and of animals and plants mentioned in the Bible; he has alfo made alterations and improvement in a few other other articles in his Lexicon.

A Charge delivered to the Clergy of York, June 16, 1784. By William Cooper, DD. F. R.S. Archdeacon of York. 4to. Is. 6d. L. Davis.

This very refpectable writer directs the attention of his rev. brethren to fome late alarming calamities, and remarkable phenomena, in various countries, which, he thinks, should be confidered as the admonitions of divine Providence. He then reprefents, in the ftrongest light, the general depravity of this nation; takes a curfory view of the fubverfion of feveral an cient states and kingdoms; and concludes with fome useful admonitions to the clergy, exhorting them to labour with unre. mitting affiduity in their profeffion, in order to check the vices of the age, and promote the practice of virtue.

The following exhortation difplays the author's difinterefted benevolence.- Do not over-value the world; use it as not abufing it; hoard not up the emoluments arifing from preferment, for private purpofes; expend them judiciously; repair or re-build the parfonage houfes, if neceffary; establish schools for the education of children; aid your parishioners; remit their tithes, &c.'

It is to be lamented, that out of ten thousand benefices in this kingdóm, there are at leaft nine thousand, which are fcarcely fufficient to afford their respective incumbents, in these expenfive times, the common conveniencies of life; and those who remit the pitiful gleanings, called tithes, will find themfelves but ill-qualified to build houfes, or to promote any charitable eftablishment. Happy however is the rector or vicar, who can purfue this liberal advice.

The Antiquity, Ufe, and Excellence of Church Mufic. A Sermon preached at the opening of a New Organ in the Cathedral Church of Chrift, at Canterbury. By George Horne, D. D. Dean of Canterbury. 4to. 15. Rivington.

In treating of the antiquity of church mufic, the author obferves, that inftrumental mufic could have no place during the times of perfecution, when, for fear of their enemies, the Chriftians were obliged to hold their affemblies in fecret chambers, in dens and caves of the earth. Organs, he adds, are faid by fome to have been introduced into churches about the middle of the feventh; by others, not till the eleventh, or twelfth century; fince which time, this kind of mufic has made a part in the Chriftian service.

To the honour of the place where this difcourfe was delivered, he remarks, that in England, choral fervice was first introduced in Canterbury cathedral, and the practice of it long confined to the churches of Kent, from whence it became gradually diffufed over the whole kingdom.

Speak

Speaking of the excellency of church mufic, he gives the late Commemoration of Handel this tranfcendent encomium:"

A performance has lately been exhibited, and to our hor nour has been exhibited in Britain (its found ftill vibrates in the ears of many who hear me) which furnished the best idea we shall ever obtain on earth of what is paffing in heaven.'

Paffing in heaven! Alas, what do we know of heaven! If there be any expreffions in fcripture which speak of heavenly harmony, they are highly figurative, and fhould not be underfood in the grofs, literal fenfe. For we are affured, that it hath not entered into the human immagination to conceive the joys of the bleffed. The bufinefs of mufic is, comparatively fpeaking, an idle trade. And it is more than probable, that there is not the leaft analogy between the poor, empty founds of our organs and violins, and the fublime, intellectual pleafures of a future ftate.

CONTROVERSIAL, &c.

An Appeal to the Public; or, a Candid Narrative of the Rife and
Progress of the Differences now fubfifting in the R
Congregation of Liverpool. 12mo.

This appeal makes a volume of four hundred and thirty pages, containing a minute account of fome diffenfions in the Roman catholic congregation at Liverpool, relative to tem poralities. The circumftances of the difpute are too numerous, and too intricate, to be properly ftated in this article. Thofe who are interested in the conteft, or wish for farther information,, must have recourse to this Narrative.

A Letter to the Roman Catholics of Worcefter, from the late Chaplain of that Society [Charles Henry Wharton.] 8vo. Is. Ri vington.

This appears to be a fair, difpaffionate, and rational account of the motives, which induced the author to relinquish the Roman Catholic communion, and become a member of the Proteftant church.

An Explanatory Appeal to the Society in General, and his Friends in Particular; with an Appendix. By William Matthews. 12mo. 9d. Dilly.

The people called Quakers deem it neceffary to fix judg ment upon,' and difown as unfit for their communion, all fuch as contract marriages out of the pale of their fociety; and likewife cenfure and difown fuch as fhall not refufe to pay tithes, and other demands, imposed by act of parliament, for the esta blishment of a national church. The very fenfible and liberalminded author of this Appeal conceived, that they had no warrant from fcripture example or precept to impofe fuch a prohibition or cenfure; and on fome occafions declared his fentiments to this purpose, prefuming, that every thing which is effential to a Chriftian communion among them may be deemed to confißt, I. In the belief of the doctrine of inward revelation; II,

The

The non-neceffity, under the Christian difpenfation, of human rites in divine worship; and III. The benefit of a filent wait ing upon God in their religious meetings. These fentiments were highly difpleafing to his brethren; and he was accordingly difowned both as a minifter and as a member of fociety. As he had reafon to think, that his opinions, fituation, and views have been injuriously spoken of in different places, he has been induced, he says, to throw together a brief account of himself, and of the treatment he has met with,' which is written in fuch a manner, as cannot but do him honour, except among difciplinarians of his own party, whofe principles and notions of Christianity are contracted and ungenerous.

A Letter to the Rev. S. Badcock, the Monthly Reviewer, in which bis Uncharitableness, Ignorance, and Abufe of Dr. Priestley, are expofed. By Edward Harwood, D. D. 8vo. 15. Bent.

There is too much acrimony in this publication. The author, when he mentions his adversary, treats him with contempt and indignation, and not, as he might have done to greater advantage, with genteel irony. But to this mode of retaliation he was, we must confefs, very naturally incited, by the illiberal farcasms and perfonal reflections, which had been cruelly and wantonly thrown upon him in fome periodical publications, Elements of Modern Gardening; or, the Art of laying out of Pleafure Grounds, ornamenting Farms, and embellishing the Views round about our Houses. 8vo. 2s. 6d. Baldwin.

Thefe Elements are dictated by good fenfe, and in general by a refined tafte: their object is, to inftruct gentlemen in laying out small pieces of ground in a manner both cheap and eafly executed; but we object to the little tricks of art, where they must be easily detected. If the end be to form a profpect, they may be allowed; but the view which is admired at a distance will tempt the stranger to walk over it; and the rill which feems to wind at the bottom of a lawn, and to pass under a ftately arch, will disgust instead of pleafing, when it appears to be a ftagnant water, and that the arch is not pervious. It should be a rule with artists to aim only at what they can fully attain.

The Angler's Mufeum. By Tho. Shirley. 12mo. 1s. 6d. Fielding. This pamphlet, which is ill compiled, was published fome years ago, but now makes a fecond appearance, ornamented with a head of Mr. Kirby, the keeper of Wood-feet Compter. Under his aufpices, therefore, with this character we shall leave it. The Fisherman; or the Art of Angling made easy. By Guinied Charfy, Efq. 800. 2s. 6d. Dixwell.

Another compilation of the fame kind, but even lefs fatisfactory than the former.

THE

CRITICAL REVIEW.

For

MARCH,

1785.

Philofophical Tranfactions of the Royal Society of London. Vol. LXXIV. For the Year 1784. Part I. 4to. 75.6d. L. Davis.

Tis difagreeable to us to blame; therefore, as we are not able to pay any great compliment to the importance of this: part of the annual volume, we shall proceed, as ufual, to particular articles.

Art. I. An Obfervation of the Variation of Light in the Star Algol. By Sir Henry C. Englefield, Bart. F. R. S. and S. A.-Art. II. Obfervations on the Obfcuration of the Star Algol. By Palitch, a Farmer.-Art. III. Further Obfervations upon Algol. By the fame.-In the 339th page of our. laft Volume, we mentioned the obfervations of Mr. Goodriche, on the ftar Algol, in the head of Medufa, for which he has received fir Godfrey Copley's medal. We then attributed the changes in its appearance to a planet revolving round this distant fun, and fee no reason for altering our opinion. The period obferved by Mr. Goodriche was two days, twenty hours, and forty-eight minutes. The firft and third obfervations differ from Mr. Goodriche's only four minutes, and the fecond five.

Art. IV. Defcriptions of the King's Wells at Sheerness, Languard-fort, and Harwich. By Sir Thomas Hyde Page, Knt. F. R. S.-There is a great difplay of ingenuity in the contrivances to procure water in thefe places, where the fituation is fo low, the ground fwampy, and the fea-water conftantly overflowing. At Fort Townshend, Sheerness, the well 'was funk 330 feet. The ftrata were a blue clay, fand, and gravel, which feem to have fucceeded each other without any remarkable variety. At 330 feet, on boring through clay. with a small mixture of fand, fresh water burst through with violence, and rofe in fix hours 189 feet; and, in a few days, it came to within a few feet of the top. As the mixture of feawater is prevented, this fpring is found pure, and of an unVOL. LIX. March, 1785.

M

ufual

ufual warmth.

We wish that the heat had been mentioned: 53° of Farenheit are at prefent fuppofed to mark the mean temperature of the earth; and indeed water at that degree would feel unusually warm. At Landguard fort, good water appeared within eight feet of the furface, and continued in. vait quantity almoft to the fpring-tide low-water mark; but it then became falt. At Harwich they found pure water, by finking the wells through a rock, from the high ground, to prevent the drains of bad water, common in that neighbourhood.

We have now ftated the feveral facts, without any commentary; but we think they will admit of important remarks: though thefe would be too extenfive for our purpose. The me-. chanical contrivances are not intelligible without the plates.

Art. V. Extract of a Letter from Edward Pigott, Efq. containing the Discovery of a Comet.-The comet was discovered at York the 19th of November 1783 on that day its right afcenfion was 41°, and its northern declination 3o 10'. It was increafing in declination, and looked like a nebula, with a diameter of about 2".

By

Art. VI. Project for a new Divifion of the Quadrant. Charles Hutton, LL. D. F. R. S.-Dr. Hutton proposes to divide the axis of a quadrant into equal parts of the radius, inftead of the arbitrary divifion into 60 degrees, fince the cords, fines, and tangents, are divided in the former way. He explains the method of constructing a table of this kind; which is incapable of abridgement. The task would be indeed laborious; but it would be very advantageous.

Art. VII. On the Means of difcovering the Distance, Magnitude, &c. of the fixed Stars, in Confequence of the Diminution of the Velocity of their Light, in Cafe fuch a Diminution fhould be found to take place in any of them, and such other Data should be procured from Obfervations, as would be farther neceffary for that Purpofe. By the Rev. John Michell, B. D. F. R. S.-Since the invention of the telescope, feveral reafons have concurred to make the planets hitherto the principal objects of the aftronomer's attention. By the accurate knowlege which we have obtained of their magni tudes, diftances, velocity, &c. the fubject feems to be nearly exhausted, unless Mr. Herschel, or fome other lucky and accurate obferver, should discover another new planet. Probably, for this reafon, aftronomers have for fome time turned their attention to the fixed ftars, as opening a field for obfervation, that will not easily be gone over; and the rather, as conjecture muft, in a great meafure, fupply the want of fufficient data for reafon and experiment. It is therefore no difgrace.

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