caufe he was a queen; Madame Elizabeth fuffered, becaufe innocence, virtue, and magnanimity, could not, in the eyes of Jacobins, atone for the crime of being the daughter of a king, and the aunt of a king; and, after all the fervices which the duke of Orleans had rendered to the fect, he was facrificed, because he was of the race of kings.'

The fate of the feveral parties is thus briefly narrated. Chrift has no altar in France, nor have kings a throne; those who overthrew the throne and the altar, have confpired against each other. The deifts and the atheists have deftroyed the catholics; and they deftroy one another. The 'conftitutionalifts purfue the royalifts, and the republicans' chafe the conftitutionalifts; the democrats of the republic one and indivifible, have murdered the democrats of the federal republic; the leaders of the faction of the Mountain guillotine thofe of the Gironde. The faction of the Mountain is divided into the parties of Hebert and Marat, of Danton and Chabot, of Cloots and Chaumette; and also into that of Robespierre, which devours them all, and is itfelf devoured by that of Tallien. Briffot, Genfonne, Guadet, Fauchet, Rabaud, Barbaroux, and thirty others, are condemned by Fouquier Tinville, as they condemned Louis XVI. Fouquier Tinville is himfelf condemned, as he condemned Briffot. Pethion and Buzot, wandering in the woods, perifh with hunger, or are devoured by beafts. Perrin dies in confinement; Condorcet poifons himself; Valage and Labat ftab themselves; Marat is killed by Charlotte Corday; Robespierre exifts no longer; Sieyes alone remains to be the caufe of fresh plagues to France. Hell, to confirm the reign of his impiety, and Heaven, to punifh it, have given him, under the name of directors, five tyrants, or pentarchs, and a double senate.”

Our author afterwards endeavours to account for the amazing fuccefs of the French armies, and the extenfion of the diforganifing principle to Belgium, Holland, a part of Germany, Switzerland, Savoy, Piedmont, the Milanese, and even the ecclefiaftical ftate. This he afcribes, in part, to the valour of the troops, and their characteristic jealoufy of honour in combat; but principally to the fect and its legions of emiffaries, who preceded the armies. For the propagation of the new opinions, edicts or orders were fent from the chief lodge, or committee of the Grand Orient at Paris, to the inferior lodges in every part of Europe. The confequence was, that in Holland Paulus published his tracts on "Equality,;" in England, Paine his "Rights of Man;" in Germany, Campe his "French Citizen," &c. More particularly our author gives an account of the efforts of the fect, not only in various parts of Europe, but also in

Africa, Afia, and America. In giving this information, he names the confpirators, and affords fuch particulars of their proceedings as evince a more than common knowledge of the fubject, and clearly demonftrate that the illufion of revolutionary and meliorating principles was one of the chief engines employed to facilitate the entrance of the French armies. How far the fame means have been attempted in this country, is a fubject in which we are too much interested not to catch at every information; and we are the more anxious to communicate to our readers what the abbé Barruel advances on this head, because profeffor Robifon has principally confined himself to mere affertions.

When Mr. Robifon declared, that there existed in England masonic lodges of illuminés, patriotic honour took the alarm: those who form a kind of tribunal of public opinion thought they had a right to call upon that refpectable writer for his proofs. I know not what answer he gave; I only know that he ought to have faid, "When perfons in authority afk me, I am ready to answer." I should say to those who, without authority, demand my proofs, there may be circumftances that prevent me from making them public; it may be fufficient to discover them to the minifter, that precautions may be taken to defeat the fect; and they may be of a nature fatisfactory to the author, by a number of incidents which convince him, although he may not be able to adduce legal proof.

I make these remarks upon the beft ground, becaufe certainly minifters have in their hands fufficient proofs, which their wisdom has not yet permitted them to publish. I make them, becaufe Mr. Robifon tells us enough to perfuade us that he is well informed, when he announces the intrufion of the illuminés into fome English and Scotish lodges, without his being obliged to point out thofe lodges, ór without his being able to do fo. But undoubtedly he did not wish to expofe himself to the fate of the famous chevafier Zimmermann, who was, in a fimilar cafe, the victim of the illuminé Knigge, not because the latter was unjuftly accused, but because the accufer had not against him one of those proofs which are called legal, becaufe he could not legally prove that Philon and Knigge were two names for the fame perfon; a circumftance which is now notorious. Let those who allow themselves to treat Mr. Robifon as a calumniator, reflect that the confpirators have many ways. of influencing fimilar trials; that it is among their laws to deftroy, in the public opinion, all writers of merit whom they cannot draw into their fnares; and that Mr. Robifon is one of those who, on that account, are juftly entitled to their hatred. I could wish that Mr. Robifon had an op

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portunity of answering the charge, by publishing his proofs; and then those who now fpeak harfhly of him, would thank him for the fervice rendered to his country; a zeal for which, without doubt, prevails in their hearts as well as in his, though they do not fee the danger fo well as he." The abbé concludes this curious apology for the profeffor, by informing us, that he does not mean to copy his example, but to give a part of his own proofs.

There are in England (he fays) two men, for whom, I know, the apoftles of the illuminés have fought. The one is an honeft officer of the marine, who entertains for them all the contempt of which an honeft heart can be fufceptible, and which his heart firft felt when he found himself duped by an infinuating brother, who, under pretence of revealing the masonic myfteries, drew him into thofe of Weishaupt. The other is a man of merit, who might have known more, if he had not betrayed his fentiments, but whofe authority will atteft the truth of the following statement.

Among the books which beft point out the number of the lodges of the illuminés, even among those which the enrolling brothers give to their candidates of a certain rank, there is one called Les Paragraphes. In that production, we find that the adept, the great traveller, of the fame name with the chevalier Zimmermann, converted to illuminifm fome lodges of free-mafons in England: but, of five, there are two which have renounced the myfteries of Weishaupt; the three others ftill preserve them.

A new apoftle, who fucceeded Zimmermann in London, came to England under the name of Dr. Ibiken, one of thofe fictitious names which the travelling brethren adopted according to circumftances. This doctor began with uniting himself to fome Quakers; he was then received in feveral of the lodges, where he introduced the preparatory means, and at length completely illuminated fome of the brethren. He alfo boafted of his fuccefs in Ireland; and pretended to foretell, that his pupils would foon fee a great revolution in their pitiful free-mafonry. Those to whom that language was unintelligible, told me that they comprehended it perfectly, after I had publifhed the code of the fect. They loft fight of Dr. Ibiken, and the vigilance of the miniftry obliged him to carry his myfteries to another quarter.

A fhort time after, there appeared in England an emiffary, who called himfelf an Alfatian, and who arrived from America under the name of Reginhard. He procured admiffion into fome of the English lodges which were in correfpondence with thofe of Bofton. He appeared lefs zealous

than the other apoftles; he did not even conceal his repug nance to a miffion which, he faid, ill agreed with his ftation, as he had been a chaplain in the French navy; and it was principally from him that the author of the letter which furnishes me with thefe details, learned the existence of illuminism on the banks of the Thames.

Here then is fufficient proof that the illuminés have not fuffered their emiffaries to forget England. Notwithstanding the honourable exception which I made, in a former part of the work, in favour of the English lodges, I am no longer furprised to find that illuminifin is received by a certain number of their adepts; and here I ought to repeat, that, in that exception, I alluded only to the fpecies of freemafonry, which I have called national.

These are the principal circumftances upon which the abbé grounds his pofition as to the existence of lodges of illuminés in this country. It is obvious that they reft, in a great measure, upon his authority; but we are not inclined to controvert them: they are at least probable, and they weigh with us the more as coming from an author who in all this laborious work has given us little reafon to doubt his veracity, however we may have caufe to differ from him in judgment.

The conclufion of this volume, it ought to be observed," contains fome reflections on the defolating fpirit of Jacobinism, and the fatal confequences with which it may yet be attended, if the people of all countries, those who have felt, and thofe who have only read of its effects, should not unite to reftore the empire of religion, morality, and focial' order.

Upon the whole, we are of opinion, that the author has difplayed confiderable talents, great research, and a pure intention, in the compofition of these memoirs. On the ap plication, however, of the three conspiracies to the French revolution, we take the liberty of differing from the abbé. He attributes every inconfiderable event in the revolution to a pre-concerted plan. The fluctuations of parties, however, their violent contefts, and other circumftances, militate against the idea of a regular plan; and the little revolutions within the great one, as well as the great one itself, feem to have arifen from more obvious caufes.

That any great benefit will refult from thefe memoirs, 'is not very clear. If, according to the obvious intention of the author, they expound the myfteries of the French revolution, the effect will be more a matter of curiofity than of ufe, unless the rulers of nations will have recourse to such means as wisdom, not a fpirit of coercion, may fuggeft to deftroy the existence of confpiracies, by attaching the people APP. VOL. XXIV. New ARR.

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to the government, from its fenfible effects on their happi nefs and fecurity.

It will not be improper to add, that the abbé has publifhed an abridgement of these four volumes, and that tranflations of the third and fourth volumes have made their appearance.

Voyage de la Pérouse.

(Concluded from Vol. XXIII. p. 492.)

WE E left this very respectable rival of captain Cook, ftretching to the weftward from the coaft of Chili. On the 9th of April, he arrived at Easter Island, which is peopled by a race fimilar to the inhabitants of the Society Ifles. This fpot is infertile, and its water is fcanty and brackish. The want of a copious fupply of water is attributed to the deficiency of trees, though the ifland was once wooded. It has been remarked, that the rain, in the cleared parts of Guiana, is much less than in the woody regions; and the reafon is fufficiently obvious. A difficulty. however arifes. Countries which have been covered with trees, when, from accident, or the imprudent activity of the early fettlers, they are once disforefted, can scarcely by art be made to re-produce them. Travellers fee, in different parts of England, remains of vaft trees, while the prefent productions of thofe parts are a dwarfish ftunted race, and the plantations, though carefully guarded, are often deftroyed. In Ireland the trees which defended the land from the weftern blafts, are deftroyed, and greater mischief enfues. The winds meet no impediment, and carry, far inland, maffes of fand, which impair the fertility of the ground, and render many ancient buildings (once refpectable) no longer habitable. It may naturally be afked, why the land, which once produced trees, will produce them no longer. As we have no reason to believe, that vegetable or animal nature is degenerating, or that its energies are impaired, the circumftance may be attributed to changes of climate, arifing from alternations of fea and land (the former encroaching on, or retiring from, the latter), or fome alteration in the aftronomical relations of our planet.

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Eafter Ifland was remarkable for a number of busts or ftatues of confiderable height, formed of lava: but they are now fuperfeded by fmall pyramidal heaps of ftones, intended as maufolea.

The inhabitants of this island are confidered by la Péroufe as being under no government. He thought that