Levant, were the first acquainted with it; which appears from part of a
letter wrote by Peter della Valle, a Venetian, in 1615, from
Constantinople; in which he tells his friend, that, upon his return he
should {26} bring with him some coffee, which he believed was a thing
unknown in his country."

Mr. Garland tells us he was informed by M. de la Croix, the King's
interpreter, that M. Thevenot, who had travelled through the East, at
his return in 1657, brought with him to Paris some coffee for his own
use, and often treated his friends with it.

It was known some years sooner at Marseilles; for, in 1644, some
gentlemen who accompanied M. de la Haye to Constantinople, brought back
with them on their return, not only some coffee, but the proper vessels
and apparatus for making it. However, until 1660, coffee was drunk only
by such as had been accustomed to it in the Levant, and their friends;
but that year some bales were imported from Egypt, which gave a great
number of persons an opportunity of trying it, and contributed very much
to bringing it into general use; and in 1661, a coffee-house was opened
at Marseilles in the neighbourhood of the Exchange.

Before 1669, coffee had not been seen at Paris, except at M. Thevenot's,
and some of his friends'; nor scarce heard of but from the account of
travellers. In that year, Soliman Aga, ambassador from the Sultan
Mahomet the Fourth, arrived, who, with his retinue, brought a
considerable quantity of coffee with them, and made presents of it to
persons both of the court and city, and it is supposed to have
established the custom of drinking it.

Two years afterwards, an Armenian of the name of Pascal, set up a