as is confiftent with the peace and well-being of the community to which he belongs. This argument is the lefs applicable in the prefent cafe, as what is chiefly material is, we imagine, from the archbishop's account, conducted by the biop of London's commiffary, under whofe province the colonies are supposed to fall. However, the prefent crifis of affairs most plainly renders any attempt of this fort wholly unseasonable; and we cannot believe that the real friends, either of the mother country or the colonies, would endeavour, at this time, to forward fuch a business.

The Author of the pamphlet before us appears, on the whole, to have much the advantage of his Grace. Should it be thought that he writes with too much sarcasm and afperity; he concludes with faying, Let it be confidered that, if this letter is a forgery, thefe remarks upon it are a full juftification of his Grace, from the imputations which are neceffarily fuggefted by the contents of it. If it is genuine, be it understood that truth and righteoufnefs are no refpecters of perfons, are of no party, nor at all more attached to the mitre and lawn, than to the fackcloth and afhes of a pretended penitent.'

We shall finish this article with informing our readers, that there is a Poftfcript added, which contains fome farther remarks upon the archbishop, together with Dr. Markham, and Dr. Burton.

ART. VIII. Religious Exercifes recommended: or, Difcourfes en Secret and Family Worship, and the religious Obfervation of the Lord's Day: With two Difcourfes on the heavenly State, confidered under the Idea of a Sabbath. By Job Orton. 8vo. 3s. Shrewsbury printed by J. Eddowes. London fold by Buckland, &c. 1769.

HESE fermons are not diftinguished by any remarkable elegance of ftyle, or accuracy of language and compofition; but they have a much truer recommendation: they are ferious and practical; well adapted to do real service to every attentive reader, and evidently flowing from a heart under the warm influences of benevolence and piety.

The Author tells us, in the Preface, that having been obliged, through the ill ftate of his health, to lay afide the public exercifes of the ministry, he had been confidering how he might improve those intervals of cafe and cheerfulness, with which he was indulged, for the fervice of mankind: for ferviceable, fays he, I would ftill be; like one, that (as Dr. Lucas expreffes it) truly loves his country, when no other way is left him, he fights for it on his ftumps: fo will I, even in the remains of a broken conftitution, exprefs at leaft my affection for mankind, and breathe out my laft gafp in its fervice,'

As a reason why the particular fubjects here confidered were fixed upon, rather than others, it is obferved, that a general neglect of the important duties here urged is too evident; and that this neglect is of moft pernicious confequence, the profanenefs, luxury, and diffipation, which characterize the age, too plainly demonftrate.

What follows is very fenfible, and deferves particular attention: There feems to me, fays he, much reason to fear, that the many ftrong things which have been faid from the pulpit and the prefs, againft fuperftition and enthusiasm, however true and juft in themfelves, have had a tendency, for want of being properly guarded, to encreafe thefe evils. While perfons, with a good defign, have been folicitous to caution others against laying an undue ftrefs on the means of religion, or its external forms, they have, before they were aware, led 100 many into the contrary and more dangerous extreme; namely, that of neglecting fome of thofe duties which are moft clearly and reasonably required of us, and performing the reft in a very lifeless trifling manner. If their cautions against fuperftition and enthusiasm are attended with bitter reflections or ineers upon those who appear to be deeply ferious and in earneft in religious exercifes and concerns, it is no wonder that the rifing generation is prejudiced against every thing grave and ferious, efpecially all the devotional parts of religion. If youth once come to think lightly of thefe, it is to be feared that they will foon lofe all fenfe of religious obligation, and live altogether without. God in the world: for it cannot be expected that any practical regards to God and the great motives of religion. fhould be kept up in the mind, if the public and private exercifes of devotion fink into contempt.'

The difcourfes here prefented to us are plain and familiar; fuch, the Author fays, he intended they fhould be, and fuch, he justly adds, popular difcourfes ought to be, if preachers defire to engage the attention and affect the heart.

As he has chiefly intended them for perfons of low.educacation and common abilities, he has not, it is faid, entered critically into the arguments for the religious obfervation of the Lord's Day, especially those which have been grounded on the fourth commandment; but has endeavoured, as clearly as he could, to state and illuftrate thofe which appeared to him moft folid and affecting. Nevertheless, we think, that those who read thefe fermons will, upon the whole, find the arguments in fupport of the feveral fubjects clearly and judiciously confidered, and farther urged upon us with an energy that is likely to reach the heart. Thofe who can relifh alone what is regarded as a fabionable and polite ftrain of preaching, will hardly find themselves accommodated here; and numbers, among

9

among whom, probably, may be fome pious and worthy perfons, will be inclined to believe that the ftandard is fixed too high: notwithstanding which, we are perfuaded, that the prefent work is calculated to produce real advantage to mankind; and we fincerely join our wifhes, with thofe of the Author, that it may contribute to revive and promote the cause of true religion, with which the interests of virtue and morality are eflentially connected.

ART. IX. The Placid Man: or, the Memoirs of Sir Charles Beville. 12mo. 2 vols. 6s. 6s. Wilkie. 1770.

IN

N these memoirs of Sir Charles Beville, the aim of the Writer has been to unite the method of our celebrated novelift, Fielding, with the negligence of Sterne; and it is of courfe one of thofe novels in which a great deal is said, and very little is done. But if the incidents are not many, the Author, in his dialogues and remarks, proves himself acquainted with the world, and converfant in literature; and, without abfolutely determining how far he may have fucceeded in the fpecies of compofition he has chofen, we need not fcruple to pronounce that his ftyle is lively and agreeable.

The ftory, divefted of the drefs in which it appears, being of no great import, as a fpecimen of the Author's general manner of writing, which indeed is not always uniform, we fhall prefent our Readers with a detached incident, clear of those abrupt tranfitions he sometimes ufes when he has Triftram Shandy in his view:

Sir Charles found that he could not perfectly acquire that ferenity of mind which he ufually enjoyed, without fome affistance, and therefore he dreffed and went to the opera. For whenever his mind was out of order, he as naturally had recourfe to mufic, as he had to phyfic for any disorder of his body. He therefore fecured himself, as he hoped, from all interruption, up in one corner of the pit, and by that time the first act of Ezio had been adminiftered to him, he found himself much more compofed; and before the opera was finished, he was in a perfect harmony of fpirits. He had well nigh, however, been difconcerted by a ridiculous circumftance, which at another time would only have diverted him he was liftening with the moft delicious fatisfaction to one of the finest fongs in the opera, Non fe d'onde weine, when an elderly person who fat close to him, and who feemed to be of the order of men who go to the opera because they have no where else to go, just as they would go to a coffee-house, put his mouth close to his ear, and afked him what he thought of the king's fpeech?--If he had asked him for his money, he would not have furprized him more, nor have hurt him half fo much. He' turned round, and, almost out of temper, exclaimed, "Good God, Sir! is the opera a place to talk politics in ""Why not, faid the ftranger, as well as the church? The ridiculoufnefs of the anfwer was fortunate for them both; Sir Charles laughed, and recovered

his

46

66

his attention; the ftranger found he was not a man for his purpose, fo turned to his next neighbour on the other fide. When the opera was finished, Sir Charles turned to the ftranger and faid, "Sir, Į afk your pardon for anfwering you fo abruptly; but I have an enthufiafm about mufic which will not let me bear interruption." "I was deceived then, Sir, replied the ftranger, for as I did not hear you fay one word about the performance, I concluded you did not regard it." "The reafon of that, replied Sir Charles, is, that I enjoyed it, which kept me filent." Why then, Sir, faid the firanger, I may gather from thence that the people who pefter one fo much with bravo! ancora! beniffimo! Squifito! and all that, do not enjoy it; and upon my life I always thought fo." "Different people, faid Sir Charles, have different ways of expreffing their fatisfaction." "It may be fo, replied the ftranger, but I believe all through life, as well as at the opera, they that talk moft, feel leaft. Sir, I thank you, and I wish you a good night; the next time I talk to a man at the opera upon politics, it fhall be one who is making the greatest noife about the mufic, and I dare fay I fhall think of this converfation." Pray, Sir, faid Sir Charles, who was loth to part with him, may I afk what particular fatisfaction you yourself have in coming to the opera "Why troth, Sir, replied the ftranger, if I was not very honeft, you would puzzle me; but as I am, I fhall acknowledge that I have no farther fatisfaction in it than what arifes from fecing a number of well-dreffed people together, and nowand-then a little amusement from the fcenes and dances; for as to mufic, I dare fay you will easily believe I know no more of it than my fword-hilt, and care as little about it. Now all this I tell you, because, as I faid before, I am very honeft; but I dare fay, if you was to put the fame question to nine people out of ten all through the house, they would tell you forty lies rather than acknowledge as much as I have done; though they might do it with equal truth: nay, half of them cannot have fo much fatisfaction as I have in it, becaufe from living conftantly in public, which I do not, they fee the fame cafes and the fame things every day; fo that they have no excufe but the fashion." "It feems unaccountable to me, faid Sir Charles, that people who may choose their own amufements, fhould fuffer others to choofe for them." "Why then, Sir, said the stranger, you will pardon me, I hope, but I fancy you are not much converfant in public life; if you was, you would know that, in this great town, there are not above forty or fifty people who pretend to judge at all; and they judge for themfelves and all the rest of the town into the bargain. One or two of thefe leading people fay, We will go to the opera; and all the world goes to the opera. Another party of them fay, We will go and drink punch at Sadler's Wells; and all the world drinks punch at Sadler's Wells. And if another leading fet fhould fay, We will go and fee the people make bricks in Marybone-fields; all the world would go and fee them make bricks in Mary bone-fields." By this time the houfe was almost empty, and Sir Charles found himfelf under a neceflity of quitting his new companion, which, as he began to relifh his converfation, he did with great regret. Whether the gentleman perceived it, or whether he felt fome prepoffeffior in favour of Sir Charles, I cannot say: but

upon

upon taking his leave, he faid, Sir, if you ever drop in at Munday's coffee-house in Maiden-Lane, I fhall be glad to drink a dish of coffee with you." Sir Charles faid he should be happy to meet him; and fo they parted. When Sir Charles got home, he could not help purfuing in his mind the hint which his new acquaintance had given him, and falling into a train of reflections upon the prevalence of fashion, and the great power which it has over the minds even of fenfible people. It is ftrange, thought he, not that I fhould do a thing, because others do; but that I should approve a thing, becaufe others approve it. It is not ftrange that I fhould wear a long coat laft year, and a fhort one this; but furely it is rather fo, that I should think a long coat handfome and graceful laft year, and this year think the direct contrary: and yet it is true.-One would imagine, if there are any fixed principles of beauty, the fame mode must be always graceful and becoming; but yet that cannot be the cafe, becaufe no fashion was ever invented, however becoming whilst it was in ufe, which would bear to be feen after it was laid afide by the generality of the world. Perhaps all this may be refolved into cuftom; theeye is hurt by what it is not accustomed to fee. Perhaps prejudice in favour of people may give us the fame favourable idea of their cuftoms; and from knowing a man to be a man of fafhion and taste, I conclade that every thing he wears, and every amusement he is fond of, must be in taste, and fashionable; and this brings the matter just to what my unknown friend faid; I not only wear a hort coat and go to the opera, but I love to wear a fhort coat and go to the opera, because fuch and fuch people, of whom I have a good opinion, fet me the example. And thus one man thinks for all the reft.

• But, fuppofe I have a mind to exert my reafon, and think and at for myfelf; fuppofe I wear fuch a coat as my eye tells me is becoming, and I find convenient; and fuppofe I go to fuch amufements as I feel fatisfaction from, without confidering whether I meet my lord there, or his groom; what will be the confequence of all this? Shall I be looked upon as a man of more fenfe and reafon than the reft of the world, who cannot bear the meannefs of being dictated to; but exert a manly refolution in thinking for myfelf? Not a bit the world will look upon me as an obftinate puppy, and their very objection to me will be my being lefs prejudiced, and lefs led by the nofe than themfelves. Every man therefore muft fubmit to be guided by others, and, even in this country of liberty, muft not perfift in having more reason than the rest of the world chufes to allow him.

In short, if a man will live in the world, he muft live like the world and as long as he takes care to top fhort at matters of indifference, there is no great harm done; only by this means, it becomes a little difficult for a man to determine what he really likes, and what he does not because, whatever he may think he is fond of in his clofet, he is not fure, when he comes into the world, whether he may love it or not.

Now whether a man is obliged, in compliment to the world, to give up what he does like, as well as comply with what he does not,

is