[518] Letter of October 11, 1857.
[519] Letter of Feb. 23, 1847.
[520] Italy I. 292.
[521] I think it was the late Rev. John Smyth, a clergyman of Dublin, who, while I myself was in Rome, conversed with Cardinal Mezzofanti under the impression that he was speaking with the English Cardinal Acton.
[522] In 3 vols., 12mo., London, 1757. It contains the original and the translation in parallel pages. The author was Sieur Townley the well-known collector, and a member of the distinguished catholic family of that name. The translation is certainly most curiously exact in letter and in spirit, and fully deserves all that Mr. Badeley has said of it.
[523] The exhibition at present, and for some years back, is held in the church of the Propaganda.
[524] Of the princely house of Massimo, which is said to claim descent from the great Cunctator. The marked contrast between the diminutive stature of the Cardinal, and the noble and commanding figure of the Prince, his elder brother, gave occasion to one of those lively mots for which Rome is celebrated. The brothers were called, “Il Principe Massimo, ed il Cardinal Menomo.”
[525] These were (1,) Hebrew; (2,) Syriac; (3,) Samaritan; (4,) ancient Chaldee; (5,) Modern Chaldee; (6,) Arabic; (7,) ancient Armenian; (8,) modern Armenian; (9,) Turkish; (10,) Persian; (11,) Albanian; (12,) Sabean;—a dialect of Syriac, which Adelung prefers to call Zabian;—(13,) Maltese; (14,) Greek; (15,) Romaic; (16,) Ethiopic; (17,) Coptic; (18,) Amariña; (19,) Tamul; (20,) Koordish; (21,) Kunkan,—one of the dialects of the Bengal coast;—(22,) Georgian; (23,) Welsh; (24,) Irish; (25,) Gælic; (26,) English; (27,) Illyrian; (28,) Bulgarian; (29,) Polish; (30,) Peguan; (31,) Swedish; (32,) ancient German; (33,) modern German; (34,) Swiss German; (35,) Dutch; (36,) Spanish; (37,) Catalan; (38,) Portuguese; (39,) French; (40,) ancient Chinese; (41,) Chinese of Tchang-si; (42,) Chinese of Canton.
I was somewhat surprised to miss Russian from the catalogue. In the Academy of the present year, it appears in its proper place. See “Academia Poliglotta nel Collegio Urbano de Prop. Fide, per l’Epifania del 1858,” p. 38.
[526] This youth, as I afterwards learned, was called by the strange name, Moses Ngnau. He was a native of Pegu, and returned to his own mission in 1850; but unhappily his career was terminated by an early death.