• XIV. To difprove the propriety of it by arguments is impoffible; but, from the caufes that have been mentioned, or from fome confufed or partial view of it, a man may happen to be difpofed not to relish it. Where this is the cafe, if he thinks the fettling of his opi nions on such a subject worth the trouble, let him take the following fteps, and at length, perhaps, he may come to reconcile himself to it. 1. Let him fettle with himself, whether he would wish to discard this principle, altogether; if fo, let him confider what it is that all his reafonings (in matters of politics efpecially) can amount to?

2. If he would, let him fettle with himself, whether he would judge and act without any principle, or whether there is any other he would judge and aft by?

3. If there be, let him examine and fatisfy himself whether the principle he thinks he has found is really any feparate intelligible principle; or whether it be not a mere principle in words, a kind of phrafe, which at bottom expreffes neither more nor less than the mere averment of his own unfounded fentiments; that is, what in another perfon he might be apt to call caprice ?

4. If he is inclined to think that his own approbation or difapprobation, annexed to the idea of an act, without any regard to its confequences, is a fufficient foundation for him to judge and act upon, let him afk himself whether his fentiment is to be a standard of right and wrong, with respect to every other man, or whether every man's fentiment has the fame privilege of being a standard to itself?

5. In the first cafe, let him afk himself whether his principle is not defpotical, and hoftile to all the rest of the human race?

6. In the fecond cafe, whether it is not anarchical, and whether at this rate there are not as many different ftandards of right and wrong as there are men? and whether even to the fame man, the fame thing, which is right to-day, may not (without the least change in its nature) be wrong to-morrow? and whether the fame thing is not right and wrong in the fame place at the fame time? and in either cafe, whether all argument is not at an end? and whether, when two men have faid, "I like this," and "I don't like it," they can (upon fuch a principle) have any thing more to say?

7. If he should have faid to himself, No: for that the fentiment which he proposes as a standard must be grounded on reflection, let him fay on what particulars the reflection is to turn? if on particulars having relation to the utility of the act, then let him say whether this is not deferting his own principle, and borrowing affiftance from that very one in oppofition to which he fets it up: or if not on those particulars, on what other particulars ?

8. If he should be for compounding the matter, and adopting his own principle in part, and the principle of utility in part, let him fay how far he will adopt it?

9. When he has fettled with himself where he will stop, then let him ask himself how he juftifies to himself the adopting it fo far? and why he will not adopt it any farther?

10. Admitting any other principle than the principle of utility to be a right principle, a principle that it is right for a man to pursue ; admitting (what is not true) that the word right can have a meaning without reference to utility, let him fay whether there is any fuch thing

as a motive that a man can have to pursue the dictates of it: if there is, let him fay what that motive is, and how it is to be distinguished from those which enforce the dictates of utility: if not, then laftly let him fay what it is this other principle can be good for ì'

[To be concluded in our next Review.]

ART. XII. Mifcellaneous Tracts and Collections relating to Natural Hif tory, felected from the principal Writers of Antiquity on that Subject. By W. Falconer, M. D. 4to. pp. 203. Printed at the Cambridge Prefs. 7s. 6d. fewed. Cadell, &c. London. 1793. By an advertisement prefixed to this publication, we learn that

the author, having mentioned to the Rev. Dr. Parr that he poffeffed fuch a collection, was urged by him to make it public, as it might probably contribute to the interefts of literature. He likewife offered to recommend the work to the fyndics of the Cambridge univerfity prefs, and to engage a friend to fuperintend the printing. The offer was accepted; and the business was performed with a liberality in all parties which does them credit. We cannot give a more diftinct account of the contents of the volume, than in the words of the learned compiler himself in his preface:

The first that offers itself is a calendar of natural occurrences, which are fuppofed to have taken place in Greece and most probably in the latitude of Athens. This is taken nearly, but not altogether from Theophraftus's Hiftory of Plants. A fimilar attempt was made fome years ago, and published by Mr. Stillingfleet in his Miscellaneous, Tracts. That here inferted, though defective in point of matter, is nevertheless more full and explicit than that given by the Gentleman mentioned above; and contains, in addition to what he has given, an account of the weather and of the cosmical, achronical, and heliacal rising and fetting of many of the stars and conftellations, which have enabled the author to fix with greater probability the time of the year of many of the natural events recorded by Theophraftus, and to adjust them to modern computation. This part of the calendar is taken mostly from Geminus, an ancient Greek writer whose date is not afcertained, fome thinking him to be prior to Hipparchus, others bringing him later as to the time of Sylla, or even of Cicero. This calendar is made to commence with the fummer folitice, at which time the Greeks began their folar year. It was first intended to have divided the year according to the Greek months, but several reasons determined against fuch an attempt.

I. The names and order of the Greek months are fo much difputed, and fo doubtful, that it would have required a long previous difcuffion to fettle their places and denominations, a thing inconfiftent with a work like the prefent. Moreover the year to which thefe months were adjusted was either of the lunar kind, and confifting of 354 days only, or elfe fomewhat between the lunar and folar year, and containing 360 days; and probably both of them were in ufe at different periods of time. The calendar however was so incorrectly REV. MARCH, 1795. managed,

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managed, and the commencement of the lunar year fo irregular (it beginning not at the time of the fummer folftice but at the new moon fucceeding it, or perhaps the nearest to it whether before or after) as to create great error in calculating feafons, or dates of natural

events.

• Another reason of greater weight was, that the lunar year was not made use of in calculating fuch occurrences. Civil affairs, fuch as the celebration of feftivals, the election of magiftrates, the payment of falaries, intereft of money, and all civil contracts were indeed reckoned by the lunar year, but what regarded natural events, as the rife or fetting of stars or conftellations, the works of agriculture, the flowering of plants, and the geftation of animals, together with all transactions that regarded the laws of nations, as the duration of treaties, truces, &c. were reckoned by the folar year. A folar year, or the term of 365 days, is alfo understood to be meant whenever the space of an entire year is mentioned or a series of years. It has been the opinion of fome learned perfons, that the folar year was divided, as well as the lunar, into twelve months, each of which commenced at the entrance of the fun into the feveral figns of the zodiac, and this is confirmed by fome expreffions of Geminus, and particularly by the calendar of that author above mentioned, which is actually divided in that manner, which divifion is preserved in the calendar here exhibited.

The next piece that appears is a calendar of the fame kind adjafted to the climate of Italy, and probably nearly to the latitude of Rome; compiled from the ancient Roman writers, thofe especially that treat on the subject of agriculture. This, as well as the other, has a calendar of the weather joined with it, which is moftly, but not altogether, taken from Columella.

I have in this calendar inferted fuch Paffages from the ancient Roman poets as appeared to be peculiarly defcriptive either of the general appearance of nature in feveral feasons in that country, or of any other natural events that occur at any particular time of the year. To this calendar are subjoined, an attempt towards a divifion of it into natural months, according to the plan propofed by Mr. Stillingfleet, and two small sketches of the feafons at Aleppo in Syria, and at Nice in Italy, the former extracted from Dr. Ruffel's Hiftory of the first mentioned place, the latter from Dr. Smollett's Travels into Italy. To these are added a table of the time of wheat-harvest in different parts of Italy, taken from Dr. Symonds, on the Climate of Italy, and published in the fourth volume of Mr. Young's Annals of Agriculture, and a table of the foliation of trees in this country for feveral years, taken from the Gentleman's Magazine.-Next come fome remarks on the leafing, flowering, &c. of fome trees and plants in Italy, made in the years 1768, 1769, by Dr. Symonds, and taken, as well as the foregoing, from Mr. Young's Annals of Agriculture.Next follow fome remains of antiquity, taken from Gruter's infcriptions, being two ruftic calendars yet remaining engraven on flone at Rome. Thefe are often referred to in the calendar I have given, and tend towards its illuftration.-The next article is a table of hours for every month in the year, taken from Palladius.

The ufe of this is thought to have been to enable the labourer in the fields to guefs at the time of the day, by measuring with his foot the proportion which the length of that bears to the length of the fhadow of his own perfon. The rule on which this depends, will, in a grofs view, hold good in men of different ftature, because, generally fpeaking, the length of a man's foot bears nearly the fame proportion to his height whether he be tall or middle fized.

As the proportion which the length of any upright gnomon bears to that of its hadow at any certain hour, varies every day, a table is here given exhibiting the proportion which the gnomon and its shadow bear to one another, at a medium computation for each month. The above tables, it is clear, were adjusted to show the unequal hours, or each 12th part of the time between the rife and fetting of the fun. Thus for example on the 21st of December, when the length of the foot was to that of the fhadow of the body as 1 to 29, the peafant knew that part of the space of time between the rife and setting of the fun had elapfed, which they denominated an hour, and this proportion of measurement ferved to denote the first hour of the day, at that feafon of the year. On the 21ft of the month of June on the other hand, when the length of the foot bore a proportion to that of the fhadow of the perfon as I to 22, the peafant knew that part of the fpace between funrife and funfet was paft, which was by him denominated the end of the first hour, notwithstanding the real space of time in each of the intervals which he called hours varied confiderably, an hour in the month of December being to an hour in the month of June as nine to fifteen.-Next follows a table of the days on which the fun enters into the different figns of the zodiac according to the computation of different ages.-Next come fome tables of the weather in different countries, according to both ancient and modern accounts, intended for the purpose of comparing them together. The laft and the largest of thefe pieces is an alphabetical table of the Greek plants. This is divided into two parts. The former of these exhibits ift the Greek name of the plant and the author who mentions it, 2d the name affigned to the fame by Cafpar Bauhin in his Pinax and other works, 3d the correfponding name given by Linnæus in his Spec. Plantarum, 4th the modern English name where that could be found. The fecond part of this table exhibits the Linnæan names of the Greek plants placed in alphabetical order with the Greek names fubjoined. The ufe of this is to enable the reader to discover if any particular plant, the Linnæan name of which is known, be one of thofe with which the Greeks were acquainted. An attempt of this kind, though fufficiently laborious to the compiler, must be liable to much error and uncertainty; but fome indulgence may be hoped to be given to the first attempt of this kind, at least in our own country.

An index to each of the calendars is added at the end of the work.'

The utility of fuch a collection for the purposes of philofophy must be evident: but it will be more peculiarly acceptable to those who unite the ftudy of nature with that of the writings and cuftoms of claffical antiquity.

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ART.

ART. XIII. The Hiftory of two Cafes of Ulcerated Cancer of the Mamma; one of which has been cured, the other much relieved, by a new Method of applying Carbonic Acid Air; illuftrated by a Copperplate with Obfervations. By John Ewart M. D. Bath. 8vo. pp. 62. 1s. 6d. Dilly.

WE E have here proof of the spirit and of the fuccefs with which elaftic fluids are employed in defperate difeafes in different parts of the kingdom. The cafes defcribed in the present pamphlet are highly favourable to this practice, in a malady, of which no words can convey an idea fufficiently horrible. Of the accuracy of the facts, there feems no reasonable motive to doubt; especially as in one of the cafes they are stated to have occurred in a hofpital, and to have been witneffed both by the directors and feveral medical practitioners of Bath.

A circumftantial ftatement of the condition of the diseased breaft is very properly prefixed to the account of the treatment in each cafe. The preceding circumftances, and the present condition of the ulcer, (cafe 1.) all concur in presenting the idea of cancer. The length of the ulcer was almoft five inches, and its breadth between three and four. Its greateft depth was about two inches; and from its lower end a finus ran under the skin downwards, the fize and extent of which, as well as the quantity of difcharge from the fore, may be conceived from her being in the habit of preffing out of it feveral times a day from a table spoonful to two-thirds of a small teacupful of very fetid matter. The french from the fore was at all times fo very offenfive both to herfelf and to bystanders, as fcarcely to be endured.' Other particulars are analogous ;-the axillary glands were never affected.

The carbonic acid air, on its first application, occafioned a fenfation of coldness, which lafted for a few minutes, and was afterwards fucceeded by a glowing warmth, which continued more than half an hour. The fame fenfations have been uniformly expreffed by the patient, after each fucceffive application of the air.

The next morning she said the was easier, which was then afcribed to the ufual propenfity of people to be pleafed with a new remedy. But greater confidence was given to her report, when, at the expiration of not more than three days, the furface of the fore appeared of a better colour, and the ftench from it became lefs offenfive. Each time the bladder was removed, which for fome time was done twice a day, to evacuate the discharge from the fore, the was fenfible of immediate pain on the admiffion of the atmospheric air; and never failed to find eafe very foon after the carbonic acid air was again applied."

By an unfortunate but inevitable accident, the experiment was embarraffed by the exhibition of of a grain of arfenic three times in a day; though, before this exhibition, not only the smell

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