charms authorized. So that ever since witchcraft hath been very freely tolerated; of which the Chief of the town, and even those who are esteem'd to be of greatest sanctity among them, such as are the Marabou's, a religious order of their sect, do for the most part make profession of it, under a goodly pretext of certain revelations which they say they have had from their prophet Mahomet. And hereupon those of Algier, to palliate the shame and the reproaches that are thrown upon them for making use of a witch in the danger of this siege, do say that the loss of the forces of Charles V, was caused by a prayer of one of their Marabou's, named Cidy Utica, which was at that time in great credit, not under the notion of a magitian, but for a person of a holy life. Afterwards in remembrance of their success, they have erected unto him a small mosque without the Babason gate, where he is buried, and in which they keep sundry lamps burning in honour of him: nay they sometimes repair thither to make their sala, for a testimony of greater vene ration. Can it be doubted for a moment, that the dramatist had come fresh from reading some older narrative of this deliverance of Algier by a witch, and transferred the merit of the deed to his Sycorax, exchanging only the "rich remuneration," which did not suit his purpose, to the simple pardon of her life? Ogilby wrote in 1670; but the authorities to which he refers for his Account of Barbary are -Johannes de Leo, or Africanus Louis Marmol-Diego de HaedoJohannes Gramaye - Bræves-Cel. Curio and Diego de Torres-names totally unknown to me-and to which I beg leave to refer the curious rea der for his fuller satisfaction. L. perour, it could not in appearance escape taking. In fine, it was attaqued with such order, that the army came up to the very gates, where the Chevalier de Sauignac, a Frenchman by nation, made himself remarkable above all the rest, by the miracles of his valour. For having repulsed the Turks, who having made a sally at the gate call'd Babason, and there desiring to enter along with them, when he saw that they shut the gate upon him, he ran his ponyard into the same, and left it sticking deep therein. They next fell to battering the city by the force of cannon; which the assailants so weakened, that in that great extremity the defendants lost their courage, and resolved to surrender. But as they were thus intending, there was a witch of the town, whom the history doth not name, which went to seek out Assam Aga, that commanded within, and pray'd him to make it good yet nine days longer, with assurance, that within that time he should infallibly see Algier delivered from that siege, and the whole army of the enemy dispersed, so that Christians should be as cheap as Birds. In a word, the thing did happen in the manner as foretold; for upon the twenty-first day of October in the same year, there fell a continual rain upon the land, and so furious a storm at sea, that one might have seen ships hoisted into the clouds, and in one instant again precipitated into the bottom of the water insomuch that that same dreadful tempest was followed with the loss of fifteen gallies, and above an hundred other vessels; which was the cause why the Emperour, seeing his army wasted by the bad weather, pursued by a famine, occasioned by wrack of his ships, in which was the greatest part of his victuals and ammunition, he was constrain'd to raise the siege, and set sail for Sicily, whither he retreated with the miserable reliques of his fleet. In the mean time that witch being acknowledged the deliverer of Algier, was richly remunerated, and the credit of her NOTES FROM THE POCKET-BOOK OF A LATE OTIUM-EATER. No. III. ENGLISH DICTIONARIES. IT has already, I believe, been said more than once in print that one condition of a good dictionary would be to exhibit the history of each word; that is, to record the exact succession of its meanings. But the philosophic reason for this has not been given; which reason, Nov. 1823. by the way, settles a question often agitated, viz. whether the true meaning of a word be best ascertained from its etymology, or from its present use and acceptation. Mr. Coleridge says, "the best explanation of a word is often that which is suggested by its derivation" (I give the 2 K substance of his words from memory). the word ought to be abandoned to Others allege that we have nothing women: doubtless, when sitting in to do with the primitive meaning of a bower in the month of May, it is the word; that the question is- pleasant to hear from a lovely mouth what does it mean now ? and they — I put implicit confidence in your appeal, as the sole authority they ac- honour:” but, though pretty and beknowledge, to the received coming to such a mouth, it is very Usus, penes quem est jus et norma loquendi. and I will be bold to affirm that no unfitting to the mouth of scholar : In what degree each party is right, man, who bad ever acquired a schomay be judged from this considera- lar's knowledge of the English lantion—that no word can ever deviate guage, has used the word in that from its first meaning per saltum : lax and unmeaning way. The hiseach successive stage of meaning tory of the word is this.-Implicit must always have been determined (from the Latin implicitus, involved by that which preceded. And on in, folded up) was always used orithis one law depends the whole phi- ginally, and still is so by scholars, losophy of the case: for it thus ap- as the direct antithete of explicit pears that the original and primitive (from the Latin explicitus, evolved, sense of the word will contain virtu- unfolded): and the use of both may ally all which can ever afterwards be thus illustrated. arise: as in the evolution-theory of Q. “ Did Mr. A. ever say that he generation, the whole series of births would marry Miss B.?"-A.“No; is represented as involved in the first not explicitly (i. e. in so many parent. Now, if the evolution of words), but he did implicitly-by successive meanings has gone on showing great displeasure if she rerightly, i. e. by simply lapsing ceived attentions from any other through a series of close affinities, man; by asking her repeatedly to there can be no reason for recurring select furniture for his house; by to the primitive meaning of the word: consulting her on his own plans of but, if it can be shown that the evo- life.” lution has been faulty, i.e. that the Q: “ Did Epicurus maintain any chain of true affinities has ever been doctrines such as are here ascribed broken through ignorance, then we to him?"-A. “ Perhaps not es. have a right to reform the word, and plicitly, either in words or by any to appeal from the usage ill-instruct- other mode of direct sanction: on ed to a usage better-instructed. the contrary, I believe he denied them Whether we ought to exercise this and disclaimed them with veheright, will depend on a consideration mence: but he maintained them imwhich I will afterwards notice. plicitly: for they are involved in Meantime I will first give a few other acknowledged doctrines of his, instances of faulty evolution. and may be deduced from them by 1. Implicit. This word is now used the fairest and most irresistible loin a most ignorant way; and from gic.” its misuse it has come to be a word Why did you complain of wholly useless : for it is now never the man? the man? Had he expressed any coupled, I think, with any other contempt for your opinion?"-Å. substantive than these two-faith “ Yes, he had: not explicit conand confidence: a poor domain in- tempt, I admit ; for he never opened deed to have sunk to from its origi- his stupid mouth ; but implicitly gal wide range of territory. More- he expressed the utmost that he over, when we say, implicit faith, or could: for, when I had spoken two implicit confidence, we do not thereby hours against the old newspaper, and indicate any specific kind of faith and in favor of the new one, he went inconfidence differing from other faith stantly and put his name down as a or other confidence : but it is a vague subscriber to the old one." rhetorical word which expresses a Q. “ Did Mr. great degree of faith and confidence; that gentleman's conduct and way a faith that is unquestioning, a con- of life?"-A. “ I don't know that fidence that is unlimited ; i. e. in fact, I ever heard him speak about it: a faith that is a faith, a confidence but he seemed to give it his implicit that is a confidence. Such a use of approbation by allowing both his approve of sons to associate with him when the complaints ran highest against him." These instances may serve to illus trate the original use of the word: which use has been retained from the sixteenth century down to our own days by an uninterrupted chain of writers. In the eighteenth century this use was indeed nearly effaced: but still in the first half of that century it was retained by Saunderson the Cambridge professor of mathematics (see his Algebra, &c.), with three or four others, and in the latter half by a man to whom Saunderson had some resemblance in spring and elasticity of understanding, viz. by Edmund Burke. Since his day I know of no writers who have avoided the slang and unmeaning use of the word, excepting Messrs. Coleridge and Wordsworth; both of whom (but especially the last) have been remarkably attentive to the scholarlike use of words, and to the history of their own language. Thus much for the primitive use of the word implicit. Now, with regard to the history of its transition into its present use, it is briefly this; and it will appear at once, that it has arisen through ignorance.-When it was objected to a papist that his church exacted an assent to a great body of traditions and doctrines to which it was impossible that the great majority could be qualified, either as respected time-or knowledge or culture of the understand ing, to give any reasonable assent, the answer was: "Yes; but that sort of assent is not required of a poor uneducated man; all that he has to do is to believe in the church: he is to have faith in her faith: by that act he adopts for his own whatsoever the church believes, though he may never have heard of it even: his faith is implicit, i. e. involved and wrapped up in the faith of the church, which faith he firmly believes to be the true faith upon the conviction he has that the church is preserved from all possibility of erring by the spirit of God." Now, as this sort of believing by proxy or implicit belief (in which the be lief was not immediate in the thing proposed to the belief but in the authority of another person who believed in that thing and thus mediately in the thing itself) was constantly attacked by the learned assailants of popery,-it naturally happened that many unlearned readers of these protestant polemics caught at a phrase which was so much bandied between the two parties: the spirit of the context suffici ently explained to them that it was used by protestants as a term of reproach and indicated a faith that was an erroneous faith by being too easy too submissive and too passive: but the particular mode of this erroneousness they seldom came to understand, as learned writers naturally employed the term without explanation, presuming it to be known to those whom they addressed. Hence these ignorant readers caught at the last result of the phrase "implicit faith" rightly, truly supposing it to imply a resigned and unquestioning faith; but they missed the whole intermediate cause of meaning by which only the word "implicit could ever have been entitled to express that result. I have allowed myself to say so much on this word "implicit," be cause the history of the mode by which its true meaning was lost applies almost to all other corrupted Among the most shocking of the unscholarlike barbarisms, now prevalent, I must notice the use of the word 'nice' in an objective instead of a subjective sense: 'nice' does not and cannot express a quality of the object, but merely a quality of the subject: yet we hear daily of "a very nice letter "-" a nice young lady," &c. meaning a letter or a young lady that it is pleasant to contemplate: but "a nice young lady "-means a fastidious young lady; and "a nice letter" ought to mean a letter that is very delicate in its rating and in the choice of its company. Thus Milton, who (in common with his contemporaries) always uses the word accurately, speaks of Ezechiel "swallowing his implicit roll of knowledge "-i. e. coming to the knowledge of many truths not separately and in detail, but by the act of arriving át some one master truth which involved all the rest. So again, if any man or government were to suppress a book, that man or government might justly be reproached as the implicit destroyer of all the wisdom and virtue that might have been the remote products of that book. words-mutatis mutandis : and the plied to space as to time; “ I cannot amount of it may be collected into punctually determine the origin of the this formula,—that the result of the Danube ; but I know in general the word is apprehended and retained, district in which it rises, and that but the schematismus by which that its fountain is near that of the Rhine.” result was ever reached is lost. This Not only however was it applied to is the brief theory of all corruption time and space, but it had a large of words. The word schematismus I and very elegant figurative use. have unwillingly used, because no Thus in the History of the Royal Soother expresses my meaning. Society by Sprat (an author who was great and extensive a doctrine how- finical and nice in his use of words) ever lurks in this word, that I defer -I remember a sentence to this efthe explanation of it to a separate fect: “ the Society gave punctual diarticle. Meantime a passable sense rections for the conducting of experiof the word will occur to every body ments;" i.e. directions which dewho reads Greek.-I now go on to a scended to the minutiæ and lowest few more instances of words that details. Again in the once popular have forfeited their original meaning romance of Parismus Prince of Bothrough the ignorance of those who hemia—“She "(I forget who)“ made used them. a punctual relation of the whole mat“ Punctual.” This word is now ter;" i. e. a relation which was perconfined to the meagre denoting of fectly circumstantial and true to the accuracy in respect to time--fidelity minutest features of the case. to the precise moment of an appoint- But, that I may not weary my ment. But originally it was just as reader, I shall here break off; and often, and just as reasonably, ap- shortly return to this subject. REFORMADOES. AMONGST the numerous instances not understand the meaning of that of ignorance in Mrs. Macauley, (or term! Dr. Johnson hated her of Macauley Graham as I believe she course as a republican; and, as we was latterly,) scattered up and down all know from Boswell, contrived an her history—is this:-(and by igno- occasion for insulting her. He might rance, I mean ignorance of what be. have confounded her still more by longed to the subject she had under- asking her, as she professed to have taken to treat, and ignorance which read Ăndrew Marvell, in what sense it was impossible she could have she explained that passage in one of displayed if she had read the quarter the many admirable speeches and of what she professed to have read, songs which he has put into the or the tenth part of what she ought mouth of Charles II., where his Mato have read.)—Quoting some pas- jesty tells the House of Commons sage about the numerous officers who that they must provide him sufficient had accumulated in London from the funds, not only for such ladies as he broken regiments and under the self- had upon present “duty,” but also denying ordinance, who are all for the whole staff of his “refore classed under the head of Refore mado concubines." madoes, she declares that she does PROVERBS. As the “ wisdom of nations," and with an opposite pole ; and the two the quintessential abstract of innu- proverbs jointly compose a spheremerable minds, proverbs must na- i.e. the entire truth. Thus one proturally be true: but how? In verb says-“ Fortune favours fools:' what sense true? Not árlws, not but this is met by its anti-proverbabsolutely and unconditionally, but “Sapiens dominabitur astris.”—Each in relation to that position from is true, as long as the other co-exists: which they are taken. Most pro- each becomes false, if taken exverbs are hemispheres as it were; clusively. 1 they imply another hemisphere The illustration, by the way, is not the best I might have chosenwith a little more time for consideration: but the principle here advanced of truths being in many cases no truths unless taken with their complements (to use a trigo nometrical term),-and until they are rounded into a perfect figure by an opposite hemisphere, this principle, I shall endeavour to show a little further on, is a most important one and of very large application. ANTAGONISM. In this article I mean to apply the principle of antagonism, as it is manifested in the fine arts, to the solution of a particular difficulty in Milton; and in that way to draw the attention of the reader to a great cardinal law on which philosophical criticism, whenever it arises, must hereafter mainly depend.-J presume that my reader is acquainted with the meaning of the word antagonism as it is understood in the term "antagonist muscle," or in general from the term " antagonist force." It has been objected to Milton that he is guilty of pedantry in the introduction of scientific and technical terms into the Paradise Lost; and the words frieze, architrave, pilaster, and other architectural terms, to gether with terms from astronomy, navigation, &c. have been cited as instances of this pedantry. This criticism I pronounce to be founded on utter psychological ignorance and narrow thinking. And I shall endeavour to justify Milton by placing in a clear light the subtle principle by which he was influenced in that practice: which principle I do not mean to say that Milton had fully developed to his own consciousness; for it was not the habit of his age or of his mind to exercise any analytic subtlety of mind; but I say that the principle was immanent in his feelings; just as his fine ear contained implicitly all the metrical rules which are latent in his exquisite versification, though it is most improbable that he ever took the trouble to evolve those to his own distinct consciousness. TO THE LAKERS. THOSE who visit the lakes, not those who reside amongst them (according to a recent use of the word) are called by the country people of that district, lakers; in which word there is a pleasant ambiguity and a lurking satire. For the word lake (from the old Gothic, laikan, ludere) is universally applied to children playing: and the simple people, who till the soil of Westmoreland and Cumberland, cannot view in any other light than that of childish laking, the migrating propensities of all the great people of the south, who annually come up like shoals of herrings from their own fertile pastures to the rocky grounds of the north. All the wits and beaux esprits of London, senators, captains, lawyers, "lords, ladies, councillors, their choice nobility," flock up from Midsummer to Michaelmas, and rush violently through the lake district, as if their chief purpose in coming were to rush back again like the shifting of a monsoon. They commit many other absurdities, which have furnished me with matter for a pleasant paper upon them; "pleasant," as in the farce of Taste Foote says, "pleasant, but wrong;" for it is too satirical: and I doubt whether I shall publish it. Meantime, that the poor people may not be driven to distraction by being ridiculed for errors which they know not how to amend, Mr. Coleridge, Mr. Wordsworth, Professor W and myself, with some ten or twelve others, have had a meeting, at which we have agreed to club our several quotas of wit and learning, for the production of a new Guide to the Lakes: considering what sort of cattle our competitors are, it can be no honour to us I presume, that our work will put an extinguisher on all which have preceded it: it will not be so proper to call it a Guide to the Lakes, as the Guide; not the latest and best of guides (as if there were any other |