of fhells and light earth, at the depth of 342 feet, in thickness only about half an inch. Under the clay were dark-coloured earths, mixed in fome of the ftrata with fand and gravel, in others with chalk, and in others with both, to the depth of 478 feet 8 inches, the greateft depth to which George Nailor penetrated. The corporation, difappointed of water, and diffatisfied with George Nailor's flow progrefs, ordered the well to be covered over.

ART. II. The Works, Theological, Medical, Political, and Mifcellaneous, of John Jebb, M. D. F. R. S. With Memoirs of the Life of the Author, by John Difney, D. D. F. S. A. 8vo. 3 Vols. 11. 15. Boards. Cadell. 1787.

T appears, by the Preface, that this work was undertaken from a zeal for the interefts of truth, and for the civil and religious liberties of our country. That these were the real motives which induced Dr. Difney to favour the Public with the life and writings of his deceafed friend, we entertain not the leaft doubt; and our Readers will judge, in fome degree, from the abstract we fhall give of Dr. Jebb's life, how far the Biographer has executed his defign.

John Jebb was born in London, Feb. 16, 1736. He received the elements of his education at different fchools in England and Ireland, and was admitted a Penfioner in the Univerfity of Dublin, July 7, 1753, whence he removed in the fummer following, after having obtained four academical prizes, and was admitted a Penfioner of Peter College, Cambridge, Nov. 9, 1754. He took his degree of Bachelor of Arts, in January 1757, with great honour; and during the remainder of his refidence at Cambridge, he employed himself in private tuition; pursuing at the fame time, with great diligence, his theological and philofophical ftudies. He became Fellow of Peter College in 1761, and was ordained Deacon in 1762, and Prieft in 1763.

In the year following, he was collated to the vicarage of GamJingay in Bedfordshire, elected to the rectory of Ovington in Norfolk, and married to Anne, the eldest daughter of the Rev. James Torkington.

The first publication in which Mr. Jebb was concerned, was Excerpta quædam e Newtoni Principiis Philofophia Naturalis, cum Notis variorum. This, Dr. Difney informs us, was the joint work of Mr. Thorpe, Mr. Wollafton, and Mr. Jebb ;-we noticed it, with approbation, in our Rev. vol. xxxiii. p. 205.

On the death of Mr. Chappelow, Profeffor of Arabic at Cambridge, in 1768, Mr. Jebb was a candidate for that Profefforfhip. Dr. Samuel Hallifax was his competitor, and fucceeded Mr. Chappelow.

About

About this time, Dr. Hinchcliffe, Bishop of Peterborough, proposed an address to the King, which was offered in the Senatehoufe, March 17, 1769, and was carried against only two negatives, viz. Mr. Jebb, and Mr. Tyfon. Mr. Adair, foon after, prefented Mr. Jebb to the vicarage of Flixton in Suffolk, together with the united rectories of Hommersfield and St. Crofs. In confequence of these promotions, he left Cambridge; but foon returned, on the death of Dr. Riddlington, Profeflor of Civil Law. Dr. Hallifax fucceeded to Dr. Riddlington's profefforship, and thereby vacated the Arabian chair. Mr. Jebb flood a fecond time candidate for this place. When he was oppofed by Dr. Hallifax, the electors were well inclined to fupport him; but on his fecond canvass for the fame office, the majority of the electors were against him, on account of the fpirit of enquiry which he had raised in the minds of the younger students. Mr. Craven was the fuccessful candidate, and he now enjoys, with reputation, the laurel which Mr. Jebb could not obtain.

His enemies, not fatisfied with defeating his honorary profpects, had recourfe to mifreprefentation. Wounded and aggrieved, as he thought, in his reputation, and unjustly cut off from receiving the lefs difinterefted, but not difhonourable, advantages of his labours, by an open and abfolute prohibition of attendance on his lectures, extending to all perfons in flatu pupillari,' he fubmitted his vindication to the Public in his pamphlet, entitled, A Short Account of Theological Lectures, &c. for which fee the 44th volume of our Review, p. 82.

On March 21, 1771, Mr. Jebb held his divinity act. The thefis for difputation was, Status animarum in intervallo mortis et refurrectionis agentium quicquam, five fentientium ex facris literis colligi nequit. The difputation was conducted with ability and politenefs on both fides, and lafted longer than ufual.

In April 1771, Mr. Jebb came to London, in order to be prefent at the meetings at the Feathers tavern, for applying to Parliament for relief in the matter of fubfcription to the Liturgy and 39 Articles of the church of England. He was on all the committees for the preparation of the petition, and he wrote during this period many letters on the subject in the evening papers, with the fignature of Paulinus. The petition was prefented to the houfe by Sir William Meredith, Feb. 6, 1772, and rejected.

Mr. Jebb then attempted a reform in the mode of education at Cambridge. The fubftance of this improvement came under our notice in the 48th volume of our Journal, page 419. The reafons why fo excellent a fcheme was rejected, are here fully related. The cafe was as follows:

Mr. Jebb proposed that, for the fake of exciting a spirit of emulation among the ftudents, annual examinations fhould be

eftablished.

established. For this purpose he offered his grace on May 8, 1773, which was rejected by the Caput, without any reafon being affigned. Mr. Jebb now retired to his living; but he had no fooner left Cambridge, than the Vice Chancellor proposed a grace, which paffed the Caput and both houfes, without a diffentient voice. This grace appointed a committee of 36 members of the Senate, to deliberate and report their opinion on the queftion of examinations: the bufinefs now wore a favourable afpect; but the committee was prematurely called together, while many of its members were not yet returned to the Uni verfity: 14 were againft the examinations and 9 for them.

While thefe things were tranfacting at Cambridge, Mr. Jebb communicated, to a few felect friends, his intention to refign his church preferments; and he would moft probably have executed his intention fooner than he did, had not his mind fuffered much difquietude while struggling under the obligations of conjugal and paternal duty, and other perfonal attachments.

About this time, Dr. Goodall, Archdeacon of Suffolk, held his ufual vifitation, in Mr. Jebb's parish church of Flixton, and all the neighbouring clergy attended; on this occafion, the Archdeacon appointed prayers in the church, and Mr. Jebb appointed himself the preacher. His difcourfe was on the subject of fubfcription,-from "Let your light fo fhine before men, that they may fee your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." The Archdeacon was greatly enraged, and publicly rebuked Mr. Jebb, before the clergy, at the tavern where they met: much altercation

* It will be neceffary to lay before our Readers a fhort account of the academical government at Cambridge, in order to acquaint them with the terms here used.

The Senate is compofed of Mafters of Arts, Doctors of Divinity, Law, and Phyfic, having their names on the college books, or refiding in the town of Cambridge. The Senate confifts of two houses, denominated the regent and non-regent houses; the former is compofed of Mafters of Arts under five years, and Doctors under two; all above these ftandings are non-regents: every member of the Senate has a right to propofe any question or questions he thinks proper to this aflembly. Befide the two houfes juft mentioned there is a council called the Caput, which confifts of the Vice Chancellor, a Doctor in each faculty, and two Mafters of Arts. Every propofition, or Grace, previously to its being voted in the two houfes, is to be read and approved by this council. After a Grace has paffed the Caput, it is read in the non-regent, and regent house; and the question remains fufpended till the next congregation; if, after a fecond reading in both houfes, it paffes without a non-placet, i. e. a negative, it becomes a ftatute; but if a non-placet is put in by any fingle member, the question is voted, and the fenfe of the majority pre

vails.

enfued,

enfued, in which Mr. Jebb freely spoke his fentiments, and said, he had a right to preach in his parish church every day if he chofe, and thofe who difliked the doctrine might retire.' The Archdeacon talked of authority, complaining to the Bishop, &c. Nothing however was farther done in the bufinefs. At Cambridge, the Bishop of Carlifle preached a noble fermon on the 5th of November, against Subfcriptions, and againft Popery; and, on the 23d, Mr. Wilgrefs, one of the Proctors *, preached in favour of Subfcriptions. He was fcraped+; and when the fermon was over, the Vice Chancellor called to the Proctors to take the names of all the gentlemen in one of the galleries. On this there was a general hifs, and many rushed out before the doors could be fecured; at length the Bishop of Peterborough, the two Proctors, and the Vice Chancellor came to the foot of the staircase. The young men then made a push, broke the door off the hinges, and many more efcaped. The names of the reft were taken; but as all were guilty, all went unpunished. Such was the ftate of Cambridge, the active fpirits of the ftudents being contradicted by the heads of houfes, when Mr. Jebb again returned to the University, and offered another Grace for his propofed reform refpecting the examinations. This Grace paffed the Caput, but was rejected the next day in the non-regent house, by 67 non placets against 38 placets.

In the opening of the year 1774, Mr. Jebb refumed the bufinefs of academical reformation, with a fpirit unfubdued by dif appointment and ill ufage. He propofed a Grace, Feb. 16, appointing a committee for deliberating on the proper measures of reform; which paffed both houses. The committee came to 19.refolutions, which were referred to the Senate on April 19, and, to the astonishment of both fides, they were rejected.

In the midst of thefe engagements, added to his unceafing labours as a lecturer, Mr. Jebb was not inattentive to the question concerning fubfcriptions: Mr. Lindsey and he had frequent meetings; and when that gentleman refigned his living of Catterick, and was raifing a congregation on Unitarian principles, no material ftep was taken without previously confulting Mr. Jebb.

May the 27th, he again propofed to the Caput his plan of annual examination in 20 different Graces; thefe all paffed the Caput, but were rejected by one vote (39 to 38) in the non-regont house.

*The Proctors are magiftrates in the Universities.

+ When a preacher, or his doctrine, is difliked, the young men fcrape with their feet on the bottom of the pews, fo that it is impoffible to find out who began, or who did not fcrape: when a preacher is fcraped, his voice cannot poffibly be heard.

In the beginning of 1775, Mr. Jebb propofed that the mema bers of the Senate fhould appoint a fyndicate, confifting of the Vice Chancellor and the Heads of houfes, to draw up a form of application to the Chancellor, requesting to know his fentiments, and thofe of the friends of the University, concerning the expediency of introducing improvements into the mode of education. This measure was however fufpended, chiefly, because it had been fuggefted, by many of the refident friends to the inftitution of public examinations, that if the motion was deferred till the enfuing winter, it would then probably meet with a general concurrence.

In the course of this fummer, Mr. Jebb's thoughts were turned toward America. He also took a journey to Harrowgate, and vifited Mr. Blackburn, Archdeacon of Richmond. In his return to Cambridge, he spent a few days with Lord Harborough, at Stapelford. It was from this place, that he wrote to Dr. Yonge, Bishop of Norwich, to fignify his refignation of his church preferment, which letter was published in his Short State of the Reafons for a late Refignation,' and our Readers will find it in the review of that pamphlet, in the 54th volume of our Journal, p. 70. In the profecution of his journey, he refigned the rectory of Hommersfield, and the vicarage of Flixton, before a notary-public, on Sept. 29, 1775, and the vacancy was declared at Norwich, on the 9th of the following month.

Mr. Jebb now returned to Cambridge, and would probably have continued there, had not his opponents cut off the refources of his fupport, by preventing him from taking pupils. He profecuted his great plan of annual examinations; and, when the feasonable opportunity feemed to be arrived for the final re-fubmiffion of the fcheme to the wifdom of the Senate, he offered two graces to the Caput, which paffed that council, Feb. 26, 1776, but were rejected by the non-regent house the day following. Thus the queftions relating to the academical reform were loft.

After various plans in refpect to Mr. Jebb's future profeffion and employment, as the means of an honourable livelihood, he finally fettled in the ftudy of phyfic. He continued at Cambridge, attending Dr. Colignon's anatomical lectures, and giving lectures to ftudents in mathematics and natural philofophy, until Sept. 1776, when he came to London. Here he gave lectures on the Greek Teftament, while he pursued, with great application, his medical studies: he attended St. Bartholomew's, as a pupil under Dr. Pitcairn, befide Dr. Hunter, Mr. Pott, Dr. Fordyce, Mr. Falkner, and others. His labours were fomewhat interrupted by a fevere illnefs, but he obtained his diploma from St. Andrew's, Mar. 18, 1777, and was admitted Licentiate of the College of Phyficians, June 25 following.. He perfevered