that every one feels, as to the permancy of the new regulations, excites a jealoufy, which is at the fame time, the fource of acts of undue feverity, and improper lenity; both of which add to the prefent difcontent of those who feel themselves aggrieved. When regulations in thefe circumftances, are dictated even by the kindest beneficence, the moft rigid equity, and confummate wifdom, they would be often fo ill received, as to be again rejected. But, where felfish principles in any way can interfere,-where- equity must be facrificed to conveniency, and where ignorance and folly bear their share in council; the chance for fuch tranquillity being permanent, is infinitely diminished: But if no fingle perfon can be found, who poffeffes unmixed beneficence, inflexible juftiae, and confummate wifdom; far lefs can a multitude of men be found, who will be capable of acting on these principles.

From this mode of reafoning, without entering into any particular examination of circumftances, the true friends of freedom will be moderate in their congratulations of the happiness of the people in France. That their government can long continue precifely on the fame footing as at prefent, few people will expect; that the changes which are to enfue, will prove very detrimental to many individuals, fenfible men will think highly probable; that the convulfions they will occafion may be few, and their terminations happy; every humane perfon, who contemplates the prefent fituation of France, will be difpofed devoutly to pray for: One thing alone feems to be fo highly probable, as to be next to certainty, viz. that in no future period, will the governors of France, whoever these may be, ever dare to adopt fome of thofe arbitrary modes of government, that were formerly carried into practice; and it is to be hoped, that others of an equally deftructive tendency, will never be adopted in their ftead.

Whatever be the refult of the internal ftruggles of France, the confequence of them at prefent, is a total annihilation, for the time, of her influence on the affairs of the other European nations. This has already paved the way for fome transactions, that never could have taken place without it, and will lay the foundation of others, that may long be felt in the political affairs of Europe.

To be continued.

"

THE BEE,

OR

LITERARY WEEKLY INTELLIGENCER,

FOR

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 2. 1791.

Cursory Hints and Anecdotes of the late Doctor WILLIAM CULLEN of Edinburgh, continued from page 121.

Ir would seem as if Doctor Cullen had confidered the proper bufinefs of a preceptor to be that of putting his pupils into a proper train of ftudy, fo as to enable them to profecute these studies at a future period, and to carry them on much farther than the fhort time allowed for academical prelections would admit. He did not, therefore, fo much strive to make thofe who attended his lectures deeply versed in the particular details of objects, as to give them a general view of the whole fubject; to fhew what had been already attained respecting it; to point out what remained yet to be difcovered; and to put them into a train of study, that should enable them, at a future period, to remove those difficulties that had hitherto obftructed our progress; and thus to advance of themselves to farther and farther degrees of perfection. If these were his views, nothing could be more happily adapted to it than the mode he invariably purfued. He firft drew, with the ftriking touches of a mafter, a rapid and general outline of the fubject, by which the whole figure was seen at once to start boldly from the canvas, diftinct in all its VOL. I.

X

parts, and unmixed with any other object. He then began anew to retrace the picture, to touch up the leffer parts, and to finifh the whole in as perfect a manner as the state of our knowledge at the time would permit. Where materials were wanting, the picture there continued to remain imperfect. The wants were thus rendered obvious; and the means of fupplying thefe were pointed out with the moft careful difcrimination. The ftudent, whenever he looked back to the fubject, perceived the defects; and his hopes being awakened, he felt an irresistible impulfe to explore that hitherto untrodden path which had been pointed out to him, and fill up the chaẩm which still remained. Thus were the active faculties of the mind moft powerfully excited; and instead of labouring himself to fupply deficiencies that far exceeded the power of any one man to accomplish, he fet thousands at work to fulfil the task, and put them into a train of going on with it, when he himself should be gone to that country "from whose dread bourne no traveller returns,"

It was to thefe talents, and to this mode of applying them, that Doctor Cullen owed his celebrity as a profeffor; and it was in this manner that he has perhaps done more towards the advancement of science than any other man of his time, though many individuals might perhaps be found who were more deeply verfed in the particular departments he taught than he himself was. Chemistry, which was before his time a moft difgufting purfuit, was by him rendered a study fo pleafing, fo eafy, and fo attractive, that it is now profecuted by numbers as an agreeable recreation, who, but for the lights that were thrown upon it by Cullen and his pupils, would never have thought of engaging in it at all; though perhaps they never heard of Cullen's name, nor have at this time the most diftant idea that they owe any obligations to him. The fame thing may, no doubt, be faid of the other branches of fcience he taught, though of thefe the writer cannot fpeak from his own

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knowledge. Such indeed were the extenfive views he took of every fubject, and fo luminous was the arrangement he put them in, and fo vigorous were the powers of his mind, that the writer has often regretted he was ever permitted to teach any one branch of fcience longer than two or three years; during which time he could Have formed a fchool capable of going on without his aid. After this was accomplished, Cullen fhould have been appointed to teach another branch, and another ftill, till he had gone round the whole circle of the fciences. This idea will no doubt to many appear abfurd; but to thofe who have had opportunities of hearing him incidently in converfation touch upon fubjects, on which it could fcarcely be thought his other avocations would have allowed him to spend a thought, will not be furprised at this idea. No one will fuppofe that either Logic or Mathematics would be ftudies that could have much attracted his notice; yet the writer of this has incidently heard Doctor Cullen, in the course of many minutes converfation, throw out fuch ideas on both thefe fubjects, as plainly fhewed, that had he been required to give lectures upon them, he could have done it in a manner that would have been equally pleafing and astonishing, nearly as on chemistry, or any other fubject he ever taught; and as a professor of natural philofophy, it is perhaps impoffible to form an idea of the ardour he would have excited, or the innumerable exertions that would have been made in confequence of it, to perfect this great and most useful branch of fcience.

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To draw a juft character of Doctor Cullen, would require talents much greater than the writer of thefe remarks can claim, and a degree of knowledge he does. not poffefs: He therefore declines the task.The following traits, communicated by a friend, appear to him fo juft, that he begs leave here to tranfcribe them. They were written by a man who knew the Docto well, in his public as well as his private capacity.

There are three things which certainly diftinguish "ed Cullen in a very eminent manner as a profeffor. "The energy of his mind, by which he viewed "every fubject with ardour, and combined it immediately with the whole of his knowledge.

The fcientific arrangement which he gave to his แ fubject, by which there was a lucidus ordo to the "dulleft, fcholar. He was the first person in this coun แ try who made chemistry cease to be a chaos...

!

"A wonderful art of interesting the ftudents in 66 every thing which he taught, and of raifing an emu "lative enthufiafın among them."

Let it not, however, be imagined, becaufe of these jaft eulogiums, that the writer of this article wishes to reprefent Doctor Cullen as a perfect character, utterly devoid of faults: Far from it. To fay that he never deviated into error, would not only be abfurd, but it would be to contradict, in direct terms, the defcription that has been given of the peculiar bent of his talents, and of his peculiar difpofition of mind. It is impoffible that men of fuch a lively imagination as he was, whatever be the ftretch of their talents, fhould not at times lofe fight of leffer objects, when contemplating those of greater importance. The diftinguishing cha racteristics of men of great talents, have ever been rather great beauties than an exemption from faults. The works of Shakespear abound with defects that writers of a mediocrity of talents never could have been guilty of-and so it was perhaps with Cullen. It was, how ever, a peculiar excellence, refulting from the mode of analysis that Cullen daily adopted in his fearch after truth, that his pupils thus became habituated to fuch a ftrict method of reafoning, and such a careful difcrimination of circumftances, that they were enabled eafily to perceive the cafual errors even of their preceptor himfelf; and no fooner did thefe occur to himself, (which was often the cafe,) or were pointed out by others, than he inftantly not only relinquished them