as boys do halfpence and farthings; up he toffes them, and down they fall before his readers, no matter how, for there they are, make the best of them you can. If you cannot fort them, it is your own fault. You have all that Spenser, Shakespeare, Milton, Prior, Pope, Gray, Littleton, and a thousand more, have faid upon the subject, and the deuce is in it if that won't content you.

To be ferious, we muft except the writer before us from this clafs of authorship. His epithets, though many of them are not new, are beautifully difpofed. It is eafy to perceive, that his defcriptions arife from nature, and his grief from feeling. After all, we are best pleased with the latter; we mean, the fentimental part, which contains a manly mixture of affection, philofophy, and religion. To prove the truth of what we fay of this beautiful and affecting performance, we fhall conclude our account of it with the three following ftanzas ; • Wide round the fpacious heavens Į caft my eyes; And shall thefe ftars glow with immortal fire, Still fhine the lifeless glories of the skies,

And could thy bright, thy living foul expire?
Far be the thought-the pleasures moft fublime,
The glow of friendship, and the virtuous tear,
The tow'ring wifh that fcorns the bounds of time,
Chill'd in this vale of death, but languish here,
So plant the vine on Norway's wintery land,

The languid ftranger feebly buds, and dies:
Yet there's a clime where virtue shall expand
With godlike ftrength, beneath her native fkies."

15. The Equality of Mankind: a Porm. By Mr. Wodhull. 4. Pr. ts. 6d. Becket.

This compofition has poetical merit, but not in the most eminent degree. It cannot, however, be denied, that the author is ingenious, as he has introduced an abufe of the Chancel lor and Univerfity of Oxford, in his firft two lines; and contiaues it for half a dozen more. In his fifth page, he takes care to let us know, that the modern Swiss are flaves; but we cannot find how he proves them to be fo. Speaking of the earlier ages, he tells us,

No Frederick, foe to nature and to man,

Juftice his pretext, tyranny. his plan,
Born every right of nations to betray,

O'er Leipzick's walls had forc'd his defperate way; '~~~ Not to mention the grofs violation of numbers in the fecond fine, we cannot imagine who this fame Frederick is, unless our bard means the king of Pruffia. He ought, however, to have.

been

been fo poetically juft, as to have mentioned, fince he was in a rambling fit, the duke of Belleitle's letters to Contades, and the behaviour of the French when they feized Frankfort on the Oder. When we get a little into our author's meaning, we find that his performance is neither more nor less than a moft furious fatire upon civil government in general, and upon priesthood in particular; nor can even commerce escape his lafh, for' he cenfures it as impious. He compares man (meaning mankind) to a chain, whofe two extremities unite, and the last link is the monarch. The comparison is finished with the two following elegant lines:

Here to its fource the line revolving tends,

Here close the points, and here the circle ends.'

Our drawcanfir of an author, (the reader will readily believe). is, by the nature of his fubject, led to abuse monarchy and the houfe of Stuart. With him Greville, lord Brocke, who was killed in the beginning of the civil war, is a fainted patriot, and Clarendon a motley dotard. He confecrates the fields of Nafeby to immortality and liberty, by the following idea, bor rowed from Addifon's Cato.

Ev'n now methinks I fee brave Fairfax tread
Th' enfanguin'd plain;'-

The earl of Holland cuckolds Charles the First, and the hierarchy of the church of England is a fiend that is

Confign'd by fate in penal chains to dwell

Slunk unregarded to her native hell.'

After this quotation, pray, gentle reader, where doft thou think this fame poet ought to dwell? -- The following passage, in which he characterizes the people of Great-Britain, is, we think, the moft poetical in this performance; and, though we do not answer for its juftnefs, we fhall give it to the reader without farther animadverfion:

.. Born in a changeful clime, beneath a sky.

Whence ftorms defcend, and hovering vapors fly,
Stung with the fever, tortur'd with the spleen,
Boift'roufly merry, churlifhly ferene,

By each vague blaft dejected or elate,
Dupes in their love, immoderate in their hate,
With ftrange formality, or bearish ease,
Then moft difgufted, when they strive to please,
No happy mean the fons of Albion know,
Their wavering tempers ever ebb and flow,
Rank contraries, in nothing they agree;
Untaught to ferve, unable to be free,'

16. The Scourge: a Satire. Part 1. 4to. Pr. Is, 6d. Almon.

This author affects to be the Elifha, upon whom the poetic mantle of Churchill descended, when he left the world. He is the profeffed enemy of lord Bute, and the late ministry, whom he abufes again and again with fuch unprovoked, fuch rude, fuch reiterated infolence, that converts his fatire into praise; and after we have read it, we deteft nothing but the author.

17. A Free and Candid Address to the Right Honourable William Pitt, upon the prefent Pofture of Affairs, both at Home and Abroad. Folio. Pr. 6d. Cooke.

The author of this rhapsody goes half-seas over (as he calls it) with Mr. Pitt's conquering America in Germany; and, indeed, he seems to have been more than half-feas over, when he published his pamphlet, in which he is very earnest with the great commoner, that he will be again fo good as to bestride the state, which he enforces in a moft bombaft and ridiculous ftrain.

18. A Vindication of the Miniftry's Acceptance of the Administration ; with an Expofition of the real Motives of a noble Lord's declining it. In answer to a Letter from a Son of Candor, to the Public Advertifer. 8vo. Pr. 15. Coote.

This pamphlet is profeffedly wrote in answer to one that we have already reviewed (fee page 312) and we muft tranfcribe both, were we to give our reader a precife idea of its merits. The author concurs in general with what we have said concerning his antagonist, but we cannot much approve of the manner in which he treats Mr. Pitt, and the Grenville family. We even think it too early either to attack or defend the prefent ministry, as their future conduct will be the most effectual confutation either of their advocates or their opponents.

19. A Critical Review of the New Adminiftration. 8vo.

Wilkie.

Pr. 15e

Now for the other fide! This writer is the antipode to the laft. He takes advantage of the different perfonal characters of which the present miniftry is compofed, to fhew that the encomiums bestowed upon them by their advocates, especially the author of the Merits of the New Administration,' are fallacious. This is but an indifferent method of reafoning. The writer might, with equal propriety, undertake to prove that fweet and four, ftrong and weak, does not make most excellent punch. We believe, it would be no hard matter to prove that every administration ought to confift of men of different characters and even ages, provided, upon the whole, their abilities, as well as affections, are employed in the service of their country. It is

well

well known, that the only wife (we had almost said honeft) man, that Charles the First raised, was a prelate, who came at last to be lord high treasurer of England, and held that great poft with fuch unblemished integrity, that he was the only royalift in the nation of rank and character, who efcaped the perfecution of the times; and yet that minifter, wife and honeft as he was, was tainted with the indelible and unpardonable crime of having, even while he was bishop of London, the best stud of horfes, and being the beft fox-hunter in the kingdom. The fanatics of those days, however, did not pretend that this crime made him infignificant at the head of the treasury.

20. The Secret Springs of the late Changes in the Miniftry fairly explained, by an Honest Man; in answer to the abuse and misreprefentations of a pretended Son of Candor. With an introductory Letter to the Printer of the Public Advertiser. 8vo. Pr. 15. 6d. Becket.

This is another anfwer to the Principles of the late Changes, already referred to, and written in the character of the letter to which the Son of Candor replied. Into what political labyrinths have we got! The author profeffes himself to be a friend to the earl of Bute, whofe condu&t, during the late administration, and the revolution of appointments, we think he clears up and defends with ability and candor. With regard to ourselves, as reviewers, we profefs to be of no political party; but we have read enough of the controverfy on both fides to believe, what every honeft man must be convinced of, if he has attended to the difpute, that lord Bute had no hand either in displacing the late miniftry, or introducing the prefent; and we are fincerely of opinion, that at this very hour he has no kind of concern in the government, either avowedly or fecretly, but what is confiftent with his duty as a member of the legislature.

21. The Security of Englishmen's Lives: or, the Trufi, Power, and Duty of Grand Juries of England explained according to the Fundamentals of the English Government, and the Declaration of the fame made in Parliament by many Statutes. First printed in the Year 1681. Written by the Right Honourable John *Lord Somers, Baron of Evesham, and Lord High Chancellor of England. 8vo. Pr. 11. 6d. Almon.

It is not to be expected that we are critically to review a pamphlet of feventy-four years ftanding, the doctrines of which have been frequently canvaffed. The editor, who we fuppofe is the bookfeller, recommends it as a proper companion to the Letter upon Libels and Warrants, &c. which he likewife published; a circumftance that accounts for the pam phlet's appearing at this time, when Englishmen have no apprehenfions

1

prehenfions as to the fecurity of their lives, or the fuppreffion or abufe of grand-juries.

We cannot, however, difmif's the article without informing our readers that we are fomewhat fufpicious lord Somers was not the author of this pamphlet, Bishop Burnet feems indeed to give it to him, but in a very confused manner, and entirely on his own word, which fome, perhaps, may think is but a very flender authority; and yet it is all we can have, as later writers build their faith upon his affertion.

22. A Defence of the New England Charters. By Jer. Dummer. 8vo. Pr. s. 6d. Almon

There is more reafon for the republication of this, than of the preceding, pamphlet. The author, Mr. Dummer, was a very able and affiduous advocate for his clients, the English colonists in America; and we have, in his tract, a very fpirited, but decent, vindication of their charters and conduct. He was enabled to perform this, by the confiderable posts he difcharged in that country, where, if we miftake not, he was more than once lieutenant-g -governor of Maffachufets-Bay; first, under Mr. Shute, brother to lord Barrington; and he continued to be, in fact, governor, til governor Burnet arrived in 1728; upon whofe deceafe he again relumed the chair of lieutenant governor, till the arrival of governor Belchier, in 1730. It does not fall within our plan to analyze this work, farther than to obferve, that we find in it no appearance of an argument, to prove that the British parliament has not a right to impose taxes on the British American colonies. The author employs what he calls his Second Propofition in proving, That these governments have by no means forfeited their charters;' which plainly implies, that it is far from being impoffible for them to forfeit their charters by an undutiful, rebellious behaviour. On the contrary, he fhews that the conduct of thofe colonifts has been all along loyal and meritorious towards the crown and parliament of England, and that they never fuffered but by the ftretches of arbitrary power. He likewife endeavours to prove, that it is not the interest of the crown to refume the charters, if forfeited; and, that it feems, inconfiftent with juftice to disfranchise the charter colonies by an act of parliament.'

On this last head he speaks with great decency; and the following paffage is fo very ftriking and seasonable at this time, that we cannot refift tranfcribing it.

It is certain, that bills of attainder, fuch as this would be, have been feldom ufed in England, and then only upon the moft extraordinary occafions as when flagrant crimes have been committed, of a new and unusual nature, against which

the