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God, in confequence of the covenant, which he made with Abraham, when the rite of circumcifion was inftituted, fhall not ceafe, (by his delegates, viz. angels, judges, kings, priefts, and prophets, for the exaltation of his people, or fpoilers and conquerors, for their correction) from being the temporal governor of, and law-giver to, Judah and his defcendants, nor fhall thofe defcendants, however oppreffed, however diminished by flaughter, by captivity, by defertion, or declenfion to idolatry, cease to be a collective body of people, numerous and confequential enough to be the objects of fush a government until the Meffiah come.'

This hypothefis concerning the commencement of the theocracy carries with it the recommendation of novelty, and is fupported by many pertinent obfervations.

*

Some interpreters have thought, that the fceptre of Judah fignifics the fovereignty of the Jewish nation at larges others haye imagined, that the is a tribal fceptre But these notions are fuppofed to be attended with confiderable difficulties, on account of the various revolutions in Judea, by which the Jews were repeatedly deprived of every earthly fceptre.

Thefe difficulties our author endeavours to avoid, by apaid plying the feeptre to the theocracy, and by proving, that this form of government fuffered ho interruption from the time of its firft inftitution to the coming of Chrift.

In the courfe of this argument he fhews at large, (from Lev. xxvi. &c.) that the oppreffors, fpoilers, and, conquerors, well as the judges and kings of Ifrael, were the appointed delegates of God in the government of his people.—This is an ingenious expedient. There are, however, fome objections to this interpretation of the fceptre, which Mr. Gilbank has not removed.

Firft, it may be laid, that the Tovereignty of Judah in par ticular is implied in there words: Thy Band shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy fathers children hall bow down before thee, &c. and that the fceptre is only an enfign of this fovereignty whereas the theocratic fceptre was not the fceptre of Judah, but of God.

"

Secondly, God extended his government over all the pofterity of Jacob without diffination. Ifrael, as the Pfalmift fpeaks, was his dominion. With what propriety therefore could the patriarch appropriate this theocratic fceptre to the tribe of Judah; which he evidently does in thefe words: The Seepre Shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until fhilah come?

If thefe objections fhould be thought of any weight, Mr. Gilbank may remove them in the next edition of his differtation.

rt

This tract is written with that candor, modefty, and good fenfe, which cannot fail of meeting with a favourable reception from thofe, who are converfant in fpeculations of this nature.

not only fignifies a fceptre, a ftaff, or a rod of justice,

but a tribe; because all of the fame tribe were under the famece,

mand, the fame ftaff.

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Judah is twice exprefsly ftyled the lawgiver in the Pfalms: Judah is my lawgiver, Pf. Ix. 7. cviii. 8. in allufion probably to the prophecy of Jacob. See 'r Chron. ii, 2.

i

K. The History and Antiquities of the Ancient Burgh of Great Yarmouth, in the County of Norfolk. Colletted from the Corporation Charters, Records, and Evidences, and other most authentic Materials. By Henry Swinden. 4to. 185. boards. Payne.

THE author of this work, dying while it was in the prefs left the care of its publication to John Ives, jun. efq F. S. A. As this editor is ftill alive, and may be fenfible of our compliment, we shall review his part of the performance firft. This chiefly confifts of a preface, which, for its many excellencies, may ferve as a model for future compofitions of the fame kind. In point of expreffion it is certainly inimitable; but let it fpeak for itself. Amidst the every kind of literary improvement which has been made.-Mark, reader, the every kind of beauty contained in this expreffion. A common author would have expreffed his thoughts far more fimply, but writers of great genius are fond of foaring above the common herd. The article the has a particular and definite fignifica tion. The book which I bought; that is, that particular book. Rome was mistress of the world; that is, this world in which we live. The every kind of literary improvement, therefore, means that, or this particular, every kind of literary improvement; the excellency of which phrafeology cannot be fuffici ently admired,

This work, fays the editor, is the refult of the best part of twenty years, during which period the laborious author employed himself in collecting every material fuitable to his fubject, and with that induftrious attention, and unwearied perfeverance, as few have imitated-none exceeded." The refult of twenty years pains, labour, or study, would have been fo trite an expreffion, that we are not furprifed at the editor's inventing a new one. Twenty years, in his ftyle, means twenty years pains, labour, or Audy and doubtless, it is a curious improve ment in language. But this work is the refult of only the beft part of twenty years. We confefs ourselves to be at a lofs here, not being able to afcertain whether by the best part of a year be meant the fummer, or the day-time throughout the year; which foever is meant, the author, we find, had the good fortune, during that period, to collect every material fuitable to his fub ject; in which he is certainly to be envied by every other col lector of materials for fuch a work. He did it, indeed, with that industrious attention, and un-wearied perseverance, as few have imitated.Shame on the grammarians,who for lages have plodded on in one beaten track, unenlightened by a fugle fay of genius, and never perceived with what elegance as might

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be fubftituted for which, and who will ftill, perhaps, difdai to follow the laudable example fet them by Mr. Ives. To proceed-It is not a mere narrative taken up at random, and embellifhed with poetic diction, but a regular and diligent enquiry into every antient record that can elucidate or establish it

every thing that had the leaft air of tradition be fcrupulously avoided-real fact and indisputable authority form the basis of the Hiftory of Yarmouth.'-As the editor does not ipform us bo it was that avoided what had an air of tradition, we cannot give our readers any pofitive information on that subject: if it was the author, we think he'pays him no great compliment; tradition is frequently to be relied on as fully as written evidence, and has even been received as teftimony in courts of law. In contradiction, however, to the editor's af fertion, we find in the 85th page the following paffage

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There is a tradition that the North Gate was built by the perfon or perfons who had amaffed a confiderable fum of money by being employed in burying the dead in the time of the plague. Our editor proceeds neither will it fail of being interefting to the reader-a fplendid and opulent town gradually afcending from the tents of a few fishermen, &c, Here we have a new and curious idea excited that of the afcenfion of a town; for which our thanks are due to the editor, as we should probably never have had it without his affistance. In return for it we excufe his throwing here and there a stumb ling-block in our way. We are now ftopt at one of them. after mentioning Manship and Nafh, two preceding writers on the affairs of Yarmouth, the editor adds, The little affiftance our author has derived from the former, he has carefully acknowledged, the latter as he wrote neulogium-could be of no fervice-but the generous and friendly allistance the following gentlemen were pleafed to afford him cannot be paffed by unnoticed. This bim can, only refer to the latter, namely Nail; and yet we have a fufpicion the affiftance was afforded the author of the prefent Hiftory of Yarmouth. Truly, Sir, you ought to forgive us if we do not always com« prehend your meaning.

Of all the afliftance afforded the author, that of Anthony Norris, of Barton in Norfolk, efq, was the most extraordinary. This gentleman, the editor informs us, communicated a copy of Domefday. What, in the name of common fenfe, could this be? We have, indeed, heard of Domesday Book; and if the editor means this by Domesday, we must conclude he is trying to puzzle his readers again. He feems, indeed, difpofed to divert himself at their expence; for he informs them that Mr. John Bell furnished the author with many

ma

materials, particularly a copy of the fubfcription for bread for the poor, inferted at page 952: we cannot abfolutely determine how clear fighted fome readers may be; we have examined not only the 95 2nd page, but every other page in the volume, without finding a copy of that fubfcription; we have only met with an account in one of the notes that fuch a fubfcription was made, and that the poor had loaves fold them at a low price, to which they were entitled on fhowing tickets which had been given them: thofe the author, (with the ufual accu racy of an antiquarian) acquaints us, were made of fliff card paper.

The Preface concludes as follows: The author closed his life and his work together the laft fheet was in the prefs at the time of his decease to me he committed the publication of it a fhort but uninterrupted friendship fubfifted between us his affiduity, induftry, and application, will appear in the course of this work-in private life he was the gentleman, the fcholar, and the Chriftian. We copy this concluding paragraph, to give a fpecimen of Mr. Ives's ftyle, which flows fo harmoniously, that future writers will probably aim in vain to equal it.

At the end of the volume we find a copy of the infcription on the author's monument; as this probably is inferted by the editor, we chufe, after having paid our compliments fo particularly to him for his Preface, not to pass this by unnoticed.

We now proceed to the History of the Ancient Burgh of Great Yarmouth; in which we find but few particulars worthy of the notice of our readers. The charters granted to fuch a fown as Yarmouth, the contests betwixt it and the neighbouring towns, the infcriptions, epitaphs, &c. in its church, and the names of its bailiffs, mayors, &c. may be thought matters of confequence by its inhabitants, but are little deferving the attention of the public in general. The history of a metropolis may on many accounts be interefting to whole nation, as, indeed, may thofe of other places, provided they serve to throw light on fome important event, but the Hiftory of Yarmouth is as uninterefting as that of almost any corporation in the kingdom.

With respect to the execution of the work; we find the language in many places very inaccurate, but the induftry of the author is exceedingly remarkable; as, however unim portant his materials are, he has collected fo many, that his book confifts of nearly a thoufand pages clofely printed. It is to be confidered, indeed, that great part of it, being cos

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