ruptured or afflicted with some incurable disease, were wanted; and such details are here abundantly supplied, accompanied by the writer's just and sensible observations.

The Adventures and Sufferings of John R. Jewitt, only Survivor of the ship Boston, during a Captivity of Three Years among the Savages of Nootka Sound; with an Account of the Manners, Mode of Living, and Religious Opinions of the Natives.-12mo. pp. 237. 5s. Hurst and Co.

We have here a reprint of Jewitt, from one of the editions published in America. The author, a son of a blacksmith of Boston, in Lincolnshire, was educated by his father, with the intention of making him a surgeon; but the boy preferred the anvil and hammer to the pestle and scalpel, and stuck to his father's shop. Old Jewitt, removing to Hull, was employed in repairing an American ship, which circumstance afforded him the opportunity of cultivating an intimate acquaintance with the captain; and the youth was induced to go with him on a voyage to the north-west coast of America. The vessel came to anchor in Friendly Cove, Nootka Sound; and a brisk trade took place with the natives, which for a while was carried on with every appearance of friendship. But, it appears that the native chiefs and people had long indulged in feelings of resentment against white people, on account of their having on different occasions been plundered by them, and several of their countrymen killed; and being farther irritated by a slight insult offered, as they conceived, to their king, they took an opportunity, when a large portion of the crew were absent from the ship, to fall upon the few on board, and massacre them, and then to slay the others who were absent. Happily for our author, he was saved by the king, who had observed his talents as a workman in iron, and was desirous of having his services. An old man, who concealed himself till the following day, was also saved by our author's stratagem of pretending that he was his father. Mr. Jewitt, after being made prisoner, was, on the whole, kindly used by the savages, since the only hardship he experienced was that of being compelled to dress his food according to their fashion. But this inconvenience was imposed upon him, with the hope of making him forget his native country, and to reconcile him to the spending his life with them. He soon became a favourite with the king's family, and his leisure time he employed in manufacturing various useful articles for the chiefs; in return for which, he had abundant allowance of food, even when they had little for themselves: and he had only to go into any house from which he saw smoke issuing, to obtain a share of whatever viands the family possessed. During his melancholy captivity, he solaced his mind by reading some books of devotion, which he had saved from the ship; and, on Sundays, he and his companion were accustomed to dress themselves as respectably as they could, and in fine weather to retire about a mile from the village, where, under a fir tree, by the side of a small pond, they read some chapters of the Bible, and the prayers of the church; after which, they offered up to Heaven a petition for deliverance from their captivity. The king, however, was not desirous that this should take

place, and therefore, to fix him in the country, determined to gratify him with a wife; and, none of the women of his own tribe meeting our author's fancy, he was taken to a neighbouring tribe, where he found a beautiful girl, the daughter of a chief, who was solicited in the usual manner; when, the price agreed upon being paid, she very cheerfully consented to depart with him. This young woman behaved with great kindness and affection; kept her person neat and clean, and endeavoured, as far as she could, to render her husband happy. But he still languished for his deliverance; and the anxiety under which he unceasingly laboured, together with his being obliged to wear a dress, and adopt the manners, of the country, impaired his health; when the king told him, that, if he did not wish that his wife should continue to live with him, he would send her back. To this our author consented; but only because he did not wish to have any impediment to his leaving the country. They accordingly parted with much emotion on both sides. At length, the Lydia of Boston, Captain Hill, came into Friendly Cove, and the king being desirous of going on board, but still rather fearful of venturing, desired our author to write a letter to the captain, and give him a favourable account of himself and the people. Mr. Jewitt availed himself of this permission, and wrote a letter, in which he informed the captain of all that had occurred, and begged of him to keep the king a prisoner, until he and Thompson, his aged companion in captivity, were set free. The scheme succeeded, and even part of the plunder of the former ship was recovered. With this vessel our author proceeded to China, and thence to Boston.

The personal narrative is exceedingly interesting; and we are therefore not surprised that this should have become a favourite book in America. There are also very interesting accounts of the habits of life in the tribe amongst which our author was in captivity; and of the neighbouring tribes with which they had hostilities, or commercial intercourse. The description of the houses, of the furniture, the food, the dress, and the fishing and hunting, of the natives, will be read with satisfaction: and, on the whole, we think this little volume worthy of our recommendation.

A Treatise on the Principles of the Usury Laws, with Disquisitions on the Arguments adduced against them by Mr. Bentham, and other Writers; and a Review of the Authorities in their favour. By Robert Maugham.-8vo. pp. 81. 3s. 6d. Longman and Co. THIS is a clear well-written pamphlet in defence of the present Usury Laws, which inflict a forfeiture of the sum lent, and subject the lender to pay three times its amount to whoever shall sue for it, if more than 5 per cent. be taken for the use of the loan. In former times, it was odious and illegal for a lender to receive any interest whatever; and now we see it publicly proposed to abolish all law on the subject, and to expose the needy borrowers to the mercy of the rich! The law of Moses against taking interest was not a moral law, necessarily unalterable in its nature; but a political regulation provided for the Jews; which fact is rendered evident by the legislator permitting them to receive interest of strangers, though not from their

own brethren. The meaning of this distinction is obvious. If money was lent to their brethren, it was in exchange for articles useful to the community; but, if placed in the hands of strangers, it went beyond the communicants, and was exposed to hazard; and the general stock was diminished. The general good, then, was the object in view: and this the author shews to be the case with our Usury Laws. Their object is to prevent the idle from reaping too great a portion of the fruits of industry. Were there no restraint, the effect, in a little time, would be, to render the industrious classes of the community the mere Helots of the rich! But a fixed rate of interest tends to secure property from that extent of fluctuation and uncertainty in value, to which, without such a provision, it would constantly be exposed. Unprotected by this safeguard, no man could depend on any prospective calculations, or future security for himself, his family, or his connexions. All contracts to be executed

at a future time would be purely speculative. The encreased facility of borrowing would " dull the edge of husbandry." The journeyman, or young tradesman, instead of trusting to frugality and labour, to advance himself, would look to the money-lender; and, beginning with a mill-stone about his neck, would never become independent. To the lender it would often be injurious, because, blinded by avarice, he would be tempted to vest his property in insecure contracts. The state of law, as thus contemplated, would tend to diminish prudence, (a quality which is the parent of half the virtues,) and would consequently injure morality, and destroy, the moral principles of those who now, by their industry and good conduct, form the support or chief stay of civil society. It is said that, if the Usury Laws were abolished, every one might borrow, and numerous speculations might be attempted, which at present are impracticable. It is no way desirable that every member of the community should become a borrower, or a lender, since such a state of things would destroy the honourable independence of the British character. The speculations thus encouraged would scarcely fail to injure the discreet and careful trader, nor to be ruinous to the adventurers it seduced. It is no argument against this reasoning, that some of our wealthy merchants do not fear the abolition of the Usury Laws. Their wealth and credit place them beyond the reach of the usurer; and, when they do require a loan, they can offer the most ample security. But the small trader would feel the evil, and be overwhelmed with the magnitude of his burden, were he unable to obtain discount at 5 per cent., and to have his profits reduced, by paying a higher rate of interest. Money, as a commodity, differs from merchandize, as being of an imperishable nature. It cannot, therefore, be subject to the same laws as corn and other destructible property. Under the present system, the nation has flourished; and, as capital has increased, the legal rate of interest has gradually been decreased from that of 10 per cent, to which it amounted in the time of Henry VIII., to 5 per cent., the standard fixed in the reign of queen Anne.-In this little but useful work, the present laws are clearly shewn to be calculated to check prodigality, by diminishing the facility of borrowed supply; to protect the indigent and simple; and to repress chimerical and extravagant specula

tion. It is a truth well worth attention, that these laws are too often evaded by extortion, in the shape of required annuities, and other imposing methods; but this practice cannot be carried to any great extent and it is to be remembered, that the speculation is always hazardous. All annuity transactions are enrolled in a public register, constantly open to general inspection; and the amount of money lent in this way, although considerable, when separately considered, bears no proportion to the circulating capital of the country.-In opposition to Mr. Jeremy Bentham, the author gives a clear view of the opinions of Grotius, Puffendorf, Vattel, Lord Bacon, Blackstone, Archdeacon Paley, and Adam Smith; and earnestly hopes, that no blunder in the sciences of legislation and political economy, upon so vital and momentous a question as this, will place for ever the stamp of ridicule upon the brow of this "enlightened age." From this brief, but faithful, abstract of the views of the author of this valuable pamphlet, our readers will perceive, that his opinions, clearly and calmly stated, are deduced from a cool and patient investigation of the subject; and that what he advances is founded on notorious facts and legitimate arguments.

Observations on the State of the Wine Trade, occasioned by the perusal of a Pamphlet on the same Subject, by Mr. Warre: most respectfully submitted to his Majesty's Ministers. By Fleetwood Williams. -8vo. pp. 23.

THE principles which regulate the policy of this country, in regard to the Wine Trade with Portugal, have long been a subject of reproach with intelligent political economists; and the conduct of the Portuguese is ably exposed in this pamphlet. In order to encourage our allies, and produce what was deemed an advantage, a favourable balance of trade, a heavier duty was imposed upon the wines of other countries; thereby, in fact, giving the Portuguese a monopoly. Feeling themselves secure of the English market, these grateful people, on their part, established a wine company at Oporto, possessing the exclusive right of supplying the merchants with wine, to be exported to England; and also that of fixing the price to be paid to the growers in Portugal, and to be demanded of the English merchants. By the exercise of this monopoly, under the pretext of preserving the character of the Oporto wine, they exclude from the market whatever wines they please, and by a slow supply, contrive to extort from their British friends a price far exceeding what could have been obtained by an open trade, and a free competition. Hence the wines which, from 1786 to 1790, were sold in Portugal at from 167. to 207. per pipe, were sold, from 1811 to 1820, at from 407. to 701.; and having found that the sale diminished, they lowered the price, and sold the wine, from 1821 to 1823, at from 30l. to 401. The demand being limited merely by what they conceived they could extort. Under such circumstances, it is contended, that it would be of no service to the British public were the government to abandon the duty on Portuguese wine, since such a measure would only enable the monopolizers of Oporto to exercise a greater degree of rapacity. Under

such circumstances, it will certainly be better for the ministers exclusively to take off taxes, the relief from which would be immediately felt by the people, instead of that on Port wine; and the only remedy against the Portuguese, is so to equalize the duties on wines, that the British merchants may be enabled to deal with those who treat them with most liberality and justice. Mr. Williams is himself a wine merchant, and does not forget his own interest: accordingly, he exposes, and with a commendable zeal, the arts of persons who sell at an under-price, and who, as he alleges, give liquors of inferior quality, manufactured at home, in bottles of 16, 17, 18, and 19, to the real dozen.

Summary of the Administration of the Indian Government, from October 1813, to January 1823. By the Marquess of Hastings, Governor General.-8vo. pp. 116. 5s. W. Earle.

THE Marquess of Hastings is the Bayard of British nobility; and all that concerns him and his actions, are interesting to every well-constituted mind. After displaying talents in the field, in America and the low countries, and great eloquence in the senate, he was, a few years since, removed from the intrigues of a capricious court to the supreme command in India. On this great stage, he had an opportunity of displaying his policy and his benevolence; but the ablest exercise of their qualities did not protect him against interested calumnies; and he found it necessary to protect his reputation by the publication of the present pamphlet.

As his integrity may be relied upon, and as no one is better able to advocate a cause, we have judged it proper to let the noble Marquess speak for himself, in the propositions with which he sums up this very able and interesting appeal:

I beg leave to recapitulate the points of benefit for the honourable company which I consider established; that, if I have been any where deficient, the particular neglect may at once be seized:

1st. The overweening insolence and hostility of Nepaul, a power dangerous, from its position along an extensive and open frontier of ours, has been so completely chastened, as to make that people sensible they can only retain their independence, as a state, through the moderation of the British government.

"2d. The Pindarry Association, a dreadful scourge to every neighbouring community, and peculiarly afflictive to the honourable company's subjects, has been annihilated; and the fruitless annual expense of protective measures against those depredators, together with frequent heavy loss of revenue, is henceforth precluded.

3d. A confederacy, aiming at no less than the total extirpation of the British from India, has been so thoroughly subverted, that not a germ is left for its reproduction.

"4th. Throughout the term of an administration during which such unprecedental demands for services on the spot were to be met, the honourable court has received, on an average, annual supplies from India (beyond the amount of supplies from England to India), nearly trebling the rate of supplies furnished to it on the average of twenty years preceding. For five years of my administration, which most demanded extraordinary effort in India, the supplies nearly quintupled the former example.

"5th. The yearly Indian revenue of the honourable company, from permanent sources, exhibited at the close of the last official year an increase of five millions one hundred and seventy-five thousand pounds sterling, by actual receipt. For reasons assigned, that increase is expected to amount in the present year, 1822-23, to six millions. There is no probability that it should hereafter sink below that rate; but there is every just ground to reckon upon its progressive augmentation.

Crit. Gaz. Vol. 1. No. 1.

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