THE BRITISH CRITIC, For JULY 1793. PRO PATRIA. ART. I. The Hiftory of Ancient Europe; with a View of the Revolutions in Afia and Africa. In a Series of Letters to a young Nobleman. By William Ruffel, LL. D. Author of the Hiftory of Modern Europe. 8vo. 2 vols. 16s. Robinsons. HOUGH it must be attributed, in fome degree, to the fuperficial turn of the prefent age, defirous of obtaining knowledge without labour, and fatisfied with an imperfect fhare of it, that abridgments and compendious fummaries have more abounded lately than at any other period, we will not deny either the real merit of fuch works when executed well, or the advantages which may be drawn from a judicious use and application of them. As fupplemental to more extensive ftudies, not as fubftitutes for them, they may indeed be very beneficial; and history more especially, which, by the vast extent of its matter, the variety of its objects, and the prolixity of its minute details, is found too burdenfoine for almost any memory, may be reviewed with pleasure and improvement in a more compendious form. After having travelled through a country, it is useful and amusing to retrace its general features in a map. Amidst the abundance of historical information, fince much will neceffarily escape, in time, even from the most affiduous ftudent, the office of his private judgment is, to fix on fuch particulars, BRIT. CRIT. VOL. I. JULY 1793. S ticulars, as are most worthy of recollection, and to impress them by peculiar attention; to generalize his notions, and view at large the causes and the confequences of great events, forming altogether in his mind a connected, if not a perfect, body of hiftory. The act of doing this is one of the most improving exercises in which the understanding can be employed; and all who have capacity fhould certainly perform it for themselves. It is thus that original views are struck out, and the common stock of knowledge is made, eventually, to furnish new and various ftores to various minds. But all have not abilities or attention for this task, and the judicious epitomizer offers his private judgment for the benefit of others. He felects the objects for the reader, he explains their character and references, and his remarks will often throw a light upon the events he brings together, which ordinary ftudents, without fuch affiftance, would not ever have attained. As introductory also to more minute enquiries, a compendious narrative might be very ufeful, could we be affured that the ftudent, having acquired a general knowledge in this eafy way, would not remain contented with it, and neglect to push his application further. Thus prepared, if he proceeded as he ought, he would enter the labyrinth with the plan already in his hand, and would make directly to the points he wanted, without deviation, and without delay. In fpeaking thus of historical abridgments, we do not mean to include the dry lifts of mere facts and dates, which rife little, if it all, above the rank of indexes; nor even the chronological abridgment in the manner of the Prefident Henault. The former is what every reader may produce for himself, requiring nothing but attention to note down epochas as he proceeds; the latter, with all its merit, in fome inftances, is rather a book of reference, than calculated for perufal. We speak only of the more liberal epitomizers, fuch as Millot, Mehégan, Goldsmith, and many others, in which clafs the labours of Dr. Ruffel have very justly gained him a place of great diftinction. Two volumes of the hiftory of Modern Europe, published anonymously, in the form of letters from a nobleman to his fon, the hint of which was evidently, and indeed confeffedly, taken from the correfpondence of Lord Chesterfield, first attracted the notice of the public. The clearness of the method, the elegant precifion of the ftyle, the conftant reference to authorities, the judicious felection of facts, the fagaciousness and foundness of the remarks and general reflections, confpired to produce a work not only pleafing in its kind, but valuable. When the public had been for fome years in poffeffion of thefe volumes, and had strongly teftified its approbation of them, the plan plan was completed by the appearance of two more; and, by that time, the name of the auther, though not affixed to any part of the work, was pretty generally known. In a fecond edition the volumes were augmented to five, and the author's name was inferted. Since that period Dr. Ruffel, as it now appears, has not been defirous to enjoy his well-earned reputation in indolence; it gave him energy for new efforts. He tells us, that "the favourable reception which the Hiftory of Mo"dern Europe has met with, and the public with expreffed. "through the author's friends, encouraged him to undertake "the Hiftory of Ancient Europe on a fimilar plan, which, by comprehending the Revolutions in Afia and Africa, be"comes, in fome measure, a concife HISTORY of the WORLD from the moft early ages." 66 While we express our general approbation of the plan and of the execution, we must be allowed to remark, with a confiderable degree of regret, that by the admiffion of a few paffages intimating a difbelief of the divine origin of the old Teftament, (though he allows due weight to many parts of it as hiftorical) and by other traits of the fame kind, the author has prevented us from recommending his book, without reserve, as a work of general utility. He has made it in fome paffages dangerous to those whofe opinions have not been rightly fixed by previous reflection, and affords a melancholy proof how difficult it is, even for a wife man, altogether to escape the feductions of falfe hypothefes. Thefe paffages we fhall difcufs in their due place, and in the mean time thall introduce the reader to the general plan of the work. The History of Ancient Europe is written in the form of letters, and fuppofed to be addreffed to a young nobleman on his travels but the vehicle produces little effect, besides a kind of conformity between this and the former publication; for except an occafional addrefs to, My Lord, which might as well be omitted as inferted, there is little to mark the nature of the compofition. The length of the divifions is in no degree proportioned to the epiftolary form; the first letter confifts of 144 pages. This, however, is of no great importance. The method is the fame as was purfued with fo much fuccefs in the Hiftory of Modern Europe: that of first sketching out the historical events of each country under certain periods, and then reviewing the progrefs of manners, arts, &c. in a feparate letter or divifion. The first letter is confidered as a general introduction, and contains "a view of the natural progrefs of human fociety, with a sketch of the early part of the "Hiftory of Affyrians, Egyptians, Phoenicians, and He"brews." In the fecond page, very we obtain a hint that the S 2 author author does not reverence the Revelation delivered to the Hebrews as fuch; but a hint so obscure, that without the more explicit paffages which afterwards appear, it might easily be difregarded. We, however, fetting afide the pain which fuch a deviation muft occafion (apparently unneceffary, when we confider how much the ingenious author does admit) are happy to accompany him in many judicious and original remarks on the early periods of fociety. This introductory letter, hiftorically confidered, divides itself into four parts: 1. The account of the Affyrians. 2. That of the Egyptians, p. 31.3. View of the government, laws, &c. of the Egyptians, p. 74. 4. Early ftate of Syria, with the conqueft of Palestine, p. 123. The next five letters are employed on the hiftory of Greece, properly dividing the account, with regard to different periods of time, and divisions of the country. The feventh letter gives the customary view of the progrefs of arts, manners, &c. in Greece. And the eighth contains the hiftory of Italy to the expulfion of the Tarquins. With this letter concludes the first volume, which is as much as we shall be able to notice in this prefent article. In the execution of this part of the work, the chief impropriety that strikes us is the very difproportionate account of the Trojan war, which is, in fact, an abstract of the whole Iliad of Homer, and occupies upwards of ninety pages. That the venerable and fublime bard of Greece fhould be regarded as hiftorical authority for the facts which form the ground-work of his poem, we are very ready to admit; but an analysis of the Iliad, defcending even to a literal tranflation of many speeches, befides making the poet much more of an historian than any fuppofition can warrant, is very ill-fuited to an history which propofes in the exordium, only to recal to the mind of the perfon addreffed the more important events in the Hiftory of Ancient Nations. Nor can we fay that the task, even allowing it to be congruous, is executed happily; there is frequently a ftiffness in the rendering of the fpeeches, which gives them a very awkward appearance. For example, "from death thou haft now ❝escaped! Sure near thee advanced was fate; but Apollo "ftretched over thee his hand. To him thy vows are paid "when thou iffueft to the clangour of fpears. But thou shalt "not escape from this lance, fhould we meet hereafter in fight. Others I now will purfue, fuch as fortune fhall bring to my arm." p. 208. Again, Polydamas, not grateful are thy words to mine ear. Well thou knoweft "better counfel to give; fome advice more happy to frame. "Wouldst thou bid me to forget father Jove? The high "thunderer's promise confirmed? Would't thou bid me the "Gods forget, to follow birds that wander on the winds." P. 214. P. 214. What is worse, many parts of the narrative also are Tendered in the fame coarse ftyle, as "the spirit of great "Hector returned. His car again the hero mounts, and "drives amain amidst the crowd. The fon of Tydeus rushing on with his fpear, fent before him his voice to the chief,' but what is moft unaccountable is, that these and similar paffages have not even the excufe of literal rendering to palliate their stiffness, for they do not really give the meaning of the original; for example, in the passage just quoted ; Τοφρ' Εκτωρ αμπνυτο, και αψ ες δίφρον τρέσας, Which literally tranflated would be, "Then Hector revived, In giving an account of man in a state of nature we think Dr. Ruffel very happily takes and illuftrates the middle opinion, between those who make him either too pure or too depraved. His remarks on this subject deserve to be transcribed; "Man," he fays, " is a complex being. He has found in every age, country, and condition, the fources of variance and diffenfion, as well as of concert and union. Nature seems to have sown in his mind the feeds of animofity with those of affection. He embraces with alacrity occafions of perfonal oppofition, and he flies with ardour to the relief of a fellow-creature in diftrefs; without any motive but the impulse of the heart, or any command but that of fympathetic feeling. "The fhouts of joy are to man yet more attractive than the fhrieks of woe. Prompted by a tafte for fociety to mingle with the herd of his fpecies, he longs to fhare their happiness, to become acquainted with their fentiments, and to communicate his own. He delights to act in conjunction with them, is ambitious of distinction under their eye, and proud of their approbation. Hence emulation and competition, the two great fources of illuftrious actions. Man |