We hope that the following charge is groundless, or at least much exaggerated:

In no land are age and poverty fo much defpifed as in England. To be young and poor may be tolerable, as a poffibility remains of becoming one day rich. But age, though furrounded with wealth, is in little esteem. All wish to appear young. Every one is careful to conceal grey hairs and wrinkles. Females rail at the glass that tells them the truth, and fome feek to ftifle their chagrin by the cordial dram. Among the men, numbers are fo abfurd as to clothe themfelves in advanced age as they did in their youthful days, and are afhamed to wear an upper coat in the fevereft weather. They will rather fuffer gouts and rheums, which feem to take up their refidence here, than drefs in a manner more fuitable to their years, and the winter feafon,' &c.

It is proper to note, that our Author exprefsly confines his defcriptions to the English. Not having refided among either the Scotch or the Irish, he does not think himself fufficiently qualified to draw their diftinguishing features.

The third volume, which is confiderably larger than either of the others, is devoted to an enquiry into the ftate of religion in general, an account of the epifcopal church, and of the different fects and diftinctions among us, within and without the pale of the establishment. The Author announces, in the preface to this volume, that his obfervations are principally confined to the prefent ftate of religion, and the modern fects among us; making no other ufe of church hiftory, than what appeared neceffary to introduce or elucidate the fubjects under confideration.

It would have been a much easier task,' he obferves, to write the ancient than the modern history of the church I could have fet myself down in my study, or in the library of the British Museum, and, in imitation of many, reputedly learned, out of forty-nine books have fabricated a fiftieth. But this method was as foreign from my plan, as from my difpofition. I read men, and fought, wherever it was practicable, to make acquaintances among thofe fects which I wifhed to defcribe. This coft me no little trouble, time, and difficulty; but I was rewarded with more accurate and fatisfactory information; and was able to write with greater authenticity and impartiality.'

The manner in which Dr. W. has treated the different articles of his enquiry, plainly indicates the truth of the above al legation. With infinite pains and caution he has collected together a large mafs of very useful information. Our plan, which was to confine ourselves, in a work of fuch an extent and variety, to those fubjes which chiefly interefted us as Englishmen, will not permit us to pay particular attention to this branch of his performance: we fhall therefore conclude with the following extract, which, as it relates to the religious character of the English in general, will be no improper addition to the foregoing particulars:

• That

That the English are charged with paying very little attention to religion, I am not ignorant: but from the knowledge I have obtained of their religious character, by a long refidence among them, I muft declare that this is an error. If the effence of religion confifts in fearing God, acknowleging the obligations of virtue, and in doing justice, I am perfuaded that religion is more refpected in England than among other people, who, though they readily yield to the English, and even envy them, many other advantages, yet respecting their conduct towards Heaven, cry out with much felf-complacency, I thank thee, O God, that I am not as thefe. I will not pretend to exculpate the English before the tribunal of orthodoxy; but justice obliges me to acknowlege, that those who profefs to reduce the doctrines of Chriftianity to practice, perform the duties of focial life as punctually, and perhaps with more confcientioufnefs, than in other Countries, where profeffors of religion value themfelves more upon the ftrictness of their faith, than upon a virtuous conduct, that arifes from the pureft fources, and proceeds from the most rational and revered principles of humanity.'

As this work is the most recent, fo it appears to us the most circumftantial and authentic account of the prefent fate of England hitherto publifhed. It is full of useful information, written with a philofophical fpirit, and enlivened with many curious anecdotes, which ferve to elucidate the fubjects that introduced them. Dr. W. manifefts, through the whole, a ftrong defire to adhere to his motto, fpeak of me as I am. It is not to be expected that a publication of this kind can give univerfal fatisfaction. We have animadverted upon fome paffages in which we think the British conftitution or character are reprefented in too unfavourable a light; and fhould it be tranflated into the English language, though the work would doubtless meet with general acceptance, Dr. W. must not be surprised if particular antagonifts fhould attempt to parry his thrufts.

ART. VI.

Mémoires d'Agriculture, &c. Memoirs of Agriculture, and of rural and domeftic Economy: Published by the Royal Society of Agriculture at Paris. Trimeftre d'Hiver, or Winter Quarter, for the Months of January, February, and March, 1787. 8vo.

THE

HE fociety of agriculture at Paris, encouraged by the royal favour, and countenanced by the principal nobility of France, proceed in their labours with unremitting affiduity.

In the extracts, which precede the memoirs in this trimestre, we meet with nothing that is of great importance. One gentleman informs us that the refiduum of raifins, after the juice is preffed from them, may be employed as food for cattle. Another defcribes the manner of raifing violets in large quantities,

Rr 2

which

which have been long cultivated as a field-crop, in the neighbourhood of Hveres. A third communicates his ideas on the poffibility of introducing a plan of husbandry, that shall superfede the ufe of fallows (achères) *. A fourth offers several obfervations on the Acacia-leaved cypress, and fome other rare trees. M. l'Abbé COMMERELL propofes that the feeds of the wild Beetrave, or root of scarcity,' fhould be planted at 18 inches diftance, and cleaned between without tranfplanting. M. Le BRITON makes fome remarks on the peculiarities of the feafons 1784, 1785, and 1786. M. DORTHES recommends the Clematis Vitalba, Lin. to the attention of the farmer, as a plant that may, on fome occafions, be cultivated with profit, as food for domeftic animals; and M. Le BRITON prefented famples of paper, made from the bark of the paper-mulberry of China: but nothing occurs that feems to be of much consequence, on any of these heads.

Among the memoirs at length, the firft article is, A defcription of a furnace, in which bricks, tiles, and pottery, may be burnt in an economical manner; by M. le Président de la TOUR D'AIGUES, with a plate, without which the article cannot be rendered intelligible. Obfervations on a peculiarity that may be employed, in fome circumftances, to drain off fuperfluous water from grounds, by M. ForGEROUX de BLAVAU. In a certain diftrict, which this gentleman frequently vifited, he remarked, that during a heavy rain, a great quantity of water which flowed into the bottom of a hollow field, was fuddenly abforbed, by finking into an old well which had been accidentally made in that place. This, he imagines, with feeming good reafon, must have been occafioned by the water at the bottom of the pit having fallen into a large ftratum of gravel, or other porous fubftance, which had a free outlet fomewhere elfe, fo that the ftream of water ran along that ftratum to the place where it iffued out. From this he concludes that by opening wells, or fimply by boring, it might happen, on many occafions, that fimilar effects might be produced. We fufpect that this particular ftructure of the earth too seldom occurs to encourage us in the fearch for it.

Obfervations on the culture of barley, compared with that of oats. By M. FOUGEROUX de BONDAROY.

Value of the produce of one arpent in barley
Value of the produce of an arpent in oats

Difference in favour of oats

*We have no word entirely equivalent to the French Jachères, which rather implies arable land, allowed to remain waite, than fallows; but in fome parts of England the word fallow has nearly the fame import.

But

But nothing certain can be determined in matters of this fort from one experiment. It must be the refult of many, very many experiments that could be conclufive.

Analysis of geoponic earths, by Meffrs. FOURCROY & HASSENFRATZ. First memoir.

These two chemifts feem to be engaged in a series of experiments on the chemical analyfis of Earths, fomewhat of the fame nature with that of LEMERY on Foods; and we presume with nearly the fame benefit to fcience: much labour, many words, and little information.

Efay on the culture of the Larch-tree, in the northern provinces of the kingdom, by M le Préfident de la TOUR D'AIGUES Many facts are here ftated, to demonftrate that great advantages may be derived to the kingdom from the culture of this valuable and ornamental tree, which grows better than most other timber trees in our climate. As it is impoffible to fpread too widely the knowlege of this incomparable tree, we fhall enrich our journal with a few obfervations concerning it.

I have in my garden,' fays the author, fome rails, part of which are oak, and part of them larch-wood. The rails were made in the year 1743, and only once painted. The oak has yielded to time, but the larch is ftill found. They employ this wood, at prefent, in Provence, for making cafks. The chefnut of the Cevennes had fupplied the place of the oak, and the larch now fuccessfully fupplies that of the chefnut. The fineness of the grain retains perfectly the fpirit of the liquor, and does not alter its quality. It has been employed, for that ufe, for time immemorial in the higher Dauphiné, from Sifteron even to Briançon. I have, in my caftle of Tour d'Aigues, beams of twenty inches fquare, which are found, though upwards of two hundred years old; but trees of this fize are now only to be found in places whence they cannot be tranfported. There are in fome parts of Dauphiné, and in the foreft of Baye, in Provence, larch-trees which two men could not grafp, and more than twelve toifes in height."

From thefe, and other confiderations, he concludes, that the culture of the larch-tree cannot be too much extended in France: nor, we may add, in England.

On the obftacles that prevent the folding of sheep in Brie: By M. le Marquis de GUERCHY. Some particulars relating to the domeftic economy of the part of the country may be here obtained. It is with pleasure we fee men of rank employed in fuch useful fpeculations. England is, in respect of the object here treated, always the model.

On a difeafe to which sheep and cattle are fubject; known under the denominations of Maladie de Bois, Mal de Bois, de Bois chaud,

R≤ 3

de

-de Brou, de jet du Bois, &c. By M. CHABERT. We know not the English name of this diforder; it might be called wood-evil.

Of all the profeffors of the veterenarian art, we know none who deferves to hold fo high a rank as M. CHABERT. The memoir before us is written with a diftinctness, perspicuity, and intelligence, which are rarely to be found in any science, and we fhould be glad to fee it tranflated into English, to ferve at the fame time as a model for those who fhall profecute fimilar enquiries, and as a fpur to excite emulation in this branch of science, in our own country. For we are not, perhaps, so far behind France in any other kind of knowlege as in this.

It is at

The diforder, here defcribed, affects horfes, horned cattle, and fheep, which are allowed to range in woody grounds. It originates from their devouring the young fhoots of trees early in the fpring, before grafs is produced in abundance. tended with alarming fymptoms, and, if not adverted to in time, proves fatal. M. CHABERT notes three diftin&t stages in the progress of this difcafe; and defcribes the fymptoms, which indicate each of thefe ftages, in the different animals above-named, with a diftinctnefs and brevity that prove highly fatisfactory he likewife points out, in every stage of the diforder, the moft fuccefsful modes of treatment. We hope M. CHABERT will continue his truly ufeful labours, and explain, in fucceffion, the other difeafes to which thefe animals are fubject. But his progrefs muft neceffarily be flow, as his knowlege is derived from his own obfervations, diffections, and experiments, and not from the information of others.

On Madder; by M. FOUGEROUX de BONDAROY. Here we have a diftinct enumeration of the different kinds of madder that have been cultivated, and a lift of fome other plants that may be fuccefsfully employed for making a red dye.

On thofe kinds of oranges that have been ufually called Hermaphrodite; by M. le Marquis de TURGOT. The word Hermaphro dite is here ufed in a fenfe very different from what it commonly bears among botanifts. It does not relate to the flowers, but to the fruit. It indicates a peculiarity that we believe is confined to the clafs of orange trees alone, that of producing fruit, one part of each of which is of one fort, a citron for example, and another part of a diftinct kind, as a lime or a lemon. In what manner this peculiarity is produced we are not told, but we are informed that in growing old, the trees fometimes return to a state of nature in a certain degree; and that at the time of reading this memoir, the Marquis prefented to the fociety branches of limes, lemon, and hermaphrodite fruit, all taken from the fame tree, that had for many years before borne only hermaphrodite fruit. This is a peculiarity in horticulture that we do not recollect to have been taken notice of before.

On