[288] See Kephalides “Reise durch Italien und Sicilien.” Vol. I. p. 29.
[289] See two interesting articles in the “Historisch-Politische Blätter,” vol. X. p. 200, and folio. The writer was the younger Görres, (Guido,) son of the well-known professor of that name. Most of his information as to the early life of Mezzofanti was derived from the Cardinal himself, with whom, during a long sojourn in Rome, in 1841-2, he formed a very close and intimate friendship, and in company with whom he studied the Basque language. I have spoken of Mingarelli in a former page.
[290] Manavit, p. 17.
[291] Santagata, p. 171.
[292] “Memorie di Religione,” vol. IV., p. 450.
[293] Santagata “De Josepho Mezzofantio,” p. 185. “Applausi dei Filopieri,” p. 12-3. Mezzofanti was more fortunate in this experiment than the Frenchman mentioned in Moore’s “Diary,” (vol. VI., p. 190,) who, after he had taken infinite pains to learn a language which he believed to be Swedish, discovered, at the end of his studies, that the language which he had acquired with so much labour was Bas-Breton.
[294] M. Manavit (p. 19,) says, that he was at this time twenty-two years old. But this is an error of a full year. He was born on the 17th September, 1774; and therefore, before September 24th, 1797, had completed his twenty-third year. M. Manavit was probably misled by the dispensation in age which was obtained for him. But it must be recollected that such dispensation is required for all candidates for priesthood under twenty-four years complete.
[295] This date, and the others relating to his university career, have (through the kindness of the Nuncio at Munich, Mgr. De Luca,) been extracted for me from an autograph note, deposited by Mezzofanti himself in the archives of the university of Bologna, on the 25th of April, 1815.
[296] Santagata, Sermones, p. 190.
[297] Manavit, p. 28.