ducting the fum to be contributed by Ireland, the expence to be provided for by Great Britain appears to be 20,703,2221.

The Ways and Means are next propofed; thefe are, the annual Malt Tax, and the other taxes ufually granted in the room of the Land Tax; the amount of which had been taken at 2,750,000l. the furplus of the Confolidated Fund, eftimated at 6,00,000l. the produce of a Lottery, 500,000l. and an iffue of Exchequer Bills, on the aids of 1804, to the extent of 11,000,000l. The reafon of his propofing fo large a fum, under this laft head, is given by Mr. A. with great perfpicuity, and it is fhown that, notwithstanding this iffue, the Exchequer Bills, at the clofe of the year 1803, would be reduced gool. below their prefent amount.

The Right Honourable Gentleman then takes a view of the fervices of the enfuing year, diftinguifhing fuch as are of a permanent nature from fuch as are merely occafional and temporary. The total of the former he ftates at about 16,000,000l. The latter he eftimates at 6,800,000l. In obferving upon the permanent expences, he ftrongly impreffes the propriety of not attempting to compromife by endeavouring to reduce our expenditure to our revenue, but refolving "to keep our revenue on a level with our neceflary expenditure."

Mr. A. then flates to the Committee the grounds of the con fidence he entertained that the furplus of the Confolidated Fund would amount to 6,500,000. It was founded on the actual produce of the three last quarters, ending on the 10th of October laft. Inferences no lefs favourable are drawn from the produce of the permanent taxes in the year ending on the 10th of laft October. Our future prospects appear, from this ftatement, to be no lefs fatisfactory; for (referring to accounts before the House) it is obferved, that a progreffive increase had for feveral years paft taken place in the produce of the permanent taxes; but the Minister adds, there are other indications not lefs fatisfactory of the growing wealth and refources of the country, to be found in the accounts of our commerce and navigation. He then ftates the estimated value of our exports for 1802, which appears to be an increase of 8,000,cool. above the year preceding, and he refers to the accounts of fhipping, fo far as they can be afcertained; which show a confiderable increase of Britifh fhips, cleared outwards and inwards, between the years 1801 and 1802. After this ftatement, the Right Honourable Speaker expreffes his fatisfaction at finding that the apprehenfions expreffed by fome" that the conclufion of peace would be followed by a diminution of our commerce and confequently our revenue," had proved ill-founded; and he juftly remarks, that "fo far from the preeminence of Great Britain

Britain in this respect having proved injurious to other coun tries, it had not only enabled her to ftand forward as the protectress of civilized Europe, but of the trade and commerce of the rest of the world."

The Minister next adverts to the state of the Sinking Fund, ftating, that when that wife and falutary fyftem was firftadopted, the fum applied to the reduction of the national debt was about one tenth of its intereft; which then amounted to near 10,000,000l. Such, however, had been the happy operation of that fyftem, that at the present moment, when the amount of the interest is 18,000,000l, the fum applicable to the reduction is 6,000,000l. which, inftead of one tenth, is equal to one third of the intereft of the exifting debt. He fhows, in this part of the Speech, that the improvement in the revenue of Ireland had been even greater, in proportion, than that of Great Britain.

The remainder of this perfpicuous and able Speech contains an answer to thofe "who had expreffed an apprehension that our finances might not prove equal to a permanent establishment, fo large as the prefent," with the Minister's opinion of the causes which have led us to our prefent profperous and flourishing condition, and fome fpirited and judicious remarks on the fituation and profpects of the country. That fituation is now become more precarious, and thofe profpects more gloomy, fince the Speech before us was delivered. Yet the view of our finances there exhibited must still be ufeful. In one event it will afford pleasure, in the other confolation, to every friend of our country,

ART. XIV. Elements of General Knowledge, introductory to the ufeful Books in the principal Branches of Literature and Science. With Lifts of the most approved Authors including the best Editions of the Claffics. Defigned chiefly for the junior Students in the Univerfities, and the higher Claffes in Schools. By Henry Kett, B. D. Fellow and Tutor of Trinity College, Oxford. In Two Volumes. 8vo. 16s. Rivingtons. 1803.

WHILE we were preparing to give an account of this

publication, a fecond edition was announced; and almost before we had opportunity to examine what alterations and improvements the author had thought fit to introduce, a third edition was put into our hands. All praife, therefore,

and

and recommendation on our part is entirely fuperfluous; the public has acknowledged the value of the work, and Mr. Kett is in actual poffeflion of what we hope he will long enjoy, an adequate proportion of emolument and well-earned fame. We fhall perhaps fully difcharge our duty to the public and our readers, by giving a compendious analysis of the contents of these volumes, with a brief fpecimen or two of fuch parts as feem to have a more immediate and particular claim to originality.

This work, then, contains the fubftance of a courfe of lectures, which the author, in his capacity of Tutor, has given to his pupils, during the period of the last twelve years; com. prehending all the various branches of literature and science. It is judicioully and perfpicuously divided into seven Claffes. The firft Clafs very properly is occupied by the fubject of Religion. The reasonableness of inftructing children in religion at an early age is enforced, the fuperior excellence of Christianity is demonftrated, and the character, precepts, and prophecies of our Saviour, with the rapid propagation of his gofpel, fatisfactorily explained. A fecond Chapter on this fubject exhibits an able vindication of our holy religion againft the weak and inconclufive attacks of infidels of past ages, and the philofophers of the prefent. It is made to appear, that ge nuine Christianity has produced the happieft effects upon the opinions, conduct, and inflitutions of mankind; and most warmly do we aflent to Mr. Kett's conclufion of this part, that it comprehends the last revelation of the divine will to mankind, establishes the certainty of a future ftate, reconciles man to the difpenfations of Providence, and qualifies him, by a life of faith and obedience, for the rewards of eternity.

The fecond Class is dedicated to the difcuffion of Language in General, the English Language, the Latin Language, the Greek Language, and concludes with a Chapter on Eloquence. In his remarks on the Greek Language, the author claims, very modeftly, the praife of fome originality. We fhall therefore here felect a fpecimen..

"In addition to the curious circumftances, which diftinguish the Greek language, it may be remarked, that it was spoken and written with purity and elegance for a greater portion of time, than any other ever known in the world. The long period of twenty-three centuries will scarcely measure its continuance. We have feen, that as early as the time of Homer its ftandard was fixed, and it continued to be cultivated till Conftantinople was taken by the Turks, in the fifteenth century. A fhort time before that event, although it exifted in a degenerate ftate among the common people, it was fpoken with fuch correctnefs and elegance by perfons of a liberal education, and par

ticularly

ticularly by the ladies of rank and high condition, as to give no very. imperfect fpecimen of the ftyle of Ariftophanes, Euripides, and the philofophers and hiftorians, who flourished in the pureft times. Such is the very curious fact related by the learned Philelphus, who visited: the metropolis of the eaftern empire twelve years only before it was taken by the Turks. The intermediate corruptions can only be marked by fcholars of more than ordinary acuteness and erudition. By fuch alone can the different colours and fhades of diction be diftinguished in the works of writers, who lived in times fo remote from Xenophon and Plato, as Euftathius, the commentator on Ho mer, Anna Comnena, the daughter of the emperor Alexias, Chalcondylas, Procopius, and other writers, included in the lift of the Byzantine hiftorians.

"The difference between pure Greek and that which was spoken and written by forcigners was much more ftrongly marked. The writers of the New Teftament fall much below the claffical standard. Hebrew idioms, and words used in new fenfes, abound in their writings; and their ftyle, which by modern fcholars is called Hellenistic, to diftinguish it from pure Greek, will not bear the teft of rigid criticifm. Yet it is far from being of an uniform character, fince we find ' that St. Luke wrote with more purity of expreffion, St. John with more fimplicity and plainnefs, and St. Paul with greater copiousness. and variety, than the other facred writers. They approached nearer to pure Greek in proportion as they poffeffed the advantages of educa-, tion, and were improved by intercourfe with the higher ranks of fociety.

As this continued long to be a living language, fo was its circu lation very extenfive. Under the fucceffors of Alexander it was carried far beyond the limits of the Greek provinces, and long before the. Chriftian era it was fpoken by Jews, Romans, and Africans. It was cultivated by the learned in Egypt and Syria, as well as in Italy, Gaul, Spain, and Carthage. Jofephus and Philo Judæus preferred it to their native language; and the writers of the New Teftament adopted it as the belt means to facilitate the propagation of Chriftianity. This was the language of the early Roman hiftorians, and both Lucullus and Cicero ufed it to record the accounts of their pub-. lic tranfactions. Of its general prevalence, the latter fpeaks in explicit terms in his Oration for Archias the poet, where he informs us," that, at a period when Latin was confined to very few diftricts, the Greek authors were ftud ed, and their language was fpoken in molt parts of the world. With refpect therefore to its wide diffufion, the ancient Greek may be compared to modern French, which at prefent forms fo fafhionable and fo general a branch of education. But whatever degree of delicacy the French may poff fs in common with the Greek, it wants many of its moft diftinguifhing characteristics," and in particular its grace and harmony, its precition and copioufnefs, its vigour and fublimity.

"There were many caufes for the great extent of the Greek language. Numerous colonies planted in different parts of Europe, Afia,' and Africa; the commerce of the Greek merchants; the conquefts of Alexander

X

BRIT. CRIT, VOL. XXI. MARCH, 1803.

Alexander the Great, and the permanent establishments which ha made, by building many large cities, contributed to this end. But the cause which produced this diffusion more than all others, was the intrinfic excellence of the language itself. It is a remarkable fact, that at the period when the provinces of Greece were reduced to the meanest vaffalage, and the character of the people was funk to the loweft ftate of difgrace in the opinion of their conquerors, their language ftill continued to retain its high and original reputation, and was ftudied not only by the Romans, but by perfons of refpectability and distinction in all parts of the ancient world.

"The pure Greek, as a living language, finally funk with the power of the eastern empire under the triumphant arms of the Turks," Vol. i. p. 184.

The third Class embraces the very copious and important fubject of Hiftory, difcuffing the various hiftories of the Jews, of Greece, of Rome, of modern Europe, and, finally, of England. In the Chapters which are occupied by this Clafs, the fubjects more immediately connected with hiflory fall under examination; and the reader will find many curious obfervations on chronology, biography, geography, ftatiitics, medals, laws, &c.

We are very much pleased, as doubtlefs our readers will alfo be, with the following remarks on chivalry.

Chivalry was much indebted to religion, for the ardour with which its votaries were animated. Such was the fuperftition of the umes, that no inflitution of a public nature could have obtained reputation in the world, which was not confecrated by the church, and clofely interwoven with the religious opinions of the times. To the incentives of zeal were added the fpirit of gallantry, and a romantic attachment to the fair fex. The youthful knight, previous to his going forth upon any warlike expedition, devoted himself to the fervice of fome lady, who was ufually the object of his ardent love. It was his most lively hope, that her fmiles and her hand would reward his valour: he bore her device upon his arms; to her he confecrated his trophies; and to gain her favour and approbation, he was ready, upon all occafions, to meet danger, and to fhed kis blood. This paffion was the keeneft incitement that was given to his heroic actions, and fired his mind with unabating enthufiafm. Amid foreign invafion or domeftic feuds, where the oppofing barons and their vaffals encountered each other in the hotteft engagements; the faithful knight, as he couched his lance, and rushed to meet the foe, invoked the inif tress of his heart, and gloried by his achievements to render himself worthy of her regard. When peace brought a fhort interval of repofe, and rival knights contended in the jufts and tournaments, the applauding lady often adjudged the prizes to the victorious champions, and rewarded the valour which he had infpired. In the lofty hall, decked with banners and trophies of war, when the banquet was given to the jocund train of nobles, and their gallant companions in arms; the harp and the fongs of the minstrel refounded the praises of the