Geometry and Metaphyfics, which admit no medium, but must be true or falfe in all their latitude, we hardly unders ftand. If he speaks of Geometry or even Metaphyfics as an aba ftrufe fcience, they are neither of them fo abftrufe as that of Politics: its poftulata, or the premises on which its propofitions are founded, being the moft difficult to diffinguifh, and its problems the most intricate and complicated of all others. The feeming fimplicity of political enquiries arifes from that familiarity in the terms of art, from which refults its real difficulty. The language of other fciences must be understood before à man can pretend to know any thing about them, ignoratis terminis ignoratur et ars; but that of politics is fpoken by almort every body, and understood by hardly any body. At least few people entertain precifely the fame idea of the most familiar exa preffion in treating the fubject. Hence difputation must be endless, of however fimple or coarse a texture may be the argu ments that fuffice to keep it up. The difficulty does not lie in the delicacy, or logical refinement of reasoning; but in the want of precifion in the premifes of the argument; fo that 'till political problems be brought more to refemble those of Geometry and Metaphyfics, their folution will never be at tended with the like certitude of demonftration. In the meat! time fine writers and florid fpeakers poffefs great powers of impofition on mankind. By ufing ftrength of expreffion for ftrength of argument, they give to perfuafion the force of conviction; and by advancing paradoxes, to give them the air of having profoundly inveftigated their fubject, they bêcome unanswerable in proportion as they are unintelligible. Thus this letter-writer tells us. "The extreine of Liberty (which is its abstract perfection, but its real fault) obtains no where, nor ought to obtain any where."What a conundrum! Surely this is not the just reafoning, of fo coarfe a texture as perfectly to fuit the ordinary capacity of thofe who are to ch joy or defend Liberty!-But perhaps they will find it eluci= dated by the fubfequent illuftration. "Because extremes, as we all know, in every point which relates either to our duties or fatisfactions in life, are destructive both to virtue and enjoyment. Liberty too must be limited in order to be poffeffed. The degree or reftraiat it is, impoffible in any cafe to fettle precifely. Ouf author feems, nevertheless, to think fo, and that the means of procuring and preferving civil liberty, are as obvious as the fimpleft objects of fenfe. A grocer may diftinguish between them, as eafily as he does between his raifins and plumbs, and even a political cobler pick out a falfe measure of state as readily as a faulty briftle. Perhaps this may be the reason that our mechanics, in general, are fuch political adepts, as to have all these matters at their fingers ends. But But it ought to be the conftant aim of every wife public counsel, to find out by cautious experiments, and rational, cool endeavours, with how little, not how much of this restraint, the community can fubfift. For liberty is a good to be improved, and not an evil to be leffened. It is only not a private bleffing of the first order, but the vital spring and energy of the ftate itself, which has just so much life and vigour as there is liberty in it." Well, Reader, of ordinary capacity! do you comprehend this Enigma now? Here is energy, life, and vigour in the expreffion; but where is the precifion, and what is the meaning? In our opinion, the paradox it'elf is fufficiently puzzling, and the explanation only renders it more enigmatical. The firft feems to be taken from that maxim among ancient lawyers, Summum jus fumma injuria; an exception to a general rule, applicable in particular cafes, in which the feverity of the law might degenerate into injuftice. But who, fom this exception, ever prefumed to infer in general terms, that the abstract perfection of the law, which is univerfally allowed to be right reafon, is its real fault? To fay, indeed, as our author does, that Liberty is a good to be improved, and that its perfection is its fault, is a bull, calculated better for the latitude of Ormond key, and the thores of the Shannon, than either the banks of the Thames, or Bristol Channel.- We fhall take our leave of this pamphlet, therefore, in the writer's own words. "It is melancholy, as well as ridiculous, to obferve the kind of reafoning with which the public has been amused, in order to divert our minds from the common fenfe of our American policy. But government is a practical thing, made for the happiness of mankind, and not to furnish out a spectacle of uniformity, to gratify the scheme of vifionary politicians. Our business was to rule, and not to wrangle; and it would have been a poor compenfation that we had triumphed in a dispute, while we loft an Empire." K. An Effay on British Liberty: Addreffed to both Houses of Parliament. Small 8vo. 3s. Bew. A fevere, tho' not unjust, remonftrance against that moral licentioufnefs, which openly prevails under the notion of political Liberty. The The Characters of George the First, Queen Caroline, Sir Robert Walpole, Mr. Pulteney, Lord Hardwicke, Mr. Fox, and Mr. Pitt, reviewed. With royal and noble Anecdotes; and a Sketch of Lord Chefterfield's character, 8vo. Is. 6d. Davies. This pamphlet may not be faid fo properly to contain a review of the characters of the illuftrious perfonages mentioned in the title-page, as a review of the sketches of those characters by the late Earl of Chesterfield: of which, we obferved in the last number of our work, that the out-lines were ftrong, but frequently falfe, and fometimes hit off at random. Had the noble limner, however, fpared illiberal expreffion and unjuft accufation, we are told, the public would never have been troubled with this trifle. Trifling, nevertheless, as the writer may modeftly think this little production, the characters in queftion are most of them much obliged to him, for having foftened fome of the difagreeable, not to fay odious, shades with which the painter had disguised their principal features. In regard, indeed, to fome of the noble Lord's characters, nothing, fays this Reviewer, was wanting but a few flight touches to render them more 10und and complete. For which reafon, "I have fometimes enlarged, and fometimes foftened, features, to make the portrait a fuller refemblance of the original." How this writer became better acquainted with the originals than was the noble Lord, we are not informed; but he tells us himself, that, in the delineation of his lordship's character in particular," he has been actuated by no paffion-milled by no prejudice. The short fketch is drawn from the life." For our part, we look upon profeffions of difpaffionate impartiality, as a very fufpicious proof of it. He that faith, he hath no fin, deceiveth himself, and the truth is not in him. We may fay the fame of partiality and prejudice. Indeed, the profeffion itfelf is wrong: every writer fhould be actuated by a paffion for the truth; which only can prevent his being milled by prejudice. The warin and glowing colouring, with which he has heightened the portrait of that political charletan Lord Chatham, affords a particular proof how little this writer is influenced by prejudice!"The people," fays he, "purfue him still with the most ardent and unremitted love and veneration. They ftill look up to him, as their friend, patron, and protector; as the only man whofe abilities can fave them from diftrefs, and whofe virtues can secure them from that tide of corruption, which is now overflowing the nation."-That there may be fome particular people who fill do this, we will not deny. But that the people in general do it, we muft beg leave to controvert. There are, to be fure, Arange forts of people in the world; Eee there there are even fome who ftill purfue Mr. Wilkes with love and veneration, look up to him as their friend, patron, and protector, relying too on his abilities and virtues for their political falvation. Others again there are, who look up to Dr. Price, others to Dr. Shebbeare, and others to political faviours of ftill lefs note. They are all, however, mighty filly forts of people, to pin their political faith on the fleeve of any popular writer, orator, or patriot whatever. We fhall juft cite one inftance of the blindnefs of this Reviewer's attachment to the character of Pitt. "It is well known," fays he, "that Pitt, when a boy at Eaton, was the pride and boast of the school: Dean Bland, the mafter, valued himself on having fo bright a fcholar: the old man fhewed him to his friends, and to every body, as a prodigy."-And a prodigy he certainly muft be, if he was fo good a scholar when a boy at Eaton, as he never could pen a sentence with common grammatical propriety after he grew to be man. This Reviewer's character of the Earl of Chesterfield, as it is not ill, though rudely enough drawn, we fhall give our readers entire. EARL of CHESTERFIELD. "The character of Lord Chesterfield is generally well understood. -It is agreed on all hands that he was a difcreet Clodius; a fober duke of Wharton-born with inferior abilities to those which distinguished that unfortunate nobleman, but with the fame paffion for univerfal admiration, he was master of more prudence and difcretion. "He formed himself very early to make a diftinguifhed figure in the state. Impelled by his ruling paffion, he applied himfelf affiduoufly to ftudies which might render him an accomplished speaker, an able negotiator, a counsellor in the cabinet-to fum up all, one equal to any civil employment. There cannot be a doubt that he aimed at acquiring the office of Prime Minifter; or at leaft the power of appointing the perfon whom he approved to that poft. But the fuperior abilities of Walpole difappointed his ambition. His fituation was flattering: When young, he was placed about the perfon of George the Second, when Prince of Wales; he did not reflect, that those who are in the most elevated station have no idea of friendship independent of a moft implicit, not to fay abject, refignation to their will. His marriage with the dutchess of Kendal's niece, fo far from advancing his intereft at court, occafioned a litigation between him and his Sovereign, "He understood what is called the balance of Europe, or the several interests and claims of its Princes, perfectly. This fcience, with his polished addrefs, qualified him to be one of the ableft negotiators of his time. He made himself acquainted with the characters of all the great men in the feveral courts of Europe; he knew their intrigues, their attachments, and their foibles; and was enabled from thence to counteract all their political machinations. "I am "I am perfuaded that his being fent on his firft embaffy to Holland was rather an honourable exile than a mark of favour; he would in all probability have been troublesome at home. Walpole did not envy him the honour of fhining among the Dutch, and eclipfing a French envoy by his fuperior adroitnefs. "As a fpeaker, he is juftly celebrated for a certain accuracy, as well as brilliancy, of ftyle; for pointed wit, gay humour, and fportive facetioufnefs. However, his admirers must confefs, that he never could reach the fublime in oratory. Of all the great fpeakers ancient and modern, he chiefly refembled Hyperides. He frequently ftrove to difarm his adverfaries by the most profufe commendation of their abilities; but, what is certainly very reprehenfible in him, while he bestowed unlimited commendations on the minifters whom he opposed, he threw out the most stinging reflections on the Prince, as if he had forgotten that the fervants of the crown are alone accountable for errors in government." The most applauded, as well as unexceptionable part of his publick character, was his administration of Ireland: as a Viceroy, he fhone with great luftre, and was univerfally approved; perhaps he was indebted to this fingular good fortune, for his being called to the office of Secretary of State, at the expiration of his first year's government of that kingdom. "In private life we should naturally pronounce a Chesterfield the moft fatisfied of all men: eafy, gay, polite, and mafter of his paffions, what could fuch a man want, to render his happiness complete?-The fame paffion for admiration, which actuated him in publick, accompanied him through every walk of life. "Tho' wondering Senates hung on all he fpoke; "When he had reached one goal, he panted for another. He aimed at univerfality of character: he wished to be esteemed the patron of learned men; but wanted generofity of foul to merit that title. "He efpoufed and patronized a great genius of the age, who addreffed an admirable plan of his Dictionary to him; but the capricioufnefs and unftability of his mind prevented his gaining that honour he most ardently wished for, a dedication of the work itfelf. A letter written to him on that memorable occafion by the author, who defpifed his meanness, and difdained to gratify his vanity, will live for ever in the memory of those who have been favoured with the recital of it. "It is impoffible to reconcile to any principles of reafon and morality the fhocking advice which he gives his fon, "to treat all women "alike, and to fuppofe them all equally liable to feduction." Was then his Lordship fo fuccefsful a lover? was his addrefs fo formidable, that no lady could refift him? His Lordship, I am afraid, was not wholly free from affectation. Great wits, and men who court applause from all the world, are not generally the most paffionate lovers! • See Longinus de Hyperide, p. 187. ed. Pearce. |