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'creation is ufelefs, much lefs could he fuppofe a vifcus in the human body, fo large as this is, has no office of importance affigned to it.

• Suppose then for a moment, we allow the spleen to do the office affigned to it by the moderns, viz. that it produces fome change on the blood preparatory to the fecretion of bile; what muft do that office when the fpleen is wanting? for as the animal lives and is well nourished afterwards, if that fuppofed change is abfolutely neceffary for the fecretion of bile, either fome other vifcus must do its office; or the bile, a fluid fo requifite for affimilating our food, could not be formed, and the animal for want of being duly nourished muft die.

If we may reason from analogy, we should say, that it is contrary to the established laws of animal economy, to fuppofe the use of one organ or gland, to be merely fubfervient to another organ or gland, in preparing the blood, in order to render it fit for fuch organ or gland to do its office; it would be afferting, that the liver which nature intended to fecrete bile could only do it by the intervention of the spleen; and yet if we allow that bile can be formed without the ufe of the fpleen, we admit that intervention to be by no means neceffary. But to carry our analogy ftill farther, nature has given to the animal body certain glands, and has affigned to eash peculiar offices, that is, fhe has endowed them with a property of feparating from the blood divers fluids, as different from each other, as they are from the mafs of blood from out of which they were originally feparated.

The lachrymal gland fecretes the tears; the falivary glands, the faliva; the kidneys, urine; the testicles, femen, &c. &c. without the intervention of any auxiliary gland. If then a fluid fo elaborated, and fo different from any thing we find in the blood, as femen is, a fluid which has an office of no less dignity than to perpetuate the whole race of animals, can be formed from the blood by the veffels of the teftis, without any prepatatory change being produced on it; may we not reafonably conclude, that the liver is capable of secreting bile from the blood without any antecedent change being made on it by the spleen? For to fay that the blood must be prepared by the fpleen, before bile can be fecreted from it by the liver, is to deny, that the liver, which is given to form bile, can do the office which nature has intended it to perform.

But if we allow the fpleen to make the red part of the blood, we can readily account for the reason why the spleen may be cut out of an animal, and yet the animal furvive, and fuffer but little inconvenience, for though the office of the

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fpleen, is to form the red particles of the blood, yet it is not the only organ in the body capable of doing that office; for we have already proved that the lymphatic veffels do also form the veficular portion; the spleen therefore is not the only organ capable of doing it. But nature has given the spleen as an auxiliary to the lymphatic fyftem, in order to the more commodiously, expeditiously, and completely forming the red part of the blood..

If then the spleen be cut out, or its office obftructed by disease, nature has a resource, in exciting the lymphatic veffels to form a larger quantity of red particles than they had ordinarily been accustomed to do, and these in proportion to the exigencies of the habit; but here nature does not assign a new office to the lymphatic veffels, but only excites them to exert in a higher degree, a power of which they were before poffeffed; and this notion is conformable to what we obferve in other circumftances of animal economy; as when an animal is fat and well nourished, the ftomach is much longer in performing its office, than it is when emaciated by long fasting, and its life is in danger from want of nourishment, or than it is when the body is wafting by difeafe, witness the furprifing quantities of food the ftomach will digeft, in a short time after a recovery from the finall-pox, or a violent inflammatory fever; under thefe circumftances, it is aftonishing to obferve how much nature will exert herself, and how foon food taken into the ftomach will be digefted, and applied to the purposes of the conftitution: in like manner, most probably if the spleen be difeafed or cut out, nature is capable of making the lymphatic veffels exert themselves more powerfully in the execution of their office; or on the contrary, if the lymphatic fyftem be difeafed, the fpleen is excited to form a larger quantity of blood in order to make up the deficiency : thereby the life of the animal will be lefs frequently endangered from a partial difeafe,

But how much foever the manner in which the red veficle is formed may be difputed, we think it cannot be denied, but that the office of the thymus and lymphatic glands is clearly proved to form the central particles found in the vesicles of the blood; and though the operation of nature in forming the veficular portion is more obfcure, yet the probability of its being performed in the manner we have related will, we hope, be readily admitted.'

This doctrine, it must be acknowledged, is fupported with great ingenuity, and rendered fo plaufible as at least to bring in queftion the theory of preceding phyfiologifts on the fubject. As the experiments on which it is founded, however, are

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numerous, and fome of them difficult to be made, it may not be foon confirmed by the observation of other enquirers; but when that event fhall take place, the names of Hewfon and Falconar will be ranked amongst those of the most respectable improvers of the science.

-Four Difcourfes tranflated from the Spanish of Feyjoo. 8vo. 35. Becket.

THE defign of thefe Difcourfes is to refute fuch opinions as may be ranked under the name of vulgar errors; by which term the author means any opinion that he looks upon as falfe, abftracted from, and without his determining uponthe probability or improbability of it. The first of this clafs which he inveftigates, is the common maxim, vox populi vox Dei, or, the voice of the people is the voice of God. He produces various inftances from hiftory, to prove the falfhood of this affertion; concluding with pointing out two fenfes, in which only the maxim can be admitted to have any foundation in truth. The first is, says he, taking for the voice of the people, the unanimous confent of all God's people, that is of the univerfal church, the which it is certain cannot err in matters of faith, not through any antecedent impoffibility, which may be inferred from the nature of things, but by means of the interpofition of the Holy Spirit, with which, according to the promise made by Chrift, it will be conftantly affifted. I faid all God's people, because a large portion of the church may err, and in fact did err, in the great Western Schifm, for the kings of France, Caftile, Arragon and Scotland, acknowledged Clement the VIIth. for legitimate Pope, the reft of the Chriftian world adhered to Urban the VIth. but it is manifeft that one of the two parties must be wrong, which may be confidered as a conclufive proof, that even within the pale of the Chriftian church, not only one, but feveral nations collectively may err in effentials.

The fecond fenfe in which the maxim ought to be held true, is, by taking for the voice of the people, the univerfal concurrence of all mankind, it appearing morally impoffible, that all the nations of the world should agree in adopting any one error; thus the confent of the whole earth in believing the existence of a God, is held by the learned, as a conclufive proof of this article.'

The fubject of the fecond Difcourfe is Virtue and Vice, where the author endeavours to expofe the fallacy of the opi-. ion, that the former of thefe is marked with the character of

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afperity, and the other with that of being generally grateful to human fentiment. For this purpose he has recourse to such arguments as are furnished by reafon and experience, towards evincing, that, independently of future rewards and punishments, the pursuit of criminal pleasures is attended with more inquietude than can be incurred by the practice of the moral and Chriftian virtues.

The third Difcourfe is employed on the confideration of exalted and humble Fortune, the mistaken notions of mankind concerning which the moralift corrects, by juft and philofophical refections, on the various conditions of human life. He contrafts the refpective advantages and inconveniences attending poverty and riches, and concludes that, upon the whole, the latter is productive of greater unhappiness to him who poffeffes it than the former.

The laft of thofe Difcourfes treats of the moft refined Policy. Here the author reprobates the pernicious doctrine of Machiavel, that in the application of temporal means, the appearance or femblance of virtue is useful, while virtue itself is always an obftacle to fuccefs. As a fpecimen of the author's reafoning on this fubject, we fhall present our readers with the following paffage from the Difcourfe.

All that a perfon can reafonably defire, may be attained without deviating from the path of honour. A man of a clear head, accompanied with perfpicuity and prudence, will always find a way to arrive at the goal of his pretenfions, without inclining the line of rectitude and honefty, towards the curve of deceit. Fidelity in friendship, and fincerity in behaviour, are fo far from being prejudicial, that they afford great affiftance; because with thefe endowments, he will gain the confidence and good will of fuch as can lend their hand to raise him, and of thofe, who may be useful as inftruments in helping him forward. By being difinterefted and a lover of juftice, you will acquire the efteem and affection of many, and the veneration of all men. To be open-hearted, and to communicate with confidence in all matters, except fuch as prudence dictates to you to conceal, or fuch as are confided to you under the feal of fecrecy, with refpect to thofe with whom you have intercourse have a most powerful attraction. And although this behaviour may fometimes occafion disgust, to here and there a perfon of a different caft of mind, that difadvantage would be doubly compenfated for, by the good opinion, his being impreffed with noble and fincere fentiments, would create of him. The difguft paffes away and the good opinion remains. In fact, thefe tranfparent fouls, when difcretion is combined with the purity of their difpofitions, are those who afcend to the greatest heights, with the least fatigue.'

-The

The obftacle in the way of an honest politician, is the difficulty of treating with men in power upon the prin-1 ciples of truth and candour. Flattery is a door that opens very wide for the introduction to favour, but as it is very low alfo, no man of a generous mind can enter in at it. I have heard all the world declare they abhorred flatterers, but I never faw any one who did not cherish them. This proceeds from every man rating his own talents at more than their true value, and because the language of a flatterer correfponds with his own opinion of himself, he does not look upon him as a flatterer, but as a man of abilities who forms right judgments of things; but allowing him to be fo prudent, as even to undervalue, inftead of over-rate his own faculties, he might still lie open to the practices of a flatterer; as for inftance, the flattered perfon, might be induced to attribute the exceffive high opinion the flatterer profeffed to entertain of him, to the excefs of his love and esteem for him, and all that is reprefented through the microfcope of love, is greatly magnified in the imagination, and in this cafe, although he does not credit the applaufe, he efteems the affection. By thefe means, flattery becomes a univerfal net, which catches and entangles fish of every kind.

This method then, if managed with art, for there are fome flatterers who are fulfome, and furfeiting, is fufficiently effectual and fecure to practice with, but is at the fame time moft vile and pernicious, and therefore fhould never be made ase of, nor should the truth ever be deviated from. But truth is difgufting! no matter, prudence will find seasonings to make it palatable; and although it be true, that by using these means, an honest man will be longer in ingratiating himself into the good opinion of a great perfon, than a fordid flatterer, ftill, he will in the end obtain a more solid and lasting eftimation with him. The first thing to be observed by him, is never to give his opinion with asperity, nor ever to give it at all but at proper opportunities. The rigidity of undeceiving people with respect to their errors, fhould be foftened by the gentleness of respect, and if reverence, and fweetness of manner, are used as vehicles to convey the propofition, they will cause it to be well received. It would be better ftill, to refrain intirely from doing what we have juft mentioned, if you could with propriety be excused from speaking your fentiments. These qualities were celebrated by king Theodoricus, in a favourite of his; fub genii noftri luce intrepidus quidem; fed reverentur adftabat. opportune tacitus, neceffarie copiofus (Cafiodor. lib. 5. Epift. 3.) In cafes that admit of waiting for favourable opportunities, be watchful and attentive

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