Art. XIII. Scriptural Illustrations of the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, with a Practical Comment upon each Article; affectionately intended to promote religious Peace and Unity. By Samuel Wix, A. M. Rector of Inworth, in the county of Essex; and Vicar of St. Bartholomew the Less, London. 8vo. pp. xiv. 363. Price 8s. bds. Rivingtons, London. 1808.

THE modesty of this writer is only surpassed by his obstinacy. Though many of the most celebrated divines, of the last. century, foreign and domestic, amongst dissenters and in the Church, earnestly recommended a simplification of Christianity, an improvement of it suited to the advanced state of science and philosophy, and vehemently urged the utter abandon. ment of all creeds, and confessions, and articles of faith-he persists in thinking, that, as the Reformers paid as much attention to the study and as much deference to the authority of Scripture, as modern theologians, it is probable they possessed as accurate a notion of its doctrines; and that, as they were not solicitous to accommodate themselves to a proud philosophy or a worldly policy, few errors could have crept into those summaries of their faith which they published at different times and on various occasions. In fact, he is simple enough to suppose that the thirty-nine articles, on the whole, express the sense of the oracles of truth.

He has divided the longer articles into paragraphs, and subjoined to each paragraph the passages of scripture, from which he imagines it was derived. Each article is followed by a comment, designed, from a view of the sentiments comprehended in the article, to excite devotional feelings and recommend virtuous practice. The compilation displays considerable diligence, is consistent with the articles it illustrates, and breathes a spirit of modest piety.

Art. XIV. The Land Valuer's Assistant: being Tables on an improved Plan, for calculating the Value of Estates. By R. Hudson. PP. 100. Price 3s. 6d. Cradock and Joy. 1809.

THIS little book contains tables that give, by inspection, the value of

land from one acre to an hundred, through all the subdivisions of roods and perches, and at every rate, increasing by sixpences, from 1 shilling to 5 pounds per acre. The arrangement is such, that the value of the given quantity of acres, roods, and perches, may always be found by the addition of three, or at most of four lines; while, in using other tables, it is necessary to add together five or six. These tables will be useful, not only to valuers of the rent of land, but in estimating the money to be paid for work done at any rate per acre. The book is neatly and correctly printed; and we wish it may meet with encouragement. Art. XV. The Manners of the Ancient Israelites; containing an Ac count of the Peculiar Customs, Ceremonies, Laws, Polity, Religion, Sects, Arts, and Trades, Division of Time, Wars, Captivities, Dispersion, and present State. Written originally in French, by Claude Fleury, &c. &c. With a short Account of the Ancient and Modern Samaritans. The whole much enlarged from the principal Writers on Jewish Antiquities, by Adam Clarke, L. L. D. The Third Edition, with many Additions and Improvements. 8vo. pp. 400. price 8s. ynes, 1809.

B

A NEW and improved edition of this valuable work affords an oppor. tunity of recommending it to our readers, which we are unwilling to neglect, though a former impression of it was noticed in our first volume. VOL. V. 4 K

The original work of Fleury is a very excellent compendium of information concerning the manners and customs of the ancient Israelites. But the copious insertions and supplements furnished by Dr. Clarke on almost all the topics illustrated by Fleury, and more particularly his chapters on the Hebrew poetry, the Hebrew music, the Hindoo and Mohammedan fasts and purifications as illustrative of the Jewish, the present state of the Jews, their ancient liturgy, and his interesting account of the ancient and modern state of the Samaritans, render the English edition almost a new work; and induce us cordially to recommend it in the words of the late Bishop Horne, as an excellent introduction to the reading of the Old Testament, which should be put into the hands of every young person.' There is no publication, we think, so well suited to the convenience of those, who are desirous of correctly understanding the Jewish Scriptures, but cannot appropriate much money to the purchase, or much time to the perusal, of books. The present edition is improved by the insertion of many notes on different subjects; a better arrangement of the appendixes; an enlargement of the index; and the adoption of the octavo size, and a larger letter.

Art. XVI. Variety; or, Selections and Essays, consisting of Anecdotes, Curious Facts, Interesting Narratives, with occasional Reflections. By Priscilla Wakefield. 12mo. pp. 250. Price 4s. bds. Darton and Co. 1809.

IF variety of subject could compensate for the absence of almost every other merit in a book, Mrs. Wakefield's compilation would deserve a higher character than we can honestly give it. It contains, no doubt, curious, though well-known or uninstructive anecdotes, and some salutary though obvious truths; but the want of plan, connection, and apparent purpose, is very detrimental to its attractiveness and utility.

Art. XVII. On the Religious Improvement of Prisons: a Sermon preached in the Cathedral Church of Durham, at the Assizes holden there, August 10, 1808 To which is added an Appendix, on Subjects connected with the Sermon. By John Brewster, M. A. Rector of Redmarshall, Vicar of Greatham, and one of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace for the County of Durham, 8vo. pp. 40. Price Is. Rivingtons, 1808.

ERE long, we hope, the public attention will be very generally directed.

to the state of our prisons, and eventually to the penal system itself, as well as to all departments of its administration. It is a matter of notoriety, and has even been.confessed from the bench, that imprisonment, as it is now managed, instead of producing any thing like reformation in those who are confined either on suspicion or conviction, almost invariably aggravates their depravity and ensures their ruin. The most important branch of the system of reform which we hope to see at least taken into consideration before the expiration of the Jubilee year', is undoubtedly the provision of adequate and appropriate religious instruction for every jail in the empire. In this particular branch, every thing is yet to be devised and effected. Notwithstanding all that has been hitherto done for the temporal comfort of the prisoner, notwithstanding visiting magistrates and humane keepers, nothing,' (says our worthy preacher) I believe I may repeat the word in general terms, nothing effectual has been done, on one large evangelical principle, towards his conversion and subsequent

reformation. It seems to have been Mr. Brewster's design, to point out the necessity of adopting some measures to promote the religious improve. ment of prisoners, and the specific objects they should have in view, rather than to suggest any measures in particular. The acts of the thirteenth and twenty second of his present Majesty leave the appointment of chaplains and the regulation of their duty to the discretion of the magistrates, and specify the salary at much too low a sum to be generally applicable. A prison,' says Mr. B. is a parish;' and some of them, not to mention that they are very disagreeable, are very populous parishes. The appointment of chaplains, however, will have no other effect than that of burdening the country, multiplying jobs, and augmenting patronage, unless proper persons are discovered and appointed. If mere reading of the liturgy, or of an appropriate service as suggested by Mr. Brewster, be all that is expected, it may be procured with little trouble and at a trivial expence; but if real amendment is desired, the minister must be of the same stamp as the excellent preacher of this discourse. He must not be of opinion, that prisoners or even convicts are depraved beyond recovery, that reformation is improbable in proportion to the e magnitude of the offence committed, that instruction in moral duties is sufficient to mend the heart, that justification by faith is a methodistical ab. surdity, that the influence of the Spirit is a dream of enthusiasm, or (as we know has been thought and said by an ordinary, that too much prayer would only make the prisoner melancholy, and do him no good, it being only necessary for him to say with sincerity, Lord, have mercy upon me!"-nor must he be willing to encourage the dreadful delusion of trusting to the form of absolution, in the established service. On this and several other topics Mr Brewster has some very judicious remarks, both in the Sermon and the Appendix. We are happy to find the estima ble Lecturer on the Acts of the Apostles* rendering this service to his country and his kind.

Art. XVIII. Rudigar the Dane, a Legendary Tale. By Eaglesfield Smith, Esq. 12mo pp. 48. price 2s. Johnson, 1809,

IF Mr. Eaglesfield Smith will be satisfied with the faint praise of having imitated the ancient ballads with tolerable success, we must own that praise is his due.

Art. XIX. An Essay on Government. By Philopatria, (Mrs R. E. A. Lee.) 8vo. pp. 350. price 7s. 6d. bds. J J. Stockdale. 1809. OME of our fair readers will perhaps be alarmed at the title of this work. But we can assure them Mrs. Lee is no traitor to her sex ; she discloses none of the secrets of an art, in which among all civilized people they have ever been reputed to excel. The kind of government' which she professes to illustrate, is not that of an individual, or a family, but of a nation It was not to be expected that she should afford many original views of a subject, which is in some respects so familiar as to admit little novelty of remark, in others so recondite and abstruse as to require the most diligent investigation of the most philosophical mind. In writing and publishing this work, she has been actuated, it seems. by a spirit of patriotism, and, if we rightly understand her, by the res angusta domi, we are therefore the more unwilling to sacrifice gallantry to truth, by intimating our apprehensions, that her subject will not excite much attention from her own sex, nor her manner of discussing it from ours. See Ecl. Rev. Vol. iii. p. 406.

Art. XX. A New Picture of the Isle of Wight, illustrated with Thir ty-Six Plates, of the most beautiful and interesting Views throughout the Island, in imitation of the Original Sketches, drawn and engraved by William Cooke. To which is prefixed an Introductory Account of the Island, and a Voyage round its Coast. 8vo. pp. 170. price 17. 1. boards, Vernor and Co. 1808.

WE supposed there had been Pictures enough of the Isle of Wight; but not so the booksellers. In the present publication, great use has evidently been made of the more considerable works; but the compiler has favoured us with a few blunders of his own. His attic taste and grammatical accuracy may be estimated by the following two sentences. His taste in a cursory Account of the Island', he comes to the subject of Fertility: this', he says, (without meaning any pun) is a fertile topic'. His accuracy in the first sentence of his Description of the Plates, referring to Carisbrook Castle, he gives us a nominative without a verb; Independent of its claims as a monument of remote antiquity, the strong fortress, whose history is of high renown in the island annals, and within whose walis have occurred scenes of great importance to the general history of our country, this castle highly merits observation from its picturesque situation, and the beauties of its venerable remains. The commodious size, neatness of the typography, and number of the plates, will probably recommend the book to some share of the public notice. The plates are very slightly, thougn spiritedly, executed: they are in fact mere sketches, often conveying no just idea of the scenery, except to a person who has visited it. The proportion of gentlemen's houses, and merely domestic every-day views, is by far too large.

Art XXI. The New Whole Duty of Prayer; containing Fifty-Six Fa mily Prayers, suitable for Morning and Evening for every Day in the Week and a Variety of other Devotions and Thanksgivings for particular Persons, Circumstances, and Occasions. 12mo. pp. 400. Price 4s 6d. Scatchard and Co. 1809.

THE sentiments expressed in these forms appear to us, on the whole, consistent with the doctrine of the English church; and the language, with some exceptions, correct and appropriate.

Art. XXII. Memoirs of Robert Cary, Earl of Monmouth, written by Himself And Fragmenta Regalia: being a History of Queen Elizabeth's Favourites. By Sir Robert Naunton. 8vo. pp. 300. price 10s. 6d. Constable and Co. 1809.

The

HESE curious documents well deserved republication, and may be recommended as worth reading to those who are not already acquainted with them The former, as the editor observes, contains " an interesting account of some important passages in Elizabeth's reign, and throws peculiar light upon the personal character of the queen." Fragmenta Regalia comprises very spirited characters of the queen, and the eminent statesmen and warriors of her court, drawn up by Sir Robert Naunton, himself a courtier. Several useful notes are added by the editor.

ART. XXIII.

SELECT LITERARY INFORMATION.

Gentlemen and Publishers who have works in the press, will oblige the Conductors of the ECLECTIC REVIEW, by sending information (post paid,) of the subject, extent, and probable price of such works; which they may depend upon being communicated to the public, if consistent with its plan.

The Rev. Mr. Dibdin has just completed the first volume of his long promised edition of Ames's and Herbert's Typographical Antiquities of Great Britain. It is expected to make its appearance in the course of the ensuing month, (December). The first volume will contain: 1. Ames's Preface, with cop ous notes. 2. Memoirs of Ames, by the ate Richard Gough, Esq. with additional notes; and a plate of Ames's arms, and another of his portrait in miniature. 3. Herbert's Preface with notes. 4. Some account of William Herbert; with a plate of his arms, and another of his portrait in the oriental dress. 5. Preliminary Disquisition concerning the rise and early progress of engraving, and ornamental printing; conta ning a great number of curious and splendid wood-cuts, being fac-similes of ancient prints and ornamental capital letters. 6. The Life of Caxton, with copious notes, and three portraits of him, with an etching of his biographer, Mr. Lewis. 7. Account of books printed by William Caxton; this latter division forms the larger part of the volume; making, with the supplements, upwards of 400 pages; and being adorned with a number of wood-cuts, with a fac-simile of those to be found in Caxton's books. The entire volume will contain about 600 pages; and, exclusively of the cuts incorporated in the text, there will be four copper plates of the different types used by Caxton, and five mezzotinto ones of portraits; namely, of Ames, Herbert, Maittaire, the Earl of Oxford, and Dr. Mead, as well as a copper-plate facsimile of an unique print, singularly illustrative of the early history of engraving. This first volume will include the whole of Mr. Lewis's Life of Caxton, with corrections and additions; and is intended to form a broad basis of the history of printing, literature, and bibliography, in the fifteenth century; as far as these subjects are connected, with an account of the books printed within the same period.

Mr. Cromek (the proprietor of the cabinet picture representing The Canterbury Pilgrimage) will shortly publish an historical whole length portrait of Mr. Walter Scott, from the admired picture painted by Raeburn for Mr. Constable of Edinburgh, which

appeared at the last exhibition of Scottish paintings. The Print will be 29 inches by 14. In the press, and about Christmas will be published, a new School Book by Mr. Greig, (author of several works on education,) intitled the World displayed, or the Characteristic Features of Nature and Art Exhibited, being a concise View of Geography, particularly the British Isles, of Maps, their varieties, principles, liues of them, their use by problems, curious animals, &c. extraordinary efforts of human Art and Industry, Mechanical Powers, Biography, &c. intended for youth in general, exhibiting to them an outline of the most striking parts of the animate and inanimate world; comprehending a fund of useful information; interspersed with appropriate reflections.

Shortly will be published by the same author, a New Spelling Book, called the New British Spelling Book.

Also, in a few weeks will be published by Mr. Greig, School Geography, on a new and easy plan; comprising not only a complete general description, put much topographical information in order, exhibiting three distinct parts, yet forming one connected whole; adapted to every class of learners, with many useful Maps.

Mr. Semple, author of a Journey in Spain, &c. has recently performed a second tour through the Southern part of the Peninsula: during which he visited several important places not noticed in his former work. The observations made during this Journey will be shor ly published in one volume small octavo, and the work will be embellished by a variety of plates, illustrative of the customs and manners of the inhabitants of several of the provinces.

Captain Henderson has in the press an Account of the British Settlement of Honduras; to which are added, sketches of the manners and customs of the Mosquito Indians. It will be speedily published in one small octavo volume.

The publication is commenced of Historic Anecdotes and Secret Memoirs of the Legislative Union between Great Britain and Ireland. By Sir Jonah Barrington, one of his Majesty's Counse at Law, Judge of the High Court of Admiralty of Ireland, and Member of the late Irish Parliament, for