Edis Atheneæ ut circà faftigia, Venti Bis quatuor, circùm calmina cella, volant. Sæpè adhibet longum hoc, quod confpicis, inftrumentum, 1 Et prompta antè oculos fingula adeffe jubet." P. 45 He then conducts his imaginary companion to Pembroke College and Chrift Church. The former he mentions as the quondam refidence of Johnfon. "Illic delituit multos inglorius annos, Eterna Anglorum gloria, Jebafonius." P. 48. He adds fome elegant verfes in praife of the learned Archbishop Moore, once a member of Pembroke College. If we mistake not, this fortunate feminary can at the present moment boast of giving each of the fifter kingdoms a primate and metropolitan. On the fubject of Christ Church, its fquares, hall, library, ftudious walks, and fhades, he fpeaks with peculiar animation and enthufiafm. We have not room for any further extracts; but we can venture to promife our readers particular pleasure from the perufal of this part of M. Aubry's ingenious work. From Christ Church meadow he digreffes to a defcription of the Ifs, and the various methods of failing on that river-he then afcends Headington Hill-devotes a few lines to Blenheim, Nuneham, and Stowe; the illuftrious poffeffors of which Jaft place he mentions, with the gratitude and regard, which their fingular kindness to his unfortunate countrymen demands. The poem concludes with a defcription of a fmall, but elegant, Roman Catholic chapel and altar-piece, which the approach of night forbids him to exhibit in perfection to his companion. Such is the outline of this amufing work, which both for its defign and its execution, merits a very confiderable degree of praife; and, where there is fo much to commend, the faftidioufnefs of the fevereft critic will pafs over a few inaccuracies, and join in recommending the extenfive circulation of the innocent, agreeable, and not uninftructive performance of a deferving though unfortunate stranger. The Rev. Dr. Hornby, Profeffor of Aftronomy. M. Aubry M. Aubry uses Guido with the penultimate short, contrary, we think, to what good tafte and analogy would fuggest; he likewife avails himself of the licence which, by the way. should be used very fparingly, of fhortening the first fyllable of the word præit. We further object to the orthography and profody of Addiffonius, but thefe are trifling blemishes, and are none of them perhaps indefenfible. The firft, fyllable of palati, M. Aubry ufes always long; he has the authority of Martial for this practice, but we much prefer the Pălatinus Apollo of Horace. Perhaps there is no word which has more completely puzzled etymological writers than this fame Palatinus; the conjecture which refers it to Pales feems to us most plaufible, and is the foundation of the above remark. Foreigners, we know, are sometimes apt to form hafty opinions on the customs and manners of Englifhmen; and, however acute and ingenious, may be occafionally mifled. This, no doubt, was the cafe with Marat, of notorious memory, when on his trial for robbing the Ashmolean Museum, he told the judge of affize, in plena curia, that academics had a practice which they called tick-" The gentlemen" (faid he, in broken English)" come to buy, milor, but they forget to come to pay!" For a moment, when we read in M. Aubry of the effect which the found of "the mighty Tom" had on the young gownfmen, we conceived that he had been by fome means or other mifinformed, and had given credit to the fabulous rumour, that a door is now and then broken, or sported, in a bacchanalian frolic. But we foon grew eafy, and found that the damage was all imaginary, at least if any head is broken, it is only poor Prifcian's: "Quod tela ferendo Mille patet plagis." When Tom is tolled at nine o'clock, fays M. Aubry, "Imperat horrifico, late exaudita, boatu Heu! miferos juvenes præcipitare domos." We read præcipitare actively, and the word miferos we tranflated mifchievous, unlucky-but we foon grew eafy, when we found that M. Aubry meant no more than that they made haste, as in duty bound, and as no doubt is always the cafe, to their refpective colleges, at the found of the Oxonian Curfew. We hope to be forgiven for indulging one more fmile, in perfect good humour, at M. Aubry's confidering a bufhy periwig and a doctor of divinity, as infeparables; as forming, in fhort, one complex idea. Artifici crifpata manu, quibus ampla tumefcit Quos, Quos, jam ætate graves, greffus componere lentos, Hos detecta caput, comifque juventa falutat; Utque patres teneros obfequiofa colit." P. 55. But we must return to our graver and more laborious difquifitions, and bid M. Aubry farewell. ART. IV. The Life of Sir Charles Linnæus, Knight of the Swedish Order of the Polar Star, &c. &c. to which is added, a copious Lift of his Works, and a biographical Sketch of the Life of his Son. By D. H. Stoever Ph. D. Tranflated from the Original German by Joseph Trapp, A. M. 4to. 435PP. Il. Is. White. 1794. THE THE Life of Linnæus, the great investigator of the works of Nature, by whofe researches almost every branch of phyfical science, and more particularly that of Botany, has received fuch ample acceffions, was undoubtedly a subject highly worthy the attention of the moft enlightened biographer, and could not but be acceptable to every admirer of those studies in which he fo eminently excelled. Dr. Pultney had fome years before given a very elegant and fuccinct account of the general hiftory of this great man. The work, of which the prefent is a tranflation, aims at a much more extenfive and particular inveftigation of his life and character. It feems indeed to be rather too diffuse and prolix; and the writer feldom knows when he should say to himfelf" fed manum de tabula." The very contents or arguments of the feveral chapters, if added together, would alone have been fufficient for any reasonable life in a biographical compilation. We fhall prefent our readers with a few extracts from the work, with fome occafional obfervations. "Charles Linnæus was born on the third of May, 1707, at Rafhult, a village in the province of Smalaud. Nils, or Nicholas Linnæus, his father, who took birth in the year 1674, held the facred function of paftor of the village, two years previous to that event. He was joined in the banns of wedlock with Chriftina Broderfon, the daughter of his predeceffor in office. His ancestors were peasants. Several of his relatives, who had quitted the plough for the Muses, in the last century, changed their family name with their profeffion, and borrowed the names of Lindelius, or Tiliander, (Linden-tree-man) of of a lofty Linden-tree, which still stood in our time, in the vicinity of their native place, between Tomfboda and Linnhult; a custom not unfrequent in Sweden, to take fresh appellations from natural objects. The father of Linnæus, as the first learned man of his family, could not withstand following the example which his kindred had fet before him. He likewife borrowed of the fame tree a name which his fon rendered afterwards famous and immortal in every quarter of the globe. "Our Charles was the firft pledge of the young couple's mutual love. He was deftined for the pulpit; a deftination which his parents confidered as the happiest, and through which they flattered themselves their fon would one day become the prop of their old age. But, fortunately for fcience, this plan was overturned, even by thofe who felt its execution nearest to their hearts ;-they themselves fowed, as it were, in the cradle, a feed in the infant's breaft, which, in process of time, yielded the fineft fruits. "The father was a fingular lover of gardening. The smallness of his income, obliged him, at the fame time, to make the best of hufbandry. Flowers were the first things they gave the fmiling babe, and it feemed to take a natural delight in the variety of their colours. The fragrant play-things thus inftilled in the infant's breast an early paffion for the beauties of Nature, which a concurrence of favourable circumftances fofltered and increafed during the fubfequent ftages of his infancy. In the year 1708 he obtained the living of Stenbrohult, a benefice rather more lucrative than that which he enjoyed before, and in which he continued until his death. The greatest pleasure annexed to this new tenement, was a good, extenfive garden, in which he used to spend his leifure hours. He was a profeffed lover of flowers, and when a few years had elapfed, rendered his garden the finest and most variegated in the whole district. It contained upwards of four hundred fpecies of flowers, many of which were of foreign growth. "This darling paffion of the parent, became tranfcendent in the fon. The latter, in want of play-mates, made the garden the circle of his juvenile diverfions. Whenever the father planted and cultivated the gay parterre, he was fure of finding Charley fkipping by his fide, to share the pleasant toil, and to water the beds. The parent to reward and encourage the fondnefs and care of our infant florist, affigned to him, when he reached the eighth year, a feparate fpot in the garden; which, in honour of his fon, was called Charles's Garden. This landed property ftrengthened the love and inclination of the young free-holder. Refolted to make his as diverfified and copious as poffible, he made little excurfions in the neighbouring fields and woods, to collect flowers and plants to enrich it with. He carried this collection fo far as to gather all kind of weeds and wild herbs,-a treafure which his father found afterwards a painful job to eradicate. The active young fter brought even wild bees and wafps in the garden, who by their hoftile demeanour began to defolate the paternal hives. Some fevere reprimands deterred him from farther attempts of this fort, which his innocent fimplicity had induced him to confider as an act free from mifchief, Meanwhile his collections and excurfions increafed creafed his little ftores of knowledge, and roufed in him that love of Nature, which at his farther advance into life, derived additional energy as he gradually became more acquainted with her beauties. Thus minute and accidental circumftances have frequently become the fources of great results. p. 2. We foon after find the father of Linnæus, whofe circum ftances were far from affluent, determined to bind his fon apprentice to an honeft fhoe-maker and cobler." This refolution however was at length overruled by a judicious friend, who had taken notice of the young man's application to botany, and he was permitted to purfue ftudies more congenial to his difpofition. He afterwards went to the University of Lund, where he was fupported by the benevolence of Profeffor Stobaus. His poverty however at this univerfity was for fome time fo great, that his biographer informs us he was obliged to mend his own fhoes with the bark of trees. He became by degrees acquainted with the learned Celfius, who permitted him to ftudy in his library. He alfo made an acquaintance with Rudbeck; and formed a close intimacy with Artedi, a fellow ftudent, and distinguished for his knowledge of Icthyology, whofe work on that fubject, after his death, was published by Linnæus. After refiding a certain time at Lund, Linnæus was appointed by the Swedish Academy of Sciences to travel into Lapland, in order to make obfervations relative to its natural hiftory. This he performed fo much to the fatisfaction of his learned employers, that he was elected a member of the academy, and began to read lectures on the fubject of natural hiftory. In this however he was oppofed, by one of his fellow-ftudents of the name of Rosen. Mr. Rofen obferved that, as Linnæus had as yet taken no degree, he could not, according to the univerfity ftatutes, be permitted to read public lectures, and he was accordingly ordered to defift. This he refented with fo much violence, that he foon afterwards attempted to ftab Rofen, but was prevented by the byftanders. He fill however meditated revenge, and intended (as he afterwards acknowledged,) to stab Rosen the first favourable opportunity. "Still (fays our author) did he meditate the defign of ftabbing Rofen if he fhould meet him in the ftreets. While this desperate refolution had infinuated itfelf into his mind, he awoke one night in agonizing confternation: his fancy replete with dreadful images. He once gave a ferious thought to the horrid idea, and reafon conquered the effervefcence of his paffion. From this moment he became more fortunate, as he himself confeffed afterwards, and this very occurrence induced him to write a particular diary, under the title of Nemefis Divina." P. 41. The |