He has now published thefe feveral Letters together in a pamphlet with a view to their being of farther ufe to the public in future, and we wish that all who are concerned in fuch focieties may pay a proper regard to it. Infurance on Lotteries confidered. With a Table fhewing the Utility of the following Calculations in any Lottery that is drawn in any Number of Days, from 36 to 45, both inclufive. Izmo, 15. Leacroft. This calculator prefaces his tables by thefe very judicious reflections. At a time that a general depravity prevails i when extravagance and didipation have gained admiffion, even amongst the lower order of the people; it is not at all wonderful, that the most hazardous and dangerous fchemes are purfued by fo many, either with a view of exceeding the expensive follies of their neighbours, or elfe with the hope of relieving themfelves from the ditreffes in which they have been plunged by their own. There cannot be a greater, or more to be dreaded evil, in any state, than a fpirit of gaming; and that fuch a fpirit is now univerfal, few men will venture to deny. It therefore highly behoves the legislature to look to its confequences, and, if poffible, by good and wholsome institutions to top its progress. That measures apparently good in themselves, are often productive of mischief, may fafely be affirmed; and it is full as clear, that partial kindness, even to the most deferving indivi duals, may tend to distress or injure a large body of the peo ple. We have feen these maxims established, in two acts of the legifiature, authorizing certain perfons to difpofe of their effects by way of lottery. I admire the arts, and I think they fhould be cultivated. I alfo think thofe men who have made the greatest and moft fuccessful efforts for their advancement, fhould not only be encouraged in their progrefs, but fupported under their difficulties; but then, fuch encouragement and fupport fhould be dealt out, not only with a juft, but with a pradent hand. In the inftance before us, what the legislature, in a fpirit of humanity, intended for the benefit of one distressed (and I believe deferving) individual, is, by means that perhaps were not forefeen, turned to the difadvantage of thoufands, for the emolument of a few. I do not altogether disapprove of a lottery under proper reftrictions; the practice of gaming by infuring numbers is the alarming evil at which I with to ftrike. It is a melancholy reflection, that the poor manufacturer, whofe mind is kept upon the rack by the dangers with which the newspaper daily threaten him, either feeling, or dreading, a decay of trade, fhould, deluded by the artful infinuations of lottery-office keepers, fly with his laft guinea to a bare and very diftant poffibility of fuccefs. If men made but one effort, the evil would be trifling; but every one, in the leaft acquainted with the human mind, muft know, that repeated loffes act as ftimulatives to gaming, and that a guinea once loft, may in its confequences, bring on want, wretchednefs, and a gaol. A rational attempt to diffuade men from gaming at all, would be little attended to; but when the difadvantage of infuring is pointed out, it is hoped that many will fee their inte reft, and defift in time; for it is clear, that the office keepers, on the lowest calculation, gain 25 per cent. by infuring in the prefent lottery; and if a man were to infure for 20 l during a lottery that fhould be 45 days in drawing, the profit to the office-keeper would nearly amount, to the whole fum infured.' 6 It is to be lamented that there has of late years been but too much room for fach forrowful reflections as thefe. And this melancholy profpect is rendered ftill more gloomy to every ho neft man, who has a great regard for his country, by the very evident and amazing increase of the alarming evil here fo juftly complained of. The above reflections comprehend what this author means by the words Infurance on Lotteries confidered," in the title-page. The reft of this little book confits of a fer of tables thewing how much ought, on an equality of chance, to be paid on any day, during the drawing of the lottery, in order to receive back again any given specified fum, in cafe a ticket, bearing a certain propoled number in the lottery, be drawn that day. This is infuring against the drawing or coming-up of an affigned ticket, either blank or prize. The author alfo annexes an eafy rule to compute from thefe tables, and one fingle proportion, the price of infuring in like manner against a blank only, or against a prize only. And lastly, he fubjoins a short method for the eafily applying thefe tables to cafes in which the lottery may be finished in fome other number of days than those (45 or 46) which were affigned to the lottery to which they were at firft adapted. The whole of it is very concife and easily understood. By these tables any perfon may at one glance know what ought to be paid on any day for the infurance of any fum on any ticket; and confequently, he may eafily judge whether the infarer afks him too much or not. In fuch cafe, thefe tables may be of use. -If an office-keeper takes only the fums mentioned in thefe tables, neither he nor the infured has, taking the whole lottery throughout, any chance of advantage. But if he takes lefs, he must be fure of lofing by the end of the lottery; and then, or perhaps fooner, having received the infurance-money, when the tickets come up against him, he fuddenly fhuts up his shop, and is no more to be feen. This, we are informed, is a common practice with thofe pefts of fociety, who, without any capital, open a flaming fhop for a few weeks, with no other view than to gull poor needy wretches of their scanty daily pittance. The The Conduct of the Primitive Fathers in the Reception and Transmillion of Books afcribed to the Apostles and their Companions. 8v0. 2s. 6d. Bew. The authenticity of the fcriptures is one of thofe important facts in which christianity is especially concerned. It cannot therefore be too accurately examined, or too cautiously supported. Bishop Cofin has written to good purpofe on the canon of the Old Feftament, Mr. Du Pin, Mr. Jer. Jones, Mr. Richardson, and Dr. Lardner on the New. But as the productions of fome of these learned men are voluminous, the author of this tract has been induced to throw the teftimonies, in favour of each bock, into a little compaís and a regular feries. The points he endeavours to establish are chiefly thefe: that the early fathers were men of integrity, competent judges, and fingularly cautious in the reception and tranfmiffion of books, afcribed to the evangelifts and apoftles. Having given us a fhort account of Clemens Romanus, Ignatius, Polycarp, Papias, Juftin Martyr, Irenæus, &c. who lived in the first and fecond century, he adds: Thefe fathers therefore cited the fcriptures as a modern father of the church would do, who fhould write epiftolary exhortations to the churches under his care. He would not point out what books they fhould receive and acknowledge; this would be unneceffary. Neither in the compafs of a short letter would he think of citing exprefly a paffage or two from every book for the fatisfaction of pofterity. This he would think both impertinent and ufelefs. But according to the nature of his fubjects he would quote fuch books and paffages, as feemed most to his purpofe; fuch as might give authority to his doctrine or dignity to his language. Some books would therefore frequently be cited, others rarely or never. He would fometimes quote the holy penmen correctly, at others rather adhere to the fenfe than the letter. This I apprehend to have been exactly the cafe of the apoftolic fathers, except that they were more liable to quote incorrectly than a modern bishop; because the paffages in their rolls of parchment, being with greater difficulty found than in our printed bibles, they more frequently trufied to their memories. This is the reason why fome allufions are "faint and uncertain;" and why we have fo few of them. When divifions however increafed in the churches, and with them a number of fpurious books affuming the most refpectable names; it then indeed became neceffary for fucceeding writers to quote more exprefly their authorities, and this you will find Irenæus and his fucceffors carefully to have done. Thefe things premifed, I will just recapitulate a fummary of the evidence, I have already elsewhere given you, for the early notoriety and authority of our facred books. The gofpel of Matthew feems plainly alluded to by each of the apoftolical fathers; it is exprefly mentioned by Papias; largely though tacitly quoted by juftin, and cited by Irenæus, and the the principal fucceeding fathers to the end of the fourth century, in the moft plain and fatisfactory manner. There are no evident allufions to Mark's Gospel in the apoftolical fathers. Papias fays, Mark gave a copy of Peter's difcourfes." Juftin alludes to the prefent copy of Mark, and it is exprefly quoted by Irenæus, &c. • The gofpel of Luke feems alluded to by Clement of Rome, Ignatius, and Polycarp; it is plainly quoted by Justin, but more exprefty by Irenæus, &c. There are feveral fuppofed allufions to the gospel of John in the apoftolical fathers; but like most other books of the New Teftament, it is not exprefly quoted by any writer before Ire næus. In like manner all the uncontroverted books of the New Teftament seem to have been known to the earliest fathers—and two of Paul's Epiftles are exprefly quoted by them. If these fathers therefore are not credible witneffes, to the authenticity of our facred books, it is not for want of opportunities.' The author proceeds to fhew, that the fathers were fufficiently circumfpect in the cafe before us; that they were not impofed upon by the craft of impoftors, nor induced by any affumed names, or pretended authorities, to ufe heretical or ridiculous books; that they admitted only those, which had been approved by a conftant fuccellion of bifhops and governors of the church, from the days of the apoftles; and that the forgeries and interpolations of heretics were no fooner difcovered, than they were branded with expreffions of reprobation by the fathers in gene-, ral; and disciples advised to be upon their guard against them. As the fimplicity and credulity of the fathers have been much fufpected, this is a point of great importance in the prefent queftion. Our author endeavours to vindicate their characters and conduct by fome fhort quotations and remarks; but what he has advanced is not enough to convince the reader, that the fathers were fufficiently circumfpect and judicious in their difcrimina tions. This pamphlet, as may be naturally expected in this extenfive enquiry, is fhort and fuperficial. What ufe the writer has made of Dr. Lardner's Credibility, we cannot determine, as we have not that work at hand. The Guide to Domeftic Happiness. In a Series of Letters, Small 800. Is. Buckland. Three of these letters are addreffed to a young man in trade. In the first, the author gives him fome directions, relative to the choice of a wife. He obferves, that all things are conducted by a fuperior hand; and that a ferious and confiderate man may perceive the path, in which divine wifdom intends he should walk. He therefore advifes him to make choice of the woman, however poor, who first excites his regard, who is worthy of his love, and who feems to be defigned for him by Providence. In In the fecond, he fuggefts fome neceffary cautions relative to his economy, induftry, and integrity in trade. In the third, he recommends the duty of family prayer. The last letter is addressed to Eloifa, whom the author's young friend had lately married. In this, he points out fome errors in married women, which are deftructive to the felicity and comfort of the matrimonial ftate: fuch as, referve, making confidents of others, trifling amufements, unneceffary vifits, &c. This letter concludes with a fentiment, which is striking, pa thetical, and juft, whether applied to the hufband, or the wife. • When a hulband" is carried to the grave, we at once find excuses for every weakness, and palliations of every fault; we recollect a thousand endearments which before glided off our minds without impreffion; a thoufand favors unrepaid, a thoufand duties unperformed, and with, vainly with for his return, not fo much that we may receive, as that we may bestow happi nefs, and recompence that kindness which before we never understood. Our crime feems now irretrievable, it is indelibly recorded, and the ftamp of fate is fixed upon it. We confider, with the most afflictive anguish, the pain which we have given, and now cannot alleviate, and the toffes which we have caufed, and now cannot compenfate." Three of these letters have been published before; the fourth is new. They are evidently the productions of a serious and senfible proteftant diffenter. Mifcellanies. In Two Volumes. By the Rev. Richard Shepherd, B. D. 8vo. 8s. Flexney. The first of thefe volumes confifts of the following poetical productions: Ariftotle's Pean to Virtue, imitated; Ode to Content, to Ambition, to the Atheist, to Light, to Melancholy, to Envy, the Retreat; Unfuccessful Love, an Elegy; the Author's Return to College, an Elegy; the Philogamift; the Misogamist; the Reclufe; the Choice; the Economy of Time; Woman, an Epistle; the Gown; the Nuptials, a didactic Poem; Hector, a dramatic Poem; and three or four smaller Pieces. Most of these productions, as the author informs us, were written when he was very young, and have appeared in different publications. Several of them are inferted in the first volume of Pearch's collection. In ftile, imagery, and fentiment, the odes especially have a confiderable fhare of merit. In his fatirical productions the author more frequently affumes the feverity of Juvenal, than the pleasantry of Horace. His manner is, in general, rather grave than sprightly. The following lines will illuftrate this remark: Learn at St. James's of the bowing dean |