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niently spread out, by dividing each hide into two from the neck to the tail. Twelve or fourteen will be fufficient for one of the vats; for three inches at least should be left empty at

top.

Take now your flyptic water of barrel No 1. that is, of the firft running, and having diluted it with of rain, or river water, pour it in over the hides till you fill the vats to the brim: if there is not enough of No 1. fill it up with the next number properly diluted. Then put on the lids, and kindle a small fire under the vats, to warm the water contained in them. As this is to be done only to a certain degree, you ought to have the perfect management of the heat by a moveable valve in the chimney of each flue; and the heat ought never to be fo great but that one might put his hand down to the bottom of the vats without any danger of burning.

After ten or twelve hours, examine whether the fkin begins to part with the hair, and continue to do this every now and then with great care. As foon as you find that the hair comes away with but little refiftance, feize the opportunity, take off the lids, extinguish the fire, and proceed directly to ftrip them entirely of their hair. Were you to miss this time, and allow the hides to remain longer in the vats, the hides themselves indeed would not be injured, but the hair would again adhere much clofer, and require a deal of trouble to remove it.

The hides being thus freed from their covering, empty the vats of the water, and wipe them very clean with dry linen cloths; fpread out your hides carefully, and replace them in the vats as at first. Fill thefe up now with the flyptic water of barrel No 2. diluted with rain-water, or that of No 1. if any remained undiluted; rekindle the fire, and give a gentle equal heat to the vats, which are now not to be covered any more. As the evaporation goes on, continue always to fill

up the vats with the remaining water of No 2. if any, then of No 3, 4, &c. all undiluted. In ten, twelve, or fourteen days, the grain of the leather will be fufficiently raifed by this process. The hides must be a fecond time removed from the vats and hung up on perches to let the water drain off. The vats are to be cleaned again, the hides then replaced in them, the styptic water of the fucceeding numbers poured on them, and a gentle heat maintained as before.

The intention of this laft part of the operation is now to brace up the leather, and give it a firm body, to which end the fucceeding water is excellently adapted, as it always is stronger and stronger in each fucceed ing barrel, the weakest having come off firft. Thus, at laft, the hides will acquire the proper folidity, and be rendered impenetrable to water. At the end of fifteen days, or three weeks, more or lefs, according to the thickness of the hides, they will be found by the curtier to be completely done; however, it is better to let them have a little more of it, than that they fhould be taken out too foon.

For the last time then they are to be taken out from the water, and hung up again on perches, to drain the water from them and cool them; when this is done, they are spread out hori zontally, allowed to dry flowly in the fhade, then carried to the flore and preferved for the market.

Several experiments have proved that the ftrong leather (cuir fort) made in this manner, is of a better quality than that made by any other method yet known, but it has a more brownith look, and the smell of Ruffian leather (cuir de Rouffi).

If upper leather is to be tanned with ftyptic water, the procefs will dif fer from the above only in the time required for it. Lefs time, it is evident, will be neceffary for raising the grain in this, than in the thicker foleleather; but thefe fmaller hides muft

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be well wrought and trampled, to extend them properly, and bring out the grain.

The leather for the roof and braces of coaches is with more difficulty prepared than either of the above kinds, according to the methods of tanning hitherto in ufe. In order to accomplish it, we must first know the differ ence between this and the other kinds; and the principal one is, that lefs re

gard is had to raifing the grain in' the coach-leather; which, befides, is wanted only of half the thickness of fole-leather. Our bufinefs, therefore, must be to steep, for a much fhorter space, the hides intended for coachleather, and to use for it the strongest of our flyptic water. The faddle leather of the best quality may be made. in no refpect inferior even to that of Hungary.

An Account of the Memoirs of Henry Mafers de Latude, during a confinement of thirty-five years in the ftate-prifons of France; and of the means he used to efcape once from the Baftile, and twice from the dungeon of Vincennes, with the confequences of thofe events. Written by himself.

HE following is an abridge- with a companion of the name of Da

Latude.

He was the fon of a lieut. colonel in the Orleans dragoons, and fent to Paris to study the mathematics in his twenty-third year.

Defirous of attracting the notice of Madame Pompadour, miftrefs to Louis the XVth, he borrowed, with a little variation, the ftratagem of a famous French wit. He fent a packet of powders anonymously to her, and then pretended to put her upon her guard against the effects of them: but the powders, upon experiment, not being found poisonous, as he had pretended them to be, fome trick was fufpected, and he was put (May 1747) into the Baftile, whence he was afterwards fent to the dungeon of Vincennes. Being allowed to use exercise every day, he found an opportunity of efcaping thence (June 1750) by confining his keeper, and dexterously deceiving the centinels. After a few days, he judged that it would be prudent to furrender himself: but not placing any confidence upon this occafion in Madame Pompadour, he was again fent to the Baftile, where he was kept for eighteen months in a cell, and removed into a chamber

fame lady. There was another prifoner kept in an apartment above them ; and as De Latude never could hear any of his motions, he suspected that the ceiling between the two rooms was hollow. One day, when they were all returning from mafs, he contrived to run up unobserved to fee this chamber, and counting the stairs (of which he measured one) between the two ftories, he concluded, as there was a depth of five feet unaccounted for between the rooms, that it must contain a confiderable cavity. He now affured his companion of the poffibility of efcaping, as there was a place in which to hide their cords and other materials. "But before we hide "our cords," faid Dalegré, "we must "have them."-" As to the cords," replied De Latude, "make not your"felf uneafy; for in my poft-chaise "trunk, which is before you, there are "upwards of 1000 feet."- By my "faith, I believe you have loft your "reafon to-day! I know as well as

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"there are a thousand.""Yes," finking up to their chins in water to

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replied De Latude, "in that trunk there are twelve dozen of fhirts, "twelve dozen of filk ftockings, twelve dozen pair of under-stockings, five dozen pair of drawers, and "fix dozen of napkins. Now, in un"threading my fhirts, my ftockings, my napkins, and my drawers, we "fhall have fufficient to make more "than a thousand feet of cordage." The plan became compleat, by taking a hinge from their table; by loofening fome bars that formed a grating in their chimney, and which were afterwards of ufe in their enterprize; by fecreting from time to time fome of the wood brought them for fuel, in order to affift in forming ladders; and by fome other neceffary contrivances. After a labour of eighteen months, having made 1400 feet of cordage, and whatever elfe was neceffary, they fixed upon the evening of the 25th of February, 1756, for effecting their efcape.

They had to mount by their chimney upon the platform (or roof) of the Baftile, and then to defcend 180 feet into its ditch; and from thence to get into the great ditch near the gate St Antoine, either through the garden of the government-houfe or by penetrating the wall between the two ditches. They preferred the latter mode, becaufe of the danger from the centries, and becaufe (faid De Latude) as the Seine had overflowed upwards of 300 times fince this wall was built, "the "water mult have diffolved the falts "which mortar or plafter contain, at "leaft a line each time," and have rendered the perforation of it easy. The entablature round the Baftile, by projecting three or four feet, gave them confiderable trouble; but for this difficulty they had prepared the neceflary remedy. Being fafely arrived at the wall between the ditches, they had no fooner begun to work upon it, than the round major paffed by with his great lantern, which occafioned their

prevent difcovery. The moment they had removed one ftone, they became certain of their fuccefs; and in fix hours they pierced a wall of four feet and a half in thicknefs. The round was repeated every half hour, and once the centinel ftopped fhort, and performed upon the head of De Latude the fame operation which Gulliver u fed for extinguishing the flames of the queen's palace at Lilliput. Having crept through the wall, they fell, in paffing the ditch of St Antoine, into a dangerous aqueduct, but escaped without mischief. A bottle of ufquebaugh had been of great ufe to them while at work in the water; and they now had an opportunity to get rid of their wet cloathing, by taking out a change of cloaths kept ready for that purpose in their portmanteau.

Dalegré went to Bruffels, where he was taken up and furrendered to the French court; and being again committed to the Baftile, went raving mad. De Latude being afterwards allowed (as he calls it)" the barbarous per

miflion of fecing him," told him his name, and that it was himself who had efcaped with him from the Baftile. But Dalegré did not recollect him He faid, "No;-that he was God.”

De Latude reached Amfterdam ; but his correfpondence being traced, and himfelf feized, he was delivered up to the French ambaffador. Being remanded to the Bastile, he was ironed and put into a cell, and left to lie upon ftraw without a covering.

De Latude's activity now led him into the framing of feveral political projects; and he particularly claims the merit of having added 25,000 fufileers to the French armies without expence, by fuggefting, in July 1758, the change of the efpontons of the of ficers and ferjeants, for fufils.

At the end of forty months, the overflowing of the Seine occafioned his being removed from his cell to a common chamber. From the top of

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one of the towers of the Baftile he threw to two young ladies, who made Signs of their with to affift him, a packet of papers; and one morning in return, they expofed fome writing on a great piece of paper, fignifying the death of Madame Pompadour.

After a month's delay, he wrote to M. de Sartine, foliciting his releafe on account of this event: but refufing to give information by what means he obtained his intelligence, his confine ment was continued. This urged him to write again to M, de Sartine upbraidingly, M. de Sartine fent orders for his being put into a cell in one of the towers of the Baftile, and kept on bread and water. He was afterwards taken to the governor's houfe, and thence to Vincennes, where he was put into a narrow cell.

Being allowed by the kind nefs of his fuperintendent to walk, with a guard, in the ditch of the castle, he availed himself of a foggy evening, in November 1765, to run away from his guard, and to elude the centries.

He conveyed affurances to M. de Sartine from his retreat, that he would be filent as to what paffed; but finds ing M. de S. not to be foftened, he furrendered himfelf to the minifter of war, when he was again taken into cuftody, and carried back to Vincennes.

The death of Louis XV. happened in May 1774, and De Latude received hopes of his release from M. de Mal fherbes and M. Albert, who came to take an account of the feveral prifoners. But the business afterwards fal ling into other hands, particularly that of M. le Noir, though Latude was fet at liberty in June 1777, he was feized again in feven weeks, at forty leagues diftance from Paris, and conducted frft to the Petit Chatelet, and afterwards to the Bicetre, where he remained fix years. He was examined in April 1783, by M. le Noir, which was the only notice taken of him dur. Ing this period; except that feveral

inspectors at first feemed interested in his favour, but concluded by leaving him to his fate. Upon the birth of the dauphin of France, a commitlion was iffued, at the head of which was the famous cardinal Rohan, for pardoning all prifoners not charged with capital crimes; but M. le Noir giving La tude reafon to hope that he would procure him an earlier difmiffier than he could expect from this commithion, prevailed upon him not to be includ ed in it.

At length the baron de Bretuil pro→ cured De Latude his liberty, with 400 livres penfion on the 18th of March, 1787.

It is now time to speak of Madame le Gros, who with her husband M. le Gros, had no means of fubfiftence but by the education of children. This lady had picked up out of the dirt in the streets, in June 1781, a packet of De Latude's writing, containing his ftory, and figned, "Henry Mafers "de Latude, prifoner at Bicetre, in "a cell fix feet under ground, and "who had lived upon bread and water "for the last thirty-two years." From this moment Madame le Gros became his friend. She was indefatigable in her endeavours to mitigate his suffer. ings, and procure his enlargement. No labour was too fevere, no repulfé was difcouraging, no quarter was left unaffailed, no diftance was too cons fiderable, though a part of the time she was with child; the perfifted unre mittingly throughout, and out of a trifling pittance gave him every means of comfort that was permitted. This generous enthufiafm, it is faid, has been recompenfed by a public prize being adjudged to her; and it is in her houfe that De Latude, who is a bove fixty years of age, is now under ftood to refide.

Such is the story told in these me moirs. There may be fome contradic tions, fome errors, and fome mifreprefen tations in it: but the effential circumftances of the feveral imprisonments

and

and escapes that are related, are undoubted.-De Latude affigns no cause for his continued perfecutions befides those above intimated, together with the fear entertained of his making his history public, if he was permitted to be at large; though he fays, that to palliate his confinement, he was charged at one time with madness, at another with turbulence, and again with an attempt to extort money from a lady during one of the moments of his being at liberty. At the fame time he adds, very properly, that these circumstances, had they been real, called for

different modes of treatment.-With respect to humanity and the public, it is fufficient to obferve, that there appears nothing in the customs of an abfolute monarchy which renders any part of the story in itself incredible.

The memoir states, that fo long ago as the 9th of July 1777, De Latude was estimated to have coft the king 217,000 livres.

Towards the clofe of his confinement, De Latude computed, that out of 12,163 days, during which he had then been imprisoned, 3157 were spent upon ftraw, and 1218 in irons.

Differtazzione Academica ful Commercio, &c. the Traffic of Books among the Ancients, St. taglini. Rome, 1787. 8vo.

N an age like ours, when the prefs is

talk is about trade and commerce, it is surprising that no genius has hitherto employed himself in elucidating the traffic of books, that important branch of public industry. The Canon Angelo Battaglini, a learned academician, has attempted to investigate this fubject. The field would have been too narrow for him if he had confined his inquiries to the æra of the invention of printing: he begins at the earlieft ages of fociety. He fhews how neceffary it must have been thought to preferve from oblivion, and from the ravages of time, the hiftories of nations, of focial conventions, the fundamental laws of states, aftronomical obfervations, and hymns in honour of the Deity; and, lastly, the fucceffive occupations of men in every age. Then he relates the means that were anciently employed by human industry for thefe purposes; fuch as plates of metal, ftone, ivory, and other fubftances that are fit to receive the impreffion of figns, expreffive of the ideas and fentiments of men, as well as the qualities and properties of things. The

An Academical Dissertation on By the Canon Angelo Bat

Egyptians were the first who invented

and monuments by

pofterity has been inftructed with regard to paft events. The Papyrus, a plant indigenous to Egypt, the Perga menum (parchment), fo called from Pergamus, a city of Afia, where it was firft ufed, fucceeded the folid materials mentioned above, as characters or letters fupplanted the firft figns that confifted of hieroglyphics. Thefe laft inventions preferved much more easi ly the remembrance of events, and gave occafion to turn the productions of the mind, as well as the operations of the hand of man, into a trade among the Egyptians, Phenicians, Jews, Chaldeans, Arabs, Perfians, and other oriental nations; and must in the end have contributed to the establishment of colleges and schools among them, by which knowledge would afterwards be communicated to the Greeks, the Latins, and other western people. Our author, paffing over the Egyptians, who difdained all connection or commerce with ftrangers, as well as the Jews who, in order to preserve themselves free from idolatry, practised nothing in common with the heathen, affirms, that

the

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