putation of credulity or incredulity, (as you chuse to interpret it) to suspect a small degree of falsification in regard to the circumstances or embellishments of the story, were it no more than in rendering a particular feature more prominent than in its just and exact proportion.

From the general modesty of Cæsar's narrative, he appears incapable of the ridiculous, vain-glorious fanfaronade of some of our modern Cæsars: nor do I conceive he could have been ca. pable of drowning 20,000 of his enemies, in a lake created expressly for the purpose. And yet, do not we find such narrations hazarded, even in defiance of the check of the general diffusion of the printing press ? neither do I suppose that such a narration runs the least risk of being called in question by any collateral journals sent to their private friends by the inferior officers of the army; nor do I conceive it a very improbable conclusion, that, supposing a Pompey, not merely to dispute the supreme authority with this Cæsar, but even to wrest it from him, national vanity might still maintain a propensity to swallow, with a greedy faith, this and similar wonders; and that, notwithstanding of the reclamation of surrounding and enlightened independent nations; a check which Roman vanity experienced not from the days of Cæsar.

I have to observe, that your correspondent Z. has widely mistaken the object of my doubts. In his last paragraph he supposes me to call in question the truth of the disgrace of a Roman army, in being made to pass under the yoke by the Swiss Tigurine canton (the canton of Zurich,) after the loss of their general, the consul Lucius Cassius, and of Lucius Piso his lieutenant, great grandfather of Cæsar's wife, who were both killed in the engage

ment.

Now, Sir, so far from disputing

this statement of Cæsar's (which, as 2. justly observes, would be to admit little short of a palpable absurdity,) if there is any such thing as truth in history, I should be disposed to attach to such a statement the most steady faith; and that, simply upon the admission of Cæsar, or of any o ther Roman. My reasons are so glaringly obvious, that it would be insulting your readers to dwell upon them. But, though I am not fool enough to question facts, in themselves credible, of which the admission has been extorted, in despite of the dictates of national vanity; yet. I am not at all disposed to pay such implicit deference to the authority of names, which we have been taught to venerate as school boys, as to swallow facts in themselves improba ble, where national vanity gave an interest in falsification.

I do not dispute the general truth of Cæsar's successful campaign against the Swiss; though, as to the minutia of numbers, and such lesser circumstances, it would be perhaps an indulgence, to grant to Cæsar's commentaries an equal degree of credit as to a British gazette, sifted, as the latter must be, by the prying zeal of a parliamentary opposition: neither am I disposed to dispute the outlines of the particular fact (about whose circumstances I hesitate,) namely, that, after three fourths of the Swiss had crossed the Arar (or Saone,) to the side where Cæsar was, Cæsar, crossing this river, in a right march, with three legions, surprised, and attacked, and defeated, the other fourth,who could get no assistance from the other three fourths of their countrymen. The only questionable part of the relation is, the very fortunate circumstance, that this defeated part of the Swiss army should entire ly consist of this identical canton of Zuric, giving Cæsar the opportu nity of becoming the happy instrument of thus avenging, at one and the sam,

whom the professors instruct as fully in all the arts and sciences as any school-boys are taught to know their lessons; the tutors have the direction of their classical learning, and take strict care of their morals. All the students are obliged continually to do their exercises before the whole university; so that ignorance or idleness are sure to be punished, at least with the utmost disgrace. No wonder, then, that the Scotch are ac counted so wise a people; for if, amongst us, every man's capacity was improved to the utmost with care and judgement, what an immense decrease would there be of our present multitude of fools!*

After the university, there are few of the gentry but what go abroad and visit most of the Courts in Europe, where, their understandings so well formed at home, are so still enlarged and corrected by their observations on the manners, laws, and governments of foreign nations, with out bringing home any admiration of their vain or bad customs; and indeed their society is kept up with great politeness and pleasantness of conversation.

They live in continual rounds of company at one another's hou ses, I suppose entertaining seldomer or oftener in proportion of their estates; which would be an intolerable way of living, but that the master of the house minds his busi ness, or follows his diversion, the same as if alone, and the visitors, on their part, have an entire freedom in disposing of their time how they please. They drink rather too much, but not in a brutal, sottish manner: for the women always stay and join in giving their company, toasts, which are generally sentimental ones; and as most of these raise jocose ideas, so the glass goes about with good humour and cheerfulness enough. Part of the evening, too, is commonly spent in country-dan

in

cing, in which they excel: they never dance long together, but with great sprightliness: in large assemblies they form into sets of nine or ten couple each, one succeeding the other; in small companies they have but few country dances, and some of them keep constantly dancing horn pipes, reels, &c., whilst the rest are sitting down.

Another good circumstance in their society is, that bad men are ac2 counted no part of it; for, after any person has committed a notorious vile action, let his rank be ever so great, a visit of ceremony is all the correspondence that men of reputation care to maintain with him; whereas in England, the respect that successful villany meets with is one of the principal inducements to get money by wicked means.

Marrying for money is one of the miserable effects of avarice but little felt in Scotland. They have an old proverb, which I think a good one, that they commonly follow in the choice of their wives; i. e. 'Tis better to marry on a midden than a muit: Better a woman of one's own acquaintance and neighbourhood than a stranger: so that she who has the best person and character is likely to have the best match in her own country, however small her fortune.

Lord Eglinton had fourteen sisters, part of whom married into noble, the others (all but two, that are not yet disposed of,) into very honourable families, though they had_but 1000l. a piece.

I do not believe that the people of any age or nation were ever more religious observers of hospitality than the Scotch are at this day. The vast kindness I received during my illness, in many places where I was unknown, is a convincing proof to me of their humanity to strangers: and after I was known I was treated with a civility and generosity that I could have no pretence to,

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but in their politeness only. In England, most of them seem to avoid expence, and are therefore reckoned covetous; but it is their love of spending their fortunes generously at home that makes them averse to profusion abroad. The women of fashion are in general well favoured and genteel, very sprightly, and free from conceit and affectation; their only defect is, not having quite so much reserve and delicacy as is be coming to their sex. I guess what you have said before now, that I love to praise these people because they are Jacobites but indeed you are mis. taken; for those that I chiefly conversed with, and the inhabitants of the western country, (where I was,) are almost to a man attached to the present Government. It is remarkable, that in Whig countries, where no particular influence prevails, they choose such representatives as will oppose the measures of the Ministry that are pernicious to the interest of the people, and consequently weaken the establishment of this royal family; whereas the members chosen for the Jacobite counties are all de voted to the Court.

That you may believe their virtues, I must tell you what I thought their blemishes, or appeared rather as foils to their good qualities; they take a native pride and pleasure in their pedigrees, which, I believe, are of great antiquity, as they are always careful to preserve their records, which they embrace every op portunity to beast of and illustrate. But it has this good effect, that few of them care to stain their own, by marrying into low or base families, and abroad they are better received on that account. They are very opinionated, and cannot bear to let their judgements be overruled, even in matters of the smallest concern; so that it is not uncommon, in ordinary discourse, to hear a trifling as

sertion supported with syllogisms and scholastic disputations: and it is their extreme misfortune, that presbytery is their established church, for it is held in general disesteem a mongst them of superior rank; and indeed men of sense and education cannot well conform to it, for the presbyterians worship God as if they thought him an odious Being, whom the least decency would offend.Like the Indians that pray to the devil, their disregard of the religion of their country makes them think the less of religion in general; so they are apt to form their principles upon systems of natural philosophy and the writings of the moralists, who represent virtue as independent of religion, of which Lord Shaftes bury is in the greatest esteem. Natural philosophy may certainly teach a man to perform his part in society with decency, but surely religion is the only foundation upon which virtue can stand secure.

The common people are such, in outward appearance, as you would not at first take to be of the human species, and in their lives they differ but little from brutes, except in their love to spiritous liqors. They are extremely indigent, but had rather sustain poverty than labour. They have an implacable spirit of revenge; of which several instances happened during my stay there; but I know not whether that should be mentioned to their dishonour, since men; have naturally as strong an excess of hatred at receiving an injury as their abhorrence is to do one : forgivenness being the most refined doctrine of christianity, which none can embrace but such as are capable of perceiving its excellency and blessedness. They are vastly superstitious, and bigotted to their kirk with a most furious zeal, which at their instigation was suffered to prevail over the episcopal church at the time of

the

ap

the Revolution, with a political view of gaining the affections of the peo ple; and for a pretence of extirpating the Bishops, whom the Stuarts had placed there, and who might well be suspected of retaining their fidelity and attachment to that family. As the rabble established the kirk, they think they have the sole right to go. vern it; so that whenever a Minister is appointed that has not their probation, they all rise and bring firebrands to the church and parson's dwelling house, threatening to destroy both if he persists in his nomination; and during the ferment, should the minister attempt to officiate, they would tear him to pieces. In this state of war, the whole parish continues till the minister is changed or confirmed in his living, and the people awed into peace and acquiescence. Mr M'Dowald's parish was in this situation when I was there; and several more places were in the same confusion on this account.

Having always heard that these peasants were entirely subservient to their lairds, I wondered at their excessive insolence; but I believe where liberty is, mobs will be there also, its constant and only disagreeable companions. Their nastiness is really greater than can be reported: under the same roof, and often but with one door to all, are the stable, cow-house, and dwelling place, without window or chimney; if they have the latter, it is generally covered, to keep in the smoke, the warmth of which is very pleasant to them; and I could not but imagine that their way of living has a real effect upon their countenances; for the children, I observed, have good complexions and regular features, but the faces of the men and women are coloured like smoke, their mouths wide, and their eyes sunk, exactly as one pulls one's face when in the midst of a cloud of smoke. They wear their hair so long, that it almost hides

their faces, and covers great part of their bodies. They use no shoes and stockings but on Sundays, and then they carry them in their hands to the entrance of the church-yard, where they put them on, and pull them off again as soon as service is overa The petticoats of the women. seldom reach so low as their knees: they marry young, and are very prolific; so that in England what would be thought an immense, is there reckoned but a moderate family. But their rudeness is beginning to go off, and they are already pretty well civilized and industrious in the trading towns, where knowing the use of money has made them eager enough to acquire it. Their progress in husbandry I mentioned before; and Dumfries, I told you, is in a fair way of trade, a little town called Paisley receiving about two hundred thousand pounds a year for linen, which a few years ago had little or no manufacture; and at Kilmarnock they have set up manufactures with surprising success, of carpeting, rugs, and broad cloth, which till lately they had been obliged to furnish themselves with out of other countries; and Glasgow has launched out into every branch of trade, and extended its commerce all over the world. Europ. Mag.

Some Particulars respecting the late JAMES CANDLISH, M. A. & F. P. S. of the UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH.

MR CANDLISH, whose profound

knowledge of medicine and the learned languages is well known in the University of Edinburgh, was born in 1760, in the parish of Dalrymple and county of Ayr. His раrents were the respectable and industrious possessors of a small farm, called Porclewan, the property of the Earl of Cassilis. With a lauda

ble