TO THE ABBOT OF ----.

_Adrianople, May_ 17. O. S.

I AM going to leave Adrianople, and I would not do it without giving
you some account of all that is curious in it, which I have taken a
great deal of pains to see. I will not trouble you with wise
dissertations, whether or no this is the same city that was anciently
called Orestesit or Oreste, which you know better than I do. It is
now called from the emperor Adrian, and was the first European seat
of the Turkish empire, and has been the favourite residence of many
sultans. Mahomet the fourth, and Mustapha, the brother of the
reigning emperor, were so fond of it, that they wholly abandoned
Constantinople; which humour so far exasperated the janizaries, that
it was a considerable motive to the rebellions that deposed them.
Yet this man seems to love to keep his court here. I can give you no
reason for this partiality. 'Tis true, the situation is fine, and
the country all round very beautiful; but the air is extremely bad,
and the seraglio itself is not free from the ill effect of it. The
town is said to be eight miles in compass, I suppose they reckon in
the gardens. There are some good houses in it, I mean large ones;
for the architecture of their palaces never makes any great shew. It
is now very full of people; but they are most of them such as follow
the court, or camp; and when they are removed, I am told, 'tis no
populous city. The river Maritza (anciently the Hebrus) on which it
is situated, is dried up every summer, which contributes very much to
make it unwholesome. It is now a very pleasant stream. There are
two noble bridges built over it. I had the curiosity to go to see
the exchange in my Turkish dress, which is disguise sufficient. Yet
I own, I was not very easy when I saw it crowded with janizaries; but
they dare not be rude to a woman, and made way for me with as much
respect as if I had been in my own figure. It is half a mile in
length, the roof arched, and kept extremely neat. It holds three
hundred and sixty-five shops, furnished with all sorts of rich goods,
exposed to sale in the same manner as at the new exchange in London.
But the pavement is kept much neater; and the shops are all so clean,
they seem just new painted.--Idle people of all sorts walk here for
their diversion, or amuse themselves with drinking coffee, or
sherbet, which is cried about as oranges and sweet-meats are in our
play-houses. I observed most of the rich t