cuniary diftrefs in the commercial world-deficiency of the cir... culating medium-mutiny in our fleet-rebellion in Ireland-repeated failure in our harvests-diffufion of opinions, fubversive of all social order and religious principle-and war with a most inveterate and formidable enemy. And let it be remarked, that feveral of these misfortunes were of a kind so fingular and fo extraordinary, that it was in vain to feek for affiftance or inftruction from fimilar events in the hiftory of former times. Fortitude and genius fupplied the defect of experience: he met this unparalleled fucceffion of evils with undaunted refolution; and he rofe out of every difficulty with fresh honor and increased reputation.

"When any fudden emergency required immediate action, he was fertile in refources, and prompt in decifion; but where the business was of a nature to be foreseen and prepared at leisure, he was ftudious to collect the fentiments of others: he heard with patience, and weighed the different arguments with impartiality; and thus his opinion upon any important matter was the deliberate refult of full enquiry, and of every information which could be procured. Hence it happened, that he had rarely occafion to abandon any measure which he once propofed. Though he was not to be diverted from his purpose by the ingenious cavils and popular harangues of a fyftematic Oppofition, yet he was always open to the force of juft reafoning and well-grounded objection. In his conduct of public bufinefs he was equally free from precipitation, fear, and pertinacity. He was eafy of access to perfons whofe knowledge or fituation gave them a claim to attention; and was ever ready to liften to any fuggeftion or communication. Whatever was the fubject of difcuffion, in the wide range of the domeftic and foreign, the civil, military, naval, and commercial concerns of this great and powerful Kingdom, he never failed, by the extent and variety of his information, and by the acuteness and juftness of his obfervations, to excite the furprise of those with whom he converfed. All perfons,, whatever were their occupations, purfuits, or profeffions, departed from Mr. PITT with a conviction of their own inferiority, even upon points to which they had devoted their whole time and thoughts: "Huic verfa"tile ingenium fic pariter ad omnia fuit, ut natum ad id unum "diceres quodcunque ageret*.'" P. 13.

What follows at p. 16, on his commanding powers of eloquence, at p. 17, on his literary tafte and endowments, no one will prefume to question; but the following fketch of his qualities and conduct in private life is particularly de

ferving of attention, as it is iven by one who fpeaks from an authority beyond the poffibility of difpute.

"But with all his devotion to bufinefs and love of study, never was there a man who more fully enjoyed the fociety of his friends. Here he unbent his whole foul; here he displayed a vivacity of imagination, a brilliancy of wit, a certain ease, fimplicity, playfulness and good humor, a delicacy of fentiment, and an attention to the feelings of others, which made him as much the object of private affection as he was of public confidence. His heart was formed for the fenfibilities of friendship; and his manner, temper, and difpofition were fuch, that it was impoffible to know, and not to love him. Though in his public fpeeches he fometimes ufed the keeneft invectives and most pointed farcafms, in private he always fpoke of his political opponents with mildnefs and candor; nor did he express himself with harsh. nefs even of those who deferted his caufe upon the most uujustifi. able grounds, or for the most dishonorable reafons: nay, such was the facility of his temper, that he was always defirous of finding an excuse or a palliation for the moft unwarrantable conduct; and he was ever ready, perhaps too ready, upon the slightest acknowledgment, to receive again into his confidence those who had treated him with infincerity or ingratitude. No pressure of bufinefs, no untoward circumftance, no unfortunate event, difconcerted his natural cheerfulnefs. Refentment, peevishnefs, and defpondency, were feelings to which his mind was an utter ftrangcr.

He was uniformly fupported under the various trials to which his fituation expofed him, by a confcioufnefs of having difcharged his duty, and by a religious principle which never forfook him. To this influence we are to attribute that unfhaken equanimity, which was the conftant theme of admiration to thofe who had an opportunity of obferving it, not merely in the bufy moments of official occupation or the ordinary intercourfe of focial life, but in the retired hours of confidential and unreferved converfation. Through the moft gloomy profpect, he always faw a ray of hope; under the moft calamitous occurrence, he always pointed out fome cause for comfort; and under the most unprovoked injury, he remained placid and undisturbed. No temptation, no inducement, no expectation of advantage, no apprehenfion of inconvenience, no fear of offence, not even the defire of gratifying thofe to whom he was moft warmly attached. or with whom he was moft clofely connected, could prevail upon him to do what he believed to be wrong, or divert him from doing what he believed to be right. Where morality or duty was concerned, his eafinefs of temper was changed into inflexible firmrefs. He dealt not in ftudied civilities or unmeaning profef fions; he made not a trade of courtesy: he was equally above thofe little arts and contrivances by which the applaufe of the People is too often courted. He had a certain pryauxía, a Tofty

lofty spirit, an honorable disdain of every low and interested condefcenfion, which with those who were unacquainted with his real character, or who chose to mifunderstand it, fometimes fubjected him to the imputation of pride. But while acting upon higher motives and with a far more noble object in view than private or public favor, he gained the unfolicited fupport and difiinterested attachment of numerous individuals, and degree and a continuance of popularity and confidence which no Minister ever before enjoyed." P. 17.

It is with peculiar fatisfaction that we are told from the fame pure fource of information, that Mr. Pitt had the firmeft conviction of the truth of chriftianity, that through life, religion was an habitual principle within him, that it influenced and governed every feeling of his mind, and every part of his conduct, and that finally he died as a christian ought to die, with the moft humble acknowledgment of his own unworthiness, and a lively hope of falvation through the merits of Christ.

Although we have read with delight the whole of this compofition, and join with the moft cordial fympathy in every fentiment of praife which is expreffed for the memory of this exalted statesman, we think the conclufion still more excellent than what precedes. The fumming up of the great qualities of the man, and the great measures which he purfued for the benefit and the glory of his country is done with a mafterly hand, and indicates talents of the higher kind, the exercise of which cannot fail of being honourable to the author, and. beneficial to literature, and his country. The fpeech thus concludes.

"Devoted to his Country, the common fprings of human action feemed in him to be annihilated: no felfifh principle, no felfish feeling had ever power to divert him from his public duty : he fteered right onward

❝Inconcussa tenens dubio veftigia mundo,"* weathering many a ftorm; till mortal ftrength, exhaufted by inceffant watchfulness and fatigue, funk amidst the wreck of nations he was laboring to preferve.

"His body is buried in peace, honored by the mournful tribute of a grateful People: his fame fhall be had in everlasting renembrance; it fhall never ceafe to fhine, unfullied, above the tranfient mifts of earth-born envy; and HE who was his guide through life, and his hope and confolation in death, will proclaim it in heavenly glory." P. 22.

* LUCAN. II. 248."

In the fhort interval which has occurred fince its firt publication, this fpeech has paffed through two editions, and we entertain no doubt that more will very foon be called for. It is with great propriety infcribed to Dr. Manfel, the Mafter of Trinity College.

ART. VII. An Analytical Inquiry into the Principles of Tajic, &c.

IN

(Concluded from page 21.)

N our review of the first part of this elaborate work, we had repeated occafion to obferve, that, if it be not impoffible, it is fo extremely difficult to diffolve the affociations, which have been formed in our minds, of the ideas acquired by the means of our different fenfes, that we never pronounce any thing beautiful or fublime, merely from the perception of it by the eye or the ear. Of this Mr. Knight is fully fenfible, and therefore entitles the fecond part of his analyfis-Of the Affociation of Ideas. To this title we have no objection, fince upon juft notions of the affociation of ideas depends much of the fcience of criticifm. It is not however very eafy to conceive what fhould have induced him to entitle the first chapter of this divifion of his work-Of Knowledge, or improved Perception; for improved perception of the beauties of the fine arts, feems to be only a different name for that tafle, the principles of which are the object of the whole inquiry.

In the chapter fo entitled, Mr. K. contents himfelf with howing that the perception of poets, muficians, painters, and ftatuaries, are in fact improved in their refpective arts, without entering minutely into the procefs by which that improvement is made: and with evincing the importance of fuch improvement, because the feelings of nature, however juft, or however exquifite, are of fhort duration. In the courfe of this argument he throws out many judicious criticifms on each of the arts which come under his review; but as we profefs no fuperior fkill in mufic, painting, or fculpture, we refer the reader for what is meant by the improved perception of the great mafters of thefe arts, to the work itfelf. In what he fays of poetry we have found much to admire, and very little to cenfure. When he afferts that in the rhythm of verfe, independent of the fenfe, there is no

thing delightful to the unimproved perception of a delicate ear, we cannot agree with him for the reafons which we have already affigned; but the critical obfervations in the following extract, though by many they will be deemed the most abominable herefy, appear to us to have much juftice in them.

"It is remarkable that the best verfifier in our language fhould have had no tafte or liking for mufic of any kind; and, that he who poffeffed the moft skill, and had the truest relish for that art, fhould have left more uncouth and unharmonious verfes than any other poet of eminence. I know indeed that there are critics, who have pretended to discover refinements of melody in the moft rugged anomalies of Milton, and of course, a total want of it in the polished elegance and regularity of Pope; but to fuch. critics, I have nothing to fay. If they be ferious and fincere, they are as extraordinary anomalies as any of thofe, which they admire, and afford ample illuftration of the proverb, that there is no difputing concerning tafte,

"English verfe arifes from a limited and regulated distribution of accents and pauses, as well as of quantities; and as Pope has obferved, in the heroic verfe of ten fyllables, a paufe naturally falls, upon the fourth, fifth, or fixth fyllable; befides that at the end of every verfe; which equally takes place in every kind of metre in every language; fince without it, the verfe is only a distinct portion of measure to the eye, but not at all to the ear. Milton has, however, frequently no paufe at the end of the verfe, but occafionally upon every other fyllable from the firft to the ninth; and this licence has been applauded, as adding endlefs variety to the harmony of his verfification. That it muft add variety either to the harmony or diffonance of language, I admit: but the

Let it not be fuppofed, nevertheless, that we approve all the ftrange harshneffes of Mr. Knight on the fubject of Milton. When he fays, p. 119. "Hall, Donne, Hobbes, and Crashaw, are as licentious in their paufes as Milton," he implies that Milton is not a better verfifier than thefe, than which nothing can be more falfe. When he speaks alfo (ibid.) of "the ftains of negligence and ruft of antiquity," in allufion again to Milton, he is no lefs unjuít; Milton was neither negligent, nor has his language the "ruft of antiquity." Nor are his anomalies of verfification fo many, or fo offenfive as Mr. K. would have us believe. A few indeed are not to be defended. In page 121. when he fays, adopting in its full force one of the very worst criticisms that Johnson ever published, "in the Paradife Loft we are perpetually tugging at the oar," we cannot but feel much contempt for fuch a reader of that noble poem. Rev.