24 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
MANDEVILLE AND THE SEVARAMBIANS. 
ERHAPS your obliging Correspon- 
dent (No. 174, p. 17) will assist 
somewhat further in decyphering whether 
Mandeville reaily wrote the History of 
the Sevarambians. 
The early life of Mandeville is imper- 
fectiy known, The year and place of 
his birth are both unrecorded in the | 
more common biographical dictionaries. 
He graduated at Leyden in 1691, having 
chosen for the subject of his thesis a 
depraved chylification.* He is believed 
to have been employed by the ministers of 
William ILI. as an itinerant observer of 
the continent; and to have ultimately 
settled in London, under the patronage 
of his former employers, as a physician. 
In this capacity he made his debut by 
aprinting, in 1711, a treatise in dialogue, 
on Hypochondriac Diseases, ; 
Now the History of the Sevarambians, 
“although the second edition may be 
‘phtly dated in 1716, was originally pub- 
“shed before the peace of Utrecht, which 
occurred in 1712, and while the war was 
in full activity, as the following passage 
of the preface shews:— It were theres 
fore to be wished that a bheppy peace 
would give princes leisure to think of 
things of this nature; and to endeavour 
at such laudable and useful discoveries of 
unknown regions, by which, without any 
great expence, they might procure an in- 
estimable advantage to the world, do ho- 
nour to their country, and acquire a ne- 
ver-dying fame. In short, if they would 
employ but a small part of their superflu- 
ous wealth for the maintenance of a set 
ef ingenious young men, and send them 
into foreign parts, to remark every thing 
worthy of observation, and make faitbful 
reports thereof, they would derive on 
themselves a solid glory, accompanied 
perhaps with other advantages sufficient 
to repay the cost of such an enterprize.” 
Mandeville might therefore still bea 
denizen of the continent, when the His- 
tory of the Sevarambians first came out. 
There are marks of its having been writ- 
ten by a physician, as in the discussion 
respecting a polygainy of husbands (part 
I.); bya sceptic about future existence 
(part IT. and part V.); and by an eager 
reader of Bayle (compare the words of 
the preface relative to Virgilius, bishop of 
ih oi with Bayle’s article): now these 
three features of mind belong to Mande- 
Deen a ee EE a a ae aT Ta al 
‘ * De Chylosi vitiata. 
Mandeville and the Sesarambians. 
[Oct, t 
ville. They are not indeed very pecu- 
liar, A familiar knowledge of Holland 
and its colunies appears in the fabricated 
ship papers. ; 
= 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. - 
SIR, 
Vy ITHOUT calling in question the ~ 
veracity of your “ old Corres- 
nondent” respecting the creel practice 
all. ded to, IT am far from admitting. 
that cruelty is an innate principle in the 
human mind; because even those who 
practise it will generally disclaim the idea 
of being at the same time both the actor 
and the instigator, Ask the butcher 
why he slaughters an animal with so little 
remorse, and he wiil tell you that it is for 
the public benefit. Ask the soldier why 
in battle he destroys his fellow-creatures, 
and he will tell you that he must obey or- 
ders. Ask the hangman why he ties up 
the unfortunate malefactor with so much 
sang froid, and he will say that if he 
does not do it, another will, and why may 
not he earn an honest penny, as well as 
another. And I doubt not thatif the 
poulterer is asked why he “ plucks his 
fowls” before the spark of ife is extinct, 
he will answer that such is the daintiness 
and fastidiousxess of his fair customers, 
that if the smallest particle of the skin 
should be torn, the fow! would be deemed 
unworthy to appear on their tabie; and 
that if the unhappy bird should be suier- 
ed to grow cold before the operation of 
“ plucking” took place, such an accident 
might possibly happen. 
It is by no means my intentiou to vin- 
dicate the poulterer who may be guilty of 
so shameful a practice; on the contrary, 
he merits the deprecation of evéry feel- 
ing mind; but there certainly is a great 
degree of blame attaching to those of 
either sex who connive at, and ave in 
fact the very promoters and instigators 
of, such barbarous customs. Iam, Sir, 
Your's, &c. 
Woburn, Sept. 8, 1808. 3 
a 
For the Monthiy Magazine. ; 
REMARKS on the POETIC ROMANCE OF 
MARMION. 
(Concluded from p. 102.) 
CANTO. IV. 
ARLY the next morning prepara- 
tions were made for the departure 
of Marmion and his retinue; but the 
steed of Marmion was, to the astonish- 
ment of all but Eustace, found dying 10 
his stall, add ozer'mired. Marmion, howe 
: “omever, 
