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tries in which they were written; or pious frauds, intended to imprefs on vulgar minds a higher reverence of the power and fanctity of Chrift; will this in the leaft impeach the excellence of his religion,, or the authority of its founder? Or is Christianity anfwerable for all the fables, of which it may have been the innocent occafion? The want of this obvious diftinction has much injured the Chriftian caufe. For if the records of this revelation are fuppofed to be the revelation itself, the leaft defect difcovered in them must be fatal to the whole.'

On this mode of folving the objection we cannot but obferve, that though a fabulous story, or a pious fraud, may not depreciate the excellency of our Saviour's moral precepts, yet it invalidates the credit and authority of those writers, to whom alone we owe the whole fyftem of Christianity, and the knowledge of its author. If they have been guilty of a pious fraud in one inftance, they may have been guilty of a falfity in others; and their hiftories may be only a series of fables, intended to imprefs on vulgar minds a higher reverence of the power and fanctity of Chrift. The defenders of Christianity fhould confider the confequences of fuch conceffions. Where we imagine we fee an inconfiftency, or an abfurdity, we should rather fufpe our own want of difcernment. Perhaps it may not be the evangelical writer that nods, but we ourselves that

dream.

We shall pass over the reft of our author's remarks, and conclude this article with affuring our readers, that, whatever notions may have prevailed to the contrary, there is not the least shadow of reafon to question his fincerity. He evidently writes from the heart; and though we may differ from him in fome points, yet we entirely agree with him in his general conclufion; and warmly recommend his ingenious performance to the perufal of every one, who is capable of judging for himself, to the ferious believer, and the unthinking infidel.

IX. The firft Canto of the Revolution: an Epic Poem. By Charles Crawford, Efq. 4to. 1s. 6d. Becket.

MR. Crawford informs us, in an advertisement, that this is the first of twelve Cantos, which he proposes to write on the fubject. The reafon he gives for not publishing them all at once is, because he thought that fo voluminous a work would fcarcely invite the attention of many readers; the generality being too indolent to engage in the labour of inveftigating a production fo extenfive. On the other hand he hoped, that if the first canto met with applause, they would be beguiled to attend to the fucceeding eleven.

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Before we enter on any remark, we shall lay before our readers the argument of the canto.

The Poem opens at the acceffion of James II. to the throne of Great Britain.-Singular character of my lord Shaftesbury, who had oppofed his acceffion, particularly delineated. - Character of James touched on.-His devotednefs to Theological Hatred. The palace of Theological Hatred, where Malice, Selfconceit, Folly, Ignorance, Credulity, &c. attend as minifters, is defcribed in allegory.-James, duke of Monmouth, the illegitimate fon of Charles II. (but who pretended that he was legitimate, and confequently had afpired to the regal power) invades England with an intent to dethrone his kinfman James II.'

The difficulty of compofing an epic poem is acknowledged to be fo great, and the palm to which the author of fuch a work, when excellent in its kind, is unanimoufly admitted by the fuffrages of mankind to have a claim, is of fo honourable and diftinguished a nature, that every fuch production ought to be examined with the strictest impartiality and candour. Thofe who are acquainted with the epopeia are fenfible that no decifive judgment can be pronounced of the fable, unless the whole be fubmitted in a continued feries to the investigation of criticism. But this not being the cafe with the publication before us, the confequential relation and the connection of the prefent canto with thofe which are intended to fucceed it, cannot poffibly be fubjected to any regular difcuffion. All, therefore, that we can do with propriety in respect to this canto, is to make few obfervations on the author's apparent

plan.

In the firft place, it may be objected, that by the fable commencing fo early as the acceffion of James II. a much longer period of time will be required to complete the action, than is conformable to the reputed laws of the epic poem.

In the fecond place, it does not appear how the invafion of the duke of Monmouth can naturally operate towards producing the Revolution, without not only violating the unity of action, but contradicting the truth of history, which in a tranfaction so recent and well authenticated, ought perhaps to be fcrupuloufly preferved.

The Revolution, we admit, is a subject of sufficient magnitude and importance to ferve as the foundation of an heroic poem; but it is not obvious, at least from the progression of this canto, if indeed there be any progreffion, that the action can be at all accommodated to the indifpenfible rules of the epopcia.

The

The work may contain a collection of ingenious, and perhaps interefting episodes, but we are afraid that these will prove of too detached a nature to form one uniform and confiftent bole; and that with all the embellishments which the feveral cantos may receive from the author's imagination, they will be entitled to the denomination of a historical, rather than a genuine epic poem.

As a fpecimen of the poem, we fhall prefent our readers with the invocation.

I fing the hero, whofe aufpicious arms
Drove from the British realm a tyrant king,
Hated by thofe he rul'd ;-whom England hail'd
Her great protector from her foes abroad,
The guardian, father of her facred laws;

Whence the fam'd line of Brunswick fills her throne,
And all her glory, all her bleffings rife.

I woo nor thee, thou goddefs, heav'nly bright!

Fair Mufe, who beauteous whilom diâft infpire
The great Mæonides, or Maro's pen :

Nor thee, who gav't thine aid of later years
To him, great bard, Britannia's boasted pride,
Majeftic Milton; who, in verfe no less
Sublime, a theme unfung before difplay'd:
But thee, who fairer, lovelier to mine eyes,
In thefe our days thine infpiration gav't
To him ftill greater, as his page fhines forth
With equal poetry, with better fenfe,
Voltaire; come! o'erfhadow me with thy wings,
Whence I may brood on thoughts fo truly great,
That when they quicken into lofty verse,
Attentive kings may tremble while they read,
And trembling learn; the people too give ear,
While calm and unimpaffion'd, but from thee,
What each fhould fhun deftru&tive to their peace,
What beft purfue, I fing;-the ravish'd ear
Delighting thus, while to the inmost heart
I pour inftruction found. Thus wifely they,
Who minister to peevish ailing child,
Place honey round the cup to guile his fears,
When he receives the healing draught, compos'd
Of wormwood, or of other nauseous drug.

From thy fublime abode, the heav'n of heav'ns,
Where radiant at th' Almighty's feet thou fit'ft,
In all the dazzling majesty of light,

Defcend, fair Truth! and guide thy poet's pen,
While he recounts, in never-dying verfe,

Great William's fame:-the Mufes and their train
'I'is true he courts, enamour'd of their grace;
On thee and on thy steps they fhall attend,

1i3

Thine

Thine handmaids, not thy beauteous modeft form
With arts adult'rate to disguise or daub:

But with a pure ingenuous fkill to deck

Thy fimple charms, and make them as the charms
Of Virgin, who no garish colour throws
On native beauty, till to mortal fight,
Like her, thou altogether fhalt become
Attractive, irrefiftible, divine.

FOREIGN LITERARY INTELLIGENCE.

10. La Meteorologia applicata all' Agricoltura, del Sig. Ab. Giuseppe Toaldo, Profeffore di Afronomia nella Univerfita di Padoua, 4to. Vinegia.

THIS

HIS excellent treatife was occafioned by the question proposed by the academy of Montpellier, concerning the application of meteorology to agriculture. It has obtained not only the prize, but an additional double prize added to that of Montpellier, by the Venetian fenators who have the direction of the university of Padua, and has fince been improved with feveral additions by its author. It concludes with an interefting meteorological almanac, drawn up from fifty years obfervations at Padua, fhewing every day; how often that fome day has been clear or rainy, during half a century; what was the average degree of its warmth, &c. Signor Toaldo obferves, that these average quantities may be altered by the circumstances of the motion of the moon; but he purposes to ftate that difference for the future by a particular annual al

manac.

11. Gradus Taurinenfis, with 3 Cuts. 4to. Auguftæ Taurinorum, ex Typographia Regia.

Mr. Bofcowich having measured a degree in Italy, induced the late king of Sardinia to cause another degree to be measured in Piedmont. The reverend father Beccaria, profeffor of the mathematics at Turin, and abbate Canonica, keeper of the machines and cabinet of phyfic, were by his majefty appointed to this operation, and have acquitted themfelves with great accuracy and fuccefs.

12. Le Neptune Oriental, &c. par M. d'Après de Mannevillette, Chev. de l'Ordre du Roi, Capitaine des Vaiffeaux de la Comp. des Indes, &c. large folio, 60 Charts and 94 Pages of Letter-Press. Paris.

This new edition of a capital work for mariners, has been greatly improved and revised by M. Blondeau, profeffor of mathematics and hydrography at Breft.

13. Traité des Jardins, ou le Nouveau de la Quintinye, contenant 1. la Defcription & la Culture des Arbres fruitiers: 2. des Plantes potageres 3. des Fleurs; 4. des Arbres & Arbrisseaux d'Ornement. Par M. le B***, Partie 1. & II. 2 vols. 8vo. with cuts. Paris.

This complete Treatife on Gardening may be confidered as one of the best that has appeared in France on this fubject, fince that of M. de la Quintinye.

14. Eloge

14. Eloge de M. Piron, lû à la Séance publique de l' Academie de Dijon. Par M. Perret. 8vo. Paris.

The late Mr. Piron's literary merits, though very confiderable in themselves, are here visibly exaggerated. A more moderate eulogium would have done more credit both to the hero and to his panegyrift.

15. Catechifme fur l'Art des Accouchemens pour les Sages-Femmes de la Campagne, fait par l'Ordre & aux dépens du Gouvernement. Par M. Augier du Foi, &c. 12mo. Paris.

A fmall tract, valuable for its plainnefs and perfpicuity, and well adapted to the capacity' of the readers for whom it is defigned. 16. Nuova Defcrizione di Roma antica e moderna, e di tutti li più nobili Monumenti fagri e profani che fono in effa e nelle fue Vicinanze : cioè Archi, Tempj, Anfiteatri, Cerchi, Obelifchi, Bafiliche, e Chiefe, colla notizia delle Relique più infegni, che fi confervono in effe, Palazzi, Bibliotheche, Mufei, e Ville, Pitture, e Scolture co nomi de più celebri Architetti, Pittori, e Scultori, fino al tempo prefente, &c. 8vo.

in Roma.

The principal merit of this new defcription of ancient and mo. dern Rome, confifts in a notice of all the alterations made with regard to ancient monuments, under the late pope, and alfo a deTcription of the Museum Vaticano-Clementinum.

MONTHLY CATALOGUE.

POETRY.

17. Additions to the Works of Alexander Pope, Efq. together with many original Poems and Letters of contemporary Writers, never before published. 2 vols. 8vo. 6s. boards.

T'

Baldwin.

HOUGH we are unwilling to promote a spirit that tends to perpetuate the neglected trifles of thofe writers who have left more finished monuments of their art behind them, yet it were injuftice to refufe the publisher of these volumes a confiderable fhare of our applaufe. He has here (with no fmall industry) affembled the fcattered remains of Pope, Prior, Gay, &c. &c. &c. As these pieces are undoubtedly genuine, they are proportionably valuable. A great part of them has never before appeared in print: and if fome few fhould be regarded as too minute and unimportant, they may be easily excufed for the fake of others which are confeffedly interefting and curious. We will not plunder the collection before us, by making extracts from it: especially as the public has been already entertained with a fample of its contents in one of the public papers 18. The Haunch of Venison, a Poetical Epifle to Lord Clare. By the late Dr. Goldsmith. 4to. Is. 6d. Kearly. Whoever is converfant with the literary artifices of the town, knows that spurious productions which otherwife might have met with few readers, have often been fuocefsfully introduced to

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