Изображения страниц
PDF
EPUB
[ocr errors]

1814.] Literary and Philosophical Intelligence:

themselves in the explanation of those
invaluable writings, and in the applica-
tion ef the instruction with which they
abound, to the purposes of modern war.
The work will be accompanied by notes
and ample dissertations, explanatory not
only of the phraseology of the original
text, but also of the various and impor
tant topics, antiquarian, military, and
topographic, contained in, or connected
with, the Commentaries. It will also
be illustrated by maps, plans, and
sketches, not imaginary as has hitherto
been too often the case, but constructed
on the latest and best authorities, cor-
rected and adapted to the work, from
Mr. Dougall's own personal researches
and observations, on the principal po-
sitions mentioned in the Commentaries,
over France, Spain, Switzerland, Italy,
&c. as well as in Britain. On the cir.
cumstances of Cæsar's two expeditions
to our isle, Mr. D. has, on both sides of
the Channel, collected the most satis-
factory information. The Duke of York,
not only as commander-in-chief of the
army,
but as
the patron of the great pub-
lic military academies, has permitted
the work to be inscribed to him. The
New English Cæsar will, as Mr. D.
trusts, be ready to go to the press early
in the ensuing winter.

Mr. MURPHY's splendid work on the Arabian Antiquities of Spain, will shortly appear. It will be embellished with nearly one hundred engravings by Fittler, Landseer, Roffe, Porter, Le Keux, Armstrong, Cooke, Neagle, &c. from drawings made on the spot by the Author, These will represent the most remark able remains of the Spanish Arabs now subsisting in the Peninsula, including their gates, castles, fortresses, and towers; courts, halls, and domes; inscriptions in Cufic and Asiatic characters; encaustic paintings, and sculptured ornaments, &c. The whole will be accompanied by descriptions of these various objects; an illustration of the arts of the Arabs; an account of their progress in science under the Eastern and Western Caliphs; and a general history of their institutions and conquests, from the earliest accounts to their expulsion from Spain.

Dr. CLARKE's third volume of his Travels will appear in a few days. It will form the second section of the Travels in Greece, Egypt, and the Holy Land; completing the second Part of the whole work, according to the plan originally proposed by the Author, and will contain his Voyage up the Nile to Grand MONTHLY MAG. No. 252.

[ocr errors]

157

Cairo, bis Observations upon the Pyramids of Djiza and Saccàra; a descrip tion of the remains of the city of Saïs, in the Delta; an account of the antiquities of Alexandria, particularly of Pompey's Pillar and the Cryptæ of Necropolis; with his subsequent Voyage, and Travels in Greece, Macedonia, Thrace, &c. &c.

A new and enlarged edition is announced, in six volumes 8vo. comprising nearly one third new matter, of the Mis cellaneous Works of Edward Gibbon Esq. with Memoirs of his Life and Wri tings, composed by himself; illustrated from his Letters, with occasional Notes and Narrative. The whole to be edited by LORD SHEFFIELD.

The fossil or petrified skeleton from Guadaloupe, may now he seen by the public among the collections of natural history in the British Museum. It is perfect from the neck to the ancles, and is evidently the remains of a female, of about five feet two or three inches high. The stone is of loose texture; but of its real age no precise estimate can be formed. The speculations of independent philosophy are desirable on a subject of such rare curiosity.

As one means of recording the propor tions of political virtue and prostitution, which distinguish the present period, we may quote the remuneration conferred on the proprietors of two newspapers of opposite political character. The proprietor of the independant paper the STATESMAN, after passing between three and four years in Newgate, and still subject to the payment of heavy fines, purposes, we understand, to sell his property in that paper for these thousand pounds; whereas the proprietors of the ministerial paper the COURIER, who have, during the corresponding period, been enjoying every gratification which power and affluence can confer on them, and acquiring profits, it is said, of 12,000!. per annum, have lately offered their property for sale, but at the price of thirty thousand pounds! We contrast these facts, with no invidious feeling towards either of the parties; but they have appeared to us to be worthy of record as characteristic of the times; and it cannot, hereafter, be a matter of wonder to any one who reads this statement, that so few newspapers advocate the cause of truth and the people.

Dr. ADAMS has in the press, his long projected work on the erroneous opinions and consequent terrors usually enter tained concerning Hereditary Diseases. Connected with the subject are some

[graphic]

Y

remarks

remarks on the attempts at reducing cutaneous complaints to classes and orders; and on the unnecessary revival of exploded Greek terms.

The purchasers of Macklin's Bible will be glad to hear, that that splendid Work will shortly be completed, by the publication of the Apocrypha, illustrated with historical engravings by Messrs. C. HEATH, LANDSEER, BROMLEY, GOLDING, &c.; and with head and tail pieces wholly by Mr. Landseer. The pictures and drawings from which the engravings are inade, were the last work of the late Mr. DE LOUTHERBOURG.

Two of the Reviews have changed their proprietors during the past month. The Critical Reviewo has been sold by the Rev. Mr. Fellows to Messrs. Bloch and Hone; and the British Critic by Mr. Archdeacon Nares to the Rev. Dr. Middleton, Vicar of Pancras. New features and increased activity, the usual consequence of new views and engage. ments, will doubtless lead to the inereased gratification of the public.

The first number of the ACADEMICAL GAZETTE, will appear on the middle Wednesday of March.

A speedy prospect is afforded of the long-promised journey of Messrs. LEWIS and CLARKE, across the continent of North America. This journey ascertained the sources of the great river Missouri, and was extended to the Paeific Ocean, characterised by all the advantages which result from the union of power with enterprise. The work will rank high among geographical novelties, although the monotonous cha racter of the Indian tribes will deprive it of much of the interest which attends travels on the old Continent.

Mr. WANT, surgeon of the Northern Dispensary, has undertaken to conduct the surgical department of the Medical and Physical Journal, in aid of Dr. Fothergill. The insidious attempts made to imitate this universal Gazette of the faculty, have served only as foils, to ren. der more evident its own intrinsic worth, and to demonstrate the propriety, on the grounds of economy and common utility, of uniting those communications which are designed to be generally read, in one long-established and unexceptionable publication,

The remedy for deafness announced by Mr. Grosvenor, of Oxford, is neither new nor of Russian origin. The same practice was described by Mr. ASHLEY COOPER, several years ago. He recommended the patient to inhale smoke, to

stop the mouth and nostrils, and then, by an effort, to force it through the eustachian tube. Since that period also, the late Mr. Saunders published his elaborate dissections of the ear, and established his dispensary for the cure of the diseases of that organ; but after several years experience he published the opinion, that there existed no means of curing its defects, and abandoned that feature of his dispensary.. We shall be glad, however, to hear more of the result of Mr. Grosvenor's experiments.

We feel the most lively concern on being informed by persons from the coast of Africa, that the beneficial re sults which might have been expected from the exertions of those benevolent persons who abolished the slave trade, have not yet been manifested in the improved condition of the people. In fact, the partial trade carried on under the disguise of the Portuguese flag, still disturbs and distracts the country as much as formerly, while the people have lost the benefits which then resulted from large importations. Again, too much stress is laid on the exertions of the missionaries, who, unhappily, make no real progress; and too little on the introduction of the arts of life, which would lead to habits of industry, and produce their attendant effects on the morals of the inhabitants. It may, perhaps, be a question how far the manners of any people, among whom all the necessaries of life spring up spontaneously, can be assimilated to those whose sterile soil compels them to earn their daily bread with the sweat of their brow but at any rate the cause of their moral disorders ought to be removed, by the total extinction of a foreign trade in the persons of the people, and by remedies strictly applicable to their actual con dition and wants. We hope to be enabled speedily to lay other information on this interesting topic before our readers.

Another part of Dr. HOLMES'S Septuagint, containing the Book of Kings, is shortly expected from the Oxford press.

An elegant and compendious History of Music, in the form of a series of Letters from an eminent Amateur to his Daughter, may be speedily expected to make its appearance.

Dr. LLOYD, author of "Observations on the Choice of a School," &c. is preparing for the press, a complete Translation of Valerius Maximus. This work is a collection of Anecdotes of the greatest characters recorded in Roman

[blocks in formation]

1

[graphic]
[ocr errors][merged small][ocr errors][ocr errors]
[blocks in formation]

Wales.

159

story, and of many of the most distin- by the Neapolitan Court to the Prince of
guished men of other countries; classed
under different heads, such as fortitude,
liberality, clemency, piety, constancy,
&c. and the same persons are repeated-
ly introduced, as their actions or sayings
suit the subjects under consideration.
Such a body of anecdotes of the most
illustrious men that the ancient world
ever saw, cannot fail to produce a pow
erful sensation in the breast of every
reader, and a version of it will contri-
bute to disseminate the interest beyond
the limits of the circle peculiarly called
learned. The publication will take place
about Christmas next, in the form of a
handsome quarto, price two guineas, and
a few copies will be given on large paper
at five guineas.

[graphic]
[graphic]
[ocr errors]

In one of Mr. BAKEWELL'S Lectures
at the Surrey Institution, delivered during
the present month, he adverted to the
possibility of applying GUNPOWDER as a
first mover of machinery. As this sub-
ject is highly curious, and well deserving
the attention of mechanics, we shall
give his words as nearly as we can re-
collect:" Almost all the machines of
the ancients," said he, were set in
motion by the muscular action of men
or quadrupeds; but the moderns have
called the elements to their aid, and
made the winds and the waters subser-
vient to their use. Natural philosophy
has brought other agents into action;
and the application of elastic fluids,
particularly of steam, as a mover of ma-
chines, has greatly enlarged the empire
of man over nature. It is highly proba-
ble, that another agent may hereafter
be substituted; an agent which has
hitherto been chiefly employed for pur-
poses of destruction, I mean gunpowder.
I have little doubt that the expansive
force of this substance might be imme.
diately and safely applied to keep in
motion large machines with much less
expense than by the steam engine. The
apparatus would, I conceive, be less
cumbersome and expensive, A single
dram of gunpowder, if properly applied,
will rend a solid block of metal equal
in thickness to a large piece of ordnance.
The practical mechanic will have no
difficulty in conceiving how an equable
motion may be communicated to ma-
chines by percussion, with the aid of a
balance wheel and crank."

We have here the gratification of
presenting our readers with an exact
fac-simile of the appearance of the six
charred papiri, sent from Herculaneum

Mr. BRITTON'S History and Description of Salisbury Cathedral is announced for publication in the course of the present year. It will be produced in five numbers, at five different periods, viz. April 1st, June 1st, Aug. 1st, Oct. 1st, and Dec. 1st. Each number will contain six engravings, and be charged 12s. medium 4to. and 20s. imperial 4to. A few copies will be printed with proofs and etchings: and also a very small number in folio, to class with Dugdale's Monasticon. The architectural drawings are all by F. Mackenzie, and the plates by J. and H. Le Keux.

We some years since recommended the application of telegraphs to the general purposes of society; and it appears that one has lately been attempted to aid the speculators at Lloyd's coffeehouse, but not meeting with the general countenance of the subscribers, it has been abandoned.

Mr. THOMAS PARKE is about to republish the "Gorgious Gallery of Gallant Inventions, garnished and decked with diuers dayntie Deuises, right delicate and delightfull."

MISS CULLEN, author of "Home," will publish in April, a new Novel entitled "Mornton."

The Rev. G. F. NOTT is preparing for publication, the Poems of Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, of Sir Thomas Wyatt the elder, and of uncertain Authors who flourished in the reign of Henry VIII.; accompanied with Notes, Critical and Historical, and Biographical Accounts of the several Writers.

Mr. MATHIAS'S projected edition of Gray's Poems, will form two handsome volumes in quarto.

We observe a further essay of the enemies of free enquiry in the announcement of "a NORTH BRITISH RE VIEW, or Constitutional Journal," in op. position, as the projectors say, to the principles of the EDINBURGH REVIEW. What the principles are which these Pharisees profess to oppose, they have not condescended to explain, and doubt. less, ambiguity best answers their purpose: for a perspicuous elucidation might make it appear that they were about to oppose themselves to all those principles which are honourable to men and Britons, and that they are themselves altogether devoid of any principle whatever! We need not inform our readers, that, as part of a general system, a conspiracy has long existed against that freedom of discussion, which is the basis of public liberty. It was formerly

carried on covertly, in holes and corners, but it has of late unblushingly avowed itself, and various attempts have recently been made to bully every public writer into a tame acquiescence in certain pernicious measures, which can only be supported by the suppression of all truth, the extinction of all independence, and the compromise of all those principles and practices which are the just pride and inheritance of Englishmen. If, however, the public writers of the country firmly do their duty, and if the intelligent part of the people resist, with due energy, the base attempts to confound truth by insidious slanders against its advocates, and to render falsehood palatable by hypocrisy, we have no doubt of the glorious issue of a literary contest between freemen and slaves

The Speeches of the Right Hon. Chas. James Fox, in the House of Commons, from his entrance into Parliament in 1768 to the Year 1806, with Memoirs, Introduction, &c. will soon appear, in 6 vols. 8vo.

Shakspeare's Plays, without the laboured additions of his Annotators, are now printing in a style of superior beauty, accompanied each with five historical embellishments and a vignette, after original designs.

A new edition of a Narrative of the Voyages Round the World, performed by Captain James Cook, with an account of his Life, by Dr. KIPPIS, is printing in two neat cabinet volumes.

The Legend of Iona, a Metrical Romance, with other Poems, is announced by Mr. WALTER PATERSon,

Waverly; or 'Tis Sixty Years Since, a Novel, in three vols. 12mo. is printing at Edinburgh.

A volume of Sermons is in the press by the Rev. ARCHIBALD ALISON, LL.B. Prebendary of Sarum, and author of Essays on the Nature and Principles of Taste.

At the sale of the libraries at Edin burgh of the second Duke of Queensbury, and the late Mr. Hunter, a very fine "King's Vale Royal" brought 15l.; and King James's Exercises, given probably by Ben Jonson to the Duke, as his well known autograph appears on the title-page, sold for 441. but the books in general did not fetch high prices.

[blocks in formation]

1814.] Literary and Philosophical Intelligence.

citadel of Magdeburg; and such is the frightful effects of the various re-actions, that we learn from Mr. Semple, that the learned PROFESSOR HENRY, of Jena, has been long shut up, as a state prisoner, in a dungeon in Silesia, owing to his courtesy to Napoleon on his first entering that place.

The University of Halle, suppressed by Jerome Bonaparte, has been restored, and the lectures recommenced on the 3d of January.

FRANCE.

A Dictionary, with a Grammar of the Armenian Tongue, in Armenian and Latin, was finished at Paris a few years ago, by two natives of the country, and would long since have been published at the expence of the French government, but for the costly defensive wars in which France has been engaged, in repelling the implacable hostility of various despots. From the fifth to the fifteenth centuries, the schools of Armenia were renowned above all the others of Asia. One con sequence of this passion for knowledge was, that the most celebrated writings of antiquity were translated into the Armenian language. Among these were Homer, Eusebius, more complete than our Greek and Latin copies, and various other works on history, philosophy, medicine, poetry, &c. When this is considered, it seems almost impossible that none of the authors of antiquity, wanting in Europe, should be found concealed in the literature of Armenia, those of the Greeks in particular.

[ocr errors]

12s.

7s

2s. 6d 10s.

7s.

For the information of several of our correspondents, who have expressed much curiosity about the CODE NAPO LEON, we insert a view of the whole, as contained in the Catalogue of the French booksellers in London: Code Napoléon, 8vo. 1810. Pénal, 8vo. 1810 d'Instruction criminelle, 8vo. 1810 10s. 6d Ecclésiastique, 12mo. 1811 de la Conscription, 8vo. 1810 de Commerce, 8vo. 1808 de Procédure civile, 8vo. 1810 10s. A gentleman who has just returned from France, where he has been detained a prisoner at large for several years, has acquainted us with the particulars of many great improvements lately made in the roads, &c. in that country. It appears that the French government has adopted the suggestion of our correspondent COMMON SENSE, (see the number for May 1, 1810, or page 309 of our 29th volume, for the details of this plan,

161

and of another for marine cottages). Instead of raising a stone at the end of every mile, a small house has been built, in which is placed an invalided soldier, to whom a pension is given, with a plot of ground, which he and his wife cultivate, and maintain their children in a state of independance. He is supplied with arms and tools by government, and the extent of his charge of watch and labour is half a mile to the right and left of his house. This plan is adopted in all the country through which our informant passed; and he understands that it is to be put in practice through the whole empire.

[graphic]
[graphic]

ITALY.

A work, not only curious but instructive, has long been going forward in Italy. It is an account, historical and topogra phic, of that most interesting region, prior to the dominion of the Romans; to be illustrated with maps and plates.

RECUPERO, Secretary of the academy of Catania, having written a History of Mount Etna, the work is about to be printed. It will form two large volumes, and be embellished with plates.

JACOPI has published at Pavia, an examination of the doctrines of Dr. Darwin, relative to the retrograde movement of the fluids contained in the lymphatics.

RUSSIA.

The Imperial Academy of Petersburgh, a few years ago, offered a large premium for a chronological account of what are styled the Byzantine writers, on all subjects, from the foundation of Constanti nople down to its capture by the Turks; a period of the utmost importance in the history of the arts, of literature, of religion, and of politics, of all the old world.

Among the indications of animals either now unknown, or at least not inhabitants of the countries where these indications are now found, may be reckoned the bones of the head, and the horns, lately found deep in a peat moss in the north of Russia. The animal must have been about twelve feet long: the horns were two feet and a half long, and one foot and a half round at the root, From the appearance of this imperfect skeleton, it seems to have belonged to the Urus or Aurochs, mentioned by Cæsar in his account of Germany, of which the real existence has been sometimes denied by critics. It is not now doubted, however, that the true Urus may still be occasionally seen in the forests of Poland, and even in the mountains of Siberia.

[graphic]

A late

« ПредыдущаяПродолжить »