ing, or fubject, or the perfons he either fatirizes or commends. If there is any thing we can comprehend in the performance, it is the following panegyric upon wine, which, we doubt not, will give our readers a fufficient fpecimen of the author's poetical abilities.

Has wine no fpirit? then God help the wife!
We presently fhall reach the upper skies;
For wine alone doth elevate the heart,
And makes our fouls unwilling to depart,
Keeps them, enamour'd of the grape, below;
Or all had fled our bodies long ago:

In C*thb**t's cheek deep glows the gen'rous flush!
Oh for a Rubens with his fleshed brush,
To fhew fucceeding ages ev'ry grace
That bonefly and wine do give a face!
Goodnature too with pleasing smiles impart
In guileles eddies dimpling from the heart.

Since the above was written, we have again confulted this Caveat, and with great pains have difcovered some stupid abufe thrown out against feveral gentlemen of rank and honour, who, we dare fay, will be much better fatisfied than if the author had bedawbed them with his fulfome hair-brained panegyric, in which he departs equally from the rules of cominon fenfe and grammatical fyntax.

24. A Poetical Sermon on the Benefit of Affliction, and the Reasonableness of an entire Refignation to the Will of the Supreme Being. In Two Parts. By the Reverend Chriftopher Atkinson, of Yelden in Bedfordshire. 4.10. Pr. 1s. 6d. Payne.

The only remark which we purposed to make on this Poetical Sermon, the author has anticipated in the following advertisement: It is a juvenile performance, not defigned for the pulpit, and, at least, well intended. The author humbly submits himself to the candor of his readers for an excuse of every inaccuracy.'

25. Detraction expofed, with a View to promote in general FriendShip, Peace, and good Neighbourhood. Being the Substance of a Sermon preached in the Parish-Church of Chelmsford, August 25, 1765. By the Rev. Robert Houlton, M. A. and Demye of St. Mary Magdalen College, Oxford. 4to. Pr. Is. 6d. Strupar at Chelmsford.

This writer informs us, that as detraction has ever been judged by good men a moft uncharitable, bafe, and cowardly vice,

8

vice, he fhall endeavour to roufe her from her cruel mischiefplotting den, pursue her through all her fecret paths, and expose her in a garb and attitude the most likely to appear with horror and difguft.' The author then, if we may be allowed to carry on his allufion, proceeds to hunt her down, and the reader, we hope, will find a pleasure in the chace.

26. A Sermon preached before the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, in the Abbey-Church of Weftminster, on Thursday, January 30, 1766. By Frederick, Lord-Bishop of Exeter. 4to. Pr. 15. Sandby.

In this difcourfe his lordship defcribes the characteristics of heavenly wisdom, or a true Christian temper, in a plain, simple, unaffected style.

27. Chriftian Patriotifm: or, Amicus's free Thoughts upon the Divifion of the Times. In a Letter to his Friend Philagathus. 8vo. Pr, 1s. Hood.

As every man, who pretends to talk of Chriftian Patriotism, ought to be of fervice to his country, we would advise this writer to mind his occupation; not to perplex his understanding with difputes about eternal generation and felf-existence, the doctrines of the Rev. Mr. W- Mr. A- Mr. D,

or Mr. H- ; at least, not to publish any more of that ufelefs trash which conftitutes the fubftance of this letter.

28. The Critic proved No Critic: or, a New Year's Gift to the anonymous Author of the Panegyrical Criticism, on an Ode that was published in the Chelmsford Chronicle, and addreffed to the Members of a Mufical Society. By Oxonienfis. 4to. Pr. 6d. Toft at Chelmsford.

In this performance Oxonienfis undertakes to prove, that the author of the Panegyrical Criticism, mentioned in our last Review, is a defpicable critic;' that he has ridiculed feveral expreffions, in the Ode addreffed to the Mufical Society, which are to be found in Philips, Shadwell, Dryden, and other eminent poets. He complains, that he has been treated in an illiberal manner, for spending a few minutes in a very innocent amufement. But, at the fame time, he unfortunately mistakes his antagonist, and treats a gentleman with great afperity who was not at all concerned in this affair, and whofe refpectable character might have exempted him from fuch an injurious imputation. This anfwer was followed by

29. An Apologetical Defence of the Panegyrical Criticifm, by its Author. 4to. Pr. 6d. Toft.

The writer of this Defence reminds us of a certain Dutch phyfician, who, with great pains and fingular ingenuity, anatomized a mushroom.

30. An Apologetical Defence of the Panegyrical Criticism. By Oxonienfis. 4to. Pr. 6d.

Toft.

Here Oxonienfis, perhaps recollecting the advice of Martial -ride fi fapis-perfonates his antagonist, and attacks him in an ironical Apology -But, as the public in general will never enter into the fpirit of this trivial conteft, it is better, Gentlemen, to put an end to your repartees, or confine them to the Chelmsford Chronicle.

31. A Seafonable Addrefs, from feveral Perfons interested in the propofed Alteration of the Law regulating Entails; to the Noblemen and Gentlemen of North Britain: And to the Members of the British Parliament in general. 8vo. Pr. Is.

Millar.

Notwithstanding all the pains taken by this ingenious author in favour of entails, we cannot retract the opinion we have given on that fubject *. We think that in a commercial country, which Scotland is now aspiring to be, all entails are deftructive, by locking up property in mortmain; that the perpetuating noble families by a perpetuation of their property is a flavish feudal principle, is prejudicial to honeft industry, and tends to keep up that territorial tyranny which, till of late years, rendered the state of the commonalty of that country little better than that of the beafts who tilled their lands, and carried their burdens. We are far from being prepoffeffed against a farther regulation of the Scotch laws, which the author proposes; but we cannot agree with him that entails are countenanced by the entail of our crown. Writers of a certain caft are very apt to avail themselver of parallels between public and private property, as if the principles of one were applicable to thofe of the other; neither can we at all conceive that virtue and patriotism, either public or private, are attached to an antient lineage, or a great estate.

See vol. XX. p. 49.

32. The

32. The Hiftory of Inland Navigations. Particularly thofe of the Duke of Bridgwater, in Lancashire and Cheshire; and the intended one promoted by Earl Gower and other Perfons of Diftin&tion in Staffordshire, Cheshire, and Derbyshire. Illustrated with Geographical Plans, fhewing the Counties, Townships, and Villages through which thefe Navigations are carried, or intended to be. The Whole fhewing the Utility and Importance of Inland Navigations. 8vo. Pr. 2s. 6d. Lowndes.

We have already recommended this very interesting subject to the attention of the public *, and we have very little more to add to what we have there faid, than that this pamphlet is adorned with two maps, the ufe of which, without farther explanation, must be unintelligible to ninety-nine readers out of a hundred; and that the editor has here reprinted from the public papers a variety of tracts relating to the projected works of inland navigation.

33. The Adventures of Harriot Sprightly, a Lady of Pleasure. 2 Vols. 12mo. Pr. 6s. Serjeant.

If a novel can be inftructive or entertaining that is entirely deftitute of fentiment, ftyle, language, invention, and.common fenfe, the author of this performance may, perhaps, lay claim to fome merit: but if these are, in any degree, requifites in this fpecies of writing, the readers of this production, if any there should be befides ourselves, will certainly join issue with us in pronouncing it an impotent attempt towards indecency.

34. Quin's Jefls; or, The Facetious Man's Pocket-Companion. Containing every Species of Wit, Humour, and Repartee. With a complete Collection of Epigrams, Bon-mots, &c. &c. 12mo. Pr. 15. 64. Bladon.

It was reasonable to expect that the death of Mr. Quin would give birth to such a collection as that now before us: But we acknowledge ourselves a good deal disappointed in looking over this little production; for expecting to meet with the usual hafhed regale of old jokes and worn-out conceits, we were not a little furprized to find the editor has really kept his word with the public, when he fays in the introduction, • The reader will be convinced, by the perufal of the following fheets, that the editor is so far from being a plagiarift, that few, if any, of the conceits in this performance ever before appeared in print.'

* See vol. XX. P. 390.

Curiofity

Curiofity will doubtless excite many to run over-this performance, as Mr. Quin's reputation for faying good things was fo univerfal. The prefent collector was, however, aware, that many of his bon-mots were of a very indelicate turn; and he therefore tells us, That at the fame time that he does the ftricteft juftice to the character of Mr. Quin as a humourift, and acknowledges he poffeffed as great a fund of genuine wit as any man that ever went before him, or perhaps any that will ever come after him; yet truth compels him at the fame time to own, that many of his jokes and impromptûs were indelicate and indecent; and that these the editor thought the duty he owed the public obliged him to fupprefs.' But notwithstanding his declaration, we cannot think he has scrupulously kept his word with the public in this refpect, as in more places than one we meet with the Shandean ftars-thofe afterisks of libidinous meaning.

N the first appearance of our criticisms on Mr. Johnson's edition of Shakespeare, feveral gentlemen, alarmed, as they said, at an attack upon fo celebrated a writer, fent us letters, fome by way of caution, and others of criticism, in Mr. J.'s favour; but during the progrefs of our publication, moft of them have been fo candid as to retract what they wrote. On our own part, we fincerely declare that we have the greatest regard for Mr. J.'s perfonal merits as an author, though we own he disappointed our expectations as an editor.

We pretend only to an accidental merit in this fpecies of criticism (which depends not upon opinion but facts); and fo little ambitious are we of shining through the imperfections of another, that our criticisms would have been moft readily at Mr. J.'s fervice, previous to his publication, if we could have had the leaft idea of his ftanding in need of any fuch affistance. We now proceed to take notice of the unretracted letters which have been fent us; which we fhall endeavour to do in as full and as candid a manner as poffible, without taking notice of fuch paffages as, to more irafcible critics than ourselves, might appear exceptionable.

One of thofe letter-writers figns himself J. Cameron, who is guilty of the very error which he pretends to cenfure in the Critical Reviewers. His reprehenfion of our criticism, in calling • Care the death of each day's life,' is more applicable to Warburton who wrote, and Johnson who admitted, the note, which we found fault with, than to us: Our criticism ftands upon its own bottom, without offering the least violence to Shakespeare's text.

Mr.