Lift of Books,-with Remarks: P. 243. "Mr. Pelham, who was much delighted with Barry's acting, was pleased sometimes to fend for him, and now and then to call at his apartments. He once invited himself to fup with Barry, who was greatly elated with the high honour of enter taining a first minifter, and for that purpose he made the most magnificent preparation: but a profufion of elegant dishes, with the choicest and deareft wines, difpleased the statesman ; he reproved his hoft for his folly in feafting him as he himself would have treated a foreign ambassador, and never gave him another opportunity of expofing his want of judgment.' P. 261." Two bon mots on Mr. Garrick's love of money, and fondness for acting, Foote took care to, repeat as often as they came into his mind: "That he loved money fo well, that, whenever he fhould retire from the stage, he was fure he would commence banker's clerk, for the pleasure of continually counting over cash. "As for the ftage, he was fo fond of it, that, rather than not play, he would act in a tavern kitchen for a sop in the pan." P. 263. "Mr. Cumberland is the 'grandson,' (nepos indeed,) not phew,' of Dr. Bentley. ne P. 340. "About two days before he [Mr. Garrick] died, he was visited by a very old acquaintance, a man whofe company and converfation every body covets, because his humour is harmless, and his pleafantry diverting. He was introduced to Mrs. Garrick, who was indifpofed, from the fatigue fhe underwent in her long and conftant attendance upon her husband; a duty which he never omitted during any illness of his life. She perfuaded this friend to ftay and dine with her, expecting from him fome little alleviation of, her uneafinefs from fympathy, and fome eafe of condolement from his company in her present situation. While they were talking, Mr. Garrick came into the room; but oh! how changed from that vivacity and fprightlinefs which ufed to accompany every thing he faid, and every thing he did! His countenance was fallow and wan, his movement flow and folemn. He was wrapped in a rich night-gown, like that which he always wore in Lufignan, the venerable old king of Jerufalem; he prefented himfelf to the imagination of his friend as if he was just ready to act that cha 331 racter. He fat down; and during the fpace of an hour, the time he remained in the room, he did not utter a word. He rofe, and withdrew to his chamber. Mrs. Garrick and the gentleman dined; but Mr. Garrick was rather a little difpleased that he was not fent for to be préfent at their meal. "Dr. Heberden and Dr. Warren were now called in. Several other phyficians, many of whom were his intimate acquaintance, attended, without any defire of reward, and folely from an eager inclination to give him relief, and to prolong a life fo much valued by the public, and fo dear to his own friends. When Dr. Schomberg approached Mr. Garrick, he, with a placid fmile on his countenance, took him by the hand, and faid, "Though laft, not least in love." "The ftupor was not so powerful as to hinder him from converfing occafionally with a philofophical chearfulness. He told Mr. Lawrence, that he did not regret his being childless ; for he knew the quickness of his feelings was fo great, that, in cafe it had been his misfortune to have had difobedient children, he could not have fupported fuch an affliction. On the day before his death, feeing a number of gentlemen in his apartment, he asked Mr. Lawrence who they were; he was told they were all phyficians, who came with an intention to be of fervice to him. He fhook his head, and repeated the following lines of Horatio in the Fair Penitent: Another, and another, still facceeds; mer. "During the remainder of his time he continued eafy and compofed, and converfed with great tranquillity. He had fo little apprehenfion of death be ing fo near, that, I am well informed, he faid to the fervant who gave him a draught, a day or two before his death, "Well, Tom, I fhall do very well yet, and make you amends for all this trouble. "He died on Wednesday morning, Jan. the 20th, 1779, at eight o'clock, without a groan. Mr. Garrick's dif eafe was pronounced by Mr. Potts to be a palfy in the kidneys." P. 385. "His mind was fo bountiful, that he fcarce knew what it was to deny. He was once follicited by a friend to give a trifle to a poor widow. He He asked how much he thould give. About two guineas. No, that I will not. Why, then, give what you please. He prefented his friend with a banknote of 30l. Of this I fhould defpife the mention, if it were a matter of rarity and wonder. A gentlewoman who had known him from his youth, and had been acquainted with his relations at Lichfield, applied to him for affiftance in her neceffities. He made her a prefent of one hundred pounds. He had feveral almoners, to whom he gave fums of money to diftribute to fuch objects as they approved. Heaven only knows the extent of that beneficence which flowed continually from this large-minded man." Mr. Garrick's foreign being lefs known than his domestic transactions, and redounding equally at least to his honour, "his entertainment in France and Italy" (vol. II. ch. 34) will, we doubt not, be an agreeable repast to our readers. P. 78. "From his countrymen, whom he faw in France and Italy, Mr. Garrick was fure to meet with that respect and friendship which were due to a man of his genius, confequence, and character. He was very happy to meet with them, and they rejoiced in having an opportunity to fhew him every mark of refpect and kindness in their power, and which he could reafonably expect from them. His access to perfons of high and diftinguished rank on the continent was, by his acquaintance with the nobility of England then abroad, rendered as eafy and as frequent as his own ftation in life would admit. The princes of Italy, fome of them the defcendants and fucceffors of the Roman patricians, affect a grandeur and magnificence, and a ftate of referve unknown to their anceltors. A Cæfar, a Lucullus, and a Cicero, would have converfed freely with Rofcius and fopus in the Roman forum, and admitted them to the moft familiar converfe in their houses and villas. An Italian Marchefe would, with fome difficulty, admit a Garrick at his levee, much less would he invite him to a converfationé. An oftentatious pride and diftant ceremony fupply the place of real grandeur and company a taste of that art in which he was known fo greatly to excel. Such a request he very readily confented to, for indeed his compliance coft him nothing. He could, without the leaft preparation, transform himfelf into any character, tragic or comic, and feize inftantaneously upon any paffion of the human mind. He could make a fudden transition from violent rage, and even madness, to the extremes of levity and humour, and go through the whole circle of theatric evolutions with the moft furprising velocity. *One of the moft illuftrious princes of Italy requested he would favour him with fome very striking or affecting fcene in one of the most admired English tragedies. Mr. Garrick immediately recited a foliloquy of Macbeth, which is fpoken by him during the inftant of time when a dagger is prefented to the disturbed imagination of a man ready to perpetrate a horrid murder. His ardent look, expreffive tones, and impaffioned action, convinced the nobleman + of the reality of his great reputation. But the most remarkable inftance which I ever heard of our Rofcius's great power to raise the attention, and fix the admiration, of an intelligent and very polite company, was told me by a gentleman of unqueftioned veracity, and who related the occurrence to me from the mouth of one who was prefent when it fell out. "Not long before Mr. Garrick left Paris, in 1765, feveral perfons of the firft diftinction of both fexes, English and French, met by appointment at the Hotel de Mr. and Mrs. Gar rick, and Mademoiselle Clairon, were of the party. The converfation turned for fome time on the belles lettres, in which the merits of feveral eminent writers were difcuffed with equal judgment and candour. Many critical obfervations were made on the action and eloquence of the French and English theatres; and, at the request of this very brilliant circle, La Clairon and Garrick confented to exhibit various fpecimens of their theatrical talents, which produced much entertainment. This friendly conteft lafted for a confiderable time, with great animation on both fides; the company loudly declaring their approbation, in the ftrongeft terms, of the two exhibitors. The Duke of Parma. "It "It was remarked, that the French gave the preference to Mr. Garrick; and that the English, with equal politeness, adjudged the victory to Mademoiselle Clairon. But as the greater part of the former were but little acquainted with the English language, Mr. Garrick was induced to relate a fact, and afterwards to exhibit it by action, which happened in one of the provinces of France at the time he was there, and of which he had been an eyewitness. A father, he said, was fondling his child at an open window, from whence they looked into the street; by one unlucky effort the child sprung from his father's arms, fell upon the ground, and died upon the fpot: what followed, he faid, was a language which every-body understood, for it was the language of Nature; he immediately threw himself into the attitude in which the father appeared at the time the child leaped from his arms. "The influence which the reprefentation of the father's agony produced on fuch a company, and exhibited by this darling fon of Nature, in the filent but expreffive language of unutterable forrow, is eafier to be imagined than expreffed; let it fuffice to fay, that the greatest aftonishment was fucceeded by abundant tears. "As foon as the company had recovered from their agitation, Mademoiselle Clairon catched Mr. Garrick in her arms, and kiffed him; then turning to Mrs. Garrick, fhe apologifed for her conduct, by saying, it was an involuntary mark of her applaufe. Mademoiselle Clairon was always a favourite actress of Mr. Garrick; he faw her when he was in the dawn of her reputation, when he paid his firft vifit to Paris in 1752; and though Mademoiselle Dumefnil was then the favourite actress of the French theatre, and justly admired by foreigners, as well as her own countrymen, he ventured to pronounce, that Clairon would excel all competitors. When he was laft at Paris, fhe had, in the opinion of the public, fulfilled his prediction; on which he published a print, from a drawing of Gravelot, called a Prophetie Accompli. "Mr. Garrick's refiding for a confiderable time in France and Italy afforded him an opportunity to compare the English ftage with the theatres on the continent; and it cannot be doubted, that he noticed with accuracy the form of their buildings, their feveral ornaments and decorations, the per 333 formance of the actors, and all the various compofitions of the authors which were worthy of observation. "Notwithstanding the learned of France, and fome other countries on the continent, pretend, in their stage exhibitions, to a moft accurate imitation of the ancient Greek and Roman dramatic authors, Mr. Garrick was foon convinced that every country, in its theatrical reprefentations, has a tafte peculiar to itfelf, derived from the genius of the people, He faw very plainly, that the characters of Corneille, Voltaire, and Racine, were very different from thofe of the Greek tragedians; and that the French comedies and Italian burlettas were far from perfect imitations of Ariftophanes, Plautus, and Terence. He faw too, that the nearest refemblance of the Greek tragedies is to be found in the prefent Italian operas; they represent fome great action in a fimple fable; one eminent character generally is the object of the poet, as well as a strict obfervation of the unities; the mufic in the overture, the recitative, and the airs, bear fome correfpondence to the ancient chorus. The excellent Metaftafio, by the force of his genius, brought the Greek and Roman heroes to enrich and dignify the Italian opera. His Alexander, Regulus, Cato, and Themistocles, are as truly, though not as ftrongly, delineated, as the masterly characters of Shakespeare himself." We shall now take our leave of Meff, Garrick and Davies performance with a diftich analogous to what has been faid of Mr. Richardfon the printer: "If bookfellers thus cleverly can write, Let writers deal in books, and booksellers indite," We could with the head prefixed (from a die of Pingo) had been a younger and more pleafing refemblance. 51. A Collection of all the Wills, now known to be extant, of the Kings and Queens of England, Princes and Princelles of Wales, and every Branch of the BloodRoyal, from the Reign of William the Conqueror to that of Henry the Seventh § exclufive. With explanatory Notes, and a Gloffary. 18s. in Boards. 4to. Nichols. THE ingenious author of the Rambler has obferved, that " it is the bufinefs of a good antiquary, as of a good man, to have mortality always before him;" and the prefent learned Prefident of the Society of Antiquaries has established it as an efpecial merit in § Rather "Edward the Fourth, both inclufive," • No. 71. his worthy predeceffor, that he fo well tranfa&ted "the last great at which a wife man does with refpect to his worldly affairs t." If it be the delight of antiquaries to rake into the afhes of the dead, it is the prerogative of antiquaries to make " even in their afhes live their wonted fires." Familiar epiftles, houfhold books, family hiftories, and the manifold fcraps of written or oral tradition, are made fubfervient to this laudable end. As Homer's heroes in their last moments are infpired with the gift of prophecy, fo the last wills of Kings and nobles divulge the fecrets of their fouls, and the history of their patt lives, to the most diftant pofterity. The parade of charity, the vanity of penance, the luxury of wealth, centre in the focus of a teftament. We learn hence how many baftards the Lords Spiritual and Temporal had; how their fideboards and wardrobes were furnished, what were their religious foundations, and the particulars of their feveral manors. But we are not told whether the wills of our Monarchs were better fulfilled 700 than 50 years ago. Among the royal wills here prefented to the public, as an ufeful Supplement to Sir Wm. Dugdale and other antiquaries, by Mr. Nichols, who is both the compiler and publisher of this ufeful Collection, we find thofe of the Conqueror and his youngest fon, Hen. I. Henry II. Rich. I. John, Henry III. Edward I. and III. Rich. II. Hen. IV. Henry V. and his Queen, Henry VI. Edward IV. and his Queen. It is eafy to account for the want of fuch difpofitions in Wm. Rufus, Stephen, Edw. II. and VI. and Rich. III. A fpurious will of Edw. VI. is preserved in a MS. in the Harleian Library, but it was deemed unworthy of a place here. The noble teftators and teftatrices are Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady Clare, foun drefs of Clare Hall, Cambridge, who died 1313. Humphry de Bobun, 9th of that name, Earl of Hereford and Effex. 1361. His nephew, namefake, and fucceffor. 1371. Edward the Black Prince and his confort Joan, ftyled the Fair Maid of Kent. Henry Duke of Lancafter, grandson of King Henry III. 1360. Lionel Duke of Clarence, third fon of King Edward III. 1368. + Speech on being elected Prefident, prefixed to Archæologia, Vol. I. John Haflings, Earl of Pembroke. 13779 Philippa, wife of Roger Mortimer, Eat! of March. 1381. Edmund, Earl of March, her fon, 1381. Thomas Holand, Earl of Kent, fon of Joan, who afterwards married the Black Prince. 1397. Richard Futzalan, 4th Earl of Arundel, grandfon of Henry E. of Lancaster, beheaded 1389. John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancafier, fourth fon of Edward III. 1399. Eleanor Bobun, Duchefs of Gloucefler, widow of Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucefter, 7th fon of Edw. III. 1599. Edmund Duke of York, fifth fon of Edward III. 1402. John Beaufort, Earl of Somerset, eldest fon of John of Gaunt by Catherine Swinford. 1410. Elizabeth, wife of John Earl of Kent, grandson of Edward I. 1411. Edward Plantagenet, Duke of York, fon of Edmund D. of York above mentioned, flain at Agincourt 1414. Philippa de Mohun, his Duchefs. 1433. Thomas f Lancafter, Duke of Clarence, fecond fon of Henry IV. flain at Baugé in France. 1421. Thomas Beaufort, Duke of Exeter, third fon of John of Gaunt, by Cath. Swinford. 1426. John Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk, 1432. John of Lancafer, Duke of Bedford, third fon of Henry IV. and regent of France. 1435. Anne, Countefs of Stafford, eldest daughter of Thomas of Woodstock and Eleanor, Duke and Duchefs of Gloucefter above-mentioned. 1439. John Holand, D. of Exeter. 1448. Henry Beaufort, fecond fon of John of Gaunt and Catherine Swinford, Cardinal, and Bp. of Winchester. 1447. Margaret, Countess of Richmond, great grand daughter of John of Gaunt, and mother of Henry VII. 1509. Here this valuable feries ends. The will of Henry VII. had been before printed, with a judicious preface and appendix, by Mr. Aftle, 1775, 4to. To each will is prefixed or fubjoined an account of the parties, their issue, alliances, &c. Several points of hiftory and genealogy are elucidated in the Notes, which further ferve as a Gloffary, from DuCange and Kelham*. Another, reduced into alphabetical order, is fubjoined to the work. Some records relative to the wills of Henry The Preface refers to Borel's Gloffary; but it does not appear to have been confulted in a single instance. IV. IV. and V. are alfo added from the Parliament Rolls. We fincerely with Mr. Nichols encouragement to form a fecond volume of the many curious wills both of nobility and commoners that might be pointed out within the period he has chofen. 52. An Inquiry into the Legal Mode of Suppreffing Riots, with a conftitutional Plan of future Defence. 1s. Dilly. THIS pamphlet is a very important one. Whether we confider the ability of the writer, the fubject it treats of, or the time in which it appeared, it equally claims the particular attention of every individual. At a crisis of diftrefs, when the defpondence of some and the fervility of others feem disposed to surrender the conftitutional rights of the people to the crown, and vest powers in the executive part of the government inconfiftent with the freedom and liberties of the fubject, and unknown to the conftitution, the prefent author has stept forwards, and discuffed with learning, temper, and decency, a queftion, of all others, most interefting to an Englishman,viz. “Whether the still fubfifting laws and genuine conftitution of England had not armed the civil fate with a power fufficient, if it had been previously understood and prepared, to have fuppreffed ever fo formidable a riot, without the intervention of the military." In treating this fubject, the learned writer proves the power of the sheriff to raise the Poffe Comitatus, and the neceffity and propriety of every person's being furnished with arms, and knowledge of the use of them, to attend the civil power whenever there fhould be a neceffity for calling for its affiftance. He then fhews in what inftances this power hath been used; and, laftly, lays down a plan for reftoring our laws to their full vigour and energy. On each of these heads he has difplayed a degree of candour and learning which reflect the highest credit upon him, both as a gentleman and a man of genius. We therefore recommend the perufal of this pamphlet to fuch as defire information concerning the legal power of the magiftrate. It will convince thofe who are advocates for altering the laws concerning rioters, that no change is neceffary, if the prefent fyftem of legal policy is duly enforced, and vigorously supported. 53. Two Sermons preached at Norwich, By Samuel Parr, M.A. Published by Request. 4to. Is. Baldwin. THE Ift of these, in the cathedral, was on Dec. 25, 1779. The IId, in St. Peter', Mancroft (a charity fermon) was on Good Friday, 1780. The Ift, a very able defence of Chriftianity, controverts and confutes three popular arguments opposed to it, drawn from its late appearance, its partial propagation, and its imperfect efficacy. Under the last head, looking back upon its pofitive efficacy, "Chrift," fays the preacher, "has foftened the horrors of war, not only by preventing its profeffors from putting their conquered enemies to death, but by inspiring them with fentiments of humanity towards the defenceless captive. In many (would to God I could fay in all!) parts of the Chriftian world, it has wrefted from the hand of the oppreffors that power, which, in almost every part of the Gentile world, the mafter had ufurped over the life of his flave. It has taught mankind to fhrink from the wanton effufion of human blood, which difgraced the gladiatorial shows of a brave and an enlightened people. It has banished the execrable barbarities of human facrifices, and, rightly understood, it is now beginning to correct, in its profeffors, what, when mifunderstood, it was fuppofed to cherish It the fanguinary rage of perfecution. It has fweetened the comforts of domeftic life, curbed the licentiousness of polygamy and divorce, and mitigated the rigours of that unfocial and unnatural fervitude, to which, among the polite citizens of Athens, 'as well as the rude forefters of Germany, the fierce and haughty fpirit of the ftronger sex had condemned the weaker. has extirpated the hideous custom of expofing children, which the most celebrated state of antiquity openly permitted, and their ableft writers have exprefsly recommended. In fome meafure it has checked that falfe patriotism which tramples upon the most facred rights of mankind, and which juftifies every artifice, however perfidious, every outrage, however unprovoked, under the fpecious pretences of national prefperity and national glory. It has called up a fpirit of indignation against thofe brutal indulgences which nature fhudders even to name, but which were practifed by the moft civilifed nations without a pang and without a blush. In his IId fermon Mr. Parr combats, we think, with fuccefs, the ufual arguments against charity-schools. Little did the preacher fuspect that a Chriftian divine was at that time employed in endeavours to re-establish polygamy by the fanction of the Bible. Mr. |