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Ing us to corltroul our paflions, and moderate bur feelings, the 

 German Drama is calculated to operate effeds direflly contrary ; 

 and the perufal of fuch writings muft be peculiarly injurious to 

 young perfons of both fexes. They reprefent the force of paflion 

 as irrefiftible, and all oppofition to its impulfe as fruitlefs and ab- 

 furd, indeed, they go farther, they encourage a blind and head- 

 long fubmiflion to the unbridled fway of paflion. They even 

 juftify it, as meritorious, as an ad of obedience to the fupreme 

 decrees of Heaven, a conformity with the unchangeable order of 

 nature. Thefe writings fap and unnerve the foundnefs of the in- 

 telled. They feed and difFufe a prevailing malady of the times, 

 which has taken too full pofleflion of the female world, and, in- 

 deed, of many men, under the name q£ fentiment ; a malady, 

 which deifies a certain unmeaning, undefcribable quicknefs of 

 feeling ; and exalts a morbid and abfurd fenfibility, into the per- 

 fedion of human nature. 



I DO not yield implicit credit to all the tales, which Barruel and 

 Robifon have publifhed, refpeding the charader and defigns of the 

 illuminated : but I am ready to admit, that a fpirit of innovation is 

 afloat. The genius and the mortal injlruments are now in council— 

 and fome of the moft ingenious and learned men, not only 

 throughout Germany, but in moft other parts of Europe, are un- 

 friendly to the prefent eftablifhments in Church and State. The 

 produdions of the German Mufes, it muft be acknowledged, bear 



( F 2 ) ftrong 



