though much furprised to fee the emperor fo unexpectedly, and with every mark of horror, rage, and defpair vifibly painted in his countenance. The moment the lady arrived, with much warmth he asked her how he came to write to the Polish minifter: the at first denied ever having written to him; on which his majefty produced the packet of letters taken out of that minifter's pocket, all of her writing, and in the common ftyle of fondness, informing her likewife how they fell into his hands, and of the unfortunate end of his rival. Not having heard of his death till that moment, forgetting, or at leaft regardless of all danger, the delivered herself up to grief, to paffion; burft into tears and woeful lamentations for the lofs of all her heart held dear; while the emperor, in a ftorm of rage, reproached her, as he had but too juft caufe, with falfehood, ingratitude, and every vice that degrades and finks humanity; when, to the amazement of all prefent, he on a fudden became calm as poffible, and turning towards her, faid, Madam, I too well, too poignantly feel, how hard it is for those who conquer others, to conquer themselves; 'tis there true glory lies, above all in love: fenfible as I am of the unfair, injurious treatment, offered by you, in return for an excefs of fondnefs, an unlimited confidence, an esteem you never merited from me, I cannot hate you; but to continue to live with you, muft render me contemptible in the eyes of the whole world, and what is ftill more painful to endure, in my own eyes. You shall never want the comforts wealth can give, if any there are for one fo fhamefully loft, abandoned to every fenfe of virtue; but determined am I never to fee you more. He kept his word with her; and as violent paffions which have neither honour nor honefty for their bafis foon fubfide, fhe confented to marry an officer in the Ruffian fervice, to whom the emperor was always exceedingly good, but continued him in fome profitable employment far diftant from the court. This great man, you fee, though by no means proof against love, was proof against the follies of it. The beauties of his miftrefs had indeed power to make him fo far forget his rank, the dignity of his Stuation, as to kneel, implore, and fupplicate his fubject; but nothing could make him court vice, though couched be neath the form of an angel, or cherish a ferpent in his bosom.’

These Letters in general difcover the fentiments of a virtuous and well educated mind, that retains a tafte unvitiated either by the fashionable gaieties of life, or an increased acquaintance with the world; and in point of compofition, they are fuperior to common novels,

Remarks upon an Effay, intituled, The Hiftory of the Colonization of the Free States of Antiquity, applied to the prefent Contest between Great Britain and her American Colonies. By John Symonds, LL.D. 4to. 2s. 6d. Payne.

IN

N our Review for June 1777, we gave an account of the Hiftory which forms the fubject of the Remarks at prefent before us. Confidered as a literary difcuffion only, an inquiry into the nature of ancient colonization might be treated with great impartiality; but its apparent reference to the difpute fubfifting between Great Britain and America, can hardly fail of fubjecting its authors to the fufpicion of being actuated by interefted motives. A charge of this kind is intimated by Dr. Symonds against the author on whom he comments; nor has the doctor, in his turn, escaped an imputation of the fame nature. But however the fentiments of the different authors may be warped by party, no conclufions drawn from the ancient mode of colonization can be justly, and invariably ap plied to the practice of modern times; and the controverfy ought ftill to be confidered as a fpeculative, historical inquiry.

A part of the Introduction will fhew our readers the spirit with which Dr. Symonds fets forth; but in refpect of the many points in controverfy, we must refer them to the Remarks.

It is related of Lyfimachus, who had been a captain in Alexander's army, and an eye-witnefs of all that paffed in the course of his victories, that, after he had heard fome exaggerated memoirs of that prince's exploits recited, he calmly obferved, and where was I, whilst these feats were atchieved? To a fimilar cenfure do thofe writers expofe themselves, who, be their end what it will, pervert the records of antiquity. Were this learned artifice confined to queftions of curiofity, or verbal criticism, it would do little or no differvice to the world; and a man, who attempted to refute it, might poffibly be blamed for an idle and frivolous zeal; but when doctrines of importance are established upon fo falfe a foundation, it becomes a matter of great and general concern and it cannot be thought improper for any one, who has applied himfelf to the study of ancient literature, to bear his teftimony against fuch reafonings, whenever they are offered to the public.

This must be my apology (if the reader fhall think that I ftand in need of any) for examining the leading principles of The Hiftory of the Colonization of the Free States of Antiquity, &c. The author appears to be a man of sense, and

know

knowledge; and competently verfed in the best writers of Greece, and Rome: but, whether we may ascribe it to too much hafte in reading, or whether we are to look for any other cause, it is certain, that he either has not carefully inquired into facts, or has not stated them fairly and honeftly. His readers muft have obferved, that, though he has fallen into several errors, he has not once miftaken in favour of the ancient colonists: a circumftance, which they will be led to impute to fomething more than accident; for though it cannot be denied, that many actions of thofe colonifts are deferving of cenfure, yet it is highly difingenuous to put always upon them the worst conftructions.

The main drift of our author, as it appears from his introduction, is "to investigate the nature of the connexion which fubfifted between the Carthaginians, Greeks, and Romans, and their colonies; and particularly to ascertain the practice of antiquity with regard to the much controverted article of taxation," p. 3. He fays farther, "that the chief reafon which induced him to undertake this tafk, was because he wished to prepare the nation for the parliamentary fettlement on the fubmiffion of the colonies, both by fuggesting to the legiflature itself all the information which can be derived from the pureft precedents of ancient hiftory, and by attempting to reconcile the minds of the people in general to that fettlement, when they fhall find it, perhaps, fupported by the policy of thofe ages, which enjoyed the most perfect civil liberty," p. 4. I apprehend, that our author's zeal has be trayed him into an inconvenience, which he did not forefee. Great indulgence is due to a writer, who fubmits his opinions with modefty to the public: but when any one profeffes to inftru&t the legislature, he gives up his claim to such an indulgence: and the errors, which in others might easily be pardoned, would in him be deemed inexcufable.

Our author's argument for taxation, which is the very hinge upon which his whole effay turns, is nothing more than this the free ftates of antiquity taxed their colonies: therefore Great Britain hath a right to tax her's. An extraordinary inference indeed! which brings to my mind an argument employed by Swift in his digreffion concerning madness: "There is, fays he, in mankind a certain ******* hic multa defiderantur-and this I take to be a clear folution of the matter." On a point of fo great confequence as the right of taxation, it would have become our author to have been more cautious, or more candid. He ought either not to have used fuch an argument; or not to have left his readers to find out the exceptions, to which it was liable. One may venture to fay, Vol. XLVI. Oober, 1778.

T

that,

that, by his mode of reasoning, it would not be difficult to justify the most flagrant abuses of power, that are to be found under any government in Europe.'

In the course of these Remarks we meet with many judicious obfervations; but the whole, it must be acknowledged, favours more of a polemical than a critical inquiry, and feems to be intended as a counter-poife to the influence of the other Esfay; for which it is adapted both by argument and historical learning.

Mathematical Principles of Natural Philofophy. By Sir Ifaac Newton, Knight. Tranflated into English, and illuftrated with a Commentary, by Robert Thorp, M. A. Volume the First. 410.. 1. 19. in boards. Cadell.

TH

'HE importance of the great work of the immortal fir Ifaac Newton has been long and univerfally acknowledged and experienced. It has gone through three editions in this country, in the life-time of the illuftrious author, with fucceffive improvements and additions. It has also been printed in different parts of Europe, where the doctrines contained in it have at length been received and established, in oppofition to the ftrong prejudices which for many years prevented this ge#eral effect. In one edition it was extended to four quarto volumes by means of the large commentaries of the learned and laborious fathers Le Scur and Jacquier. We have had published an English tranflation of it in two neat octavo volumes, accompanied with Mr. Machin's theory of the moon, deduced from the principles of gravity laid down in that work. Befides all thefe we are in daily expectation of the fo long promised publication of all fir Ifaac Newton's works, with a commentary, by Dr. Horfley, the prefent learned fecretary of the Royal Society. Notwithstanding thefe, Mr. Thorp, it feems, judged one more tranflation and a commentary not unneceffary. Of his performance the prefent is the first volume, a fecond being promifed to complete the work.-Mr. Thorp gives an account of it in an advertisement prefixed to this volume.

The following Commentary is in a particular manner adapted to the use of thofe, who, without dedicating their time to the ftudy of the deeper parts of mathematics, are defirous of being acquainted wsth the principles of fir Ifaac Newton's philofophy, and thofe clear and convincing reafonings, by which they are eftablished in his own writings. The evidence and accuracy of reasoning, the fingular perfpicuity both of thought and expreffion, by which thefe writings, even in their most abftruse parts,

are

are fo eminently diftinguished, muft, to every reader who is furnifhed with a previous knowledge of the mathematical sciences» render the author himfelf much clearer than any Commentary that can be written to explain him. But to those who, by their employments, or purfuits of other parts of ufeful learning, are unable to apply that attention and time, which are neceffary to acquire a complete knowledge of the different branches of mathematics, the ufes and advantages of a commentary are apparent; to fupply thofe demonftrations, which the author has omitted, on the fuppofition that they are previously known; to point out the extent and limits of problems; and to fhew their practical ufe and application to the fyftem of the world.

The editor requires of his readers a clear and accurate know ledge of the geometry of Euclid, of the elementary parts of algebra, and a few of the primary properties of the conic fections. From these principles the reafoning is every where taken up, and carried on through every intermediate ftep omitted by the author. Whatever immediately relates to the fubject, by which the argument may be illuftrated, except the elementary principles already mentioned, is fupplied in the Commentary, as the occafion may require. A variety of corollaries, deductions, and philofophical scholiums are there likewife added; fuch as cannot fail to elucidate the ufe and tendency of the most abftract propofitions: and, where it is poffible, their application to the phenomena of nature.

The fynthetic form of demonftration being beft fuited to thofe readers for whofe use this work is intended, the geometrical ftyle of the author is adopted alfo in the Commentary. The doctrine of prime and ultimate ratios (the foundation of his method) is established, so as to remove the various objections which have been raised against it, fince it was first published. To the relations of finite quantities alone the reafoning on this fubject is confined; and the form of demonftration is fhewn to be agreeable to that which was made use of, and always admitted as ftrictly conclufive, by the most accurate of the ancient geometers. But the fynthetic method being firft applied, there are moreover added a few analytical demonftrations of fome of the principal propofitions by the method of fluxions; which be ing the invention of the author himself, and established on the ftrictest and most unexceptionable reafoning, concife in its procefs, general and comprehenfive in its conclufions, cannot fail to give the greatest fatisfaction to all mathematical readers. But the prefent publication not being particularly intended for fuch, the demonstrations of this kind are few, and may be omitted by other readers.

The tranflation is in general as literal as poffible; the elegance and accuracy of the original, and the nature of the subject, requiring nothing further. In a few inftances indeed the editor has departed from this rule; particularly in the meaning of cer. tain terms, fuch as, quantitates quam minimæ, evanefcentes, ul-,

T 2

time,