recoil: but, instead of making use of it, we conceive that it would be better to add the weight of the lower carriage to that of the metal of the gun for of all things of this kind, and more especially in the affairs of war, the simplest are generally the most commodious. : The fourth and last section contains "a summary view of the general advantages of the foregoing system of mounting naval ordnance, and of the circumstances from which these advantages arise." Undoubtedly, this short work contains various useful hints with regard to the mounting of naval ordnance; but some parts of it are deficient in perspicuity, and in correctness of expression. VOL. V. New Series. ORIGINAL. The Universal Receipt Book; being a Repository of useful Knowledge in the several branches of Domestic Economy, containing scarce, curious, and valuable Receipts, and choice Secrets. By a Society of Gentlemen in New-York. 12mo. pp. 282. NewYork, 1814. Our consciences have been sorely reproaching us for some time past with numerous instances of neglect of our high critical duties, and especially with our unpardonable negligence in altogether overlooking those valuable volumes with which the various learned societies of our country from time to time favour the public. Anxious to atone for this offence as soon as possible, we desired our publisher to send us some of the latest volumes of transactions which had been published on this side of the Atlantic. Alas, little did we know the magnitude of the task which we had thus rashly undertaken. We still shudder at the recollection of the thirty-four stout volumes of Philosophical Transactions, Historical Collections, &c. &c. &c. which were deposited upon our table; and these, too, were accompanied by the appalling information that an additional number of massive quartos were certainly on their way from Philadelphia, in company with the carronades intended for the steam frigate, and that they might all be shortly expected in New-York, if they were fortunate enough to escape being swallowed up -in the huge Serbonian bog "Twixt Princeton and New Brunswick. Overawed by the terrific aspect of the stately quartos, and closely printed octavos, which "oped their ponderous and leaden jaws" before us, we were about to abandon our task in utter despair, when we happened to cast our eyes upon the modest duodecimo of the "Society of Gentlemen in New-York." With joyful alacrity did we seize upon the learned little volume; for here, in this small compass, was contained the joint product of the learned labours of the members of societies, literary, philosophical, medical, military, musical, and of the fine arts, and in passing sentence upon the "Society of Gentlemen in New-York," we might, in effect, sit in judgment upon half a dozen other learned societies of the same city. Our readers, we perceive, are in great perplexity about this matter, and do not very well comprehend how the huge philosophical quartos could in any way be found condensed in a duodecimo volume of cookery. Poor souls, they are sadly ignorant of the literary politics of their own country. We must enlighten. them. There is, then, in most of our large towns a worthy set of philosophers, who, for the good of science, and the honour of their country, are willing to submit to the drudgery of dragging a long string of unwieldy capital letters after their names, whenever they may happen to appear in print; such, for instance, as LL. D., A. A. S., M. H. S. S., N. Y. H. S. S., F. L. P. S. N. Y., &c. and other like uncouth and cabalistic combinations of capitals. From the laudable ambition of augmenting the number of this literary retinue, these learned philosophers are induced to double and treble their parts in the scientific drama, and to enact chemists one night in the week, antiquaries on another, botanists on a third, and artists or amateurs on a fourth. Thus, in every one of our cities, there are some ten or twelve learned societies, composed of pretty nearly the same set of members; and the good city of New-York, especially, has been long celebrated for a scientific titled brotherhood, who, in their several corporate capacities, appear successively in every form of literary dignity; just as (to borrow a culinary metaphor from the volume before us) the same identical piece of veal may, by good management, successively appear as à la Braise, à la Daube, mock turtle, and a calf's head surprised. We, therefore, were not at a loss, for a single moment, in recognising the "Transactions of the Society of Gentlemen," as the work of our long-tried friends, the "old American company' of philosophers, (as they are styled by a witty friend of ours,) in a new dress, and we opened the volume with full confidence of finding at the beginning, the customary list of well known names, every one of them with a long string of titles flying after it, like so many bobs at the tail of a kite. In this we were indeed disappointed, the list of dignitaries having, we understand, been suppressed for the present, in consequence of a late accession of honours which had been received by most of the members, just as the volume was completed; for these learned gentlemen would be as much ashamed of appearing before the public without their full complement of titles, as one of Lord Monboddo's ancient gentlemen would have been to go into company without his tail. Now, since we have fairly begun upon this matter, we perceive that we must go a little more deeply into it, and give our readers some information with respect to the character and history of our learned societies; for we confess that we feel the true spirit of critical digression fast growing upon us, and, like thorough bred reviewers, we find it impossible even to cross a gutter without going back to take a run and jump. There is, generally, in every considerable town in the United States a dozen or two of small dealers in science, who have long been in the habit of amusing their leisure with some odd end or scrap of knowledge, upon which they may have happened to stumble. There is a worthy citizen, perhaps, who has kept a diary of the weather, and accurately noted the variations of his thermometer for twenty years; another, who has been in the habit of lecturing to his neighbour upon the piece of Derbyshire spar over his mantle piece, until he has begun to think himself a mineralogist; a third, very deep in Indian etymology, and the true orthography of the aboriginal names of rivers and mountains. Then there may be two or three young physicians, whose brains are teeming with some crude theory which they are impatient to usher to the world. All these meet by chance now and then, and lament over the low state of learning in their country, and regret that there is not in their own town, an institution on the plan of the National Institute, or Royal Society. Thus the matter rests for four or five years, till, at length, it occurs to some shrewd professional gentleman, whose mother wit has " taught him to make his science end where the old proverb says charity should begin at home, that a snug little national institute, or royal society, cut down to suit the scale of an American city, might possibly turn to good account in the way of business. Accordingly, the learned are assembled; a constitution is formed; a well-sounding appellation is selected; some politician of more learning than tradesmen of that class generally possess, is selected for the patron or president; each man suits himself with an honourable little office to his taste, and then for a flourish of trumpets, when the curtain rises and discovers the president on his throne, surrounded by his whole train of vice-presidents, first, second, and third, secretaries corresponding and recording, counsellors, committees and curators. The officers having thus appointed themselves, it next becomes necessary to fill up their ranks with a reasonable number of privates, and the recruiting service commences briskly. Often, gentle readers, often have we seen our worthy friends and neighbours balloted for and elected philosophers by the dozen, nay, almost by the hundred, at a time. How unaccountable are the operations of ambition! What gave great Cæsar to the assassins' knife! What but the very same passion which excites Alderman Wiggins, who never read a book through in his life, to aspire to become an F. P. Q. S.? And if the alderman is elected, how can the alderman's friends, and neighbours, and rivals, be rejected?— to say nothing of the Reverends, the Professors, the M. D.'s, the LL. D.'s, and the A. M.'s, all of whom are, almost ex officio, entitled to a seat. We have, indeed, heard it surmised among the profane and uninitiated, that the custom of paying a certain fee of admission may have some small effect in thus throwing wide open the gates of the temples of science; but this we take to be a groundless calumny. Men and money having been now prorided, the next requisite is dignity, and this is to be attained by the |