eretionary power, which the ftatute has lodged in the hands of the electors, and on other topics and circumstances; by which, be thinks it plainly appears, that the claim of the aliens does not reft upon ANY warrantable foundation whatsoever. 24. A Letter to Sir Robert Ladbroke, knt, with an Attempt to fhew the good Effects which may reafinably be expected from the Confinement of Criminals in feparate Apartments. 8vo. 1s. 6d. Rivington. The author of this pamphlet confiders the effect of fhutting up many criminals together in the fame apartment, both in a moral and phyfical light; in the one, as the means of communicating vices; in the other, of generating putrid diseases. The laft mentioned confequence may generally be prevented by the diligent ufe of ventilators; and we know not whether folitude might not prove as deftructive as vicious company, to a mind already depraved. But whatever moral inconvenience might be obviated by the feparation of criminals, it is not probable that much advantage would refult to their health from the introduction of fuch an expedient; as the freedom from noxious vapours might be more than balanced by a greater degree of cold in the feveral apartments. 25. The Merchant's Complaint to the Lawyers at the Devil. 8vo. Is. Wilkie. It being for the intereft of the community, that all fuch refources as afford the means of eluding just profecutions at law, should be as much as poffible excluded from the courts of justice; if the articles of this complaint be found to have a real foundation, they certainly deserve the attention of the legislature. 26. The Farmer's Kalendar, or Monthly Directory for all forts of Country Bufinefs. 8vo. 5s. Robinfon and Roberts. Before the publication of this work there was no farmer's kaJendar that gave any regular account of the modern improvements in husbandry: this book includes them all; and, in a very perfpicuous, plain, and agreeable manner lays down fatisfactory rules for the due performance of all the bufinefs of farming. We efteem it much fuperior to any work of the kind hitherto published; but the nature of it will not admit of extracts. In the Introduction is an admirable sketch of a small farm in perfect culture, which feems to deferve much attention from thofe who, on a small space of ground, are defirous of cultivating moft forts of profitable vegetables. 27. The Samians, a Tale. 8vo. 15. 6d. Dodfley. Cleon, king of Samos, had a daughter named Euryale. One day, while fhe was engaged in the chace, he was feized. by a band of pirates; but unexpectedly refcued by a young Aranger, whofe name was Evander. In a fhort time, the falls violently in love with her deliverer, who incurs the refentment of her father, and flies from Samos, accompanied by Eufyale. They are fhipwrecked on the coaft of Icaria. The prin cefs cefs escapes to land, is difcovered in a melancholy fituation, by Althea, prieftefs of a temple confecrated to the rural deities, on the fea-coaft of that ifland. Althea accofted her in terms of friendship, heard her ftory, endeavoured to alleviate her forrows, and difpatched fome of her attendants in quest of Evander. Cleon, at the fame time, in pursuit of his daughter, lands upon the neighbouring fhore; proceeds immediately to the temple, and addreffes himself to the priestess; who was no other than the mother of Evander, and the widow of Alcinus, who had been formerly put to death by Cleon for having formed a confpiracy against his life. Althea prefents his daughter to the king and Euryale, by the interceffion of the priestefs, obtained his pardon, and fuppofing that her lover had perished in the fea, confents to return with her father to Samos. In the mean time, Evander having landed upon the island, is directed to the temple, and has an affecting interview with his mother. While he is difcourfing with Lycon, his friend and companion, Cleon fuddenly paffes them, and in a fit of diftraction, arifing from reflections on his difgrace, attempts to plunge his fword into his own breaft. Evander haftily runs to him, holds his arm, and diffuades him from his rafh attempt. An eclairciffement, and a reconcilation enfue, and the ftory ends with the felicity of all parties. These are the outlines of this tale. The ftile in which it is related is flowery and elaborate. 28. Reflections on the too prevailing Spirit of Diffipation and Gallantry. 8vo. Is. 6d. Walter. These Reflections evidently difcover the philofophical obfervation of the author. The changes in the character of a nation are here traced to their original fource, and we are prefented with a view of the intimate connection between the nature of the civil government and morals of a people. The author exhibits an accurate detail of the caufes and variation of the character of the English for fome centuries backwards; and after reprefenting the public confequences of general diffipation, he offers many warm admonitions for reforming that too fashionable corruption of manners which threatens to produce in the end the extinction of civil liberty. 29. Obfervations upon feveral Paffages extracted from a Work lately published, entitled, A Review of the Characters of the principal Nations of Europe.' 8vo. 1s. 6d. Almon. Thefe Obfervations are fo frivolous and infipid, that they appear to be published with no other defign than to recommend the performance on which they are made. 30. A fhort Ramble through fome Parts of France and Italy. By Lancelot Temple, Esq. 8vo. 15. 6d. Cadell. It is with distinguished wits as with celebrated beauties; they feldom quit the ftage after they have long ceafed to entertain. We regard this little Ramble with that degree of compaffion due to the laft effort of expiring genius. NOVEL S. 31. Mifs Melmoth; or, the New Clariffa. Three Vols. 9s. Lowndes. As it is no lefs neceffary for a lady to unbend her mind than to unlace her stays, and as many ladies chufe to take up a new book, with other new things, in order to get rid of an odd half hour without the fatigue of thinking; the author who furnishes amusement for their minds without corrupting them is certainly entitled to their fmiles for his commendable endeavours, whether he writes in the ferious or comic ftyle, if he does not difcover in touching his tender scenes, the pathetic powers of a Richardson..ar a Maurivaux; and, if he does not in working up his humorous ones fhake their fides with the comic force of a Fielding or a Smollett. But the writer who makes any efforts to injure the morals of his readers by his pages of licentioufnefs, proves himself to be the greatest enemy to fociety. Whatever may be his private thoughts, and however he may be impelled by his evil genius to commit thofe thoughts to paper, he ought not to let any manufcript of his find its way to the prefs, which contains a fyllable that may prove offenfive to the chafteft ear the bad want no incentives to be rendered worse; they fhould, if poffible, be corrected in fuch a manner that they may be made fenfible of the turpitude of their conduct, and feel a defire to amend it: the good may be ftimulated, by the exhibition of exemplary perfonages, to perfevere in their laudable courses. The former, by feeing vicious characters properly punished, may be de terred from vicious pleasures; the latter, by feeing virtuous characters properly rewarded may be doubly allured to virtuous purfuits. Written with thefe views, even novels may lie upon a young lady's dreffing table, without doing any mischief to her head, or to her heart. The hiftory of Mifs Melmoth(the author, we think, might have left out his New Clariffa, for an obvious reason) deferves the perufal of the fair part of a circulating librarian's customers, more than many of the hiftories, memoirs, and anecdotes which they, liberally, put into their hands. There is much business in it, and of an interesting nature: feveral parts of it are affecting; and it contains, upon the whole a pleafing mixture of inftruction and entertainment. Some of the characters, indeed, are extravagant; a few of the incidents unnatural; and many of the fituations are romantic; but, take it for all in all, it has a good deal of merit. Mifs Melmoth, the heroine, is a very amiable girl, and we highly approve of the author's making her happy after her feveral afflicting difappointments, and fevere trials, in confequence of the artful and attrocious machinations of an envious rival. 32. Jeffy; ar the Bridal Day. Two Vols. 45. Noble. There is fomething fo fingular in the cataftrophe of this little ftory, which is pleafingly told, and in which there are many fituations pathetically defcribed, that we cannot help giving the outline of it. Two friends, Sir George Manly, and Mr. Addison, the former a libertine, the latter a very amiable man, make a vifit to a nobleman who has two fifters: one of whom, Lady Julia, falls in love with Sir George.-Sir George, on a visit to Mr. Belville, his old tutor, falls in love with his daughter Jeffy, an exceeding good girl, who feels no weak prepoffeffions in his favour. Mr. Addifon alfo vifits Mr. Belville at the fame time, and makes his addresses to to Jeffy; but her father, at the inftigation of his wife, (who had formerly refufed her hand to Mr. Addifon, becaufe he had not money enough to fatisfy her ambition) rejects them. Mr. Belville dies, and Jeffy is left under the care of her mother-in-law, who has 'but a fmall jointure to fubfift on, as her husband had loft the greateft part of his fortune by trufting to private fecurity. Mrs. Belville connives at SirGeorge's dishonourable defigns against her daughter. She invites him, imprudently, to stay at her house after her husband's death. The knight makes an attempt, one night, upon Jeffy's virtue, but is unfuccefsful. In her correfpondence with a female friend, the naturally relates all her diftreffes to her, and the communicates them to Mr. Addison; who, ftill defirous of marrying her, makes new overtures; and the young lady is in a letter ftrongly perfuaded by her friend to accept of him. That letter falls into Sir George's hands. He contrives to decoy Jeffy to the house of a friend, whofe principles are fimilar to his own, and there fucceeds agreeably to his cruel wishes. Jeffy's poignant fenfations, and agonizing reflections throw her into a fever. Sir George leaves her in a very dangerous condition, and renews his addreffes to lady Julia, intending to marry her, and to keep Jeffy as a mistress if the recovers; who, finding herself haftening to her diffolution, writes to her friend, and intreats her to come to her. She, comes, and brings Mr. Addifon along with her. They arrive but just time enough to fee her before the dies. Mr. Addifon, determining to bury her handfomely at his own expence, orders the funeral to be performed at the church in which Sir George is to be married, on the fame morning, and at the fame hour. Sir George is furprized at the fight of his friend in fo very unexpected a fituation, while he is entering the church with his intended bride. Mr. Addifon chal. lenges him on the spot. They fight. Sir George is mortally wounded, and dies, embracing the coffin of her whom he had literally murdered by his villainous behaviour to her. It would be an affront to the understanding of our readers to point out the moral of this little piece. Ye credulous fair ones, and ye loofe, licentious fellows of the age! by you this piece may be read to fome purpose, if it is read with a proper attention. 33. The Jealous Mother; or, Innocence Triumphant. Two Vols. 65. Robinfon and Roberts. There are many mothers in every part of Great-Britain, perhaps in every part of the world, who, having indifputable pretenfions to beauty themfelves, cannot bear, with the leaft patience, to fee their handsome daughters ftarting into women: fo anxiously apprehenfive are they of being eclipsed by them. And it is very certain, that in proportion to the value which fuch mothers set on their own perfonal charms, is the unhappiness which they feel when they fee fuch daughters diftinguished for fimilar attractions. The little ftory at prefent under our confideration is evidently written with a design to make thofe ladies afhamed of their ridi culous, as well as unreasonable conduct, who, not contented with the admiration which they excite whenever they appear, look even on their own girls, born to be admired, with envious eyes; and, in confequence of their jealous emotions, do every thing in their power to keep them down. Every handfome woman who is jealous of her daughter must make herself very laughable, if the fuffers the rival to appear in a ftrong light; but then he is only a laughable object: unluckily there are not a few females bleffed with beauty beauty, and with beautiful daughters, who carry their jealoufy and their rivalfhip fo far, as to mistake intirely the maternal character, and study how to render those daughters wretched, instead of using their endeavours to contribute to their felicity. 1 Mrs. Walden, a widow of three and thirty, and fufficiently handfome to be very much admired, being greatly mortified at the arrival of her daughter from the country (on the death of her grandmother, with whom she had lived from her infancy), as the arrives with a perfon engaging enough to attract the attention of the men, and a mind elegantly accomplished, treats her, though she is about feventeen, quite like a child. She alfo contrives to make home as difagreeable to her as poffible: fhe is the more powerfully incited to render it so, as a Sir Charles Audley, who had made his addreffes to her before her daughter arrived, becomes enamoured with that daughter. The difcovery of their mutual attachment is extremely galling to her, and many steps does she take to prevent their union. After having furmounted numerous difficulties of various kinds Sir Charles and his Fanny are privately married. Sir Charles, however, not being able to prevail on Fanny to go with him a few miles out of town when the ceremony is over, confents to let her return to her mother on her promifing to accompany him whereever he pleases in a few days, if the fhould not be happy enough to induce her mother to be reconciled to her marriage with him. Sir Charles hearing nothing of his lady all the day after their marriage, determines to go at night, when he thinks Mrs. Flaherty, (Mrs. Walden had thrown herfelf away upon a needy, extravagant colonel of that name) and to bring lady Audley away with him.. He is aftonished to hear that his Fanny fet off the day before for Dover, ftill more fo to find that the colonel and his lady had infamoufly laid their heads together to confine her in a convent in France. Sir Charles, with an order from Flaherty to the priorefs for her release, hurries to Calais, and brings his Fanny to England. From that time they are uninterruptedly happy in each other: but lady Audley gives, unintentionally, a prodigious deal of uneafinefs to her mother by her connubial felicity: the birth of a daugh ter, by making Mrs. Flaherty a grandmother, fhocks her beyond expreffion the birth of a fon, not a great while afterwards, confiderably increases her vexation: the is defervedly, indeed, punished for all her ridiculous, as well as unjust behaviour, as a mother, by her fufferings as a wife, from the continued extravagancies of her husband, fuperadded to her own: to that mother, however, lady Audley's carriage is always exemplary. Sir Charles, out of respect for his Fanny, undertakes to be an arbitrator between Mrs. Flaherty and the colonel; they are both immenfely in debt, as his plan of accommodation is approved by them both. The offer being readily agreed to, as the fum ftipulated for their fubfiftence is a more confiderable one than they could reasonably have expected, every thing is fettled in an amicable way, greatly to the fatisfaction of lady Audley, who, notwithstanding her mother's continued exttravagancies of all kinds, pays her all proper respect, and feels for her in her troubles; troubles, indeed, entirely of her own creating; for with so amiable a daughter, with an easy fortune, and with a defirable perfon, fhe might have been fupremely happy,had she not been seized with a violent defire to charın, when the powers of charming were no longer at her command. By the exceffive indulgence of that defire, equally rebelling against nature and reafon, the becomes a miferable object in her own eyes, and appeared in the most contemptible 2 |