was in confequence of a sudden impulse of impatience. Lady Salisbury next nters in a state of diftraction, which we think is very naturally maintained by our young bard. After her fpirits had been exhaufted with agony, fhe fomewhat recovers her fenfes on her lord's appearance. Salisbury then propofes to fecrete himself, his wife, and fon, in a concealed cave; but is diffuaded by Morton, who thinks the attempt impracticable.

The fifth act prefents us with Ardolf and a knight near a cottage in a forest. Whilft they are enquiring or a peafant about the two pilgrims, Leroches joins them, and informs Sir Ardolf of Salisbury's danger. They then ref Ive to divide Sir Ardolf's party, which is not far off, into two bands, and to attack the caftle, to the infide of which the fcene next changes, and Grey appears giving Morton a dagger to murder Salisbury. Morton goes out, and a bell tolls, to render the fcene more folemn, during a horrid foliloquy by Grey, who, in Morton's abfence, receives fome intimation by a knight of Ardolf's attempt; upon which he refolves to carry off the countess, and to make her a hostage for his fafety. Morton re-enters, and with great feeming horror pretends to Grey, that he has murdered the earl of Salisbury. Grey difowns that he gave him 1 any commiffion for the deed, and immediately calls out for affiftance to apprehend her. Raymond now enters with two fwords, and having heard Morton's fuppofed crime, is preparing to kill him, when the latter undeceives him by telling him that Salisbury is ftill alive. Raymond commends his integrity, and after difmiffing him, calls in Salisbury, whom he frees from his chains; then giving him one of the fwords, he desires the earl to take his revenge. Salisbury thanks him for his generofity: they fight, and Raymond is difarmed. Salisbury restores his fword, which the unfortunate youth plunges into his own heart, and dies, imputing his guilt to the vicious counfels of Grey. During this time Ardolf had taken poffeffion of the caftle, and entering with his knights, acquaints Salisbury, that Leroches with his party had marched another way to the attack. · Eleanor, however, comes in, and tells them, that the countess and lord William had been carried off by Grey. While Salisbury is fending out fome knights in purfuit of them, lady Salifbury and lord William, conducted by Leroches, enter; and, it appears, that Grey in his flight had fallen in with the party headed by Leroches, who had killed him with his own hand; an incident which forms the happy conclufion of this drama.

With respect to the merits of this tragedy, we think the fituations of the characters are affecting, and well fupported. The plot is not more romantic or improbable than the real story of the earl and his countefs. The dialogue is not always judicious,

L 4

dicious, because it is always poetical, and fometimes imitative; but this fuperfœtat on will fubfide by age and experience; and then the author, it is very probable, may have a just claim to a diftinguished poft in the province of the drama.

MONTHLY CATALOGUE.

13. A Letter to the Right Honourable the Marquis of Granby, Commander in Chief of the Army. Concerning the Regulations lately established, relative to the Sale of Military Commiffions. 8vo. Pr. Is. Becket and De Hondt.

W

E think that a copy of the regulations mentioned in the title page, and which give rife to the author's reafoning, ought to have been inferted in this letter. He confiders, however, one of them as an innovation by which Any officer who had not purchased his commiffion was not, for the future, upon acy plea to be admitted to fell it; or, if he chose to retire upon half-pay, to receive any money, in exchange and also, if any one had not purchafed all the commiffions which he had fucceffively held, he was not permitted to fell any but those which he had actually bought; or, if he chose to retire upon half-pay, to receive more in exchange than a fum proportionable to the purchases be had made.'

The writer then owns that the colourings given to this establishment are fpecious, and that there is no topic on which more plaufible arguments may be advanced, and rhetoric more happily difplayed. He thinks at the fame time, that the prefent state of human nature admits of, no perfection in the dif penfing of public rewards. The fale of offices (continues he) is an abuse that has crept in with the corruption of the times. The giving them to favour is another abuse, and of a more dangerous nature; becaufe more difficult, perhaps impoffible to be corrected. Before therefore we profcribe the former and lefs abufe, we should previously inquire, whether thereby a greater latitude and scope would not be given to the latter and more confiderable; whether by fhutting the door againft Purchafe, we should open it to Merit, or whether Favour will not yet joftle Merit out of his right; and laftly, we fhould inquire whether, while this abufe is remedied, other evils of more important confequences may not thence arife, and thus new and more dangerous monfters iffue from the decollated trunk of the old one? These are the questions which must be determined before the expediency of the regulations can be afcertained.'

In

In the progress of this letter, the author is of opinion that the regulations against the fale of commiffions must throw a dangerous weight into the scale of minifterial power. Further (adds he) if we confider that numbers will be retained in the fervice contrary to their inclinations, when their health and age render them unequal to the neceffary fatigues, when their attention is engaged on other purfuits and occupations, when their minds have been chagrined with difappointment, in fhort, when their duty is become a burthen, and no longer a pleafure to them, we may prefage that the "fpirit of difgust will mix its influence with the lethargic difpofition above defcribed, and will flacken every nerve of difcipline." Our arms will be covered with the ruft of indolence, or corroded by the malignancy of difcontent, aud,wielded by feeble, aged, fpiritlefs and unwilling hands. It is needlefs to defcribe the evils and dangers which must arife from fo weak and undifciplined an army. They must have already rifen frequent to your lordship's ima gination, and are of too alarming a nature, not to be prefent in every mind. How with fuch an army fhall we affert our rights of commerce or of empire, when invaded by foreign ambition? how restrain the ufurping fpirit of our turbulent and warlike neighbours? how defend our native foil, our altars, our hearths, and our invaluable conftitution? or how even fhall we with fafety enforce the execution of our laws?

'Nothing can be conceived more contemptible, and even ri-, diculous, than the ftate to which the army would be reduced, if these regulations were to be adhered to for any length of time. For it were eafy to fhew, by calculations drawn from the probabilities of lives, and making allowances for the accidents incident to the profeffion, that when the regulations. fhall have taken place fo long, as to have had their full effect, before any can be promoted to the rank of captain, they must be confiderably advanced in years, and even the greatest part of that rank will be incapable of the duties of it; that none can arrive at the ftation of field-officer before old age, nor can afpire to a regiment, and much more to a general's staff, till like Neftor he have outlived feveral generations of men.'

These quotations may convince the reader, that the spirit and abilities of this writer are at leaft equal to the task he has undertaken. He poffeffes an uncommon energy of argument and elegance of diction, and we think his letter contains all that can be faid with propriety upon the fubject.

14. Reflections on the Affairs of the Diffidents in Poland. 8vo. Pr. 6d. Vaillant.

This publication contains a fhort recapitulation of the affairs of Poland from the eleventh century, chiefly with regard to religion,

I

ligion; and the author affirms, that from the time of Jagellon (who annexed Lithuania to Poland) to Sigifmund, when the reformation took place,, three-fourths of the Polanders were Greeks; and that Greeks as well as Proteftants fall under the denomination of diffidents. The writer obferves an error in the speech of the prince bishop of Cracow delivered in October 1766, as if the law of Jagellon had been aimed against the Proteftants, who did not exift till a hundred years after his death. He then gives a detail of the religious hiftory of Poland, and the laws made against the diffidents. His conclufion is curious, and prefents us with a striking picture of the religious differences which now rage in Poland.

The fact is, that all the feverity of these laws is infufficient to fatisfy the appetite of the clergy for perfecution. They seem defirous of having full liberty granted them to extirpate the diffidents at their pleasure, by force of arms. In the present diet, the affembly refounds with nothing but their clamours: they require with the moft inveterate rage the paffing in the first place of a very Christian law; "To punish with death, confiscation of goods and infamy to him and his posterity, every perfon, how foever diftinguished, who for the future fhall prefume to speak in favour of the diffidents." They are not therefore to be allowed even the wretched confolation of uttering their cries and complaints when they are devoted to deftruction; nay, a humane and compaffionate Catholic, when affected by the tears and groans of thefe unfortunate people, muft ftifle the voice of nature speaking in their favour, or rifque the lofs of his fortune, his life, his honour, and that of all his family, if he undertakes to implore for them the fuccour due from their common country.

'We may now compute one half of the kingdom to be catholicks, with all the grandees and most of the nobles; one fixth part of the remainder to be united Greeks; the fame number of difunited Greeks, with the addition of a few nobles; and the remaining fixth to be Proteftants, with about 200 noble families, exclufive of Courland. Of all the Greek ecclefiaftical benefices, there only remains the fee of Mohilow, the bishop of which has lately in a Latin oration, reprefented to the king the cruel perfecutions inflicted on his flock.

It is not at all to be wondered at that the diffidents are reduced to such a small number. The laws always favour those fubjects who profefs the national religion; and the allurement of offices muft, in all probability, fooner or later, induce the whole kingdom to embrace that of the fovereign. But it is altogether unworthy of humanity to endeavour to haften this period by cruelties, by the repeal of fundamental laws, and by

unfair intrepretations of constitutions exprefly made to be understood in a double fenfe. The liberty of the nobles is folely founded on the laws, and on the guaranties which the powers interested in the then form of government have given to those laws. The bare appearance of an attempt to infringe thefe, would of course alarm the whole nation. But is it not alfo true that the diffidents are protected by the fame laws and the fame guaranties?

To fum up all, what are the crimes by which the diffidents have merited all this, rigorous treatment? have they ever entered into a confpiracy against the state? have they ever joined the public enemies of the kingdom? have they ever proved unfaithful or disobedient either to the king or the law? have they ever done any injury to the Catholics, when it has been in their power to do fo? were not the ancestors of the prefent nobility, who laid the foundation of the republic, diffidents? were not Chodkiewicz the conqueror of the Swedes, Ruffians, and Turks under Sigifmund III. and Radzivil of the Coffacks under John Cafimir, both diffidents? did not the city of Dantzick support John Cafimir against Charles Auguftus, who was brought into Poland by the vice chancellor Radzieowski, a Catholic? was not the city of Thorn destroyed by Charles XII, who was invited by the cardinal primate to come and dethrone Auguftus II. ? and lastly, were not the legif lators, or rather the confederacy of 1733, fpectators of the efforts exerted by the Dantzickers again't the Ruffians, when invited thither by the bishops Lipski and Hofius ?

This is a masterly performance, and feems to contain the fubftance of the arguments made ufe of at prefent, by the proteftant diffidents in that divided country.

15. A Caution to the Directors of the Eaft India Company, with regard to their making the Midfummer dividend of Five per Cent. without due Attention to a late Act of Parliament, and a By-law of their own. 8vo. Pr. 15. Kearly.

The clauses in the act of parliament, and the bye-laws mentioned in the title-page are as follow:

Cap. 49. A.

That no dividend fhall be made by the faid company, for, or in respect of any time, fubfequent to the 24th day of June, 1767, otherwife than in pursuance of a vote, or refolution, paffed by way of ballotting, in a general court of the faid company, which fhall have been fummoned for the purpose of declaring a dividend, and of the meeting of which general court, feven days notice at the leaft, fhall have been given in writing, fixed upon the Royal Exchange in London.'