English nation, of which he draws the following picture: "Suppofe, (fays he) I had affirmed in fuch an account," that "the hiftory of Great-Britain during the last century, was only a heap of confpiracies, rebellions, murders, maffacres, revolutions, banishments, the very worst effects that avarice, faction, hypocrify, perfidiousness, cruelty, rage, madness, hatred, envy, luft, malice, and ambition could fuggefte That ignorance, idleness, and vice are the proper ingredients for qualifying a British legiflator? That a weak difeafed body, a meagre countenance, and fallow complexion, are the true marks of noble blood in England? That the imperfections of your nobility's minds run parallel with thofe of their bodies, being a compofition of fpleen, dulnefs, ignorance, caprice, fenfuality, and pride? That as for your commons, they feem to be a knot of pedlars, pickpockets, highwaymen, and bullies? That the bulk of your people con. fifts in a manner wholly of discoverers, witneffes, informers, accufers, profecutors, evidences, and fwearers, together with their feveral fubfervient and fubaltern inftruments, all under the colours, the conduct, and pay of minifters of ftate and their deputies? and that vaft numbers amongst you are compelled to feek your livelihood by begging, robbing, ftealing, cheating, pimping, flattering, fuborning, forfwearing, forging, gaming, lying, fawning, hectoring, voting, fcribbling, ftar-gazing, poifoning, whoring, canting, libelling, freethinking, and the like occupations?" 6 Suppofe further I had faid, that "in this account I exte nuated the faults of Englishmen as much as I durft, and upon every article gave as favourable a turn as the matter would bear?" This quotation, we think, needs no commentary; for it is plain that the whole of the pamphlet before us was written with a view to introduce it; and indeed it contains the fubftance of all that follows in this performance. We cannot close this article without a very ferious remonftrance to the public, on the great danger attending the liberty of the prefs, from the late daily licentious abufe of it by the Roman Catholics. By a refinement peculiar to the deteftable order of the Jefuits, who, we are afraid, too much abound at this time in England, it is plain they think they cannot fo effectually diftrefs or deftroy the liberty of writing, as by provoking the government to lay it under a reftraint, by their infolent attacks upon the Proteftants, and their avowed apologies for the Roman religion. Should fuch a reftraint take place, the English prefs muft refemble the eagle expiring by the wound of an arrow which was feathered from her own wing. 24. Ant 24. An Epifle to James Bofwell, Efq; occafioned by his having tranfmitted the moral Writings of Dr. Samuel Johnfon, to Pascal Paoli, General of the Corficans. Wub a Poftjcript, containing Thoughts on Liberty; and a Parallel, after the Manner of Plutarch, between the celebrated Patriot of Corte, and John Wilkes, Eq; Member of Parliament for Middlefex. By W. K. Efq; 800. Pr. 1s. 6d. Fletcher and Anderson. Mr. Bofwell is the laft man in the world whom we should fufpect of giving offence either by his converfation or writings. The whole of this abusive publication is intended to fhew that Mr. Boswell was very injudicious in recommending Dr. Johnfon's works to General Paoli. Mr. K. performs this by selecting from the Idler and fome other fuppofed works of Dr. Johnson, a number of paffages which are, in his opinion, offenfive, and queftionable; but we think that, when connected with what goes before and follows, they do honour to the doctor as a man of virtue and genius. 8vo. 25. Difcourfes on a fober and temperate Life. By Lewis Cornaro. a noble Venetian Tranflated from the Italian Original. Pr. 25. White. Lewis Cornaro, the author of these Discourses, was descended from one of the moft illuftrious families in Venice. In his earlier days he had injured his conftitution by intemperance; but when he was about forty, finding his infirmities increasing, he refolved to try the efficacy of a regular and abftemious life. By this expedient he foon recovered his health and vigour, and Jived above a hundred years. He died at Padua in 1566*. Mr. Addifon mentions him in the third volume of the Spectator. Thefe difcourfes were originally publifhed at different times. The firft, which the author wrote at the age of eighty three, is entitled, A Treatife on a fober Life. The fecond, which he compofed when he was eighty-fix, contains farther encomiums. on fobriety, and points out the means of mending a bad conftitution. In this tract he tells us, that he came into the world with a choleric difpofition, but that his temperate courfe of life had enabled him to fubdue it. In the third, which he wrote at the age of ninety-five, he endeavours to perfuade men to embrace a temperate life, as the means of obtaining a healthy and happy old age. The fourth and last is a letter, which he wrote to Barbaro, patriarch of Aquileia, when he was ninety-one, giving him an account of the health, vigour, and alacrity which he enjoyed at that advanced period. This work was tranflated into Latin by Leifius; and fome years fince into English, under the title of Sure and certain Me1565, Collier's Biograph. Dia. thods thods of attaining a long and healthy Life. But in the latter of thefe performances feveral paffages of the Italian are omitted, and the whole is rather a paraphrase than a translation. The publication now before us is a more exact and faithful verfion, from an edition in octavo, printed at Venice in 1620. As the original was become very fcarce, it is re-printed in this volume. This performance we will venture to recommend, as the strongest perfuafive to a fober and regular life, that was ever written in any language. The author's health and longevity give a fanction to his precepts; and the garrulity of the old man is rather a recommendation than a difcredit to his book. 26. Hieroglyphic: or, A Grammatical Introduction to an Univerfal Hieroglyphic Language; confifting of English Signs and Voices. With a Definition of all the Parts of the English, Welsh, Greek, and Latin Languages. By Row. Jones. 8vo. Pr. 2s. 6d. Dodley. This author foars too high into antiquity and the unexplored regions of etymology, to be subject either to literary approbation or cenfure and for our own parts, we must frankly acknowledge our ignorance of the fubje&t he undertakes. 27. The History of Chefs, together with fhort and plain Instructions by which any one may eafily play at it without the Help of a Teacher. 8v0. Pr. 2s. 6d. Wilkie. "We have frequently obferved, that no rules or directions can make a genius for poetry, but we daily fee excellent chefs-players formed by practical directions for playing that elegant game: after all, however, we believe the best players owe their fuccefs in a great measure to nature; and we have often remarked perfons of no deep capacity even in the common concerns of life, who have made the greateft figure at chefs playing. The pamphlet before us gives a hiftory of the game, which we believe to be very apocryphal; and then we have a defcription of the game itself, together with many examples to improve the learner, which, barring the errors of the prefs, we believe may prove of great ufe in practice, when seriously attended to. 28. Hiftory of the principal Monarchies and States, prior to the Chritian ra., Difigned as an easy and pleafing Introduction to the Study of ancient Hiftory. For the Use of Schools: Written originally in German, By M. Muller, Head Mafter of the Grammar School at Hall in Saxony. I 2mo. Pr. 25. Crowder. This publication deferves the title of an index rather than a hiftory. The author, with true German application, has pointed pointed out the most diftinguished periods of ancient hiftory, prior to the Christian æra, though with no great regard to their connection; but he deferves great praife for his fidelity in annexing to every paragraph the name of the hiftorian from whom he tranfcribes. We think his compilation will prove extremely useful to young ftudents, in pointing out the authors whom they ought to confult in ancient hiftorical 'matters. 29. Aftronomical and Philological Conjectures on a Paffage in Homer. By G, Coftard, M. A. Vicar of Twickenham, in the County of Middlesex. 410. Pr. 6d. Walter. The paffage here treated of, is that where Thetis, as the tells Achilles, could not, at prefent, lay her petition before Ju piter. · Ζεὺς γὰρ ἐπ ̓ Ωκεανὸν μετ ̓ ἀκύμονας Αιθιοπίας Χθιζὸς ἔβη μετὰ δᾶπα· Θεὸς δ ̓ ἅμα πάντες έποντο Δωδεκαλη δέ τοι ἄνθις ἐλεύσεται Ουλυμπόνδε.* Jupiter enim in Oceanum ad inculpatos Ethiopas Heffernus abiit ad Convivium, & Dii fimul omnes fequuti funt. Duodecima autem rurfus veniet in Cælum.' In these lines the author imagines fome mythological meaning is included, which he attempts to investigate. It appears evident from the teftimony of many ancient authors that there were formerly Afiatic Ethiopians, as well as African, and Homer himself alludes to this diftinction in the beginning of the Odyffey, • Αιθίοπας, τὰ δεχθὰ δεδαία]αι, ἔσχατοι ἀνδρῶν, Ethiopas, qui bifariam divifi funt, ultimi bominum, Alii quidem ad occidentalem folem, alii vero ad orientalem.” From thence the author infers, that the Ethiopians, spoken of in the first paffage above quoted, were certainly those of Afia, and the fame who, in fcripture, are called by the name of Cufbites; and he fuppofes them to have been borderers upon the territories of Babylon, if they were not the Babylonians themselves. After endeavouring to establish this fact, from authorities both facred and prophane, the author enters on his aftronomical and philological conjectures. It was obferved above, (fays he) that the Greeks borrowed from the Babylonians the method of dividing the day into twelve parts. If it be asked how the Babylonians, themfelves, came to divide the days into this number of parts, rather than any other, the answer feems to be, that it was done in conformity to the divifion of the the year into the fame. For twelve lunations being supposed equal to one revolution of the fun, it was natural to divide the year into twelve parts, and the ecliptic, the fun's apparent annual path, into the like. • But one year is one fyftem of days, and therefore, in the prophetic ftile, fometimes reprefented as one day. This is particularly obfervable in the book of Daniel, which was wrote at Babylon, under the Jewish captivity there. But there are inftances of this method of computation much earlier than this. For, when Rebecca fent her fon Jacob to Padan Aram, fhe bade him go and stay with Laban, not a few days, as our translation hath it, but one days, one fyftem of days, or one year. For as the journey could not be performed in a few days, fo neither would the abfence of a few days answer the purpose of his being fent away. As a year then, of twelve months, was one days, fo, in the fame style, would a year of one month be one days. But as this could not be expreffed in the Greek language, they would, perhaps, call it one day. At least a poet might do so, and especially fuch a poet as Homer, abounding in figure and mythology. An inftance of this, I think, we have in the word Zeus, in the paffage under confideration. The Greeks themselves derive the word from tw, ferveo. But the origin of it, perhaps, must be fought for much higher, and it may be looked on as equivalent to the Dai, or Di of the Hebrews, the Du of the Arabians, nay, what is more, the Dyu of the Welsh, the Deu of the Cornish, the Due of the Armoric, the Dia of the Old Irish, and laftly, the Deus of the Latins. All these fignify lord, or poffeffor, and therefore are equivalent to the word baal, the idolatrous term for the fun in fcripture. Another remark to be made here is, that the peftilence falling into the Grecian camp before Troy, feems to have been a real fact, the hiftory, or tradition of which, had been preferved to Homer's time. This, ftript of fable, is properly enough referred to Apollo, the fun, or the heat of the season, which therefore was about July, or the beginning of Auguft, when the heats are greateft. It was therefore past the summer folftice, but not very long after; upon which account Homer fays that Jupiter, or the fun, was gone xos, a day or two ago. That is, he was gone towards the winter tropic; to- wards the fouthermoft part of his orbit; and therefore towards the vertex of those people that lived in the fouthermost part of the known world. He was gone therefore us wúnovas AT2s. Thefe people lay towards the top of the Perfian gulph, and therefore usaviv; were borderers upon the |