book, for that invariably foars among the higher regions of politics. In thefe notes the great fource of complaint is that the colonels of militia regiments receive the fame pay as colonels in the army, though they have never shed their blood in Flanders or America. Now we have always fuppofed that half-pay, and other ftipends, in the nature of penfions, were given for former fervices, but that the pay attached to actual fervice was given for the duties then performing, or which the officers might be called upon to perform; and, as the militia colonels are equally liable with the regulars to every kind of service within this kingdom, we fee no reafon why their emoluments should not be the fame. But, fays the author, men of fortune take these commiffions to gratify their own private interefts. Surely his ideas of the fituation of a man of fortune, at the head of a militia regiment, must be very inaccurate, if he can fuppofe for a moment that the pay is an equivalent for the additional expence which he mult incur; for he will not eafily perfuade thofe, who have been long in the habits of living in refined comfort, to conform to the rigid oeconomy of a military life; nor is it necessary that country gentlemen, who voluntarily come forward in the fervice of their country, fhould be deprived of thofe comforts which their fortune entitles them to enjoy.

It is matter of great indignation to this author that the militia fhould be cloathed in fcarlet, (we wonder he does not also object to fine linen) if, fays he, they were cloathed in "honeft blue," (true blue we fuppofe he means) they would fight as boldly as a Pruffian cuiraffier or Auftrian huffar; but in fcarlet they will combine with the enemy, as the mercenaries did with the Roman legions, to fubvert the empire. A moft excellent argument. True blue for ever!

It is amufing to fee how every object is diftorted when the design is to excite difcontent. The Duke of Richmond and his fortifications, of course, furnifh a topic, but they are confined to the notes, though they are not announced in the title page. An officer, the author we prefume, vifits one of his Grace's forts, which he finds occupied only by an old woman, and much ridicule is attempted to be thrown on guns intrufted to the care of an old woman; but if a garrifon had been found in this fort, what language would have been held? Should we not have heard of the fhameful expence of a governor, a lieutenant-governor, a gunner, and a company of artillery, to take care of a few old honey-combed guns. Such is the fate of minifters, if they are economical, their parfimony is burlefqued; if they proceed on a more expenfive fcale, they are

C 2

charged

charged with increafing the public burthens, in order to aug ment their own patronage.

Another charge is brought against minifters in the notes, (for the text of this work is throughout a kind of Lawyer's declamation, the indictment and pleadings being confined to the notes) minifters are charged with lavishing the public money, without producing fair accounts of debtor and creditor. As a reply to this, we would afk the author, whether he is really fo very ignorant as not to know, that every fhilling of the public money which is expended is brought to a specific account, except the fingle article of fecret fervice money, the amount of which has been fo fmall during the whole of this adminiftration, that the most inveterate enemies of government have not dared to found any charge upon that head.

We fhould be guilty of injuftice to the ingenuity of this writer, if we concluded without thanking him for the novelty of his conjecture, that the revolution in France was produced by the commercial treaty with this country. It reminds us of a Jeu d'Esprit of Voltaire, in which he deduces the fall. of the Perfian empire from a man's picking up a pebble on the shore of the Cape of Good Hope.

ART. IV. A Letter to a Member of the House of Commons, upon the meeting of Parliament, by the Author of the Letters to Mr. Fox, upon the dangerous and inflammatory Tendency of his Conduct in Parliament, and upon the Principles, Duties, and Compofition of Minorities*. 8vo. pp. 152. 3s. Owen. 1794.

THI

HIS writer, whom, whatever we may think of his opinions, we must unequivocally praife for manly vigour of ftyle, rich and natural eloquence, with much originality of conception, continues in this Letter to urge, and apparently to expect, the formation of a third party in parliament, in oppofition both to the miniftry and to the minority. The event has not juftified his expectation. One circumstance which must have diminished the effect of a pamphlet, qualified by its intrinfic force to have made itfelf extenfively felt, is this, that in the warmth of his hoftility against the persons in power, he has urged, and repeated the charge of imbecility where it is not only inapplicable, but ridiculous: where all, who ever

*See Brit. Crit, Vol. I. p. 198.

3

vifited

vifited the fenate of Great Britain, or have read the reports of its proceedings, know it to be fo contradictory to the fact, that even the most virulent enmity is too prudent to advance it. He who fhould call Hercules a pigmy, could perfuade thofe only, who never faw or heard of Hercules.

One point principally laboured by the letter-writer in the beginning of his tract, is to remove the fufpicion of inconfiftency or unreasonable change, which had arifen from the different political complexion of his firft and fecond letter to Mr. Fox. The ground on which the author undertakes to clear himself from this fufpicion, is this; that when his first letter was written, he confidered it neceffary" to ftrengthen the adminiftration, no matter how or of whom it were compofed; it was neceffary to induce the nation, distracted and perplexed with the impudence and fophiftry of parties, to confront its enemies, and to undertake the war with refolution and with unanimity." p. 11.

"Let me afk," he fays again," not only of you, my dear fir, but of the enlightened and honeft of every party in the kingdom, whether the month of January 1783, when Dumourier had already turned his face towards Holland, when the decrees of the National Convention had already taken rebellion under the protection of the victorious armies of France; when London was deformed and horrible with foreign faces; and the murderers of Paris and Avignon ftalked fearless through our ftrees; when anarchy and revolution refounded from every ale-house bench; when rancour and difcontent fcowled from the brows of industry; when the whole kingdom heaved with convulfive throes, and the great fabric of our state trembled upon its bafis; 1 fay, let me ask if that had been a time to enquire whether the minifter had arrived by wholesome means at the feat of government, or had prefided there with wisdom or juftice?" p. 15.

But when the fecond letter was written, Holland, Brabant, and Flanders had been delivered, and the afpect of affairs at home, according to the notions of this writer, required that he fhould speak out, and declare his genuine fentiments of the administration, which then appeared to be extremely hoftile. In this manner.does this writer folve the apparent variation in his politics, which we shall content ourselves with repeating, in juftice to him, without adding any further comment.

The writer continues then throughout this letter a ftrong adverfary of the prefent adminiftration, towards which he even affumes an air of great contempt: but, at the same time, he continues an afferter of the juftice and neceffity of the prefent war; a decided enemy to the violence, anarchy, and cruelty of France: and a zealous advocate for our own conftitu

tion, except that he is one of thofe who think that it would be improved by what is called purifying, that is, changing the reprefentation. His declaration of his fentiments on the grounds of the war is fpirited and able.

"The real ground of this war is to repel invafion, to refift op preffion, to defend the laws, the liberty, the religion, the heartas, the fields of Great Britain; the ground of the war is the ground we ftand upon; it is our native foil upon which we rear our children, which hides the dear and facred remains of our beloved progenitors! Let me refume myself-What are we fighting for? For the ancient monarchy in France? Heaven forbid! For the conftitutional monarchy and the Jacobins of 1789, as vile and criminal, though not so able or fo bold as thofe of 1792? Still Heaven forbid! To deftroy the republic under any pretence? Oh Heaven forbid! Why then have we combined all Europe in a common cause? and why do we cover the ocean with our fleets, and the continent with our tents? To comprefs within the girdle of their state a ferocious race, who have declared an interneciary war against every establishment, every form of human policy, every order of civil life and fociety; who have trampled upon every tye, every duty, every principle which connects men together; who have broke through every attachment, either local, or natural, or civil; who have made all property common, and put the perfons, the property, the profeffions, and the will of men, at the public requifition? Who weep with indifcriminating fury the inhabitants from the villages, and drive their perfants from the plough to the flaughter-house; indifferent to their loffes, impenetrable to pity or remorfe; a race who have forfworn commerce and the peaceful arts, who have left their fields unfown, while they meditate the plunder of foreign harvefts; who have left their houfes defolate and forlorn, while they threaten with conquest and extermination the towns, the farms, the cottages, of farrounding nations.

Thefe are the caufes of the war and the causes too why all the questions that regard a peace are fo vain and illufory. Why should we treat (I fpeak not now of the national character and glory) why fhould we treat? Will treaties bind this furious people? No: they must perceive their own madness, and punish their own crimi nals, before any power can treat with them; and they must return to principles and to arts, and employments too, before we, or other ftates, can lay down our arms with fecurity." P. 48,

In fpeaking of the Jacobins, this author confiders the entire bulk of the French nation as Jacobin, and fays with much found reafon, "the Jacobins have committed no crimes that I know of, which have not been participated and avowed by the nation;" and afterwards, "the fact is, every

Properly, internecine,

mang

man, while he moves on with the ftream, is Jacobin, and when he thinks of ftopping this career, or of breafting the flood, he becomes conftitutionalist, or foederalift, or fomething else, no matter what, the name of which is a passport to the guillotine."

Throughout this letter are fcattered many fplendid and many eloquent paffages; but those we have already cited, will fuffice to fhew that the compofition proceeds from one who is a master of ftyle. Many of the author's complaints against the adminiftration are now obfolete. The rich WeftIndian Archipelago, pointed out, as he fays, "by the finger of common fenfe and of nature herself, to recompence our maritime and commercial island for the dangers and expences of the war," is now conquered; and a naval victory has been gained, of fufficient fplendour to filence all murmurs on that fubject. Let us then leave this pamphlet with a hope that the British arms may yet conquer all complainants into filence.

ART. V. Experiments on the Nervous Syftem with Opium and Metalline fubftances, made chiefly with the View of determining the Nature and Effects of Animal Electricity. By Alexander Munro, M.D. Profeffor of Medicine, Anatomy, and Surgery, in the University of Edinburgh. 4to. PP, 43. 38. Neil and Co.

THE opinion which the learned and justly celebrated Profef

for entertains of this new influence, is different from that of either Galvani, Valli, or Fowler, inafmuch as he supposes it to be electricity, or a fluid greatly refembling it, and yet totally foreign to the animal, and, as he thinks, that it acts on the muscles, upon the common principles of a ftimulus to the

nerves,

As our business is with the conclufion drawn by the learned writer from his facts and reafonings, we shall not scruple to quote his last words as introductory to our remarks on the general merits of his publication,

Dr. Munro concludes with the following great deductions or corollaries from his experiments:

. That the fluid, which, on the application of metalline bodies To animals, occafions convulfions of their mufcles, is electrical, or refembles greatly the electrical fluid.

"2. That this fluid does not operate directly on the mufcular bres, but merely by the medium of their nerves.

3. That