parties in the city, that of Thucydides, and that of Pericles, the whole power would fhortly center in him on whose land the · prodigy had happened. But Anaxagoras having opened the head, fhowed that the brain did not fill up the whole cavity, but that it had contracted itself into an oval form, and pointed directly to that part of the fkull whence the horn took its rife. This folution procured Anaxagoras great honour from the spectators; but fome time after, Lampo was no lefs honoured for his prediction, when the power of Thucydides was ruined, and the whole administration of the republic came into the hands of Pericles. But I fee no reason why the philofopher and the foothfayer may not both be allowed to have been in the right; the one having difcovered the caufe, and the other the defign of this phænomenon. For it was the bufinefs of the one to find in what manner, and by what means, this effect was produced; and the business of the other was to fhew what end it was defigned to anfwer, and what events it portended. And those who maintain, that no prodigy, when the cause of it is known, ought to be regarded as a prognoftic, do not confider, that if they reject fuch figns as are extraordinary and preternatural, they must alfo deny that common and artificial figns are of any use; for the clattering of brass plates, the light of beacons, the fhadow upon a fun-dial, have all of them their proper natural causes, yet each has a peculiar fignification befides. But perhaps this point might be more properly difcufled elfewhere.

Pericles, when young, ftocd in great fear of the people, becaufe in his countenance he was thought to refemble Pififtratus; and the old men were not a little alarmed when they dif covered in him the fame sweetness of voice, and the fame volubility of fpeech, which they remembered in the tyrant. And as he was befides of a noble and wealthy family, and had the friendship of the moft confiderable men in the ftate, he was afraid of being banished by the Oftracism; he therefore abstained from all political bufinefs, but not from war, in which he fhewed great courage and intrepidity. But when Ariftides was dead, Themistocles in exile, and Cimen for the most part employed in military expeditions at a distance from Greece, Pericles affumed a public character. He chofe rather to solicit the favour of the multitude and of the poor, than of the rich and the few; putting a conftraint upon his natural temper, which by no means inclined him to court popularity. But being apprehenfive that he might fall under the fufpicion of aiming at the fupreme power, and obferving that Cimon was attached to the party of the nobles, and was highly esteemed by men of the greatest eminence, he ftudied to ingratiate himself with the common people, as the moft effectual means for his own fecurity,

and

and for ftrengthening his intereft against Cimon. From this time he entirely changed his ordinary courfe of life; he was never seen in any street but that which led from the fenate-house to the Forum; he declined all the invitations of his friends, and all focial entertainments and recreations; fo that during the whole time of his adminiftration, which was of long continuance, he never fupped with any of his friends, except once at the marriage of his nephew Euryptolemus; and then he retired as foon as the libations were performed.. For dignity is not easily preferved in the familiarity of converfation, nor a folemnity of character maintained amidst surrounding gaiety and chearfulness. Real virtue, indeed, the more it is feen, is the more admired; and a truly good man can by no action appear fo great in the eyes of ftrangers, as he appears in private life to thofe who daily converfe with him. But Pericles chofe not to cloy the people by being too lavifh of his prefence; he therefore appeared only by intervals; he did not fpeak upon every fubject that occurred, nor conftantly attend the public affemblies, but referved himfelf (as Critolaus fays) like the Salaminian galley, for extraordinary occafions. Common bufinefs he tranfacted by means of his friends and certain orators, with whom he had an intimacy. Among thefe, they fay, was Ephialtes, who deftroyed the power of the Areopagites, and fo intoxicated the people, according to Plato's expreffion, with this full draught of liberty, that from their impatience of restraint, and mad delire of conqueft, they were compared by the comic writers to an unruly pampered steed,

Who champs the bit, and bounds along the plain.

• Pericles made ufe of the doctrines of Anaxagoras, as an inftrument to raise his ftile to a fublimity fuitable to the greatness of his fpirit, and the dignity of his manner of life, rendering his eloquence more fplendid and majeftic by the rich tincture it received from philofophy. For it was from the ftudy of philofophy as well as from nature, that he acquired that elevation of thought, and that all-commanding power (as the divine Plato calls it) by which he was diftinguifhed; and it was by applying his philofophy to the purpofes of eloquence, that he gained fo great a fuperiority over all the orators of his time. Upon this account, it is faid, he obtained the furname of Olympius; but fome are of opinion, that it was on account of the public buildings and ornaments with which he embellifhed the city; and others fay, that he was fo called from the great authority he had in the republic, in affairs both of peace and war. It is not improbable, indeed, that all these circumstances might concur in procuring him this fplendid title. It appears, however, from

7

the

the comedies of that age, in which mere are many fries of fatire, both serious and ludicrous, upon Percis, ter the appellation was given him chiefy on account of his ecquence; for in them he is reprefented as thundering and igmeng a his barangues, and as carrying a treasu thunder bot a his tongue. Thucydides, the ice of Macias, e in a have given a very pleasant defcription of the force of Fences's coquence. Being asked by Archicamus, King of the Lacscence ans, whether he or Pericles was the bet wrefier; be anwesen - When I have thrown him, he gets the beer of me; for he denies that he has had a fall, and perivaces the spectators to believe him."

• Such was the folicitude of Pericles about his public orations, that before he addreted the people, ne always offered up a prayer to the Gods, that nothing might unawares excape him, unfuitable to the fubject on which he was to speak. He left nothing behind him in writing, except public decrees; and only a few of his fayings are recorded; fome of which are thefe: he faid, "That the land of gina fhould not be fuffered to remain as the eye-fore of the Pyrzus." On another occafion he faid, "That he already beheid war advancing with hafty ftrides from Peloponnefus." Once as he was failing from Athens, upon fome military expedition, Sophocles, who accompanied him, and was joined in the command with him, happened to praife the beauty of a certain boy, Pericles replied, "It becomes a General, Sophocles, to have not only pure hands, but pure eyes." Stefimbrotus has preferved the following paffage from the oration which Pericles pronounced in homour of thofe who fell in battle at Samos.Thefe," said he,

like all others who die for their country, are exalted to a participation of the divine nature, being, like the gods, seen only in the honours that are paid them, and in the bleffings which they beftow."

We fhall conclude this article with acquainting our Readers, that the notes in this edition are much fewer than those in the edition of 1727, but much more judicious and pertinent; and that the ufeful chronological table, adapted to Plutarch's Lives, by M. Dacier, is here prefixed. The life of Plutarch, written by the great Mr. Dryden, the original publifher of the tranflation by feveral hands, is alfo retained.

Sir

Sir Ifaac Newton's Ether realized: or, the fecond Part of the fubtile medium proved, and electricity rendered useful. Being a vindication of that effay, in anfwer to the animadverfions made thereon by the Monthly Review; whereby the electeral fluid, and the fubtile aetherial fluid of philofophers are, from the Newtonian principles, clearly demonftrated to be one and the fame thing. By R. Lovett, of the cathedral church of Worcester. 8vo. Is. Sandby.

IN

N our Review for December 1756, we mentioned Mr. Lovett's former performance; and, as far as we thought it worthy of our fuffrage, recommended it to public notice. This, however, he complains, we did in fuch a manner, as to prejudice the fale of it, by undervaluing his abilities. To be even with us therefore, he has, in the prefent pamphlet, reflected back the imputation of incapacity on the authors of the Review; who would never, he infers, have cenfured him, had they known any thing about electricity themselves. If our Electrician had been a play-wright, we fhould be apt to think he had stole the touchftone of Mr. Bays, who always judged the talents of others by the opinion they had of his writings. • You tell me thefe [Reviewers] are men of genius and parts, and all that; let me hear what they have to fay to my performance, and then I fhall know what to think of them."

We have done our author injuftice, it seems, by intimating that he was a stranger to fome of the common principles of the Newtonian philofophy. This intimation of ours, behold, two years afterwards, he denies to be true; and attempts to give proofs of his being verfed in the faid principles: but suppose we had, at that fame time, told a young fellow of twenty, that he was under age, would he not give a whimfical proof of the contrary, fhould he come now, and deny our affertion? We doubt not but there may be many geniuffes, who, two years ago, understood perhaps lefs of Sir Ifaac Newton's Principia than Mr. Lovett, and who yet, at this prefent writing, may know (for any thing, at least, that appears in his book to the contrary) full as much of the matter as he. We would not, however, be too severe on a writer, who confeffes his want of literary accomplishments, and appears to be a well-meaning and ingenuous enquirer; but to oblige him, shall condescend to correct some of his errors in a candid and good-natured manner. One great mif, take of which Mr. Lovet is guilty, particularly, indeed, concerns ourselves. As we inferred, from his apparent ignorance of the Newtonian philofophy, that he was not the most fit per

fon

fon to explain the phænomena of electricity; he fuppofes there fore that we are alfo of opinion, that those phænomena are ex plicable by Newtonian principles. But this does not follow. All the words that may be form'd from the feveral combinations of the letters in our alphabet, are not intelligible to us merely from our knowledge of the power and ufe of each of thofe letters: and yet, without a previous acquaintance with the alphabet, words in general will not be at all intelligible. The principles of Sir Ifaac Newton, form the alphabet of nature's language: and though even the moft perfect knowledge of them doth not enable us to read at once the various theorems, written in the volume of the univerfe, yet, without our being initiated into phyfiological myfteries by an acquaintance with thofe elementary characters, we can hardly proceed one step without blundering. True indeed it is, that from the principle of univerfal attraction, and the mechanical action of inert bodies, we can, in no fatisfactory manner, account even for the common cohesion between the parts of folid bodies, or their various and moft palpable modes of refiftance. The reality of fuch a principle of attraction, however, and the vis inertia of bodies, is, nevertheless, indifputable; and the laws of mechanifm are no lefs juft: fo that whoever would proceed in phyfiological enquiries, with any well-grounded hopes of fuccefs, muft build on Newtonian principles; for, though all phænomena are not explicable thereby, yet it is to these principles we must occafionally recur, to know whether natural appearances are justly explained or not. To illuftrate our meaning farther, let us fuppose a modern philofopher, intent on the discovery of a principle, or principles, ftill more fimple and general than those of attraction, the inactivity of matter, &c. certain it is now, that no mechanical experiments, or reasonings from the known laws of motion, will help him forward a jot. He must proceed on experiments merely phyfical, and on reafonings ftrictly mathematical; and fhould thefe lead him to difcover a caufe productive of univerfal attraction, or the existence of a power, whofe modes of action would conftitute thofe laws of motion which bodies are known to follow; in this cafe, it may be juftly concluded, that fuch an enquirer is right. But if, by any miftaken fophiftry, or confufed method of argument, he should be Jed to conclude that there is, among bodies, no fuch general principle as attraction, or that the laws of motion are not fuch as Sir Ifaac Newton and others have experienced them to be,

Mechanical experiments are alfo undoubtedly phyfical ones; but, as in the former the theory is fo well known, that their apparent effects are, in a great degice, determinate and commenfurable, we confider them as a diftinct jpecies of phyfcal experiments.

we