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That on the Antiquary is very feeble, and in some places very absurd. The writer is pleased elegantly to tell us, that "the story of the novel is not very novel, nor yet very probable." He then gives a brief sketch of the story, taking care to render it as obscure as possible by mis-spelling the names of the characters. Next he presents us with that part of the novel in which Edie Ochiltree is described as having "a slouched hat, a long white beard," "a brickdust complexion," and "a long blue gown :" which the writer obligingly informs us is a "living portrait of a singular class of the Scottish poor." Now a "long white beard," which is mentioned as one of Edie's attributes, and "brick dust complexion," might belong to any person as well as to a Scottish beggar; and how these exterior things can present a portrait of any "singular class," is to us incomprehensible, He then says, after quoting the account of the funeral, that "the Grecian painter's veil is not so natural and touching as the poor fishwoman's apron," talks sublimely of the "overwhelming march of time," and immedi ately after, in an humbler strain, of the "change of manners;" in all which he follows the rule laid down by the celebrated Martinus Scriblerus (Tep Babous, chap. xi,), and lauds and envies those readers of novels who "begin at the end," as they have had a signal advantage over this learned person, who, with singular benevolence and patience, regularly "laboured on through" what he is pleased to call "the dark dialect of Anglified Erse."

The article on the Poor is powerfully written; and we can speak of it in terms of almost undivided praise. But however great may be our respect for the learning, our reverence for the genius, and our love for the tenderness and amiableness of its reputed author, we cannot pass it without vituperating' the sordid and fanatical bigotry which makes him absolutely, abhor all forms of religion but that of the Church of England. He recommends, to be sure, that children should be educated: but it is on the sole condition that it be. in the principles of the established church. To some pa rents this would be a laceration of conscience not to be borne; and of some so educated, when they grew up in a form of worship which they considered not conformable to their notions of scripture, or to the dictates of conscience, it would make furious sectaries. These are the people whom the church has to dread: it is from among those who have

been educated in her faith, and who fancy their eyes opened to her errors, that the Dominicks and the Loyolas may be expected to spring!

We now take up the Edinburgh Review. It is really refreshing, after our ears have been fatigued with the dulness of one review, and stunned with the fanatical dogmatism of another, to turn to one in which true wit and true learning are to be found.

The splendid eloquence and profound philosophy of the articles on Novels, on Schlegel, and on the Literature of the South, are in every one's memory!-In the present Number, the article on Goethe is written with much sarcastic vivacity, and in a spirit of sound and deep-viewing philosophy. In the article entitled "Cashiering of Kings," an evident argument, drawn from the deposition of the Kandian Tyrant, is applied with irresistible force. That too on the barbarians of Algiers, is a series of powerful arguments for their annihilation. In the commencement of a review of the "City of the Plague," the writer vindicates himself and his critical brethren from the charge of severity; for it seems they "have often thought it unnatural to say, or to think, any thing barsh of the innocent and irritable race of Poets," and they have "always manifested the greatest tenderness and consideration for the whole tuneful brotherhood." Those who remember their treatment of the "innocent and irritable" Mr. Montgomery, and a few similar cases, may perhaps be inclined to think this a little controvertible: but the article in which this apology is made for the gentleness and tender mercies of the Leviathan of Literature, breathes so mild a spirit, that we cannot help assenting to any thing— and yet Mr. Wilson stands in no need of "the operation of lenient principles."

The Story of Rimini is the last piece noticed in this Number: it is written in a superb style; but we have several reasons for not agreeing with the sentence of the Northern Oracle. We have, in a former number of our Journal, delivered a somewhat favourable opinion of this production. But the Edinburgh Review has lavished all its gorgeousness of praise upon it. We think the affectation of Mr. Hunt so intolerable, his uncouthness of phrase so prominent, and his innumerable sins so wilfully committed, that we cannot help censuring the operation of the partialities of friendship in this case, however much we may respect the talents of one,

who has touched upon every thing, and left nothing that he has touched, unadorned.

The Edinburgh Journal is free from imitation, and from imitators; but the Quarterly Review seems to be the "great example" which the writers of the British Review have set before themselves. In the practice of the courtly virtue of servility, they already follow the great masters of the Quarterly Review with equal steps; and although they have not yet acquired their tone of supercilious dogmatism, yet in time this too may be expected, for they possess the same cant of sentimental morality with which the Quarterly Reviewers set out. The Quarterly Review, however, never talked of "allusions that adumbrate deformity," of "out-adoors delights," of "happy sceptres," of " chaotic originalities," of "sacrificing hecatombs," and such learned matters: it never recommended the imitation of the "sea-monsters" to fashionable mothers; it never evidenced its acquaintance with natural history by likening ladies to " ostriches:" it never said that there was any danger of "a Mahometan degradation of their character:" it never likened the island of St. Helena to Dante's Purgatory; and, however intrepid may have been its experiments on common sense, it never ventured to produce "Watts's Psalms," and the "Original Poems" for the Nursery, as irrefragable proofs of the exist ence of piety and the presence of poetical inspiration.

318

Monthly Register

OF

ARTS, SCIENCES, AND LITERATURE.

The Conductors of the AUGUSTAN REVIEW request scientific and literary men, and also Editors and Publishers, to favor them with authentic information relative to inventions, discoveries, and improvements in Arts and Sciences; Notices of works preparing for publication, and of those recently published: which will be thankfully received, and communicated to the public in the subsequent Number, if sent to the publishers (post paid) before the 20th of the month.

I.

INVENTIONS, DISCOVERIES, AND IMPROVEMENTS, IN ARTS AND SCIENCES.

Coal-Mines.

SIR H. DAVY has published some additional observations on his Wire-gauze Safety-Lamps, to which we have frequently drawn the attention of our readers. He has found that double cylinders of wire-gauze, so arranged that the wires are parallel to each other, are preferable to the single ones; for they occasion very little loss of light, and greatly diminish the heat when the fire-damp alone is burning within the cylinder. The double cylinders have never been known to become red-hot; besides which, they have double the strength of the ingle ones.

He farther observes: "In adopting from 30 to 26 apertures to the inch, (from 900 to 676 in the square inch,) and wires from

to of an inch in thickness, even single lamps are secure in all atmospheres of fire-damp; and double cylinder lamps are per. fectly safe under all circumstances, even in atmospheres made explosive by coal-gas, which, from the quantity of olefiant gas it

contains, is much more inflammable than fire-damp. When, indeed, a strong current of coal-gas is driven from a blow-pipe, so as to make wire-gauze of 676 apertures strongly red-hot in the atmosphere, the flame from this pipe may be passed through it whilst it is strongly red-hot; but this is owing to the power which wires strongly ignited possess of inflaming coal-gas; and they have no such effect on genuine fire-damp; and a stream of gas burning in the atmosphere, acting on a small quantity of matter, is en. tirely different from an explosive mixture, which is uniform within the lamp."

He annexes two letters, in testimony of the merits of the safetylamp: one from JOHN BUDDLE, Esq., dated Newcastle Colliery; the other from Mr. PEILE, dated Whitehaven. Mr. BUDDLE says, among other things: "The only inconvenience experienced, arises from the great quantity of dust, produced in some situations by working the coal, closing up the meshes of the wire-gauze, and obscuring the light; but the workmen very soon removed this inconvenience by the application of a small brush."

"Besides the facilities afforded by this invention to the working of coal-mines abounding in fire-damp, it has enabled the directors and superintendants to ascertain, with the utmost precision and expedition, both the presence, the quantity, and the correct situa tion of the gas. Instead of creeping inch by inch with a candle, as is usual, along the galleries of a mine suspected to contain fire. damp, in order to ascertain its presence, we walk firmly on with the safe-lamps, and with the utmost confidence prove the actual state of the mine.

"By observing attentively the several appearances upon the flame of the lamp, in an examination of this kind, the cause of accidents which have happened to the most experienced and cautious miners is completely developed; and this has hitherto been, in a great measure, matter of mere conjecture."(Phil. Mag. No. 219.)

in

In our last, we gave a short account of the method of ventilating mines, proposed by Mr. RYAN. In the Philosophical Magazine for July, there is a paper on the same subject by Dr. JAMES WATT, of Glasgow. He observes, that inequalities in the roof or floor of the mine may be a means of retaining the explosive gas, spite of a current of air passing through the mine; and le proposes a plan which he imagines will be more effectual-vis. to ventilate the mine by mechanical means, by a blowing apparatus of some sort; either to force a quantity of air into he mine, by which the foul gases may be displaced, or to extrac those gases out NO.XVII.-VOL.III.—Aug.Rev.

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