The Sun.
London, England, 1835-07-23 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

RECOLLECTIONS of an EXCURSIONto the MO-
NASTERIES of ALCOBACA and BATALHA.
Br ?HE AUTHOR OF " TATHEIC."
Loactom,!_.Richord,Bentley.lB3s-.-T•
" Pleasant are the words of the song, lovely the
talcs of other times ! They are like the calm dew of
the morning on the hill, when the sun is faint on its
side, and the lake is settled and blue in the vale."
And with such enchanting records of a past age the
public will class Mr. Beckford's charming volume. It
is truly a tale of other times. The sites of his vivid
descriptions, and the monastic piles which he visited,
still remain ; but all else that was perishable has
passed away ; and, but for him, it might be questioned
whether a great part of it ever existed. Portugal is
not now what it was in 1794, the date of Mr. Beck.
ford's excursion ; and we doubt whether all Christen-
dom boasts of two such venerable ecclesiastics as the
Grand Prior of Aviz, and the Grand Prior of St.
Vincent—his most reverend travelling companions.
Despite of our high appreciation of the benefits to
mankind of the reforming spirit which is now abroad
in every country in Europe—in defiance of the respect
which we feel for the labours of those through whose
instrumentality the world is being relieved from the
shackles of ignorance and superstition—we confess we
are sometimes weak enough to lament the total disap-
pearance of the fine old chubby churchmen of the
Middle Ages, the whole extent of whose literary ac-
quirements consisted in being able to mumble over
their breviaries in a style only intelligible to the
Deity—even if the whole world could talk Latin.
They must have been charming boon companions, as
they never allowed their digestive organs to be im-
paired by irritability. Then again it must have been
so. amusing to hear them expatiate on the miracles
which attended the founding 'of their respective orders
—to witness their zeal in the discussion of some
knotty point of theology, the settlement of which could
be of no more importance to mankind than the cut of
their own habits—and above all, to see them, by some
ingenious device, contriving to reconcile the will of
Heaven with their own, even where both would ap-
pear to the uninitiated to be diametrically opposed to
each other. We are aware' that we are treading upon
dangerous ground though as fully convinced as any
person can be of the evils which have flowed from
clerical domination, during the long night of Papal ig-
norance which overshadowed Europe. We do think,
however, generally speaking, that were we to institute
a comparison between the conduct (not the faith, mark)
of the Monks in Portugal in 1794 and the Protes-
tant Clergy in Ireland in 1835, the public would de-
clare for the former as the more apostolic body. To
fare sumptuously may, under any circumstances, be
considered by the " rigidly righteous" a crime in a
churchman ; and if so, how much greater must be the
guilt when not the individual only, but his family so
fares, and all at the expense of those who neither profit
by, nor believe in his ministry ? Besides, the luxuriant,
lazy Lord Abbot and his brethren were the landlords,
not the tithe collectors of the district allotted for the
support of the Abbacy ; and happy and contented
were the peasants who claimed the distinction of
being numbered with their tenantry. We may have
occasion to show this more fully before concluding this
notice ; and in the mean time we must accompany
Mr. Beckford, who is about to set out on his journey.
In the summer of 1794, the Prince Regent of
Portugal signified to Mr. Beckford that it was his

Royal Highness's pleasure that he should visit the
Monasteries of Alcabaca and Batallm, accompanied by
the grand Priors of Aviz and St. Vincent. The
Prince's motives were not communicated ; but Mr.
Beckford towards the close of the volume, supposes
them to refer to certain abuses which were reported
to have crept into these institutions. The preparations
for the journey, and the mode of travelling adopted
by the venerable dignitaries of the Portuguese Church,
are thus described :
" As my right reverend companions had arranged not to
renounce one atom of their habitual comforts and conve-
niences, and to take with them their confidential acolytes and
secretaries, as well as some of their favourite quadrupeds, we
had in the train of the latter-mentioned animals a rare rabble
of grooms, ferradors, and mule-drivers. To these, my usual
followers being added, we formed altogether a caravan which,
camels and dromedaries excepted, would have cut no despi-
cable figure even on the route of Mecca or Mesched-Ali
" ' Here I am, my dear friend,' said the Grand Prior to me
as I handed him out of his brother the old Marquis of Ma-
rialva's most sleepifying dormouse, which had been lent to him
expressly for this trying occasion. Behold me at last' (at
last, indeed; this being the third put-off I had experienced),
ever delighted with your company, but not so much so with
the expedition we are going to undertake.'
" ' I hope it will not turn out so unpleasant after all,' was
my answer : for my own part, I quite long to see Alcobaca.'
" So do not I,' rejoined the Grand Prior : but let that
pass. Is Ehrhart come ?is Franchi ready ? Has the first se-
cured the medicine chest he was in such an agony about the
other day, and the second the piano-forte he swore he would
break to pieces unless it would get into better tune ?'
" ' All safe—all waiting—and dinner too, my dear Lord
Prior; and after that, let us get off.' No easy matter, by-
the-bye, even yet, some of the party being such adepts at
dawdling.
" Why the Grand Prior should have dreaded the journey
so much I really could not imagine, every pains having been
taken to make it so easy and smooth. It was settled he should
101 l in his dormeuse, or in my chaise, just as he best pleased,
and look at nothing calculated to excite the fatigue of reflec-
tion ; topographical inquiries were to be waived completely,
and no questions asked about who endowed such a Church, or
raised such a Palace. We were to proceed, or rather creep
along, by short and facile stages; stopping to dine, and sup,
and repose, as delectably as In the most commodious of homes.
Everything that could be thought of, or even dreamed of, for
our convenience or relaxation, was to be carried in our train,
and nothing left behind but Care and Sorrow; two spectres,
who, had they dared to mount on our shoulders, would have
been driven off with a high hand by the Prior of St. Vincent's,
than whom a more delightful companion never existed since
the days of those polished and gifted canons and cardinals who
formed such a galaxy of talent and facetiousness round .Leo
the Tenth."
At length the dormeuses were put in motion, amid
the shouts of the populace, who had rarely beheld pre-
parations for so distant an expedition. After a world
of adventures, some of'' them so fearful as almost to
have frightened the Grand Prior of Aviz out of an
appetite, the cavalcade reached the Royal Monastery
of Alcobaca. Their reception by the lordly-monks,
,
and the preparations made for their entertainment,
especially the latter, would do honour to the culinary