riftic peculiarities, not only with human paffions, but the modes they af fume in the various fituations of artificial life. Its fuccefs upon the ftage, the trueft teft of theatrical merit, would juftify a farther commendation, which at the fame time it renders unnecessary. Cheap Method of making a Watch Coat for T A AKE a large check shirt of a bout half a crown a yard, for it B fhould be pretty fine; cut off the riftbands, and continue the opening of the breast down to the bottom; few up the fides from the guffets down. wards; rip out the gathers in the fore parts of the collar as far as the shoulder straps, and refew it plain to the collar, the fhirt will then become a fort of watch-coat like a bed-gown with very wide fleeves. C Take a quantity of linfeed oil, and boil it gently till one half is diminished, to which put a fmall quantity of litharge of gold, and when it is well incorporated with the oil, lay it on D with a bruth upon the watch-coat, fo that it shall be every where equally wet. Let the watch coat be hung in a garret, or other covered place, and fo fufpended that one part hall not touch another. When it is dry a fecond mixture of the fame kind fhould be laid on with a brush as before. When the fecond coat of painting is dry, the paint will not come off, and the garinent is an effectual prefervative from the rain; it is very light to carry, & being pretty full on the back, will not anly keep the man dry, but also his pack and ammunition. This watch-coat will be equally ferviceable to failors at fea, in rainy weather, and if generally used would fave many lives. E F An Account of the Culture of Lucerne, in HE farm on which the follow Ting experiments were made, is ed a field of about three acres with lucerne in drills, two feet afunder. During the first year, he caufed it to: be weeded carefully; and from the places where it grew too thick, he fupplied thofe in which it had failed. ' After every weeding, he caused the intervals to be stirred with a horsehoe, refembling M. Lallin's fingle cul tivator, which manifeftly revived the plants. In 1762, the plants throve greatly, being kept clean, and horse-hoe'd as in the former year; and the fociety having published a premium for a comparative tryal between lucerne fown in broad caft, and in drills, he: determined to try one part of that experiment on this field, and not to bestow on his lucerne any manure whatever, or to give it any other help than the horse-hoe. In 1763, the plants were arrived at a fize to yield fo full a crop as to maintain five horfes, from the middleof May to the end of autumn, or about five months. These hories, though ther corn or hay given them during conftantly worked very hard, had neiall this time: And yet they continued in ftrength and fpirit, and grew fat. A horfe which in May was fo weak," and in fo bad a state of health, that itwas thought he could not live, foon recovered, when fed with lucerne. three feet and three feet and a half, The plants were in general between at the first and fecond cutting. The plants made fo many thoots, and these hoots branched fo much, that in three weeks after every cutting, or fometimes fooner, the intervals quite difappeared; the whole field being fo equally covered, that it looked as if fown in broad caft. December 1763, and January and February 1764, having been uncommonly rainy, the water flood in fome parts of the field; and though there was generally fuch declivity, as that it might have been carried off, he refolved to let it remain, in order to fee what effect it would have on the lucerne. When the lucerne began to rife in the rest of the field in fpring, he found that wherever the water had ftood, the plants were killed. He fupplied this lofs by tranfplanting lucerne fron other parts; and these plants throve very well. By a continuance of the fame treatment, the lucerne remains in a very flourishing state; and retained a beautiful verdure and vigour, during the very great drought of the fummer fummer 1765. It has yielded four cuttings every year, and fometimes five. or A to half the height, nor did it yield a 4th of the quantity of fodder; fo that he thought it needlefs to profecute the comparison further. Seeing fo very remarkable a difference between the lucerne railed in drills, and that raifed in broad caft, he refolved to try what thare of this advantage might be placed to the horfe-hoe, and what to the distance at which the plants stood; which distance afforded the roots more room to extend in. With this view, in 1764 he fowed a neighbourging field in rows two fect afunder, in tending to horfe- hoe one half, and to keep the other free from weeds by hand-hoeing only. The months of April, May, and June of that year was fo very dry, that the plants came up thin, and the clay was become so hard, that the horse-hoe could not be made ufe of till late in the year. Even with this disadvantage there was feen a manifeft difference, in favour of the plants that were horse hoe'd. The fame difference was alfo obfervable in the spring of this year; but the unin terrupted drought of this fummer has kept the clay fo hard, that the horsehoe could not be used. Having tobferved in a root of lucerne taken up in the winter, that the fpring fhoots had no connection concern with the remains of the shoots of the preceding fummer, but proceeded from numbers of little tubercles, with which the head of the root was fet very thick; it appeared evident, that the plants could not fuftain any damage, though covered with a depth of earth during the winter, This fuggefted a hint, that the intervals might be plowed as deep as pof fible early in the winter, turning the earth on the beds; and that by letting the earth remain in this condition till fpring, the clay or strong foil in which the lucern grew, would be mellowed, or loofened, by the winter's froft and C rain; and being harrowed: fmooth in February, the fresh lateral roots, shot out in the spring, would find a fine freth mould to extend themselves in, which must tend greatly to the benefit of the plants. This thought was confirmed by experiment; for the fpring crop is amazingly vigorous ever fince this practice was followed; and the hoots, though of great length, and most plentifully fupplied with branches, are fo ftrong, that no rain or wind lays them, even when they have stood to be in full bloom, as is the case with part of the first crop; the horses not being able to confume the lucerne be. E fore part of it is neceffarily in bloom. Another advantage arifing from this practice is, that the grafs which takes root near the plants, and which cannot be otherwife destroyed but by. hand hoeing, is killed by being fo long covered with the earth laid on the beds. F In 1961, a fpot of ground of an exactly fimilar foil was inclofed for a kitchen garden; and there being part of it, which was not wanted for other ufe, in the fpring of 1762 it was fown with lucerne in broad cast, as a counter experiment to the former. The warmth of the garden, and the parti. ality of the gardener to this method, who held the field experiments very cheap, gave his lucerne every advan tage that could be defired. It came up well, and was kept free from weeds ; but it neither grew fo faft, nor fo high as the lucerne fown in drills. This difference became much more sensible during the fecond and third year: For in 1764 the field lucern had got the fart of it fo tar, this did not rife (Gent. Mag. MARCH 1766.5 D G H Computing the rent of the land, and the utmost expence that can attend the horse hoeings and cuttings, it will be found, that feeding horfes with lucerne will be a great faving, when compared with the price of the hay and corn which thefe horfes mult have neceffarily confumed in the fame time, being kept to equally hard labour. Obfervations on the Antiquity of CHINA, particularly on fome Sentiments of M. de Mairan, on that Subject. HERE are innumerable branches TH of prophane literature, that, in their confequences, are very nearly connected with the honour of the Sacred Writings. Many of thefe our modern Deifts are fo fenfible of, that they have been at great pains to dress them up fo as they may bear an inference unfavourable to Revelation. The Antiquity of the World has, of late years, been a favourite topic with thefe effayifts. Bolingbroke and Voltaire talk of it, with great gravity, in a ftrain entirely repugnant to the Mo faic account, taking it always for granted that it is reasonable to fuppofe fo; and that the Chinese chronos logy is indubitable, without bringing one reafon to the proof of either. M. de M. de Mairan, in his account of the conformity between the antient Egyp tians and Chinese (published in your laft Magazine) Teems likewifelto prefer the Chinese chronology to that of the Scripture, and to wish that the latter were corrected by the former. As it is the foible of editors to cry up their author as the greatest of his clafs, fo it is no less the foible of fyftem-makers and voyagers to knock down every thing that makes against their hypothefis, whether it be in phyfics or hiftory. This, I fuppofe, was the bias that inclined M. de Mairan, the Chi nefe miffionary, to with that the Scrip. ture chronology was adjusted by that of China; but it is obvious that our Bolingbrokes and Voltaires areinfluenced by very different principles. But as the verity of any question in litera, ture does not depend on the motives that may have inclined different au- C thors to be for or against it, an exa mination of the authority of the af fertion itself is neceffary.. B D thing about fuch a country as Chinas and the most learned of the Antients knew no further of it, than that they imagined there were extenfive terri¬ tories beyond the Ganger. Soon after China was discovered by the Europeans it was vifited by great numbers of Jefuit miffionaries, on whofe veracity the A greatest part of the knowledge we haye of China depends. They tell us that it is a valt empire, under the ex acteft and wifeft policy, of an antiquis ty that makes the antediuvians of Mofes but mere moderns; and that the arts and sciences flourished there some thousands of years before Chrif. Such is the general account they have giv en us, but which, unluckily for their veracity, is, in a great measure, dif proved by feveral circumstances thefe fame Jefuits have given us. For example:What idea fhall we have of the Chinese learning, when we are told they were ftruck with aftonishment when they first faw the Elements of Euclid tranflated into their language, and hardly knew the nature of demonfiration? We are told of their skill in at Aronomy, yet they imagined that the world was one great plain, and that they lived in the midst of it. We are told of their skill in the sciences, of their knowledge of the load-stone, and of the art of printing; yet they were almoft totally ignorant of Natu ral Philofophy and the laws of mechanics, and knew not the use of the load-ftone in navigation, which art, to this day, they know little about; and for their printing, it is only ftamping on blocks of wood, and which is feldom or never used, writing being found greatly preferable to it. Thus the pompous accounts we have of their learning, is, by circumstances given us by the fame authors, reduced to fomething even inferior to what we term Monkih ignorance. Add to this, but few of the Chinese can read, as it requires a life-time to gain that acquirement, their writing confifting not of an alphabet, but of certain marks, of which they have above fifty thousand, and, according to fome, many more. All thefe accounts of the ignorance of the Chinese, have been confirmed by voyagers of our own nation, as far as the particulars have fallen under their notice, and the fo much talked of wife and regular policy of the Chinafe, is now found to have no existence but in the dreams of Jesuits. A people oppressed almost at will, by an immenfe army of M. de Mairan obferves, that there are about 75 different conjectures concerning the time of the creation of the world, all drawn from the Sacred Writings, and therefore would infer, that, in a matter fo uncertain, the Chinese chronology may be fafely credited, without injury to the honour of Scripture. Of thefe 75 conjectures, pretended to be according to Scripture, about 70 of them are mere cabalistical and Talmudical dreams, no E more according to Scripture than are the contradictory fancies of our numerous fectaries. Neither will the difference in the computation of the dives of the Patriarchs, between the Samaritan and Septuagint verfions, make room for the adoption of the Chinese chronology; fo that if it is al- F lowed to be authentic, the inferences of our Bolingbrokes muft remain in full force. The accounts that Mofes has given us of antient nations and manners, is fupported in the strongest manner by G prophane literature, of which the English reader may be fully convinced, by pending a few hours in reading either Rollin or Warburton. Thus were Mofes confidered as a mere hiftorian, that chronology, on account of which we withdraw our faith from him, had H need to be very strongly supported. How it is fupported we shall immedi ately fee. It is but about three centuries ago, Since our Western world knew any thematicians make no fcruple to own, that many of them are mere forgeries. The Roman and every genuine history contains a concatenation of events naturally producing one another; the antient History of China hangs Aloofer together than the Memouth. Chronicle, as we have already faid. civil officers, the most unwarlike of Thus B But if it appears incredible, that the annals of fo many thousand years, amidst all the viciffitudes of fortune, and commotions of war that have happened in the East, should have been written and preserved by a set of men of no better learning nor cha Tater than European Monks, the hi tory itfelf will till appear more incredible when candidly examined. D The progrefs of learning, and of the fciences, is likewife another grand criterion that afcertains the justice of the æras of other hiftories. For example, the different stages of philofophy at Greece and Rome, proceeds in a natural courfe from the times of Pythagoras, and which ferves to prove his antiquity. But this hiftory of China, where one might expect ro find the regular progreis of the Arts, and to fee how the light of one age reflected on another, contains no fuck thing. They have their Confucius, it is true, whom they place feveral ages before Chrif, but they have given us no continued chain of the opinions or improvements of his followers; fo, for ought they can prove to the contrary, his antiquity may be no better than that of the Egyptian Trismegiftus, who lived after Mofes, and whole countrymen, a few centuries after his death, hoifted him fo far back in antik quity that they made a god of him; and now fhall this hiftory of China, which difplays no natural chain of events rifing out of one another, no progress of fcience, and which is con feffed to be deficient in its proofs by both Mandarines and Jefuits, shall this history beseriously admitted by the learned as a standard of chronology? M. Voltaire, and others of his clafs, under pretence of the greatest delicacy for truth, complain of the want of Vouchers for the history of Mofes, and at the fame time, with the greatest can dour, admit of this ridiculous legend of Chinese antiquity. It is alfo plea fant enough to obferve M. de Marran taking it for granted, that the friences had made a confiderable progress in China about 2000 years befor. Chr., and from thence arguing that the antiquity of China mutt be of a much higher date, becaufe a valt fpace of time must have paffed before the arts and fciences could have been redned to a regular fyftem. Who canno, but H fmile at this method of arguing, founded on a fuppoution which he hrnleif had just before allowed to be highly questionable, a fuppofition that is very far from being countenanced by ny improvements the Chinese have ev If the reader has feen Teoffrey of E Monmouth's ridiculous and absurd le. gend of the British kings defcended from Eneas, who reigned in England about too years before the defcent of Julius Cafar, he has feen a much bet ter told story than the antient history of China, M. de Mairan, and others who treat of China, are obliged to confers that the antient part of it ahounds with particulars that ought justly to be fufpected; but then, Tay they, though the facts may be questionable, the epochas are nevertheless juft, being founded on aftronomical Jobfervations. We hall apply this G reasoning to a part of our English hif tory, and fee how it looks. For exrample:We 'fhall fay, "We have reason to fufpect that there never was fuch a man as William the Conqueror, Ipetit is certain he fought the battle of Haflings, on Otiber 14, 1066, for that era is founded on aftronomical confervations ;"-and yet immediately after this kind of reasoning, we are -told by M. de Mairan, that these very fastronomical obfervations have been sfound false, and that the Chinese ma 10 mad made in science. We may as well din magine that the Mexicans, from their dexterity in managing their canoes, covered the ocean with fleets 4000 years ago, as to conclude from the learning of the Chinese, that the fciences flourished in their empire 3000 years before Chrift. A bers in the Temple; but here falling into a gay and diffipated courfe of life, he wafted his time till his father died, which happened not long afterwards, and finding his patrimony vely Tmall, he conceiva a defign of turning player. He had got acquainted with the principal actors of the time, particulaily Booth and Wilkes, and had form'd an intimate friendship with Ryan. To Ryan therefore he communicated his project, who approved it, and being introduced to the managers of Drurylane theatre, in August 1717, he was Having thus mentioned fome of the many reafons that difprove the antient history of China, I shall only add, that it has been the custom of ali nations to lay claim to the highest antiquity. Among the many proofs B which M. de Mairan gives that the Chi-engaged to appear the fucceeding win nefe and antient Egyptians were one 'Some Account of the Life of the late Mr JAMES QUIN, Comedian, extracted from a Work juft publiked. AMES QUIN, according to this account, was born in the parish of St Paul Covent Garden, in 1693. His fa ther was an English gentleman, who fome time after fames was born fettled in Ireland, where he greatly incumbered his eftare, which was not large. After his fon had acquired suf lent grammar learning, he lent bim to the university of Dublin, where he continued till he was 20 years of age. About this time he was fent intoEngland to study the law, and took cham ter, being then just 24 years old. He immediately began to ftudy feveral parts that were allotted him, but having acriminal correfpondence with the wife of a woollen draper in the Strand, and being furprifed with her at a bagnio, by the husband, he drew his fword in defence of himself, and his mistress, and wounded him in the thigh. Two profecutions being then commenced against him, one for cri. minal correfpondence, and another for an affault, he was obliged to quit the kingdom. He went, however, no farther than Ireland, where having no means of fubfiftence but thofe he had been trying in London, be applied to the managers of the play-houfe, and they received him. After fome time hearing that the gentleman whom he had injured Ewas dead, he returned to England, and fulfilled his engagements with the ma nagers of Drury lane. F G H He made his first appearance upon the stage of Drury lane theatre, in the year 1718, fo that his absence in Ireland must have been very short, he was, however, fays the writer of his life, long a mere feene drudge, a faggot of the drama; the parts therefore that we are told he was fudying, when he ran away to Ireland, could have employed no faculty but his memory, & as infignificant parts are neceffarily fhort, they could fcarce employ that more than the getting a ballad by heart. At length, however, he was permitted to play Banquo in Macbeth, & the Lieut. of the Tower in Rich. III. But it appears, that Quin did not continue in obfcurity more than two years; for in 1720 he was fuffered to attempt Falfaff in the Merry Wives of Windfor, at the theatre in Lincoln'sJan Fields, by the manager Mr Rich, though with great reluctance, and after much mortifying difapprobation. The audience were better judges of his |
