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On the 4th of September, Commodore Preble, in order to try new experiments of annoyance, determined to send a fireship into the enemy's harbor. The Intrepid was fitted out for this service, being filled with powder, shells, and other combustible materials. Captain Somers, who had often been the emulous rival of Decatur in the career of glory, was appointed to conduct her in, having for his associates in the hazardous enterprise, Lieutenants Wadsworth and Israel, all volunteers. The Argus, Vixen, and Nautilus were to convoy the Intrepid as far as the mouth of the harbor. Captain Somers and Lieutenant Wadsworth made choice of two of the fleetest boats in the squadron, manned with picked crews, to bring them out. At eight o'clock in the evening, she stood into the harbor with a moderate breeze. Several shot were fired at her from the batteries. She had nearly gained her place of destination, when she exploded, without having made any of the signals previously concerted, to show that the crew was safe. Night hung over the dreadful catastrophe, and left the whole squadron a prey to the most painful anxiety. The convoy hovered about the harbor until sunrise, when no remains could be discovered either of the Intrepid or her boats. Doubt was turned into certainty, that she had prematurely blown up, as one of the enemy's gunboats was observed to be missing, and several others much shattered and damaged. Commodore Preble, in his account, says, that he was led to believe, that those boats were detached from the enemy's flotilla to intercept the ketch, and without suspecting her to be a fireship, the missing boats had suddenly boarded her, when the gallant Somers and the heroes of his party, observing the other three boats surrounding them, and no prospect of escape, determined at once to prefer death, and the destruction of the enemy, to captivity and torturing slavery, put a match to the train leading directly to the magazine, which at once blew the whole into the air, and terminated their existence; and he adds, that his conjectures respecting this affair are founded on a resolution, which Captain Somers and Lieutenants Wadsworth and Israel had formed, neither to be taken by VOL. XXI. No. 48.

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the enemy, nor suffer him to get possession of the powder on board the Intrepid.'*

Soon after these events, Commodore Preble gave up the command in the Mediterranean to Commodore Barron, and returned to the United States. His eminent services were enthusiastically acknowledged by his admiring fellow citizens, as well as those of his associates in arms, whose names,' in the expressive language of the resolve of Congress on the occasion, ought to live in the recollection and affection of a grateful country, and whose conduct ought to be regarded as an example to future generations.'

The present volume of Mr Goldsborough follows the growth and history of our navy, down to the peace with Tripoli, in June, 1805, where his narrative ends. The residue of the volume is devoted to several miscellaneous topics, which are of particular interest to the navy, and to those who seek instruction on the subject. We should perhaps have been better pleased, had the narrative been continued, to the exclusion of these materials, which might have found a more appropriate place in works of a less popular character. They are, however, important to nautical men, and it may be well to compress such information within a small compass, for more easy reference. From Mr Goldsborough's preface, it would appear, that he had adopted his method of arranging events, from a belief that it was an improved one. It may be so, for those who are desirous of only viewing detached events, without any of their concomitants; but we suspect, that readers in general will be confused and dissatisfied with his frequently suspended and returning narrative. There is a regularity and connexion in the sequence of events, which can hardly be violated with any prospect of advantage; and we apprehend that whenever biography is departed from, it is best to adhere to a strict chronological order.

Mr Goldsborough has still a bright era before him; ample materials for many an interesting chapter, without drawing

* Naval Chronicle, p. 237.-We are the more inclined to coincide with Commodore Preble in his conjectures respecting this catastrophe, from reading the note which Mr Goldsborough subjoins to this detail. It is too long for us to insert; and we know not that we are desirous of increasing its publicity, exhibiting, as it does, such an appearance of bloodthirstiness on one side, and such a reckless spirit of self destruction on the other.

too liberally from documents or the statute book. Every American will be eager to see a detailed and complete account of the actions of our navy, during the late war. It will exhibit a series of brilliant achievements, such as no other part of our national history presents, and we hope the author will persevere, and be successful in setting these forth under their true aspect to the public eye.

ART. II.-Lectures on the Philosophy of the Human Mind. By the late THOMAS BROWN, M. D. Professor of Moral Philosophy in the University of Edinburgh. 4 vols. 8vo. Edinburgh, 1820. First American Edition, Andover, 1820, 3 vols. 8vo. Second American Edition, Philadelphia and Charleston, S. C. 1824, 3 vols. 8vo.

DR BROWN's posthumous work, the title of which we have prefixed to the present article, consists of one hundred Lectures. We have already given to our readers the substance of fiftyone, in our review of a Sketch,* drawn up by the lecturer himself, for the use of those who attended his class. As this is the last time that we shall formally present him to the public, we shall subjoin to our concluding rapid analysis of his philosophical works, such notices as we have been able to obtain respecting his life and character, together with a few summary criticisms on his genius and writings.

It will be remembered, that he first arranged all the mental phenomena into two general divisions, viz. the External Affections of the mind, and its Internal Affections. The former comprehended our sensations, including our muscular feelings; the latter involved our intellectual states of mind, together with our emotions. We exhausted the analysis of the first division, and proceeded as far as through the intellectual states in the second. The Emotions remain now to be considered, before completing the author's system of the Physiology of the Mind.

He declines venturing on a definition of Emotions, affirming that the attempt would be as truly impossible, as to define

* North American Review, No. XLIV.

sweetness, or bitterness, a sound, or a smell, in any other way, than by a statement of the circumstances in which they arise. Perhaps so; yet, though one could not define a taste or a sound, it would be strange to philosophise upon either of them, without any reference whatever to the palate or the ear, which are their appropriated organs. Our author is liable to the charge of this delinquency, in omitting to notice what may be called the topical peculiarity of the Emotions. It must be familiar to the experience of every individual, that the seat of this class of feelings is the region of the præcordia. The author had already allowed the specific connexion between our intellectual states and the nerves and brain, which renders his omission on this point the more observable. He He exposes himself to evident embarrassment and inconsistency throughout the work, by representing the mind as the immediate seat, both of the Intellectual States and Emotions. We believe that the alone true, intelligent, self active, immaterial, immortal principle lies, if we may so express ourselves, behind the regions of the two classes of feelings abovementioned, and communicates in some inexplicable way with both of them. There is certainly something within us, which compares one intellectual state with another, one emotion with another, and intellectual states with emotions. This is within the experience of all. But respect-, ing the simple or compound nature of this interior principle, we hold all speculation to be useless.

To return to our work. The author's general principle of arranging the Emotions is their relation to time. They are Immediate, or involving no notion of time whatever; Retrospective, or relating to the past;

Prospective, or relating to the future.

Admiration, remorse, hope, may serve as particular instances to illustrate this distinction. We admire what is before us; we feel remorse for some past crime; we hope some future good.

Were they considered only as elementary feelings, without any regard to time, the emotions, he says, might be reduced to the following descriptions; joy, grief, desire, astonishment, respect, contempt, and the two opposite species of vivid feelings, which distinguish to us the feelings, that are denominated virtuous or vicious. Such a consideration of them,

however, would be much more abstract, uninteresting, and inapplicable to human life and conduct, than the method which he has adopted.

The immediate emotions are subdivided into those, which do not involve any feeling that can be termed moral, and those which do involve some moral affection.

The following are our immediate emotions of the former kind. Cheerfulness, melancholy, wonder, mental weariness, the feeling of beauty, disgust, our feelings of sublimity and ludicrousness. To the latter subdivision may be referred the vivid feelings, that constitute to our heart what we distinguish by the names of vice and virtue, considered apart from the mere intellectual judgments we form respecting actions; cur emotions of love and hate; of sympathy with the happy and with the miserable; of pride and humility.

The retrospective emotions are subdivided as they relate to others and to ourselves. Those, which relate to others, are anger and gratitude. Those, which relate to ourselves, are, simple regret and satisfaction, without the mixture of any moral feeling; and finally, remorse and self approbation.

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The prospective emotions comprehend all our desires and all our fears. Of the former, the most important may be considered as enumerated in the following series. First, our desire of continued existence, without any immediate regard to the pleasure which it may yield; secondly, our desire of pleasure, considered directly as mere pleasure; thirdly, our desire of action; fourthly, our desire of society; fifthly, our desire of power, direct, as in ambition, or indirect, as in avarice; seventhly, our desire of the affection or esteem of those around us; eighthly, our desire of glory; ninthly, our desire of the happiness of others; and, tenthly, our desire of the unhappiness of those whom we hate.' The following paragraph on this subject, is a happy specimen of the author's analytical skill, and of the gracefulness and facility, with which he makes the common nomenclature of our mental feelings fall into his own philosophical arrangements.

'I must observe, however, in the first place, that each of these desires may exist in different forms, according to the degree of probability of the attainment of its object. When there is little of any probability, it constitutes what is termed a mere wish; when the probability is stronger, it becomes what is called hope; with

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