which the reverend author, Dr. M'Farlan, discovered in his Inquiries concerning the Poor, A concife Abstract of all the Public Acts paffed in the laft Seffion of A publication of this kind, when properly executed, is ob viously useful; and this praise we think due to the Abstract now before us; the work, we are informed, of Mr. Macnally. Of the private acts, as restricted to the benefit of individuals, he has only given the title and contents; but in the abridgement of the public ftatutes, he has exhibited distinctly every fection of each act. A Method to preferve Peach and Nectarine Trees from the Effects of the Mildew. By Robert Browne, Gardener. 12mo. 55. fewed. Walter. This production teaches likewife a method of deftroying the red fpider in melon frames, and other infects, which infeft plants in ftoves, and trees, fhrubs, &c. in the open garden. The price affixed .by Mr. Browne to his performance, feems rather beyond the usual standard; but we believe the defect of quantity will be fully compensated by the utility and importance. of his inftructions. The Art of Converfing on Moral, Religious, and Entertaining Subjects. By G. Wright, Efq. 15. 6d. Turpin. The defign of this production, which is calculated entirely for the ufe of children, may feem fufficient to protect it from the feverity of critical obfervation; but even in fuch, however well-intended, we cannot overlook the most obvious violations of grammar. In this point, we are forry Mr. Wright is fre quently defective. Macbeth re-confidered; an Essay. 8vo. Is. Egerton. This pamphlet is intended to evince, against the opinion of Mr. Wheatley, that the courage of Macbeth, as drawn by Shakspeare, is unquestionable. The author arranges his reafoning under the three following heads: 1. a repetition of the fimple character of Macbeth, as it ftands before any change is effected in it by the fupernatural foliciting of the weird fifters; 2. a confideration of his conduct towards Banquo and Macduff; and, 3. a review of his deportment, as opposed to Richard's, in Mr. Wheatley's Remarks. By his arguments on these heads, the author feems fully to establish the intrepidity of the character of Macbeth. The Aftronomy of Comets. By Blyth Hancock. 8vo. Murray. 2s. 6d. The first part of this production exhibits the opinions of dif ferent philofophers, ancient and modern, relative to comets; with a fhort defcription of the folar fyftem, and fome rational ideas refpecting the fixed ftars. The fecond part is employed on curious calculations and tables, particularly with regard to the comet expected in 1789. A table is likewife given of feveral comets, accompanied with a fpecification of the parts of the heavens in which they were obferved at different parts of their course. Hiftorical, Monumental, and Genealogical Collections, relative to the County of Gloucefter; printed from the Original Papers of the Late Ralph Bigland, Efq. Garter Principal King of Arms. Folic. N° I. 25. 6d. Wilkie. The late Mr. Bigland had made feveral genealogical collections, as additions to fir Robert Atkyn's History of Gloucesterfhire. His defign was to compile a hiftory of its inhabitants, and their family connections. His office, as garter principal king of arms, prevented his re-publication of the Hiftory; and thefe collections are now published separately by his fon, as fup plements to the hiftories which have fince appeared. He purposes to defcribe the different parishes; to remark any peculiarities obfervable in them; to point out the inhabitants who have diftinguished themselves either in a civil or a military capacity; to collect information from thofe infcriptions on the narrow cell,' which contains the last remains, as well as from the regifters of births, deaths, and marriages. The first Number only is yet published. It contains an ac count of the parishes of Abbenhall, Abfton and Wick, Acton, Acton Turville, Adleftrop and Alderton. Of the churches of the first and third, engravings are added as head-pieces. The little general information which we can collect is, that the num bers in these parishes are increasing; that the situations are healthy, fince the ages on the tombs are commonly pretty great; and that the births, even within these few years, increase in a much greater proportion than the marriages.-We hope, for the credit of those prolific parishes, that the author means the births of legitimate children. CORRESPONDENCE. H. M. is received; and he muft, by this time, have perceived, that we cannot, with propriety, comply with his request. ALTERCATION with M. Herrenfchwand muft be useless: our ideas of propriety and decorum, of just reasoning and fair argument, are fo very different, that we cannot easily agree. Yet we are not angry with him for his letter, and fhall feel a real pleasure, if we are able to commend his new publication, confiftently with the juftice which we owe the world. There is an intrepidity and independence in his conduct which interests us: we wish he had fhewn it in his Dedica tion, where we ftill think that abject flattery held the scales of justice with a partial hand. THE CRITICAL REVIEW. For APRIL, 1787. Joannis Brunonis, M. D. De Medicina Praelectoris, Societatis Medicae Praefidarii, Antiquariorum apud Scotos ab Epiftolis Latinis, Elementa Medicinae. Editio altera plurimum emendata, et integrum demum Opus exhibens. 800. 2 Vols. 85. im Boards. Murray. IT is a difagreeable task to return repeatedly to fubjects, from which neither our knowlege or our temper can receive, any advantage. When we fpeak our fentiments on Dr. Brown's works, it is founding the horn of battle, to affemble those in oppofition, who wish to acquire a fcience without the troubles. of study, the pains of thinking, comparing, and revifing. At. the first appearance of thefe Elements, we declined deciding on this author's theory and system.' We observed, that their propriety could not be ascertained till the accomplishment of 'the work, of which we had then received only the first volume *. From the pen of Dr. Brown's friend we had more copious information; and we could not check the various emotions which the pomp, the folly, the arrogance, of the profeffor and his pupil excited +. We have now procured the entire work; and, if we had found that Dr. Jones had mif reprefented his mafter's doctrines, we would willingly have detracted our cenfure. But on examining, very carefully, the whole, by labouring through the affected obfcurity of his language, and the accidental errors of his printer, which are much more numerous than are obferved in the table of errata, though it contains three pages, closely printed: after wading through the toilfome path, we do not hesitate in ftyling this work, as a system, very generally imperfect, frequently trifling, and, in the most important inftances, often erroneous. We gave the outline of our author's divifion, in our review of Dr. Jones's work. It was cenfured as incomplete, by thofe who did not confider it as an outline only, or those who did not fee the features of their mafter reprefented in a flattering Crit. Rev. vol. iii, p. 374R like Crit. Rev. vol. 1. p. 317. VOL. LXIII. April, 1787. likeness. We do not think the volumes fufficiently important to induce us to follow the author's fteps exactly, or to compare the two editions *. We fhall analyze with attention fome of the more important practical parts, and, that we may not be suspected of partiality, fhall take the first disease which occurs, as an example. It is the first complaint in the first form of general diseases, or a morbus fthenicus, which term we are defired to fubstitute for morbus phlogisticus. The peculiar fymptoms of peripneumony, under which pleurify and carditis, fo far as it is fymptomatic, are comprehended, are, a pain in fome part of the thorax, often changing its feat, difficult breathing, cough, attended with an ́ expectoration of sputum, fometimes of blood.' This definition is imperfect and erroneous: it is imperfect in not mentioning the flushed face, which is the most obvious and a very frequent fymptom; it is erroneons, as it includes, among the pathagnomonic fymptoms, the change in the feat of the pain, which scarcely ever occurs, except when topical remedies are prematurely applied: at least it is much less frequent than pain, obftinately fixed, in the fame part of the cheft. The author next tells us, as we suspect, for we cannot be fure of having feized the idea, in a language of which there is no example: he tells us that the difeafe arifes from no foreign matter introduced, but that its feat is in the nervous fyftem, and confifts in the increase of a diathefis, common to the whole body. He then properly shows that the pain is fecondary, and the inflammatory fever the principal complaint; that the real inflammation is in the part which answers to that where the pain is felt; that we cannot fuppofe, particularly in the higher part of the lungs, that the membrane of the pleura, or the membrane connected with it, can be inflamed without the neighbouring parts being affected; and that the distinction between membranous and a parenchymatous affection is without foundation. The next paragraph, where he endeavours to establish that part of the definition which relates to the change in the fituation of the pain, we muft tranfcribe, left we may be fufpected of mutilating it. Dr. Brown, we perceive, diftrufted the account which he gave of his illumination in the first edition. He there attributed it to reading Triller : it is now attributed to a fit of the gout in the second luftrum, which was employed in explaining, cultivating, polifhing, and doubting; he afterwards adds good living. Pref. p. 1. The Preface, and many parts of the system, are materially different. • Saepe Saepe fuam fedem, dolor, in morbi curfu, mutat; quia recta ejus caufa inflammatio pariter mutabilis eft, fedem primam linquens, vel partim fervans, et in aliam vehementius irruens Quod nota doloris mutatio, cum inflammationis refpondentium locorum veftigiis, poft mortem deprehenfis, collata, firmat.' It foon appears that our author thinks this fact necessary to establish his opinion, that the difeafe depends on a general diathefis; and we strongly fufpect that, though he was writing about peripneumony, he was thinking of rheumatifm. Dr. Brown then explains the difficulty of breathing, from the compreffion of diftended and inflamed veffels, and the cough, from the irritation of mucus, fecreted and excreted in large quantities. But let us felect the fections relating to this part. Tuffis caufa eft, humor exhalabilis, item mucus large fe cretus, excretus, vafcula aërifera irritans, eorum, et omnium poteftatum, thoracis cavum amplificantium, incitationem augens, dein fubito fufpendens, et fic plenam tractionem, plenam emiffionem, conjuncto partim voluntatis opere, peragens.. Eadem minor aut nulla initio eft, quia, propter diathefin, adhuc extrema vascula valide obtinentem, iidem humores, va poris caeci forma, promanantes, minus irritant, et minore molimine cum fpiritu demittuntur. Eandem fputa propterea fequuntur, quod humores cumulati cum effectu fuo, tuffiendi conamine, in rapido aëris effluentis impetu, velut torrente amne, pervehuntur. Quibus quandoque mixtus fanguis fecretionis vim, fupra explicatam indicat." We shall not dwell on the numerous imperfections in this hiftory, but shall only appeal to any candid practitioner, whether the man who can defcribe a difeafe fo loosely and vaguely, can be a proper inftructor, either as an author or a lecturer? We have tranfcribed the whole which relates to the fputum, as a falutary evacuation. We are not told what its confiftence ufually is, what the changes are in the progrefs, or the different alterations in the complaint which attend thefe changes. They are still less attended to in the cure: bleeding and purging are the specifics. It has happened, but the inftances are uncommon, where a natural diarrhoea has fuperfeded the neceffity of expectoration. It is much more common to fee a diarrhoea check the excretion of well-concocted fputum, and hurry the patient to the last extremity in a few hours. We may be asked, whether we have not feen peripneumonies cured without expectoration coming on? We own that we have; but we have not feen an inftance where fome fixed complaint has not been left in the lungs in confequence of it. By means of expectoration only the complaint is radically removed. The effects of bleeding are confiderable: Dr. Brown R 2 de |