Of fo heinous and dangerous a nature was this crime confidered by the Republic of Rome, that the domeftic tribunal which determined all matters relative to the general conduct and manners of married women, took no cognizance of adultery, but left it to be treated as a public accufation. Among the Helvetians, the ancestors of the modern Swifs, a violation of the marriage contract was never pardoned. The female culprit, being defpoiled of her hair, was whipped, by the hands of her husband, in the pre-, fence of her relations, and expelled his houfe. And the punishment inflicted for this crime by the antient continental Saxons, is defcribed by an hiltoriau in these words: “ If a woman became unchaffe, fhe was compelled to hang herfelf; her body was burnt, and over her afhes the adulterer was executed. Or elle a company of females whipped her from diftrict to diftrict, and, dividing her garments near the girdle, they pierced her body with their knives. They drove her, thus bleeding, from their habitations; and wherefoever flie went, new collections. of women renewed the punishment, till the expired." You will perceive, Sir, from what I have ftated, that I am fully perfuaded nothing will prevent the repetition of a crime, which is fo prevalent, as the infliction of perfonal punishment upon the offenders, and depriving them of the privileges above mentioned and alluded to. Upon the infufficiency of damages to answer that purpose, I fhall offer my fentiments at an early opportunity. OBSERVATOR A Mr. URBAN, Hammerfmith, Dec. 6. Sa tribute to the memory of a great and learned man, I beg leave to inclofe a drawing, taken from an original portrait, of Sir Chriftopher Wray, knt. Lord Chief Justice in the reign of Queen Elizabeth; and which I am the more anxious to do, as the picture is not in the highest fate of prefervation, and is the only true original, or even réfemblance, of that celebrated character. He was educated at Magdalen-college, Cambridge, to which inftitution he became a great benefactor. (For a more particular account fee Harding's Biographical Mirrour.) There is a painting of him in the poffeflion of Sir Cecil Wray, GENT. MAG. December, 1805. from which an engraving has been taken, to illuftrate the above-named work, and which has alfo been copied, as a mark of esteem, for the College to which he belonged. Upon comparing the engraving, however, with the refemblance of him which is in my poffeffion, I have no doubt but that it is an indifferent copy of the fame performance, and by no means a likenefstof it." Some of your readers may, perhaps, have feen the print alluded to; and it they will compare it with the drawing inclofed, they will not only coincide with me in opinion with-respect to the originality, but must acknowledge, that a vacant, unmeaning caricature, has been made to reprefent ope of the moft accomplished and penetrating men that ever adorned this or any other country. Dec. 7. F the office of an Archdeacon is fuch as is defcribed by P. (p. 911), . what thall we fay if there fhould be an Archdeacon, who prefides over an extenfive diftrict, who has never' vifited it fince his taking poffeffion; who has never feen the infide of a church within it, or the ontfice (pnlefs, in his travels, he has paffed through a place where the church was vifible), fince his appointment; who has never once enquired after the condust, or the morals, of his clergy? It is to be prefumed that he is refponfible to the Bishop; but, if the Bishop had 66 P. 704. One obfervation as to the migration of Swallows. If they really dofe away the winter's cold in fome fnug recefs," would they not be frequently, nay continually, found, their numbers being fo great? But is it not the cafe, that though a very few may have been found dofing, away" under water clinging to reeds, or in an empty garret, fuch inftances are very rare Phyficien" afks, "whether they are endowed with inflinct, almost equal to reafon, to deftroy them felves by crolling a boundless ocean, in fearch of that food they never felt the want of, in a climate more congenial to their nature than ours." He here begs three queftions: 1ft. That numbers of them are destroyed in croffing the ocean; a fact which I have never feen proved. 24. That they never feel the want of food in Africa. May not the peculiar kind of flies on which they feed, have particular times of appearing in that climate, as well as in ours? 3d. That that climate is more congenial to their nature than ours. May it not be more congenial to them to partake, for a time, " of a milder climate? But Phyficien" himself anfwers himself: "let us fuppofe them," fays he, "created for a far more noble purpofe, that of clearing our atmosphere of myriads of infects, which would otherwife become obnoxious or infupportable to mankind, during the heat of fummer." Here is the key to folve all the difficulties. The gracious providence of God endows them with that inftinct which impels them to encounter all dangers in croffing the ocean, to relieve us at that time of the year when the infects on which they ed would be inconvenient to us; when the work is done, the fame inflinct carries them back to their own country, wherever it is. 66 was P. 11. Fountains abbey purchafed by Mr. Aiflabie of a gentleman whofe admirable tafle induced him to threaten its demolition," fays your Traveller. Hear another story which I have been told relating to the purchase; that it belonged to a gentleman who beheld it with a most fuperftitious veneration; who thought it an impiety to part with it; that a certain gentleman, not being able to prevail on him to fell, haraffed him with law-fuits, on various pretences, which were attended with expences, infignificant to a man of fortune, but ruinous to one of the owner's finall eflate; and at length, by this means, got poffeffion of Naboth's vineyard. P. 721. That Sectaries will increase, or, what is much worfe, that all fenfe of Religion will be at leaft weakened, if not entirely defiroyed, where the Parifh Prieft is vicious, or deferts or neglects his Church, is beyond all doubt. Every one who is unfortunate enough to know fuch a Priest, knows it-fees it. That there fhould be vicious characters amongst the Clergy, is amongst the failings of human nature; and the fact throws no difgrace on the body at large. Who does not know fome inftances of that conduct in Parish Priests, which does equal honour to themfelves and to their profeffion? Happy thofe who live in fuch a Parifh! But is a man who endeavours to awaken the vicious to a fenfe of their duty, to be charged with a defign to vilify or overturn the whole body? No; he is applying a cure to the evil. If the vices of the Roman Catholic Priesthood had not been expofed, fhould we have now enjoyed that clear light of the Gofpel which fprung from a Reformation of thofe abuses? As to the charges being made anonymoufly, can "the Churchman" fuppofe, that any man in his fenfes would fub & himself to the confequences of naming individuals? Or what would be faid of him if he did name them? Or would his naming them induce the Bishop to do that which he ought to do, by himfelf or his officers, namely, enquire into the conduct of his Clergy? Is there no active duty attached to his truly-important office? P. 723. P. 723. "Clericus Surrienfis feems to me to have Mr. URBAN, THE Nov. 27. HE Author of "Hiftorical Anec dotes of Heraldry and Chivalry," printed at Worcefier, 1795, ftates (p. 257) the opinion of Voltaire, that the fleurs des lis, in the arms of the kings of France, were but the fancy of painters, who had mistaken what was intended to reprefent a spear [head] faftened with two pieces of crooked iron; and then objects to that opinion, because the orders of Calatrava, St. James of the fword, and Alcantara, all ended their crofles with fleurs des lis. Now, I confefs, I cannot fee why the fame miflake might not be made in thofe croffes as in the royal arms of France: neither can I If a perfon is confined to his bed fee, that the queftion is at all varied by a mortal illness, he may well be by the antiquity of the bearing of those faid to be in a dying fiate, though crofles fo ornamented, though the death fhould not actually take place author feems to think that circumtill fome time after. Hume's expreffion flance material. And, little as I am by no means implies, that the Countefs difpofed to refpect the authority of was in articulo mortis; nay, it could Voltaire, I think he is correct on this not be fo; for, in that cafe, it cannot fubject; as a proof of which, permit be fuppofed that the could be capable me to refer you to the antient arms of of telling the ftory which to deeply af- Cantelupe: feffe between three leofected the Queen. But now for dates. pards' heads jeffant fleurs des lis; for The Queen went to Richmond 31&it is furely more natural to fuppofe, a of January, leopard's head thould be pierced by a fpear than by a flower. And what is called the fleur de lis in armoury has certainly more the appearance of a fpear-head than of the real fleur de lis. AN OLD CORRESPONDENT. The Countefs died 25th of February. The Queen, who never left Richmond after this going thither, died 24th of March. Is it not reafonable to fuppofe, nay, from your correfpondent's affertion, that the Queen never left Richmond till her death, is it not a demontiration, that he must have feen the Countess on or before 31st of January; and is not the interval of lefs than two months, between that day and the day of her death, confonant to Came deu's flatement, that the dejection of her fpirits came on only a fhort time before her death? What Smollett favs, if unfupported by older hiftorians, does not weigh a feather, eyen if it was inconfillent with my fuppofition, but I think it rather confirms it: he attributes it (according to your correfpondent, for I have not the book to turn to), among other things, to the recent lofs of her friend and confidant, the Countefs. The death of the Countefs, and what preceded it, might well produce a dejection of fpirits; deeply ftricken, the Queen retired to Richmond, and, ne ver recovering herself, died within two months. Z. a. To the memory of JOHN ALLATT, gent. men and women. Now, Mr. Urban, my idea is, that "the more re lower clafs who are not able to give their children an education, and the more ignorant the more applicable to an inflitution of this kind. I fhall defift. for the prefent, from any farther obfervation; and hope the writer of the infeription will give a futistfactory R. A. P. explanation. W! Mr. URBAN, Southampton-fl. Dec.7. ITH fome little portion of furprife, I obferved, in p. 1005, a hafty attack upon my language, in the note, page 915. I am not yet fo partial to my kill in authorship, as to feel very anxious for the vindication of that bagatelle; but, Sir, I truft I may be permitted, with all due refpect, to affure the angry Admirer of Sir Sidney Smith, that in loyalty to my king, in attachment to my country, in en analyfes of feveral Sermons on the late Thanksgiving-day, a sketch of that preached by Mr. Watkins, the rector of St. Swithin's, London-ftone, is at your fervice. The text, Philipplans iv. 4. Rejoice in the Lord alway; and again I fay, rejoice." After a fui able introduction, he mentioned perfonal, family, and religious endowments, as fubjects demanding habitual thanksgiving. Many national mercies toward this ifland were mentioned, and efpecially the repeated dan thufiafiic veneration of religion, licers we have efcaped fince the comberty, and law, I cannot, will not, yield precedency, either to him, or to any man who glories in the name of BRITON. I feriously requeft the Admirer of Sir Sidney Smith to re-perufe my fhort communication; and I do think, Mr. Urban, that even HE will condefcend 66 to allow his own ftrictures to have been "most unguarded, and most unfounded;" but my regard for courtely will not let me apply his laft expreflive epithet, mofi impertinent." Indeed, Sir, I can readily excufe and admit intemperate words, where French iven and French gun-boats are made the theme of declamatory patriotic abule. I would only vellere aures of every outrageous difputant on popular topics, and whifper: "Doft thou well to be angry?" I happened lately to have feen feveral gun-boats and praams. I am not ignorant how much the farce of INVASION has been talked about in coffee-houfes, in taverns, and in private houfes. I thought, that a tolerably correct delineation of thefe formidable bug-bears might at leaft amule your numerous readers, and poffibly tend to quiet the needlefs arms of fomne over-timid individuals. But, Eheu! quid volui mifero mili? floribus Perditus, et liquidis immifi fontibus apros. mencement of the French revolajon; all demanding Englishmen to exhort each other to "Rejoice in the Lord alway." The Preacher then adapted the fecond claufe of the text to the ers, defien of the day. In unifon with the King's Proclaination, he exhorted his hearers "again" to rejoice; as efpecial mercies from God demanded epecial acknowledgments from man. Here he entered into the fubjects of joy connected with the occafion: fuch as the diminution of our enemy's powhimfelf being the judge, who, for once, honefly declared his wants, to be fhips, colonies, and commerce," before he knew, that 23 line of baule flips were to be torn from him; and that our navy would be increafed by eight hips of the line, Hence he intimated the greater fecurity to our own ifland against any defperate attempt, fhould the enemy ever make it. The time of the news of this victory reaching us, was peculiarly providential, as it tended to firengthen the heads which began to hang down, through the affairs of Germany ap pearing to be haftening to a difadvantageous crifis. While the hearts of fome were trembling, they were fuddenly revived by glad tidings from Ca dz. The Preacher then adverted to the lofs of human life and comfort neceffarily occafioned by active warfare. He efpecially lamented, in common with the whole nation, the death of one of the king's mighty men." He confidered it a bleffing to the country, that God had fpared him through 120 |