1823.} 



vinces to England by the wise and conci- 

 liatory policy v.'liicli lie adopted. We do 

 not hesitate to assert, tliat, on an impar- 

 tial consideration of iiis ca'c, for vvliidi 

 the present volume furnishes ample mate- 

 rials, the character of Sir Gcor;;e Pre- 

 vo-it, both as a civil governor, and military 

 commander, will not only be foimd free 

 from reproach, but worthy of the liighest 

 commendation. 



We have fiiat vclnine!; of tivo new 

 works of Natural Philosophy ; the one bv 

 Professor Mii.lington of Loudon, and 

 the otLier by Professor Ltsi.iE of Edin- 

 bur(;h, A comjiarison of these systems 

 will exemplify the unsettled state of the 

 modem bases of Natural Philosopiiy, On 

 a system founded on truth and reason, two 

 livinj; professors could not diflcr widely; 

 but, in developing a system founded on 

 the va;ue hypotheses of ;:ratiiitoiis powers, 

 and of exploded superstitions, every two 

 expounders must ditfer as widely as tht; 

 two professors in question. In their 

 dcsciiptiou of phenomena they of course 

 ai;ree, but this is not philosophy ; while, in 

 cxplaiiiin:? first principles and causes, they 

 differ essentially. At the same time, on 

 their own grounds, or on the grounds 

 taught them by successive prcdece-sois, 

 they have produced able and peispicacions 

 books; and their works, when completed, 

 will supply desiderata in this bianch of 

 literaiure. The volume of the London 

 professor is the most experimental, and 

 therefore the most useful and practical; 

 while that of the Edinbur-;!! professor is 

 more erudite and methodical, 'i'he former 

 liowever teaches without equivocation all 

 tlK'niyslicisin of the 16lh anil 17 ih centu- 

 ries, while the latter ofiernpialifies them 

 by n<\v terms and neutral expres.vions ^ 

 linn, he no longer enters atiiaclion, re- 

 pulsion, and gravitation, in hi^ list of the 

 properlirs of matter, and substitutes 

 ca;>illaiy action for attraction; while at 

 page ;ii he speaks of attraclion and re- 

 pidsii n as exploded doctiines! The>e are 

 Kymptoms of an approxirnatiou towards 

 common .sense, on which we heartily con- 

 gratulate him ; and, we hope th.it his 

 coinage in respectins truth will be 

 attended with no colli-e iuconveiiience.s 

 for, ai public societies are constituted, 

 courage in a teacher is as essential even as 

 knowledge; and few lecturers, or pro- 

 lefsois, dare tell the whole triilh, and 

 nothing but the truth. We never met 

 with one who gravely insisted on the doc- 

 trines which he daily taught, and the 

 general reply is, "It does not much signify 

 — the people like it — I must live — and I 

 could not do so by opposing prejudices." 

 Such, alas, aie the philosuphcii of <t 

 coiniiierciul country ! 



The importance of discriminating aii<l 

 applying appropriate names to ihc Fossil 

 Hiulls, so profusely found embedded iti the 



Literary and Critical Proemium. 5-^5 



different strata of our island, towards snc- 

 cessfnlly .■studying its geology, and prepa- 

 ratory 10 the forming of just comp'.<risons 

 between our strata and those of other 

 coiinlries, and towards definitively set- 

 tling the piinciples of geological science, 

 have excited a strong interest in favour of 

 the periodical work, entitled, " Mineral 

 Concho'ogy," which the late Mr. James 

 Sowerby set on foot about eleven years 

 ago, and of which work tlie fourth volume 

 is just now completed, by the sons cf Mr» 

 S. (who appear, not merely to inherit the 

 library and museum, but the talents also of 

 their father.) accompanied by copious in- 

 dexes, which classify the shells according 

 to thoir stratigraphical and their geogra- 

 phical situations. The shells already de- 

 scribed by i\lessrs. S. amount to 73^ 

 species, (none of tlien prabably now living 

 ones,) uhieh are wiiU great accuracy and 

 spirit engraven, and coloured after na- 

 ture, accoiiipa;!ied by ample descriptions 

 in t!^e English language ; and, it is credita- 

 ble to our c<^uutry to know, that already 

 the slraia of England nnd Wales, as de- 

 scribed locally^ and wiih regard to their 

 actual super-position, in the geological 

 maps and .sections of Mr, .Smith, and as 

 tlieir imbedded fossil sliells are described 

 in this work of iMessrs. Sowerby, are 

 become lite slandardi for comparing and. 

 classifving the strata of other countries; 

 even those, from whence we were, but a 

 very few years ago, told tliat all geological 

 kii,)vvledge must emanate, so superior t» 

 m!1 others were the alleged natural ad- 

 vania;es there, for investigation, and so> 

 very transcendent the abilities and indus- 

 try which had boen emplojed on their (le- 

 velopnicnt, in " the geognosy !" 



'Jhe visitor.-i of the delightiiil jc-enery of 

 the Lake District of Cumberland and 

 Westmoreland, will derive considerable 

 assistance and pleasure, and the general 

 reader iniicli amuscmciii, from a neit and 

 jierspictious descriptioii of lliis district, by 

 IV] r. Joiiaihan Otley, of Keswick, an inge- 

 nious mechanic, whose aceiuireraenls iii 

 science are respectable ; and who, during 

 the summer seasons of many j)ast years^ 

 hax tie,)ucntly acted as the guide and 

 assistant to travellers, in search of the 

 pictures<|ue, and to the curious in geolojy, 

 mineralogy, botany, <S;c. who have been ir« 

 tent on exploring the romantic beauties, 

 the curious structure, or the natural pro- 

 ductions of this interesting <li-tricl. The 

 principal lakes, seventeen in number, are 

 iir.Ht described, and their chief beauties, as 

 viewed from different chosen spots, are 

 pointed out ; a gieat number of tlin 

 smaller lukes, locally called tarns, are next 

 desciihed, and tlien a itcscription follows 

 of the several rivers and occasional tor- 

 rents. All the chief wuter-falls of the 

 ('istrict arc then particniaii/ed. The 

 priuciyal niuuntains, fuuitetu ni uumber^ 



