ORIGINAL ESSAYS ON POLITE LITERATURE, THE ARTS AND SCIENCES; A REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS; POETRY; CRITICISMS ON THE FINE ARTS, THE DRAMA, &c. Biography, AND CORRESPONDENCE OF DISTINGUISHED PERSONS; ANECDOTES, JEUX D'ESPRIT, &c. SKETCHES OF SOCIETY AND MANNERS; PROCEEDINGS OF PUBLIC AND LITERARY SOCIETIES; POLITICAL SUMMARY, LITERARY INTELLIGENCE, &c. &c. LONDON: PRINTED BY BENSLEY AND SON, Bolt Court, Fleet Street. PUBLISHED BY HENRY COLBURN, PUBLIC LIBRARY, CONDUIT STREET; AND BY PINNOCK AND MAUNDER, AT THE LITERARY GAZETTE OFFICE, NO. 267, STRAND; SOLD ALSO BY BELL AND BRADFUTE, EDINBURGH, JOHN CUMMING, DUBLIN; AND ALL OTHER BOOKSELLERS, NEWSMEN, &c. 1818. AND Journal of Belles Lettres, Arts, Politics, Etc. No. 50. ADDRESS. SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 1818. THE LITERARY GAZETTE, with the present Number commences its second annual course. For the unexampled favour with which it has been received by the Public, we offer our grateful acknowledginents. It set out, and has been conducted, on rigidly independent and impartial principles: these principles; the novelty, and we trust we may, without the imputation of mordinate vanity, add, the utility of the design; and the diligent mode in which it has been carried into execution, have been rewarded beyond our utmost hopes. Holding at the close of its first year an acknowledged and honourable rank in the periodical Literature of Great Britain, its increased circulation has been, and shall only be, converted into an engine for its improvement; and we firmly trust, that it will very speedily realize the most sanguine prospect of its friends, in effectually promoting the interests of Learning and of the Arts; while it forms at the same time an agreeable relaxation from severer studies, and a record of the times, in all that distinguishes one era of the world from another. In what may be called the business part of this Address, we shall be very brief. It will appear from this Publication, that we have made some new arrangements in the manner of printing. The advertisements, here confined to literature and the arts, and limited to two pages, are displayed in a way calculated to secure them from that neglect which they too often experience in journals of a more mixed character; and we hesitate not to say, that the numbers of our weekly impression, even without considering the ank and literary character of the classes among whom it is read, render the Literary Gazette inferior to no newspaper whatever, as a medium for the dissemination of such announcements. PRICE 1s. It may also be interesting to our mind is not exempt from the most conreaders to know, that, commencing temptible weaknesses; that of one of with the present Number, this Journal REVIEW OF NEW BOCKS. Anecdotes of the Life of RICHARD WAT SON, Bishop of Landaff: Written by himself at different intervals, and Revised in 1814 4to. pp. 551. SINCERELY do we wish that the well-earned celebrity of the author of this work, its own character, and the attention it has so generally excited, did not force us to bring it under the regard of our readers. But we still more sincerely wish that it had never been published; for to us it conveys a melancholy picture of much frailty, united with great ability, and the portrait of an individual, who, for many reasons, we could have desired more perfectly to esteem, deteriorated by his own hand, and by the pious, but mistaken partiality of his son, the editor of this volume. Revised, it is too evident a great portion of it written at the age of 75, it is lumentable the most upright men, as of the world, it may justly be said, "All is vanity;" and that such is the self-delusion of mankind, they utterly deceive themselves in themselves, and can fancy stubbornness independence, and discontent patriotism, and resentment virtue, and folly wisdom, and conceitedness magnanim ty, and indiscretion purity, when they come to cast a retrospect over the events of their own lives. Tire mainspring of Dr. Watson's actions, and the bar to his move prosperous fortunes, appears, on his own showing, to have been the most inordinate opinion of his own genus and importa ce. A man of great talent, of much learning, of acute judgment of comprehensive mind, of unwearted per severance in the attainment of knowledge, and of extraordinary powers in the application of his attainments to the use and instruction of his fellowcreatures ; this volume compels us to acknowledge, that all these gifts may be perverted by overweening egotism, and blessings of nature turned into barrenness, by that single feebleness of humanity, which we imagine is strength, and call pride. Richard Watson was educated at Haversham, where his father had previously been master of the Grammar School With an exhibition of 50l. he went from this establishment to Cambridge, and in Jan. 1:59, took his Bachelor's degree at Trmity College. In 1762 he became M.A; was elected Professor of Chemistry in 1764; and i.. 1771, Regius Professor of Divmity in to think that the soundness of more the room of Dr. Rutherforh, deceased. vigorous vears has not been exercised in correcting the errors of garrulous senility which deform these pages, and teach those who aduire, also to pity the late Bishop of Landaff. His other academic honours, as wrangler, Tutor, and Moderator, did equal justice to his zeal and a ihties; and the ardeur of his character nay tee- timated by the fact, that when Lete That this book is curious and enter - came candidate for the Chemical Chan taining, is true; but we are sorry to To those who have neglected to com- That this book is instructing too, no PARTS may be had from the commence- rational being will deny: but, alas! VOL. II. he "knew nothing at all of chen sre had never read a vilable on the sunject nor seen a sin, le experin ent nt; but was thed with mathematics an natural philosophy, and stimulated by the vehentissima gloriæ cupido, to try his strength in a new pursuit, and animated by the kindness of the University to extraordinary exertions;" and |