made with little Stones, like an Emerald, which were ftreak'd thro' the middle with a ftrait white Line, for which reason they were call'd Grammatias; or with many Lines, and therefore call'd Polygrammos, However, all Perfons of good Senfe laugh'd at these Usages, and were justly perfuaded, that they could not produce or effect any thing in a natural way. Those were punish'd from time to time, who used to wear Amulets about their Necks in order to cure tertian and quartan Agues, Damnati funt & qui remedia quartanis tertianifque collo annexa geftarent, fays Spartian: and several Perfons were fentenc'd to die under Valens and Valentinian (both Chriftian Emperors) for making use of Amulets.

The

Mention is afterwards made of the Prefervatives or Charms of Cities and Provinces. ancient Heathens boafted very much their Pal ladia, or little Statues kept with the greateft Veneration, which were to preserve Cities from Fire. The Trojan Palladium was very famous; however, the Chriftians were not amus'd by thefe Images; and befides, the Event plainly fhow'd, that they did not preserve the Cities from Fire, but ftood themselves in need of human Af fiftance, in order to prevent their being confum'd in the Flames, as Firmicus Maternus ob ferves. Refervatum non propriis viribus, fed bumano præfidio: ab utroque enim loco (Troy and Rome) bomines liberarunt, & tranflatum eft ne bumano flagraret incendio, fays this Author. In the City of Mar feilles, the Eve of Corpus Chrifti Day, and on the Festival it felf, an Ox adorn'd with Ribbons and Knicknacks, is carried up and down the City; Flutes, Bagpipes and Kettledrums founding all the way. Great numbers of

old

old Women carry little Children to kifs this Ox, and multitudes of the Ignorant are vaftly defirous of getting fome of his Flefh, he being kill'd the day after. That Ceremony, fays our Author, will probably be look'd upon as a relique of Paganifm, but 'tis not of antiquity enough for that: However, the Vulgar think this Ox can perform great Cures. The Chriftians of the Eaft ufed anciently to have Bears, trick'd up with little pieces of Silk of various Colours, carried up and down from City to City; and notwithstanding the Prohibitions of the Church, fmall bits of these Silks, with a little of the Bear's Hair used to be distributed as a wonderful Prefervative against Diseases. The Women willingly lavifh'd their Money to procure these; and over and above the bargain, they used to make their Children touch the hinder parts of the Bear, in order to preferve them from Diseases of every kind, as Zonares relates. But thefe Practices were condemn'd by the Canons.

Martin of Arles wrote a Treatife against the Superftitions of his time, viz. in 1560; in which, among feveral fuperftitious Practices, which deceive the Vulgar only, he explodes others that were publickly authoriz'd by the Clergy and Magiftrates: fuch was the following. In fome parts of the Kingdom of Navarre, the People, in the time of a Drought, ufed to go to the Statue of St. Peter to implore for Rain; and in order to prevail the better with the Saint, his Statue was always carried to the River fide: There, fome ufed to cry aloud or fing; St. Peter, affift us in our Wants, and cause it to rain once, twice, thrice. (Santte Petre, fuccurre N°. No XVII. 1732. nobis VOL. III.

Kk

nobis in hac Neceffitate, &c. hoc I, boc II, boc III.) As the Statue ufed to be vaftly filent upon this occafion, fome of the Spectators were fo bold as to call aloud; Let the Statue of the most bleffed St. Peter be plung'd in the Water. Upon this the chief Men of the Place would anfwer; that this was carrying the matter too far; and that the Saint, as a good Paftor and Father, would not fail to indulge their wishes. Upon this, fome were bound for St. Peter, and 'twas declar'd, that it never fail'd to rain within four and twenty hours after this 'Tis furprifing, fays our Author, that the very fame cuftom fhould have prevail'd in fome places even in this age.

The laft Tale with which we are entertain❜d, is, of the Prefervative against Rats, introduc'd by the Friars of the Monaftery of Ardennes. 'Tis pretended, that in the Territory of the Abbey, and its Dependencies, there is not fo much as one Rat; and that they owe this favour to the Merits of St. Udalric, Bishop of Ausbourg, fome of whofe Reliques are depofited in this Church. The Religious out of gratitude chaunt once a Year, viz. the fourth of July, being St. Udalric's Festival, a particular Mafs; and give fome Measures of Wheat among the Poor. 'Tis farther faid, that Bread is bleffed in, this Monaftery; and that if little pieces of it are scatter'd up and down in the Holes, or thofe Places in a House which are infefted with Rats; fuch of the Vermin as eat them, will either die, or leave the place. Not to mention, fays the Author, that this Privilege of St. Udalric has all the air of a Fiction; tis manifeft that the employing of holy Bread to this ufe is indecent and

and fuperftitious, fince there are so many natural Methods by which Rats may be destroy'd.

We must refer our Extracts of the second and third Volume of this Work to our next Journal.

ARTICLE XXVI.

Britannia Romana, or the Roman Antiquities of Britain. In three Books. The first contains the Hiftory of all the Roman Transactions in Britain; with an Account of their legionary and auxiliary Forces employ'd here, and a Determination of the Stations per lineam valli: Alfo a large Defcription of the Roman Walls, with Maps of the fame laid down from a Geometrical Survey. II. Contains a compleat Collection of the Roman Infcriptions and Sculptures, which have hitherto been discovered in Britain, with the Letters engraved in their proper Shape and proportionate Size, and the Reading placed under each as alfo an Historical Account of them, with explanatory and critical Obfervations. III. Contains the Roman Geography of Britain; in which are given the Originals of Ptolemy, Antonini Itinerarium, the Notitia, the Anonymous Ravennas, and Peutinger's Table, fo far as they relate to this Island: with particular Effays on each of these antient Au thors; and the feveral Places in Britain mentioned by them. To which are added a Chronological Table, and Indexes to the Infcriptions and Sculptures, after the manner of Gruter and Reinefius. Alfo Geographical Indexes both of the Latin and English Names of the Roman Places in Britain, and a general Index to the Work. The whole illuftrated with above an bundred Kk 2

Copper

Copper Plates. By JOHN HORSLEY, M.A. and F. R.S. London printed for JOHN OSBORNE and THO. LONGMAN, at the Ship in Pater-Nofter-Row. 1732. Folio. Pages 520, exclufive of Preface, Cuts, Chronological Table, and Indexes.

D.

Multitude of things muft confpire to

A make a good Book: "Tis not enough

that the Subject be interefting and important, the Compofition well conducted, and the Body of the Work compleat; but the Appendages must also be well order'd, and a due regard had even to Externals and Decoration.

'Tis rarely a Book comes before a Journalist with the Conditions of this now before us; wherein every thing contributes to its advantage; where all Parties have acquitted themselves with Honour: where Exactnefs of Researches, and Neatnefs of Style vie with Beauty of Paper, and Print; and Choice of Materials, with Correctnefs of Impreffion-Thus much we could not forbear to fay, in an age where we find much more frequent occafions for Censure on this head, than of Praise.

The Dedication, which is to Sir R. Ellys, is well turn'd. The Author, we are inform'd, did not live to prefent it. He just finish'd his laborious Work; and for reward was call'd to receive it in another World. Happy in this, that he has left fuch a Monument behind him of his Worth and Learning! Happy for the Publick, that he had time to bring his useful Defign to Perfection! We want Memoirs of his Life to furnish out an Elogium, which otherwife we fhould have given with pleasure; but we cannot refufe him his Apotheofis: Infueti