6J6 Retrospect of Domestic Literature — Travels, Voyages, &,'f. 



tlaflics: it will, as it were, make me 

 young again. By this arrangement we 

 liiall all be gainers, and we will begin 

 to-nionovv.' Accordingly, he had the 

 patience to explain the (ireek and Latin 

 authors to us, which he did with won- 

 derful perfpicuity ; and he appeared as 

 much pleal'cd with the rapid progrefs 

 which he perceived I made, as it" 1 had 

 been his own Ion." 



The dcfcription of the worthy family 

 in which M. Dutens was now fettled, 

 affords a lively intcreft to the reader. 

 The death of his pupil, however, put an 

 end to his occupation ; though he remain- 

 ed with Mr. Wyche till 1738 ; when he 

 became fecretary to iVIr. Mackenzie, the 

 envoy-extraordinary from Great Britain 

 to the court of Turin: on whofe return 

 to England, on the death of (icorge II., 

 M. Dutens was made churi^i: den nffnires, 

 in which lltuation he remained till 17(32. 

 Mr. Mackenzie, who was ilill mindful of 

 his friend, obtained the otTer for iiim from 

 the Duke of Northumberland, who was 

 then viceroy, of a dcanry in Ireland. 

 This M. Dutens refufcd ; but, by another 

 arrangement, quilted Turin, aiid.became 

 polTcfi'ed of a living of 800l. a year in 

 England. Soon after this he accompa- 

 oi«d Lord Algernon I'ercy, firll to France 

 and afterwards in the lour of Europe. 

 Another return to England fettled him 

 quietly on his living of Elfdon, till, when 

 Lord Moiuitltuart fuccecdcd to the poll 

 which Mr. Mackenzie had held, he went 

 once more, in an unotiicial capacity, to 

 Piedmont. For a lliort period he aftcd 

 again as charge Jen affuires, during Lord 

 Moiintftuari's abfence m England. On 

 his return, M. Dutens quitted Turin, and 

 having palled a lliovt relidence in Lom- 

 Lardy and France, arri\ ed tiually among 

 his friends in England. In 1786, he was 

 folicited by Lord Wallingham to go as 

 fecretary of the embally to Spain ; but 

 vas difappoinlcd, in confequeiice of his 

 pation's rciigiiing llie appointment for 

 that of poiiinafier-general. Since that 

 period Rl. Dutens has lived in relne- 

 nient, enjoying only the focit-ty of his 

 private fiiends andlileiary eafe. Ihrough- 

 out tlie four volumes, wh.jfe outluies 

 only are here noticed, a variety of curi- 

 ous and interelting anecdotes are inter- 

 fperfcd. Thole which it late to the 

 " Man in the Iron Ma(k" are entirely 

 new. The fifth volume is entitled " Du- 

 teiijluna," containing a collection of fuch 

 oblervalions, anecdotes, facls, {ketches, 

 traits of wit, dil'quifitions, and opinions, 

 as M. Diiteni in a courfe of thirty vcar» 



had collefted in his common-place book ; 

 a large portion of which were inferted 

 in his " Memotres d'un Voyageu/" in 

 1782. 



TRAVEtS, VOYAGES, &C. 



" Traveh from Buenos Ayres, by To- 

 toji to Lima ; by Anthony Zechakiaii 

 Helms. With Notts by the Tranjlator, 

 containing Topographical Defcriptions of 

 the Spant/h Tojfcjjions in South Atuciica, 

 4ruxin from the lutejl and beji Aulhori- 

 ties." 



The improvement which ]\I. de Born 

 of Vienna had incroduced into metal- 

 lurgy by a new method of amalgamation, 

 attracted the attention of the court 

 of Spain. The director general of the 

 Mexican mines was accordingly fent to 

 Hungary, to engage expert German mi- 

 ners in the Spanilh fervice ; the chief ot' 

 whom were M. Helms and the Baron von 

 Nordenflycht, the former being appoint- 

 ed director of the fmclting-houies and 

 the procefs of amalgamation, and the 

 latter director-general of the mines in 

 Peru. Accompanied by their families, 

 a few negro iervants, and the workmen 

 under them, they fiiiled from Cadiz for 

 Buenos Ayres ; and on the 29th of Oc- 

 tober, 178!!, the fpring I'cafon in that 

 part of the globe, began their journey in 

 an oblique direction acrols South Ame- 

 rica, through Tucuman, and over the 

 Cordilleras, to I'otofi and Lima ; an ex- 

 tent of way, amounting, from Buenos 

 Ayres to Potoli, to 1730 miles, and from 

 thence, through Culco and Guan<:a\e- 

 lica, to IGOOniiics. Invefled with titles, 

 but without real power, the (Iraugers 

 foon found their plans of indrucUon 

 thwarted and counteraftcd by the Spani- 

 ards. The ignorance of the American 

 overfeers was too nearly conuerted v\ith 

 their individual inierefts, to make them 

 wifli foi- a relijrni. What became of the 

 Baron von Nordenflycht we are not told ; 

 but Helms quitted his ofllce in difgnlt, 

 and embarked at Callao for Europe, af- 

 ter a reiidence of three years in Ame- 

 rica. Having been obliged to Ipend 

 feven months in Madrid, to have the 

 terms of his original agreement fulfilled, 

 he at lad obtained a iliiall penfion in 

 reward for his fervices and d.fappoint- 

 ments; and lived lately at Vienna. In 

 1798, he publilhcd the account here 

 given of his travels, which is in the pro- 

 per fiiufc of the v^'ord a Journal : every 

 page containing, unalteied, the remarks 

 which were made and written down upon 

 the fpot. W, Ilf Ims, however, is only a 



miner 



