Socrates, continues our author, left behind him nothing in writing; but his illuftrious pupils, Xenophon and Plato, have, in fome measure, fupplied this defect. The Memoirs of Socrates, written by Xenophon, afford, however, a much more accurate idea of the opinions of Socrates, and of his manner of teaching, than the Dialogues of Plato, who every where mixes his own conceptions and diction, and, as we fhall afterwards fee, thofe of other philofophers, with the ideas and language of his master. It is related, that when Socrates heard Plato recite his Lyfis, he faid, "How much does this young man make me fay, which I never conceived!" Xenophon denies that Socrates ever taught natural philofophy, or any mathematical fcience, and charges' with mifreprefentation and falfehood those who had afcribed to him differtations of this kind; probably referring to Plato, in whose works Socrates is introduced as difcouring upon these fubjects. The truth appears to be, that the diftinguishing character of Socrates was that of a moral philofopher.

66

The doctrine of Socrates, concerning God and religion, was rather practical than fpeculative. But he did not neglect to build the structure of religious faith, upon the firm foundation of an appeal to natural appearances. He taught, that the fupreme Being, though invifible, is clearly feen in his works, which at once demonstrate his exiftence, and his wife and benevolent providence. This point is established, with great perfpicuity and force of reafoning, in his conferences with Ariftodemus, and with Euthydemus. Reflect," fays he, "that your own mind directs your body by its volitions, and you must be convinced that the intel ligence of the univerfe difpofes all things according to his pleafure.-Can you imagine, that your eye is capable of difcerning diftant objects, and that the eye of God cannot, at the fame inftant, fee all things; or that, whilft your mind contemplates the affairs of different countries, the undertanding of God cannot attend, at once, to all the affairs of the univerfe? Such is the nature of the divinity, that he fees all things, hears all things, is every where prefent, and conftantly fuperintends all events." Again-" He who difpofes and directs the univerfe, who is the fource of all that is fair and good, who, amidst fucceffive changes, preferves the courfe of nature unimpaired, and to whofe laws all beings are fubject, this fupreme Deity, though himself invifible, is manifeftly feen in his magnificent operations.-Learn, then, from the things which are produced, to infer the existence of an invifible power, and to reverence the divinity."

Befides the one fupreme Deity, Socrates admitted the existence of beings who poffefs a middle station between God and man, to whofe immediate agency he afcribed the ordinary phænomena of nature, and whom he fuppofed to be particularly concerned in the management of human affairs. Hence, fpeaking of the gods, who take care of men, he fays, "Let it fuffice you, whilst you obferve their works, to revere and honour the gods and be perfuaded, that this is the way in which they make themselves known; for, among all the gods, who bestow bleflings upon men, there are none, who, in the diftribution of their favours, make themselves visible to mortals." Hence, he spoke of thunder,

wind, and other agents in nature, as fervants of God, and encouraged the practice of divination, under the notion, that the gods fometimes difcover future events to good men.

If thefe opinions concerning the fupreme Being, and the fubordinate divinities, be compared, there will be no difficulty in perceiving the grounds upon which Socrates, though an advocate for the existence of one fovereign power, admitted the worship of inferior divinities. Hence he declared it to be the duty of every one, in the performance of religious rites, to follow the customs of his country. At the fame time, he taught, that the merit of all religious offerings depends upon the character of the worshipper, and that the gods take pleafure in the facrifices of none but the truly pious. The man," fays he, "who honours the gods according to his ability, ought to be chearful, and hope for the greatest bleffings: for, from whom may we reasonably entertain higher expectations, than from thofe who are moft able to ferve us? or how can we fecure their kindness, but by pleafing them? or, how please them better, than by obedience "

Concerning the human foul, the opinion of Socrates, accord-. ing to Xenophon, was, that it is allied to the divine Being, not by a participation of effence, but by a fimilarity of nature; that man excels all other animals in the faculty of reafon, and that the existence of good men will be continued after death, in a state in which they will receive the reward of their virtue. Although it appears that, on this latter topic, Socrates was not wholly free from uncertainty, the confolation which he profeffed to derive from this fource in the immediate profpect of death, leaves little room to doubt, that he entertained a real belief and expectation of immortality. The doctrine which Cicero afcribes to Socrates, on this head, is, that the human foul is a divine principle, which, when it paffes out of the body, returns to heaven; and that this paffage is moft eafy to thofe who have, in this life, made the greatest progrefs in virtue.

The fyttem of morality, which Socrates made it the bufinefs of his life to teach, was raifed upon the firm basis of religion. The first principles of virtuous conduct, which are common to all mankind, are, according to this excellent moralift, laws of God: and the conclufive argument by which he fupports this opinion is, that no man departs from thefe principles with impunity. “It is frequently poffible," fays he, for men to fcreen themfelves from the penalty of human laws, but no man can be unjust, or ungrateful, without fuffering for his crime: hence, I conclude, that thefe laws must have proceeded from a more excellent legiflator than man." Socrates taught, that true felicity is not to be derived from external poffeffions, but from wisdom, which confifis in the knowledge and practice of virtue; that the cultivation of virtuous manners is neceffarily attended with pleasure, as well as profit; that the honeft man alone is happy; and that it is abfurd to attempt to feparate things, which are in nature fo clofely united as virtue and intereft.'

It was not till late that the Romans difcovered much inclination for philofophy. The rife of it is to be dated from an em

bally,

baffy, which the Athenians fent to the Romans, deprecating a fine, which had been inflicted on them. By this vifit of philofophers from Greece, the Roman youth caught a spirit of inquiry, and became ad nirers of the Greek learning. The Greek philofophy having been thus transplanted to Rome, the exotic plant flourished with vigour in its new foil.'

In this part of the hiftory, which defcribes the ftate of philofophy among the Greeks and Romans, we would just observe, that the reader is brought acquainted with moft of the more folid writers of antiquity. And we think it an excellence in the prefent work, that wherever a title to a book in a foreign language is mentioned, or a quotation made from a foreign writer, a tranflation is ufually fubjoined. And if men of learning would be always thus condefcending, at least on popular and interesting subjects, they would, we apprehend, render important fervice to the lefs informed, but inquifitive reader, without interrupting the pleasure of the generous and polished scholar.

When barbarifm overwhelmed the Roman empire, philofophy was cultivated by the Arabians: which, however, was by no means encouraged by their illiterate prophet,' or affifted by the genius of his religion. This, like all ftate religions, was fo formed, as to keep the people in ignorance. The acceffion of the family of the Abbafides, however, (which was in the one hundred and twentieth year of the Hegira, or the feven hundred and forty-ninth of the Chriftian æra) proved the dawning of philofophy, which in the caliphate of Abel-Abbas Al-Mamon appeared in meridian fplendour. From this period, feveral eminent philofophers appeared among the Saracens, of whom the moft diftinguished was Averroes.

On tracing the state of philofophy among the chriftian fathers, our author has proved himself to be, not only a person of extensive reading, and clear difcernment, but fuperior to many of those theological prejudices, which too often betray chriftian writers into trifling; and which, inftead of fuffering them to be inquirers after facts, have made them little more than filly visionaries, or sturdy polemics.

The hiftory of philosophy among the oriental chriftians, from the feventh century to the taking of Conftantinople; among the western chriftians, from the feventh century to the twelfth, and the hiftory of that barbarous jargon, called The Scholaftic Philofophy, will fuggeft many important reflections to the philofophical inquirer, on the credulity of the human mind, when under the power of fuperftition, and the tendency of fuperftition to weaken the human understanding, and to retard the progrefs of philofophy.

The latter part of this work which commences with the revival of letters, and concludes with the beginning of the

pre

prefent century, comprehending the times, when learning was refcued from the thorns and briars of barbarifin, and philosophy restored to its ancient honours, is highly important.

(Vol. 11. p. 413.) If, at this period, philofophy was much indebted to the revival of letters, it was not lefs benefited by the reformation of religion. For, no fooner did the friends of truth and virtue apply themfelves to the correction of religious errors, and endeavour to free mankind from the yoke of ecclefiaftical do, mination, to which the whole western world had for many ages tamely fubmitted, than philofophy, which had been loaded with the fame chains with religion, began to lift up her head, and to breathe a freer air. Determined no longer to yield implicit obe dience to human authority, but to exercife their own understand. ings, and follow their own judgments, thefe bold reformers profecuted religious and philofophical enquiries with an independent ipirit, which foon led them to difcover the futility and abfurdity of the fcholaftic method of philofophifing, and enabled them at the fame time, in a great meafure, to correct the errors of philo fophy, and to reform the corruptions of religion.

The study of antient languages being now revived, and the arts of eloquence and criticifm having now refumed their ancient tation, the reformers were foon convinced, that ignorance and barbarifm had been among the principal caufes of the corruption of doctrine and difcipline in the church. Hence, whilft these honest and zealous friends of truth ardently longed for the re formation of religion, they were earnestly defirous to fee philofophy restored to its former purity; and their bold attempts to fubdue religious error and prejudice indirectly contributed to the correction of philofophy, and the advancement of learning.'

In the chapter on modern attempts to improve dialectics and metaphyfics,' the account of Mr. Locke and his writings is highly judicious.

We fhall clofe our extracts with an interefting account of the firft luminary in the bright conftellation of philofophers, the immortal Newton. P. 606.

Ifaac Newton was born at Woolftrope, in Lincolnshire, in the year one thousand fix hundred and forty-two. He received his first inftruction at the grammar fchool at Grantham. He gave carly indications of that fublime genius, which afterwards performed fuch wonders, in his infatiable thirst after knowledge, and the almost intuitive facility with which he first conceived the theorems of Euclid. Though not inattentive to claffical studies, he directed the chief exertions of his penetrating and exalted understanding towards mathematical fcience, in which, not contented with a perfect comprehenfion of whatever had been already done by others, he was wonderfully affiduous and fuccefsful in inveftigating new truths.

The univerfity of Cambridge boafts the honour of having educated Newton. His firft preceptor was the celebrated geometrician Ifaac Barrow. In one thoufand fix hundred and fixtyfeven, Newton took his degree of mafter of arts, and was foon afterwards admitted fellow of Trinity college, and appointed Lu

cafian profeffor of mathematics. In one thousand fix hundred and eighty-eight, he was chofen reprefentative in the convention parliament for the univerfity, and continued to adorn this high itation till the diffolution of this parliament in the year one thoufand feven hundred and one; he was alfo appointed mafter of the mint, and in this post rendered fignal fervice to the public. In the year one thoufand feven hundred and three, he was elected prefident of the royal fociety, and remained in that office as long as he lived.

Whilft Newton gave many proofs of his aftonishing capacity for mathematical refearches, he fhewed himfelf poffeffed of a mind equally capable of extending the knowledge of nature, by the reports which he made to the royal fociety of many curious and important experiments in natural philofophy. In the year one thousand fix hundred and feventy-one, his papers on the properties of light were read to that fociety, from which it appeared that colour, which had hitherto been explained by ingenious but unfupported hypothefes, was in fact owing to a property in the rays of light hitherto unobferved, their different degrees of refrangibility. These papers were afterwards completed; and, in the year one thoufand feven hundred and four, the whole was publifhed in three books, under the general title of "Optics; or, a Treatife of the Reflections, Refractions, Inflections, and Colours of Light."

The refult of this great philofopher's fuccefsful endeavours to fubject the phænomena of nature to the laws of mathematics, was first communicated to the public in the year one thousand fix hundred and eighty-feven, in the immortal work entitled, Phila fophia naturalis Principia mathematica, "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philofophy:" this was fucceeded by feveral treatifes purely mathematical, in which the wonderful genius of this great geometrician is further difplayed. His Method of Fluxions was first published in one thoufand feven hundred and four.

In the midst of his philofophical and mathematical labours, Newton found leifure to attend to critical inquiries. He wrote a treatife "On the Chronology of ancient Kingdoms," in which, from a diligent comparifon of various notes of time in antient writers with each other, and with aftronomical phænomena, he concludes, that, in former fyftems of chronology, the more remote events of ancient history are placed too far backwards. He alfo wrote commentaries on Daniel, and on the Revelations.

Notwithstanding the ftrenuous exertion of the faculties, which the profound refearches of this philofopher must have required, he lived to the eighty-fifth year of his age. This glory of the British nation, and ornament of human nature, left the world in the year one thousand seven hundred and twenty-feven. During his life he rose to higher reputation, and after his death obtained a greater name, than had been the lot of any former philofopher.' To give the reader a perfect idea of the philofophy of Newton, would be to conduct him through every part of his philofophical works. We must content ourfelves with a brief account of the defign and plan of his Principia, and a few mifcella

P. 610.

neous