from the ground. In the fouth tower is a peal of twelve bells, the tenor of which weighs fifty nine hundred weight.

The caftle was built by William the Conqueror, and was formerly a place of great ftrength, but is now applied to a better use, being made into a prifon, where both debtors and felons are detained in a manner much more fuitable to the dictates of religion and common humanity, than in any other part of the kingdom. The caftle-yard is a large area very pleasant and airy, which, with the cleanlinefs obferved in the apart ments, keep the prifoners free from the stench and sickness with which other gaols are commonly attended..

In and near this city have been difcovered many antique curiofities, and among the reft thefe following: 1. An earthen veffel, or urn, was found without Bowtham-bar, which feems to have been made of Halifax clay. On the fide is formed a woman's face near as large as the life. About the hair, eyebrows, and neck, are fome ftrokes of a pencil in red paint very fresh. It is preferved in the Afhmolean collection at Oxford. 2. A vault of Roman bricks, like fuch as the urns were ufually depofited in. The bricks which compofed the pavement were equilateral fquares of eight inches in length and breadth, and about two inches in thickness; but it was arched with brick near two feet fquare, and proportionably thick. It was of fuf, ficient capacity to hold two bodies, though neither bones nor ashes were found in it, only the bottom of a Roman coffin was discovered near it, confifting of feveral pieces. It was made of a reddish clay, though fomething coarser than the urns generally are. 3. A Roman shuttle three inches and a half in breadth. The woof which it carried, muft have been very fine, for the hollow into which it was received, is but a quarter of an inch where wideft: perhaps it was employed in weaving the abeftinum, or in combuftible linen, in which the dead bodies were wrapped before they were burned, in order to preferve the bones and afhes. 4. Two urns of blueish grey, and two veffels of red clay. The urns contained burnt bones in them: of the two veffels the larger is turned in the infide like the nut of a fcrew; it is about a foot in length and four inches in breadth; the bore is wider at one end than at the other. The smaller veffel is a kind of lacrymatory, into which the friends of the deceafed were accustomed to fhed their tears. These were all found, as has been faid, without Bowtham-bar, where the Romans buried their dead. The fouth wall of the mint yard, which, with a multangular tower, is thought to have been built in the time of the emperor Severus, or, at lateft, in that of Conftantine the Great. The wall confifts of twenty courses of fmall fquare ftones four inches thick, and over them of five courfes of Roman bricks.' Annexed

Annexed to the Geographical part of this work, is a Concife Hiftory of England; or, the Revolutions of the British Conftitution, which is written with fuch perfpicuity and freedom, that we wish the author had continued it from the death of king William (where it ends) to the prefent times.-To conclude, we are of opinion that a common reader may, from the perufal of this book, render himself a tolerable judge of the civil and natural history of his own country and its conftitution.

VII. A Collection of authentic, useful, and entertaining Voyages and Difcoveries, digefted in a chronological Series. By John Barrow, Efq; (Author of the Geographical Dictionary). In 3 Vols. 12mo. Pr. gs. Knox.

dered as the food of the mind; and if fo, we furely fhould chufe that which is at once the most pleasant and nutitive. It is therefore no wonder that books of voyages and travels have been fo long held in general esteem, and obtained the approbation of perfons of the greateft fagacity, and in the firft clafs of reputation for fuperior underkanding. The pleafing follicitude that engages the attention, during the perufal of narratives of this kind, has often fixed the minds of perfons, who had before no relish for learning, and brought them by degrees to enter upon closer studies, in order to gratify that curiofity which this kind of reading naturally excites; nor have men of the greatest abilities thought it beneath their characters to make this fubject the object of their studies; because they were perfuaded that it must be attended with real utility to their country. It was this that induced the ingenious Mr. Hakluyt to make that noble collection, which procured him the patronage of the most able minifter in the conrt of Elizabeth: this led Thevenot the elder, and, long fince his time, the abbé Provoft, to enrich the French language with very copious collections of this kind; and, in a word, it was this that made voyages and travels the favourite ftudy of the judicious Locke, who confidered it as the best method of acquiring those useful and practical lights that at once effectually ftrengthen and enlarge the human understanding.

It is, indeed, an undoubted truth, that many narratives of voyages and travels have appeared, which, after being applauded and admired for a time, have funk into oblivion; becaufe they tended rather to mislead than to instruct the hunan mind, by difplaying a series of fpecious falfhoods highly acceptable to thofe who read merely for amusement.

Hence we see the neceffity for knowing the characters of those who write narratives of this kind, before we can read their relations with fatisfa&ion. But as this is not in the power of every reader, coilections of voyages and travels made by gentlemen of learning and veracity, have been confidered as works of the utmost utility. The collection before us is of this kind, and feems to bid fair for obtaining the approbation of many readers, as there is not a fingle narrative but what is founded in truth, and felected with fufficient care and judgment. As the work is printed in a very clofe manner, and the page large, the reader will be agreeably furprized to find that these three volumes contain as much matter as five when loofely printed.

The following voyages are contained in this colle&ion:

The four voyages of Chriftopher Columbus, in which he difcovered many parts of the new world.The voyage of Vafco de Gama, being the first ever made round the Cape of Good Hope to the East Indies.Sir Francis Drake's voyage to the lithmus of Darien, and his voyage round the world. Sir Walter Raleigh's two voyages to Guiana.Sir Thomas Cavendish's voyage round the world. -Oliver Van Noort's voyage round the world.- -Spilbergen's voyages round the world. Schovten's and La Maire's voyage round the globe.

Capt. Monk's voyage to the Frozen-Sea.. -Tafman's voyage for the difcovery of new countries- -Mr. Lionel Wafer's journey across the Ifthmus of Darien, with a curious account of his living among the Indians.- Woodes Rogers's voyage round the world, with the remarkable hiftory of Alex.ander Selkirk.- -Don Ulloa's voyage to South-America. Commodore Anfon's voyage round the world.— -Mr. Ellis's voyage for the difcovery of a north-weft pallage.--Mr. Martin's voyage to St. Kilda.- -A fuccinct account of the Ruffian

difcoveries."

To the above voyages are added, two entertaining and affecting narratives: the first,

A journal of the fufferings of eight feamen, who paffed the winter in Greenland: the fecond,

An account of the lofs of the Doddington Indiaman.' From the above contents the reader will be able to form fome judgment of what he may expect in the perufal of these volumes. If parents and guardians could be prevailed upon

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put fuch volumes as thefe into the hands of the youth committed to their care, they would foon perceive the good effects of fuch a conduct; as the narratives could not fail of engaging their attention, and of furnishing their tender minds with fuch pfeful ideas, as would prove of the utmoft fervice to them during the future periods of their lives,

VIII. A General Treatise on various cold Mineral Waters in England, bat more particularly thofe at Harrogate, Thorp-arch, Dorfthill, Wigglefworth, Nevill holt, and others of the like Nature. With their Principles, Virtues, and Ufes. Also a fhort Difcourfe on Solvents of the Stone in the Kidneys and Bladder. 8vo. Pr. 35. Millar.

THE

HE importance of mineral waters in the materia medica has been long and univerfally acknowledged: the frequent and general use of these waters, with the concurrence and advice of the faculty, not only in England, but over all Europe, is fufficient to evince their real efficacy in medicine.

But as mineral waters have various impregnating matters, and thefe too varioufly combined and proportioned, fo as to vary proportionably their medical effects, it may well be fufpected, that fo popular a medicine will frequently be mifapplied, be therefore often productive of injurious effects, and give just ground to objections against their ufe. More especially muft this have been the cafe, when the nature of their impregnating matters was either unknown or mistaken for it is from an accurate knowledge of the fubftances with which they are impregnated, that we are enabled to use them properly, from analogy of the known effect of fuch fubftances. The chemical inveftigation of mineral waters may therefore be justly efteemed of great importance.

In confidering the fubject of the impregnation of mineral waters, it is obvious, that as this property is received in their fubterraneous paffage, it can confift only of foffil fubftances. This confideration excludes a very great number of bodies from our attention in this fubje&t; and of those we have admitted, the number may be fill more reftricted to thofe foffil fubtances which are diffoluble in water either by themselves or by the intervention of some other body. We might therefore expect to find in 'mineral waters all fofil neutral falts, ftrictly fo called, and all faline fubftances, whether arifing from the action of acid on the earths, or on metals; to which we may add the fofil oil, fulphur, and its union with alkali in hepar fulphuris. It is true indeed, that animal and vegetable fubftances are fpread in great abundance over the furface of the earth, and we might therefore expect that they too would contribute to the impregnation of mineral waters; but in fact we do not find it fo; which probably arifs from thefe fubftances not penetrating deeper than the upper ftratum of the earth, before their approach to which the mineral waters are fully impregnated.

The

The foffil alkali and acids are diffoluble in water, and contribute accordingly to their impregnation. The alkali is feldom found, and the ftrongest example of it is in the water of Tilbury,

Of the foffil acids, the vitriolic alone appears to impregnate waters, and as its affinity with bodies is very univerfal, always in compofition. Hence it is that mineral waters may almost wholly be divided into purging waters formed from a combination of this acid with an alkali or an abforbent earth; and chalybeate water from its union with iron. For as the affinity between the acid of vitriol and iron is ftronger than between that and most other metals, it is therefore that their union is moft frequent, as at Spa, Tunbridge, Pyrmont, &c. Yet this acid is fometimes found united with copper; as in the wa ters of Neufol in Hungary, and Wicklow in Ireland. These are the fubftances which generally impregnate mineral waters, "The waters called fulphureous, (fays Dr. Lewis) or those which have a foctid smell refembling fulphureous folutions, are not found to contain any actual fulphur; nor is there any actual fulphur in the extremely fœtid and diffufive vapour which arifes from folutions of fulphur itfelf during their precipitation with acids. Analogous to this, perhaps, is the fulphureous impregnation of waters." The petroleum obfervable on the furface of fome waters, feems to show that they have taken up fome foffil oil in their courfe. That fulphur is fometimes prefent in them, is evident from the fulphurine incruftations on the fides of some fprings; but as it is unitable with the foffil alkali, it is more frequently in the ftate of hepar fulphuris *.

The impregnation of mineral waters being a fubject thus important, not only from the curious part it makes in natural hiftory, but from its power in medicine, the public must be confiderably obliged to any perfon, who by his experiments fhall endeavour to afcertain the truth, and thereby to improve, or at least to render more certain and rational the ufe of mineral waters. But it is abfolutely neceffary to the success of fuch experiments, that they who conduct them be well inftructed in chemistry, particularly in that important part of it which teaches the relation of bodies to one another. Without this previous knowledge, we may venture to prognofticate that

* We may obferve, that almost every obfervation enumerated by Dr. Rutty (in his late paper on this subject in the Phil. Tranf. anno 1759, p: 275.) to prove the existence of fulphur in mineral waters, prove nothing more than a hepar fulphuris.

the