This first number contains exactly 100 pages, or nearly 13 fheets, and carries the dictionary as far as the adverb ABOUT; that is exactly as far as the first two sheets, of Johnfon's folio Dictionary. Now Johnfon's firft volume, of the folio Edition, contains 264 fheets; confequently Dr. Dawfon's, preferving the fame proportion, (by the rule of three) will require 1716 fheets to proceed as far in the alphabet as Dr. Johnson's firft volume. Allowing him therefore to make his volumes as thick as thofe of Dr. Jamiefon's admirable Scottish Dictionary, the first volume of which contains 81 fheets, it will require more than twenty-one volumes to complete half his work. The whole will then be about 48 volumes, allowing a little fpace for a more extended preface, and other acceffaries. The number of years which fuch a publication would require, at any thing like the rate of its beginnings, far exceeds any modern calculation of the probable duration of the world; we fear therefore that the ufe of the English language will be completely at an end, before the heirs, adminiftrators, or affigns of Dr. Dawfon can finifh his arduous undertaking.

To comfort our readers under the defperate profpect, thus exhibited to them, of ever feeing a completion of this elaborate work, we will briefly confider how the prefent fpecimens are executed. From which confideration it will,, we think, appear that even our remote pofterity, if it fhould fubfift fo long as to fee an end of the publication, will not deferve to be envied by us on that account. The Prolepfis or plan of the work will not long detain us. It principally fiates the idea of the author, that no two words in a language are strictly fynonymous; and, objecting to the mode of definition ema ployed by Johnfon and other compilers of dictionaries, proa pofes to adopt a different method. What that method is we fhall fee more clearly by example, than by the dry explana tions of the Prolepfis.

"ABA'SE, v. a. [abaiffer, Fr.] To caft down*; with refpect to condition in life +.

"Caft down] Or, bring down, or, bring low; any one of thefe three terms being fufficiently expreffive of the idea which is conveyed by the word abafe in common with any other verb, and of that which is fuggefted by its etymology, as coming from the Latin bafis. Skinner expreffes this general fignification of the word by three Latin terms, minuere, deprimere, gradu dejicere. The laft of thefe verbs, without gradu, appears to us to come neareft the etymological import of abafe; with the addition of gradu it answers more eactly to that of degrade."

"Condition in life] Dr. Johnfon explains the word thus D d

BRIT. CRIT. V OL. XXXVI. OCT. 1810.

10

1. Happy fhepherd, with thanks to the gods, ftill think to be thankful, that to thy advancement their wifdoms have thee abased ‡.'

2.

With unrefifted might the monarch reigns;

He levels mountains and he raifes plains;

And, not regarding difference of degree,

Sidney.

Abas'd¶ your daughter, and exalted me.' Dryden.

"C 3. Sith it is no news for God to be great and glorious; but for the eternal and ever-living God to be abafed, to be abaf d unto death, to the death of the Crofs, is that which could not but amaze the angels and confound devils."

Bp. Hall. 4. 'Not that I fpeak in refpect of want: for I have learned in whatsoever ftate I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abafed §, and I know how to abound.'".

Phil. iv. 11, 12.

"Luke

to saft down, to deprefs, to bring low, almost always' (he might have fafely faid always, when properly used) in a figurative and perfonal fenfe. But none of thefe terms, though figuratively and perfonally applied, convey the precife idea of the verb abafe, without refpect being had to condition in life. A perfon may be caft down on receiving the news of his friend's decease; he may be depreffed at the thought of his own approaching diffolution, being brought low by a long and fevere illness, and yet not be abafed, his rank or condition in life continuing the fame. In the quotation from Locke, abafe is ufed very improperly for depress, and in that from Job, where it is used in oppofition to pride, humble would have been more proper. Vid. Jobnfon's Dia. on the

word.

"Mr. Hobbes, in his Leviathan, applies the word to the reduction of the value of a thing- but bafe money may easily be enhanced, or abafed.' In our judgment this is a most improper and, we should imagine, fingular acceptation of the word."

For the difference of abafe from its fynonymes humble, deprefs, degrade, fee their definitions in their places."

"Have thee abafed] That is, have brought thee low-fub. jected thee to the low condition of a fhepherd."

"Abas'd your daughter] That is, made her condition in life lover, and mine higher."

To be abafed unto death] In this example, the word is ob. viously used in allufion to one caft down from the highest to the loveft condition in life-to a perfonage of great power and tranf cendent dignity, who had been brought (or rather, in this cafe, brought himself) low in life—had become fubject to all the evils and infelicities attendant upon a low condition in life." "How to be abafed] That is, (to give the meaning of the tranflaters)

7.1.

"Luke xiv. 11. our tranflators have ufed the word abase in oppofition to pride, as in Job, where we have just noted that bumble would have been more properly used; but here we find in the fame verfe the fame verb in the original rendered by abafe, and alfo by humble- For whofoever exalteth himself, fhall be abafed, ταπεινωθησεται ; and he that humbleth himfelf, ταπεινῶν atlov, fhall be exalted.' What, but the impropriety of applying the word abafe to a mental and moral act, could induce the tranf lators to avoid the repetition of it in the latter clause, where the impropriety was fomewhat more apparent ?"

Most of our readers will allow that here is much ado about nothing, objecting to Dr. Johnfon where there is no real cause of objection, and to the tranflators of the Bible, where they are right and the author wrong: for the how is very expreflive, and means as the Apoftle meant, that he knew with what temper of mind to bear abasement or exaltation namely, with contentment; alluding to the fentence immediately preceding; "I have learned in whatever state I am, therewith to be content." If we take the derivative of this word, what does the Philologer give us by way of a definition?" Abasement, the act of abafing;" which many will not understand, and they who do will not find it inftructive. But Dr. Dawson feems to think that an unintelligible definition is perfection, for he far exceeds this fpecimen in many places. Ex. "Abate, Attributive of a ftate of remiffion;" Abdicated, Attributive of being abdicated;" and, in general, derivatives have here only a reference to their primitive, with fome fcholaftic diftinction, fuch as it pleased the author to think accurate. But does Dr. D. think that Johnson could not have been as logical, or as metaphyfical as he, if he had not

tranflators) how to bear or to behave in a low condition in life, particularly in a state of indigence; for the contraft is here between want and abundance. We may remark, however, that though our tranflators ufe abase in its proper fenfe, fo far as it refpects condition in life, yet they have not with equal propriety made choice of a word to exprefs its connection with a verb which governs it. The word how, which they have inferted between the verbs, denotes the manner in which the thing announced by it is to be brought about, in this cafe, the manner of being abafed. But the apoftle means not to fay that he knows the manner of, but the thing itself-has experienced the being brought low in life-from a state of plenty the being caft down into a state of indigence. Oide Taroba, therefore, would have been more accurately rendered I know what it is to be abafed,' than I know how to be abafed.' Indeed, the expreffion how to be abafed, 3. e, how to be brought low in life, is next to unintelligible.

Dd 2

had

had a different object in view; that of being generally intel ligible to thofe who fhould cafually confult him. We fav generally, becaufe we know that fome of Johnfon's definitions have been ridiculed, as peculiarly unintelligible. But this was only when a word was in itself fo plain that nothing could make it plainer, and then he thought it allowable to give a fcholaftic definition. But to proceed with our inftances. "Abide v. n. trans, to abide upon the fame fpot with the object on which it is tranfitive," and this is to explain fuch fentences as," the Sun pulls in his light, as not abiding to see the fufferings of his Creator."" Able, Attributive of power, adequate to the object of its exertion; in oppofition to weaknefs, or want of means." Abortion, the production of what has perifhed in the womb, or through fufferance there is prefently to perish." "About, ferving to denote the circumftance of being outward to the object which it announceth; but having refpect to the compa's within which it lies." This may be very correct, but how many people will understand or be informed by it?

66

But we have a worse quarrel with the Philologer, which we must proceed to explain. It was the object of Dr. Johnfon, and an object well worthy of his great character, fo to choofe his examples, as to lead the enquirer to the best authors, and to imprefs upon his mind the beft precepts; nor has Dr D. altogether neglected this principle, in his quotations; yet in fome inftances he has deviated from it, in a way which we cannot but regard as extremely reprehenfible. When we fee Hobbes quoted, without neceffity, we cannot fail to wifh that fome more fafe author had been fubftituted; for why fhould the confulters of the dictionary be fent, on any account, to a Deift? Dr. D. however, quotes him feveral times, even in this fhort fpecimen. But what per verlene's of intellect can have led him to quote Evanfon's Diffonance?" (See p. 24.) If people cannot be taught English without being led to the enemies of the Gofpel, let them folecize for ever, and be happy to do it. Dr. J. Jebb's Works, might in our opinion, as well have been left unnoticed, but on this we will not contend. But, what have we to do with Mrs. Wollitonecroft's Letters? (p. 68.) Another fault, but inferior to this, is that of quoting authors who are no authority: as for inftance Mifs Parfons, (p. 12,) who may be a very pretty novel writer, but no established oracle of English. Still worfe, for authority, are the Anonymous -Public Prints, (p. 32,) famous for folecifms; the York Commitee, 1784, (p. 35,) famous chiefly for faction; Hamilton's Hydrophobia, (p. 68,) a good medical tract, and praifed by us

in our XIIIth Vol. p. 195, but now not eafily met with, aud when found no authority; Mr. Peacham on Drawing, (p. 87,) of doubtful merit in the art of drawing, and probably of none in that of writing*. Obierve alfo that all thefe curious, abfurd, or mifchievous quotations occur in only 100 pages, not a fourth part of which is occupied by quotations.

Confidering all we have ftated, it feems very plain that inftead of having any caufe to regret that this work can never be completed, it is a circumflance at which we have good reafon to rejoice.

BRITISH CATALOGUE.

POETRY.

ART. 16. Woman; a Poem. By Eaton Stannard Barrett, Efq. Student of the Middle Temple. 12mo.

1810.

4s. 6d. Murray.

The author of this poem tells us in his preface, that it is addreffed not to the freethinker and the philofopher, but to the libertine, the pedant, and the clown. In fhort it is a practical inftead of a theoretical effay, and in order to be comprehended requires of us an acquaintance, perhaps, with the common forms and relations of society, but, difpenfes with the perufal of Bolingbroke, Leibnitz, and Spinofa.

The author's defign cannot be objected to, and in fome parts he rifes to confiderable vigour, but he is evidently a very young writer; and many examples might eafily be adduced of bienes and abfurdity. We rather turn to the pleafing fide of the picture, and give the following fpecimen as indicative of tatte, feeling and vigour. After a general panegyric on the beauty of the fex, the author proceeds thus :

"But most in Erin native ifle divine,

Whofe harp harmonious ever loved the nine;
There where no ferpent bites, or zenith burns,
But meads of fhamrock quaff unmudded urns,
The lovely virgin blooms; obferve her mien,
Majeftic, gentle, and her fmile ferene,

Thefe examples have no claim to the benefit of Johnfon's apology, that words must be taken where they can be found, for they might be found any where.

Dd 3

"Her