employed intenfely on a fubject, as Horace had long fince obferved, Verbaque prævifam rem non invita fequentur. His felecting the most fimple and obvious caufe of animal motion has rendered his account of the diftinct modes of it, in different organs, clear, confiftent, very analogous, and highly probable. His frequent diffenfion from writers of name appears to rife from a true fpirit of philofophizing; and the pleasure he feems confcious of in honouring the beft phyfiologifts evinces him to be fuperior to any little local narrowness, while it renders him a very just object of the refpect and candour of others. Though his fubject is naturally abftrufe, he has generally declined abstract and metaphyfical reafonings; and in thofe fections, where the particular divifions of his fubject made them inevitable, they feem as illuftrating as the difficulty will permit. But what muft entitle him to the firft efteem of his wifeft readers, is that habitual and unaffected veneration of the original and ultimate Mover of the fubject of his contemplation; and that acknowledgment of human deficience, which fo naturally occur in fuch a work, and which refult from that most effential philofophy, SELF-KNOWLEDGE. His intelligent medical readers will hope with pleasure for a practical falutary application of his doctrine of the vital motions in a future volume: but at prefent he seems (after having tacitely interrogated himself on the cui bono, the first laudable fcope of his performance) not to be afhamed of imitating, under a different fyftem, the wifeft Pagans, who could difcover, from the light of Reafon and Nature, the juftness and decorum of a Jove principium. In brief, his admirable conclufion of the whole makes it very evident, that there is a moft eligible medium between the perverse self-ignorance of libertines on the one hand, and the ravings of enthufiafts on the other; and that he who worships with the trueft understanding, is moft likely to worship with the trueft fpirit alfo. But it is unneceffary to anticipate it, and it were injurious to the public, and confequently injudicious in us, to fubftitute any thing in its place. As philofophical inquiries, however agreeable and entertaining they may be to the mind, become ftill more interefting when they can be applied to practice; I intended to have shewn, how far the theory of the vital and other involuntary voluntary motions, which we have endeavoured to establish, may be useful towards explaining the nature of feveral difeafes, and confequently towards pointing out the most proper method of curing them. But, as this effay has fwelled to a much greater bulk than I at first expected, I shall now, omitting that part of my design, conclude with a reflexion of a different nature. From what has been offered, then, in the preceding pages, it may appear, how unjustly the ftudy of medicine has been accused of leading men into scepticism and irreligion. A little philofophy may difpofe fome men to atheism; but a more extensive knowledge of nature will furely have the contrary effect. If the human frame is confidered as a mere CORPOREAL fyftem, which derives all its power and energy from matter and motion; it may, perhaps, be concluded, that the IMMENSE UNIVERSE itfelf is deftitute of any higher principle. But if, as we have endeavoured to fhew, the motions and actions of our small and inconfiderable bodies are all to be referred to the active power of an IMMATERIAL principle; how much more neceffary muft it be to acknowledge, as the author, fuftainer, and fove reign ruler of the universal system, an INCORPOREAL NATURE, every where and always prefent, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodnefs; who conducts the motions of the whole, by the moft confummate and unnerring reafon, without being prompted to it by any other impulfe, than the original and eternal benevolence of his nature! Nam quis non videt, finita fi breve corpus The true phyfiology, therefore, of the human body, not only ferves to confute thofe philofophers, who, rejecting the existence of IMMATERIAL BEINGS, afcribe all the phænomena and operations in nature to the powers of matter and motion; but, at laft, like all other found philofophy, leads us up to the FIRST CAUSE and fupreme AUTHOR of ALL who is ever to be adored with the profoundeft reverence by the reasonable part of his creation.' Hh3 IL ART. *Anti-Lucret. ART. LVI. Conclufion of mrs. Jones's MISCELLANIES. N the Review for March laft we gave a fpecimen of mrs. Jones's poetry, with fome mention of her profewritings; from which we are now to make a few extracts, and therewith conclude our account of the volume of mif cellanies published by this ingenious lady. The first article we meet with in this part of her book, is a fhort piece of humour, entitled, An abstract of an order of convocation [held at Oxford] in relation to MELISSA'S taking off medals, &c. in paper. Next, we have another humorous performance, an incorrect copy of which was fome years ago printed without the author's name, from a MS. privately handed about; viz. the celebrated Letter to dr. PITT: the occafion of which was to quicken the performance of the doctor's promifes of repairing with a wall, a very forry and fhatter'd old mound of pales, which divided his garden from that belonging to the author's place of refidence. The inconveniencies of this nufance are here fet forth in a moft ingenious allegory, alluding to the doctor's medical profeffion. It would have given us no fmall pleasure, to have enriched our collection with an extract of this article; but we doubt not that most of our readers have already feen it. : Following the letter to dr. Pitt, is a treatife of demoniacs; an ironical fatre upon fome of those defects or follies of mankind, which, as our author expreffes it, are of our own feeking, i. e. fuch as fpring from a depravity of our nature, and come under the notion of wrong-headedness or perverfeness. Among these demoniacs the author ranks many of our fine gentlemen and ladies, enthufiafts and extravagant devotees, wrong-headed divines, phyficians, &c. &c. whofe absurdities the humorously points out, and pleafantly accounts for, by refolving all into different kinds of madness, or the being poffeffed by demons. The miscellaneous letters are divided into three parts, Thofe in the firft divifion are addreffed to mrs, *******, and are comprised in 90 pages. In the more ferious of thefe, the amiable writer appears to no fmall advantage in the character of a moral philofopher, and opens to us the treasures of a well-cultivated mind, with a graceful negli gence of manner, and that becoming openness of expref-, fion, which are generally connected with an ingenuous, unaffected, honeft difpofition. In those of a gayer turn, the discovers difcovers a refined freedom of fentiment, a command of language, a flow of imagination, and a fund of pleasantry and chearfulness, which altogether compofe an entertainment that cannot fail of pleafing a reader of true taste.The following extracts, we apprehend, will need no formality of introduction. 'As (a) to the inftability of the human mind, the fupreme intelligence would have fruftrated his own defigns, if he had made it incapable of being touch'd, or mov'd with the ap-. pearance of good. The prefent and future is all we are, concern'd about. The prefent will naturally take place, 'till we have tafted and try'd it; and if it is found infufficient, he has given us the reafoning faculty to carry our refearches farther, even to revelation, which will light us thro' the mifts of error and ignorance. If then we use this faculty right, it will lead us on, 'till we arrive at the highest good; the improvement of our natures here, and glory. and immortality hereafter. This inftable difpofition therefore of the human mind is it's proper ftate; as it leads us, by juft gradations, on to perfection, and at the fame time leaves us free agents. The manifeft infufficiency of fenfual enjoyments no one furely ever deny'd.-A life of pleafure, a total immersion in fenfuality, can by no means be the proper happiness of a human creature: a creature compos'd of two diftinct principles of action, reflection as well as fenfation. From the latter we may infer the temperate gratification of the inferior faculties; and from the former the neceffity of reftraining them within proper bounds. For whenever they exceed, either in kind or degree, they encroach upon that faculty, which ought to be the governing principle, and confequently deftroy that happiness they were defign'd to promote. There is so close a connection between the body and foul, that whatever one enjoys or fuffers, the other partakes of. Now the body is as much a part of our nature as the foul; our appetites and paffions, as our reafon: therefore whatever gives the body its proper tone or vigour, that is, what ever is most likely to fmooth and harmonize the paffions, and hinder them from preying upon themselves, or others, muft at the fame time bid faireft for regulating the powers of the understanding, and give them likewife their due force and energy. Temperate gratifications therefore, as they are highly conducive to these ends, must of confequence promote, rather than difturb the harmony of virtue, in that, Hh 4 by, (a) Page 198. by contributing to (or rather being) the health of the body, they corroborate the powers of the mind, and keep the paffions in good humour, which would otherwise contract fournefs and morofity, and create a perpetual war within. -Take away the paffions entirely, and, in effect, you take away virtue and vice; invert their order or courfe, and you turn every thing topfy-turvy; but under proper regulations, and allow'd their due influence, they come in for a confiderable fhare of the harmony, and render the balance on virtue's fide, more ftrong, compleat, and full. If by religion, or virtue, is meant only divine adoration, or the worship of the Deity, this is fo far from being the file bufinefs or happiness of a moral agent, that 'tis only one particular branch of it, tho' undoubedly the firft and higheft. Our neighbours, and ourselves require a large portion of our care and concern; and these again branch'd out into their feveral relations and duties. But if we fuffer one particular duty (even the worship of the Deity) to engrofs us all, or even to entrench upon the reft, we make but a very imperfect effay towards religion, or virtue, and are still at a confiderable diftance from the business of a moral agent. There are many well-meaning people, who, out of a mistaken zeal for religion, have carried this duty to fuch an excefs, as to exclude not only pleasure, but even morality from its fociety.-Have conceived, they might at any time fet afide fome of the fighter matters of the law, fuch as juftice, mercy, fidelity, when the bell rings for church; and can eafily difpenfe with a commandment or two, if they are but time enough for the abfolution. For your own part, I not only believe, but know you to be truly religious, in a fenfe of the highest import; but at the fame time, I fay, 'tis poffible to be highly religious in the other fenfe; that is, omit no acts of devotion either in public or private, and yet be very immoral agents. And 'tis no wonder pleafre fhould be excluded from this scheme, where neither the relation we ftand in to ourselves, or fociety, is at all confidered; and nothing but a gloomy dread of the Almighty, whofe darling attribute is love, or an intemperate zeal for his fervice, which zeal he bids us manifeft in loving one another, prevails. By virtue therefore I mean an univerfal obedience to the will of the fupreme Law-giver: and this, we equally grant, is the fole bufinefs and happiness of a moral agent. But virtue no where forbids those temperate gratifications and relaxations |