many females of exquisite beauty peeping through the lattices, and some of them wantonly nodded at us, and many were in their smocks. At four the great bell rung to invite us to prayers; I thought this the most daring and flagrant piece of hypocrisy I had ever met with.—I went to prayers, and did as I saw others do; there were a great many elegant women of remarkable beauty, and a great number of men, as well Italians as foreigners; but the young courtezans were disposed in a seperate place from us. After prayers, another bell rung which invited all to the coffee-room, and here was little or no distinction, some drinking by themselves, some in couples, and some in droves, some drank negus, tea, coffee, capillaire, just as they thought proper, there being here, neither distinction, nor respect of persons, but all were well dressed except some English captains, and lieutenants of the navy, who dressed in their own manner, _a la mode de vaisseau_. A band of musick then struck up in the assembly-room, one of the largest and handsomest I had ever seen; this was adorned with a gallery for those who did not chuse to dance.—The windows were blinded, and the room illuminated by a number of globes, beside branches of wax candles; we danced and went through all the ceremonies of a ball, or rather ridotto, there being sweet-meats and every other thing elegantly disposed in the buffettos, and about eleven the bell rung for supper which ended at twelve, and then all retired; and every gentleman-lover, was lighted to the scene of delight by his respective sultana. In the morning, I arose and bid my guide who did not dance, nor celebrate any of the mysteries, except taking two or three glasses of wine, to pay the night’s expences, which came in all to no more than a chequin, or nine and six-pence of our money; the cheapest entertainment I had ever met with in my life; for the courtezan herself receives nothing from her lover; and yet they all live in the most accomplished elegance and affluence. The madona, or mother-abbess pays a great rent to the Pope for her license, as do two thousand other houses in this city. What then must all the licensed brothels in Italy pay? this income, thus produced, it is pretended, goes to maintain certain vessels of war to fight against the Turks, but I believe this immense sum centers in the coffers of his holiness, which minds of a tribute arising, formerly in ancient Rome, from the temples of _Cloacina_, imposed by one of the emperors, and which one of his ministers told him stunk in the noses of the people of Rome; the emperor shewed him a great heap of gold, and asked him if that stunk.—no says the minister; why then says the emperor, why should the tap stink which produces so flagrant, so sweet a smell? We left the temple of Venus, and having discharged my guide, and seen every thing worth attention in Leghorn, took ship to visit the _Archipelago_, where are dispersed a great number of islands, small and great.