of the United Colonies of N. Eng- Majesty'sCommissioners andJus land respecting Mt. Hope. tices in the Narragansett country, " This gives a history of the lands of Mt. Hope and of the Narragansett country in obedience to the king's letter, and further information is exhibited in the next paper, called A true account of the rights of the petitioners to the Narragansett lands and country adjacent. Charles however was not satisfied, and in the next paper he issues his "Commission to Edward Cranfield and others, to examine into the claims and titles to the Narragansett country," and these Commissioners issue their "Sum Ions to all persons claiming rights in the Narragansett country to appear ;" and finally these Commissioners, Oct. 20, 1683, make their "report to the king," and "an additional report." The result was, that jurisdiction of Narragansett belonged to Connec, ticut, and propriety of soil to the heirs and assigns of Winthrop, Chiffinch, Lynde, and others; but, notwithstanding this report, and perhaps in consequence of a quo warranto issued, though not prosecuted against the governour and council of Connecticut, the king assumed jurisdiction, as ap pears by the next paper. In 1684, a writ of scire facias having issued out of the Court of Chancery against the governour and company of Massachusettsbay and the good old charter" having fallen, we next find "James 2d's commission, constituting a President &Council for Massachu. setts, Narragansett country," &c. Order of the President and Council respecting the records of Narragansett, Proceedings of a Court of his The next paper is called Paukatuck river, the boundary between Connecticut and Rhode Island. Act of the assembly of Rhode Island in favour of Humphrey Atherton and associates. Description and history of New ton, by Rev. Jonathan Homer. Natural history and descrip tion of the slug-worm, by Wm. Dandridge Peck, communicated to the Massachusetts Agricultural Society. This long and valu able paper having been published in the Massachusetts Mercury, in a separate pamphlet, and again in this volume of the Collections, we shall not attempt to abridge it. It obtained the Agricultural Society's premium of 50 dollars and the gold medal. It is wor thy of diligent perusal by farme ers and lovers of science, as it displays a mind, attentive to prac tical good, and curious in the mi nute researches of neglected entomology, We now close our exhibition of the contents of this volume. We have been particular in the accounts of the several papers, in order that no subject may seem to be forgotten or despised. If a good history of America is ever to be written, materials of every kind must be diligently accumulated, and historical facts must be displayed in every point of view. We are therefore glad, that the first volume of "the American Annals," by Holmes has appeared, and that the second volume is preparing for the press; for, though we mean to give no opinion of their value, at present, we think that they must be valuable, even if they are ridiculous. On the same principle we wish every encouragement to Mrs. Warren's history of the American war, and we would not discourage any compiler and historical poacher, however obscure and contemptible, if a single new fact is offered, or an erroneous statement corrected. The most weak and meagre journalists and scribblers made the road easy to Livy and Sallust. Bede, Baker, and Holinshed preceded the bright days of Henry and Hume. The history of Gibbon is indebted to monkish legends, ecclesiastical martyrologies, and the wildest reveries of sinners and saints. We do not mean to compare Ramsay, Marshall, Holmes, Trumbull, Morse, and Adams, with Stith, Smith, Beverly, Hutchinson, and Mather, yet we are bold to say that a good history of America, of any of the individual states, and the revolutionary war, is still wanting; that those writers have only collected and arranged some materials for building, which, with the future Jabours of equally industrious workmen, may serve to strengthen or adorn the eternal monument of an American Tacitus or Robertson. and variations. To which is added in notes a full variation of the examples of adjectives, with a table of abbreviations ex- · plained. Philadelphia, for W. P. Farrand, by H. Maxwell. 1804. pp. 103. AS we unfortunately do not possess the original of this work, and after some inquiry have been unable to procure it in any of the publick or private libraries around us, we sit down to the examination of it, we confess, without the means of estimating the merit of Mr. Farrand with exactness. From the general perspicuity and purity of his language, we may venture to say, that, notwithstanding a few unauthorized Latinisms, the work appears neither awkward nor uncouth in its English dress. We do not however discern why the System of Prosody, which is inserted in the original Latin, should not be translated as well as the rest. On opening the volume, our eyes were attracted by the recommendations of Mr. John Andrews, the Faculty of Dickenson college, and Mr. W. Stoughton; and we were in hopes of finding some information on the work to supply our deficiences. They confine themselves however to remarks on the merit of the translation, and the propriety of studying the grammars of the ancient langua ges in our vernacular tongue. This opinion has of late become fashionable, though it has received the countenance of none of the celebrated English schools; but whether it has not arisen from the decline of a taste for classical literature, and aversion to what Lord Bacon calls "deep, fruitful, and operative" study, may be ques tioned. The common plea, that boys should not be taught in a language that they do not understand, is worth nothing; for the nature and philosophy of grammar must be equally as incomprehensible to a child in English as in Syriack. The only thing to be hoped for is to teach them the mechanical application of rules; and rules, which are slowly acquired, because in an unusual language, will be firmly and lastingly associated with their examples. With regard to the merit of the work itself, we do not discover that it possesses any extraordinary claims to distinction. If we must have an English grammar, the Gloucester, with all its imperfections, is in every respect more copious, more learned, and equally correct. Dr. Wettenhall follows Lancelot, the author of the Port Royal Grammar, in reducing all the inflexions of nouns to two, parisyllabick, and imparisyllabick, a division of doubtful utility to scholars, and certainly improper for boys who require many rules and few exceptions, rather than few rules with exceptions almost as numerous as coincidences with them. It would be easy to point out other instances of its inferiority to the GloucesterGrammar, and none in which it is superiour. ART. 82. Farrand's course of Latin studies: or classical selection, published in a cheap, correct, and improved form, comprised in five parts. For the use of American schools. Philadelphia. For Farrand & Co. by John Adams. 1805. MR. Farrand's design is to colfect into a single volume those parts of the usual introductory books, which are studied in schools, in order to avoid the useless expense of the original volumes. For the judgment with which this is executed he deserves the thanks of those instructors, who use the books from which he has selected. ART. 83. The Gamesters; or ruins of inпосепсе. An original novel, founded in truth. By Caroline Matilda Warren. Boston. D. Carlisle, printer. 1805. AMONG the ephemera of this species, that continually fiit from the press and expire, this is unquestionably the most puny. It appears to have been conceived by an intellect in a state of stagnation, and to have been warmed into being by the affection of folly. The avidity, with which it was run after by the town the moment it was hatched, reminded us of Sir Joseph Banks in pursuit of a butterfly; and we were ready, from the finery of its appearance, to exclaim with the president, "Morocco's Emperor, by the living Gods !" In what way the ladies have been infected by this vermin, we confess ourselves unable to determine, for it appears on examination not only too inanimate to buzz; but too insignificant to sting. History settles the period of its nativity in 1805; the month and the day of its birth are left to the uncertainty of conjecture; that it existed during the inclemencies of the commencement of the year, or that it will survive thro' the ensuing frosts of the season, is,we apprehend, not a little problematical. As we experience no particular ex 670 same white hours, with their golden wings, are rather motley birds of rhetorick; and, to determine their species, we must arrange them, we apprehend,under the title of bulfinches, with as additional / to the orthography of the fowl. CORRESPONDENCE. The following is a letter from the authors of A compendious history of N. E. whose receipt we acknowledged in our last. For the sake of ·~~being just to its merits, and of our own convenience, we give it to our readers by little and little'; with a request however that, if they reád it at all, they would first read it entire, a task which the difference of type will enable them readily to perform. If they should complain that we have little mercy on their pockets, by filling our pages with scraps of uninteresting controversy, they must comfort themselves by contrasting their condition with that of us, who, besides sometimes throwiing away our cents, are often obliged, not only to write what is duil ourselves, but also to keep from sleeping over the dullness of others. › 1 To the Reviewers of the Com pendious History of Newengland. [See Anth. Oct. 1805. p. 541.] GENTLEMEN, WE should not trouble you with any remarks on your review of our Work, did we not deem it necessary to counteract injurious effects, which might follow, were we silent, from some of your misrepresentations. Of your delay of more than a year in noticing our work, after you had received it; of the time and circumstances in which you have brought it before the publick; and of the spirit which obviously dictated your review we lansay nothing. They speak guage which we need not interpret to your readers. You have already faid too much. The review of Dufief's Grammar, an did not appear until eûr laft numbet, though we received it earlier than the Compendious History, which was reviewed in the number preceding. Had We been permitted to follow our inclination merely, the title page of your history alone would have appeared in the Anthology; for upon reading it we found it impoffible to be at once juk to the publick, and pleasing to you. That a work like ours was "needed," though you "adventure to pronounce it was not," you have admitted, by giving your high approbation of one of a similar kind since published. Your disrelish of the history of New-England must, therefore, have some other exciting cause, than an unnecessary multiplication of books on that subject; for you admit that ours is but the second work of the kind. Is it because an exhibition of venerable characters,and sound religious + See Review p. 542, rst col. 3d par, CORRESPONDENCE: principles, of our forefathers reproaches and wounds some of their descendants. As for ourselves, we feel neither wounded nor reproached by this infinuation; and we blush for gentlemen, who have no more modesty than to trust it on paper. You correctly quote from our preface, the reasons given for our publication; that the materials for this history were scattered in volumes" too expensive &c. to be useful to the rising generation." In your animadversions on this quotation, why did you omit the phrase," rising generation," Because that phrafe, at that moment was not emphatical. In making quo tations in reference to a particular point, it is unneceffary to recite a whole para graph, or even a whole fentence; and if you have a particle of candour, you mtuft acknowledge, that we had as much as was needed in the cafe before us. What we cenfured in you was the lump ing of the Summary History with the bulky materials of former writers on the fame fubject. "Volumes too expenfive and too disjointed" were therefore the emphatical words; for if Miss Adams's work was as concife as yours, it was equally useful as yours to "the rifing generation." and represent us as saying, the A wretched quibble ! You implicitly did fay fo by claffing her book among the coftly and chaotick materials of Newengland history. What we meant and said, was, that in our opinion all previous histories of New-England, inclu Vol. II. No. 12. 30 ding her's among the rest, were too" voluminous and expensive to be useful to the rising genera tion. To the correctness of this opinion we have her testimony and your own; for she has abridged her work for the use of schools, and you have approved the measure. You faid no fuch thing. What you meant we know not; what you faid was this: "The materials for the hifto ry of this favoured portion of the world though abundant, have hitherto been fcattered in many volumes, too expen five and too disjointed, to be rendered ufeful to the rifing generation. To reduce them to a form, order, and fize adapted to the use of the higher classes in fchools, and to families, has been our aim in compiling this small work." This is what you faid, and we must try to refolve it. What are too expenfive and too disjointed? Volumes? Disjointed volumes is nonsense, unless you mean to criminate the bookbinders. Befides, it is materials, not volumes, which you would talk of reducing to form, &c. We must then understand you as faying, that MATERIALS for the history of Neweng→ land have hitherto been too expensive & too disjointed, &c. Of course the Summary History of Newengland is among the rubbisk. Now this is the very injustice and cruelty of which we complain. After the indefatigable and to herself detrimental labours of compilation, you allow no other merit to Miss A's work, than that of making part of abundant, mishapen materials, " for the hiftory of this favoured portion of the world," to which your plaftick hands were to give order, form, and beauty. And yet your history of Newengland is larger than hers! This we affirm is treating Mifs Adams not with uncourteous neglect merely, from which. her fex fhould have faved her, but as an author with remorfeless contempt. But your most injurious misrepresentations remain to be noticed. You say, that we have " See Mouth, Anthol. Vol. 2. P. $43. |