should be allowed for by the candid and hu- | mane: nor indeed can we tell, when the heavy swells of misfortune, or the strong curreats of adversity drive the bark, how soon, with the best of us, the reckoning may be lost. One comfort is, that these storm's do not last that there is a harbour into which, by lowering the topsails of our pride and vanity, we may run, even under bare poles, and bring up in safety. It is true, this harbour has not a very hospitable shore ; but it is land-locked, and the vessel may lie there in safety until the wind may be lulled or fair. There is not, fairly speaking, any but the distressed man who may be said to be in want of time: all other men have, to use a common proverb, the fore horse by the head; all roads and paths are open to them, and it is their own faults if they choose the worst. But he who has got considerably in arrears with time, must not hope to overtake it by violent exertions, or by going cross-roads: if he follow diligently, and pursue the path, incident will perhaps give him a lift on his way, or at any rate he will, by patience, overtake his object. Let us see what are the great stumbling blocks, and interruptions to a regular plan or distribution of time. First, INDOLENCE, that vis inertia which keeps us just where we are. Next, PLEASURE, that force which moves us easily by her allurements, when we are actually employed, and would not willingly have any thing to say to her: but these though the most open enemies of time, are not perhaps so dangerous as those which are concealed under masks of actual occupation. We have, for instance, Pausers, Wishers, Hopers, and Fretters, each of which, in their different ways, lay waste a portion of time. One of your great Pausers is BOB VACANT. Bob is always in a study; Bob weighs every thing, and does nothing; decides, and never moves; makes up his mind, and never acts; is in a great hurry, and never stirs. Vain are all his acquirements of learning, vain his knowledge, vain his skill and judgment. They are to him like the precious hoard of the miser, which he is always looking at, but of which he never touches a guinea. The WISHER is another sort of being as to the nature of his thoughts, though very much resembling the former as to the consequences of his stady. TOM TELESCOPE is always wishing for something that he has not, or for that which, in the course of things, he is never likely to have. If he hears of an estate, he would like to purchase; of a place, he wishes he could obtain it; of a stranger of note, he wishes that he could see him; or of a prize, he wishes that he could get the TWENTY THOUSAND, though he has no ticket in the VOL. I. [Lit. Pan. Jan. 1806.] lottery; in short, he is always occupied in wishing for something or other, though in truth the matter very seldom goes any further; for, not to be troublesome to his friends, Tom generally relieves them by wishing for something else just at the moment when they are about to oblige him. Wishing justly denominated by Dr. Young "the fever of fools," occupies a large portion of our time in waste of thought. The FRETTER is a being who wastes time in a still more useless and disagreeable manner; since the truth is, that a man seldom begins to fret until it is too late to remedy the mischief; and then he may as well not fret at all. FRETTING is the disease of a little illorganized mind, that hesitates to submit to even what it knows to be irrevocable, and makes a misfortune greater by constantly con templating its severity. It is said of Dr. Johnson, that on some person telling him of a lady of quality who had died of a broken heart for the loss of a near relation, he made answer, “ Aye! If she had been a poor woman in a shop, she would not have found time to have broken her heart." And however rude or unfeeling the sentence might appear, it is true, nevertheless, that the poor seldom have opportunities for this shaineful waste of time: their daily labours fill up the day, and the business of repose occupies their nights. The folly of fretting may be illustrated by the following story of two gardeners : Two gardeners, who were neighbours, had their crops of early peas killed by the frost. One of them came to condole with the other on this misfortune. "Ah!" cried he, “how unfortunate we have been, neigbbour! Do you know, that I have done nothing but fret ever since. But, bless me ! you seem to have a fine healthy crop coming up just new. What are these?""These!" cried the other gardener, “why these are what I sowed immediately after my loss." What! coming up aiready?" cried the Fretter,-" Yes! While you was fretting, I was working.”— "What! and don't you fret when you have a loss?”—“Yes! but I always put it off until after I have repaired the mischief."—" Lord! why then you can have no need to fret at ali."—“ True!" replied the industrious gardener; " and that's the very reason." In truth, it is very pleasant to have no longer occasion to think of a misfortune; and it is astonishing how many might be repaired by a little alacrity or energy. A Walk round the Walls of the City of Chester. Svo. pp. 106. Price 3s. 6d. Broster, Chester. A second part, not mentioned in the title page is, a Walk through the City; beginning at p. 51. THOSE who have lived many years in 2 B into an abbey by the advice of St. Anselm, He continued earl 31 years, died the 27th of July, 1101, and was buried in the churchyard, and afterwards reinoved to the present privi-chapter-house of the cathedral, where his á city of not very extensive dimensions, may obtain not only a correct knowledge of its present state, but also a general notion of its history, antiquities, privileges, customs, and peculiarities; but a stranger when visiting such a place cannot always procure the company of those who are able to instruct him in these particulars, and in others with which he desires to be acquainted. A small volume, if judiciously executed, answers the purpose almost as well; and after having consulted it with attention, the traveller may pro: portion his excursions to his time, and may examine more objects, either purposely or incidentally, than he might at first suppose possible. We are, therefore, friends to works like that before us; but as we cannot boast of accurate personal acquaintance with the city of Chester, we must depend on the compiler for the exercise of the requisite judgment in selecting, and precision in describing objects worthy of notice. The contents are, a list of the Earls of Chester a description of the gates of the town, some of which are handsome: the public and religious structures; with local information of a miscellaneous description. : The first part of this little volume is enlivened with sundry wood-cuts, which add much to its interest: the second part, though equally deserving, has no such accompaniment. The absence of a map of the city is a very serious defect. We learn from this volume that, William the Conqueror gave Cheshire to Gherbodus, a noble Fleming; but he dying, appointed his nephew Hugh Lupus, the first Norman Earl of Chester, and to him he delegated a great power; made it a County Palatine, and invested with such a sovereign jurisdiction, that the ancient earls held their own parliaments. Hugh Lupus, by virtue of the King's grant, (which runs in these words,) tenere totum hunc Comitatum sibi, et hæredibus suis ita lilere ad Gladium, sicut ipse Rex tenebat Anglie Coronam, created several barons to assist him in his council and government, some of which we find upon record, as Nigel, Baron of Halton; Sir William Maldebeng, or Malbane, Baron of Wieh Malbanc, or Nantwich; Richard de Vernon, Baron of Shipbroke, Gilbert Venables, Baron of Kinderton; Hamon de Massey, Baton of Dunham Massey; Warren de Poynton, Baron of Stockport; Eustace de Monthalt, Baron of Monthalt. He converted the church of St. Werburgh body was found in 1724, wrapped in leather, enclosed in a stone coffin; at the head of the coffin was a stone in the shape of a T, with a wolf's head, the arms which he bore, en graven on it. His sword of dignity is preserved in the British Museum; which is in length about four feet, and so unwieldy as to require considerable strength to brandish it with both hands. His parliament was formed of eight barons, who were obliged to attend him, and every baron had four esquires, every esquire one gentleman, and every gentleman one valet. The barons had the power of life and death. This government continued till the reign of Henry the III, 1237, who resumed the earldom. Chester was probably in the time of the Romans, or earlier, a considerable port; the Saxon navy was stationed here, and here was the seat of the Mercian kings. About the time of the conquest, the inports and exports were very considerable; one article of the latter was slaves, some of which they were probably furnished with in their frequent wars with the Welsh; and amongst the im ports wine was not the least considerableaccording to Lucian the monk, who praised its excellent flavour and drank it plentifully; and by the old Saxon law, if any persons made bad ale, they were to sit in a chair full of dung, or pay a fine of 4 shillings. pp. 11, 14. It is necessary before we conduct the traveller upon the walls, to inform him that they are the only entire specimen of ancient fortification now in the kingdom; are built on a soft freestone rock, high above the circumjacent country; are one mile three quar ters, and a hundred and one yards, in circumference, and kept in excellent repair by the murage duties, the most considerable of which is, a duty of two-pence, on every hundred yards of Irish linen brought into the port of Chester. Ethelfleda is said to have "encompassed the city with walls," but she most probably only repaired the ruined fortifications, the whole form of which plainly appears to have been Roman. The old towers, which are within bow-shot of each other are still re maining on the north and east sides. p. 21. In commencing the walk through the city, the stranger is particularly struck with the singular appearance of the rows, or galleries, formed on each side the streets, with ranges of shops in the front, and the houses above; the streets are excavated out of the ground, the back gardens being uniformly upon a level with the rows, and was supposed to have been so planned by the Romans, that the citizens might repel the frequent incursions of the Welsh into the city, by bows and arrows from these elevations, p. 51. this work, it may be sold at a very moderate price. The Russian part of it is an abstract, by myself, from my great dictionary completed according to the model of that of the Russian academy at St. Petersburgh. For the French and German I have, for the most Dictionnaire Portatif,- Russe-François-lished at Leipzic in 1798, as that which appart, followed the pocket dictionary, pub Allemand, 2 vols. Dictionnaire Por- peared to me to be the most conducive to the chen-Worterbuch, 1 vol. HEYM. particular, very good judges, who have Twenty four Lectures on the Italian Language, by M. Galignani: iu which the principles, harmony, and beauties of that language are simplified, and adapt ed to the meanest capacity, &c. Second edition, enlarged one third with num berless additions and improvements, by the editor, Antonio Montucci, Sanese, LLD. 8vo. pp. 340. Price 7s boards. Edinburgh, for Boosey, London. 1803. THESE four volumes comprise correspondent dictionaries of the three languages, Russian, French, and German, in reference to each other: but the words of each alternately placed first, and, of course, translated into the other languages respectively. They are folded into the square form, resembling our Entick's Dictionary, and therefore, we presume, are called portatif: yet, in fact, they rather exceed what is conveniently portable. All the four volumes may be considered as forming one work or they may be separated according to the language of the bearer. The public is indebted for them to the labour of M. J. Heym, professor at the University of Moscow. They are published at Riga and Leipsic, 1805, and are sold by Boosey, London. Price £2.2s. rather register this work than review it: THIS being a second edition we shall As Mr. Professor Heym appears to us, yet we acknowledge that this edition is so far as we have inspected these volumes, considerably enlarged and improved. The to have executed his very useful under-editor has taken advantage of hints sug taking with skill and fidelity, we shall translate his modest preface, by which the public will judge of his intention and his resources. gested on the work, at its first appearance, and indeed, he seems to be rather fond of his didactic office. His good sense, however, has led him to insert three or The want experienced by the public of a four pages of fetractions and corrections, Russian, French, and German Dictionary, which we think much to his honour. which without being either voluminous or Nor should we have thought the less of expensive, should satisfy those who engage his learning if he had omitted certain rein the study of these languages, deter-flections on the labours of others. We mined me to accept the proposal of M. Hartmann, bookseller at Riga, to undertake the execution of the present work. To justify the confidence so frankly placed in me, as well as to become useful to the public, and especially to Russian and foreign youth, I have exerted every effort to render this pocket dictionary as perfect as can be expected in works of this nature. M. Hartmann on his part has endeavoured, that, notwithstanding the considerable expences occasioned by the fount of new characters, cut on purpose for The old Roman, or Watling-street pavepient, is frequently discovered considerably below the present surface. are, indeed, desirous that when a lan guage is taught it should be taught in its purity; but there are so many dialects in Italy, and so strong attachments to each of them, that scarcely any two Italians agree what is purity. The Tuscan is usually preferred; but those who speak the best language as to terms, do not pronounce it in the best manner; whence the saying, Lingua Toscana in bocca Romani. The volume contains a very extensive view of Italian grammar; and the notes by the editor appear to be interesting and valuable: many of them manifest a mind exercised in the niceties and distinctions 2 B 2 of the language. On the whole, we are of opinion that not students only, but masters may derive advantage from a perusal of this performance. Masters will, however, as is but natural, give the preference to their own modes of teaching ; and whether Dr. Montucci will convert them, may be more than doubted. From several hints which occur in this work and the following, we recommend to parents to watch very narrowly the sentiments, principles, maxims, and allusions contained in the grainmars, &c. of foreign languages: and we urge this attention on masters with increased solicitude, because they must know that their very bread may fail them, in consequence of incautious, or inconsiderate offences against good manners, loyalty, or the established ordinances of our church. Italian Extracts; or a supplement to Galignani's Lectures: consisting of an extensive selection from the best classic and modern Italian authors; preceded by a copious vocabulary, with familiar phrases and dialogues. By Antonio Montucci, Sanese, LLD. 8vo. pp 376. price 7s. Edinburgh, for Boosey, London. 1806. In this volume which is a companion to the former, Dr. Montucci appears in the character of an original author, or rather compiler. His work opens with a melancholy account of the decline of Tuscan literature, which we conceive is little calculated to encourage students of the Italian language. Shortly follows rather a condemnation than an examination of Veneroni's dialogues, whose grammar Dr. M. recommends to the proper notice of the Society for the Suppression of Vice. After this, we have an extensive vocabulary taken from the Ortografia Italiana of Facciolata: we think this a useful article. We have next familiar phrases, and easy dialogues, which "the reader may be assured are accurate specimens of the modern colloquial style now used in Italy," though the author acknowledges they "would not stand the test of critical enquiry, instituted with Della Crusca's Vocabolario in hand." But the greater part of this volume is occupied by a collection of fables, anecdotes, witticisms, and other selections, illustrative of the modern stile of composition, by which is principally intended that of the last sixty or seventy years, during which the Italian language has been enriched say some, degraded say others, with Dr. M. among them, by new phrases and combinations of expres sions. In the concluding selection, which exemplifies the classic style, Boccace, Ariosto, and Tasso, as might be expected stand forward, as chiefs: Dante also is conspicuous. conspicuous. A few others are honoured with the character of classics. We have not read this book with scrupulous attention: but from what we have seen of it, we think the contents valuable; and should recommend it to those advanced in Italian literature. Dr. M. professes to have consulted' the interest of morals as well as of letters in this compendium; and assures us that he has carefully excluded the most remote allusion to improprieties of every kind. We commend his delicacy, and repeat our call on the attention of both parents and teachers to this consideration. The rising generation is the hope of the state; the preservation of its integrity in every kind of laudable principles, is of the utmost consequence, not only to the individual, but to the common wealth, and indeed, to the future character, if not, existence, of the British nation. Dr M. professes, also to have corrected very many instances of imperfect English style, which disfigured the former edition of Galignani: yet we must be allowed to wish that both volumes had been revised by some competent English critic. Pesth, &c. 1. Directory for the Town of Pesth in Hungary, for the year 1805. 2. An Alphabetical Description of all the Streets, Markets, Places, Churches, public Buildings, and other objects of notice in Pesth; being an appendix to the directory, with a plan. By Paul Ruth, M. D. No. 1, is introduced by a brief history of Pesth, which certainly requires much improvement and many additions; but from which we learn that the present town was first raised from its ruins in 1686 And that having by fire and devastation lost its ancient archives, neither the period of its fortification, nor that of its being made an imperial, free city, can now be ascertained. Its improvement and increase have been very rapid since 1787, at which period were enumerated 1 22,417 inhabitants, and 2009 houses. The suburbs Leopoldstadt, and Francisstadt, were added in 1790. The lighting of the town only commenced in 1790. It is however of importance for Hungary that Pesth is making improvements iu municipal police, as it is a pattern for others, especially for the southern cities. A public city teacher of drawing instructs the pupils in all professions dependent on drawing. Here is no general public hospital, although the great building which Joseph II. proposed to assign to this purpose stands complete. Subjoined is a catalogue of magistrates, city officers, clergy of all sects, lawyers, physicians, merchants, manufacturers, &c. from which we infer, that in general, three orders of society principally inAluence the inhabitants of Pesth the numerous order of merchants: the decasterial order of the imperial tribunals, with the considerable body of lawyers and jurists; and lastly the literati, whose principal support is the royal university. The varied influence of these orders in producing the sum of morals and mental culture, if described by an impartial obşerver must be interesting. At times, the influence of the literati seems to be of little importance. Pesth and Buda are sometimes the seat of a Diet (Reichstug) a circumstance which operates powerfully on the opinions, morals, and culture of a town. The great number of lawyers is striking; on the contrary, we find noticed only three wholesale dealers in the productions of the country; four booksellers, three printers, three copper plate engravers; two dealers in articles of art, and three sculptors. Many statistic results might be deduced by the inquisitive from the proportion of one trade to another. The warehouses and shops of inland manufactures, deserve a separate chapter: for instance, the Galez cloth manufacture, the Hollitch porcelaine manufacture, &c. also the four annual fairs. No. 2. in part supplies what is wanting in No. 1. The plan is drawn on a large scale, by Anton von Balta, county engineer, and reduced by Rudolph Witch, engineer to Count Bathyany; it is divided into squares of 10,000 squares fathoms each; that by the help of reference, figures and letters, every street may be found in the alphabetical index. A more complete and detailed plan of Pesth and Buda is expected from M. Von Lipsky. Viewed from the heights of Buda, on the other side of the Danube, Pesth much resembles the sandy environs of Berlin; there are few public places of amusement; the rather distant garden of Orchzy, the town forest, and the stone quarry are the only ones. The editor rightly observes, that a systematic perseverance may produce refreshing shades, and green turf even in sandy wastes. The banks of the Danube, the environs of Buda, the islands in the Danube are the principal places of resort to the friends of nature, here. The literati of Pesth have not less than four libraries at hand; that of the university, that of the Count Szechenycsche, the imrial, the Cornidessische Telcheihe, and lastly that of Nicolus Janhovics, the general use of the two last might be made much easier by a readier admittance. L'Historien de la Jeunesse, &c. The Historian for Youth, or a selection of memorable events taken from history, ancient and modern, adapted to adorn the minds of youth, to form their manners, and to inculcate good principles, and noble and virtuous sentiments. Crown. Svo. pp. 372.. Paris, Bertin. 1805. Price 65. Dulau and Co. London. A principal use of history is, precedent and example; and though it be true, that history for the most part presents examples to be avoided, yet it is but fair, that such actions and characters as she has recorded, which are adapted for the bene fit of mankind, should be allowed their full power and importance. Times are never so bad, as to be wholly destitute of great and noble minds, whose virtues shine with the greater lustre in proportion to the darkness with which they are surrounded; according to the expression of Shakspeare; How far that little cand'e throws its beams! So shines a good deed in a naughty world. We are therefore favourable to attempts like the present: which combine exai... ple and renown; and interest the mind, of youth especially, with the compound power of striking incident and celebrated character. The little volume before us, appears to be as proper for youth as any French work of the kind we have seen. The incidents are drawn from ancient as well as modern times; and the characters include various ranks and conditions of lite. |