566 Extradsfrom the Port-folio of a Man of Inciters. [Jan. I. 



proteflion. To him fucceedcd in Hiflory, 

 Kilcop, find Prince Sclierebatof. But if 

 we cxcci't the travels of the celebrated 

 PatliiP, the Hiftorical Rcfcarchcsof Mul- 

 ler, and fome other works upon Natural 

 Hiliory ; no literary production worthy 

 of being noticed has dirtingiiiflied Rirllia 

 durinc; the reign of Catherine II. Na- 

 tural Hiftory and iVIatliernatics are the 

 only fciences which the Ruffians Lave 

 conrribiitcd iu fome degree to advance, 

 and even thofc, however trifling, have 

 been by the help of Gcnnany ; yet no 

 count rv is fo fortunately fituated for ren- 

 dering the fciences the nioft cfl'cntial fcr- 

 viccs. Natural and ancient hiltory might 

 expect from her the moll artonilliing dii- 

 roveries. — The ruins of twenty cities at- 

 tcll that Tartary and Mongrelia were 

 once inhabited by poliflied nations, and 

 the monuments which are (till difcover- 

 ing, would liave realifcd the fubliaic con- 

 ceptions of Buffon and Bailli ; whole 

 libraries liave been difcovercd under the 

 Tuins of Alai-kitt, and amid the ruinous 

 heaps which /kirt the Irtilh. Thoufands of 

 manulcripts in unknown languages, and 

 many others in the languages of the Chi- 

 nefe, the Kalniucs, and the Mantfchoux, 

 are perifliing in tlie mouldy d(;fcrtcd ca- 

 binets of the Academy; had they re- 

 mained under the ruins till a govern- 

 ment Icfs barbarous had brought them 

 to light, they would have been better 

 preferred. 



I/)monofof diflingiiiflicd himfelf in fe- 

 vcral departments of literature, and ranks 

 high as a poet; but of all the native Ruf- 

 fians likely to be known by other coun- 

 tries, the moft extraordinary genius was 

 Sumorokof, w-ho may be called the 

 Shakefpeare of Rufli.a, and the founder of 

 Its drama. 



Ho was born at TVIofcow in 1727, but 

 received his education at St. Peteriliurg, 

 where he obtained the protection of 

 Count Schovalof, the favourite of the 

 Emprefs Elizabeth. — An early admiration 

 of the rrcnch drama, and particularly 

 for the works of Racine, of whom he al- 

 ■»vays f|)okc with cntliufiafm, led him to 

 devote hisuhole time to dramntic iludies. 

 His firft tragedy of ' Koref,' was the only 

 piece in Rulfui which was not a fcries of 

 nonfenfe. The great fuccefs of Koref at- 

 tracted the notice of the Eniprefs, who 

 commanded the play to be performed 

 before her, and encouraged the author to 

 perfevere in liis purfuits. In the follow- 

 ing years he fucccffivety produced the 

 tragedies of Hamlet, Ariitoua, the" falfe 

 UeiB^tjius, Zemim, .autl others ; befides 



the Comedies of the Judge, the Tutor, tlie 

 Envious Man, the Impoftor, &c. &c. 

 and three Operas. 



Sumorokof had no reafon to tomplain 

 eitlier of his country, or of the times in 

 which he lived. Elizabeth raifed him 

 to tlie rank of brigadier in the army, and 

 ajspointed him manager of the theatre, 

 witli a penfion of 1800 roubles. Catherine 

 II. made him a counfellor of ftate, in- 

 verted him with the order of St. Anne, 

 conferred on him honours and wealth 

 till his death, which happened in 1777 at 

 Mofcow, in the .5111 year of liisage. 



Notwithltanding all thefe advantages, 

 Sumorokof polfeffcd too mucli of the 

 ' prnvs irritabUe latum,' to be happy. 

 Bleffed with talents the moll uncommon, 

 and endowed with fuperior accomplilli- 

 ments, he had all thole eccentricities and 

 defetts which ufually accompany genius. 

 — His character as an author, was that 

 of fenfibility bordering on pcevillincfs, 

 wliich would not fuffer him to fubmit to 

 criticifin, even where it was well founded; 

 and the exccflivc applaufe and flattery 

 of his countrymen, working upon a dii- 

 pofition naturally proud and vain, induced 

 him to fonn the moll oxtravaixant opinion 

 of himfelf, and of the particular hue of 

 literature ni which he excelled. 



DUO LOS. 



It is faid of Duclos, that he never fat 

 down to write till he had frequently con- 

 verfed with his friends, on tlie fubje^t he 

 intended to treat ; not for the purpofe of 

 receiving iiints for tlic iniprovement of 

 his propofcd work, but that the warmth 

 of converfation might excite a quicker 

 train of ideas in his ow-n mind. — " With 

 this alliftance, (lie would fay,) I find 

 in a few hours, what it would take me 

 whole days to acquire in my clofet, and 

 w hich I niight,, probably, not acquire at . 

 all. I would even talk to my fervaiit if 

 I could not procure a nioje competent 

 judge to convcrfe with ; even this would 

 be better than folitary meditation." 



IT.M.IAN LITEKATUKK. 



The interval comprehended between 

 the dawn of learning, after a long night 

 of ignorance and barbarifm, to the limt 

 when it attained its meridian fpk'iidour, 

 fonns a period liighly interelling to the 

 literary inquirer. To Italy we art; in- 

 debted for this revival of knowledge and 

 talie, as the nurfc of every fcience, the 

 country which produced and cheriflied a 

 long lill of fcholais and poets, who con- 

 tributed to the relloration of letters, and 

 T€vivcd the glorious days of Augufius. 



Tha 



