Notices respecting New Books. 475 



the small corps of mathematicians and astronomers were defeated 

 under the dictatorship of Banks. On that occasion it was that Dr. 

 Horsley uttered his indignant oration to the President ; and which, 

 though frequently interrupted, he delivered with great force. As 

 Mr. Weld has not given this speech, an extract may serve to show 

 the nature of the argument. 



" We see that great numhers may be occasionally brought down to ballot 

 upon particular questions, who do not honour the Society with a very regular 

 attendance. We are well aware, Sir, that oppressive statutes mny be framed 

 in the Council, and with this support in the Society at large, received. We 

 understand that motions personally offensive and injurious may be brought 

 forward, and perhaps may be carried ; and by these means the remedies 

 which the scientific part of the Society would wish to apply to the abuses 

 which exist, may be prevented. But, Sir, I am united with a respectable 

 and numerous band, embracing, I believe, a majority of the scientific part 

 of this Society, — of those who do its scientific business. Sir, we shall have 

 one remedy in our power when all others fail : if other remedies should 

 fail, we can at least secede. Sir, when the hour of secession comes, the 

 President will be left with his train of feeble amateurs ; and that toy (point- 

 ing to the mace) upon the table, the ghost of that Society in which Philo- 

 sophy once reigned, and Newton presided as her minister." 



Apropos of this toy. It is well-known that in 1663 Charles II. 

 presented the Royal Society with a mace ; and that the same practice 

 respecting this official symbol exists at the Royal Society as is observed 

 in Parliament, namely, that it is put on the table when the chair is 

 taken. Now this mace was confidently asserted to be the identical 

 one referred to by Cromwell when he expelled the Commons from 

 their house, by ordering his soldiers to " Take away that bauble ;" 

 and which was therefore an eyesore to the king. Such was the 

 assurance ; and the story was as popular as accredited. In this state 

 of happy ignorance in comes Mr. Weld, and with his meddling among 

 the papers destroys the long-cherished illusion ; for he shows that it 

 was ordered to be made for the Society, and produces an every-day 

 kind of warrant for its being prepared and delivered. We know not 

 how this dissolution of the bauble of the Long Parliament will be 

 relished by the Fellows at large ; but we think they must approve of 

 the perseverance with which our author followed up his chase after 

 truth, and of the candid manner in which he has related it. 



An attentive perusal of the pages before us leaves the qucestio 

 vexata as to the best composition of the Royal Society — whether it 

 should consist of e merito members only, or the mixed leaven it now 

 exhibits — pretty much where it was ; there being, according to the 

 sage observation of Sir Roger de Coverley, much to be said on both 

 sides. Still it certainly does appear outre' that the phalanx of 

 science should contain such discordant elements, and admit of so 

 many counterfeits ; and it is unfortunate that these many are palmed 

 on the country with F.R.S. to their name, for no other reason than 

 the homely one of their money being required. To be sure, public 

 opinion settles this in some degree, since the necessity of so strange 

 amix ture is pretty well known ; and though the iroWol are noisy and 



2 1 2 



