the national partiality which we have juft reprobated; and in which, even contrary to our intention, we may not perhaps be entirely free from its influence: nor is there any neceffity to depreciate the merits of one poet, in order to do justice to thofe of another. There are, however, fome circumstances, which we would recommend to the attention of foreigners, who are fo ready to degrade Shakspeare by an invidious comparifon of his genius with that of Corneille. Let them remember that the former lived and wrote about half a century before the latter; a difference of time which, in the infancy of tafte and learning, becomes a confideration of fome importance to this we may add, that Corneille poffeffed the advantage of a more liberal education, and a more intimate acquaintance with the ancient dramatic poets and critics, than, it is probable, Shakspeare ever enjoyed. These circumftances ought to be weighed in eftimating the magnitude of genius; for that muft be allowed the highest praise, which, with the least assistance, forces its way through the greateft difficulties:-but where fhall we find a tribunal competent to determine concerning the merit of their respective works, which fhall not be charged with partiality? If the number of fuffrages were to decide the matter, the majority would doubtlefs be in favour of Corneille. From the univerfality of the French language, and the general diffusion of French manners and tafte, the beauties of Corneille's mufe are felt and admired by numbers in every country of Europe: but, in order to compare the two poets, the critic must be equally verfed in the language of each; and, if we make this the principle of our fcrutiny, how many are the voters who must be rejected as unqualified The English language is now perhaps more cultivated by foreigners, than in former times, and our authors become more generally known but though a man may be able to read English profe with tolerable facility, to pick out the meaning of a modern didactic poem, or even to relish fome of its beauties, he is not therefore qualified to fit in judgment on a poet fo original as Shakipeare; whofe excellencies are peculiar to himself, and will not make that forcible impreffion on a foreigner, who muft, in fome measure, conftrue as he reads, and which will atone for the bold violation of thofe unities, that he has been accuftomed to confider as effential to dramatic poetry. There have been feveral English critics, as well verfed in the writings of Corneille, as moft of his own countrymen: but that very few foreigners are competent judges of Shakspeare, is evident from the manner in which fome of his plays have been tranflated and acted on their theatres. In contemplating Corneille as the model of fucceeding writers, M. BAILLY confiders his works as the fource of that cloquence which was generally cultivated in the reign of Lewis XIV.; and for which even the clergy became fo eminently diftinguifhed. He does not indeed fuppofe that thefe boly men condefcended to ftudy the tragedies of the poet; though, by the way, fome of them employed their time much worfe, in fomenting a fpirit of bigotry and perfecution: but he obferves that, though they might never have read his works, they were compelled to yield to the impulfe which he had given to the natural tafte. The light of genius,' he adds, though lefs rapid, is not lefs penetrating, than that of heaven. A great man comprehends every thing within the sphere of his influence. Corneille acquired his reputation by forming the dramatic tafte of his countrymen: but his influence was not confined to the theatre: he improved not only the people who applauded, but alfo the divines who condemned, his pieces; and infpired even Bourdaloue, when he mounted the pulpit to anathematize them.' 6 The fubject of the third difcourfe is Moliere. It contains many very juft obfervations on the genius and writings of that excellent comic poet: but we cannot help thinking that M. BAILLY fets too high a value on fome of the minor plays of this author, which may be confidered rather as farces, than as comedies; and, in which, perhaps, he confulted the taste of the populace, rather than his own. We come next to an excellent eulogium on the Abbe De La Caille; from which we might have extracted fome interesting particulars but we find that the most important of these have been already laid before our readers *. The fifth eulogium is that of Leibnitz; in which the author gives a general view of the opinions and purfuits of that truly great man; and difplays his own knowlege and judgment: but ftill, the avowed panegyrical intention, and declamatory ftyle, of this kind of compofition, appear to us as ill calculated for the difcuffion of philofophical fubjects, as a prifon would be for aftronomical obfervations. The eulogium on Captain Cook, the next in order, is an elegant difcourfe; in which M. BAILLY gives a free scope to that generous and truly philofophical spirit of philanthropy, that becomes the citizen of the world; and confers the greatest honour on thofe by whom it is cultivated. The last of these orations is on Greffet; and will be interefting to thofe, who are acquainted with the productions * See Review, vol. Iv. page 540. 003 of of this poet; whofe most admired work was an elegant trifte entitled Vert Vert, or the Nunnery Parrot *. He also wrote a few comedies; one of which, Le Méchant, has confiderable. merit. Befide the above articles, the firft volume of this collection contains fome of M. BAILLY's official fpeeches as Maire of Paris; and a difcourfe which he delivered on being admitted to a feat in the French academy. Agreeably to the custom of this very complaifant fociety, it is a panegyric on his predeceffor, the Count de Treffan, a man of no great note in the literary world. He was the tranflator of Ariofto into French profe, the author of a few romances, and of a very fanciful fyftem of philofophy, in which he fuppofed electricity to be the univerfal principle †. In the fecond volume, we find a letter to M. Le Roi, concerning the faculties of animals. M. BAILLY's opinion on this fubject coincides with that of the Abbé de Condillac. He thinks that fome animals have not only memory, but also imagination, and even reafon, though in a degree far inferior to man; and we confcfs that there are fome phenomena, for which, without admitting this fuppofition, we are at a lofs to account. Mr. Pope diftinguishes the elephant by the epithet of half-reafening, and yet fuppofes it to be directed merely by inftinct; which, however near reafon, is, according to him, effentially different from it:-but is not his opinion, which has been very generally adopted, founded on our predilection for a fuppofed diftinction, that flatters our pride, rather than on a careful and accurate examination of facts? In thofe actions, and in that part of its ceconomy, in which a young animal exactly imitates all the individuals of its fpecies, without ever having feen any model, which it can be fuppofed to copy, we readily grant that it is directed by inftinct but when, in confequence of a change of circumftances, it varies, with propriety, from the mode of acting common to its fpecies, we cannot deny that it feems to have fomething fuperior to inftinct, by which it is enabled to combine ideas, and to make conclufions. M. BAILLY mentions fome facts concerning the beaver and elephant, which feem to fhew that thefe animals are endued with fuch a faculty: but an inftance, which he adduces, of the fagacity of a monkey, that belonged to one of his acquaintance, deferves peculiar attention. Some walnuts being placed within the fight, but beyond the reach, of this animal, after feveral fruitless attempts to get at them, he * See Review, vol. xx. page 225. fnatched ར fnatched a napkin from a fervant, who happened to pafs by him, and, with this, fwept them forward till they were within his reach his contrivance alfo to crack them, by letting a ftone fall on them as they lay on the ground, indicated no fmall degree of ingenuity. One day, this contrivance failed of fuccefs; it had rained, and the ground being foft, the walnuts funk into it: but the fagacious monkey foon removed this obftacle, by laying a piece of tile under the nut. Thefe circumftances fhew fuch contrivance, and fuch a juft adaption of the means to the and, as cannot be explained without allowing the animal to poflefs, at least in fome degree, a faculty analogous to that, which fuggefts, even to the moft ignorant of mankind, the invention and' application of mechanical powers, in order to effect that, for which their perfonal ftrength is infufficient. This ingenious author appears very careful to obviate any fufpicion of not making a fufficient diftinction between the brute animals and man; and obferves that the former have memory, imagination, and fome degree of invention, only when immediate circumftances compel them into action; whereas man has these faculties at all times, and can exert them at pleafure, even in the abfence of thofe objects which excite his natural appetites: but is this obfervation accurate and philofophical? If an animal be indued with these faculties. at any given time, we fee no reafon to fuppofe that, exclufively of accidental privation, it may not poflefs them at all times; and, if this be the cafe, the exertion of them must depend on its volition. To fay that it exerts thefe faculties only when folicited by appetite, or terrified by danger, is not eftablishing a diftinction between brute animals and mankind; for these allo require motives of apparent advantage to excite and determine the exertion of their rational powers; and all difference in the nature of the motive muft depend on the various degrees of intellectual capacity and improvement: but why should we be thus anxious to establish fuch a distinction? In allowing that fome animals may be endued, in a certain degree, with the faculties here afcribed to them, we are ftill mindful of the vast difference, in the extent of these faculties, between them and mankind; nor can we fee that any have a right to take offence at the conclufion, excepting fuch as exhauft their inventive powers on the gratification of their appetites, and confine the application of their rational faculties to the attainment of objects not more important than thofe which called forth the latent ingenuity of M. BAILLY's monkey. The remaining articles of this volume have been published before, under the fanction of the Royal Academy of Sciences; 004 ।। and and have already been noticed in our Review. These are, the Report of the Commiffioners charged with the Examination of Animal Magnetifm*; and the Reports of the Committee appointed to examine the Plan of a new Hotel Dieu t• Sow. ART. XI. HENRICI CONSTANTINI CRAS Oratio de dicto Ciceronis, &c. i. e. An Oration on the Affertion of Cicero, that Law is founded, not in mere Opinion, but in Nature. By HENRY CONSTANTINE CRAS, J. U. D. Profeffor of Civil Law; delivered in the Academical School of Amsterdam, on his being appointed Profeffor of the Law of Nature and of Nations. 54 Pages. Amfterdam. 1790. THIS 4:0. HIS is an elegant and judicious difcourfe, which well deferves the attention of those civilians, who, from their extravagant prejudices in favour of the Roman code, are apt to undervalue natural law, and to confider the ftudy of it as of little or no importance in the education of an advocate. Without depreciating the former, the Profeffor proves that all its excellence mult depend on its being built on the latter; which is the foundation of all focial order, and the fource from which the ancient legiflators derived their beft inftitutions. An intimate acquaintance with the law of nature is therefore forcibly recommended to those of every liberal profeffion; and its utility is fhewn by well felected arguments, and by the examples of the most celebrated men. The manner in which the learned Profeffor confiders this fubject, difcovers a very liberal and philofophical fpirit; and his ftyle of compofition difplays his claffical erudition and tafte in a very advantageous light. Do ART. XII. PAULI VAN HEMERT Oratio, &c. i. e. An Oration on the Wisdom of Chrift and his Apottles, in accommodating, as much as poffible, their Difcourfes and Writings to the Notions and Capacity of the Jewish People; delivered in the Church of the Remonftrants in Amfterdam, by the Reverend PAUL VAN HEMERT, on his being chofen Profeffor of Philofophy and Literature in that Society. 8vo. 68 Pages. Amfterdam. 1791. THIS oration deferves great praife, as an elegant specimen of its author's familiarity with the Latin language: but it more particularly demands our attention on account of the fubject; which, though not abfolutely new, is of great importance; and is well worthy the investigation of liberal and * See Review, vol. lxxiii. p. 38. judicious |