This is the Cartefian hypothefis; but is thought by many not to be a fatisfactory way of accounting for this phoenome

non.

The folution of the moft difficult problems by the ancients, their attempts to fquare the circle, their difcovery of the fundamental propofitions of geometry, and above all that of algebra *, and the preceffion of the equinoxes, afford, fays our author, convincing proofs of the depth and acuteness of their genius.

That Archimedes fet fire to the Roman fleet at the fiege of Syracufe by means of burning-glaffes is attefted by Diodorus, Lucian, Dion, Zonaras, Galen, Anthemius, Euftathius, and Tzetzes; but Kepler, Naudéus, Defcartes, and many others, have treated this piece of history as a mere fable: our author has therefore employed fome pains in confidering those testimonies; and appeals to the experiments which were made, on the principles of Archimedes, by Father Kircher, and M. De Buffont, in order to restore to that celebrated mathematician this part, at leaft, of his difputed glory. He mentions likewife fome of his machines of war and other mechanical inftruments, his admirable fagacity in difcovering the fquare of the parabola, the properties of fpiral lines, the proportion of the sphere to the cylinder, the true principles of ftatics and hydrostatics, &c. which will be everlasting monuments of the depth of his researches, and the fertility of his invention.

Having likewife recounted fome of the mechanical discoveries of Ctefibius, Heron, and other ancient geometricians, our author gives us a short description of Babylon, Ecbatane, and Perfipolis, the lake Maris, the pyramids of Egypt, the Coloffus of Rhodes, the bridge at Gard three leagues from Nimes, that of Alcantra upon the Tagus, and other inftances of the great and enterprising genius of the ancients; he then presents us with a view of fome of their works in miniature, mentioned by A. Gellius, Pliny and Ælian; and attempts to fhew, that they had several ways of helping the fight, of strengthening it, and of magnifying small objects; and that in the arts of painting and fculpture, and the science of mufic, they not only equalled, but even furpassed us.

*The invention of Algebra is attributed to Diophantus, and that of the preceffion of the equinoxes to Timæus Locrienfis and Hipparchus.

The burning-glafs which M. de Buffon conftructed, was composed of 168 little plain mirrors, and produced fo confiderable a heat, that it fet wood in flames at the distance of 209 feet; melted lead at that of 120, and filver at that of 50.'

In

In the last part of this work our author undertakes to prove, that many of the ancients had very juft conceptions of God, and the foul; of time, and space; of the creation of matter, of the formation of the world, &c.

He obferves, that Dr. Clarke's famous argument à priori in proof of the existence of a Deity is to be found in Aristotle *. That Defcartes's opinion refpecting the fouls of brutes, was maintained by Diogenes the Cynic, Proclus, St. Austin, and others; that his ideas of a plenum, fpace, and extenfion, were derived from Timæus Locrienfis, and Plato. He makes it appear that the principles of Leibnitz, with respect to the perfection of the universe, and the origin of evil, were taken from the ancients; and he endeavours to fhew, that many of these old pagans penetrated into the great mystery of original fin.

We have now given a diftinct view of this learned work; and flatter ourselves that we have not, in any place, weakened or mifreprefented the author's argument; though, for the fake of brevity, we have been obliged to omit the greatest part of thofe quotations, upon which he founds his decifions. Among all the advocates for the ancients which we have seen, Mr. Dutens is the most confiderable and the most refpectable. He has not, like many others, attempted to influence the judgment of the reader by mere affertions; but he has stated their opinions in their own words: and if in some few inftances he has miftaken the sense of the original, by not attending to the context, it is no wonder. In a thoufed quotations, it is hardly poffible for the most laborious and accurate author to avoid miftakes.

In fome places he feems to have adopted fable for truth; and in others we have obferved, that, though he is guilty of no material error, he has put a glofs upon the original, and compelled the philofophers to come in, and fupport his hypothefis, where their fentiments are very ambiguous. We find, however, in the course of this enquiry, abundant reafon to admire the depth of their refearches, the extent of their knowledge, the greatness of their enterprizes, the affiduity of their application, and the folidity and reasonableness of their conjectures. Yet in their writings we have a melancholy proof of the weakness of the human genius. There is hardly any abfurdity which has not been advanced by fome of the old philofophers. Innumer

* Vid. Arift. Metaphyf. 1. 5. c. 5. ad fin. This paffage, our author tells us, was pointed out to him by the learned Dr. Sharpe of the Temple.

able

able inftances of this are to be found in Plato, in Aristotle, in Pliny, in Ælian, in Diogenes Laertius, in Hippocrates, and in almost every writer of every science. Our author may be faid to have collected the gems from the rubbish of antiquity; and to have placed them in the most advantageous light.

II. Memoirs of Agriculture, and other OEconomical Arts. By Robert Doffie. Vol. I. 8vo. Pr. 51. Nourse. 120*

IT is a well known, truth, that the real ftrength of every country depends upon its population, and that the genuine bafis of a numerous population is agriculture. Trade, however great, is but a fecondary fource of wealth, and will, if carried too far, destroy the parent which gave it birth; for it will once diminish agriculture, and depopulate the country, by annihilating, that neceffary clafs of men who cultivate the earth, and who are, of all perfons, the fitteft, and moft inclined to propagate their fpecies.

at

Happily for us, the practice of agriculture is now greatly encouraged; experiments and improvements are daily made by perfons of genius and fortune; focieties are formed for the encouragement of arts in general, and of agriculture in particu lar; and every method which human fagacity can invent, employed to afflift and encourage the husbandman in his refearches.

But vain, as Mr. Doffie jufly obferves, are all thefe labours to cultivate experimental refearch, or collect information, if a proper channel be wanting to tranfmit the produce of them to the public; and convey it to thofe, for whole emo lument it was intended..

Without this means, no fruit can be reaped from all thofe pains. It is to little purpofe, that the encouragers of thefe improvements amafs together all the intelligence in the world, if they only bury it in their own records and papers, where it foon falls into oblivion; or confine the effects of it to fome particular perfons or places, where its narrow influence can be but of little moment. This is, in fact, to waste time and money improvidently, not to fay irrationally, in attaining those means of being ferviceable to the public, which are not afterwards to be applied to any real end.

With regard to the London Society, the defect of fuch an opportunity of completing their purposes, is not the confe quence, either of ignorance of its efficacy, or inattention to the procuring it; but of unlucky accidents, that have fallen in their way, and fruftrated their views as to this point. It was,

for

for fome years, their declared intention, to have published annually an historical regifter: in which, the communications procured by their premiums, or made to them by fpontaneous correfpondents, were to have been given to the world. But feveral unforeseen difficulties prevented the putting this defign in execution; and have, at length, fo much evinced it not to be practicable with convenience, that they feem at present to have laid afide all thoughts of it. Some fubftitutive method of doing the fame thing, is, therefore, abfolutely neceffary to render effectual their proceedings; efpecially as experience has now fhewn, that one of the best ways to advance agriculture, by means of their premiums, is to require not only the matter propofed fhould be done, but that information should be given alfo by the claimant, of the manner in which it was done, and of all the attendant circumstances that may conduce to enable others to do the fame. The importance of this kind of information is, indeed, fo evident, that the Society in a number of inftances, offer their medals, which are esteemed the highest reward they can beftow, only for intelligence of the best methods of performance of the matter propofed, verified by experiments, without exacting any other tafk from the candidate. These are certainly very right measures to procure the defired knowledge: but fuch knowledge can never be rendered of any material fervice to the world, till the publication of fome proper periodical work furnishes the opportunity of promulging it for general ufe. This work fhould be fuch, as may be open to receive all the refpective communications; and become the known repofitory of them: in which they may be always found; and to which any, who fhould have occafion for them, may eafily have recourfe.

It is to be regretted, as well on the fcore of the public, as for the fake of the Society itself, which has not, for this reason, acquired the whole honour due to it on many occafions, that no fuch work has been hitherto eftablished with their concur

In default of the publication of their hiftorical register, a monthly periodical collection of effays and letters on agriculture and commercial arts, was fet up, without any connection with them, under the name of Museum rufticum, & commerciale; as a vehicle for all communications of this nature. The favourable reception and fupport that it met with, manifefted the fense which the world entertained of the expedience of fuch a work: and though it was not, in the earlier part of its dura tion, fupplied with fufficient matter of adequate confequence, yet perhaps few circumftances in the prefent times have more contributed to create and diffeminate the tafte for pursuits of this kind, or more affifted to the profecuting them by the best methods,

methods, than that publication. But fome occurrences refpecting the œconomical management of it, and not any neglect or discouragement on the part of the public, occafioned the difcontinuance of it above two years ago and left thofe, who apply themselves to the study or practice of agriculture, without any means of calling for the aid of inftruction to get over the difficulties they may meet with, or of imparting, in a general way, what they believe may be advantageous for others to learn.

• The above-mentioned reafons gave rife to a defign of fetting on foot a work adapted to thefe views, but more extensive than had been hitherto attempted. In order that the feveral Societies, particularly that of London, may have an opportu nity of giving the world the benefit of their labours; and that the means may be restored, by which private individuals may disclose the refult of their experiments, or obfervations, to the public, or procure intelligence from others, on any points where it may be material to themfelves, or their neighbours.

There are fome other circumstances relative to modern improvements, that afforded ftill further inducements to the publishing this work, on account of the national good, to which it may be made fubfervient. The example of Great Britain and Ireland, has been followed by feveral other countries on the Continent; and there are now a number of focieties and academies in various places, that are inftituted on the fame fyftem, and follow the fame general methods of proceeding, except, that the greatest part publish fome kind of memoirs, or journal of their own tranfactions, or the correfpondence of private perfons with them on the objects of their purfuit. Moft of these works are fent to, or otherwife procured by the Society in London: but the community has hitherto had very little advantage from the contents of them; except that a translation of fome felected pieces was published three or four years ago. It is not to be imagined, that the whole contained in these foreign memoirs, or journals, merit notice here, where arts, as well as fcience, have made a much greater progress towards perfection. But several of the articles in them being communicated by very ingenious and philofophic men, who have applied themselves to experimental examination, as well as abs ftracted study, they of courfe fometimes furnish new and important lights. Moreover, notwithstanding we enjoy a fuperi ority in general over other countries, in the improvement of moft arts, yet particular places elsewhere poffefs certain matters of great utility, peculiar to themselves, of which the in telligence has not hitherto reached us; at least not in fo full a d ant vo po

manner