Mr. Plumptre, to whom the public are indebted for bringing these " Precepts" to light, informs us that he "lately met with the MS, from which the following pages are printed, in Worcestershire; where it is well known that the learned Dr. Henry Hamond passed the latter years of his life at Westwood, during the time of Charles II. by whom he was intended for the bishoprick of Worcester.” The work was intitled, "A Sweete Poesie or Variety of Flowers, composed of divine and moral Precepts for a Christian and civil Carriage towards God and Man." The style, as might be expected, was somewhat antiquated and quaint, and has been corrected a little in order to render it more generally useful to young persons; but it is nervous, pointed, and perspicuous. We shall extract some of the precepts, which are divided into heads or chapters, such as “On Virtue and true Gentility; Love and Friendship; Hodesty, Flattery, and Hypocrisy,

86

Never separate piety from honesty. Devotion and conscience must never be parted.- Fear God; honour your superiors; reveTence your friends; and obey the laws. Often meditate on what you owe to the Lord, and what to your country.—Custom in sia, will take away the conscience of sin." The following is expressed with all the energy of Lavater. Who, but one that is of a distempered will and judgment, would think to offer fraud to the Decipherer of all thoughts? with whom we may, indeed, dissemble to our own cost; but to deceive is impossible. It is ingeniously and worthily observed, that there are in all the law of God six hundred and thirteen precepts; whereof three hundred and sixty-five are negative, as many as there are days in the year; and two hundred and forty-eight affirmative, or as many as there are joints in a man's body: to show that God means that the whole man all the days of his life should serve him and keep his commandments. Understanding could not have chosen a worse mansion, that when it is vitiated, and made a pander to wickedness. Pity it is, that greatness should at any time be out of the road of goodness. Virtue is an uprightness of life, in all things agreeable to reason. Those who embrace it not, yet cannot but see it, and also highly respect it. Keading maketh an able man; discoursing a ready man; writing an exact man; but virtue beautifieth him in all."

These councils taken promiscuously will show that this volume is much more proper for youth than Dr. Hunter's "Men and Manners," and that it contains lessons of wisdom adapted to all men and all ages.

The Defence of Outposts. Translated from the French. Small 8vo. pp 34. Gye, Bath. Hatchard, London. 1808.

NEVER was the maxim Fas est ab hoste doceri better applied than in the present case. If all our common soldiers were examined, they would almost all he found to be totally ignorant of every thing relative to the art of war; except mere mechanical marching, firing, and some other absurd motions, The French soldiers are as industrious to improve themselves in their trade, as musicians to learn some popular piece of new music. Nay even their passion of gambling is rendered

subservient to the same purpose, and numbers of them during their hours of recess from duty are busily engaged in shooting for money at targets, and with cross-bows, by which means they become most excellent marksmen. The defence of twelve different kinds of posts is here elucidated in the form of questions, which should be familiar to every common soldier as well as all field and subaltern officers. We hope this well-meant and seasonable little tract will obtain very general circulation in our army. Could every British soldier of skill and merit entertain a rational hope of changing his bayonet and sling for a sword and epaulette, we should soon have the most powerful army in the world. Promotion, the reward of merit, is the fountain of all martial great

ness.

Calligraphia Graca et Pacilographia Græca: a Work explaining and exemplifying the Mode of forming the Greek Characters with Ease and Elegance, according to the Method adopted by Doctor Thomas Young, and exhibiting a copious Collection of the various Forms of the Letters, and of their Connexions and Contractions. Written by John Hodgkin. Engraved by H. Ashby. Folio. Arch, Payne, &c. 18s.

WE have no hesitation in saying, that every ingenuous student of Greek literature will feel himself obliged to Mr. Hodgkin for thus furnishing him at a moderate expense with a very necessary and useful work; the materials of which are scattered throughout numerous scarce and expensive publications. The table "Varia Alphabeti Græci per ætatis ordinem Formæ," containing twenty alphabets, selected from different writers, is curious and interesting. The letters, notwithstanding the cavils of a monthly critic, are well formed, and the copious lists of contractions must prevent much waste of time, and perhaps also some idle conjectures. We could have wished indeed that the ingenious and learned author had added, although it is not essential to his plan, some more letter-press descriptions and some diagrams. Many of the latter indeed are fanciful, but others satisfy the mind with a convenient idea for analogy and recollection.

Remarks on Conical and Cylindrical Wheels, Public Roads, Wheel Carriages, &c.; in which the present Systems are reprobated as being destructive to Horses and Turnpike Roads, of serious Consequence to Individuals, and a great loss to the Public. The whole written with a View to show the Necessity of the immediate Adoption of New Systems. 8vo. pp. 141. With Plates and Cuts. Vernor and Co. 1808.

MR. DEACON has here presented the commissioners of roads, stage coach and waggon owners, and all persons travelling by such conveyances, with some important observations on the construction of carriage wheels and turnpike roads. He offers many irresistible arguments against the convex roads, conical wheels (which are now universal), and the carriage of numerous passengers, and baggage on the tops of coaches. The convex roads oblige all carts and carriages to take the center, and thus cur them into deep ruts; the conical wheels act only a very narrow space, and

the carriage of heavy weights on the tops of coaches tend to render them easily overset. Cylindrical wheels, level roads, and long coaches, he contends, would obviate all these dangers and inconveniences. There can be no doubt, indeed, that if long or doublebodied coaches were adopted, instead of the plan of carrying six outside passengers, accidents would much seldomer occur in travelling, although persons in the inside of coaches are not unfrequently much injured by their oversetting, as well as those on the outside. If the roads were perfectly level, there would be no choice to the coachman or waggoner, and consequently they would drive along whatever part the horses inclined to. But the greatest and most important improvement recommended by Mr. Deacon, is that of having cylindrical wheels, the whole surface of which would press equally on the road. It would be no less advantageous to the roads, if wheelwrights would not make the axle-trees of all carts, waggons, and coaches, of the same length, but make them longer or shorter according to the weights which they had to support. This would effectually prevent wheels from running all in the same ruts. Considering the numerous judicious remarks and observations which occur in this volume, we think the public are very much indebted to Mr. Deacon for drawing the attention of our legislature to a subject so important to trade and the safety of a great number of useful members of society. This work has already occasioned a new act of Parliament, and there is reason to hope that another will follow it.

From April, 1806, to January, 1807.

IT is sufficiently notorious, that, like their brethren on this side of the Tweed, yclept the Critical Reviewers, the Literary Knights errant of the North have a set of favourites, to whose publications of every description they regularly give the pre-eminence; whilst they either repel from their presence, or lash with merciless severity, all others, however deserving of their attention from genius, or learning, or virtue.

To these adventurers in the field of criticism, the chief recommendation is, in general, a boldness of character, including a contempt for vulgar prejudice, and more particularly opinions that are hostile to our establishment, religious and political.

On the other hand, they who profess a veneration for the religion and the laws of their fathers, who are not ashamed to declare their attachment to their king and their country, who prefer not the land of their enemies to their native soil, are sure of being shut out from observation if their productions have features too good to ad mit of caricature; or of being keenly censured or satirised, if, amidst abundant merit, there be any defects which ill-nature can expose to ridicule.

In proof of these charges, we fear we shall be able to produce the most convincing evidence.

In the two volumes now immediately before us, perhaps there occur not many glaring instances of that partiality, or that antipathy, of which we accuse the rash critics of the North.

The eighth volume opens with "War in Disguise; or, the Frauds of Neutral Flags*"

To this pamphlet, indisputably written with considerable eloquence, the reviewers have allotted no less than thirty-four pages. But it is in a great measure to controvert the author's statements in respect to neutral flags which are to us sufficiently clear, and supported by arguments the most convincing. It is only in transitu that we notice this in the same manner as we shall notice several other political publications, since the subjects of them have been already discussed at full length in our Review.

In "Rainsford's Historical Account of the Black Empire of Haytit," we are told, that the writer's "sentiments appear to be a singular jumble of prejudices against the abolition of the slave-trade, arising evidently from an entire ignorance of the subject." This is very indecent language. Yet Mr. Rainsford is wrong in many of his positions, often misled by prejudice, and frequently deluded by views that are visionary.

"An Inquiry into the State of the Nation, at the Commencement of the present Administration, pp. 238 ‡," is, in the opinion of these juvenile gentlemen, a most momentous tract; to convey an adequate idea of which (such is the magnitude of its object, and such the merits of its execution) they found themselves utterly at a loss!!" Happy, however, are we (say they) if by our humble efforts we shall succeed in our earnest wish to aid its salutary effects!" Young men, how modest! Ye forget yourselves. For the reason already given, we shall dismiss this pamphlet also, without entering into the argument.

The next political tract to which we shall advert (though en passant only) respects the Catholic question. It is intitled, "Considerations arising from the Debates in Parliament on the Petition of the Irish Catholics. By Sir John Throckmorton, Baronet.' -To this treatise we should not desire to draw the attention of our readers, after having so repeatedly and copiously discussed the subject of it, but for a passage in a late charge of Bishop Randolph. The charge is altogether a masterly performance; and his lordship's opinion on the Irish question is expressed with so much force and simplicity-in a style so much resembling what, in our mind, a primitive apostle would have adopted, that we cannot help transplanting it in our page. By way of contrast, we shall premise a sentence or two from the Edinburgh Review :-" General declama tions" (say the critics, as thousands have already said, and still say) "against the love of useless change, and on the folly of attempt ing to mend what is good already, will not do here: in fact, we are not well, as we are; it is a real and positive loss to the commu† p. 56. pp. 311, 325.

* See Edinburgh Review, vol. viii. pp. 1, 35.
* pp. 190, 206.

nity as well as to individuals, which the laws complained against have occasioned, and which it is at least worth considering if we cannot remove." (P. 312.) The system of the popery laws in Ireland, must be looked at as a whole: in their present state, they are folly, caprice, feeble and petulant tyranny," P. 315.- Let us now appeal to the good Bishop of Bangor. "The Catholics (his lordship justly observes) are already possessed of all common civil rights; and one should think that persons who unfortunately hold tenets so opposite, not only to the ecclesiastical doctrines, but to the civil power of the realm, might be content with this indulgence. They have the full and free enjoyment of their religious worship; at which point, I conceive, toleration ends. I need not apprise you of the danger or the delusions of this religion, of the means which it has of imposing on the multitude, of the influence it gives to its priests, or of its intolerant spirit with regard to those of any other persuasion; on all of whom it peremptorily fixes the brand of heresy, and excludes them from salvation. It is not easy to give, in all respects, to persons so bigotted, the right hand of fellowship. But I object farther to the giving them an equal share of power, because I conceive that it invades a fundamental principle of the constitution, even that, by which the eivil power incorporates with itself that church of which it most approves: so as to maintain religion and good order amongst its subjects, by the instrumentality of the same, inviting and encouraging them to uniformity with it. It is a consequence of such incorporation, that it gives not only establishment, but also superiority and ascendancy to it, so as to maintain its authority, and secure it from the attacks of those, who, by acquiring power, might take advantage of any sudden opportunity, or fluctuation of opinion, to weaken or overthrow it. In this view it is, that I think we are all, both clergy and laity, concerned in this question, as we value our happy constitution, and seek to preserve it entire, and unimpaired.” P. 8.

In this country, the incorporation of the civil and ecclesiastical powers, is, unquestionably, most intimate. But, in a more general sense, religion and politics appear, at present, so closely interwoven, that it is extremely difficult to separate or detach the one from the other, in considering those publications which originate in the genius and character of the times. The ethics of the day are involved, also, in political hypothesis: and we seldom meet a "modern philosopher" under the shape of a moral essayist, a writer of romance, or a novelist, who has not taken his colour (or some tincture at least) from national emergencies.

Whether in noticing "the Leonora *" of Miss Edgeworth, we may side by an imperceptible transition, from morality into polities, we know, not: but we do certainly wish to confine ourselves to a consideration of her ethics, or rather those of her Caledonian knight, to whose shield of base metal we mean to oppose the panoply

of truth.

That any production of Miss Edgeworth should be favoured with

*See Edinburgh Review, vol. viii. pp. 206, 213.