"Since that time, whenever a dog wanders from the "ftreet, 'tis immediately decided that it has paffed through (6 my hands. A good woman, who had loft a fmall one, " which the faid the loved better than her children, came "t'other day and fainted in my chamber; and, because the "did not find her dog, carried me before a magiftrate. I believe I never fhall be freed from the malice of thofe im"portunate women, who, with their fhrill voices, perpe"tually ftun my ears with the funeral orations of all the au"tomatons which have died these ten years. I am, &c." The Temple of Gnidus is the next; and is a most exquisite little piece. Love is the fubject, but it is treated in a manner peculiar to the genius of the author, and hath no tendency, as the tranflator juftly obferves, to debauch the mind or corrupt the heart. The next piece is entitled Lyfimachus; being a sketch of that hero's remarkable ftory, told in his own perfon. The above are followed by the author's celebrated defence of the spirit of laws; which is the laft in this collection. As thofe who are poffeffed of tranflations of the larger works of this great writer will, doubtlefs, be glad of having a compleat fet of all his pieces in English, they have now this defirable opportunity; we cannot but regret, however, that the tranflator has neither done the public nor his author justice; and that it has been the fignal misfortune of, perhaps, the beft writer in France, to fall into the hands of, poffibly, the worst translator in England *. Or, peradventure, Ireland; as we are led to conjecture, from the expreffions printed in Italics, in the extract from the Perfian letter. The Life of Edward Earl of Clarendon, Lord High Chancellor of· HE reputation of the great Earl of Clarendon is fo well 2 TH C 3 to to recommend a performance, of which he was the undoubted author. If any thing, however, could add to the reader's prepoffeffion in favour of the work before us, it must be the folemn manner in which it is ufhered into the world. The original manuscripts appear to have been fent as a present to the univerfity of Oxford, and the volumes before us are published under the immediate inspection of that learned body, from whence we have room to expect the greateft accuracy *. The reason why this production has lain fo long concealed, appears from the title, which fhews that his lordship intended it only for the information of his children; but the late Lord Hyde, judging that fo faithful and authentic an account of this interefting period of our hiftory would be an ufeful and acceptable present to the public, and bearing a grateful remembrance of the place of his education, left by his will this, and the other remains of his grandfather, in the hands of trustees, to be printed at the prefs of the univerfity of Oxford, and directed that the profits arifing from the fale fhould be employed towards establishing a riding-fchool there; but Lord Hyde dying before his father, the then Earl of Clarendon, the property of thofe papers never became vefted in him, and confequently this bequeft was void. However, the noble heireffes of the Earl of Clarendon, out of their regard to the public, and to this feat of learning, were pleafed to fulfil the kind intentions of lord Hyde, and to that end fent this hiftory to the university, to be printed at their prefs, on condition that the profits arifing from the publication be applied for the purpofe above mentioned, This work confifts of two parts. The firft, in proper order, contains the Hiftory of the Earl of Clarendon's Life, from his Birth to the Year 1660; the fecond, which is the most important and interefting part of the work, includes the Hiftory of the Earl's Life, from the Year 1660 to 1667, from the refloration, to the time of his banifhment; with the moft memorable tranfactions of those times †. The It may not be improper here, however, to take notice of a flight inaccuracy in the title-page. When the editors tell us, that this work is a Continuation of the History of the GRAND REBELLION, from the RESTORATION to the Chancellor's BANISHMENT, we must conclude, according to grammatical conftruction, that the rebellion continued after the leftoration. ↑ "The original manufcript (fay the directions to the university) of "THE CONTINUATION OF LORD CHANCELLOR CLARENDON'S LIFE The materials here offered to the public, contain a variety of interefting and entertaining anecdotes, never difclofed before; feveral of which ferve to illuftrate many pasfages in the hiftory of thofe times. It must be obferved, however, that a great part of thefe volumes might have been, and ought to have been, fuppreffed; as affording nothing more than a repetition of what is to be found in moft hiftories of England now extant; confequently ferving no other purpose than to fwell the fize of the work, and advance its price. The hiftorical paffages, where they contain no new facts or illustrations to countenance a diffufe detail, fhould have been only flightly mentioned, just for the fake of preserving connection. It is not one of the leaft advantages of the hiftory before us, that it brings us more intimately acquainted with the character of the celebrated Clarendon. From his former productions, and the annals of the times in which he lived, moft men have formed their opinions of this noble perfonage, and have generally agreed to diftinguifh him by the name of the GREAT Clarendon. To oppofe this prepoffeffion in his favour, and, with impartial hand, to balance his worth with the reputation which attends his name, may feem an invidious attempt; but the nature of the office in which we are at prefent engaged, obliges us to acknowledge, that, considering all the circumftances of his private and public character, we think the pile of panegyric, which pofterity has raised to his memory, greatly exceeds the demand of his merits. As an author, no doubt, he ranks in the first clafs of the writers of thofe days. His fentiments, though sometimes narrow, are often noble, and generally juft. His diction is "LIFE FROM 1660 TO 1667 INCLUSIVE is very incorrect, many "words being omitted, that must neceffarily be fupplied: but it is de"fired that no other alterations may be made, except in the orthography, or where literal, or graminatical errors require it, or where "little inaccuracies may have efcaped the attention of the Author. "The work must be printed entire, as it now ftands, no part of it " left out, not an abstract, nor a reference omitted." Thefe directions,' add the Editors, have been punctually ob'ferved. The fecond part is printed from his Lordship's manufcripts entire, without any omiffion, or variation, except as above. And 'with regard to the first part, the extract fent to us has been carefully compared with the original manufcript itfelf, and found to agree: fo that the whole here offered to the public is the genuine work of 'the Lord Chancellor Clarendon. And both thefe valuable original manufcripts are given to the univerfity by our noble benefactreffes, 'to be depofited in the public library.' 4 manly and copious, though his ftile, upon the whole, is tedious, and embarrafled with parentheses, according to the fashion of the time he wrote in. But as a man, he appears to have been more of a prudent and cautious turn, than of a truly great and generous difpofition. We find in his conduct abundance of complacent accommodation, and worldly difcretion, but not much real difinterestedness, or genuine patriotifm. In fhort, to ufe the words of his own confeffion, he lived rather cautè than caffè. Poffibly the chancellor owes fome degree of the extraordinary fame he has acquired, to the bafenefs of thofe wretches, who, by their infamy, having advanced themselves to the head of affairs, employed the power they had fo fcandaloufly obtained, to perfecute him undefervedly, and with all the most illegal and inhuman circumftances of oppreffion. Our abhorrence of his enemies, aggravates our commiferation for his unmerited fufferings: and when we perceive an object ill treated, in whom we can difcern no flagrant failings, we make infenfible advances, from pity, to love and admiration. But was Clarendon really the great man which his admirers proclaim him? We must confider that he is his own biographer, and that with the moft fincere refolution to be impartial, it was natural for him to put the best gloss on his own character: yet even his own account of his conduct does not juftify the extravagant encomiums of his panegyrifts. It is true, he vaunts much of his difinterestedness, in refufing a confiderable offer of crown lands; but at the fame time he gives the following reafon, among others, for his refufal- That no one particular fubject could bear the envy of fuch an alienation of crown-lands to himself, at the beginning of the king's reign.' From the fame principle of prudence likewife, he for a long time refufed many perfonal honours which the king would have conferred upon him. He had no objection to the grants, but the time in which they were offered was inconvenient to him. Where is the merit of refusing what he did not think it safe or convenient to accept? Tho' his refufal may fhew his good fenfe and prudence, it is no proof of his difintereftednefs. It is obfervable that he does not abfolutely refuse his majesty's bounty of crown-lands, but declines it till better times fhould countenance his acceptance: yet we find that he afterwards accepted of 25,2001. from Ireland, when the ftate was rather in worfe than better condition; though by accident he received only part of the donation. But this, in comparison of a grant of crown-lands, was a fecret gift; and if known, would be a much much fooner forgotten than land, which always remains as an object of envy and jealousy. With regard to his patriotifm, it certainly was not of that liberal and comprehensive nature, which deferves the applause of pofterity. He appears to have been more tenacious in points of form, than in matters of fubftance. That he was not a zealous friend to public liberty, appears by his oppofition to the bill for infpecting public accounts; by his advice to the King to forbid all perfons reforting to coffee-houfes-or to employ fpies, who might betray their converfation; by his indecent treatment of the houfe of commons on all occafions; and by the council which he gave to the king and the lords, to reftrain the privileges of the commons, which he calls encroachments. Perhaps the truth is, that the chancellor did not know what were the privileges of that body. It may be prefumed, from his own words, that he was a man of confined reading in the law, and very little verfed in antiquity. He tells us himself, that he was, by the intereft of his friends, in the very early part of his life, introduced into great practice; and he frankly acknowledges, that he had neither opportunity nor inclination for fevere ftudy in his profeffion. This may account for his high notions of prerogative. He thought thofe exertions of power which had been exercised in the late reigns, were lawful, because they had paffed with little interruption till his time; and therefore he deemed all oppofition to them, unwarrantable encroachment. Perhaps too his perfonal friendship for, and attachment to, the royal family, might ferve to prejudice him fo extravagantly in favour of prerogative. He had been, while very young, fought after and diftinguifhed by Charles I. in a very particular manner. Love and gratitude biaffed his judgment in favour of his royal master, who, though at best an indifcreet prince, was not altogether an unworthy man. The chancellor's acquiefcence in fovereign pleasure, in the begin ning of the conteft between the king and people, having procured him fuch diftinction, it is no wonder that he became an advocate for the extravagant meafures which his mafter afterwards pursued: neither is it matter of furprize, that, when the king fell a facrifice to his arbitrary principles, he fhould transfer his inordinate zeal and affection to his fucceffor, in whofe fervice he at that time remained, in the highest honour and confidence. But had he attentively ftudied, and impartially examined, the antient hiftory of this kingdom, he would have found that the privileges which the commons claimed, and which occafioned the rupture between them and the crown, were по |