cimens the description of the morning when the fleet left Englandfeelings of the sailors at the approaching battle-some of the ships, particularly the Neptune, Africa and Thunderer, the beginning of the second book, and the battle. To extract all these passages from a work so unimportant, would far exceed the plan of our Review; but the reader who shall think it worth his while, will easily turn to the description of the battle, which we shall omit, and take the others in order.

'Fair from her ruby throne, with roseate smiles,
The morn in glory clothed the sparkling iles;
Light o'er the billow's glassy concaves rolled
The playful radiance of her fluid gold:
The silvery surges drank the purple day,
And rainbow colours tinged the dashing spray;
The milk-white foam along the pebbly strand
Danced on the surf, or fringed the rustling sand;
While round and round the sportive sea-fowl flew,
Or dipt their plumage in the briny dew.
The silken pendants from the tow'ring mast,
Stream'd o'er the waves and wantoned in the blast;
The furrowing keels the sounding ocean plowed,
With sailors' cries the cliffs re-echoed loud.'

With eagle eye, rejoiced the Britons spied,
The mast's tall forest rising o'er the tide :
With hearts elate they stretched the swelling sail,
Crowded each yard, invoked the favouring gale.
Swift o'er the deep with winged speed they flew,
And nearer now the frowning squadrons drew.

"Quick, clear the decks," the shrill voiced boatswain cries
"Quick, clear the decks," each hollow ship replies.

The dread command comes tingling on the ear,

Pale grows each cheek, with strange unwonted fear:
All stand-a moment, lost in fixed amaze,

In awful silence, and unconscious gaze:

Their homes, their wives, their children force a sigh
Choak'd in the breath-and then-they dare to die.
The love of glory triumphs in the heart,
And each resolves to play the hero's part.'

"The Neptune followed, and the watery god,
Proud on her bow, terrific seemed to nod;
Awed the high billow with his angrylook,
At boastful France th' indignant trident shook,
And roar'd in thunder to the pride of Spain,
Britannia rules with me-the empress of the main."

'Last of the column, o'er the billows roiled,

The well armed force of Africa the bold:
The jetty goddess of the burning sands,

With sharp-edged sabre flashing in her hands

Frown'd at the head, and panting to engage,
Rolled her keen eye, and kindled all her rage:
Beneath her feet the scutcheoned trophies lay,
Borne by the British from Aboukir's bay:
With that fam'd standard, Gallia's highest boast,
Pride of her arms, and glory of her host,
That stormed the dreadful pass at Lodi's bridge,
And waved in fire'o'er many an Alpine ridge,
And still had triumphed in the bloody toil,
'Till met by Britain, on th' Egyptian soil,
Its glories fell-with all its guardian train,
Ne'er deemed, 'till then, Invincible, in vain.?.

'With sounding keel, and wide distended sail,
Th' imperious Thunderer scuds before the gale:
In all his terrors blazed her sculptured Jove,
As when on Titan's impious host he drove
The vengeful storm of mingled sleet, and fire,
Winged with resistless speed, and barbed with ire.
Again he shoots the lightning of his glance,
With withering vengeance, at the sons of France:
Circled in flame, and spreading wide alarms,
Red gleams the thunder of th' almighty arms :
Retiring Ocean trembles as he nods,

And owns th' immortal sire of men and gods.'

Thus through the deep, the marshalled navies steer,
Fate leads the van, and Havoc joins the rear;
The flags of France in martial splendour glow,
In circuit vast, like Heaven's refulgent bow,
When bending o'er the boundless fields of space,
The world hangs glistening in its wide embrace;
But Britain's squadrons o'er the surges past,
Like two black clouds before the driving blast,
When low, and dense, o'er-shadowing earth, they sail,
Charged with dark thunder, tempest, fire and hail :
In gorgeous pomp their floating banners stream,
And like th' impetuous comet's ruddy gleam,
The ardent fires of contest seem to shed,
Pouring new glories on each warrior's head."

These extracts which we have given on the author's recommendation, and which appear to us nearly on a par with all the rest of the book, will evince the truth of what we have said, that the images are of the most common place nature, and the descriptions unmarked by no, velty or vigour. The wearisome uniformity however of both can only be felt by those who like us have perused similar descriptions of similar imagery, extended through ninety pages. A few episodes are introduced, equally trite, uninteresting, and improbable; as of an English officer who had gone to sea to console himself with glory, because he had been disappointed in love; and the invit

ing names of Gonzalvo and Alonzo are borrowed from romance, to excite an unreal interest by recalling the mind to the days of Spanish and Moorish gallantry..

On the whole,we cannot congratulate Mr.Drummond on his heroic poem. The Irish muse has of late been very prolific; but her productions have in general dropt dead from the press. Master* Robinson's poems can only be considered as an embryo; but it must be confessed they give us reason to augur well of that boy's future exertions. As to Mr. Stott, he is perfectly incorrigible. To that writer, who has with much modesty given himself the title of HAFIZ. we shall only recommend an attention to his respectable trade of a linen-draper, which we understand him to exercise at Dromore with considerable credit and success.

Mr. Stewart's+ Pleasures of Love were remarkable only for being a caricature on Darwin, in which all the inflation, the gaudiness, and other absurdities of that writer were carried to a high pitch of exaggeration, but possessing no scintillation of his exaberant fancy or truly poetic genius. Darwin's false glitter is a meteor which has led astray many an unwary withing of the present times. Mr. Drummond among others has followed it too zealously. He seems indeed to have rather a better notion of poetry and a less depraved taste than his last mentioned countryman; but, unless we are inuch mistaken, he is deficient in those grand essentials, which neither length of time nor continued application can ever hope to supply.

MISCELLANIES.

ART. 24.-Elements of useful Knowledge in Geography, History, and other Sciences. Drawn up for the Use of Children, in Questions and Answers. By J. Allbut, Master of Bromsgrove Lickey School. The eighth Edition. 12mo. 3s. 4d. Button. 1806. WE do not recollect to have ever seen a work better calculated to answer the end proposed. To attract the curiosity of children, and make the acquisition of knowledge an' object of desire, is a great point,and for this purpose the author has judiciously divided his little work into ten parts, covered with various coloured paper, in a style of prettiness, which cannot fail to catch the attention of childhood. Each part is on a different subject, which ensures a freedom from disgust, by gratifying that fondness for novelty, so characteristic of the juvenile mind; while by divesting science of its technical phrases, the author has done away one of its most formidable ob stacles, and rendered it more suited to their capacity both for acquiring and retaining knowledge. The subjects treated of, are geo graphy, history, chronology, grammar, and arithmetic, together with the more popular parts of astronomy and natural philosophy. Those who have the care of youth, will find their interest in pur chasing this publication. It has already gone through seven editions, but never before came into our hands.

Crit, Rev. Dec. 1806.

1

+ Crit. Rev. Fob. 1306.

ART. 25.-The Manual of Youth, containing sixty Fables, French and English, ornamented with one hundred and twenty Cuts representing the Subjects of the Fables in the French Part, a Series of Elementary Lessons in the several Styles of Drawing, Remarks on Rhetoric, with various Examples on the different Styles, Figures and Tropes; d Large Collection of Extracts in Prose and Verse, selected from the most approved Authors English and French. By J. Ouiseau, A.M. 12mo. 8s. Symonds. 1807.

THE title page of the Manual of Youth resembles the advertisement of a quack medicine, professing every thing, and fulfilling uothing It is without exception the most unmeaning, and the dearest publication, which has for some time come under our inspection. ART. 26. A New System of domestic Cookery, formed upon Principles of Economy, and adapted to the Use of private Families. By a Lady. 2nd Edition, considerably enlarged and improved, to which are now added ten illustrative Plates. 8vo. 7s. 6d. Murray. 1807. EVERY lady who is about to enter into the holy and happy estate of matrimony, ought to possess herself of this book. filled with receipts of the very best order, uniting taste with economy, and a sufficient degree of luxury with a due regard to health. It will be an acceptable offering at once to the mistress of a family, the professional cook or housekeeper, the sensualist, and even the valetudinarian. For the authoress has not confined herself merely to the table, but has subjoined numerous recipes for the use of the sick room, and for the preparation of such simple medicines as must at times be required in every family.

It is

The miscellaneous observations for the use of the mistress of a family,' which form a sort of preface to the work, are in the highest degree judicious and useful. They are followed by instructions for carving, to illustrate which, a number of plates are given of the principal joints of meat, poultry, fish, &c. marked with dotted lines, to shew the direction in which the knife should be put to come at the different joints or parts. The Romans had appropriate schools for the purpose of teaching the art of carving, where the different animals were made of wood, properly dissected, and joined. with thread, so as to be easy of separation. In the City Institution, lately established, for the encouragement of science, and patronized by so many aldermen, it may be presumed that the good old Roman custom will be renewed; and we cannot help thinking that if some doctorTrypherus* were to flourish his carving knife in Albermarle Street, it might be full as beneficial as the lectures now delivered to young ladies on metaphysics, chemistry, belles lettres, or the system of Linnæus, where their heads are so filled with ideas of sexual difference, that they of course think of nothing else for the remainder of the day and night.

*Discipulus Trypheri doctoris, apud quem
Sumine cum magno lepus, atque aper, et pygargus,
Et Scythicæ volucres, et Phoenicopterus ingens,
Et Gætulus oryx', hebeti lautissima ferro
Ceditur, & totá sonat ulmea cœna Suburrâ.

But to return to our authoress, who, besides the above mentioned, gives us directions for choosing all kinds of fish, poultry, butchers' meat, and vegetables, together with numerous bills of fare for every part of the year, shewing at one glance, what is in season, and enabling the housekeeper to furnish an elegant dinner without the trouble of consideration. Much other equally useful information is added on the management of a dairy, poultry-yard, &c.; and directions to servants for taking care of furniture. On the whole, we recommend this lady's work in the most unqualified manner; and, what our readers might otherwise be apt to suspect, we assure them that we never dined at her table.

ART.27. Thoughts on the Marriages of the Labouring Poor;containing Instructions for their Conduct before and after entering into that Important State, with four authentic and moral Stories, illustrating the Subject. By Thomas Kelly. 12mo. 1s. 6d. Kearsley. 1806.

THE marriages of the labouring poor are too frequently very inconsiderate. The author has here presented them with a very cheap and useful little work, which we strenuously recommend to the wealthy to bestow on their dependant labourers,

ART. 28.—History of Mary Westley, or the Warning. 12mo. Hatchard. 1806.

**

MARY Westley at an early age became the servant of Mrs. Hook, very devout and rich widow. In the absence of her mistress, Mary Westley contracts an intimacy with one Charles Baker, which terminates in a faux-pas. The poor girl, who is represented as being sincerely penitent, almost immediately discovers the circumstance of her guilt to her religious mistress. This lady, whose piety consisted in mere advice, exhorts her to sin no more, recommends her to the mercy of God, and orders her to leave the house. No pecuniary relief to save her from the horrors of almost unavoidable prostitution -she leaves her unprotected to resist as she can, the seductive arts of profligate libertines, and the ill-nature of unforgiving fe males. Mary's lover however makes her all the recompence in his power by matrimony; and they reside at a neighbouring village. The neatness of their house attracts the notice of some kind ladies, who called to see them, and observing how near Mary was to her confinement, asked her how long she had been married, and how soon she expected to lie in, with a promise to furnish her with child-bed linen. Mary's answer however an nulled their charitable intentions, and it was a long time before they entered this cottage again, for they were afraid it might make others think lightly of the crime if they assisted her. The anonymous author of this paltry history, we are convinced, is a female methodist; and, to confess the truth, we have no better opinion of her virtue than of her charity.

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