And eyelefs newt inhabited, once ftood The great commercial world.-Then fell, His plaintive voice was heard: the rest was choak'd C Thoughts on the Times, but chiefly on the Profligacy of our Women, and its Caufes. Addressed to every Parent, Hufband, and modeft Woman in the three Kingdoms. In two Parts; fhewing First, the Danger of public Incontinence; the Abfurdity of our Female Education; the Folly and bad Tendency of a fashionable Life, and the Evils that arife from French Refinement; and Secondly, bow feldom Man-midwives are neceffary; that their Practice is dangerous-that it is repugnant to Modefty, tends to deftroy the Peace of Families, and endanger Virtue, 12mo. 2s. 6d. Bew. Had our author given himself time to have thought at all, this publication.would never have made its appearance. ** FORE IN FOREIGN LITERATURE. FRANCE. THE arts and fciences are the great links of fociety. They level all diftinction which a mean prejudice has eftablished between men and country. Every learned man is a true cofmopolite, and if actuated by the pureft spirit of civifm, it is not to defpife or depreciate the merit of any discovery; but to endeavour to make it peculiar to his own country, by concurring with foreigners in adding to the ftore of human knowledge. This opinion, which we hope will ineet with no contradiction, has engaged us to lay before our learned readers an account of 'the premiums proposed by foréign academies, and the fubjects to be treated on. The French being a rival nation in more than one fenfe, we shall begin with the royal academy of fciences at Paris, and continue our academical journal from time to time. Premium in natural history propofed by the faid academy. The royal accademy, ever difpofed to contribute to the progrefs of sciences, being enabled to give every two years an extra-premium, had come to a refolution in 1777 that the fubject should be natural hiftory; in confequence the following question was proposed to the investigation of the learned, viz. An effay on the fyftem of the lymphatic veins. None of the memorials that have come to hand having folved the question in a fatisfactory manner, the academicians have refolved to have the fame subject further discussed, and propofe the following queries: Are there feveral Species of lymphatic veins, as it has been main tained bitherto ? Which is their origin and which their termination? Are all the parts of the body provided with thofe veins or ves -fels? What is their manner of acting in the conglobate glands? What is the course of thofe veffels whofe trunks may be made fenfible ? VOL. XI. S Such Such are the principal heads of which the academy requires a full elucidation. The members declare previously that they will attend to nothing but facts. Comparative anatomy may be called to the affiftance of the natural one, but the cel greatest regard must be payed to the latter in ftatu fanitatis and not in ftatu morbido, becaufe in this cafe the organization of the parts is not always exactly conformable to nature. That the learned may be allowed a fufficient time to make the neceffary inquiries into lo important and difficult a matter, the premium will not be adjudged till the Eafter-meeting of the academy in the year 1782; but the effays must be for-: warded before the 1st of January in the faid year. As the intention of the members is to verify by experiments fuch obfervations as may appear novel, they require that the can didates will give a clear account of their proceedings, the inftruments they shall have made use of, and the matters, they fhall employ in performing the injections; they also defire that their effays may be accompanied with drawings, on at leaft fketches, when it may appear neceffary for a clear explanation 1 The premium will be of the value of 1500 livres. The learned of every country, even the foreign affociates, are invited to concur in this matter, as none will be excluded but the focii regnicola. The effays must be written in French or Latin, and the authors are requested to do it in a legible hand. They need not put their names but only a motto. They may if they chufe inclofe with the effay a paper, fealed up, with the faid motto infcribed therein, together with their names, country, and places of abode. This will not bet opened, unless the memorial or effay that bears it should deferve the premium. They are to direct, poft paid, or caufe their effays to be delivered to the fecretary of the academy, twho, in the latter cafe, will give a proper receipt, which, when produced, will entitle the bearer, or his agent, duly and legally authorifed, to receive the propofed premium, in cafe fuch effay fhould become intitled to it, at the above appointed meeting of Eafter, 1782. Euvres de N. P. Colardeau de l'Académie Françoife.-The Works of N. P. Colardeau, Fellow of the French Academy 2 vols.in 8vo. Paris apud Le Jay. Mr Mr. Colardeau, whether, we confider him as a man of the world, or an author, is intitled to general efteem and approbation, as he did no lefs an honour to humanity by his moral character, than to the learned fociety of which he was a member by his learning and writings, which place him nearly upon a level with the, moft celebrated of his cotemporaries. His lofs must be feverely felt by the academy, who, miftaking the froth of genius for real literary merit, have chofen to fucceed him, a Mr. De la Harpe, as great a pedant as ever difgraced literature, and as complete an Ariftarchus as at any period infefted the republic of letters. Virgil, defcribing the tree which carrried the golden bough, fays: · *. Uno a vulfo non deficit atter "Aureus" This does not seem to be the cafe with the French academy, where the authority of the fovereign, the cabal and intereft of the great, have often more influence than genuine, but unfupported merit. The collection now before us, publifhed by a near relation of the deceafed, contains nothing new but a comedy in five acts, which only ferves to prove, that a man may be anexcellent poet, have a thorough knowledge of the world, and be but an indifferent dramatic writer. This play, which, according to the predominant tafte of the French ftage, tho' reprobated by reafon and nature, is wrote in verfe; abounds with feveral lucky ftrokes, and fhews the eafy pleafing poet throughout; but the fable is improbable, the incidents uninteresting, and the fituations by no means defcriptive of that vis comica which alone is the ftamp that fets a proper value. on thofe kind of productions. The fecond volume confifts of mifcellaneous pieces of poetry, never published before, out of which we beg leave to lay before our readers the two following, as a fpecimen of Mr. Colardeau's poetry, much admired amongst his countrymen for his peculiar cafe and elegance. The firft was intended as an inscription to a ftatue of Voluptuoufhefs, represented in the feducing attitude of a woman fupinely reclined and to all appearance fast afleep. Comme un écliar, nait & meurt le plaifir," Son feu follet à peine nous enflamme Qu'il s'évapore & détruit le defir da Je ne fçais quoi lui survit dans notre ame; C'est un repos voluptueux, charmant : C'est le bonheur goûté dans le filence C'eft des efprits un doux recueillement at S 2 Confidérez Confidérez cette jeune beauté, L'ail entr'ouvert, la bouche demi-close, L'art du cifeau, dans ce marbre, en expofe Le charme heureux dans un fimple portrait; Moi, j'ai vu plus: dire où... comment ?... je n'ofe; Amour le fçait, je l'ai, mis du fecret." The fecond is one out of eleven letters intitled Epitres à tai (Epiftles to thee) the one which follows is alfo called L'Amour trahi (Love betrayed) "Je l'ai dit à l'écho, l'êcho l'a répété; Je l'ai dit au zéphir, le zéphir en murmure; Vient d'unir, fans remords, le crime du parjure, Je n'eus point l'art cruel de la tyrannifer; : Des fermens qu'elle a faits ces lieux furent témoins ; 1 Malheureux! de quel coup me fuis-je.vu frapper? Zelmire, ce rival vengera ton amant, |