that is confidered as one of the moft inquifitive Men 
of the Aflembly. There is alfo a Grandchild of the 
great Alciat, who is very curious as well as learned. 
Few Churchmen come into this ; on the contrary, it is 
plain, that they dread it above all Things. Only one 
eminent Preacher, Rinaldi, Archdeacon of Capua, af- 
fociates himfelf with them. He was once of the Jefuits 
Order, but left it ; and as that ferved to give a good 
Character of him to me, fo upon a long Converfation, 
I found a great many other Things that poffeffed me 
with a high Value for him. Some Phyficians in Naples 
are brought under the Scandal of Atheifm ; and it is 
certain, that in Italy, Men of fearching Underftandings, 
who have no Idea of the Chriftian Religion, but that 
which they fee received, are very naturally tempted to 
disbelieve it -, for finding fuch notorious Cheats as ap- 
pear in many Parts of their Religion, they are, upon 
that, induced to disbelieve the whole. The Preachings of 
the Monks in Naples are terrible Things. I faw a Je- 
fuit go in a Sort of Procefllon, with a great Company 
about him, and calling all that he faw to follow him to 
a Place where a Mountebank was felling his Medicines, 
near whom he took his Stand, and entertained the 
People with a Sort of a Farce, till the Mountebank got 
him to give over, fearing his Adlion Ihould grow te- 
dious, and difperfe the Company that was brought toge- 
ther. There are no Preachers or Men of Learning < 
among the Jefuits. I was told they had not Men ca- 
pable to teach their Schools, and were forced to hire 
Strangers. The Order of the Oratory hath not that 
Reputation in Italy as in France ; and the little Learn- 
ing that is among the Clergy in Naples, is among fome 
few fecular Priefts. 
The new Method of Molinos fo much prevails in Na- 
ples, that it is believed he hath above twenty thoufand 
Followers in this City. And fince this hath made 
fome Noife in the World, and yet is generally but 
little underftood, I will give you fome Account of him. 
He is a Spanijh Prieft, that feems to be but an ordinary 
Divine, and is certainly an ill Reafoner, v;hen he 
undertakes to prove his Opinions. He hath wrote a 
Book, which is entitled, II Guida Spiritmle, which is an 
Abftra<ft of myftical Divinity ; the Subftance of the whole 
is reduced to this. That in our Prayers, and other De- 
votions, the beft Methods are to retire the Mind 
from all grofs Images, and fo to form an A6l of Faith, 
and thereby to prefent ourfelves before God ; and then 
to fink into a Silence and Ceflation of new Adis, and 
to let God adt upon us, and fo to follow his Condudt. 
This Way he prefers to the Multiplication of many Adts, 
and different Forms of Devotion ; and he- makes fmall 
Account of corporal Aufterities, and reduces all the Ex- 
ercifes of Religion to this Simplicity of Mind. He 
thinks this not only fit to be propofed to fuch as live in 
religious Houfes, but to fecular Perfons, and by this he 
hath propofed a great Reformation of Minds and Man- 
ners. He hath many Priefts in Italy, but chiefly in 
Naples, that difpofe thofe who confefs to them to fol- 
low his Method;' The Jefuits have fet themfelves much 
againft this Condudl, as forefeeing that it will much 
weaken the Empire Superftition hath over the People, 
make Religion become a more plain Thing, and open 
a Door to Enthufiafm. They alfo pretend that his 
Condudl is fadlious and feditious, which may breed a 
Schifm in the Church. And becaufe he faith in fome 
Places, that the Mind may attain fuch a Simplicity in its 
Adis, as that it may rife in fome Devotions to God 
immediately, without contemplating the Humanity of 
Chrift, they have accufed him of laying afide the Doc- 
trine of Chrift’s Humanity ; though it is plain, that he 
fpeaks only of the Purity of Angle Adis : Upon thefe 
Motives they have fet themfelves much againft Moli- 
nos ; and alfo pretend, that fome of his Difciples have 
infufed 
