"The Myfteries" and "the Italian," are pieces of a very fimilar nature. They both profess to speak to the imagination and the paffions; and produce their effects by dark shades of character, terrific incident, and picturefque defcription. In both, Mrs. Radcliffe is peculiarly happy in her delincation of guilt; tracing its various progrefs in the foul, exhibiting its power over the features, and rendering in fome of her perfonages the very CONSCIENCE vifible.

Her monks and her nuns pafs, in fucceffion, before us, tinctured with the deepeft ftains of depravity. And, whether we vifit the palace or the cottage, we meet the perfidious plotter, or the fcowling affaflin. In her portraits of virtue and innocence, Mrs. Radcliffe almoft invariably fails, particularly in the volumes before us. We fay this; comparing her with herfelf; for the virtuous characters of Mrs. R. would do honour to the abilities of an inferior writer. In the mean time, the wildernefs, the myftericus horror of many fituations. and events in Mrs. R. are rather German than English: they partake of Leonora's fpirit: they freeze; they "curdle up the blood." They are always improbable: they are, apparently, fupernatural. They bring us to the very confines of the other world; and we fancy that we are plunged into the gloom, where "fpectres only glide;" and can no other fe account for several strange appearances, and fingular tranfactions. Thus we proceed, till the developement takes pisze. But then, we never fee the veil of myfteriousness drawn afide to our perfect fatisfaction. Something fupernatural ftill remains: and, at the clofe of the ftory, we look back, through the whole, as through a moon light haze; as through the coloured atmosphere of a Gilpin,

With the fcenery of Mrs. Radcliffe's Romances, we have been almost uniformly delighted. It is not only magnificent or beautiful in itfelf; but it poffeffes the high merit of being characteristic of the country where it is fuppofed to be copied. In proportion as this can be ascertained, it engages the attention of those who defpife or difregard the mere effufions of imagination. We often, however, perceive a description to be overcharged; and we are frequently difpleafed by the recurrence of images too ftriking, to be foon forgotten; efpecially by fun-rifings and fun-fettings. diverfified as they may be, by clouds and mountains, woodlands and plains, feas and

rivers.

To "the Italian," we have many weighty objections. The oftenfible hero and heroine of the piece, are Vivaldi and Ellena but is not Schedoni, in reality, the hero? Is he not "the Italian," the prime mover of the whole machinery?

the

the devil is the reputed hero of the Paradife Loft: but Schedoni has better pretenfions to that title, in the Italian.”: Vivaldi and Ellena, are both indiftinctly portrayed: they have very little to recommend them to our notice. Compared. with Mrs. D'Arblay's Delville and Cecilia they fink into infignificance. How vapid are the various pleadings of Vivaldi with Ellena, preffing her to accept his hand in defiance of his haughty family? We object to the apparitions of "flefh and blood." At P. 190 (Vol. I.) in particular, a monk glides like a spectre, and " fades as into air." The character of the good faithful fervant Paulo is well drawn. But allowing that human nature is nearly the fame in all countries, we should still contend, that Paulo is more of an Englishman than an Italian. And Paulo is, fometimes, too much a philofopher for a fervant either of England or of Italy. Attempting to difcriminate between corporeal fubftance and fpirit, I would fain prove," said Paulo, that substance can quit this vault, as eafily as fpirit-" I would evaporate. through that door myself." (P. 190. Vol. I.) This is not the language of a menial servant.

With respect to particular fituations in the Italian,” we cannot but think that the fifth chapter (Vol. I.) is unneceffary. All the conjectures as to the caufe of Bianchi's fudden death, might have been omitted without any difadvantage to the ftory. (P. 132.) The interview between the Marchefa and her confeffor (at P. 137. Vol. II.) is well fupported; but we confider it as fuperfluous. Why fhould we be told, (at P. 258. Vol. II.) that the monk, whom Ellena meets at the fea-fhore, is Schedoni? Vol. III. at p. 425. Perhaps, if the discovery, that Schedoni was not actually the father of Ellena, had been reserved to a later period, the tale would have been more interefting. The inquifitors are introduced to us, with a striking effect; but too large a portion of the third volume is occupied by the examinations of their prifoners.

Mrs. Radcliffe's fcenery, whether drawn from nature or from art, was entitled to applaufe, in "the Myfteries of Udolpho;" but, in the Italian," deferves not unqualified praife. It is often laboured and tedious and picturesque defcriptions come from perfonages, whom, from their embarraffed state of mind, not the fineft landscapes could be conceived, even for a moment, to amuse. A perfon, diftreffed from various circumftances, and expecting, at almost every ftep, the dagger of the affaffin, is, certainly, not disposed to obferve nature with accurate attention, or, addrefs his obfervations to the elegant mind in terms appropriated to his Lubject.

Το

To these ftrictures we have only to add, that, in point of ftyle and language (as well as every other requifite to a good compofition)" the Italian" is inferior to moft of Mrs. Radcliffe's other performances.

ART. VI. Of the Imagination, as a Cafe and as a Cure of the Difarders of the Body, exemplified by fictitious Tractors and epidemical Convulfions. By John Haygarth, M. D.

HE influence of imagination on the animal fyftem has been long and very generally known. The paffions excited to a high degree, through this medium, have not unfrequently produced madnefs, convulfions, and death. While numerous inftances on the records of medicine fufficiently prove, that not only epilepfy but other difeafes have been occafioned, increased in their violence, checked in their progrefs, and rendered epidemic, by its irregular or preternatural agency. The imagination of the mother, by exciting the paffions, has produced abortion, and been fuppofed to extend its influence to the Foetus in Utero, in fuch a manner, as to change its colour and to transform it into different shapes. See Haller's Element Phyfuloque, Vol. VIII.

These phenomena are equally aftonishing, whether the imagination has been excited by ordinary or extraordinary means. The conclufions, drawn in the two cafes, have been very different. When excited by ordinary means, by a letter, a found, a colour, a figure, an odour, a taste, or any of the common objects of fenfe; the phenomena that followed, however remarkable, have been regularly afcribed to the imagination itself. When excited by extraordinary means, the cunning and interested have too often had influence fufficient to make, the credulous and ignorant believe that those phenomena, which they obferved, were owing entirely to the exciting caufe; a caufe with whofe nature and management they alone were acquainted, whofe effects they fold at a high price, and made the means of enriching both themfelves and their friends at the expence of the public ftupidity. Thus Mesmer and Deflon afcribed its phenomena to their animal magnetifm, a fpecies of fluid that has been proved to have no existence." In the fame way the venerable witches of rude nations afcribed its phenomena to their rites and ceremonies, which they difpofed of as articles of traffic, pretending fomething very powerful, but very myfterious in their fpells, in the number, the knots, and colours of their threads, and the mixture of

their potions. Religious fanatics, when thefe phenomena favour their views, afcribe them always to divine inspiration, or fhould they happen to thwart their defigns, they try to explain them by fuppofing certain delufions of the devil. (See the Hiftory of the Quakers. Rob's narrative of the work at Cambuslany, and Ralph Erskine's book entitled, Faith no Fancy.) Long before Metallic Tractors were dreamed of, ftroaking with the hands was employed as a cure in different diseases and produced fingular, though not, perhaps, fo lucrative effects to the practitioner. I myself, fays Wifeman, have been a frequent eye-witnefs of many hundreds of cures performed by his Majefty's touch alone, without any affiftance of chirurgery; and thofe, many of them, fuch as had tired out the endeavours of able Chirurgeons before they came thither. It were endless to recite what I myself have 'feen, and what I have received acknowledgements of by letter, not only from the feveral parts of this nation, but alfo from Ireland, Scotland, Jerfey, and Guernsey. See Wifeman's Surgery, Vol. I. B. 4. Chap. 1. Mankind have experienced fimilar effects from the hands of fome private individuals, from the hands of men recently dead, from the mofs growing out of deadmens fculls, from Anodyne necklaces, from cramp-rings, fympathetic powder, or, in fhort, any thing on which imagination chofe to confer its healing powers. (See specific remedies confidered in Shaw's Abridgement of Boyle's works) At prefent, it seems anxious to confine these powers to metallic tractors; and, therefore, we cannot fufpect Dr. Perkins of any interested views in recommending the use of them; he must have obtain ed his patent at a confiderable expence, and the moderate price for which he fells his Tractors is a ftrong proof that his private emolument is no object when put in competition with that of the public. We believe him, in confcience, to be as difinterested in the fale of thefe Tractors, as the Lapland Witches, or their predeceffor mentioned in the Odyffey, were in their fale of different winds to credulous feamen. So far from having any private or felfifh views, we are fully perfuaded, from the great concern which this gentleman has shown for the public, that he will be highly gratified, upon learning from Dr. Haygarth's and Mr. Smith's ingenious experiments, that fimilar virtues have been found in iron nails, in pieces of wood, lead, ftone, bone, and tobacco pipes; and that he will certainly take the first opportunity of thanking these gentlemen, and of affuring the public, that his Metallic Tractors, are not the only kind that have been obferved to perform miracles in the alleviation of human mifery. If he mean to prove that they do not operate through the medium of fancy,

but

but by fome inherent quality, like the rites and incantations of witches, he will fhow their effects on a perfon while afleep, and unconscious afterwards of their application, or upon one who has no faith in their efficacy; for

"Faith does things fo like a witch,

'Tis hard to unriddle which is which."

If his Patent Tractors have any fuperiority over the counterfeit ones, let him perfuade the patient that the patent are the counterfeit, and the counterfeit the patent, tractors; and let the efforts produced diftinguifh the genuine from the spurious. If the Patent Tractors perform cures on inferior animals, let him prove that nature had no refources in these cases; or if fhe had, that he could not with thefe refources have produced a cure in the fame time. If the patent does not prohibit an imitation of the form, or the compofition employed in these Tractors, may not others procure fimilar Tractors in every refpect, and which will poffefs every medical virtue in the Doctor's Tractors, except that derived from his patent. If thefe Tractors poffefs any Galvanic influence, let them shew that influence upon the feparated limb of a frog.

ART. VII. Poems, Epiftolary, Lyric, and Elegiacal. In three Parts. By the Rev. Thomas Maurice, A.M. Affiftant Librarian of the British Mufeum. 8vo. PP. 284. 9s. Wright. London. 1800..

MR.

R. MAURICE's poetical talents are too well known to require either explanation or eulogy from us. He has written little that is not worthy of prefervation, and much, very much, that is highly deferving of being tranfmitted to pofterity; we were, therefore, well pleased to see that he had taken the trouble to collect, into one point of view, the various productions of his Mufe. From a volume which contains fo many valuable fpecimens of genius, the task of selection is difficult. To fay, however, that all the pieces are of equal value would be to facrifice truth at the fhrine of adulation. Some have much higher merit than others; the best, in our judgment, are the pieces addreffed to the author's friend, Sir William Jones, (to whom he was highly indebted for many important communications for his interefting Hiftory of Indian Antiquities) and The Crifis, which was noticed, in the very firft Number of our Review. The Grove, which we think the worft of his performances, is not inferted in this volume.

Moft