the creation from whence impelled by her energetic powers, and illumined by her light, the intellectual faculties like rays fhoot forth in direct tendency to their ultimate point of perfection: and as they advance, each individual mind imperceptibly imbibes the influence and light of each, and is by this imbibition alone enabled to approach it.

If, reader, thou expecteft any information, after fuch an exordium, thou oughteft to be difappointed. The author would explain his fyftem by a diagram. He draws a circle of humanity, in the center of which he places Nature, or the fprings of the intellectual powers, which tend in a ftrait line to its boundary: on this bounda-` ry, he places demonftrable beauty and truth and the utmost power of rules; midway, he places common fenfe and common form, half deriving their exiftence from pure nature, and half from its highest cultivation as far as art or rules can teach; a conjunction, which would itfelf be the perfection of humanity, but that it is mixed with all that is not nature, and all that is not art, and thereby made mediocrity, i. e. common fenfe.'

Good Sir! we thank you, for bringing us, though we hardly know how, to common fenfe; and as this plain road fatisfies us, we muft beg to be excuted from afcending to fublimity, which, you tell us, is at the top of your pyramid.

Art. 43. Rudiments of Tafte; in a Series of Letters from a Mother to her Daughters. By the Author of the Life of Jacob *. Izmo. 29. fewed. pp. 164. Dilly. 1789.

The writer of thefe letters delivers them to the public under the fignature of Cornelia, alluding to the mother of the Gracchi fo juftly celebrated among the ancient Romans; the fame fentiments of maternal tendernefs, it is added, which influenced the Roman matron, gave rife to thefe epiftles, and prompted a fond mother to become an author. The letters are seventeen in number; in which, a variety of fubjects is difcuffed; particularly fuch as are fuited to the female fphere and character. This lady is no friend to fingularity and affection, no enemy to innocent cheerfulness and enjoyments: but it is her earnest wish to guard her fair readers against the errors into which fashion and falfe tafte may lead them. The great principle on which the whole proceeds, is expressed in such terms as thefe:

Reft affured that in the exercife of focial and religious duties, the mind will find her folid happiness.'-' Never lofe fight of this truth, that there is no happiness adequate to the capacities of the human foul, but what is found in the exercife of piety and virtue; nor any praife worthy her regard, but what refults immediately therefrom.'When reafon and religion have given the clue to your pleafures, refolve always to have them of your own chufing, and not of other people's.'

The laft direction is only intended to caution youth against the unreasonable influence of fashion, and the commanding dictates of what is termed the polite world; by a regard to which, numbers are

See Review for Auguft, 1785. vol. 73. P. 155.

led

led into fcenes to which they have, no inclination, and indeed rather a diflike. The author writes in a rational and fenfible manner; he does not appear to have any thing of an auflere or morofe .difpofition, but fhe profeffes a firm averfion to novels. Some of her fentiments are expreffed as follows:

Those who read merely to please the imagination, may be fure of not reading to advantage, and do feldom acquire a relish for works of folid merit and utility. I have never known a young perfon who was fond of novels, capable of relishing any thing fuperior to them. For my own part, I had rather fee a girl wholly ignorant of the alphabet, than attached to that fpecies of writing; for I am convinced that infinitely more have erred in the conduct of life from that caufe, than from any other. The fentiments and ideas they imprefs, are fatal illufions to mislead the poor reader, who, after wafting days and years in the ftudy, is ftill a ftranger to the world. fhe lives in, and, what is worse, infpired with the most erroneous notions of it, which commonly lead to fome falfe ftep, or ill-judged

connection.'

Mrs. Peddle, (for that appears, from her Life of Jacob, to be the lady's name,) is a ferious and moral writer. The prefent work clearly manifefts her good intentions in addreffing her thoughts to the public: it is well calculated for the affistance and improve-, ment of those who perufe it with due attention. Her expreffions, in a few inftances, may be rather too ftrong, as where. in the preceding extract, the ufes the words infinitely more.' There is not a word in the English language, more generally mifufed, than the term INFINITE: which is commonly applied, both in conversation and writing, on the maft frivolous occafions.

Among the feveral topics, which pafs under the review of this writer, love and marriage have no diftinct and immediate difcuffion ; which may occafion fome difappointment to Mrs. P's younger readers.

Art. 44

The Confidential Letters of Albert; from his firft Attachment to Charlotte to her Death: from the Sorrows of Werter.

Izmo. PP. 222. 35. fewed: Robinsons. 1790.

It will be a fufficient recommendation, to fay that thefe letters may be read with pleafure as a fequel to the Sorrows of Werter, by those with whom that work is a favorite.

Art. 45. Woman. Sketches of the Hiftory, Genius, Difpofition, Accomplishments, Employments, Cuftoms, and Importance of the Fair Sex, in all Parts of the World. Interfperfed with many fingular and entertaining Anecdotes. By a Friend to the Sex. 12mo. pp. 400. 3s. 6d. fewed. Kearfley. 1790.

In forming this volume, we are told that the following authors have been confulted for materials; Drs. Robertíon, Alexander, Hawkefworth, Goldfmith, Gregory, Fordyce, and Schomberg; Profeffors Ferguson and Millar; Meffrs. Fenelon, Montaigne, Thomas, Grofley, Knox, and Hayley; Lady Pennington and Mrs, Kinderfley. From thefe writers, many good obfervations are extracted, but they are feldom diftinguished by the name of the author,

To thefe are added, feveral pieces, which certainly do not come from any of the abovementioned writers; and the merit of which is of fuch a nature, as to make us rather indifferent whence they proceeded.

Art. 46. The Spanish Memorial of the 4th of June, confidered, by A. Dalrymple. 8vo. PP. 21. Is. Debrett. 1790.

The amount of Mr. D.'s ftrictures on the Spanish memorial, is, a charge of obfcurity, or ambiguity, not to fay fallacy, or duplicity, on the conduct of the court of Spain, in regard to the feizure of Britifh fhips, at Nootka Sound.- We cannot but think, on the whole, that were the matters now in difpute, between the courts of London and Madrid, referred to the writers (fetting afide the fighters) of both nations, the advantage (if we may judge from the fpecimens produced by this able inveiligator,) would be clearly on our fide.

Printed

Art. 47. Les Premices de ma Jeunesse, &c. i. e. The first Fruits of Youth, or the modern Hero in the Kingdom of Cathai, in the Year of the World 90,000. Second Edition, corrected and augmented. By B. Frere, de Cherenfi. 12mo. PP. 191. at Hereford, and fold in London by Evans. 1790. This jeu d'efprit is a commentary on the following words of Mr. Gibbon: "the generality of Princes, if they were ftripped of their purple, and cast naked into the world, would immediately fink to the lowest rank of fociety, without a hope of emerging from their obfcurity." Vol. 4. c. 22. p. 59. Harlequin is made a General for curing the Queen's dog, and difgraced, after obtaining a great victory, and enjoying a triumph, for refufing to cure her majesty's cat. This fimple fable, the author works up into a very agreeable piece, containing a lively and well written fatire on Kings and courts. The fprightlinefs of this little performance makes us with to fee works of greater extent from the pen of its author; which he has promifed, fhould the prefent attempt fucceed.

THEOLOGY and POLEMICS.

Art. 48. Letters addressed to the Apologift for the Religion of Nature †. 12mo. pp. 136. 2s. iewed. Payne. 1795.

If this defence of Revelation be not written with all the strength of argument of which the fubject admits, and that it requires, it is, however, written with great candour, and discovers a mind well stored with theological knowlege, and imbued with liberal fentiments. The author confeffes, perhaps too haitily, the infufficiency of the natural arguments for the immortality of the foul, and rejects the doctrines of eternal punishment, and that of annihilation: but he maintains, against the apologift, that a belief of a future ftate is of great importance both to the individuals and fociety, and, confequently, that the Chriflian doctrine, which establishes this belief on the promife of God, is of inestimable value.

* See Review for July, art. 34, of the catalogue.
+ See the ift vol. of our new Series, P. 353.

1

Art.

Art. 49. The World proved to be not Eternal, nor Mechanical; but 229 the Creature and Subject of God; by brief Arguments extracted from the Works of Sir Ifaac Newton, Bishop Cumberland, and Doctor Keill. 8vo. pp. 60. These extracts from books not eafily acceffible to the generality of I S. Dilly. readers, may be of ufe, in furnishing young perfons, who have not leifure to perufe larger works, with folid arguments, as well as refpectable authorities, to confirm their faith in the principles of religion, and fecure them against the contagion of atheistical philofophy.

Art. 50. A Letter to the Rev. Mr. Caleb Evans, M. A. Master of the Seminary at Bristol. Letter drawn up by him, read and approved by the affociation Containing a few Remarks on a circular met at Horsley, in Gloucefterfhire, July 3d and 4th, 1789. By William Huntingdon, S. S. All that we are able to gather from this angry letter, is that the 8vo. pp. 128. Is. 6d. Terry. writer's "zeal is not according to knowlege.' for the doctrines of Antinomianism. He is an advocate

6s. Boards.

Art. 51. A fhort and plain Expofition of the Old Teftament, with devotional and practical Reflections, for the Ufe of Families. By the late Rev. Job Orton. R. Gentleman. Published from the Author's MSS. by Vol. IV. Longman, &c. 1790. Evo. PP. 684. This volume contains the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Efther, Job, and the Píalms. It is executed in the fame manner as the former volumes*, of which we have already given our opinion, and with which the public are too well acquainted to need any further account. It may, however, be proper to obferve, that the editor meets with growing encouragement in the progrefs of his undertaking, as appears by the additional names to his lift of febscribers.

Art. 52. A Vindication of a printed Letter addressed to the Calvinistic Baptifts of the Western Affociation, on the Subject of Doxologies, from the Remarks of a Member of the Western Affociation. By a Baptift. 8vo. pp. 16. 3d. Johnfon. 1789.

A further apology for that which, we should imagine, can need no apology, the ufe of fcriptural rather than metaphyfical language in divine worship.

8vo.

Art. 53. Obfervations on the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Chapters of
the Book of Genefis. By T. Wrighte, A. M. Clerk.
Pp. 137. 3s. fewed. Blamire, &c.

It is the purport of this pamphlet, to refute the doctrine of the agency of Satan on the mind of man, and to fhew, that what is commonly called the Fall, was a divine vifion for the inftruction of the first pair; and, confequently, that the ftory of their tranfgreffion, which has paffed down by tradition from time immemorial, is no

* See Review, vols. lxxix. p. 328. and lxxxi. p. 568.

thing lefs than a fhameful calumny. The work might very pro perly have been entitled, An Apology for Adam and Eve. Among other curious remarks, with which the reader of this piece will be amufed, is the following: that the twelve figns of the Zodiac are fignificant of the principal events of the Antediluvian world; Aries and Taurus denoting the first occupations of mankind as fhepherds; Gemini, the two fons of Lamech; Virgo, the fifter of Tubal; Libra, Enoch, &c.

What bounds can be fet to human ingenuity?

Art. 54. Quotation against Quotation, or curfory Obfervations on Dr. Prielley's Letters to the Inhabitants of Birmingham: in which the celebrated Quotation from the late Lord Chatham's Speech in the House of Lords is farther confidered; and a fecond Quotation from a fubfequent Speech in the fame House, upon a different occafion, and by the fame great Authority, is produced. By the Rev. William Keate. 8vo. pp. 67. is. 6d. Stock

dale.

1790.

The late Lord Chatham afferted in the house of lords, that we had

a Calvinistic creed, a Popish liturgy, and an Arminian clergy." To the truth of this affertion, Mr. Keate cannot accede. He is of opinion with Dean Tucker, (fee his letters to Dr. Kippis, noticed in the 48th vol. of our Review, p. 183.) that the articles are not Calvinistic but Arminian: he confeffes that the power allowed to the priests in the order for the vifitation of the fick, of giving abfolution to thofe who confefs their fins, is Popifh: but he will not allow this office to belong properly to the liturgy or public fervice of the church. He conceives the reading of this abfolution to be optional, and he imagines there are few inftances of any clergyman's reading it. This, however, is not a vindication of the book of common prayer, but only of the clergy.

He next proceeds to difcufs fome points relative to the principles and conduct of the Diffenters. Their republicanism he deems to be felf-evident, and yet fays that the proof of it must be circuitous.' He does not, however, go far about for his conclufion. His proof is a curious morfel of logic. The Diffenters are bigs; whig principles carried to the extreme terminate in republicaniim-ergo, Diffenters are republicans. Q. E. D.

After the fame manner, he can easily demonftrate their propenfity to king flaughter, or to any thing elfe that he pleases.

Mr. Keate appears to have a warm attachment to the establishment; which may be very commendable: but Epifcopalians, as well as Diffenters, will, perhaps, be inclined to think that he out Herod's Herod, when he maintains that the church of England is as old as Chriftianity itfelf."

Art. 55. Hiftorical Memoirs of Religious Diffention; addreffed to the feventeenth Parliament of Great Britain. 8vo. pp. 99. 2s. Murray.

It is with actions as with objects;-they receive a colour from the medium through which they are viewed. Diffenters, when they write their own hiftory, exhibit themfelves as a very public spirited

and