f Art. 55. Painting perfonified; or, the Caricature and Sentimental It is the remark of a noble writer, that a man cannot be called As Mr. B. was looking into a print-fhop, the words, "It faid, or feem'd to fay," fuddenly occurred to his mind:' and fo ("mutis quoque pifcibus donaturus fonum," he fat down to put words into the mouth of each of the perfonages, who were represented in the pictures before him. Not contented, however, with this, he has given us a circumftantial account of their birth, parentage, and education, and has even attended fome of his heroes in their laft dying moments.-Then too, he has enlivened his pages with poetical rhapsodies: Whilft Caffius talks of marches, fieges, fights, The tedious tale the drowsy yawn excites; Yet ftill he prates of battles, blood and wounds, Art. 56. A Concife Defcription of the Royal Hofpital for Seamen at scholars, not only to speak, but also to write and tranflate it accurately.Hi. Art. 57. A Treatise on the Cotton Trade: in Twelve Letters. ham. Experience is we believe juftified in declaring- Perhaps there is not a trade more precarious and uncertain than that of dealing in cotton, being extenfive, fluctuating, and fpeculative; nor is there an article in which fo much property has been gained and loft (not even hops excepted,) in the fame period of time. All this uncer L tainty, tainty, part of which arifes from fashion, the most whimically precarious dependence in nature, renders this trade very unfit for a permanent national object. This commodity, by which fortunes have been raised and loft fo frequently, generates confederacies, in which a few monied men fcheme to establish a monopoly against fmaller dealers, to the material injury of the public. These again are counteracted by others who have found a way of getting cotten from the East Indies, much cheaper than we can raise it in our West India iflands, or procure it from the Levant, or from South Ame rica; and to prohibit this importation, or to load it with duties in order to raise the price of the Eastern cotton, is the principal object of thefe letters. How far this can be done, or ought to be, we will not inquire. In fuch fruggles of competition, things will perhaps fettle of themfelves for the public advantage, better than by legal interference. N. Art. 58. The whole Duty of Woman; or, a complete System of Female Morality. By a Lady. Written at the Defire of a Noble Lord. 12mo. 2s. 6d. Ridgeway. 1790. Not a new work. It was first published in 1753: fee Rev, vol. viii. p. 143. We imagine that the collection of poems entertaining, moral, and divine,' are now added. They are pretty; and had before, as we apprehend, made their appearance, in various modes of publication. Art. 59. Mifcellaneous Pieces in Verfe and Profe. By Robert Bacon. 8vo. pp. 120. Dilly. 1790. What Pope faid of women, may be well applied to modern poetry for it may be faid to "have no character at all." Such is the cafe with regard to the prefent mifcellanies, which deferve no praise, and provoke no cenfure :-though, perhaps, it will be thought that this very fentence is itfelf fufficiently fevere. Art. 60. Infructions for cutting out Apparel for the Poor; princi pally intended for the Affittance of the Patronefies of Sunday Schools, and other charitable Inftitutions, but ufeful in all Families containing Patterns, Directions, and Calculations, whereby the most inexperienced may buy the Materials, and value each Article of Clothing, without the leaft Difficulty, and with the greatest Exactnefs: with a Preface, containing a Plan for affifting the Parents of poor Children belonging to Sunday Schools to cloath them. Publifhed for the Benefit of the Sunday School Children at Hertingfordbury, in the County of Hertford; where the above Plan has been found to be the beft Encouragement to Parents to fend their Children to the Sunday School, and the best fource of Employment for the Schools of Industry. 8vo. pp. 87. 4s. 6d. Beards. Walter, Charing Crofs. 1789. Among the endless variety of fubjects that come under our view, we had lately an elaborate treatife on the art and mystery of cutting out coats, waistcoats, and breeches by tables adapted to every fize 3 and by the extenfion of literature, our attention is now called to patterns of childbed linen, aprons, caps, and gowns! Being thas arrived at a most provoking ne plus ultra, our only expedient feemed to be to fummon a jury of cur ipoufes, by the temptation of a tea party, 1 party, on this fpecial bufinefs :-but the circumftance which fuggefted this measure, appeared, on a little reflection, to furnish an infuperable obftruction to it. In a note at the bottom of the first page, we are informed, that although this work is intended more im. mediately for this purpose, [the ufe of the poor] yet it is apprehended the directions for cutting out many of the articles, efpecially fhirts and shifts, may be equally ufeful in all families, and particularly where there are a number of children requiring a variety of fizes.' Now we are obliged to confefs that we never found our loving helpmates difpofed to receive directions in any matters within the female province; the very offer of advice being confidered as an infult to their underftandings: "Am I to be taugh thefe things now?" and, "Surely, I know what is proper;" are the beft returns to be expected on fuch interference. This being the cafe, how could we, with any hope of doing juftice to this writer, fubject him or her, we know not which, to the verdict of a female tribunal? In fuch a dilemma, we have only further to obferve, for the information of the worthy patrons and patroneffes of Sunday fchools, &c. that the inftructions for cutting out the feveral parts of the female drefs, including fhirts, &c. for men and boys, are illuftrated by patterns of every article, engraved on thirteen copperplates; and that, notwithstanding our acknowleged incompetency to judge of the full merit of a book of this kind, we have no doubt that it may be found useful. N. Art. 61. Travels in various Parts of Europe, Afia, and Africa, during a Series of thirty Years and upwards, by John Macdonald, a Cadet of the Family of Keppoch, in Inverness-fhire; who, after the Ruin of his Family in 1745, was thrown, when a Child, on the wide World; the Ways of which, with many curious, ufeful, and interefting Particulars he had occafion to obferve, and has taken care, by Means of a regular Journal, to record, while he ferved in various Departments a great Number of Noblemen and Gentlemen, English, Scotch, Irish, Dutch, &c. 8vo. pp. 404. 6s. Boards. Forbes. 1790. John Macdonald, the fon of a Scotch drover, but, nevertheless, the grandfon of a gentleman, was turned adrift in his fifth year, his father having joined Prince Charles, and being killed at the battle of Culloden. After leading a vagabond life for fome time in the streets of Edin burgh, he at length got into fervice; and having, as may be fuppofed, looked into the novels which he might have fetched for his matters and miftreffes from circulating libraries, he imbibed ideas of gallantry, and conceived that his own memoirs might alfo be worth reading. We believe them to be faithfully related, for no one, capable of inventing, would have affumed fo artless and homely a style in the narration. We have, accordingly, an account of the different perfons by whom he was hired, and of his intrigues with fervant-girls, which often drove him to feek new Stuations. Indeed, John hints at his having caufed uneafinefles in fome families, and of feparations that enfued on his account, which, if he had acquired any prudence when he took up his pen, he would never have mentioned: but his vanity appears to have overpowered his difcretion. The last frolic that he records, is that of feducing a Spanish girl at Toledo, Toledo, whom he recompences by marriage; and he clofes his travels in the capacity of fervant at the Hotel de Naples in that city, kept by one of his wife's relations; where we hope his experience and years will fix him, fteadily, to his wife and family.-Thofe who can relish a recital of the humble adventures of a domeftic fervant, may derive entertainment from this publication. N. Art. 62. Suicide. A Differtation. 4to. pp. 29. 1s. 6d. Hayes. 1790. To fome late advertisements of this differtation, the author has annexed his name; Edmund Burton, Efquire, M. A. fometime Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. It is long fince this gentleman appeared before the public in the character of a writer. He published a tranflation of Perfius, with copious notes, in 1752*; a work intitled, "Ancient Characters deduced from Claffical Remains," in 1764†; and an edition of Manilius, in 1783 ‡. Our opinion of his literary merit continues nearly as it was. He certainly dif covers much reading and claffical knowlege, mixed with a good deal of quaintnefs, affectation, want of method, and obfcurity. He has here given us most of the common arguments against fuicide; and we devoutly with, that what he has advanced, may contribute to the extirpation of a black and shocking crime; which, we are perfuaded, muft greatly aggravate, instead of alleviating, the fufferings of thofe unhappy objects who commit it. Pe...e. Art. 63. Hampshire, extracted from Domefday-book: with an accurate English Translation; a Preface; and an Introduction, containing an Account of this curious Record, a View of the AngloSaxon Hiftory, and Form of Government, from the Reign of Alfred: together with a flight Sketch of the most material Alterations which the latter underwent at the Period of the Conqueft. To which is added, a Gloffary, explanatory of the obfcure and obfolete Words. By Richard Warner, Junior, of Sway, in the County of Southampton, and of St. Mary Hall, Oxford. 4to. PP. 327. 11. Boards. Faulder, &c. 1789. Such a detached republication as the prefent, affords very little opportunity for remark; for if the extract be correaly copied from the original, and if it be accompanied with fuch explanatory affiftances as may render it easily intelligible to the English reader, the editor has fulfilled his intentions. Taking the correctnefs for granted, as we must do, all the reft appears to be properly fupplied. In the preface, is given, what may be confidered as an entertaining historical defcription, or review, of Domefday-book, the nature of its contents, with the various opinions as to the motives of its compilation; and, in the introduction, we have fuch a brief sketch of our Saxon hiftory, as appeared neceffary to lead the reader hiftorically to this grand furvey. Had the preface to this introduction, followed here as a conclufion of it, we cannot but think the order would have been more natural, and the unnecessary diftin&tion between them have been avoided :-but this is a matter of no great moment. *See Rev. vol. vi. p. 235. + Rev. vol. xxx. p. 101. vol. lxxi. p. 456. Rev. In our Review for July laft, p. 327, the reader will find an account of a fimilar extract of Wiltshire, from Domefday-book, by Mr. Wyndham; and the publication of feparate counties in this manner, in which uniformity of fize ought to be confulted, is well calculated for local purpofes, with refpect to thofe who, having no occafion for the reft, would never think of procuring fo expensive a work at large. We learn that the Rev. Mr. Le Brocq is engaged with Mr. Warner, and other learned gentlemen, in the laudable defign of publishing the whole of Domefday-book, on the fame plan, or nearly the fame, with Hampshire: a defign which, we truft, the difcerning public will not be backward to encourage, with a liberality proportioned to the merit of the work. N. Art. 64. The Select Spectator: or, a Selection of Moral and Religious Papers from the Spectator, alphabetically arranged according to their Subjects; with a copious Table of Contents prefixed. 12mo. 2 Vols. 240 Pages in each. 6s. Boards. Rivingtons. 1789 No work is better known than the Spectator; and as the nature of this compilation is fufficiently expreffed in the title, it may fuffice to add, that the volumes are neatly printed, and may therefore be a good mifcellany to put into the hands of youth, to give a proper direction to their fentiments, and to form their taste in their native language. N. Art. 65. The Turtle Dove. A Tale, from the French of M. de Florian. 8vo. pp. 25• 15. Printed at Caen in Normandy; and fold in London by Payne. Turtle doves have long been celebrated for their fidelity; and this turtle dove, though he flirts, en paffant, with a sky-lark, a jay, and a quail, does not materially difcredit the famed conftancy of his fpecies, thefe birds being all coquettes: but when he meets (as he fortunately does) with an amiable dove-mate, he is as faithful as any turtle, of any grove. The author had probably fome meaning, and intended to illuftrate fome moral, in this poem: but our dulnefs is at a lofs to discover either. The fecret, therefore, muft remain in his own bofom. As for the tranflator, his humility deferves encouragement: he fhould be truly flattered, (he fays,) were it permitted him to believe that his copy difplayed any of the artless graces of the original.' It is with pleasure that we affure this bumble copyift, that we think full as well of his tranflation as we do of the original. MrMoo-y. Em Art. 66. An Excurfion to Brighthelmftone, made in the Year 1789. By Henry Wigftead and Thomas Rowlandfon. Dedicated, by Permiffion, to his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. bellished with eight Engravings in Aqua Tinta, from Views taken. on the Road to and at that Place. Folio. 11. 1s. Boards. Robinsons. The merit of this fhewy performance confifts in the beauty of the impreffion. On the plates we have little praife to beftow, and lefs REV. JAN. 1791. I on |
