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THE

ANALYTICAL REVIEW,

OR

HISTORY OF LITERATURE,

DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN,

ON AN ENLARGED PLAN.

CONTAINING

SCIENTIFIC ABSTRACTS OF IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING WORKS,
PUBLISHED IN ENGLISH;

A GENERAL ACCOUNT OF SUCH AS ARE OF LESS CONSE
QUENCE, WITH SHORT CHARACTERS;

NOTICES, OR REVIEWS OF VALUABLE FOREIGN BOOKS;
CRITICISMS ON NEW PIECES OF MUSIC AND WORKS OF ART;

AND THE

LITERARY INTELLIGENCE OF EUROPE, &c.

"At hæc omnia ita tractari præcipimus, ut non, Criticorum more, in laude et
"cenfura tempus teratur; fed plane biftorice RES IPSA narrentur, judicium
"parcius interponatur."
BACON de biftoria literaria confcribenda.

VOL. III.

FROM JANUARY, TO APRIL INCLUSIVE, 1789.

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR J. JOHNSON, N°. 72, ST. PAUL'S CHURCH-YARD.

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1

THE

ANALYTICAL REVIEW,

For JANUARY, 1789.

ART. 1. Udfigt over den gamle Manufcript Samling i det fore kongelige Bibliothek, ved John Erichfen, Deputeret i Rentekammeret, Conferents Road og Bibliothecarius ved det ftore Kongel. Bibliothek. Kiöbenhavn hos N. Möller Hof bogtrycker. 1786. 8vo.-A View of the ancient Collection of MSS in the King's Great Library; by John Erichfen, a Lord of the Exchequer, First Librarian to his Majesty. Copenhag. 1786. Printed by Nicol. Moller, Printer to the King.

THIS is a valuable work, which will be confulted as long as juft tafte, and a love of literature, fhall continue to infpire the Scandinavian votaries of the Mufes. The author, whofe extenfive knowledge, unremitting zeal in public bufinefs, and diftinguished patriotifin, difplayed in all his actions, gives the following account of this last production of his literary retirement.

"A fevere distemper, fays he, urged me to feek repose from public bufinefs. This gave birth to the prefent undertaking, by which I relieved the listlessness of retirement. A fervant of the ftate, continues he, who derives a fuitable fupport from that ftate, is in confcience bound to lay before the public an account of every moment which otherwife he ought to have employed in the more active discharge of his duty.'

The vaft collection of manufcripts in the king's great library *, of which we propofe to give a fhort account, originated

and

* The King of Denmark has two libraries. The one is called the great library, founded by Frederick III. the other, the king's manual, or private library, founded by Frederick v. The prefent royal family of Denmark have diftinguished themfelves in fupport of every branch of ufeful and ornamental literature. The King, in particular, has, by an exprefs order, thrown open his great library for the ufe and infpection of every gentleman, who indulges a wish to be admitted in confequence of which, apartments are fitted up in the most convenient taste for the use of readers. But the liberality of this "prince has carried him ftill farther. Characters of note are permitted VOL. III.

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and increafed in the fubfequent manner. When this library began in the reign of Frederick III, the greatest part of the MSS confifted of chemistry and alchymy: for as Chriftian IV. and Frederick III. loved and patronifed the arts and sciences in general, it is not to be wondered at that they paid a particular attention to the ftudy of alchymy and chemistry, which almoft wholly engroffed the tafte and philofophical ardour of thofe times. The library was augmented by degrees, from the collections of Peter Scavenius, Lars Ulefeld, Joachim Gerfdorf, and Juft Hoegh, all noblemen, whofe literary and political talents are justly celebrated. Scarcely any acquifition of confequence, however, was made, till, in the year 1721, it was enriched by the library of Chriftian Reitzer, the works of Otto Sperling, and an immenfe variety of ftate papers and public tranfactions. In the line of claffics, or MSS confifting of Greek and Latin philology, hardly any exifted worth naming, previous to the reign of Chriftian vI, when the celcbrated Johan Grammius, in purfuance of the orders of that monarch, purchafed at the fale of the library belonging to count Dannefkiold Samfoe, the whole of that fuperb collection of invaluable MSS, which Frederick Roftgaard had collected during his literary travels throughout England, France, Italy, Holland, and Germany. In the year 1734 an addition was alfo made of the Mss which were found in the ducal library of Gottorp, which the Danes had taken poffeffion of in the late war with Sweden.

This library (the great library) had few MSS on the subject of domestic history, till the years 1751 and 1752, when a great number were purchased out of the library which had belonged to Johan Vofs, or Fofs.-Soon after, the heirs of Johan Grammius made a prefent of his valuable and well-chofen Mss, to the amount of 299.-At this period, the fucceffor to Grammius as librarian, wholly difregarding the duties of his office, neglected every opportunity which prefented itfelf of purchafing Mss for the use of the library, notwithstanding the order of his majefty for that purpofe. Hence, in the courfe of twenty-fix years, the library could boaft of no one acquifition, except thofe oriental Mss which were collected by a fociety of learned men, whom Frederick v. had sent to Arabia and Egypt. This addition however was made, it would feem, without the leaft hint, countenance, or affiftance from the librarian.

to carry home with them fuch Mss or printed books as they chufe; and, in order to render the whole as complete as poffible, it is enated, that a copy of every book printed throughout his dominions, from the earlieft period of book-printing to the prefent time, fhall be bought for the ufe of this learned repofitory.

Such

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*Such was the inattention of that gentleman to the encrease of the charge that had been committed to him, that, notwithftanding the existence of an edict, which exprefsly commands that three copies of every book printed in Copenhagen, fhould be delivered by the printer, for the ufe of the royal library, it is well known that this act, through his indolence, not to ufe a harsher term, was feldom or ever carried into execution. At the fame time, as if he wished to dry up every stream that flowed from this literary fount, he took the greatest care that neither printed works nor manufcripts fhould be taken out of it, or even perufed by any perfon, without his orders. In confequence of this, many diftinguifhed writers, who were defirous of perufing the library, were put to the difagreeable neceffity of procuring an exprefs order from his majesty for that purpose, directed to the librarian, who had the audacity to refuse the books which thofe gentlemen defired.

To this circumftance it is to be afcribed, that the editors of the Greek and Roman claffics introduced into the Danish fchools, by the royal committee of education in Denmark, were obliged to copy the editions which a Hackius, an Heyne, a Grævius and a Burman had previously given to the public, without having it in their power to collate thofe valuable Mss, which are prefented to our view from pag. 56 to 78, which include no lefs than eleven copies of different works of Cicero, five copies of Virgil, three ditto of Horace, fix ditto of Lucan, two ditto of Perfius, five ditto of Juvenal, two ditto of Solinus, four of Juftin, four ditto of Salluft, &c. befides others of Seneca, Boetius, Livy and Tacitus, many of which are very ancient. The refult of this behaviour was, that the high regard which the learned of Europe had heretofore paid to this library, during the time that Johan Grammius was librarian, and the high fenfe of its encreafing utility, began vifibly to decline: fo that had Mölman lived much longer, it is thought he would have furvived this precious collection.

Toward the clofe of the year 1777, two libraries, of no fmall importance, were difpofed of by public fale. The one belonged to Thorkel Klevenfeld, and the other to Jacob Langebeck, both rich in MSS exceeding fcarce and valuable. Many of them, being original records, contained the moft important points relative to the affairs of Europe, during the last two centuries. Notwithstanding this, not a fingle paper was purchased for the ufe of the royal library.-As the fciences, however, had already felt the foftering influences of P. Frederic Suhm, one of the lords of his majesty's bed-chamber, on this occafion, they experienced a fresh inftance of his affection. This truly great character purchased a great number of

See The Nya Opfeftrings-tidningar. Stockholm 1787.

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