1

fo this extenfive and important title, I fhall clofe my remarks upon it, with the expiring with of the famous father Paul to his country, Efto perpetua*.

The next fubje&, which Mr. Blackftone difcuffes, is the im→ portant one of the parliaments. Here he produces, fome hiftorical facts, from whence it indifputably appears, that parlia ments, or general councils, are coeval with the kingdom itself. He does not venture to engage in the controverfey, concerning the manner in which they were originally compofed. I hold it fufficient, fays he, that it is generally agreed, that in the main, the conftitution of parliament, as it now ftands, was marked out fo long ago as the feventeenth year of king John, A. D. 1215, in the great charter granted by that prince; wherein he promises to fummon all archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, and greater barons perfonally; and all other tenants in chief under the crown, by the fheriffs and bailiffs; to meet at a certain place, with forty days notice, to affefs aids and fcutages when neceffary.'

Of the parliament thus conftituted, and confifting of king, lords, and commons, our author proceeds to confider at large, the nature and rights under the following heads. 1. The manner and time of its affembling. 2. Its conftituent parts. 3. The laws and cuftoms relating to it, confidered as one aggregate body. 4 and 5. The laws and cuftoms relating to each houfe, feparately and diftinctly taken. 6. The methods of proceeding and of making ftatutes, in both houses. And lastly, the manner of the parliament's adjournment, prorogation, and diffolutiont. This important part of the fubject Mr. Blackstone has accomplished, with a judgment, fpirit, and perfpicuity, which do him much honour; and cannot fail to pleaf, as well as to inftru&t, the reader.' He thinks, contrary to the fentiment of Mr. Locke and others, that the parliament is ab folutely uncontrolable. That is, that there remains not in the people an ultimate and fupreme right, to remove or alter the legislative power, when they find it act contrary to the truft repofed in its 'conftituents; fo that, if fuch a truft be abufed, it does not thereby become forfeit, and devolve on those who gave it. Were it neceffary to queftion the truth of this pofition, which is certainly too favourable to arbitrary power, apt enough of itself to encroach on the liberties of the most wary people, we would fay that it can hardly be confiftent with common fenfe to imagine, that when a people delegate a part of themselves to watch over their liberties, they can be fuppofed to give them up entirely to that very body, and thereby volunta

rily erect over themselves the very tyranny which, in the intent of the conftitution they defigned to avoid. This would be to fuppofe them guilty of the moft palpable abfurdity; and there: fore, if they ever repofed fuch a truft, the faving claufe of a refumptive power in case of mifufe, is in the very nature of it fo ftrongly implied as to be valid, whether it be exprefly mentioned or not. We have faid, if it were worth while to queftion the pofition, not because we are infenfible of the extreme delicacy and importance of fuch a queftion, but because we conceive, that were this fupreme power juftly refident in the people, they are too patient of wrongs to vindicate it from any but the most flagrant and infupportable violations. And when 'fuch atrocious wrongs have once inflamed them, all human' laws muft fall before their rage. Therefore their agency, when once put in motion, would produce the fame uncontrolable effect, whether legally empowered, or contrary to the conftitution.

We cannot help quoting the following paffage with respect to the qualifications of electors. The true reason, says Mr. Blackstone, of requiring any qualification with regard to property, in voters, is to exclude fuch persons as are in so mean a fituation, that they are efteemed to have no will of their own. If these perfons had votes, they would be tempted to difpofe of them under fome undue influence or other.

This would give a great, an artful, and a wealthy man, a larger share in elections, than is confiftent with general liberty. If it were probable that every man would give his vote freely, and without influence of any kind, then, upon the true theory and genuine principles of liberty, every member of the community, however poor, would have a vote in electing those delegates, to whofe charge is committed the difpofal of his property, his liberty, and his life. But, fince that can hardly be expected in perfons of indigent fortunes, or such as are under the immediate dominion of others, all popular states have been obliged to establish certain qualifications, whereby fome, who are suspected to have no will of their own, are excluded from voting, in order to fet other individuals, whofe wills may be fuppofed independent, more thoroughly upon a level with each other*."

The next subject of enquiry is, concerning the king and his title; in which the royal rights and authority are confidered with respect to the king's title, his royal family, his councils, his duties, his prerogative, and his revenue. Mr. Blackftone maintains, that the crown is by common law, and conftituti

1

onal cuftom, hereditary; and this in a manner peculiar to itfelf: but the right of inheritance may, from time to time, be changed or limited by act of parliament; under which limitations the crown ftill continues hereditary *. This power of parliament he maintains, with fuch authentic facts and clear reafoning, that we cannot help joining in his conclufion, That it is unquestionably in the breaft of the fupreme legislative autho rity of this kingdom, the king and both houfes of parliament, to defeat this hereditary right; and by particular entails, limi tations, and provifions, to exclude the immediate heir, and veft the inheritance in any one elfe +.' He determines that the mode of the regal inheritance, in general, correfponds with the feodal path of defcepts, chalked out by the common law in the fucceflion to landed estates; but with these two material and neceffary exceptions, that the crown defcends in the female line to the eldest daughter only, and her iffue, not, like common eftates, to all the daughters equally; and this for the ob vious reason of having but one queen and fecondly, there is no objection, as in common defcents, to the fucceffion of a brother, an uncle, or other colateral relation of the half blood 1. Thefe are the principles which govern the conftitution, on which the hereditary right to the throne is founded; and thefe our author more fully illuftrates, by a short and apposite review of our hiftory, in which innumerable instances occur of the fucceffion regulated, limited, altered or confirmed by act of parliament. The memorable abdication of the throne, by king James, left no other alternative than that of returning entirely to a fate of anarchy and nature, or appointing a new monarch by the remaining powers of government. The latter of thefe was undoubtedly to be preferred. • The king's endeavours, fays he, to fubvert the conftitution, by breaking the original contract, his violation of the fundamental laws, and his withdrawing himself out of the kingdom, were evident and notorious: and the confequences drawn from there facts, namely, that they amounted to an abdication of the government; which abdication did not only affect the perfon of the king himself, but also his heirs, and rendered the throne abfo- . lutely and completely vacant, it belonged to our ancestors to determine. And in fine, whereas our ancestors having most indifputably a competent jurifdiction to decide this great and important question, and having in fact, decided it, it is now become our duty, at this diftance of time, to acquiefce in their determination; being born under that establishment which was built on this foundation, and obliged by every tie, religious as † p. 188. + p. 186.

P. 184.

well as civil, to maintain it. Upon the impending extinction of the proteftant defcendants of Charles the first, the parliament was directed by the old law of regal defcent, to the pofterity of James the firft; and the princefs Sophia, being the daughter of Elizabeth, queen of Bohemia, who was the youngeft daughter of James the firft, was the nearest of the ancient blood royal, not incapacitated by profeffing the popish religi on. On her, therefore, and the heirs of her body, being proteftants, the remainder of the crown, expectant on the death of king William, and queen Anne, without issue, was fettled by ftatute 12 and 13 W. III. c. 2f.' On this hereditary and authentic title does the prefent illuftrious family poffefs the throne. The princefs Sophia dying before queen Anne, the inheritance thus limited, defcended on her fon and heir, king George the first; and having, on the death of the queen, taken effect in his perfon, from him, it defcended to his late majesty king George the second; and from him to his grandfon and heir, our prefent gracious fovereign, king George the 'third .'

Here we muft beg leave to break off, and refer the profecution of this review to our next.

[ To be continued. ]

IV. Inquiries concerning the Varieties of the Pulfe, and the particular Crifis each more especially indicates. Written originally in French, by Mr. De Bordeu, Doctor of the Faculties of Paris and Montpellier. 8vo. Pr. 6s. Kearly.

IN we our readers worm the pair

'N the laft Review we prefented our readers with the appella

tions and definitions of the pulfe, which form the basis of Mr. Bordeu's fyftem on this subject; and we shall now proceed to lay before them a fummary of the remarks with which he has illuftrated and confirmed his doctrine.

Firft then, he obferves, that the nafal pulfe is very generally combined with the uncritical, that excretions of blood from the nofe are feldom critical, frequently fymptomatic. This our author afferts at the fame time that he is fenfible that Hippocrates has pronounced thofe to be in no danger, who, in accute fevers, have a plentiful hemorrhage from the nofe; and that Solano has marked this pulfe as a certain indication of a critical hæmorrhage from the nofe.

Solano calls this pulfe dicrotus, of which Marquet gives the following definition, Pulfus dicrotus in quo duæ arteriæ diaf

P. 205,

† p. 209. I p. 210.

tole,

tole, minimo intervallo, fe infequuntur; decride longius ad proximum pulfum intervallum intercedit.", That is, the pulfus dicrotus, in which two diaftoles of the artery fucceed each other with a very fmall interval; a longer fpace intervening till the next pulfation.

As the author has given cafes to fupport his affertion, the reader may judge of its propriety by confulting them.

The ftomachal pulfe, he obferves, indicates vomiting, that feldom terminates a difeafe, and is more frequently fymptomatic than critical.

This obfervation we fee verified daily in fevers, nephritic complaints, gout, and cholera morbus.

The author remarks further, that the ftomachal pulse defcribed by Solano, is a complication of the critical with the uncritical.

Dr. Robinson has obferved, that during the naufea which precedes vomiting, the pulfe is fmall, which after the vomiting is finished becomes foft, full, and equal; and on this he founds. the propriety of giving emetics in hemoptoes, and other hemorrhages.

With respect to the menftrual pulfe he mentions, that it is more diftinctly obferved in young girls, on the eve of having their first menftruation. He remarks that it is a peculiarity in fome women to have the pulfe, at, the approach of the menftrual discharge, contracted and narrow, inftead of being dilated, and developed, That the pulfe itfelf diftinguishes rather the term of the menftrual flux, than its actual flow.

Of critical fweats our author obferves, that they appear in acute and chronicle difeafes, about the end, or at least on the days marked by the figns of a good concoction; that they are preceded by a kind of trembling and unufual fuppreffion of urine, which, according to Avicenna, is on that occafion very Fed, and inflamed; and laftly, that they never fail to be accompanied with their particular critical pulfe. It is a curious obfervation he makes, that a favourable eruption of the meafles or fmall-pox is generally marked by the fudorific pulfe.

It may fuffice, to have faid thus much on fimple critical pulfes; from which the author proceeds to defcribe the critical combined or compound pulfes. These confift of the fimple pulfes variously combined, and diftinguifhed by a complication of the figns which mark the refpective fimple pulfes that form the combination, b

On the compound pulfe which precedes a critical abfcefs, after an acute fever, he has the following obfervations: ft. If the pulfe has been from the beginning convulfive, uncritical,

Ff3

and