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where labour has exhaufted his powers to reprefs luxuriant exuberance, and fubdue the whole to one standard of fymmetry and uniformity.

The German has a refemblance to thofe romantic landscapes in which the fpirit of Rofa delighted, where nature, fhooting wild and strong, wantons in terrible graces, and difplays

without conftraint her powers and energy in rude but affecting state; fometimes perhaps exciting fenfations more forcible than pleasant, or liable to degenerate into favagenefs too uncultivated, but always moving the paffions, always exciting the strong intereft of the heart.

Defcription of a Tyger Hunt on Schaapen Ifland, in the neighbourhood of Saldanha Bay *.

D

URING Monfieur Vaillant's refidence on Schaapen ifland, at the hat of an honeft Hottentot named Slaber, he was informed by one of the inhabitants, whofe name was Smit, that a Tyger had for fome time infefted his divifion, and carried away regularly every night fome of his cattle. The animal was doomed to die.

"We therefore got together," fays Mr Vaillant, "all the dogs we could find, and provided ourfelves with arms. Thus every thing ready for the affault, we feparated until mornning. I then went to bed, but could not clofe my eyes from impatience. At break of day I gained the plain with my efcort (Smit, and fome of his friends); we were in all eighteen; about the fame number of dogs. Smit informed us the tyger had that night robbed him of a fheep. One of my guns was loaded with large pieces of lead, another with fhot, and a carbine with balls, two of which my Hottentot carried as he followed me. The country was toIerably open, except here and there a few divided thickets, which we were obliged to beat with great precaution.

"After an hour's fruitlefs fearch, we found the half devoured carcafe

of the fheep; this affured us that the animal was not far off, and could not escape. Some few moments after, our dogs, who till that time had been beating confufedly about, presfed together, and rufhed within two hundred paces of us into a large thicket, barking and howling as loud as poffible.

"I leaped from my horfe, gave him to my Hottentot, and running to the fide of the thicket, got on a rifing ground within fifty paces; cafting my eyes back, I perceived my companions were alarmed. How ever John Slaber (fon of my hoft) came up, faying he would not abandon me, though in danger of his life. By the agitation of his appearance, and the fear which was marked on his countenance, I judged the poor lad gave himself up for loft. I well knew that the apparent firmness of another would encourage him; and indeed, though his terror was extreme, I believe he thought himself in greater fecurity when near me, than in the midst of his poltroon companions, who were gazing upon us at a refpectful distance. I had been told, that in cafe I fhould be near enough to the animal to be heard, I must not say faa, faa, for that word would render the beaft fu

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rious, and that he would rush on the person that uttered it. As I had company, I was not afraid of being furprifed, therefore repeated the word a hundred times together, by way of encouraging the dogs, and likewife to drive the beaft from the thicket; but all in vain; the animal and dogs were equally fearful of each other, the former not daring to quit his retreat, nor the latter to eater it; yet among the mastiffs there were fome that must have fucceeded, had their courage equalled their ftrength; my dog, the fmalleft of the pack, was always at their head, he alone advanced a little into the thicket. It is true, he knew me, and was animated by my voice. The hideous beaft roared terribly; every moment I expected it to rush out; the dogs, on its fmalleft motion, drew haftily back, and ran as fast as poffible; at length a few random hot diflodged him, and he rushed out fuddenly his appearance feemed the fignal for every one to decamp; even John Slaber (formed with the ftrength of a Hercules, able to wrestle with the animal, and firangle him in his arms, abandoned me, and ran to the others -I remained alone with my Hottentot. The panther, in endeavouring to gain another thicket, passed within fity paces of us, with all the dogs at his heels; we faluted him by firing three hot as he paffed us.

"The thicket in which he had token refuge was neither fo high, large, or bufhy, as the one he had quitted; a track of blood made me prefume I had wounded him, and the tury of the dogs was a proof I was not mistaken; a number of my people now drew near, but the greater part had entirely disappeared.

"The animal was baited more than an hour, we firing into the thicket more than forty random fhot. At length (tired and impatient with this tedious bufinefs), I remounted my horfe, and turned with precaution

on the oppofite fide of the dogs. I imagined that, employed in defending himfelf against them, it would be eafy to get behind him. I was not miftaken; I faw him fquatting, and ftriking with his paws to keep at bay my dog that ran barking within. the reach of his fangs. When I had tiken the neceffary steps to catch him. in a good fituation, I fired my carbine; this I immediately dropped to catch up my gun, which I carried at the bow of my faddle; this precaution was ufeleis; the animal did not appear, nor could I fee him after firing my carbine. Though I was fare I had hit him, it would have been imprudent to have rushed immediate-ly into the thicket. As he made no noife, I fufpected he was dead, or mortally wounded, "Friends," cried I to the hunters that approached, "let us go in a firm line ftrait up to him; if he is yet alive, all our pieces fired together will overcome him, and we can be in no danger." One perfon only aufwered, and that was in the negative; in fhort, none liked the propofal. Enraged, I faid to my Hottentot (who was not lefs animated than his mafter), "Comrade, the animal is either dead, or near it; get on thorfeback, approach as I did, and try to dilcover in what state we have put him: I will guard the entrance, and, if he attempts to ef cape, will hoot him; we fhall be able to finish him without the alliftance of thefe cowards." No fooner had be entered, than he called to me that the tyger was extended, without motion, and he believed him dead; but, to be affured he fired his carbine. ran, tranfported with pleafure: my brave Hottentot partook my exul tation. Triumph redoubled our force; we dragged the animal from the thicket; he feemed enormous; examined him particularly, turning him from fide to fide. This was my first effay, and by chance the tyger, was monftrous; it was a male.. From the

extremity of the tail to the nofe, he measured seven feet ten inches, to a circumference of two feet ten inches. I found that he exactly answered the defcription of the Panther given by Buffon; but through all this country he is known by no other name

than the tyger, though it is only the prevalence of cutom, for in this part of Africa, there are no tygers, the diference between that animal and the panther being very great. The Hottentots call it garou gama, or the spotted lion?"

SIR,

The State of the Nation accurately Calculated.

PON the recent election of a Parliament, you may. perhaps, deem it useful informa

Ution to lay before the public in general, and the new fenators in particular, the fol

lowing STATE OF THE NATION :

Population of Great Britain, viz. England and Wales*

Scotland,

Number of the Houfe of Commons

8,000,000 2
1,500,000

9,500,000

Number of perfons to each member of parliament; or, each member of parliament reprefents +

558

in other words,

Number of active citizens, or fighting-men, between 16 and 60 years

17,025

of age, one-fourth of the whole

Number of active citizens to each member of parliament

2,375,000

England & Wales contain square miles, according to the Statifical Tables

4,2562

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Number of perfons to each fquare mile, or 5 acres per head
The neat produce of the taxes on the average of three years,

from the 5th April, 1787, to the 5th April, 1790 L. 15,846,000

Add 8 per cent. for charges of collection

1,267,630

586 79,713 51,015,680

116

The grofs revenue of Great Britain, befides tythes, parish and country rates, &c. &c.

So that each individual pays to the state, on an average out of

his income, or the produce of his labour

But, if paid by the active citizens, it is a head by the year

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Mr Howlet, in the year 1781, computed the prefent inhabitants of England and Wales to be very little lefs than nine millions. Sir William Petty and Dr Davenant sta ted them at foven millions about 100 years ago, and Mr King calculated that the increafe on that number in 100 years ought to be 930,000; this gives 8,000,000 nearly at this time.

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In France, the future number of the National Affembly has been lately fixed at 747 perfons; fo that cach member wil reprefent 32,128 fouls, or 8,032 active citizens.

$54,112 fquare miles give only 34,031,680 square acres This does not greatly differ from Templeman; but Dr Halley, Dr Davenant, and Mr King, eflimated that England and Wales contained 39,000,000 geographical square acres, or at least 60,937 square miles. If their eftimates are correct, it will make fome alteration in fuch of the above calculations as depend upon the number of acres or miles. Dr Grew has demonstrated that South Britain contains 72,000 ftatute miles, or 46,080,000 ftatute acres.

$ In the United Provinces there are about three acres per head; fo that the population of Great Britain muft increase to 17,000,000 fouls to equal that of Holland; which will require 700 years, according to Mr King's calculation, of about one million increase in every hundred years, unless it should be accelerated by a general naturalization.

The capital of the national debt, exclufive of annuities for lives
and years, is about
Upon the notion that the land is ultimately charged to pay the
national debt, every fquare mile is mortgaged for

or every fquare acre is mortgaged for

The intereft of the funded debt, including the annuities and charges of management, is

Towards this, every square mile, or every fquare acre'

or every individual

on an average con

tributes annually

{

£240,000,000 o o

3,010 16 91 4 12 34

9,260,000 0 0 116 3 44

O 36

0 19 6

Suppofing the average rent of lands to be ten fhillings | an acre, and that they now fell for about 30 years purchase, every acre is mortgaged for almost one-third of its intrin fic value, and pays more than that proportion of its annual rent to the interest of the national debt.

I have not made these calculations to create difcontents or defpondency; for I believe that the fame fort of enquiries, with regard to other kingdoms, would fhew that, notwithstanding our burthens appear heavy, we are not in a worfe condition than our neigh bours. By this view of our affairs. I mean only to ftimulate our Minifters and Senators to purfae the wifeft measures for ftrengthening this country, by thrift in the public treafure, by care of the people's trade, and by all the other honest and useful arts of peace. It is not extent of territory that makes a country powerful, but numbers of men well employed, convenient ports, a good navy, and a foil producing all forts of commodities. The materials for all thefe we have: and, to improve them to the greatest advantage, we only want the complement of men, whom our land can maintain and nourish, with as much trade as our national stock and our knowledge of fea affairs is capable of embracing. A trade fo extended will naturally produce a powerful naval ftrength; while a large and well-directed traffick, by its balance in our favour, will furnish fuch ftores and wealth as will enable us to bear our prefent load of debt until the plan for the reduction of it fhall have taken good root; and then the progrefs of that plan will proceed more rapidly than can eafily be conceived by those who have not been used to contemplate the powers of compound interest.

M. W

"TH

Character of a Prudent Husband*.

HESE fuperb houses which you fee to the right and left," faid the Devil upon Two Sticks, as they paffed down St James's Street, "have been erected by different focieties of people of fashion, for the fole purpofe of gaming with convenience; but as they are not generally frequented in the day-time, I must contrive to afford you a peep into them during our nocturnal excurfions. And that old building," continued he, " which we are now approaching, is the entrance of the palace, whofe backfront you have already feen from the park." "And the nation," said Don Cleofas," ought to be ashamed of it." "They are fo," replied the demon: and there the matter ends."— VOL. XII. No. 69.

C c

"That gentleman who is paffing below us, is a man of a certain turn of humour, but who poffeffes a thoufand good qualitics. He has lately loft his wife; nay, it was but laft week that he configned her, with all that philofophy which marks a wife man, to the tomb of her ancestors." "For my part," faid the Count, "I fhould rather have conceived, from the cheerfulness of his afpect, and the fmartness of his apparel, that he had been a bridegroom, rather than a widower; and that, inftead of having just loft a wife, he had just got one. On what whimfical principle can he reconcile his difpenfing with the ufual folemnity of fables on the mournful occafion?"

In the year 1688, the average rent of lands was computed tobe 6s. 2d acre.
From the Devil upon Two Sticks in England.

"To

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"To tell you the truth," answered Afmodeus, "which, by the bye, he does not fcruple to tell all the world, his late fpoufe was fuch a termagant devil, and, of course, led him fuch a 1fe, that he abfolutely wishes to publifh the fatisfaction he feels at being rid of her, by thus adapting his exterior appearance to the joy of his heart. He has, however, ordered a large bunch of black crape to be tied round the neck of the dog which follows him, who was occafionally favoured by a kind word from his late miftrefs, and is, therefore, the only one of the family who has any caufe whatever to regret her."

"I must defire you," said Afmo, deus, "to regard, with a very particular attention, the gentleman now croffing the street towards us, who wears fuch an easy fmile on his countenance, and mutters his thoughts to himself, as he walks along. He is a perfon of great worth, and a dupe, but of a very different kind from the laft, for he confesses himself to be so. Indeed, his dupery deserves a better pame, as it confifts in an accommodation to circumstances which he knows not how to remedy. He himself, I think, without any perverfion of the term, denominates it prudence; and in fpeaking of him, I fhall give you the portrait of what I call a prudent hufband.

"He is a man of rare qualifications and great fortune. His natural abilities received every advantage that the most polite education could bestow on them; and he poffeffes all the experience that extenfive travels, and the habits of public life, can afford him. With the moft finished accomplishments, he is bleffed with a difpofition to make them acceptable to every kind of people, and all who know him, love him. Among men of literature, he is the polished scholar and chafte critic; in polite focieties, he is the eafy, well-bred man of fashion; and, in the more convivial parties, he

is the jovial companion. When he is in the country, he will follow the pleafures of the chace with ardour, and join in the mirth of the evening that fucceeds it. In fhort, he has the power of affociating himself to every kind of allowable character, and the ready inclination to do it: but he is married. Very foon after his return from his foreign tour, he demanded in marriage the daughter of his father's moft intimate friend: his propofals were accepted with unfeigned fatisfaction, and he was foon united to the object of his wifhes. Matilda was a beautiful girl, highly accomplifhed, and fuppofed to poffefs a very good understanding, when the was married to a man who was formed to make a fenfible woman the happiest of her fex. But from a foolish, wayward vanity, which was encouraged by his lavish indulgence, fhe funk, in a very short time, into all the fuperci. lious habits of a fine lady, and became a perfect mass of fickleness, nonfenfe, and affectation. She even fancied herself above the general nature of her fex; was fuperior to all thofe attentions and employments which af ford fo much real delight in the nuptial ftate, and refigned the whole bu finefs of domeftic concerns, and all the cares of parental duty, to her husband. To drefs, to attend public amufements, and to invent a fashion, are the active parts of her character ; to languish in her dreffing-room, to be incapable of the least exercife, and to be alarmed at thofe exertions which are neceffary to the common offices of life, compofe the neceflary part of it. Without being guilty of any actual vice, fhe never practifes any actual virtue; and though the does not abfolutely wish to give offence, is very far from difcovering any defire to communicate pleasure.

"He is unhappy; for how can any man of fenfibility be otherwife, when he finds his expectations of matrimonial comfort fo completely difappoint

ed?

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