Sufferings of the Family of Ortenberg;" "the Hermit of Formentera," and "Adelaide of Wulfengen," were soon after written. Of the former we know nothing; of the latter we only know that it is the moft deteftable and mischievous production which, in these days of mischief, has fallen under our notice. A variety of other works, of a different nature, (fome actually executed, fome half done, and others only in meditation) fucceeded. In the autumn of 1787, he was feized with a dangerous illness, during which he wrote "Mifanthropy and Repentance," and the "Indians in England; the latter we have not feen, the former has appeared in this country in the fhape of the "Stranger." In the year 1789, his prolific pen produced the "Virgin of the Sun," the "Natural Son," and "Brother Maurice the Humourift." The first and fecond of these pieces have been prepared for British palates by Mr. Sheridan, and Mrs. Inchbald, as "Pizarro," and "Lovers Vows." We cannot omit the following anecdote: "At the time when Mifanthropy and Repentance" was played very frequently at Vienna, the following fquib was one morning found in the Emperor Jofeph the Ild.'s audience chamber: "In this place is performed daily mifanthropy WITHOUT repentance." We agree with Kotzbue that this "farcafm" was both "fevere and unjuft." The remainder of his literary life confifts of a relation of minute circumstances of perfonal intereft, and a specification of the time when fome other of his works made their appear ance. It has been not an uncommon opinion, that the political fentiments of Kotzbue had a tendency to democracy; for our own parts we do not perceive, from the work before us, that he has any fixed principles at all on the fubject. When any particular occafion offers itself to call forth his ideas on religion and government, he rather expreffes himself entirely from his own immediate feelings, arifing from the actual circumstance, than makes them fubfervient to, or regulated by, any fundamental or permanent principles on fuch important points; indeed, on the fubject of religion, he treats all defcriptions with equal contempt; and feems never to have recovered the difguft which he imbibed at the long fermons in the Castle Church at Weimar.-Individually fpeaking, it matters not to us what ideas he may entertain privately on the fubject; but it does concern us, in common with the rest of the Chriftian world, to reprobate, in the ftrongeft terms poífible, the prefumption and audacity of any writer who thus, ex cathedra, pronounces all the world, except himself, to have lived hitherto in a ftate of deception and ignorance, and who thus infults the understanding and feelings of those who have held fuch fubjects as facred. That Kotzbue has done this "in many parts of his works we have no fcruple in afferting; and for having done it, notwithstanding the juftness of his claims to brilliancy of dramatic and poetic powers, we feel ourfelves compelled to doubt the foundness and strength of his understanding, and to execrate the frivolity and capricioufnefs of his principles. The life, of which we have endeavoured to give the reader fome idea, is contained in 110 pages, and is followed by what he terms his "Flight to Paris." Flight to Paris." This event took place immediately after the death of his wife, in the autumn of 1790. The illness and decease of his Frederica are described in the moft impaffioned and affecting terms; but, though gratifying to him to have written, it would be tedious to tranfcribe. He travelled in a public carriage, the account of which is certainly fuch as would deter a stranger from pursuing the fame route, and is given with much vivacity and humour. His defcription of Frenchmen and French manners, at this period, is done with equal truth and ability. "Here," fays he, meaning Paris, "and every where, there is fuch an eternal ringing of changes upon liberty, and whatever has any relation to it, that it is really fatiguing. Our hair-dreffer, who is a member of the national guard, and a moft zealous democrat, never calls the King any thing, but le pauvre homme, and the Queen is commonly la coquine, la miferable femme du Roi; if he be in a particularly complacent humour, however, then it is la femme de Louis Seize; and if in a particularly farcaftic one, then la femme du pouvoir executif." The following anecdote we do not remember to have seen before. "Some days ago a dreadful scene took place at the Opera. The piece performed was Iphigenia. At the chorus, chantons, celebrons, notre reine, the Duchefs of Biron, and fome others in the neighbour. ing boxes, clapped, and applauded extremely, and called encore ! encore! which is not usual at the Opera. The performers, however, ventured to repeat the chorus, when the Duchefs threw a laurel wreath upon the stage. This was enough, and more than enough, to rouze the people's fury. They hiffed, they cried, they gave the Duchefs very opprobrious epithets; they got oranges, apples, and pears, both hard and foft, and pelted her fo that her box was foon like a fruit fhop, and the herself all over bruifes; fortunately a knife that was thrown miffed her. Some among the populace, more wanton than wicked, brought in a bundle of rods to chaftize her before the eyes of the whole public. She had fufficient prefence of mind to keep her feat feat, and to let them go on with perfect compofure. Had the quitted the box, they had probably broke into the faloon, and, had fhe attempted to fay a fingle word, or to make an offenfive gesture, they had probably broke into her box. At length all was quiet. The Duchefs had all the apples, pears, and oranges, and above all, the knife, collected together, and fent them the next morning to the Marquis de la Fayette, with her compliments, and she had fent him fome Striking teftimonies of French freedom, which the requested him to offer upon the altar of liberty in her name." Kotzbue had the following anecdote, he fays, "from very good authority:”— "When the Duke of Orleans was at Court on New Year's Day, and was ftanding to warm himself by the chimney, one of the courtiers faid to another, in a half-whisper, yet taking care that the Duke fhould over-hear him, What business has that Ravaillac here? The Duke however was so prudent as to turn a deaf ear to the remark.” On the 4th of January he quitted Paris; and on the 12th arrived at Mentz, where this "flight" ceafes. The whole of his vifit to Paris is extremely entertaining, interfperfed with a great variety of amufing and pleasant relations on the fubject of the Theatres, the National Affembly, &c. &c. all given in a lively and animated manner. The work concludes with "fome account of a Theatrical Inftitution at Reval," which appears to have been a private theatre where gentlemen and ladies performed for the benefit of the poor, and "a general fketch of Kotzbue's books." We fhall here, for the prefent, finish our notice of this work, as it is not improbable but that our attention may agaih be called to it. It is but juftice to say that the tranflation is very well performed. ART. III. A Refutation of fome of the more Modern Mifreprefentations of the Society of Friends, commonly called Quakers; with a Life of James Nayler. By Jofeph Gurney Bevan. Alfo (by permiffion of the Society for Sufferings) a Summary of the Hiftory, Doctrine, and Difcipline of Friends. 8vo. PP. 124. Phillips. London. 1800. UR readers cannot have forgotten, that our first attack upon the defence of their country by voluntary donations, at a time when the general fenfe of the nation fanctioned the neceffity of fuch contributions. The reafons affigned by the Quakers in fupport of this refufal appeared to us not only frivolous but falfe; and, at the fame time, wholly incompatible with a due discharge discharge of their political duties as fubjects. Hence arose an investigation of their principles and conduct, and a partial kind of controverfy, which has been, for fome time, dropped. Whoever maintains a controverfy with this extraordinary fect labours under a difadvantage to which he would not be exposed in a controverfy with any other defcription of perfons whatever. For no fooner is a charge brought home to any of their leaders, than they have recourfe to fome pitiful fubterfuge or evasion, fometimes denying the authority of fuch leader, at other times calling for documents of which they know the existence but believe that their opponents are not in poffeffion of them, and, not unfrequently, oppofing new editions of books (from which paffages, detrimental to their cause, have been treacherously expunged) to the original copies. In other inftances, they deny that men, who have always paffed for Quakers throughout life, are really members of the fociety. Thus a Quaker who figns himself Examiner, contends that JOHN WALKER, Author of the Elements of Geography,* which we had occafion to expofe in a former volume, was not a Quaker. From all the enquiries which we have made on the fubject, from the information of his fellow-ftudents, and his intimates, it appears that he always wore the drefs, affumed the manners, profeffed the principles, and attended the meetings, of the Quakers. Yet we are told that he is not a Quaker! But we must be excufed, however, if, on such a subject, we prefer the testimony of Mr. Walker himself to the affertion of an anonymous correfpondent. It is this conftant propenfity to evafion which creates a natural difguft in the mind to the continuation of a controverfy with fuch opponents. That difguft, however, must be furmounted. We have taken great pains to obtain poffeffion of all the publications that can throw a light on the principles and conduct of the fect, and the trouble and expence which we have beltowed on this object have not been unsuccessful. While we acknowledge that the fect contains a number of upright characters, who act up to the principles which they profefs, and conduct themselves with the ftricteft propriety * We must avail ourfelves of this opportunity to announce to our readers, that a new, very large, edition of this work (thanks to the praises of the Monthly Reviewers!) has been recently published. We earnestly recommend it to fathers of families, and masters of schools, to examine it with attention, in order to ascertain whether the profligate parts of it, which we pointed out as eminently calculated to corrupt the minds of the rifing generation, have been expunged, before they put it into the hands of their children and pupils. Whoever omits this duty is a traitor to his trufst. through through life, it is with concern that we have observed the growth of Jacobinical principles among its members, and, of Jate, an extraordinary zeal in procuring converts. We do not confider the late legacies of a Quaker to the present LORD MAYOR and Mr. SHERIDAN, as decifive proofs of the existence of fuch principles in the mind of the teftator, any more than we regard the broad brimmed hat, and other external characteristics of Quakerifm, as certain indications of inward humility; but they ferve to fhew a certain political bias, which, by many of the fect, is carried to a dangerous excefs. To those who are acquainted with their hiftory, there will appear nothing new and extraordinary in this affumption of political confequence by the Quakers; but others, who, with the late Serjeant Adair, thought them a harmlefs, inoffensive, persecuted people, like Bayard of old, exempt from reproach, and even like Washington, as painted by the pencil of adulation, Spotless, immaculate, may, poffibly, be induced to confider it in a different light. Be that as it may, the confiderations which we have fuggefted will fully juftify us in paying, to the pamphlet before us, more attention than the fubject, at first fight, feems to claim, or than the intrinfic merit of the book itself can poffibly deserve. It is written in the ufual way of the sect; and, it will appear, from our obfervations, that it might, with more propriety, be denominated an evafion of facts, than a detection of mifrepresentations. In the introduction,* P. I, it is faid "many of the mifrepresentations are now only remembered or heard of, by the answers which were given to them." If fo, where was the need of the prefent "Refutation ?" The very contrary appears to be far more apparent, fince every perfon at all converfant in controverfial Divinity, muft know, that almoft the whole of the jargon, put forth by the early Quakers, is now only remembered by the very able and complete "REFUTATIONS" which they received, even to their utter difavowal and concealment by the party whofe caufe they were defigned to plead.† And * An advertisement informs the reader that "an answer is given for fo much of Dr. Hawes's "New and Impartial Hiftory of the Church of Chrift" as contains erroneous affertions refpecting the Society of Friends or any of their early Members, by a particular or virtual difcuffion under fome of the heads into which the pamphlet is divided." The nature of Quaker answers we shall have occafion to confider, and an account of the orthodox Doctor's work will be given in its proper place. Many inftances occur, where not only felect passages have been defignedly OMITTED, but whole works bought up and DESTROYED, to prevent the future exposure of their fhame. Nor is the old Fox forgotten |