Literature cultivated more zealously in Germany, than in other Countries: a Fact, that results from the number and quality of the Books, offered for sale at the last Easter-fair of Leipzig.

was the number of new

sent to that general literary market of Europe, more considerable, than at the last Easter-fair, when it amounted to no less than 2894 new works*

According to the account given in the Journal gènèral de la iterature de France, which is published at Strasburg, and whose reputation intitles it to some credit, the VIIth year of the French Republic has not produced more than 1407 works, two thirds of which are pamphlets and ephemeric compositions; and the literary productions of England, within the last year do not amount to more than one thousand, inclusive of single sermons, musical articles, &c. &c.

The German empire has no capital which, like London and Paris, forms a kind of vortex that absorbs the whole produce of the country, and out of which scarcely any literature is to be met with: this is the reason why it is more generally cultivated in Germany, and diffuses the treasures of its fertility through every individual province, so that the residence of many a petty prince is more fertile in literary productions than extensive districts in England and France.

Can the two English, the four Scotch universities, and that of Dublin, enter into a competition with those 38 universities of Germany, which resemble so many focuses whence the light of knowledge spreads over the whole empire? and those central schools of modern France, which as yet scarcely half formed, are still less adapted for it.

The book trade of England and France is almost entirely concentred in their capitals, whilst the other great towns scarcely have any booksellers, most of whom are only factors and agents of those of London and Paris. But in Germany, especially in the northern parts, there is scarcely a single town without one or more booksellers, who frequently send to the Leipzig fair (an institution, the want of which in other countries, greatly retards the progress of literature) a dozen of new works, published by themselves, and who annually increase so much in number, that at present there are in Ger

The number of new works exposed for sale last Michaelmas fair, is considerably less, amounting to no more than $79, exclusive of monthly publications, pamphlets &c. &c.

many

many more than three hundred booksellers, who frequent the fair to expose their new productions for sale.

We cannot, indeed, deny, that a great many out of the 15,000 authors who compose the literary republic of Germany, are chiefly occupied with translating the works of other nations, but their translations are generally enriched with explanatory and literary annotations. The principal book sellers and translators in Germany having agents and correspondence in all parts of civilized Europe, are frequently enabled to procure the proof sheets of new and important works as they are printing, whence it often happens that the German translation and original are offered for sale at the same time.

If the novels and theatrical compositions, with the titles of which many pages of the catalogues of the Leipzig fair are covered, be deficient in stile and invention, because the authors neglect too much the Nonum prematur in annum of Horace, that immense number of economical works, annually published in Germany, manifests, on the other hand, a most laudable zeal for the more general diffusion of practical knowledge, and a conspicuous emulation in the German litepati to counteract those baleful evils engendered by political abuses and luxury, which spreads more rapidly every day, and threatens to dry up all sources of civil and domestic happiness in most European countries.

The English, who are justly proud of an Arthur Young, a Sir John Sinclair, &c. &c. and of late have honored the literature of Germany with a marked attention, are not yet sufficiently acquainted with this useful branch of literary industry, so honorable to the Germans, and would be astonished were they informed of the eminent services which Riem, Weber and Weissenbruck have rendered to a branch of economy which hitherto has been so successfully cultivated in their own country; nor would they withhold their admiration from the labours of Mr. Thaer, author of an Introduction to the knowledge of English agriculture, relative to that of the German empire, a work from which even Englishmen might derive a good deal of useful information. Count Podewil's has continued his translation of Marshal's rural topography, and added most valuable annotations. Mr. Scherer, finally, has extracted from the reports of the board of agriculture, a survey of all known means of ameliorating the soil, and subjoined to it the observations made upon this subject by the German and other nations.

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Scarcely had Lasterie's ingenious work on the breeding of Spanish sheep attracted the notice of the public, when Mr. Hubbe, of Hamburg, undertook to give a German translation

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of it, enriching it with many instructive remarks, and with an appendix treating on the breeding of English sheep. There has likewise been published by Mr. Sudecum, an im portant original tract on the breeding of sheep, adapted to the wants of the Austrian state, and extracted from the manuscripts of the late Count Harrach, A similar work has been published in Prussia, adapted to the wants of that country. The indefatigable diligence with which Messrs. Achard and Nöldechen continue their exertions to substitute sugar made of beet-root and other saccharine roots, indigenous in Germany, in the room of West-indian sugar, have produced last Easter fair a third number of Mr. Nöldechen's periodical work on the cultivation of beet-root, and the best methods of extracting sugar and brandy from that valuable plant, and last Michaelmas fair three valuable treatises of Mr. Achard on the same important subject, which are deserving of the attention of the economists of all Europe.

The two latest publications of the celebrated Laplare undoubtedly deserve a conspicuous place amongst the most eminent productions lately published in France; and it is highly honourable to the literary industry of the Germans, that the last Easter fair has presented the public with translations in which the originals have considerably gained; one of these is the fruit of the lucubrations of Dr. Burkhardt, who composed it at Paris under the inspection of the worthy author, and for the other the Germans are indebted to the diligence and erudition of Mr. Ide. At the same time, Mr. Hindenburg has published a continuation of his repertory of pure and mixed mathematics, whilst Mr. Gruson has presented the public with an additional volume of his Elements of Military Mathematics, and the late Prof. Kästner has given a continuation of his critical catalogue of his mathematical library.

Other nations do, indeed, translate into their own language accounts of voyages and travels; but there is not one that has produced a collection so complete and judiciously selected, as the Magazine of Voyages, commenced by the late celebrated Forster, and still continued with critical care; nor has any country produced a work like the Library of the latest and most important Voyages and Travels, edited by the great historiographer Sprengel. The first volume of this work, which was published during the Easter fair, contains every thing interesting in the voyages of Brown and Wilson. Volney's work on Egypt has been translated and enriched with annotations both highly interesting and instructive, by Mr. Paulus, professor of the oriental languages, and Bour

goanne's

goanne's valuable account of his travels in Spain has been translated with many important additions by professor Filcher, of Leipzig, who has himselt published a similar work of his own that has met with uncommon applause in Germany.

The German physicians, who reside in London and Paris, begin to make the medical men of these capitals acquainted with the progress of the periodical medical literature in Germany, whilst their colleagues in the German empire, with the greatest attention, pursue the improvements in the healing art made in other countries. Hufeland, the author of the celebrated work on the art of prolonging life, condescends to conduct the publication of the Annals of Medicine and Surgery, in France; whilst Zadig, a name no less respected, publishes the Spirit of the latest medicinal literature of the same country. But these are not the only works of this kind, published in Germany with a view of promoting the improvement of the healing art by means of a more general diffusion of the results of the labours of foreign physicians. Several journals have already for some time been devoted in Germany to the more general diffusion of the medicinal literature of England. Their number has been encreased of late, by a new periodical work, the editor of which is Mr. Kuhn, under the title: The Physical and Medical Journal; composed from that of Drs. Willich and Bradley; together with additional original articles. The north itself, in the strictest sense of the word, has been put in contribution for a similar purpose, by Messieurs. Pfaff and Scheele, the authors of the Northern Medical Repository; especially Sweden, by Prof. Rudolphi, the editor of the Annals of Medicine and Natural History.

The least spark kindled in an other country, is sufficient to light a salutary fire in the German empire; and the seeds of science scattered in any part of Europe, do not fail soon to produce the sweetest fruits in Germany. Franke, Roeshlaub, and Markus have zealously spread and turned to great advantage the system of the celebrated Brown. The first of these has published a Toxicology founded upon the principles of this system, and Mr. Roeshlaub publishes a monthly magazine, intended to promote the improvement of the method of curing, introduced by Brown. The vaccine inoculation discovery, so highly honourable to the British genius, has found a greater number of zealous supporters among the medical men at Vienna than any where else. Mr. Eyerell is going to publish his contributions toward this specious system, and Dr. Ferro has carried his zeal so far in its behalf as to send for vaccine matter from England, and to inoculate

his own children with it, in order to convince the public of the confidence, which he places in the success of this kind of inoculation. Amongst the works exposed to sale at the Easter fair, there were also the latest observations of Mess. Jenner and Woodville on the same subject, as well as an other work by Mr. Sowden, a distinguished Dutch physician, both translated into German.

Such is the ardour with which the German literati exert themselves to promote the progress of the sciences. The Omne tulit punctum of Horace, perfectly suits the literary universality of that enlightened and diligent nation, who justly might be called the wise nation. The celebrated Wieland! has presented the lovers of the ancient classics with an excellent translation of Xenophon, and Penzel has published an elegant and correct version of the works of Plutarch and Dio Cassius; whilst other literati have laudably exerted themselves to revive the study of the works of other classics, especially those of Cicero and Horace. At the same time Mr. Hartman has presented us with a Necklace of Oriental Pearls (the title under which he publishes a periodical work comprizing select pieces of oriental literature). Two veteran translators have bestowed their labours upon the work, of Shakespeare, whilst two others have published new translations of those of Cervantes. Kosegarten has in his British Odeon culled the fairest flowers that have been reared on British ground, and Griess has treated the lovers of Italian literature with a metrical translation of Tasso's poems.

Finally, there appears not one important literary production in any country, which is not made known to the literati of Germany, by means of one or other of the numerous literary journals that are printing in that country, and speedily rendered more generally useful through the medium of a translation of scientific extracts.

LEIPZIG EASTER AND MICHAELMAS FAIRS, OF 1800. Supplement to the preceding article.

THE catalogue of new books exposed to sale at the Leipzig fair, may at all times be considered as a thermometer that indicates with certainty the degree of warmth and interest that prevails in the different provinces of Germany, in favor

Lest our readers should impute this assertion to a national infatuation, we must observe, that the writer of this article is not a German, but a native of Denmark, and deeply sen ible of the justness of Montesquieu's maxim: Obl que la louange est fade, lorsqu'elle se réflésbis vers le lieu d'où elle part!

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