It was their custom to expofe the fick to public view, that fuch perfons as paffed by, if they had been afflicted with the like diforders and had found out remedies by which they had effected their cures, or obtained cafe, might give their advice. This was the practice in the most early times. The Egyptians, after they had invented hierogly phicks, obliged those who had been attacked with any distemper, tổ reprefent how, and by what means they had been cured. Thefe memoirs were placed in their temples, and every one had a right to confult them; afterwards, when the number of receipts were increased, they caufed them to be put in order, and charged particular perfons with the care of them, who studied their different compofitions, and their virtues, and were in process of time confulted on critical occafions. This feems to be the origin of the profeffion of a phyfician. We are told there has been no country, where phyficians were fo numerous as in Egypt, which is easily accounted for when we know that every diforder had its particular phyfician: the Egyptians thought that the life and ftudy of one man was not fufficient to acquire a perfect knowledge in the different parts of a science fo extenfive, and therefore they obliged each profeffor to make one diforder his entire ftudy. The Egyptians ufed likewife every means to prevent diftempers, and regularly appropriated three facceffive days in every month for taking medicine, though in perfect health. Every thing concerning medicine was entered in certain facred books, and the phyficians were obliged to conform exactly to certain precepts therein contained, not being permitted to make the leaft change. If they could not reftore the patient by following the method enjoined, they were by no means anfwerable for the event; but if they ufed any other means, and the pa -tient happened to die, they were punished with death .'

Mr. Eaftcott has related the most remarkable inftances that have been found in ancient authors, concerning the miracalous power attributed to music.

We have next the opinions of phyficians, philofophers, and bif. torians, on the medicinal power of mufic. its effects on the nervous fyftem are illuftrated rather by its baleful influence than by its healing power: to one it occafioned a convulfion in his jaw; to another, a fyncope or fainting fit; and it was the death of a third!

In the chapter on the power of music over animals, befide the well known book-ftories, feveral are inferted which feem to make their first public appearance; particularly that of a hare, the moft timid of all animals; which, having the good talle and fagacity to diftinguish between the hofannahs of finging boys, and the Canine chorus of her natural foes, was attracted by an anthem, in the following manner;

. There is no mention made of phyficians before the days of Mofes: Mofes fays, that Jacob being dead, Jofeph commanded the phyficians to embalm the body of his father. Genefis, chap. 50.'

See Goguet's Origin of Laws, vol. ii. p. 241.'

• On

On a Sunday evening, five chorifters were walking on the banks of the river Merfey in Cheshire; after fome time, they fat down on the grafs, and began to fing an anthem. The field in which they fat, was terminated at one extremity by a wood, out of which, as they were anging, they obfeved a bare to pafs with great fwiftnefs towards the place where they were fitting, and to ftop at about twenty yards diftance from them. She appeared highly delighted with the mufic, often turning up the fide of her head to liften with more facility. This uncommon appearance engaged their attention, and being defirous to know whether the creature paid them the vifit to partake of the mufic, they finished the piece, and fat ftill without fpeaking to each other, As foon as the harmonious found was over, the hare returned flowly towards the wood; when she had reached nearly the end of the field they began the fame piece again, at which the hare ftopt, turned, about, and came fwiftly back again, to about the fame distance as before; where the feemed to liften with rapture and delight, till they had finished the anthem, when he returned again by a flow pace up the field and entered the wood.'

The title of the chapter on the power of music over infants might well have been reverfed; as it more properly treats of the power of infants over mufic: the inftances given being proofs of their having early vanquished thofe difficulties which fo often difcomfit grown gentlemen.

We with that our author had been better acquainted with the merit of Dubourg, mentioned at p. 92, who was not only composer to his Majefty in Ireland, and afterward leader of his band in England, but the greatest performer on the violin that either of these islands had then produced. If Dr.Arnold, one of the prefent worthy organists and compofers of the Chapel Royal, were to be called one Arnold, it would not furprize and offend mufical people more than Mr. Eaftcott's contemptuous manner of announcing our celebrated Coryphæus by the obfcure and almoft ignominious title of one Dubourg.

This chapter is followed by a difcuffion of the question how far mufic is an imitative art. This is one of thofe difputatious contentions which a warm imagination on one fide, and obtuse organs and obftinacy on the other, will probably render as durable as the art itself.

The author next gives us quotations from Shakspeare, and other antient and modern poets, for the purpose of explaining the CHARACTER of an antient bard.'

In the fubfequent chapter, we have beautiful quotations from the most eminent poets on the imaginary mufic of the spheres,' Chap. X. Of the opinions of great and learned men, refpecting mufic. Their attachment to it. The Royal mufical academy when firft eftablished. Degrees when firft confirmed. Profefforships in the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, by whom founded, &c.'

This chapter, which is chiefly Dr. Burney epitomized, will entertain those readers who have not feen the Prototype.

Mr. Eaftcott afterward pleads the caufe of his favourite' amufement with force and energy, when speaking of the utility of mufic, and of the neceffity of a taste for the polite arts to complete the character of a gentleman: in fupport of which premises, he cites the obfervations of eminent writers,' and gives his own opinion on the present flate of mufic, as connected with poetry, and in its feparate ftate."

We agree with the author entirely in denouncing the prefent rage for rapid execution. It never could do more than furprize; and, that fenfation over, it frequently becomes difgufting.

The reflections on musical affectation, and on the use and abuse of church mufic, are, in general, juft and well founded: but the reform propofed by the author, of reducing all choral mufic to plain counterpoint in the manner of parochial pfalmody, would rob the church of so many venerable and ingenious compofitions in fugue and imitation, that we feem more inclined to bear with a little confufion in the delivery of the words, than to part with these elaborate Gothic productions, fo correfpondent with the place of performance. The condemnation of fugue tunes, as the author inelegantly calls them, is a direct cenfure, not only of many of Marcello's pfalms, but of the beft of Handel's grand and fublime oratorio chorufes. In point of propriety, we greatly prefer inftrumental to vocal fugues: but, in the church, where every individual furnished with a prayer-book may read what is finging, the evil, arifing from the words being rendered unintelligible by the texture of the mufic, feems more imaginary than real.

In the conclufion of the work, the author has collected to a point the just praises which have been bestowed on the useful and moral purposes to which mufic has been applied during the prefent century, in this country, in fupport of charitable infti

tutions.

Mr. E. has given four fupplementary chapters to this volume. In the first, after fpeaking of the mufical inftruments provided by Solomon for the dedication of the Temple, he tries, with great zeal and fome ingenuity, to reconcile to poffibility the affertion of Jofephus; who tells us that this mighty Prince made "two hundred thousand trumpets!—befides four hundred thousand (other) musical inftruments, as harps, pfalteries, and the like, which were made of a mixed metal betwixt gold and filver!"" In the fecond chapter of the fupplement, we have a very recent account of the prefent fate of mufic in Holland, the Austrian Ne

therlands,

berlands, Germany, Italy, &c. in a letter from a friend of the author, dated Nov. 1792: but in thefe obfervations we do not find a fingle circumftance of importance which we had not before read in Dr. Burney's mufical tours through the fame countries, fome twenty years ago. Mr. Eaftcott, indeed, in a note, pleads the caufe of the poor choirmen of our country cathedrals with great humanity and force: who, while the church lands have increafed in value, in proportion to the prices of provifions and other neceffaries of life, have had no augmentation of their falaries fince their firft inftitution.

Chapter 3 gives a thort account of the ftate of mufic among the Ruffians, Swedes, the Indians of North America, and the inhabitants of the newly discovered iflands of the Pacific Ocean.' The materials for this chapter, being extracted from more recent publications than thofe employed in the former part of the work, will confequently afford the reader amufement in proportion to their novelty.

Chapter 4 of the fupplement relates to the queftion, whether the antients understood counterpoint, or mufic in different parts. Dr. Burney gave it as his opinion, in his differtation on the mufic of the antients, that harmony, fuch as that of modern times, was wholly unknown to antiquity; and fubfequent writers feem unanimously to accede to that conclufion.

We have ftill fome addenda to this work, under the title of fragments; the moft curious of which is the account of improvements and new powers added to the organ, by the Abbé Vogler; and more and more laft words, in a conclufion of the fupplement, and additional notes to several of the chapters.

The

Real lovers of mufic will be much entertained, and, if young, inftructed in the hiftory of the art, by thefe Sketches. author fays, in his preface, very modeftly,

If they should lead the way to farther enquiries, if they should induce the juvenile reader to perufe works of real character and known refpectability, his end will be fully answered. One principal reason of the author's for wishing to compress his matter as much as poffible, is, that those young ladies, who receive their education at public academies, may have an opportunity of being flightly acquainted with the hiftory of an art, in which many of them spend a confiderable part of their time in endeavouring to excel; and as voluminous difquifitions on particular fciences cannot poffibly be included within the circle of female education, he thinks this effay may be introduced to their acquaintance as a school-book, and occupy fome little part of the time allotted for general study.'

Such readers, at leaft, will be much pleased with the nume rous and well-felected paffages which are given in praise of mufic, from our best poets; many of whom, however, neither REV. JAN. 1794. understood

E

understood the art, nor felt its power; yet they thought it ne -ceffary to endeavour to imprefs their readers with an idea of their science and fenfibility. Poetry, indeed, was originally fo intimately connected with mufic, that it can now hardly fubfift without allufions to it; and we have no bard, of a high clafs, who has dared to tear them wholly afunder.

The ftyle of this production is natural, clear, and, fometimes, elegant. We wish, however, that the lift of errata had been augmented, as feveral typographical errors have escaped detection, particularly among the proper names: as Palmerton for Palmerfton, Stephens for Stevens, Thaletes for Thaletas, Buretti, repeatedly, for Burette, Barbaretti for Barberini, Brouncher for Brouncker, Quants for Quantz, Siene for Seine, Dittens for Ditters, and, conftantly, Dr. Wharton for Mr. T. Warton, the late laureat. Befide these, a few errors of a different kind occur: as Scholia for Scolia, Phonoftus for Phonafcus, golden-fpear for golden-fpur, (fperon d'oro.) French, for Provençal, p. 38, and p. 263, plays for ftops of the organ, (jeux de l'orgue.)-We believe, too, that by the river Mar. cey,' in Cheshire, the author means the Merfey.

ART. XVI. A complete Treatise on the Origin, Theary, and Cure of the Lues Venerea, and Obftructions in the Urethra, illustrated by a great Variety of Cafes. Being a Courfe of twenty-three Lectures, read in Dean-ftreet, Soho, in the Years 1790 and 1791. By Jeffe Foot, Surgeon. 4to. pp. 675. 11. 10s. Boards. Becket. 1792.

HAV

AVING already noticed the new theory of the V. Difeafe propofed by Mr. Foot *, and the objections urged against it by Mr. Ogle +, we fhall proceed to confider this complete treatife, which is founded on it. In the first three of thele lectures, Mr. Foot brings forward the fentiments of Mr. Wm. Becket, publifhed in the Philofophical Tranfactions, vol. xxx. and xxxi. in proof of the existence of the disease in Europe before the discovery of the Weft Indies; he next produces Dr. Aftruc's refutation of this opinion; and he concludes with his own fummary, in which he ftrongly contends for its Introduction by Columbus.

The fourth lecture treats on the nature and action of the virus. Mr. Foot here gives a pofitive teftimony that the fluid of gonorrhoea and the fluid of chancre are both the fame,? He labours alfo to account for the circumftance of a chancre appearing long after a gonorrhoea in the fame patient, when

* Vol. iv. New Series, p. 224. + Vol. v. New Series,

15

P. 458.

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