Слике страница
PDF
ePub

through a continuance of it, to complete Shakespeare's works, with equal if not fuperior elegance. The engravings,' he adds, for the remaining plays, are nearly finished, by a felect number of the most ingenious artifts; which with the letter-press, will be published early in the Spring, in three additional volumes.

One thing we would hint to the Bookfeller, with re-. fpect to the beauty of his impreffion. The edition, no doubt, as to the paper and the type, is far from inelegant: but we ima gine it would be more uniformly pleafing, if the tedious recommendatory catalogues of Mr. Bell's books did not appear, as they do, at the end of almost every play; fwelling the volumes with their difguftful repetitions. In the fecond edition, we hope thefe very improper fupplements to SHAKESPEARE will be wholly omitted, or confined to their proper ftation, at the end of the volume.

ART. XIII. Mifcellaneous and Fugitive Pieces. Small 8vo. 2 Vols. 7 s. Davies. 1774.

MUC

*

UCH may be faid in favour of collections of fmall detached tracts, and fugitive pieces; and much has been, with great propriety, faid on the fubject, in a difcourfe prefixed to the Harleian Mifcellany. That learned and ingenious Writer has obferved, that there is, perhaps, no nation in which it is so neceffary as in our own, to affemble, from time to time, the small tracts and fugitive pieces which are occafionally published for, befide the general subjects of enquiry which are cultivated by us, in common with every other learned nation, our conftitution, in church and ftatë, naturally gives birth to a multitude of performances, which would either not have been written, or could not have been made public, in any other place.'

The form of our government,' it is added, which gives every man who has leifure, or curiofity, or vanity, the right of enquiring into the propriety of public measures, and, by confequence, obliges thofe who are entrusted with the adminiftration of national affairs, to give an account of their conduct to almost every man who demands it, may be reafonably imagined to have occafioned innumerable pamphlets which would never have appeared under arbitrary governments, where every man lulls himself in indolence under calamities, of which he cannot

That difcourfe is now detached from the eight large quartos to which it originally belonged, and is here reprinted as a tract deferving a place in a mifcellany confifting of the fmaller, occafional, unconnected productions of ingenious men. It appears, from the ftyle, so have been written by the very respectable Author of the RAMBLER.

L 2

promote

promote the redrefs, or thinks it prudent to conceal the uneafnefs, of which he cannot complain without danger:

The multiplicity of religious fects, tolerated among us, of which every one has found opponents and vindicators,' it is farther obferved, is another fource of unexhauftible publication, almoft peculiar to ourselves; for controverfies cannot be long continued, nor frequently revived, where an inquifitor has a right to shut up the difputants in dungeons, or where filence can be impofed on either party by the refufal of a licence.'

This very fenfible obferver proceeds to remark, that we are not to infer, from the foregoing premifes, that political or religious controverfies are the only products of the British prefs. The mind,' fays he, once let loofe to enquiry, and fuffered to operate without reftraint, neceffarily deviates into peculiar opinions, and wanders in new tracks, where fhe is indeed fometimes loft in a labyrinth, from which, though the cannot return, and fçarçe knows how to proceed, yet fometimes makes useful discoveries, or finds out nearer paths to knowledge.'

With respect to the happy talent of humour, in which the Englifh are faid fo much to excel, that a greater variety of humour is found among the natives of England, than in any other country.-' Doubtless,' fays he, where every man has full liberty to propagate his conceptions, variety of humour must produce variety of writers; and where the number of authors is fo great, there cannot but be fome worthy of diftinction.'

These, and other caufes affigned by our Author, have, he concludes, contributed to make pamphlets and fmall tracts a very important part of an English library; nor are there any pieces upon which thofe who afpire to the reputation of judicious collectors of books, beftow more attention, or greater expence; because many advantages may be expected from the perufal of these small productions, which are fcarcely to be found in that of larger works. These advantages are, by our Author, here enumerated; and he fhews in what manner the hiftorical, the religious, and other enquirers, may receive benefit from the ftudy of pamphlets and small tracts: but for particulars, we refer to the difcourfe at large.

The collection before us, however, is not entirely compofed of pieces which have originally appeared in the form of pamphlets. The moft confiderable articles, and the greatest number, are extracted from much larger compilements than the prefent; to the voluminous, and in many refpects the valuable, mass of materials contained in the Gentleman's Magazine, the Editor is peculiarly obliged. It is well known that the comprehenfive genius to whom we have ventured to affign the preface to the Harleian Mifcellany, had, for many years, a connexion with that Magazine; and as it was the principal part of our Editor's defign,

[ocr errors]

to collect the fcattered productions of Dr. J's juftly admired pen, his firft refort was to the literary ftorehoufe abovementioned, in which thofe detached performances were depofited. From these ample stores, and from new editions of fome very reputable English authors, he has accordingly selected. feveral well-written pieces of biography, viz. the lives of Sir Francis Drake, Dr. Sydenham, Boerhaave, Roger Afcham, Sir Thomas Brown, and Peter Burman; not overlooking that of Edward Cave, the original projector and successful conductor of the Magazine above-named.

Befides thefe biographical pieces, we here meet with feveral other tracts afcribed to the fame excellent writer; fome of which originally appeared in the form of separate pamphlets, others as prefaces to books; among which we obferve a tract entitled, A Review of a Free Enquiry into the Origin of Evil; which we always underfood to be the production of a reverend gentleman who is not here named, and who, perhaps, was not even thought of by the Editor +.

We here meet alfo with Dr. J.'s celebrated plan of an English Dictionary, in a letter to Lord Chesterfield; alfo the Doctor's preface to the folio edition of that Dictionary: to which are added his proposals for printing the dramatic works of Shakefpeare, and his preface to his edition of that Poet.. His differtation on Pope's Epitaphs is likewife to be found in these volumes, together with fome prologues; London, a poem; and the Vanity of Human Withes-thefe poetical pieces were, however, before collected in Dodfley's Mifcellanies.

Among the productions of other writers, we have here fome pieces by the Reverend Dr. Franklin, Mr. Colman, the late ingenious but unhappy Robert Lloyd; and the Battle of the Wigs, written by that arch fan of humour Bonnel Thornton, as a kind of additional canto to Garth's Difpenfary. This Mock-Heroic was first published in 1768, in ridicule of the disputes then fubfifting between the regulars of the College of Phyficians and the licentiates. See a farther account of this merry performance in vol. xxxviii. p. 142. of our Review.

An advertisement informs, that a Third volume of this Miscellaneous Collection is in the prefs; with which the Editor will poffibly give us a general preface to the whole, there being none to the present volumes.

Of Dr. J's talent for this fpecies of compofition, the Public hath long been in poffeffion of an excellent fpecimen in The Life of RICHARD SAVAGE.

+ Since this Article was composed at the prefs, we have been afCured that Dr. J. has acknowledged the tract here mentioned.

[blocks in formation]

FOREIGN ARTICLES intended for our laft APPENDIX (published with the Review for January) but omitted for want of room.

ART. XIV.

Détail des Succes de l'Etabliffement, &c.-A Detail of the Success which has attended the Eftablishment formed by the City of Paris in Favour of Perfons drowned, &c. By M. P. A. 12mo. Paris. 1773

TH

HE accounts which have been published of the beneficial confequences that have attended the laudable endeavours of the Society formed about fix years ago at Amfterdam, for the recovery of drowned perfons, appear to have excited the attention of feveral other communities or ftates; particularly in different parts of Germany, France, and Italy; where fimilar. inftitutions have been formed, either under the immediate direction, or the patronage of government. To promote, as far as was in our power, the benevolent and truly patriotic designs of the Amfterdam Society, by extending the knowledge of their plan, we have formerly related their fuccefs, and expatiated pretty largely on the rationale, or grounds, on which it was founded. It will therefore be fufficient for us to obferve with respect to the prefent publication, that it contains an account of the regulations that have been formed and published at Paris, under the direction of the magiftracy, in behalf of persons who have been drowned, and a circumftantial detail of the different cafes which have already fallen under the cognizance of this recent establishment. Thefe regulations have already been productive of the perfect recovery of fixteen perfons, out of twenty, who have, in the space of five months, been drawn out of the water. The greater part of this number were reputed to be dead, and would, a few years ago, have been treated as fuch; in confequence of the fingular and abfurd police, and prejudices, which feem long to have prevailed throughout a confiderable part of Europe, with regard to accidents of this kind; and which were calculated to deprive the unfortunate patient of the molt diftant chance of recovery.

See the Appendix to our 45th vol. page 556, and to our 47th, page 552, and our Review for October last, page 309–311.

AR T. XV.

Traité du Suicide, ou du Meurtre volontaire de foi-même. Par Jean Dumas. A Treatise on Self-murder, &c. 8vo. Amfterdam. 1773.

F felf murder be a crime; as it certainly is; as much as

a

every attempt to demonftrate its criminality, and to expofe its natural deformity, is highly commendable, and may be useful,

in proportion to the ftrength of the effort that is made. The misfortune, on this fubject, is, that hitherto wit and talents have generally appeared in favour of vice. This may be owing to a common infirmity of human nature; a disposition to embrace or reject altogether a fet of principles or opinions which in general it approves or difapproves. Suicide is a crime according to the doctrines and fentiments of all the Christian churches. With those who, on whatever principles, have renounced Christianity, it has been very much the cuftom to oppofe that fyftem, at all points; and particularly to adopt the opinion that suicide is allowable, and even in some cases a duty. Those who have fet themselves to controvert this opinion, have very abfurdly done it on the principles of the Christian religion, which their antagonists do not acknowledge; and those who defend it, de fend it on principles which Chriftians affect to despise. They may thus fight on to eternity; without even coming to blows: a common practice among theological and moral disputants.

The Author before us is a believer; and he argues accordingly. This would be very proper, if Chriftians held a contrary opinion. But, as this is not the cafe, we apprehend it is fo much labour loft. He however ventures manfully on the enemy's ground; and is not afraid to take up the weapons of philofophy and reafon. We have feen them better wielded; but we commend him for his courage; he cannot help his want of ftrength. He treats his fubject in the following manner :

After having defined fuicide, he fhews that a man ought not to difpofe of a life which he has received from God, without HIS leave; and that God has not given any fuch leave.-He then confiders the evils which refult from the nature of things, fhews wherein they are useful; and ftrenuously combats the opinion, that they, in any case, imply a permiffion from God, to put an end to our lives.-After labouring this point through. feveral chapters, he confiders the inftincts of Nature and the judgments of reafon as always leading us to preserve and not to deftroy ourselves. This brings him to the pretenfions of those fects of philofophers who countenanced or allowed of fuicide; referving however his main ftrength for fome modern apologies which are thought to have done credit to this practice. The first of thefe, is the famous apology for fuicide in the 74th of The Perfian Letters; the fecond is, an apology of the fame kind in The Syftem of Nature; and the laft is an argument advanced in the celebrated Nouvelle Heloife. We fhall give the Reader fome part of what the Author has here urged against Mr. Rousseau.

In the 21ft letter of the third volume of Eloifa, the Author reduces the question concerning fuicide to this fundamental propofition: "To feek good, and to avoid evil, in that which does not injure another, is a right of nature. When life

« ПретходнаНастави »