hole lines from a brother, without acknowlegement, he, fhould proceed a little farther, and carry off his Spirit too. Why do things by halves?" The charming fwan of Chichester seems to be no ftranger to our author: fat verbum. Art. 38. The Farmer's Son ; a moral Tale. By the Rev. P. P. M.A. 4to. 15. Dilly. 1795. The good intentions of the author, and the moral tendency of this little poem, ought to exempt it from the feverity of criticism; particularly as Mr. P. feems to be more defirous of obtaining the character of a good man, than that of an excellent poet. It is profeffedly and evidently an imitation of Mr. Anftey's Farmer's Daughter, (fee Review for September,) but of far inferior merit. Art. 39. The Summer's Day; with Night and Death: Poems. By a Gentleman of Covent Garden Theatre. 12mo. pp. 63. The Price not mentioned. Lubbock, Rathbone Place. To these poems an invocation is prefixed, the fingularity of which may poffibly amufe the reader : 1795. Come rofy Virtue, in bright Truth's defence; Come Charity with orphan's fhelt'ring wing; Come Temperance bring Religion in thy hand; From these lines we fear that no favourable opinion could be formed of the author's poetical talents; and we are forry to obferve that his blank verfe is more exceptionable than his rhyme. We have been frequently difgufted, in reviewing the compofitions of modern poets, with gigantic images, mixed metaphors, and inflated expreflion,-but we fcarcely recollect in any poem fuch a total deriliction of Truth and Nature, as in the work before us. Of this the reader Agile to lavish on the charming maid, 1 We would advise the author to confider that, although Mr. Addifon obferves that the unintelligible ftyle is frequently fuccefsful in love, it has not yet been recommended by any critic as the proper language of poetry. Art. 40. Elegy on the Death of Mr. Thomas Tuppen, fon of the late 4to. This elegy contains the common reflections on the uncertainty of life, and the mutability of all fublunary things; and a detail of the virtues of the deceased, with his confequent deification, or rather transformation into a guardian angel. Of the verfification, the fol lowing ftanzas may ferve as a specimen : • Lamented Tuppen, though the Mufe may weep, Still thou unconscious in the grave must sleep- • Chafte Liberty, "fair daughter of the skies," And where's a nobler character on earth?' The The fucceeding poem is on the folly and madnefs of war, ingenious author of Jofeph Andrews ridicules Colley Cibber for his ignorance, or affected fimplicity, in fuppofing that there was no fuch paffion as envy in the human breast: we are almost inclined to fufpect • It may seem a trivial objection, but furely the introduction of such a name as this, in elegiac verfe, has an unfortunate effect. that 1 that our humane and well-intentioned bard forgot that ever an inordinate ambition, and an infatiable thirst of dominion, prevailed in the hearts of kings, when he wrote the following ftanzas: Ah! why do cannons, o'er the frighted main, Ah! why do emperors and potent kings, The Farewel to the year 1794 contains an enumeration of the miferies of war, and of the tragical events of the year, written nearly in the fame languid ftrain. The epitaph to the memory of an amiable and accomplished female is chiefly remarkable for the following line And weep-till thou canst weep no more,' on which we prefume not to make any comment. Art. 41. Sonnets and other Poems. By Samuel Egerton Brydges, Efq. A new Edition. 12mo. pp. 113. 3s. 6d. Boards. Whites. 1795. The obfervations which we made on this author's poetical talents, in reviewing the first edition of this work, (vol. lxxiii. p. 391,) are confirmed by a perufal of it in its enlarged ftate, viz. that he poffeffes a confiderable share of fancy and fome powers of verfification; though his manner is often stiff, and not quite free from affectation. The following fonnet, fuppofed to be written by Woodville at his caftle of Grafton, (fee a novel entitled Mary de Clifford,) may be confidered as one of the beft in the collection: • Ye mould'ring towers, these waters deep furround, Your dreary courts; nor yet with tuneful found To melt the fair, who on their fuit have frown'd: No more fhall beauty with her winning eyes Silence shall reign along your chearless walls, We do not think that the author is particularly fortunate in his tranflations of the three odes from Horace, nor in his verfification of the fongs of the fix bards from Offian. *Alluding to Edward IV.'s courtship of Elizabeth Woodville at that place. Ii 4 Art. Art. 42. A Collection of Hymns and Pfalms, for public and private Worship. Selected and prepared by Dr. Kippis, Dr. Rees, Rev., T. Jervis, and Rev. T. Morgan. 12mo. PP. 512. 3s. Boards. Robinsons, &c. 1795. Where a publication of this kind is the joint production of four perfons, it cannot be expected to be fo uniform as if it proceeded folely from the judgment of one: but any deficiency of uniformity is amply made up by the copiousness of this felection, which contains nearly feven hundred pieces. It cannot be expected that we should enter on a minute critical examination of all, nor indeed of any, of these numerous compofitions. In looking them through, we have feen much to praise and little to which we can object; an ingenious correfpondent, however, has pointed out to us an inftance, in which the zeal of the compilers has overcome their judgment, in an alteration of a pfalm by Dr. Watts (the 415th of the prefent felection). The original is a verfion of part of the xith chapter of Matthew, in which the poet, after having given us the complete fenfe of the paffage in the first three ftanzas, concludes with the apoftrophe, "Jefus, we come at thy command," &c. Instead of this, however, the prefent compilers have fubftituted "Great God! we come;" &c. thus by the change of perfon entirely altering the fentiment of the hymn, and along with it the propriety of the application; meeknefs and lowlinefs of mind being human virtues, and not divine attributes. This useful felection is enriched by a number of original compofitions, one of which, the 686th, we shall quote: "While founds of war are heard around, Thou, who haft ftamp'd on human kind O fee, with what infatiate rage! Great GOD! whofe pow'rful hand can bind O bid the human tempeft cease, And hufh the madd'ning world to peace. With rev'rence may each hoftile land My creatures, live in mutual love!"? MECHANICS, &c. Art. 43. Obfervations on the Ventilation of Rooms; on the Conftruction of Chimneys; and on Garden Stoves; principally collected from the Papers left by the late John Whitehurst, F. R. S. 4to. PP. 52. 3s. 6d. fewed. Bent. 1794. For the communication of this pofthumous piece of a valuable and ingenious member of fociety, the public ftands indebted to Dr. Willan, Mr. Whitehurst had finished a work on the fubject, but it was deftroyed, and never replaced. The editor was therefore at pains to prepare the prefent publication from loofe memorandums and hints dropped in converfation. It was due from us to the utility of these remarks to have noticed them earlier: but it is in the character of the times for political altercation to fhove afide useful science. The tract itself is fimple, elementary, and circumftantial. It has few pages in which references are not made to an accompanying fet of figures. As defcription without this aid is apt to be obfcure, we fhall forbear extracting or abridging any part :- but we think that both artificers and perfons, troubled with that proverbial plague of life, a fmcaky chimney, will thank us for recommending the pamphlet itself to their notice. The editor befpeaks indulgence: but we feel it our duty to commend him for extricating and arranging the ideas of our late worthy and very ingenious acquaintance*. MEDICAL, &c. Art. 44. Directions for warm and cold Sea-bathing; with Obfervations on their Application and Effects in different Difeafes. By Thomas Reid, M. D. F. A. S. 8vo. pp. 75. 35. fewed. Cadell, jun. and Davies. 1795. Few literary publications are more contemptible than the common run of watering-place medical pamphlets. In general, they confist of a heap of crude conjectures, unfupported by a fingle well-afcertained fact; and most of them appear to be written with fordid views. If nothing fubftantial can be adduced in favour of the water, fpecious infinuations are employed to work on the credulity of the uninformed visitants, Some of this clafs are mere quack bills to advertise the authors and the place. From thefe cenfures we are inclined to except only a very few, in which a refpectable talent for chemical refearch has appeared: but among thefe few we readily place the prefent pamphlet. Were we to difcufs it fentence by fentence, we fhould raife objections to fome of Dr. Reid's opinions and practices-particularly to his fafting vomits in chlorofis: but, confining ourselves to his immediate fubject, and to a general opinion, we may obferve, with great truth,, that he excites no falfe expectations from fea-bathing, and that his directions are in moft cafes proper, and in none likely to be productive of hazard to the patient. As an example of objectionable reafonings, we adduce the following: This degree of warmth'-90-100- probably acts on the fyitem as a fedative, but not fo as to debilitate. It has appeared to me * Mr.W. was bred a clock-maker; and no perfon was better acquainted with the principles of mechanics. principally |