254 New Publications, with Critical Remarks. and metaphorically, the stay and support of the human body. Deprived of their use, man at once loses one of his most important powers the power of locomotion, and he can no longer be said to live, but only to vegetate, since the want of necessary exercise must soon impede the due developement of every other faculty, whether bodily or mental!" This is certainly true, and therefore it is surprising that the care of the feet should be so generally neglected, and that when disorders arise in them the treatment should be consigned to ignorant quacks, whose interest it is, like rat-catchers, to leave the roots of disease behind, for the future exercise of their skill in extirpation. This little book is the production of a man of science and experience, who has omitted nothing that is requisite to be known on the subject of the extremities, the best method of preserving them from the maladies to which they are liable, and the proper mode of treating these disorders when they actually occur, either in their incipient or most obstinate state. The whole is arranged with perspicuity, and written in a style of plainness, suited to the lowest understanding, and yet as totally free from vulgarism, as from the jargon of tech nical pomposity. Medico Chirurgical Transactions pub lished by the Chirurgical Society of London. Vol. 9. Part I. 8vo. 12s. A Practical Inquiry into the Causes of the frequent failures of the Operations of Depression, and of the extraction of the Cataract as usually performed. By Sir Wm. Adams. 8vo. 16s. General Views relative to the Stomach, its Fabric and Functions. By T. C. Speer, M. D. 8vo. 5s. Pathological and Surgical Observations on Diseases of the Joints. By B. C. Brodie. 8vo. Results of an Investigation respecting Epidemic and Pestilential Diseases, including Researches in the Levant concerning the plague. By Charles Maclean, M. D. Royal 8vo. 21. 28. MISCELLANEOUS. A Letter to Sir Samuel Romilly, M. P. from H. Brougham, esq. M. P. on the Abuse of Charitable Funds, with an Appendix of Evidence. 3s. Report of the Committee sitting at the George and Vulture Tavern, to enquire into the funds and conduct of the Norwich Union Fire and Life Society. Is. An Account of the Charitable Donations to places within the County of Berks. By F. C. Barry, esq. 8vo. 2s. 6d. Cunningham's Caution to Continental Travellers. 12mo. 3s. 6d. Neckclothiania, or Titeania, an Essay on Starchers. By one of the Cloth. 12mo. 2s. [Oct. 1, Three Essays on the proximate Mechanical Causes of the general phenomena of the Universe. By Sir Richard Phillips. 12mo. 8s. 6d. A Few Extracts from a Few Books earnestly recommended to the attention and perusal of all Englishmen. By an Enemy to Abuse. 12mo. 2s. 6d. NOVELS, TALES, &c. The Cumberland Cottager, a Novel. By Miss Broderick. 3 vols. 16s. 6d. POETRY. Johny Newcome in the Navy, a Poem. A work has just appeared under this title, written by Mr. John Mitford of the Royal Navy, and ornamented with plates designed by the author, and executed under his personal inspection: it is publishing in numbers, three of which have made their appearance. The poem describes " Johny Newcome" entering the Navy as a midshipman, and traces his progress until he becomes a Post-Captain-all the follies and levities of a British sailor are given ludicrously enough, and his battles are delineated in forcible and glowing language. The loves of "Johny Newcome" are not the least interesting part, and seem to be felt by the writer most keenly. We have been told that the author served many years with Nelson, and took an active part in the battles of Saint Vincent and the Nile; therefore we give credit, not only to the pictures he displays in verse, but to those flowing from the artist's pencil which are well executed. Landsmen who wish to he introduced to the curious interior of a Man of War, can here see it in a variety of colouring. We have been indebted to Mr. Mitford for some communications of a more scientific nature than the poem before us, and we sincerely wish his "Johny Newcome" may continue to meet that approbation which in our opinion it is entitled to receive. Bowen's Kenilworth Castle, and other Poems. Svo. 5s. 6d. POLITICS AND POLITICAL ECONOMY. Kaleidoscopiana Wiltoniensia, or a Literary, Political, and Moral View of the Con tested Election for its Representative in June, 1818. 8vo. 10s. 6d. TOPOGRAPHY. Platt's History and Antiquities of Nantwich. 8vo. 6s. boards. The History and Antiquities of Gainsborough, with Plates and a Map. 8vo. 10s. 6d. A Year's Residence in the United States of America. Treating of the face of the Country, the Climate, the Soil, the Products, the Mode of Cultivating the Land, the Prices of Land, of Labour, of Food, and of Raiments, &c. &c. By W. Cobbett. Part I. 8vo. 6s. PROCEEDINGS OF LEARNED SOCIETIES. EDINBURGH, Aug. 1.-The Senatus Academicus of this University has conferred the degree of Doctor of Medicine on one hundred and three students, who had gone through their appointed examinations, and publicly defended their inaugural dissertations. Of these, fortytwo were Scotchmen, twenty-four Englishmen, twenty-five Irishmen, and the remainder from different countries. By this it should seem that the practice of physic is a very lucrative profession; at all events, it indicates a thriving trade in the Northern School, which must surely get rich-by degrees. THE ASIATIC SOCIETY. A meeting was held on Wednesday, the 11th of February last, at Calcutta, at which the Lord Bishop presided. A letter was read from M. CUVIER, Perpetual Secretary to the Academie Royale des Sciences at Paris, introducing in the name of the Academy M. DIARD to the favourable attention of the Asiatic Society. M. Diard is one of the Correspondents of the Museum Royal d'Histoire Naturelle. M. Cuvier at the same time presented several works of his own composition-Memoires pour servir a l'Histoire et l'Anatomic des Molusques, have been received. Á letter was also read from M. Du TROCHET, transmitting to the Society his Researches on the Membranes of the Foetus, and on the Rotiferes. A communication was received from Dr. N. WALLICH, Superintendant of the Botanical Gardens, submitting to the Society Descriptions and Drawings of some interesting Asiatic Plants, viz. the Daphne involucrata, Daphne Cannabina, and Menispermum coculus, with remarks. Dr. Wallich also favoured the Society with some samples of paper made of the bark of the paper shrub, a species of Daphne, and probably the same that is described by Father Lauriero in his Flora of Cochin China.-The paper manufactured from this substance is extremely cheap and durable. It is said to be particularly calculated for cartridges, being strong, tough, not liable to crack or break, however much bent or folded, proof against being moth-eaten, and not in the least subject to dampness from any change in the weather. If kept in water for any considerable time it will not rot, and is invariably used all over Kemaoon, and in great request in many parts of the plains, for the purpose of writing genealogical records, deeds, &c. The method of preparing the paper is extremely simple: the external surface of the bark being scraped off, that which remains is boiled in clean water, with a small quantity of the ashes of oak, which whitens the material; it is then washed, beat to a pulp, and after being mixed up with the fairest water, is spread on moulds or frames, made of common bamboo mats. Besides these, Dr. Wallich presented to the museum a specimen of the Bhojputtra of the natives, being the outer rind of a new species of birch. It is much used in the mountainous countries to the north, for writing upon, particularly by the religious. On one of the pieces was a letter written by the Rawal, a head priest of Kiddernath, a temple on one of the mountains of the Himalayhh, and a great place of Hindoo pilgrimage. For these specimens Dr. Wallich was indebted to the liberality and kindness of the Hon. E. GARDNER, Resident at Katmandoo, who has already enriched the museum with many valuable vegetable productions of Nepaul. A letter was read from Mr. THOMPSON, late Private Secretary to the Marquis of Hastings, dated Calicut, November 3, 1817, transmitting to the Society drawings of the Cobra Manilla, and two sorts of sea snakes. It is said that the Cobra Manilla is known on the Malabar coast as the Bangle snake, and this name is a translation of Wala Caripan, which in the Malabar language signifies the Deadly Bangle, or Bracelet. It has two fang teeth, exactly like those of the Cobra Capello, and its bite is reckoned equally dangerous. The length varies, from six to twelve or fourteen inches; but the female, although rather larger, has less brilliant colours than the male. Mr. Thompson, during his residence in Bengal and the Upper Provinces, had tried without success to obtain the snake called Cobra Manilla. He observes, that the late General Gillespie received the bite of this serpent when he was plucking a peach, and in two or three minutes afterwards lost all sensation. The last thing he recollected was some persons calling out for Eau-de-luce, which, applied very copiously both internally and externally, he believed saved his life, bu he added that his constitution was not 256 Thomson's Juvenile Poems. fully restored in two or three years. Mr. Thomson, during his stay at Calicut, accidentally discovered a species of silk worm which feeds on the leaves of the wild Mango tree. Among the caterpillars he collected for the purpose of obtaining butterflies, were some about the size of a man's little finger, with heads and tails of the colour of bright coral, and bodies covered with silvery hairs rising from a black skin. They soon left off feeding, and became restless, endeavouring to crawl up the sides of the glass shade under which they were placed. The motion of their heads from [Oct. 1, side to side was constant and regular, and Mr. Thompson at length found that they had constructed ladders of almost imperceptible threads, and when furnished with dry twigs they began to form their pods. The quality of the silk is coarser than that of Bengal, which may proceed from the nature of their food, as mulberry trees are not found in the neighbourhood of Calicut. Drawings of the male and female silk-moth accompanied this communication. M. CUVIER was proposed as an Honorary Member of the Society by the Lord Bishop, and duly elected. VARIETIES. THOMSON.-From a communication inserted in one of the Sunday papers it appears that a miscellaneous collection of the Juvenile Poems of the author of "The Seasons," is now in the possession of Mr. William Goodhugh, Bookseller in Crawford Street, Portman Square; who gives the following account of these curiosities. the Town.-16. The Fable of the Sick Kite and its Dame.-17. Upon Mrs. Elizabeth Bennet.-18. A Pastoral Entertainment described.-19. Upon Happiness.-20. An Elegy upon Parting.21. Fable of a Hawk and Nightingale. -22. Upon the Sparkler.-23. A Song. 24. Dialogue in Praise of the Pastoral Life.-25. An Elegy. There are occasional corrections that appear as if made by the author: the local scenery, persons, manners, and dress, described in these pieces, are all Scottish; so that considering the very respectable channel through which this valuable relic has reached the hands of its present owner, there exists no tenable grounds whereby to question or deny their authenticity. The following is a specimen of these juvenile productions. In the life of Thomson, mention is made of his having assisted Mallet, who was private tutor to the Duke of Montrose, and his brother, Lord Graham, who distinguished himself as a naval officer. Mr. Thomson was probably introduced to the notice of those noblemen, and more particularly to the latter, as the collection is stated to have been given by him to Lord Graham, when upon a visit at his house. It was presented about a year since, to Mr. Goodhugh by an elderly lady of fortune, Miss Graham, the grand daughter of that Lord Gra- Hail, Power Divine! who, by thy sole comham-the manuscript having descended into her hands from her father and brother. The MS. carries with it internal marks of authenticity, and the pieces of poetry are twenty-five in number, of which the following is a catalogue: viz. 1. Upon Beauty.-2. Pastoral betwixt David, Thirsis and the Angel Gabriel, on the birth of our Saviour.-3. One to his mistress upon receiving a flower from her.-4. Psalm 104 Paraphrased. 5. The Yielding Maid. 6. Upon Marle Field.-7. Complaint of the Miseries of this Life.-8. A Poetical Epistle to Sir Wm. Bennet.-9. Upon May.10. Upon the Hoop.-11. A Hymn to God's Power.-12. A Pastoral betwixt Damon and Celia parting.-13. A Morning in the Country.-14. A Pastoral upon the Death of Mr. W. Ruddell. 15. Description of 10 o'clock at night in A HYMN TO GOD'S POWER. mand, From the dark, empty space, Smile with an heav'nly grace; Made the high mountain and firm rock, The rolling planets thou mad'st move Their destin'd course fulfil. His mighty pow'r, ye Thunders praise, Unto the distant Pole. Ye seas, in your eternal roar, His sacred praise proclaim, 1818.] Eastern Missionaries-Organic Remains. Oh, you high harmonious spheres, Thistles. A gentleman, noticing the great number of thistles on the poor lands in Wiltshire, states, that, in Germany they are used as food for horses, first undergoing the process of being beaten in a sack until the prickles are destroyed; horses will then devour them greedily. The writer adds, that he witnessed a few years since the very great and good effects of this food on a German cavalry regiment in the British service; the horses of which were brought from a very poor state into good condition in a very short space of time. Thistles have considerable diuretic effects on horses. Missionaries.-MONS. LANGLES, in his work on the subject of Missions, observes there are more than 20 establishments of English Missionaries in the East Indies, extending from Sirdhana, north of Delhi, to Amboyna, in the Indian Ocean, a distance of more than 4000 miles; and that the number of persons employed in these Missions at the end of the year 1813 was forty-four, twelve of whom were Europeans, and thirty-two Natives. But according to a statement published in the Asiatic Journal for May 1817, there were at that period ninety-eight European and twenty-three Native Protestant Missionaries in India, of different denominations. Organic Remain.—Mr. WINCH, in a letter addressed to the Geological Society of London, mentions the discovery of a tree about 28 or 30 feet long, with its branches, in a bed of fire-stone (one of the coal sand stones) at High Heworth, near Newcastle. Of this organic remain the trunk and larger branches are siliceous, while the bark, the small branches, and leaves, are converted into coal: and Mr. Winch remarks, that the small veins of coal, called by the miners coal pipes, owe their origin universally to small branches of trees. Mr. W. states it as a remarkable and interesting fact, that, while the trunks of tress found in the Whitby alum shale are mineralized by calcareous spar, clay, iron-stone, and iron pyrites, and their bark, is converted into jet; those buried in the Newcastle sand-stones are always mineralized by NEW MONTHLY MAG.-No. 57. 257 silex, and their bark changed into common coal. Knife for cutting Hay Stacks that are over heating.-Mr. WRIGHT, of Playford, near Ipswich, has recently made a knife (the invention of Mr. BIDDELL, of that place) of a peculiar construction, for the cutting of hay stacks, when in danger of taking fire from over heating. Of the efficacy of this invention, an account is given in the last Farmer's Journal, as follows: "Having long since given a description of a knife to bore a stack with, and which, from many trials, is found to answer every purpose required, I would beg to state, that I assisted last week in boring through a stack of thirty tons belonging to Mr. Ashford, of Witnesham Hall, tenant of P. Meadows, esq. It was soft through, and nearly in a state of firing: the knife and hay, which was drawn from the cut, were so hot as to blister the hand, and the hay quite black. A hole was made through the body of the stack to ascertain what part was most heated, and to satisfy those who had not seen the knife used: but perpendicular holes from the roof are most useful and the least trouble; five or ten feet in depth is sufficient, draws about half a pound of hay in a foot, possibly a pound or two to a ton; but cut in the old method, would waste as many cwt. besides labour, suffering from the heat, and re-thatching. Having given this testimony in favour of this mode of cutting a stack, it may be necessary to state the objections, with the answer of those who approve it. It is doubted whether it is really sufficiently efficacious, but no circumstance has happened to shew its inefficacy: where the knife has been used, those cut in time have ceased to heat, and others near firing cooled immediately. It is supposed, that by admitting the air (supposing the stack very hot) it would instantly fire, but perpendicular holes admit of no draught; and was a knife of this description at hand, it must be folly indeed to let it go to that state, when merely ten minutes' work will prevent it. From the want of such a tool, it was necessary, in case of over heating (and which it is not possible at all times to guard against, but with the hazard of wasting too much weight and nutriment, and losing the advantage of the earliest, and sometimes the only possible time of storing), to make large cuts with infinite labour and waste of hay; danger of firing by being exposed to the air; or otherwise to pull down the stack and VOL. X, 2 L 258 Rural Economy-French Literature. re-build it. I have long considered this a desideratum in agriculture, and I am fully convinced, that it will answer the purpose intended, and prove a very useful implement." Rural Economy.-In order to provide better for the poor, in years of scarcity, through bad harvests, Lieutenant JOHN COUCH, of the Royal Navy, has tried many experiments on the parsnip and carrot root, and finds that they afford as nutritious a beverage as malt, if cultivated, and harvested in the following manner :-Instead of the common method of sowing the seeds in February and March, he proposes, for this purpose, to sow them from the beginning of June to the middle of August, and early in the following summer to dig them up and harvest them, by first splitting their roots from the crown for about three-fourths of their length, and then hang them on lines, or lay them on straw, under cover in the shade (in order to retain their volatile salts in as high a state of perfection as possible,) till they are thoroughly dry. One acre of good ground will produce about fifteen tons of either of these roots, which, when divested of their tops and dried, will weigh four tons and a half, these four tons and a half will contain from 2,500 to 2,700 pounds of fermentative saccharine extract. And he farther adds, that these roots, thus harvested, are a most excellent and nutritious substitute for hay in unfavourable seasons. In order to use these dry roots for brewing, he recommends them to be ground, and treated in every respect as malt. FRANCE. Two editions have just appeared at Paris of the Letters of the Abbé Galiani, a Neapolitan, who was Secretary to the Embassy from his court to Paris, where he became intimate with Grimm, Diderot, Madame D'Epinay, Madame Geffrin and other celebrated characters. After his return to Naples he kept up an active correspondence with his literary friends, particularly with Madame, D'Epinay. The Abbé gained a name by his Dialogues on the Liberty of the Corn Trade, which appeared at the time when the sect of Economistes strongly insisted on the necessity of unlimited freedom in this branch of commerce, as the most certain means of preventing monopolies and scarcity. The Abbé was against this opinion, and wished for strong restrictions on the trade. The Government, however, did not approve of his system, and the Abbé Morellet was 1 [Oct. 1, engaged to refute the Neapolitan author. His Letters, in which he often refers to his Dialogues, have been printed from his own manuscript; and this is the edition published by Treuttel and Wurtz,, to which we briefly alluded in our last number. Another bookseller has published the same Letters from a copy left by the Secretary of Grimm, amongst whose papers was also found the Memoirs of Madame D'Epinay, as well as the other unedited works of the Abbé Galiani. It is stated in the Preface to this edition of the Letters, that a selection from these works is preparing for publication, of which the most remarkable is a commentary on Horace. The first volume of a new Edition of the works of Diderot has just been published. It contains his Treatises on Philosophy and Morality, and his miscellaneous pieces, which are for the most part wanting in the old editions. The second and third volumes will comprize a selection of the most interesting articles which Diderot furnished for the Encyclopedie. There is announced to be published by subscription, the Lais, Fables, and other Poems of Marie de France, taken from manuscripts in the public Libraries of England and France,with a life of the author, and an account of her works, by M. Roquefort, a person of some celebrity. This collection will form two volumes in octavo. Marie de France was one of the Anglo-Norman Poets of the 13th century; she composed a number of Lais and fables, some of which have been published, but her works have never before been collected. What are called Lais were little Poems, which contained a description of extraordinary events and bold and perilous adventures, in which Love often played the principal part. These Poems have been collected from the British Museum; the King's Library at Paris, &c. |