to the holy wars. for the life of the At the fame time he pleads, with the king, Mayor of his family: but finding his mediation fruitless, he offers to fet Aurele at liberty, and to die in his ftead. Aliénor, les fix Bourgeois, un Officier Anglais, Gardes. L'Offi. Madame, éloignez-vous. Toujours plus implacable, Si vous ne vous hatez de fuir ces trites lieux, Fuyons. Soutenez-moi. La force m'abandonne. Mon Père, pardonnez, je tombe dans vos bras: St. P. Le courage. Ali. Ah! ce fatal moment n'en permet point l'ufage. Adicu, Madame. Ali. Adieu, pour la dernier fois. Saint-Pierre, les fix Bourgeois, l'Officier, Gardes. St. P. Faut il vous fuivre ? L'Of. Helas! j'attends l'ordre terrible. St. P. Anglais, vous pleurez tous. L'Of. Ton courage invincible Semble épuifer le mien-Quel furcroît de douleurs, Quand la Vertu fourit à fes bourreaux en pleurs ! Saint-Pierre, embrofant les Bourgeois. Cn vient.. Embrafons nous -Je marche à votre tête. (Ilva four fortir.). Mais que nous veut Harcourt? Saint-Pierre, Aurele, les fix Bourgeois, Harcourt, l'Officier, Gardes. Harcourt, à Officier & aux Gardes. Sortez, braves Guerriers ; J'ai des ordres fecrets pour voir ces Prifonniers. [L'Officier & Les [Aux Bourgeois.]. Gardes fartent.] Français-Ah! de ce Nom ne pourrai-je être digne ? (A Saint-Pierre foul.). Je vois qu'à mon alpect votre vertu s'indigne: Oui, j'ai perdu mon Frère, & vous, & mon Pays; Ciel! Har. Il ferait affreux que du commun malheur St. P. Quoi!-quelqu'autre pour lui s'offre-t-il au fupplice? Partez, l'échange eft fait, marchez au Camp Français Plus que votre trépas rendez vos jours utiles; Aur. Mon Père-Non, Seigneur. Qui? moi, que j'abandonneHar. C'est au nom d'Edouard qu'ici je vous l'ordonne. St. P. Vous-même. Oui, je lis dans votre âme ; St. P. Vous oferiez penser ? Harcourt, impétueufement. Il doit y confentir, vous l'y devez forcer. Je conçois vos refus, j'entreprends de les vaincre: L'Honneur peut murmurer que ce grand facrifice Qu'elle Qu'elle fouffre qu'un fang fi cher à fon amour (Avec transport à Aurèle, en lui présentant son épée. ) Har. Tu redoubles fes maux en y joignant les tiens. Aur. L'horreur de lui furvivre- Aur. Me contraint de le fuivre. Har. Malheureux, mais nos jours font le bien de l'Etat. There are feveral other fcenes in this piece, which, tho' lefs pathetic and affecting, abound in refined, fpirited, and noble fentiments. Of this kind is the fecond scene of the 5th act, between King Edward and St. Pierre; but we cannot fpare room for any farther quotations from this performance. CATALOGUE OF FOREIGN BOOKS. Art. 1. Ewaldi Hollebeekii oratio de divine Revelationis in Belgia contemtu, atque cauffis ejus precipuis. An Oration on the Contempt in which Divine Revelation is held in the Netherlands, delivered by Profeffor Hollebeek, before the University of Leyden, on his refigning the Office of Rector Magnificus to that Univerfity. 4to. 1765. T is a foul bird, they fay, which bewrays its own neft: It is likewife held an egregious mark of folly, to publith one's own thame. What motive, therefore, could induce to grave, fo learned and judi COUS cious a Theologian as Profeffor Hollebeek, to give the world fo grofs an intimation that divine revelation is held in contempt in Holland, we cannot poffibly conceive. It is well known that foreigners, and particularly the inhabitants of Roman Catholick countries, have been induced, from the general toleration of all religions in Holland, to charge the Dutch with indifference and want of zeal for any. The flaves to ecclefiaftical tyranny and arbitrary power in other countries, we say, have hence took occafion to reproach these republicans, as libertines, infidels and atheists. In Japan they are faid to trample on the crucifix, and to facrifice, like true pagans, every thing to the god of trade. In Europe, however, we imagined they had more decency than to prefer openly the caduceus of Mercury, to the cross of Chrift. Indeed we fhould have been glad to have indulged an hope that the state of chriftianity, and a due refpect for divine Revelation, were not at fo low an ebb in the united provinces, as the title-page of this oration infinuates; it not being uncommon for orators to difplay their rhetoric fometimes at the expence of truth. But we were checked in this hope by the fight of another printed harangue of the fame nature, delivered at another univerfity in the fame provinces; in like manner by a profeffor of Theology. The title of this oration indeed is not quite fo forcible as that above-mentioned, but gives equal intimation of the defperate ftate of the cafe. Johannes Hermanni Schacht oratio inauguralis de cauffis cur religio Chriftiana, plures hodie quam olim experiatur obtre&atores. Thefe learned profeffors feem to have afcertained a fact, which it had been more prudent perhaps to have left controvertible. As to the caufes of this alarming defection in the Hollanders, with regard to religion, they are much the fame with thofe, which have contributed in like manner to diminish its influence in most other countries of Europe, and are too well known to be expatiated on here. It is undoubtedly the duty of every good clergyman to combat pyrrhonifm and infidelity, but we fear our Theologues do not fufficiently reflect on the contagion of ill example, and its pernicious confequences, when they propagate notions of the general prevalence of those doctrines or practices which they are about to condemn. Art. 2. Prefence corporelle de l'Homme en plufieurs Lieux, prouvée poffible par les principes de la bonne Philofophie. The corporal presence of Man in feveral places at the fame time, proved to be poffible, on the Principles of true Philofophy. 12mo. Paris. 1764. Among the many literary extravagancies, that of late years have dif graced the prefs, the reader may poffibly have heard of the ftrange attempts that have been occafionally made to prove the doctrine of the Trinity by arithmetical calculation, to illuftrate man's free-will by mechanical experi ments, and even of mathematical demontrations to prove the intalnibility of the Pope. And yet he would hardly have imagined, before the appearance of this tract, that the whole world of letters could produce fuch a phenomenon as that of a Sophist, who would undertake to prove that a man may be in two different places at one and the fame time. Yet this, hath the prefent writer attempted, in order to obviate, as he profeffes, 002 profeffes, thofe groundlefs objections, which have hitherto been made to that very intelligible and edifying doctrine, Tranfubflantiation. We prefume it needlefs to inform the intelligent reader with what success this extraordinary attempt is attended, as the writer, however, was a man of ingenuity, and has been of fome note in the republick of letters, we cannot difmifs his work with the contempt the design of it deferves. It is to the infligation, it feems, of the late M. Bouillier, the publick is indebted for this fingular performance; that writer having afferted, in one of the Dutch journals, that an hypotheffs to explain the mytery of tranfubftantiation and reconcile it with our notions of body, would be a moft curious phenomenon. That celebrated journalist gave even a kind of challenge to our Author, in daring him to the execution of fuch a project. The writer's honour being thus engaged, he draws forth his metaphysical rapier and thrufts away. The principles on which he proceeds to establish his hypothels are thofe of Nieuwentheit, by which a diftinction is made between the visible body and the proper body of man Thus when we fay a man weighs 200 pounds, we fpeak only of his visible body; but if we fay a man is eighty years of age, we fpeak of his body proper. This latter, our Author calls the body prototype, as being that in which the perfonal identity of the man confifts. He is reduced, ho vever, to the neceffity of fuppofing it of a different kind and fubftance, with the fefh, blood, and humours of the visible body; and in this the paralogifm of his argument lies. In the application of this principle, to folve the propofition of an animal's being corporally in feveral places at one time, he endeavours to establish the poffibility of two bodies in different and diftant places, being animated by one and the fame foul. This notion he trives to illuftrate by the well-known experiment of cutting earth worms and milepedes in two; inferring that, because the parts into which they are divided, live and move, they must be severally animated by one and the fame foul; because the foul is immaterial and indivifiole. It were unneceffary to expofe the puerility of this reafoning, as it is, indeed needlefs to dwell longer on this, at beft ufeless, performance. Art. 3. Traité de Paix entre Defcartes et Newton, précedé des vies litteraires de ces deux chefs de la Phyfique Moderne. A Treaty of Peace between Defcartes and Newton; to which is prefixed an Account of the Lives and Writings of thefe eminent Philofophers: By Aimé-Henry Paulian, Profeffor of Phyfic in the College of Avignon. 3 Vol. 12mo. Avignon. 1764. Father Paulian is not the first who hath attempted to reconcile the contradictory theories of Newton and Descartes. De Molinès, who The writer is the late Abbé de Lignac, Author of, Memoires your billors des ra gnées.—Temoignage du fens intime-Elem ns de Meta phfiq e tivés de l'Experience.-Examen ferieux et comique du livre de Tefprit-Lettres à un Americain.—It was in the last-mentioned work, that Our Abbé afferted it to be easier than is generally imagined, to deduce principles from our common notions of the human body, by which it might be demonftrated, that the doctrine of Tranfubftantiation is not fo abfurd as Courayer and others have pretended. 5 publified |