the Lord Bishop of Sarum. By the Rev. Charles Daubeny, LL. B. Archdeacon of Sarum. 8vo, 34 pp. 1s. Rivingtons. 1811.

We cannot be furprifed, to find that the Bill in queftion has excited alarm among the clergy of the Church of England: for, a Bill fo extraordinary in many of its provifions was perhaps never: read within the walls of the Houfe of Commons. We conceive however, that the measure of printing and circulating it fo long before it could be finally difcuffed, was intended to elicit obfervations; and shall therefore without hesitation add our own to thofe of the able author of this tract.

The Reverend Archdeacon, faithfully attentive to his office, firft fhows, that the provifions made by the 70th Canon, for keep-i ing and preferving Parish Regifters, are better than those contrived in the prefent Bill; and he fairly concludes, that the drawer of it did not know that such an ecclesiastical law exifted. He admits, that negligence in keeping Parish Registers may in fome degree have prevailed. "The question then refpects the remedy: to be applied to the evil. The remedy propofed by the Bill, in addition to the provifions already noticed, confifts in an obligation imposed on the officiating minifter, to verify upon oath before a' civil magiftrate, at the expiration of every year, within ten days,> the contents of his Regifter Book, under the penalty of being "difqualified for the exercise of all ecclefiaftical duties for three months, at the difcretion of the Ordinary." To the first of the preceding provifions, the Clergy, fo far as my information has ex. tended, unanimoufly and loudly object; becaufe they confider their office unneceffarily degraded in the eyes of the public, by puttingthem, as Minifters of the Church, on a footing with the lay officers, and even with the ale-houfe keepers of their refpective parithes; who are obliged annually to verify the difcharge of their offices before a civil Magiftrate." p. 7. "But a difficulty. here prefents itself, for which this Bill has not provided.—It happens in moft parishes, that the duty of the Church has occafionally, for different reafons, been performed by different Clergymen. At the expiration of the year, when the Regifter Book is to be veri. fied on the oath of the Rector or Vicar, in what way are those entries to be verified, which have at different times been made by Minifters, who may then be refident in diftant parts of the kingdom?" p. 9. To the fections 8 and 27 of the Bill under notice the Clergy fee ftrong reafons to object; because by them they are made a fort of Inquifitors genera! in their Parishes; and, under cer tain circumftances, Informers against and indirect Profecutors of their Parishioners; offices which no Minifter, who regards his profeffional calling, will willingly undertake." P. 10.

When the Author fays, at p. 10, that " to any new mode of keeping the Regifter by a more complicated entry of particulars, as propofed in the prefent Bill, no objection ought to be made; fhould the Legislature determine the adoption of fuch new mode

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to

Cobe neceffary: we must join with this paffage (in the way of arrection) another at p. 16;" the Minifters to whom the pre-.. ent Bill creates a great increase of trouble, are deprived by it of their fees, in large Parishes, to a confiderable amount; without any remuneration for their additional employment; which, on the fuppofition that all the enactments of the prefent Bill are to be, complied with, will, in large parishes, be very great. It would indeed be fo great, that they would be reduced to the condition of hackney writers. On this head it remains alfo to be remarked, how much of the valuable time of the Minifter or Curate in large Parishes must be taken up, in making and fetting down all the pro pofed enquiries fpecified in the Schedules fubjoined to this Bill; (fome of which it is conceived, are useless ;) and in thofe long con verfations between the Minifter and Parishioners, to which fome of the entries will neceffarily give occafion. In fome large Parishes, it is fuppofed that two days in a week will be infufficient for thefe purposes."

A remedy is then propofed for the prefent imperfection of Regif ters; which feems to furnish “ a much more effectual fecurity for the keeping and preferving of Parish, Regifters, than the Bill in question." p. 13. Our readers must be referred for this, and for many other rong objections against the Bill, to the book itself; which every perfon, attentive to the bufinefs in hand, may-read with fatisfaction. One certain and very odious confequence of fuch an Act would be, that no poor perfon could thenceforth obtain, a copy of his Regifter; for which he must pay a ftamp duty of rs. in addition to the fees of an Attorney in the country, and an Agent in London, or in York: and doubtless every person, whos pays taxes and rates, will be ftartled on hearing, that the whole fum to be annually expended in the profecution of this plan,” may probably be 55,9501.!!! P. 24.

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2011

ART. 25. A Brief Enquiry into the Merits of a Bill presented to the House of Commons, (and by them ordered to be printed, Jentilled, a Bill for the better regulating, &c. Parif and other Regifters By the Rev. W. Cokayne Frith, LL.B. Fellow of St. John's College, Oxford, and Curate of St Pancras. 8vo. 25 PP. is. 6d. Stockdale, 1811,

Another strong remonstrance against this Bill:howing that the plan propofed will be of little or no advantage to that end : on the contrary, if it should pafs into a law, that it will be the means of degrading the Established Church, and Clergy; impofing. a tax on the community; and putting individuals, who may haveoccafion for certificates, to unneceflary trouble and expence," P 5 The author then proceeds," to take each objectionable laufe into confideration; and gives the reafons upon which he grounds his opinion, that this Bill would be found infufficient to the end propofed," p. 6. Whoever has not read this Bill, will, hesitate

hefitafe to Believe that it provides to the following effe the door of an officiating Minifter, whose parish contains 20,005°, peffon's (or any number whatever may be knocked at hy hours of the day, and himself obliged to attend, aid receive memoranir doms of Marriages, Births, and Burials, to be tranfmitted by Hims to London; not only from Differiters of every denomination, bug? from all perfons living in Extraparochial places adjoining. And if the Minister fhould decline doing this, without fome retourd which he may fancy it deferves; he may become difqualified from performing any of his duties in fuch parish, or eHewhere in England, during three months! We cannot conceive that any of thefe confequences were intended or forefcen by the Right Hon, mover I of this Bill.

esim. sPOLITICS.....

Akt, 280 ~Occasional Effays on various Subjects, chiefly Political and Historical, extracted partly from the public Newspaperos during the prefent Reign, and partly from Tracts published in ther *Reigns of Queen Elizabeth, King Charles I, King Charlsilitys dud from Bishop Burnet's Hiftory of his own Timesda~8x1gi 1607 pp. 125. White. 1609. Canon duidw

This volume, which is attributed, and we believe juftly to Mr. Baron Maferes, is very fingular in its conftruction. It contains forty, one tracts, or parts of trafts, put together without any re gard to chronological order. Some of them are doubtlefs by the editor himself and others profeffedly felected from different au thors. To attempt fome divifion of the fubjects, which the Editor has not done, No. 1, is fingly on the expulfion of M.. Wilkes. No 2 to 9 inclufive, are on our great conteft with America 1911, and 12, are on feparate and unconnected fub jects on Canada, on France at the beginning of the Revolution, and on fome, English authors, from Adam Smith: 13 and 14, on the Doctrine of Libels. 15. The whole of Milton's Arcopa. guia not being otherwife to be had, feparate from the prafs of his profe works. 16. On Louis XVI. 17. On Mr. Couptney's intended motion refpecting Ecclefiaftical Courts, 1793.

6

On Way with France in 1793, and Peace in 1797. 196 An Union with: Ireland. 20. On Ecclefiaftical perfons being in eligible to Parliament: 24. On the right of fearching mentib vich (#1224 On the Slave Trade the plait article being. chast 367 vol ii of Lieut. Harriott's Struggles throughs Lifesqus. James Howell on the Pre-minence and Duty of Pans liaments, written in >4646, **On this number is the following? note.daidw nogu arón “

oro Ni - This Difcourfe, amongst other important and curione matter, contains fin p. 319) an account of the remarkable or 9181294

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cumftances

cumftances by means of which the kings of France were enabled to affume to themfelves the power of impofing taxes on their fub.: jects in Paris, and the Ifle of France, without the confent of the three cftates of the Kingdom, to wit, the Clergy, the Nobles, and the third Eftate or the Commonalty."

27. A Memorial to Queen Elizabeth, on Favourites, by, Lord Burleigh, reprinted from the Cabbala. 28. Another by and from the fame, on the place of Secretary. 29-33. On Regulations propofed for Quebec in 1766, and on Toleration. 34. The Intereft of England stated, in 1659. 35. Lord Selkirk's Speech in 1807. 36. On the Principles of the Revolu tion in 1788. 37-41. Extracts from feveral authors, particu larly Burnet, very ftrongly pointed against Roman Catholics.

Having deliberated long, what kind of report it was beft to give of a compilation fo fingularly mifcellaneous, we are fatisfied that nothing could be better than thus to attempt some kind of claffification of the fubjects. As for difcuffing the various arguments of them, on fome of which we agree with the learned author and compiler, and on fome very widely differ, it would require a volume almoft of equal dimenfions to perform it. We are convinced, however, that many persons will be glad to be informed of fuch a compilation, by fuch a man, and that the book is one of thofe, which, when they become scarce, are certain to be highly eftimated.

MEDICINE.

ART. 27. Pharmacopeiarum Collegiorum Regalium Londini, Edin burgi, et Eblane, Confpectus Medicus, virtutes, dofes, et morbos quibus utuntur medicamenta et præparata oftendens. Edwarda Goodman Clarke, M. D. &c. &c. 18mo. pp. 200. 4s. 6d.

Cox. 1810.

ART. 28. A Confpectus of the London, Edinburgh, and Dublin Pharmacopeias; wherein the Virtues, Ufes, and Dofes of the Several Articles and Preparations contained in thefe Works are concifely stated, their Pronunciation as to Quantity is corre&ly marked, and a Variety of other Particulars respecting them given, calculated more especially for the Use of Junior Practitioners. By Robert Graves, M. D. F. L. S. &c. &c. 4th Edition. 18mo. pp. 135. 4s. 6d. Highley. 1810.

Of the numerous works explanatory and adjutory which of late years have followed the launch of a great Pharmacopoeia, we know of none that combine utility and brevity fo completely the two before us. The merits of Graves's Confpectus have long fiuce been acknowledged. We have only to mention refpecting it, that the fourth edition comprehends the recent altera. tions and improvements in the new London Pharmacopœia.....

as

Dr.

Dr. Clarke's Confpectus is compofed in good Latin, and we think his enumeration of difeafes, in which the feveral articles of Materia Medica are employed, is more complete than that of Dr. Graves..

ART. 29. Examination of the Prejudices commonly entertained, against Mercury, as beneficially applicable to the greater Number of Liver Complaints, and to various other Forms of Dileafe, as well as to Syphilis. By James Curry, M. D. F. A. S. TF. of the Phyficians to Guy's Hospital, and Lecturer on the Theary, and Practice of Medicine. 2d Edition, corrected and enlarged.. 8vo. pp. 49. Callow. 1810.

One

The very able author of this Treatife has long been engaged in preparing a work "On the Nature of the Hepatic Function the purpofes it ferves in the animal economy; and the powerful influence which a difordered state of it exerts, in exciting, aggra vating, and modifying various forms of difeafe, both general and local," This great undertaking, for which we are perfuaded he is eminently qualified, has been interrupted by profeffional avocations and ill health. In the mean time, folicitous to remove t fome of the existing prejudices against the employment of mer. cury, he has published the prefent Effay, which was originally drawn up as an introduction to the larger work. Dr. Curry is a ftrenuous and able advocate for the ufe of mercury in a difordered condition of the hepatic function and has clearly established a point of confiderable confequence, that it may be administered · with perfect fafety to the patient. Thus far we affent to the doctor's experience, and readily allow that the profeffion and the public may derive benefit from the ardour with which he has purfued his enquiry, and the extent to which he has pushed his fa.1 vourite remedy. But his explanation of its mode of acting is fo mechanical and minute, that his fpectacles must enable him to fee much deeper into the liver, than we have been able to penetrate with the naked eye, though we would by no means difpute the truth of his obfervations. He relates a cafe of dyfentery, which had been ineffectually treated with rhubarb, chalk mixture, aromatic confection, and afterwards by what was conceived to be Dr. Curry's own method, calomel in repeated doses of four and five grains, and an opiate at bed-time, from which the patient became much worie.

She had now from twelve to fifteen evacuations in twentyfour hours, compofed of bloody mucus, with conftant bearing down, and confiderable tenderness of the abdomen when preffed; ? her pulfe was upwards of roo, and fmall; her kin, though generally cold, efpecially the hands and feet, was occafionally hot, and the had an obvious periodical attack of pain at her ftomach every afternoon, continuing for feveral hours in the night."

To allay the pain, Dr. Curry directed opium; afterwards,

when