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Although the defign and ufe of the work is apparent enough from what the editor has faid, yet we cannot help adding that out of between 7 and 800 questions and folutions which this work contains, were they only the produce of ordinary mathematicians, much ufeful and curious matter might have been expected; but if we confider that by much the greater part of them is the produce of the most eminent mathematicians who have fucceffively flourished in England since the commencement of this work in 1704, to the present tine, and that befides the questions and their folutions there are a great many other occafional curious differtations on mathematical and philofophical subjects interfperfed throughout the work, it may be looked on as a treasury of some of the most curious productions of our English mathematicians during the prefent century. At the fame time it is no more than juftice to obferve, that the prefent editor has added greatly to the work by a more regular and uniform arrangement of the parts, and by adding, in many places, more elegant and correct folutions than had been given before, in which he seems to have had the affiftance of fome of the best mathematicians of the present time.

The 4th and 5th volumes contain the Poetical parts of the Diary, and though not of fo important a nature as the matter contained in the three former volumes, have neverthelefs, in our humble opinion, their ufe, as they, at leaft, ferve to habituate young minds to a manner of reafoning on what is read, which the generality of readers are but too apt to negle&; and if no immoral or indelicate fubjects are introduced, which has generally been carefully guarded against in the work before us, it is but little matter what they are in other refpects: perhaps the more light and trifling the fub jects are, the better they may be adapted to the generality of mankind.

The fixth and laft volume is an entire new work, nearly on the fame plan with the original Diary, confifting of dif fertations and questions, with their folutions, in different branches of the mathematics, communicated by many ingenious mathematicians of the prefent age, and difpofed in the fame judicious manner as the diarian extracts.

We for our parts could have wished that the work had been printed on a larger page and type, as the value of the ma terials well deferved a very elegant edition, but then it must have greatly enhanced the price, as there feems to be nearly as much matter contained in one of thete little volumes as in an ordinary quarto one, and for the bulk of readers the prefent may equally well anfwer the purpose.

This work we have obferved advertised to be fold either together, or in three feveral parts, viz. 1. The Diarian Mathematics, in 3 vols. 155.-2. The Diarian Poetry, in 2 vols. 95.-3. The Mathematical Miscellany, 5s.

XIII. A Fragment on Government; being an Examination of what is delivered, on the Subject of Government in general, in the Introduction to Sir William Blackstone's Commentaries: with a Preface, in which is given a Critique on the Work at large. 8vo. 35. 6d. in boards. Payne.

THE Commentaries on the Laws of England have been fo

univerfally and defervedly celebrated, that it would be fuperfluous to repeat any encomiums on their acknowledged merit. This Fragment, fo far as we know, is the first attempt that has been deliberately made to invalidate the great reputation of that valuable work. As it would be impoffible for us to give our readers a full idea of the various remarks contained in this examination, without greatly exceeding the limits of a Review, we must content ourselves with mentioning in general the fubjects of which it treats, and affording room to a quotation as a specimen of the effay.

The volume is divided into five chapters, which are employed in examining the fentiments of the learned author of the Commentaries, on the following topics refpectively; viz. formation of government, forms of government, British conftitution, right of the fupreme power to make laws, and duty of the fupreme power to make laws.

It was at firft our intention to take the propofed fpecimen from the argumentative part of the ellay, with the view of giving the author's obfervations their greatest force; but in order to avoid inferting the length of text, which ought of neceffity to accompany them, we are obliged to restrict ourfelves to the conclufion of the volume, as the only detached paffage which occurs.

I now put an end to the tedious and intricate war of words that has fubfifted, in a more particular manner during the course of thefe two laft chapters: a logomachy, wearifome enough, perhaps, and infipid to the reader, but beyond description laborious and irksome to the writer. What remedy? Had there been fenfe, I should have attached myself to the fenfe: finding nothing but words; to the words I was to attach myself, or to nothing. Had the doctrine been but false, the task of expofing it would have been comparatively an eafy one but it was what is worse, unmeaning; and thence

it came to require all these pains which I have been here be ftowing on it to what profit let the reader judge.

:

"Well then," (cries an objector)—the task you have fet yourself is at an end; and the fubject of it after all, according to your own reprefentation, teaches nothing;-according to your own fhewing it is not worth attending to.- Why then beftow on it fo much attention ?"

In this view-To do fomething to inftru&t, but more to undeceive, the timid and admiring ftudent :-to excite him to place more confidence in his own ftrength, and less in the infallibility of great names :-to help him to emancipate his judgment from the fhackles of authority :-to let him fee that the not understanding a difcourfe may as well be the writer's fault as the reader's :-to teach him to diftinguish between fhewy language and found fenfe :-to warn him not to pay himfelf with words :-to fhew him that what may tickle the ear, or dazzle the imagination, will not always inform the judgment:-to fhew him what it is our author can do, and has done; and what it is he has not done, and cannot do:to dispose him rather to falt on ignorance than feed himself with error:to let him fee that with regard to an expofitor of the law, our author is not he that should come, but that we may be ftill looking for another." Who then, fays my objector, shall be that other? Yourself?"——No verily.— My miffion is at an end, when I have prepared the way be fore him.'

What an unavoidable regard to convenience would not perimit us to fhew by example, we may fupply in fome measure by obferving, that the author of this examination is evidently à fhrewd and acute antagonist, and that he aims his remarks with peculiar addrefs againft fuch parts of the Commentaries as feem the most liable to objection. We wifh, however, that we could not difcover his principles to be warped with fomething like prejudice, refpe&ting the political fubjects which have for fome time engaged the attention of the public.

FOREIGN ARTICLES.

XIV. Chriftian Jofeph Jagemann's Geographische Beschreibung des Grossherzogthums Tofcan, or Ch. Jol. Jagemann's Geographical Defcription of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. 8vo. Gotha. Ger

man.

DURING his ftay at Florence, Mr. Jagemann tranflated Dr.

Bufching's Geography into Italian, and with his author's confent, improved the defcription of Tuscany by a great variety of corrections and additions collated from a great number of printed and MS. accounts and memoirs of that country and judiciously digefted for this purpofe.

From

From his description Tuscany appears still, with all its natural advantages, to labour under fome confiderable political defects, that can only, and probably will foon be, removed by an improvement in its legiflation: the eftates of most families, for inftance, are fet-: tled on the firft-born fons, on whom the younger brothers depend for a moderate fubfiftence. This arrangement took its rife, during the republic, from a fpirit of trade, folicitous to preferve the stocks undivided and unimpaired; and was afterwards, under the ducal government, retained by wealthy families in order to infure their confequence. By this mediocrity in their circumstances great numbers of younger brothers are difabled from entering with Ipirit and fuccefs into trade or lucrative business, and forced to spend their lives in liftless inactivity and indolence, or enter into orders. Hence the nuisance of too many convents and nunneries, as the celibacy of the men is neceffarily followed by that of the women, who are, befides, on account of the free lives of the Florentine married ladies, feldom retained in their parents houses beyond their tenth year of age, or else kept under fo ftrict a discipline as often induces them to take the veil.

In a country thus circumstanced, Mr. Jagemann, therefore, is willing to confider the multitude and wealth of convents rather as a public and private benefit, calculated for a provifion and patri. mony for younger children. Befides, fays he, the greater part of the revenues of the landed eftates of thefe convents, goes to the farmers and peasants by whom they are cultivated, and the remainder is barely fufficient to keep up the live stock and buildings, to maintain the monks and nuns, and to pay the falaries of the phy ficians, lawyers, artists, and tradesmen of the convents.

The natural product of the country is various, great, and important. Its wines are exported to all other countries; the vines are planted amidst olive.trees. The olives are fuffered to drop of themselves, and are gathered from October to May. The hills are planted with chefnut-trees. The feeds of wheat are ufually to their crops as 8 or 900,000 bushels to 4 or 6 millions of bufhels. In a middling harveft in 1771, the produce of Tufcany amounted to 129,335 barrels of oil, 783,000 bushels of chefnuts, 5.455,731 bushels of wheat, and 3,529,853 bushels of other forts of corn: the raw filk has often amounted to 194,000 pounds weight a year, and the ftuffs manufactured from it, and exported, on an average, to 118,888 pounds. The grand Duke's revenues are effimated at two millions and a half of fcudis, out of which fome part of old debts is annually paid off. From 1761 to 1766, the cuftom-houfe duties at Leghorne amounted to above 200,000 lire.

A remarkable inftance of depopulation is noticed at Volterra, whose inhabitants are from too,000 decreased to 4,000. One of the falt-fprings at that place yields 36 pounds of falt from 100 pounds weight of water. Its leaden falt pans of 35,000 pounds weight, mult every three months be new caft, and their wafte repaired with 200 pounds weight of lead. Pifa, formerly fo populous and pow erful, has at prefent not above 20,000 inhabitants.

A chronological account of the maps, the dimensions of the country, and an exact notice of the various natural products, are prefixed to this performance, which being one of the completeft of its kind, cannot fail of being acceptable to the public.

Vol. LXI. May 1776.

Dd

XV. Dell

ΑΝ

·XV. Dell' Aftronomia Libri fei. 8vo. Milano.'

N excellent didactic poem in fix cantos, of which the first treats of the feveral aftronomical fyftems; the fecond, of the fun and all its phoenomena; the third, of the moon and the otlier planets; the fourth and fifth, of the ftars, their diurnal and periodical revolutions, of comets, &c. and the fixth, of all the uses of aftronomy in geography, navigation, agriculture, &c.

For a fpecimen of the poetry and verfification we will quote our poet's tranfition to the theory of tides.

O tu de l' onde fuotitor Nettuno,

Che, cinto intorno da fquammofe torne
D'agili Piftri e di Balene immani
Sovra de l'alto tuo ceruleo cocchio
Scorri da l' Inde a l' Iberboree sponde;
E fai pofar de gran tridente al fuono
Le fifchiante tempefte e il gonfio flutto;
E tu di cento Ninfe arbitra, o Teti,
E voi fnelli Triton: voi d' Ino e Forco
Allegre figlie, che vi fate albergo
La tremolante limpida marino,
Venite a dir fra noi e chi l' voftro regno
Fin dal profondo fen fcompigli, e in alto
L'Onde fpumanti con alterno moto
Sofpinga, e pofcia impetuofo arretri.

Non è Carriddi, o favolofa Scilla
Che ne' fpechi marini alberghi e frema,
E dal vorace ventre i flutti indietro
Lanci ver oriente, e poi gli tragga
Entro le fauci, e gli trangugi ingorda.
Ne pon già i fiumi, che co l' ampia piena,
Di piu torrenti per lo calle afforti
Ognor ne vanno rovinofi al mare,
Portar tal guerra a lui ful corno irato,
Che dal fondo fi turbi, ondeggi e ferva,
E con ftabile legge or forga, or fcemi.
Ma di traenti forze Delia adorna
Seco rapifce i non ritro fi flutti
Ne' fuoi moti diurni, in quella guifa
Che magnetica maffa il ferro attrae.
Contempla come al fuo diurno corfe
Tutto refponda il portentofo fluffo,
Ei periodi fegua. Allor che nafce
Al lieto fuon de' Teffali oricalchi
La bella Febe, il mar fe gonfia e spande
A poco a poco fu l'afciutte arene;

E quando a l'occidente il cocchio inchina,
In fe ftella ritorna, arretra e fugge.
Cofi pur addivien che gli argin rompe
L'onda crefcente, allor che Cintia alluma
La buja notte e di bel nuova avvalla,
Alla che torna a l' orizonte estremo.
E quando o fuefte degli argentei raggi
La pura fronte, o la leggiadra fpoglia
Si rinnovella, e di fplendor s'ammanta,
Non fi vede Nettun rigonfio alzarfi
Oltre il costume e valicar le fponde ?"

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