erms of his royal person, which, when some of them were
unable to restrain themselves from answering in a manner befitting their
duty and love of justice, they were silenced by the most cruel stripes.

Thus were the officers of the king of Sweden, the meanest of whom were
fit to be generals in any other army, subjected to the servile taunts,
and insolent behaviour of wretches undeserving to be ranked among the
human species.

A very little time had doubtless made them all find graves among these
barbarians; scarce a day passed over without their company decreasing by
two or three, who were no sooner dead than dragged out by the heels, and
thrown like dogs into a pit without the least funeral rites. But
providence at length thought fit to send them a relief by means they
least expected.

In one of the incursions made by the Muscovites into Poland, a very
beautiful lady, whose father had been killed in asserting the cause of
Stanislaus, was made prisoner: prince Menzikoff, who commanded these
batallions, saw her, and became enamoured of her charms: she was
destitute of all friends, and in the conqueror's power, so thought it
best to yield what otherwise she found him determined to seize: in fine,
she was his mistress; and her ready compliance with his desires,
together with the love she either had or feigned to have for him,
afterward gained her an absolute ascendant over him. Every one knows the
interest he had with the czar; and he so far exerted it, as to get this
fair favourite lodged in the palace, where she was served with the same
state and respect as if she had been his wife.

This lady, whose name was Edella, happened to be walking with some of
her attendants near where these unfortunate gentlemen were buried, at a
time when three of them were dragged to their wretched sepulchre, was
touched with compassion to see any thing that had a human shape thus
coarsely treated, tho' after death, and had the curiosity to order one
of her people to enquire who those persons were, and what they had done,
which hindered them from being allowed a christian burial.

She was no sooner informed that they were Swedish prisoners, than her
soul shuddered at the thoughts of the Russian barbarity; and not
doubting but their usage during life had been of a piece with that after
their death, she resolved, if possible, to procure some abatement of the
miseries of those who yet survived.

To this end she made it her business to exam