Mr. URBAN, Oxford, Nov. 2. A bling amongst rocks and mountains, S I am paffionately fond of ram and moderately skilled in the art of drawing, I lately indulged the natural bent of my inclination, by making a pedestrian tour through North Wales, with a friend, in the months of July and Auguft. Perhaps a felect part of my Journal may not prove unworthy infertion in your Miscellany. "About ten o'clock in the morning, July 19, we reached Dolgelley, in Merionethshire, a small and poor town, fituated at the foot of Cader Idris. We were defirous of afcending this vaft mountain without delay; but, upon enquiry, found that the distance to the fummit was not lefs than fix or feven miles, and that the most proper time to put this exped tion in practice would be about one or two o'clock in the morning, to have an opportunity of feeing the fun rife. This was therefore determined upon. But our curiofity would not fuffer us to be idle; we afcended up a part of the mountain, and had thence an extenâve view over innumerable rocks and precip ces, and of the fea and the if id of Bardtey towards the North-west. "In the evening vifited Llyn Cynnock, a fmall lake about half a mile long, which fills a valley fituated high in the bofom of the mountains, diftant about two miles Northeaft from Dolgelley. This we had obferved from Cader is in the morning, and had now an admirable view of that mountain from the water. "At a fmall diftance hence is Nanney, the feat of Sir Robert Vaughan, but the manfion had been lately taken down in order to be re-built. Upon our return to Dolgelley, we made enquiries for a guide, who might conduct us to the top of the mountain in the morning; for, without one, it would be next to impollible for a stranger to find his way. Accordingly, a fingular fellow, named Price, made has appearance in a tattered coat, and without fhoes or stockings. There was fomething peculiarly ftrange in his air and phyfioguomy; he stared much, had a beard uncommonly black, and talked Welth very loud and faft; for, he could speak but very few words of English. He called us at two o'clock in the morning, and we fet out upon our early expedition without delay. Afcending the road which leads to Towyn Merioneth, we skirted the lower part of the mountain, and paffed the small lake of Llyn Gwernan lying on the right: then turned to the left up an afcent covered with coarse grafs and ftones, and in many places rather boggy. Our track foon became very steep; but, having furmounted this difficulty, we paffed for a fhort fpace on ground tolerably level. The clouds now began to obfcure the objects around, and to threaten us with dif appointment in our hopes of enjoying the vaft view from the fummit. We however climbing up mount above mount, proceeded, climb the verge of a tremendous precipice, at the bottom of which lies a small pool or lake, named Llyn Cader. Many of the ftones on which we ftood appeared to have been originally thrown up by a volcanic eruption. Continued to afcend clofe to the edge of the precipice, and, after a rugged walk of another mile or more, reach the highest fummit, or Pen y Cader, where is a circular wall of loofe ftones, ferving to keep off the wind, which is here extremely fhorp and piercing. But, alas! the driving clouds furrounded us on every fide; not an objec was to be feen below, except once or twice when a gaft of wind caufed a momentary opening through the mits; but this could by no means afford an adequate idea of the immenfity of the profpect to be feen on a clear day. As the weather feemed by no means likely to become more favourable, we quited our exalted fituation, confoling our→ felves with the thoughts of enjoying a good breakfast upon our return to Dolgelley, and glad to quit this cold Alpine region for a more temperate atmosphere in the vale below. The fummit of Cader Idris is, according to Pennant, 950 yards higher than the green, near Dolgelley." I have inclofed an accurate drawing of Crickaeth caftle, in Caernarvonibire, which we visited in the course of our excurtion (see plate III, fig. 3). This ruin is fituated on a high rocky mount, immediately above the fea, and is a capital obje& for the pencil. Yours, &c. I Mr. URBAN, MONTIVAGUS. Dec. 16. BEG you will inform your cortefpondent Marcus, who feems to grudge the Guards their hard-earned laurels," that, in the action of Linceiles, neither the foldiers of the line, nor our allies, were engaged. The poft, it is true, had been in the occupa tion of the Dutch: they had fent to the Duke of York for alliftance; and the Guards were immediately ordered upon that that duty. Thefe our worthy allies, however, without waiting their arrival, had generously abandoned the poft; and General Lake had advanced too far to fecure a retreat before he difcovered what had taken place. In this critical fituation, knowing well the cool and fteady bravery of his officers and men, he or dered a charge; and 1150 Guardsmen, only, drove from their ftrong intrenchments 5000 French infantry and 500 horfe the latter were very improperly omitted in Sir James Murray's letter. Poffibly the fame number of troops of the line, or of our allies, with as good and brave a general at their head, might have done the fame; but I only know that they had not the fame opportunity. The action is certainly by far the most brilJiant, and reflects more honour upon our Countrymen than any that has yet taken place; and my only defire is, that, without drawing any invidious or liberal comparisons, merit may be given where merit is fo highly due. IT AN OLD SOLDIER. Mr. URBAN, Dec. 14. T is, I believe, a maxim with a liberal critick, that, in proportion to the difficulties and labour attending any uleful compofition, and the time of a man's life which it occupies, fo fhould be the candour of his criticifm. Every one engaged in fuch a work has a right to expect afliftance rather than abufe; encouragement, not perfonal infult. Opinions on fpeculative or difputed points may differ; but this will not warp the difinterested mind to condemn in the grofs what it only forms objections to in part. I have been led to thefe obfervations by reading an account, in the Critical Review for the last month, of Mr. Polwhele's Hiftorical Sketches of Devonfhire. Convinced of your abhorrence of illiberality of a kinds, and the oppofite plan on which you conduct your monthly publication, I doubt not but you will admit the following remarks, which do not originate from partiality to Mr. Polwhele, but from a love of truth, of talents, and why should it not be faid, of Literary virtue, that fpecies of virtue which will not permit a man of honour, for the fake of thewing his fancied wit or learning, to injure his neighbour? Mr. Polwhele has devored his time and abilities to the writing of a County Hiftory; a work of magnitude, of toil, requiring patient and affiduous inveftigation and attention. In his ardour for 2 procuring the exactest information, and to render his work as perfect as noble, he feems to have defigned his Hyforical Viers; an arduous task impofed upon himlelf, whether confulting worldly policy is a queftion. The plain account of it given in his Profpectus (which The Critick affects not to underfland) is, “that here he may be at liberty to throw out conjectures on fubjects of antiquity, and fubinit to con fideration a variety of points that feem ambiguous, but which, when elucidated, may be worthy attention for the larger work. He invites remarks on thefe Views, either to correct error, or refolve doubts, &c.; one great object beiog, that every point worthy notice may be examined and afcertained; in short, that nothing of confequence may be omitted in his Hiftory." Can a defign fo perfpicuoufly, fo madeftly, expreffed, be misunderstood by any of your readers? Or could the au thor, even where erroneous, have expected captioufnefs, i'l-nature, and contumely? But The Critick, who, cenfeffing be knows nothing of Sir George Yonge and Col. Simcoe as Antiquaries, can opprobrioufly compare them to quacks in medicine; who can fpeak difrefpe&fully of Bryant, Vallancey, and Whitaker, and pafs over with filent contempt the name of Sir William Jores; may well be fuppofed to treat Mr. Polwhele in a manner equally uncomplaifant and unceremonious. That the writer of this letter is not partial to Mr. Polwhele may perhaps be credited, when he affures your readers that he puts no faith in the Saxon Chronicle; that he does not believe any part of Britain was peopled white Gaul and Germany remained deferts; that he places no reliance on the authority of M'Pherfon's Offian; nor even, with refpect to the Armenian fettlement in Britain, on the opinion of Sir Wm. Jones himself. But, though he diffents from: Mr. Polwhele in these very effential points of his fyftem; while he is free to acknowledge, that he thinks whether the fyftem ftand or fall is of little confequence to his Hiftory; he cannot avoid doing film the justice to confefs, that he perceives, in thefe Hiftorical Views, learning genius, various and extensive reading, argumentative acumen, and ingenuity, even in his most fanciful conjeaktres : he is ftruck with that integrity and dofufpicioufnels of heart, which would not permit permit him to infert what might be confidered dubious or erroneous in his Hiftory; which folicited inftruction and information, and found inftead unmerited reproach. Nor can he avoid thanking him for the entertainment he has received from the many curious facts inferted in his Views, relative to the natural hiftory of the county of Devon, on mining, on the antient tin trade, on the Druidical religion, &c. &c. He fmiles, however, at that œconomy, which, to fave the pockets of his fubfcribers, frains their eyes even to aching by the fmall type made ufe of; having (not furely with reference to his own intereft) compreffed into a fix fhilling book materials, for which, printed in the common mode, he might honefily have asked a guinea. Nor can he help obferving, though the prefent volume of Hiftorical Views, where it is difputative and fpeculative, may not interfere with the future hiftory, yet that many facts likewife are anticipated which ought to come fresh to the reader. And, thould he go on through the fucceeding periods, which will not require fuch speculations, his fubícribers may juttly complain they have paid for two works merely differing in form: the General History being only a fecond edition of the Historical Views, with alterations and improvements. Should there be facts worthy notice in the Hiftorical Views, not transferred to the Hiftory, he will act in contradiction to his terms held out, namely, that, however the work might be enlarged, the price fhould be only four guineas; a circumstance, I fee, principally attended to in your last month's Review of New Publications. Befides, has Mr. P. confidered how he may injure the future tale of his History? For, who but fubfcribers will purchafe it, when the edge of curiofity has been taken off by the Hiftorical Views? But, recommending thefe obfervations to Mr. Polwhele's furious notice, far be from your correfpondent the invidiouf. nefs of criticifm; an invitioufnets directed to prepotlefs the publick with unfavourable ideas of the merits of the author and his intended work, and which fcruples not to descend to mifreprefentation and fallehood. For an example of the first: The Cris tick affirms, as a fpecimen of Mr. Polwhele's reafoning, we must add, that he fays, the Saxon Chronicle bears, that the inhabitants of the South of Britain GENT. MAG. Supplement, 1793. came a long voyage by fea; and it would be abfurd to defcribe a colony from Gaul as performing fuch a voyage. The Chronicle is now before us, and there is not a fyllable to that purpofe." The words of Mr. Polwhele are, Saxon Chronicle, fpeaking of the origi the na inhabitants, plainly intimates, that they, who fertled first in the South or South-western parts, came a long voyage by fea." Hift. Views, p. 5. The Saxon Chronicle bears is the barbarifm of the Critick; and the intimation alluded to depends on the context. The very expreffion fhews that Mr. P. meant, it was not contained in the Chronicle totidem verbis. The Critic lays, "Mr. Polwhele will have it that the Damnonians were of Armenian origin; and, as we see no proof of his knowledge to the contrary, we really are inclined to believe, that he is a stranger to a glaring circumstance, namely, that Armenia was, and is, an inland country, furrounded towards the fea by inimical nations." plain, from the whole tenor of the HifBut, it is torical Views, that Mr. Polwhele did not thus limit the more antient Armenia; and, p. 213, he tranfcribes this fentence from the letter of a correfpondent: "Armenia, I apprehend, was a large district, comprehending the modern Turcomania, and part of Perfia." Again, "Though they fent out colo nies, they ftill retained poffeffion of this their former refidence, and Afia Minor, which, perhaps, was all included by them under the name of Armenia." All Mr. Polwhele's arguments, indeed, are bent to establish a general Eattern origin, independent of the authority of the Chronicle; for, p. 211, he fays, "I have not grounded my fuppofition on the fole authority of the Saxon Chronicle. The Saxon Chro nicle is one of its weakeft fupports. The evidence of Cæfar himself is ftrong in my favour; and the voice of the Greek hitlorians and geographers is ftill more decifive, &c. The wandering spirit, and patriarchal policy of Armenia and Arabia, and the religious peculiarities of Perfia and of India, were originally fixed to one fpot. And, at the time of their first colonial feparation, these characteristic lines were equally dif cernible in the Armenians, the Arabs, the Perfians, and the Indians. A this crifis was kindled the flame of adventurous colonization. At this crifis the Orientals Orientals emigrated to Damnonium. And, whilft the Armenians and Arabs were nationally diftinguished by one part of the primitive Eastern character, and the Perfians and Indians by another, the Damnonians feem to have retained the leading features of the whole." This fyftem Mr. P. has endeavoured to fupport; and his active mind has adduced every thing, both antient and modern, which can be imagined to make in its favour; a work well worth reading, for the fund of knowledge which it contains. His error, in com. mon with almost every supporter of a fyftem, is the want of rejection, the ufing for evidence thole flight analogies, which, instead of adding weight, dedu&t from the authority of those which are more ftrong. the vehicle of his flander can extend. Except native malevolence, no caufe but party spleen feems adequate to the exiflence of fuch criticifms. Difagree ing with Mr. P. in various infances, and in those which most affect his sys tem, I feel, I am confcious, not a difference of opinion, but the most unwor thy motives, muft have generated fo ferocious and fcurrilous an attack. Other paffages equally reprehenfible with thofe I have quoted, are defignedly unnoticed by me, because I am not willing to occupy too much room in your Magazine. But, why had not the Critic accufed Sir William Jones likewife of ignorance; whofe words are, "The Saxon Chronicle, I prefume, from good authority, brings the first inhabitants of Britain from America?" Truly, it fuited his purpose to overlook the opinion of Sir William Jones as well as the matter above adduced: yet, he affirms that he has perufed Mr. Polwhele's work with attention'; though, were that the cafe, he must have been guilty of deliberate falfehood. An ingenuous mind can scarcely bear to accufe even an anonymous writer of fuch a crime. Yet, the fact cannot be denied; for, he afferts that " Mr. P. informs us he was prepofleft that the Damnonians were an Oriental people before he bad read a fyllable on the matter Yet, what Mr. P. fays is, that "it appeared to him more than probable, before he had read the Saxon Chronicle, Bryant, Vallancey, Pinkerton, or Sir William Jones," p. 214. To the authorities used by thefe gentlemen in for ming their fytiems, every fcholar, Mr. P. among the reft, might have had aceefs. One of the authors, who particularly occafioned this prepoffeffion, he mentions, viz. “Nor fhould it be diffembled, that Dr. Borlafe's parallel between the Perfians and the Aborigines of this island had long excited in my mind the strongest fufpicion of their affinity." Ibid. From firictures like thefe, accompa-nied with the lowest vulgarity of expreffion, and a manner throughout demonftrating the most virulent perfonal amy, the public is expected by the writer to form a judgement as far as You likewife, Sir, as an Antiquary, may diffent from Mr. Polwhele's hypothefes; yet you neither would floop 10 be the publisher of malicious invective, nor will you refufe to infert a letter chiefly prompted by the indignation which calumay excites, and a defire of rendering impartial justice. J. M. Mr. URBAN, Dec. 19. PERMIT me to inform you that you labour under a mistake with regard to the engravings for Mr. Polwhele's Hiftory of this country: not above half the number you mention will, I believe, be in readiness to be delivered with the prefent_volume of the chorographical part; and I am pretty certain that Mr. Polwhele doth not intend to wait till the whole number engaged for fhall be executed indeed, were he to do so, there would be litte probability of even this volume's appearing for feveral years. The engra vings, however, that are completed, are in a fuperior ftyle, and far exceed thofe which have already met the public eye in the Somerfet Hiftory, done by the fame hand: had Mr. Polwhele met with the encouragement, which his acknowledged literary merit and fuch an undertaking demanded, he would have been enabled to have bimself given many an engraving in natural history, in antiquities, or of the romantic and picturefque fcenery of the county but for which, from the fcantinefs of his fubfcription, he now feels bimfelf under the neceflity of repeating his application to the liberality of the county, if they have a wish to fee the work embellished as thofe of the neighbouring counties, Somerfet and Cornwall. His profpectus hath pointed out a variety of fubjects for the engraver, which, it is to be hoped, will not be entirely overlooked by the gentlemen of fortune refident in the neighbourhood, or whole property property they may happen to be. I am forry to fee your critique on his hiftori cal views, which, in fome points, feems to have been too fevere; and though I am convinced his plan, as to thefe hiftorical views, will not anfwer; and though I agree with you, that as to type and paper it is one of the most inelegant works ever published; yet, the ingenuity by which the Armenian hypothefis hath been conducted, and the other valuable and multifarious matter therein contained, ought, in my opinion, to have guarded it, if not from cenfure altogether, yet from its acri mony. I mean not, however, to apply this to you, Mr. Urban; but to another Reviewer, whofe treatment hath been lefs candid and liberal! Thus indirectly to caft a damp on the animation of a mind, even yet ardent for the perfection of its great work, notwithstand ing it hath had fo many difficulties to encounter, argues but little generofity, and may (not unfairly, perhaps) be fuppofed to originate in private pique. Σχιζε Φιλίαν φθονος ! UPON J. S. THE CHRONICLES OF THE SEASONS, and hot; with exception, as to a few guty nights towards the end, and another flight thunder-ftorm (the fourth that has happened to my knowledge in 1793) on the evening of the 30th. With regard to the autumnal epanouiffement, the greatest how was in the fields; for, although fome of the hori ticultural flowers blew fuperbly, others were prevented from attaining perfection by the equinoxial chills before-mentioned; the luxuriant aftermaths were richly interfected with all the colours of the varied bow till the termination of the feafon, and every dandelionflower fed a bee even in December In a barley-ftubble on the fide of a chalky hill, I on the 5th of October found, in full bloom, a plant of the Iberis amara, or bitter candy-tuft. Mushrooms were not generally plentiful, and of other fungi I never faw fewer; of courfe, fairy-rings were not numerous. The fecond blow of monthly roses was delightfully profufe; and the cinnamon.rofes protracted flowering to the middle of October, a phænomenon doubtlefs owing to their backwardness in the fpring; the hedges were a fecond time hung with wreaths of woodbine flowers. A few damafcen trees were totally defoliated by the 10th of October: fo fcarce had been their fruit, that one bushel, collected from the premises of feveral cottagers, fetched a guinea in a confiderable market. Apples were in a tolerable quantity, but thrivelled up and decayed rapidly. By the middle of October, the horse-chefnuts, limes, afhes, hawthorns, white-withies, and dwarf-hazels, were much changed. The dwarf-hazel, or Humamelis Virginica, or Humamelis Corylus, belongs to the clafs Tentrandria, and is thickly covered through winter with brown bloffoms of a very curious form, Never did I behold fo full a bloom on the common ivy as this year exhibits. Robins and common wrens were uncommonly numerous; every ivy-bower, every faggot-pile, and every root-houfe, refounding with the richness of their harmony, harmony more pleasant to my ear than the fulleft melody of the capricious Mara. In one of my autumnal walks I obferved, among a flock of fparrows (fringille domeftice), one cu. riously pied with white. In Otober, many wate rails arrived on the 11th of that month I, laft, faw wallows; and towards the end I noted the male chaffaches to be flocking together, About the |