asserts, that, from internal evi"dence, it must be of Spanish con"struction, and from these assumed "premises leaves me to abide the "odium of the inference. To this "I answer, with the most solemn appeal to truth and honour, that "I am indebted to no author whatever, Spanish or other, for a single "hint, idea, or suggestion of an in"cident, in the story of Pedrosa, nor "that of the Misanthrope, nor in any other which the work con"tains. In the narrative of the Portuguese, who was brought before "the Inquisition, what I say of it as being matter of tradition, which "I collected on the spot, is a mere "fiction, to give an air of credibi"lity and horror to the tale: the "whole, without exception of a syl"lable, is absolute and entire inven❝tion.

66

"I take credit to myself for the "character of Abraham Abrahams; "I wrote it upon principle, thinking "it high time that something should "be done for a persecuted race; I "seconded my appeal to the charity "of mankind, by the character of "Sheva, which I copied from this " of Abrahams. The public prints 66 gave the Jews credit for their sen"sibility in acknowledging my well"intended services: my friends gave "me joy of honorary presents, and "some even accused me of ingrati"tude, for not making public my "thanks for their munificence. I

will speak plainly on this point; 1 do most heartily wish they had "flattered me with some token, "however small, of which I might "have said, this is a tribute to my "philanthropy, and delivered it "down to my children, as my be

loved father did to me his badge "of favour from the citizens of Dub"lin; but not a word from the lips, "not a line did I ever receive from

"the pen of any Jew, though I have "found myself in company with

many of their nation; and in this "perhaps the gentlemen are quite

right, whilst I had formed ex"pectations that were quite wrong; "for if I have said for them only " what they deserve, why should I "be thanked for it? But if I have " said more, much more, than they "deserve, can they do a wiser thing "than hold their tongues?

"I think it cannot be supposed "but that the composition of the "Observer must have been a work "of time and labour; I trust there "is internal evidence of that, parti"cularly in that portion of it which professes to review the literary

age of Greece, and gives a history "of the Athenian stage. That se"ries of papers will, I hope, remain

as a monument of my industry in "collecting materials, and of my "correctness in disposing them: and "when I lay to my heart the con"solation I derive from the honours "now bestowed upon me, at the "close of my career, by one, who "is only in the first outset of his, "what have I not to augur for my"self, when he who starts with such "auspicious promise has been pleas"ed to take my fame in hand, and "link it to his own? If any of my "readers are yet to seek for the au"thor to whom I allude; the Comi"corum Graecorum fragmenta quæ"dam will lead them to his name, "and him to their respect.

"If I cannot resist the gratifica"tion of inserting the paragraph, "which places my dim lamp be"tween those brilliant stars of clas"sic lustre, Richard Bentley and "Richard Porson, am I to be set "down as a conceited vain old man? "Let it be so! I can't help it; and "in truth I don't much care about "it. Though the following extract

"may be the weakest thing that "Mr. Robert Walpole, of Trinity "college, Cambridge, ever has writ"ten, or ever shall write, it will out"live the strongest thing that can "be said against it, and I will there"fore arrest and incorporate it, as "follows:- Aliunde quoque haud "exiguum ornamentum huic volu "mini accepit, siquidem Cumber"landius postras amicè benevolèque "permisit, ut versiones suas quo"rundam fragmentorum, exquisitas “sane illas, mirâque elegantiâ con"ditas et commendatas huc trans"ferrem." *

"Forty numbers of the Observer in an octavo volume, and printed at Tunbridge Wells, were published in London in 1785: this collection being well received, both by the public and the crities, it was reprinted by Dilly, the succeeding year, in three volumes, crown Svo. with such numerous additions, as augmented the numbers to ninety-three. In 1788, a fourth volume was given; and in 1790, the fifth and last. Of this arrangement in five volumes, a new impression was published in 1791, which is the edition in my possession, extending to one hundred and fifty-three essays. The Observer, in six volumes, appeared in 1798; in 1803, it was incorporated with the British Essayist; and in 1808, it was reprinted in three volumes 12mo.

"The essays which compose these interesting volumes, may be classed under the appellations of Literary, Critical, and Narrative; Humorous, Moral, and Religious.

which

"To the Literary papers, amount to about forty in number, we are indebted for the most original feature in the work. These include, together with some account of the civil history of Greece, a com

Vol. ii. p. 199, et seq.

of Gre.

pressed and connected detail cian poetry, from the earliest era to the death of Menander. The r search has been particularly directed to the remains of the Greek Dramatists, and more especially to the writers of the Old, the Middle, and the New Comedy. Of these, the fragments, which the desolating hand of time has spared, have been transiated with uncommon felicity, by Mr. Cumberland; and merit the eulogium which Mr. Walpole has so happily expressed. The easy and flowing metrical style of Fletcher and Massinger furnished Mr. Cumberland with an appropriate model for his versions, which he has imi tated with fidelity and spirit. The patience and persevering labour required for the due execution of this task, may be estimated from the declaration of the Observer, that it was bis ambition to give the world "a "complete collection of the beau "ties of the Greek stage, in our "own language, from the remains "of more than fifty comic poets."†

"The papers strictly Critical, in the Observer, amount to seventeen, of which eleven are devoted to the consideration of dramatic character and conduct. Among these, the contrast between the characters of Macbeth and Richard; the parallel between Eschylus and Shake speare; the observations on Falstaff and his group; and the comparative review of Rowe's Fair Penitent with the Fatal Dowry of Massinger; are peculiarly interesting and con clusive. The essay on style, in No. 133, contains many just remarks on the diction of Addison and Johnson; with the judicious recommendation of the former, as the safer model for the student. The character of Mr. Cumberland's own

† Vol. iv. p. 119, edition of 1791.

style,

style, indeed, partakes much more of the elegant and idiomatic simplicity of Addison, than of the elaborate, though splendid, composition of Johnson; with the exception of a few phrases, which are too flat and colloquial, it is easy, fluent, and cor

rect.

"Of the Narrative portion of the Observer, which occupies no small share of the work, it is impossibie not to speak highly. Powerful invention, strong delineation of character, and adherence to costume, distinguish the greater part of our author's fictions. The stories of Abdullah and Zarima; of Chaubert, the Misanthrope; of the Portuguese Gentleman who died by the rack; of Ned Drowsy, and of Nicolas Pedrosa, may be instanced as fully supporting the opinion that we have advanced; the last two more especially abound in the richest traits both of pathos and humour.

"There are many papers, likewise, in the Observer, which may more exclusively be termed Humour ous; such as the Letters from Mr. Jedediah Fish, in Nos. 45 and 69; the Letter from Rusticus, in N° 80; the Letter from Posthumous, in No 92; the characters of Simon Sapling and Billy Simper, in Nos. 129, 131, and 132; the adventures of Kit Cracker, in No 134; and the letter from Tom Tortoise, in N° 149. These, and others of a similar kind, very agreeably relieve the literary and didactic portion of the work; and, at the same time, exhibit a knowledge of the world, its follies, and eccentricities.

"It may be affirmed of this periodical paper, very highly to its credit, that almost every part of it, either directly or indirectly, possesses

a Moral tendency; a considerable number of essays is avowedly appropriated to subjects of this kind, subjects calculated to improve the manners, and meliorate the heart: and even in those which are set apart for literary and critical inquiry, great care has been taken to render them, in almost every instance, subservient to the best purposes of virtue and instruction.

"Nor should we fail to notice that some papers of great value, strong in argument, and curious in research, are devoted to Religious topics. The comparison of Pythagoras with Christ, in N° 12; the defence of our Saviour's Miracles, in N° 13; the morality of Christianity, as compared with that of natural religion, in N° 83; and an argument for the evidences of the christian religion, in N° 93; together with three papers in volume the fourth, in answer to the cavils and objections of David Levi, are of this kind, and impress us with a deep sense of the piety of their author.

"The Observer, though the sole labour of an individual, is yet rich in variety, both of subject and manner; in this respect, indeed, as well as in literary interest, and in fertility of invention, it may be classed with the Spectator and Adventurer; if inferior to the latter in grandeur of fiction, or to the former în delicate irony and dramatic unity of design, it is wealthier in its literary fund than either, equally moral in its views, and as abundant in the creation of incident. I consider it, therefore, with the exception of the papers just mentioned, as superior, in its powers of attraction, to every other periodical composition."

ARTS,

PPORTUNITIES of tracing

the bite of poisonous snakes, and ascertaining the local effects on the human body when the bite proves fatal, are of such rare occurrence, that no well described case of this kind, is to be met with in any of the records that I have examined. I am therefore induced to lay before this Society the following account, with the view of elucidating this subject, in which the interests of humanity are so deeply concerned.

"THOMAS SOPER, twenty-six years of age, of a spare habit, on the 17th of October, 1809, went into the room in which two healthy rattle-snakes, brought from America in the preceding summer, were exhibited. He teized one of them with the end of a foot rule, but could not induce the snake to bite it, and on the rule dropping out of his hand, he opened the door of the cage to take it out; the snake immediately darted at the hand, and bit it twice in succession, making two wounds on the back part of the first phalanx of the thumb, and two on the side of the second joint of

the fore finger. The snake is be

when much irritated bites the object twice, which I believe snakes do not usually do.

"The bite took place at half past two o'clock. He went immediately to Mr. Hanbury, a chemist in the neighbourhood. There was at that time no swelling on the hand, and the man was so incoherent in his language and behaviour, that Mr. Hanbury considered him to be in a state of intoxication, and gave him a dose of jalap to take off the effects of the liquor, and made some slight application to the bites. It appeared on enquiry, that the man had been drinking, but that before he was bitten, there was nothing unusual in his behaviour. After leaving Mr. Hanbury the hand began to swell, which alarmed him, and he went to St. George's Hospital. He arrived there at three o'clock. The wristband of his shirt had been unloosed, and the swelling had extended half way up the fore-arm before his admission. The skin on the back of his hand was very tense, and the part very painful. At four o'clock

the