than it would do if applied to the prefent ftate of things in Ireland; as that kingdom is, in every refpect (notwithstanding the many oppreffions and hardships under which it has groaned). greatly improved, within thefe laft thirty years. 7. The Subftance of what was faid by the Dean of St. Patrick's, to the Lord Mayor and fome of the Aldermen, when his Lordship came to prefent him with his Freedom, in a Gold Box.' Here the Dean took occafion to vindicate his character from the afperfions of thofe who had reprefented him, as a Tory, a Jacobite, an enemy to King George, and a libeller of the government. 8. Thoughts on Religion.' In these thoughts the Dean, who, in many parts of his writings, appears to be a bigot, difcovers a more generous and catholic turn of mind than we heretofore imagined him to be poffeffed of. On the whole, it is perhaps not uncharitable to suppose, that he confider'd modes of religion merely as engines of the state, and that he never was over-burthened with genuine piety, or had any great zeal for christianity in particular, farther than as it happen'd to be the eftablifh'd religion of his country. But, to the thoughts. To fay a man is bound to believe, is neither truth nor sense. You may force men, by intereft, or punishment, to lay or swear they believe, and to act as if they believed: you can go no further. Violent zeal for truth, hath an hundred to one odds to be either petulancy, ambition, or pride. The chriftian religion, in the moft early times, was propofed to the Jews and Heathens, without the article of Chrift's Divinity; which Erafinus accounts for, by its being too strong a meat for babes. Perhaps if it were now foftened by the Chinefe miffionaries, the converfion of thofe infidels would be lefs difficult; and we find by the Alcoran, it is the great stumbling block of the Mahometans. But in a country already chriftian, to bring fo fundamental a point of faith into debate, can have no confequences that are not pernicious to morals and public peace." The two first of the foregoing remarks are uncontrovertible; but the laft is a glaring proof of the truth of what we have intimated, that the Dean's chriftianity was merely political. Was he not, in himself, a notable inftance of the fhrewdnefs of his own obfervation, that men may be influenced to fay, and fwear, and even act as if they believed?-But there are several more of these thoughts that deferve to be selected. I have often been offended to find St. Paul's allegories, and other figures of Grecian eloquence, converted by divines into articles of faith:-Why did not the Dean point out fome of thofe mifinterpreted figures? He feems to think it a lefs crime. to condemn in the lump, than to controvert doctrines.-The follow following fentiment may be more easily understood; and will do its author more credit : • God's mercy is over all his works; but divines, of all forts, leffen that mercy too much!'-We know not what authority they have to leffen it at all. The next remark is fingular enough, and perfectly characteristic of its author: in I never faw, heard, nor read, that the clergy were beloved any nation where chriftianity was the religion of the country. Nothing can render them popular, but fome degree of persecution.' It is impoffible that any thing fo natural, fo necessary, and fo univerfal as death, fhould ever have been defigned by Providence as an evil to mankind *. The laft obfervation in the feries of thoughts now before us, we fubmit to the judgment of our female readers: It is this: Although reafon were intended by Providence to govern our actions, yet it seems that, in two points of the greatest moment to the being and continuance of the world, God hath intended our paffions to prevail over reafon. The firft is, the propagation of our fpecies, fince no wife man ever married, from the dictates of reason. The other is, the love of life, which, from the dictates of reafon, every man would defpife, and wish it at an end, or that it never had a being.'-With regard to the matrimonial claufe, in this paragraph, it is already fubmitted to another jurifdiction; but as to the diflike here expreffed, with refpect to our very existence, it is evidently the refult of a fplenetic fit, and a proof that the Dean was not a very wife man,'' at that moment, whatever he was, throughout the general tenor of his conduct, before the powers of his mind were totally fubdued by the fatal disorder which feized him in his latter days. 8 and 9. Further thoughts on Religion,' and a Prayer for Stella; neither of thefe deferve particular notice. 10. A Sermon from 1 Cor. iii. 19. The wifdem of this world is foolishness with God. In this difcourfe, the Dean attacks the heathen philofophy and wifdom, in order to prove the great fuperiority of the chriftian religion. He first mentions certain points, wherein the wifdom and virtue of all unfel vealed philofophy, in general, fell fhort, and was very imper fect. Secondly, he fhews, in a few inftances, where fome of the most renowned philofophers have been grofly defective in their leffons on morality. Thirdly, he endeavours to prove the perfection of chriftian wifdom, from the proper characters and marks of it.' And laftly, he undertakes to fhew, that the This, by miftake is, in the quarto edition, incorporated in the fame paragraph with another thought, with which it has no connection. the great examples of wisdom and virtue among the heather wife men, were produced by perfonal merit, and not influ enced by the doctrine of any fect; whereas, in chriftianity, it is quite the contrary.' Most of these points, especially the laft, are very fuperficially treated; and, on the whole, this difcourfe will only serve to strengthen the opinion of those who, from former fpecimens of our Author's pulpit compofitions, have hitherto confider'd him as but an indifferent fermonizer. 11 and 12. Upon giving Badges to the Poor,' and Confi'derations about maintaining the Poor.' The Beggars of Ireland have long been, and still continue to be, the curfe and fcandal of that kingdom. Our patriotic Author often employed his thoughts and utmost endeavours towards redreffing, in fome measure, this grievance; but experience hath fully fhewn that nothing but an unlimited freedom, and full encouragement of trade, will effect a reformation of this kind: and when the Irish are to be indulged with fo great a bleffing, no man can tell, without the gift of prophecy. 13. The humble Representation of the Clergy of Dublin, to their Archbishop-fetting forth the Hardship laid upon them by a certain Brief iffued for the Relief of one M'Carthy, a School-Mafter, whofe House, on College-Green, was deftroyed by Fire.' There is nothing in this paper, that is likely to engage the reader's attention. 14. An Answer to Bickerstaff;'-by a Perfon of Quality. Not quite fo jocular as the Dean's predictions and controverfy with Partridge, under the affumed name of Ifaac Bickerstaff, Efq. 15. Hints on good Manners.' These hints may be confidered as fupplemental to the Author's fhort Treatife on good Manners, printed in the 14th volume of the octavo edition, and the feventh of the quarto. See alfo Review, vol. 27. p. 275. 16. RESOLUTIONS when I come to be Old.' 'Written in M,DC,XC,IX. Had the Dean been permitted to try the experiment, it is probable he would have failed in the obfervance of most of these Refolutions; which are seventeen in number, and ranged in the following order. Not to marry a young woman.' Not to keep young company, unless they really defire it.' Not to fcorn prefent ways, or wits, or fafhions, or, &c.' Not to tell the same story over and over to the fame people.' Not to be over fevere with young people, but to make allowances for their youthful follies and weakneffes.' REV. Aug, 1765. • Not to be influenced by, or give ear to knavish, tattling fervants, or others.' Not to be too free of advice, nor trouble any but those who • defire it.' To defire fome good friends to inform me which of these ⚫ refolutions I break or neglect; and to reform accordingly.' Not to talk much, nor of myfelf.' Very hard, again! Not to boast of my former beauty, or ftrength, or favour with ladies.' 4 Not to hearken to flatteries, nor conceive I can be beloved by a young woman; et eos qui hæreditatem captant, odiffe ac vitare. Not to be positive or opinionative.' Not to set up for obferving all thefe rules, for fear I fhould obferve none.' 17. Laws for the Dean's Servants, 1733.-No mafter ever understood the management of fervants, or was better ferved than, Dean Swift; chiefly owing, perhaps, to the feverity of his difcipline; of which the prefent let of laws affords a striking inftance. Not but that his feverity was fufficiently tempered with kindness; but the latter, fingly, might have proved Juinous to both parties :-there is an excellent remark, on this fubject, in Gordon's account of the life of Mr. Trenchard, in his preface to Cato's Letters. As many of our readers may not be poffeffed of the book, they will not be difpleafed to fee the paflage inferted here. To his fervants he [Mr. T.] was a juft and merciful mafter. Under him they had good ufage and plenty; and the worst that they had to apprehend in his fervice, was now and then a paffionate expreffion. He loved to fee chearful faces about him. He was particularly tender of them in their fickness, and often paid large bills for their cure.-For this his compaffion and bounty, he had almoft always ill returns. They thought that every kindnefs done to them, was done for their own fake; that they were of fuch importance to him, that he could not live without them; and that, therefore, they were entitled to more wages. He ufed to obferve, that this ingratitude was infeparable from inferior fervants; and that they always founded fome fresh claim upon every kindnefs which he did them. From hence he was wont to make many fine obfervations on human nature, and particularly on the nature of the common herd of mankind. Pref. p. xlvi. edit. 12mo. We return now to our Review of the collection before us. 18. Character of Mrs. Hd*. 1727. We have here a pleafing picture of this female court-favourite; who was juftly admired for her beauty, wit, and many private virtues. What Afterwards Lady Suffolk. he he fays of the religious part of her character, is not incurious. In religion fhe is at leaft a Latitudinarian, being not an enemy to books written by the Free-thinkers; and herein fhe is the more blameable, becaufe fhe hath too much morality to ftand in need of them, requiring only a due degree of faith for putting her in the road to falvation. I fpeak this of her as a private lady, not as a court-favourite; for, in the latter capacity, fhe can fhew neither faith nor works. If fhe had never feen a court, it is not impoffible that the might have been a friend.'-Our Author never miffes an opportunity for a good ftroke at the court; and his ftrokes are the more to be regarded, as his knowledge of and averfion to courts was not gathered from the perufal of fatires, or from common-place raillery; but from a perfonal acquaintance with courtiers and great people. 19. Character of Dr. Thomas Sheridan.' 1738. From this paper we learn, that Dr. Sheridan (who died in 1738) had, befide his fkill in the Greek and German languages, a very fruitful invention, and a talent for poetry; that his English verfes were full of wit and humour, though neither his verfe nor profe was fufficiently correct; and that he left behind him a very great collection, in feveral volumes, of ftories, humorous, witty, wife, or fome way ufeful, gathered from a vaft number of Greek, Roman, Italian, Spanish, French, and English writers*. His chief fhining quality, adds our Author, was that of a schoolmafter here he fhone in his proper element. He had fo much fkill and practice, in the phyfiognomy of boys, that he rarely mistook, at the firft view. His fcholars loved and feared him. He rather chose to fhame the ftupid, but punished the idle, and exposed them to all the lads, which was more fevere than Jafhing. Our Author, in this paper, gives the following account of Dr. Sheridan's fon, who has fince made fo diftinguifhed a figure as an actor, manager, and orator. --- He [the doctor] had one fon, whom he fent to Westminster-fchool, although he could ill afford it. The boy was there immediately taken notice of, upon examination. Although a mere ftranger, he was by pure merit elected a King's fcholar. It is true their maintenance falls fomething fhort;-the Dr. was then fo poor that he could not add fourteen pounds a year, to enable the boy to finish the year; which, if he had done, he would have been removed to an higher clafs, and, in another year, would have been fped off (that is the phrafe) to a fellowship in Oxford or Cambridge. But the doctor was forced to recall him to Dublin, and had friends in our Univerfity to fend him there, where he If Dr. Sheridan's colle&ion were as valuable as his friend the Dean here intimates, it is ftrange that his fon, the celebrated actor, hath never yet committed them to the prefs. M 2 hath 1 |