Page images
PDF
EPUB

;

arife from no blind adulation, but proceed from a conviction in his own breast, of their propriety. Certainly the public have different opinions of the fame men, and the fame things; many are deceived by intereft, prejudice, and paffion; fome by envy, and others by detraction: from thefe, the deferving man, however meritorious, can never extort the least approbation and they hate to read thofe public praifes, they will not, out of fame private antipathy, bestow themselves: but to fuch as thefe, the author recommends the obfervation of a great and ancient example, in Auguftus Cæfar: this prince, who was extremely jealous of his power, baving furprized one of bis grand children reading the life of Cato, he encouraged the boy, who wanted to conceal the book, bidding him read on, "For Cato was a brave patriot, and a good man; " and though the government of this monarch was founded upon the ruins of the republican virtues of Cato, he could always, with pleafure, bear his favourite poets, Virgil and Horace, bestow the strongest encomiums upon fo eminent a patriot of the common-wealth.

66

IT is not the true intent of history, fo much to load the memory of the reader with a copious collection of public records, as it is to elevate bis thoughts and enrich his understanding: and the ingenious Voltaire has delivered it as his opinion, that biftorians fhould incorporate reflections with the feries of events related, because the dry way of writing is neither fo inftructive or pleafing, as when the author interfperfes a moral difquifition, or animates the reader by a bold and beautiful expression; how far the prefent

prefent undertaking is agreeable to the fentiments of this eminent Frenchman, will be more proper to be confidered by the reader, than afferted by the writer.

TO render the work as perfpicuous as poffible, the author has taken a method, that seemed to him the moft eligible, for preferving a proper connection and dependency throughout the tranfactions of every year: for this purpofe, he has divided the work into feveral parts, every part comprizing the events of a particular year; thefe parts are thrown into diftinct divifions, to avoid the confufion that otherwife would have arifen by blending the land and naval wars in a promifcuous order together; and thefe divifions are fubdivided into different chapters, whereby every material action, independent of others, remains difentangled and fands in the most confpicuous fituation for the obfervance of the reader; who is also to take notice, that the English chronology, in beginning the year on the 25th day of March, had it been pursued, would have made it impoffible to reconcile it with the dates of foreign transactions, because most other nations begin the year on the 1st of January; and therefore their date has been adhered to by the author.

THE

CHA P. III.

From the treaty of Nymphenburgh to the treaty of Hanover. pag. 215.

CHA P. IV.

Military operations between the French, Bavarians, Pruffians, and Saxons, against the Queen of Hungary, in Auftria, Bohemia, Silefia, and Moravia; and also, by the Spaniards in Italy.

[blocks in formation]

The paffage of Commodore Anfon round Cape Hora into the Pacific Ocean; the taking and burning of Paita; and the diftreffes the Englifh fquadron underwent in those feas: with the misfortunes of Pizarro, the Spanish admiral, by attempting to follow the English squadron round Cape Horn. pag. 289.

CHA P. III.

Naval tranfactions in Europe, in 1741, pag. 323,

PART

« PreviousContinue »