acquaintance with the hiftory of Spain and Portugal, they will be convinced by the perufal of the work now before us, that the perfons he has employed to abridge it, are well qualified for the talk. They feem to have omitted nothing that is interesting, and have fhewn great fagacity in tracing events, manners, cuftoms, &c. to their fources. Their characters of Charles the Fifth and Philip the Second will, we flatter ourselves, be agreeable to our Readers. Charles the Fifth, fay they, had a vaft, active, and enterprifing genius; he was brave in the field, and able in the cabinet; a fkilful general, and a profound politician. He knew men, and could make them fubfervient to his purposes; and as he was well acquainted with the genius and character of all the neighbouring nations, and could make them act in fuch a manner as beft fuited the views of his ambition, he aimed, like Ferdinand, at univerfal monarchy. Charles reigned over twenty kingdoms, over extenfive provinces, whofe interefts he knew how to reconcile, and whose infurrections he prevented, checked, or punished, employing gentle or violent meafures, according to the exigence of affairs. The difcoveries and conquefts of the Spaniards extended his dominion over the east and weft of the old and the new world. His empire was four times as extenfive as that of antient Rome, and more than twice as large as that of the Turk, the King of Perfia, the Mufcovite, and the Tartar. The fun never fet upon his dominions. 6 This prince, the most powerful of any that ever lived, was always in action. He over-ran Spain, Flanders, Germany, and Italy fucceffively; commanded his armies in perfon, and triumphed over his enemies; upon his return from the field, he prefided over the counfels of the nations that were fubject to his government; harangued his people; defended his own interefts and thofe of religion before the princes affembled in the diets of the empire; and, influenced in the whole of his conduct by his ambition, he made his fubjects warriors and politicians. He loved and encouraged the arts and fciences, but never rewarded agreeable talents, excepting in foreigners; he seemed to have adopted the maxim, after the example of the Romans, of referving to the Spaniards the honour of conquering and forgiving their enemics, and of leaving to other nations the glory arifing from parts and ingenuity. He encouraged artists and merchants to fettle in his empire; and being one day reproached with this by the Marquis of Aftorga, he replied; My nobles rob me, but commerce enriches me; the arts and fciences inftruct me, and make my name immortal. It is well known that he paid frequent vifits to Titian, in order to fee him paint, and loaded him with honours and pre fents. fents. By thus honouring perfons of distinguished abilities, he added a new title to his own character, and one is grieved to fee a prince, poffeffed of fuch noble qualities, and of such greatnefs of foul, facrifice every thing to his vanity, and employ fo little of his time, during the course of fo long a reign, in promoting the happiness of his fubjects. Ambitious, jealous, hypocritical, faithlefs, paffionate, revengeful, and terrible in his anger, he filled Europe with wars, with blood, and with calamity. He had, in Francis the Firft, king of France, à rival who retarded his conquefts, and gave a check to his vaft projects. Charles attacked him vigorously, and triumphed over him by means of his generals, who took him prifoner; but he did not improve this opportunity of gaining over himself the most glo. rious of all his victories, that of generously reftoring liberty to his illuftrious captive; on the contrary, he treated him harshly, and made a traffic of his ranfom. He found much more generous fentiments in his enemy, when he put himself in his power, and went into his kingdom, where he received the honours due to fovereignty. Charles loved glory like an ambitious prince, and a conqueror ; Francis fought after it like a great king and a hero: Charles protected learning and the fciences out of oftentation; Francis honoured them, because he loved them: Charles governed like a politician; Francis reigned like a father. Both of them had abilities, courage, and zeal for religion, were magnificent, gallant, and the greatest men of the age they lived in: Charles had a larger fhare of glory and power; Francis more real grandeur and respect. • Charles's abdication and retreat have been admired and blamed according to the point of view in which they have been confidered but was it a mighty facrifice for an old infirm prince, glutted with honours, and fatigued with the weight of his own power, to lay afide a burthen that was too heavy for him? He wanted to fee his fon act the fame part which he nimfelf had done with fo much fplendor. He wanted in his turn to be a quiet fpectator, after having been so long in action, and after having received the applaufes of the univerfe. It was this idle curiofity that made him order the pomp of his own funeral to be difplayed before his eyes; he placed himfelf under the pall, and fung the ufual prayers. The cold, with which he was feized during the celebration of this ceremony, haftened his end. It is alledged that he made his fon promife to restore Navarre. He made a will which Philip the Second carried to the inquifition, where it was taken into confideration, whether it should not be condemned to the flames.' Such is the character our Authors give of Charles the Fifth; what they fay of Philip the Second is as follows: This prince was of a middling ftature, but well proportioned; he had a large forehead, blue eyes, a fteady look, and a grave and ferious air. His character was fevere and haughty; his zeal for the fupport of the faith and the catholic religion implacable; fo that with the utmost coolness and composure he would have exterminated every heretic in his dominions. Never was there a prince who applied to business with greater affiduity; he entered into the minuteft detail in every branch of his administration; in his own chamber he fet all the springs of the most cruel policy in motion, and wanted to act alone in every thing. He was impenetrable and diftruftful; full of revenge and diffimulation; ftuck at nothing to execute his schemes; was never difcouraged by any obftruction in the courfe of his enterprizes; feemed fuperior to events; and received the news of good and bad fortune with the fame phlegmatic compofure. He was a cold fanatic; and never defired to infpire any other fentiment but that of terror. His orders were like the decrees of fate, which were to be executed independently of all human efforts. He made the blood of his fubjects flow in torrents; carried the horrors and devaftation of war into all the neighbouring states; and was ever armed against his own people or his enemies. Even his own fon, when the only heir of his dominions, could not move his inflexible foul. Whenever an offence was committed, punishment was unavoidable. He never tafted the pleasure of forgiving; and, during a reign of forty two years, never enjoyed one day's peace. His minifters, his generals, his favourites, trembled when they approached him, and never fpoke to him but upon their knees, and with the most fearful circumspection. The Duke of Alba, who had laid him under fo many obligations, entering his chamber one day without any previous notice, Philip looked at him with a threatening air, and faid, What daring prefumption is this! it deferves the axe. He was defirous that his fubjects, like himself, fhould have an air of ferioufnefs. The horrid tribunal of the inquifition was ever watchful to banish from his dominions that genuine joy which is the charm of liberty. This monarch was poffeffed. of all thofe qualities which enter into the character of a great politician; he had a lively genius, an amazing memory, and indefatigable activity; he was an excellent judge of men, and knew how to employ them according to their feveral talents. He was juft, generous, and fplendid in his court; of an enterprifing genius, and of unfhaken firmness in the execution of hi defigns; but he forced the Low-countries into rebellion by his un racta le feverity; weakened his dominions by the expulfion of the Moors, and by his obftinacy in purfuing the malecon tents; tents; he employed his revenues and the treasures of the new world in gratifying his hatred and revenge; and the fruit of all his policy was nothing but mifery. He would have been richer, greater, more beloved, and more refpected, with lefs pains, fewer talents, and lefs genius, had he only been poffeffed of those mild and peaceful virtues which conftitute good kings and fathers of their country.' It is difficult, or rather impoffible, to give fuch extracts as shall convey to the Reader a just idea of a work of this kind; the above fpecimens, however, are fufficient, we apprehend, to give the difcerning Reader a favourable opinion of the genius and spirit of our Authors. Traité de la Formation Mechanique des Langues, et des Principes Phyfiques de l'Etymologie. That is, A Treatife concerning the Mechanical Formation of Languages, and the Phyfical Principles of Etymology. Paris. 2 Vol. 12mo. 1765. HOUGH abftract and metaphyfical difquifitions concern very and uninterefting, yet they are certainly not without their use. Grammar and logic are more nearly connected than is generally imagined; and the origin and progrefs of language are not only effential and curious parts of the hiftory of the human mind, but throw light upon fome parts both of philofophy and history, which, at first fight, feem to have little or no relation to them. To a reader therefore of a philofophic turn, the treatife now before us will be highly acceptable. It is indeed a very curious one; contains many original and juft obfervations; and though the Author advances feveral things in regard to the certainty and importance of etymology which a judicious reader will not readily affent to, yet what he fays, even upon this fubject, is fo ingenious and plaufible, that it is scarce poffible not to read it with pleasure. In the preliminary difcourfe, we are told, that this treatife has been long known to a confiderable number of men of letters; that no little ufe has been made of it in the Encyclopedie; and that several modern authors have borrowed from it, whofe fubjects led them to treat either of the matter or form of language, or the philofophy of fpeech. The two firft of these points are what our Author principally confiders in the work now before us, and the method in which he proceeds, appears to us extremely juft and accurate. He firft defcribes the organ of the human voice, the number, form and action of each of the parts which compofe this wonderful inftrument; the order in which nature unfolds, and puts Mm 3 themi them in motion; the neceffary effects of each part in its material motion, and the modulations it occafions in the air; the differences and the properties of each articulation; the number of vowels, accents, and confonants; how, and by what motion each confonant arifes from each organ, fo as to take a fimple or a compound form. He fhews the varieties which are produced in the vowel, according as the found paffes through one or other of the two pipes of the vocal inftrument, viz. the mouth or the nofe; points out the causes of the difference between a fpeaking and a finging voice, &c. &c. This is the technical part of his fubject, which, as he obferves, must neceffarily be tirefome to the reader, though indispenfibly neceffary, as it defcribes thofe operations of nature, which are the foundation on which the wonderful fabric of human language is built. He goes on to enquire into the primitive language, and after directing us where to look for it, he fhews how it proceeds, and in what order; what are the relations that are naturally established between certain organs and çertain fentiments, fenfations, phyfical beings, and modes of being. He endeavours to prove that language is originally founded upon the imitation of external objects, by vocal founds and written characters; and fhews that the impoffibility of making the objects of fight reach the air by an imitative noife. forced mankind to have recourfe to another kind of imitation capable of falling under the eye, and gave rife to writing. He follows the different orders and gradations of this new art, from the primitive manner of writing to alphabetical characters; fhews that the progreffion of speech and writing i fimilar; that nature is the guide in both; and how this won derful union of the two fenfes of fight and hearing is formed which reduces the objects of each to the fame individual point whit the objects themselves and the fenfations continue fo ver remote. He treats of the form of writing ufed by differen nations, antient and modern, barbarous and polished, togethe with the variations and the progress of the art. From thefe general objects he proceeds to a more particula examination of language; traces it from its infancy, (in par ticular inftances) through the feveral steps of its progrefs to it total extinction; and points out the caufes which contribute t its growth, its vigour, and its decay. He confiders the effect of the derivation of languages, and fhews the train of fuccet five alterations which the words of a language undergo, wit regard to their found, their meaning, and their figurative ufe together with the caufes of their frequent anomalies. He treat of the names that are given to things which have no phyfica ence in nature, fuch as intellectual, abftract, and mora with their feveral relations and general qualities, & , an |