ness, is still less qualified to excite much interest, except in those who are personally acquainted with the districts and places thus noticed: hence the topographer is indulged in a wider licence, and is allowed to ornament his collections by interweaving family history, biography, antiquarian research, architectural details, and almost every particular that he chuses, however slightly connected with the main subject. These digressions, if restrained within reasonable limits, and judiciously selected, confer a real additional value on topographical investigations. But when, from the minuteness or insignificance of the district which the historian selects for his illustration, a deficiency is experienced of proper topographical matter, (which is almost always the case in descriptions of single parishes,) it is scarcely possible to avoid giving an undue weight to these irrelevant topics: of which Mr. Gough's History of Pleshy, noticed in this chapter, is a very glaring example. In addition to the want of judgment exhibited by many of our topographers, in circumscribing themselves within too narrow a district, may be reckoned the exclusive and undue preference bestowed upon antiquarian subjects: an anecdote, because it is old, is not necessarily on that account worth relating ; the half-defaced inscription on a tomb-stone, two hundred years old, acquires no greater value from this circumstance than one of modern date and perfectly legible; nor does the authenticated succession of churchwardens, parish-clerks, and sextons, contribute any thing to the illustration of our ecclesiastical history.. The general want of maps, and the extreme inaccuracy of those few which are annexed to our topographical histories, is another serious ground of complaint. Almost all the counties of England have been surveyed within the last forty years, and the maps drawn up from these documents, erroneous as they are in many respects, would, by the help of plans of estates, which are for the most part easily procurable, furnish ample materials for the construction of parish or hundred maps, adapted to the use of the topographer, and susceptible of gradual improve. ments as opportunities might occur. The splendid and accurate maps from trigonometrical measurements, executing under the direction of government, will take away all excuse from future topographers, who may neglect to avail themselves of such valuable assistance. The survey of Kent is actually published; that of Essex is compleated, and is only kept back, for obvious reasons, till the termination of the war; Devonshire and Hampshire are in a state of forwardness.

Engravings are too often reckoned mere articles of decoration; but when inerted in topographical works, they profess to be representations of real objects and actual scenery. This, however, is seldom the case: the pencil is either assumed by incapable hands, unable, though perhaps desirous, of delineating with fidelity; an artist by profession is employed, who will, knowingly and without scruple, iolate the truth of nature to produce what he calls picturesque effect. It ought be inculcated on all topographers, as a serious duty, to sacrifice all those graces of painting which are inconsistent with perfect fidelity; and in the choice of scenery elect that which is most characteristic of the country, without considering whether it will please or disgust the professed artist, to whom individuality of representation is of no value.

One further observation, and we have done. Our tourists and county his orians, in their descriptions of the houses of our nobility and gentry, think it

essential to pay particular attention to the statues and exquisite paintings which they contain, and which, without these notices, might elude the enquiry of the painter or amateur. So far they have our praise; and it is to be wished, that they would extend their search to the libraries in which are deposited books and manu. scripts of inestimable value, unknown to the literary public, and not unfrequently even to their own proprietors.

ART. I. Antiquities, historical, architectural, chorographical, and itinerary, in Notting hamshire, and the adjacent Counties: comprising the Histories of Southwell, (the ad Pos tem,) and of Newark, (the Sidnacester of the Romans ;) interspersed with biographics! Sketches, and profusely embellished with Engravings. In four Parts. By WILLIAM DICKINSON, Esq. Parts I. and II. forming Vol. I. pp. 472.

THIS work is an altered and enlarged edition of "a History of the Antiquities of the Town and Church of Southwell, in the County of Nottingham. By William Dickinson Rastall, A. M." 4to. 1787.

The first was dedicated to the present Archbishop of York; but the work now before us is laid at the feet of the President and Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries.

The author observes, that it has long been considered a pleasant and useful inquiry, to determine the roads and stations of the Romans in this island; some of those are still buried in obscurity, others are the subject of conjecture; but "Southwell certainly, Newark with great probability, present a most exuberant field for examination." In this field our author has chosen to labour, hoping to produce a crop of conjecture, and certainly worthy the consideration and acceptance of the learned in antiquity. The stupendous church of Southwell was a primary object in the field; bearing the distinguishing characteristics of Roman, Saxon, Danish, Norman, and Gothic architecture," in perfect condition, and pointing out the minutest gradations from each style to the next. This may be very true, though we strongly suspect it; but the treatise upon ecclesiastical architecture is totally distinct from Roman roads and stations, and ought not to have been" agglomerated" with a dissertation on them.

66

The author, having explained his intentions, wanders into a digression founded upon the contradictions of those authors who have written on antient architecture; and endeavours to reconcile what never was, and never will be reconeiled, the discordant opinions of men upon any given subject; but the concluding paragraph of the preface is well

expressed. "Through the whole conomy of nature the same rule ever does, and ever must obtain. The efforts of imbecility will always precede the exertions of maturity; conjecture is the first step toward (towards) certainty, and speculation the infancy of real knowledge."

The introduction commences with an eulogium on antiquarianism; which Mr. Dickinson calls, not inaptly, the mother of history.

From antiquarianism the author springs to architecture, which he supposes to be coeval with the globe itself. Undoubt edly so, if we are inclined to permit a covering of leaves, strewed on sticks se upright in the earth, to be denominated architecture. But would not the eulogium on antiquariarism, and the origu of architecture, however well written, have been more appropriately affixed to the first volume of an archæologia, and the works of Palladio or Vitruvius, than to a search after Roman stations, and a history of Southwell?

Another objection is still more powerf This introduction is increased enormously by the labour of others; for instance:"In pursuance of my plan, then, the outline of which I have already suggest ed, I shall place first, in my catalogue critiques on ancient architecture, the servations of Stephen Riou, esq. publishe ed several years since, under the title "Historical Remarks on ancient Arch tecture." He accordingly quotes the quarto pages, adding two notes; one f planatory, the other combating an in rence, that Gothic architecture was rived from the Arabians.

"So far this writer, who is at least titled to great attention from the play bility of his account. We shall see wh others have said on the same subject. Horace Walpole's celebrated work,

Fore cited on a different occasion, are the Following observations," which are exracted to the amount of two pages and in half, and are accompanied by three otes; the first an ironical observation n the antiquity of free-masonry; the seond on the distinction between Gothic and Saracenic architecture, marked by innacles in the former, and cupolas in he latter; and the last objects to the erm "undulating, zig zags," used by Mr. Valpole. "I shall hereafter have occaion to observe, that all undulations, or maments, partaking of the sections of lobes, cones, and cylinders, are of Saxon xtraction, but that angular ones are to be attributed to some other people; they were certainly introduced into this king--The side aisles, he conceives to be Jom by Norman architects."

writers, which we think might be solved in the way above suggested.

He concludes with an odd method of appropriating styles in building, by comparing them with the constitutional habits of the nation who erects them, than which nothing can be more palpably absurd.

We cannot avoid observing, on this art of the subject, that almost all our ntiquaries prefer a circuitous way of btaining information. Some travel hrough England, others through books; he buildings, in one instance, and prints n the other, exhibit a variety of oraments; they cogitate on them, and orm conjectures, without possessing one act to direct their bewildered fancies. However, they must say something. Accordingly one is Saxon, another Norman, &c. &c. because Mr. chooses to think so. If the research is worth pursuing, why do not the Society of Antiquaries send experienced artists into Saxony, Normandy, Denmark, and Arabia, r, in short, into every country whose buildings could elucidate the subject, in order to make drawings of structures and ornaments? which, compared with curs, would decide the source of each style at once, and fix the dispute for

ever.

Toproceed in illustration of our charge, three pages are extracted from a work pub. shed twenty years past, describing the cathedral of Burgos; a page and an half from Bentham's History of Ely Cathedral; two pages from Grose; six and an helf from Murphy's Description of the Batalha; two and one-third from Wilkins's Essay on the Venta Icenorum of the Romans in the Archæologia; and lastly, three from Warburton; so that of an introduction, containing forty-two pages, twenty-four are quotations.

Mr. Dickinson then proceeds with combating the term Barbarians, affixed to the Goths by the vanquished Romans; and with a continuation of the conjectures commenced by preceding

The oldest part of Southwell church is of Saxon architecture, erected, according to the tradition of the place, in the reign of Harold, to which Mr. Dickinson seems inclined to subscribe; but as there is not a record remaining of the foundation, tradition and conjecture must be the base of all his theories; they fol low, therefore, as a matter of course.

"pure Norman; and, I should guess, about the time of William Rufus, or perhaps somewhat later. This opinion is founded on the essential differences to be observed between the style of the nave, and that of these aisles. The former has a timber roof, as has before been mentioned; and arches, of a species of workmanship, strongly indicative of ignorant times, and of the rudest notions of architecture. The latter have vaulted roofs, and those not of the earliest introduction, but supported by ribs, which form angular compartments at their mutual intersections in the centre."

That the church of Southwell was in a flourishing state, A. D. 1023, Mr. Dickinson proves from William of Malmsbury, and other writers, who assert, that Alfiic, archbishop of York, gave it two bells; for the reception of those, he supposes, the tower (we suppose the center one) to have been built. Several pages of ingenious reasoning are appropriated to the establishment of his conjectures, that this church arose in Harold's time. They are supported by comparisons with other buildings, whose periods of erection are well known. The author then proceeds:

"To the Norman order of architecture (which, it seems, did not differ materially, at first, from the Saxon, in any of its most essential characteristic features, but was equally distinguished by circular arches, and massive pillars, with perhaps some little addition of sculpture, and, in some instances, vaulted roofs) succeeded what is generally undertood, though some think improperly, by the writes, the Goths were rather the destrovers denomination of Gothic; because, as Wren than inventors of arts. This style of building

seems to have been introduced before the reign of King John, and to have prevailed very generally in that of Henry III.' It con

*On the Willoughby side of the road is a tumulus, called Cross Hill; and on the oppos

wide of it, at about an equal distance, are Upper Borough-town and Nether Borough-town, ander the modern appellation of Broughton. This indicates the vicinity of a Roman fortification.