Sale of Paintings, fs'f. in Italy.— Civil Engineers, 9 <f 



Republic, being defirous of fpeedily difpofing of all thefe mafter-picces of art, has charged 

 citizen Hubert (who is) attached to the adminiftration of finances in quality of artift, to 

 offer them forfale to individuals, or focieties. The lovers of the arts, academies of paint- 

 ing, fculpture, and the fciences, will have a matchlefs opportunity of acquiring the trea- 

 fures of art, of which catalogues are in the hands of the whole world, and defcriptions in 

 all the publications of travels through Italy. 



It will therefore fuffice to offer for fale the marbles of the famous Villa Albani, the gal- 

 leries of the Princes Albani, Brafchi, and other monuments, of which a catalogue will be 

 given, with eftimates of price made by artifts, upon which a confiderable abatement will be 

 allowed. Bills (payable) in gold or filver on neutral countries, fuch as Florence, Venice, 

 Vienna, and even Switzerland, will be accepted. Purchafers belonging to nations at war 

 with France will have paffports for tranfporting whatever they may purchafe, whether by 

 land or by fea, and for embarking the fame at the ports of Rome and Civita Vecchia. The 

 agents belonging to the fame inimical powers may, on their approach to Italy, procure all 

 the neceffary paffports to come with all fecurity to treat and choofe themfelves the objects 

 which may fuit their wilhes, by addreffmg Citizen Hubert, rue de la Croce, at Rome. 

 Speed and ready money are the beft means to be ufed in this bufinefs. Feb. 28th, 1798. 



The foregoing advertifement was fent by the therein mentioned Hubert to Mr. Trevor, 

 the Britifli Miniller at Turin, and by him tranfmitted to Sir Richard Worflcy in London, 

 ■where it arrived on the '27th of March. 1 obtained it of the Right Hon. Sir Jofeph Banks, 

 Bart. It is unneceffary for me to make any comment, either political or otherwife, on Its 

 contents. wmm 



Account of the Society of Civil Engineers. [Concluded from p. 48.] 



THE fame period gave rife alfo to an affociation of fome gentlemen employed as above- 

 mentioned. They often met accidentally, prior to that union, in the houfes of parliament 

 and in courts of juflice, each maintaining the propriety of his own defigns, without know- 

 ing much of each other. It was however propofed by one gentleman to Mr. Smeaton, 

 that fuch a ftate of the profeffion, then crude and in its infancy, was improper ; and that it 

 would be well if fome fort of occafional meeting in a friendly way was to be held, where 

 they might fliake hands together and be perfonally known to one another. That thus the 

 fharp edges of their minds might be rubbed off, as it were, by a clofer communication of 

 ideas, no ways naturally hodile; and might promote the true end of the public bufinefs upon- 

 which they fliould happen to meet in the courfe of their employment, without joftling one 

 another with rudenefs too common in the unworthy part of the advocates of the law, whofe ' 

 jntereft it might be to pufli them on perhaps too far in difcuJIing points in contefl. 



Mr. Smeaton immediately perceived the utility of the idea, and at once embraced it. In' 

 March 1771, a fmall meeting was firft eftablifhed on Friday evenings, after the labours of' 

 the day were over, at the Queen's Head tavern, Holborn. And from a few members at 

 firft, it foon increafed, fo that in the fpace of twenty years they amounted to fixty-five and 

 upwards. But of thefe there were only about fifteen who were real engineers employed 

 in public works, or private undertakings of great magnitude. 



Among thefe we find the names of Yeoman, Smeaton, Grundy, Milne, Nickallsj Jeffop,''^ 

 Golborne, Whitworth, Edwards, Jofeph Prieftlcy, Major Watfon, Bouhon, Whltfehurft, 

 Rennie, Watt, and fome others. The other members were either amateurs, or ingenidtHfl 

 workmen and artificers conneded with and employed in works of engineering. 'liii}?!" 



This 



