Not content with the great success which the practice of inoculation hath mee with against the Small-pox in moit pa'ts of Europe, the Au. thor of this letter is for eradicating that terrible disorder entirely. He is indeed by no means of opinion, with most of the faculty, that this diltemper is a necessary evil to which almolt every person is naturally liable. He is far from thinkingit proceeds from a germe, or a virus, lodged in the blood, and which we bring with us into the world. According to Dr. Casimir, che variolous fever is produced by the same causes as produce every other inflammatory fever; and nothing more is necessary, to prevent the inflammation from breaking out in pullules, than to reduce the fever in the first instance. If the pustules appear to come to a head, says he, it is because we do every thing to favour their eruption, instead of checking it. Our Author is not the first physician by many, who hath entertaised this notion of the Small-pox; Dr. Krause of Leipfick, published a treatise on the same subject, but a very little while ago. This notion, however, appears to gain but little ground; and, indeed, it is to be apprehended that the advocates for it will never have a fair opportunity of putting it to the test of experience; especially since the progress of inoculation bath given fuch convincing proofs of its being å safe and easy method of paling through this horrid distemper, in permitiing the fever to come to a crisis by the suppuration of the puffules. There is another circumstance also attending this notion, which cannot fail to have a bad effect on the patient, who, in submitting to be inoculated, conceives he Mail for ever after be freed from the disor. der: whereas if the Small-pox be only a common inflammatory fever, no reason can be given why he should not be liable to the same fever again; as well as to other inflammatory disorders. This objection it Seems tared our good Doctor lo Itrongly in the face, that, in order to obviate is force, he is obliged to admit the fait, and own that there are many people who have had the Small.pox several times. He does admit, bowever, that in sach cales it generally comes under the difguise of the measles, the scarlet fever, &C. As a proof of this, he prescribes a method, by which a physician may convert the measles into the Small-pox, at any time, the patient chufe it. We cannot here coter into a controverty about any thing our Author hath ad. vanced ; but we greatly fear, that, fupposing him to be in the right, his remedy would, like many others, prove as bad as the disease.

Art. 3. Ratio facilis argue tuta Nafium curandi Polypos, &c. An easy and safe Method of curing the Polypus in the Nose.

8vo. Vienna. 1763. Mr. Pallucci, the ingenious Author of this little treatise, conceives that the Polyfus in the Nose is not an expansion of the picuitary membrane, as has been supposed by some ; because there is no mark in it of any diftiner organization. It is formed, says he, of a concretion of the blood, that oozes out after viclent bleedings at the nole. As a proof of this, he relates, that having extirpated a Polypus, and stopping the hemorrhage that succeeded too precipitately, another formed itself in a few days exactly like the former ; and which, being taken out and put into warm water, dissolved away. His method of extirpating these disagreeable concretions is somewhat different from those asually

pradised,

practifed, and seems to be an improvement: but we cannot enter here
into the particulars of the operation.
Art. 4. Descriptio Novi Instrumenti pro Curâ Cataracta, &c. 8vo.

Vienna. 1763.
The Description of a New Instrument for the Cure of the

Cataract.
The Instrument here described is invented by Mr. Pallucci, (Author
of the preceeding article on the Polypus) and appears, by the account
given of it, to be well calculated for its intended use. The description
of the instrument is introduced by some interesting observations on the
Cataract itself. He remarks in particular that a true cataract has often
been produced in a few days, by gently rubbing the chrystaline hu-
mour of the eyes of some animals; whence he concludes that the seat of
the disorder lies between the Chrystaline and the membranes inclosing
it; or solely in those membranes, without the lens being at all affected.
On the whole, he thinks it much better to depress Cataracts than to
extract them; a conclusion in which he is supported by the extensive
experience of the celebrated M. Daviel ; who hach cured more by the
former method than the latter.
Art. 5. Memoire sur une Question Anatomique, relative a Jurisprum

dence, &c. izmo. Paris. 1763.
A Differtation on a certain anatomical Question, respecting a

Point of Law; in which are laid down the Principles for de-
termining, in cases of Murder, the Marks of Suicide from
those of Aslaffination, upon Inspection of the dead body. By
M. Louis, of the Royal Academy of Surgery.

This is a well designed and interesting little tract, we wish we could
say a satisfactory one. But the subject of which it creats, is no less im-
portant chan difficult. It was written upon occasion of the suicide of
Marc. Anih. Calas, for whole supposed murder his unhappy father was
executed; bis judges being greatly influenced by the depositions of the
physician and lurgeon who inspected the dead body. Mr. Louis very
judiciously and bumanely observes on this head, how very cautious
gentlemen of the faculty hould be, in trusting to equivocal appearances
on such'occasions,
Art. 6. Leçons de Physique Experimentale. Par M. l'Abbé

Nollet, &c.
Lectures in Experimental Philosophy. By the Abbe Nollet,

Paris, 1764.
This volume, being the fixth, of these lectures, contains four others
never before published ; the first on the motions of the planets and the
phenomena resulting therefrom : the ficond on the properties of she
loadilone ; and the two last on natural and artificial electricity. In the
latter, our ingenious Experimentalist endeavours 19 reduce all the pher
nomena of electricity, to his hypothesis of, what he calls, the efluent and
ajiunt currents of electric matter.

Nn2

Art. 7.

Art. 7. Hifloire Naturelle, Generale et Particuliere, avec la De

fcription du Cabinet du Roi. Tom X. Paris. 1763. The Natural History and Description of the Curiosities in the

Royal Cabinet. There are two volumes of this celebrated work, viz. the roth and 11th, lately published ; The former, however, is as yet only come to hand; and in this, we have the history and description of twenty foreign quadrupeds ; diftinguished in this work by the following names, the Oudatra, the Difman, the Pecari, or the Tajacu, the Roulette, the Rougelle, the Vampire, the Polarouche, the Petir-gris, the Palmiste, the Barbarifjue, and the Suise; the Tamanoir, the Tamandue, and the Fourmillier; the Pangolin, and the Phatagin; the Tatous, the Paca, the Sarigue or Opolum, the Marmose, and the Cazopollin. We need not acquaint the Reader with the obvious impossibility of our being particular on such a work as this; we cannot dismiss it, however, without inserting the following reflections of Mr. de Buffon, respecting the nature of quadrupeds in general.

• When we speak of a quadruped, the name alone seems to import an animal covered with hair; just as when we speak of birds or of filhes, their wings and their fcales present themselves to our imagination, as inseparable from their very being. But nature is so little acco dant with our ideas, that he seems to delight in contradiảing our moit general systems ; aitonishing us even more by her exceptions than her laws. Quadrupeds may be ranked, after the human species, in the firit class of animals; they are not superior nevertheless to all others in every respect, nor diftinguished from them by invariable qualities.

Their first characteristic from which they are denominated, viz. their having four legs, is common also to lizards, frogs, &c, which are so diflimilar to quadrupeds, however, in other respects, that they are juftly distinguished as a separate class of beings. Their second general property is that of being viviparous; but this belongs not exclufively to quadrupeds ; as it is equally common to all cetaceous animals. Their third general property of being covered with hair, which seems til less equ vocal, as it is the most apparent, is incompatible with the two former properties in many species of animals; which nevertheless cannot be separated from the order of quadrupeds ; for if we except th:s fingle quality, they resemble that order in all others. But as these apparent exceptions to the rules of nature are, in reality, only the shades of difference which the employs to unite beings, the most diftant in other respects from each other, we should never lose light of these lingular relations, but endeavour to observe them accurately whenever they present themselves. The Tatous, inftead of being covered with hair, have shells like tortoises, lobsters, and other crustaceous animals. The Pangolin is covered with scales, resembling those of fish. Again, por. cupines are armed with pointed quills without feathers, but the quill itself exactly resembles those of birds. Thus we see that, in the class of quadrupeds alone, and even in the most general and obvious property of such animals, Nature hath diversified her designs, in approaching three other classes very different; viz. birds, scale filh, and thellfilh.'

It is for this reason, continues Mr. de Buffon, that Naturalifts should
be cautious of arranging animals, from one single characteristick or pro-
perty, which they will ever find defective. Nay, he observes, thac fome-
times even two or three very general ones are insufficient to this end ; ic
being only by an union of all their properties, that we can judge of the
essential forms or characteristics of any of the productions of nature.

Art. 8. Opuscules • Mathematiques. 4to. Paris. 1764.
Mathematical Miscellanies. By Mr. d'Alembert. Vol. 3.
*The principal object of this third volume of M. d'Alembert's Mif.
cellanies, is the improvement of Telescopes. To this end he hath
folved a number of ingenious problems ; to which the opticians have
hitherto paid too little attention. He treats particularly on the influence
which the chickness of the glasses hath on the aberration of the focus,
and of the means of remedying such defects of the means of rendering
the total effect of combined aberrations as little as posible : of the struc-
Lure of the eye ; on the proportion which the eye-glass and aperture
lhould bear to the object-glals, at any given aberration how small Toever:
of the means of diminishing, as much as poslible, that small aberration
which remains after the greater part is annihilated : of the construction
of microscopes, prospect-glasses, &c. concluding the whole with some
judicious reflections on the laws of refraction in general.
Art. 9. . Mufaum S. R. M. Ludovicæ Ulrice Reginæ Suæco-

rum, &c.

A Description of the curious Animals, Insects, Shells, &i.

contained in the Royal Cabinet of Curiosities, belonging to
the Queen of Sweden. By M. Linnæus. 8vo. Stockholm.
1764.

The Mufæum, whose contents are here described, is situated at Drot:
ningholm, and is eileemed one of the finest collections of natural curio-
fities in Europe. In the present volume M. Linnæus gives a description
only of the inseats and Theils. He thought it most expedient to begin
with the former, as being the least durable of this kind of curiofities.

To this work is also added an extract from the Continuation of the
Description of the King's Cabinet of Curiosities; the first volume of
which was published in the year 1754, in large fo'io, with elegant
plates. In this extract from the second volume, which is said so be now
preparing for the press, is given a descrip:ion of many curious birds,
and some amphibious animals extremely rare ; as allo of the several
kinds of fish in the Nile, collected on the spot by Dr. Halleiquift. On
the whole, the curious Naturalist will meet with a variety of entertain-
ment in this volume.
Art. 10. Lettera di Domenico Vandelli al celebre Sig. Dottore Carlo

Gandini in Genova. 8vo. Genoa. 1764.
An Epistle from Mr. Vandelli to Dr. Gandini, of Genoa.

Among other curious topics that are very cursorily treated of in this
epiftle, the Writer informs his correspondent of a learned friend's allur.
ing him, from Vienna, that the famous remedy newly revised there, by
Nn

Dr.

Dr. Storcke, viz. bemlock, has been publickly tried, and without luce cels, in above an hundred and twenty cases. As this, however, is only a second-hand kind of information, it may posibly not appear of luf. ficient weight, to deter the many poison-dealers which Dr. Storcke has fet to work in these and the neighbouring kingdoms, from the very exceptionable occupation of making such dangerous experiments. But it is confirmed from other quarters; and indeed were it not so, if we turn to our pharmacopeias, we shall find no such dearth in the Materia Medica, as to warrant this application to violent remedies. Art. 11. Elementa Metaphyficæ Mathematicum, in morem adornata,

&c. 5 Vol. 8vo. Naples. 1763. The Elements of Metaphysics, digefted into Geometrical Or

der. By Antonio Genoveli, Profeffor of Moral Philosophy in the Royal Academy at Naples.

This work is divided into five paris, agreeably to the number of volumes. In the first the author undertakes to refute the doctrines of Fatalism; in the second Deism ; in the third Epicureanism, and in the fourth Libertiniím. Volume the fifth, contains four dissertations ; the first on the origin and primitive state of things : the second, on the eternity of the world ; in which the author attacks the Platonists and Peripatetics; the third treats of the nature of God; and the fourth of the origin of Phyfical and Moral Evil,