CHAP. III.]

ST. JOHN OP JERUSALEM.

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till proved guilty, these were not even accused;why then confiscate their property? But that wasover long 1 since. Regret is now as vain as defama-tion. Yet he, who does not take it upon him to blamethose times may lament their severity—which, ifnot necessary, was extremely unjust. But quietlyin his closet, he ought not to forget that the states-men of that age were exposed to thousands ofdifficulties, and a thousand hostile passions.

But on the evening of the 21st of August, 1568,Valetta could no longer brook what passes awaywith time, yet survived a stroke of apoplexy forabout an hour, and even uttered, “Oh, my God,send me one of thy blessed angels to assist me inthis extremity! ” And the pious prayer was indeedheard—but thus, that instantly he left the shadowof pain. In his attached household it had beenconsidered ominous that, one by one in the threedays preceding his death, his three favourite animalshad died—a falcon, presented to him by the Kingof France in allusion to that bird’s being the crest ofthe Yaletta house; his pet ruby-coloured parrot,that at a distance might be mistaken for a miracu-lously large ruby; and his tame lioness, so tame (atleast towards him) that she used to sleep in hisbed-room at full liberty.

Neither at his funeral, nor his successor’s elec-