#42) 
tained the substance of the work he 
afterwards published under the title 
of An Inquiry into the Nature and 
Causes of the Wealth of Nations. 
There was no. Situation in 
which the abilities of Mr. Smith 
appeared to greater advantage than 
as a professor. In delivering his 
lectures, he trusted almost entirely 
to extemporary elocution. His man- 
ner, though not graceful, was plain 
and unaffected; and as he seemed to 
be always interested in the subject, 
he never failed to interest his hear- 
ers, Each discourse consisted com- 
monly of several distinct proposi- 
tions, which he successively endea- 
voured to prove and _ illustrate. 
These propositions, when announced 
in general terms, bad, from their ex- 
tent, not unfrequently, something of 
the air of a paradox. In his at- 
tempts to explain them, he often 
appeared, at first, not to be suffi- 
¢iently possessed of the subject, and 
spoke with some hesitation. As he 
advanced, however, the matter 
seemed to crowd upon him, his 
Manner became warm and animated, 
and his expression easy and fluent. 
In points susceptible of controversy, 
you could easily disceru, that he se- 
¢retly conceived an opposition to 
his opinions, and that he was led, 
upon this account, to support them 
with greater energy and vehemence- 
By the fullness and variety of his 
illustrations, the subject gradually 
swelled in his hands, and acquired a 
dimension which, without a tedious 
repetition of the same views, was 
calculated to seize the attention of 
his audience, and to afford them 
pleasure, as well as instruction, in 
following the same object, through 
all the diversity of sh«des and aspects 
in which it was presented ; and aiter- 
wards in tracing it backwards to 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1795. 
that original proposition or general 
truth, from which this beautiful 
train of speculation had proceeded, 
His reputation as a professor 
was accordingly raised very high, 
and a multitude of students from a 
great distance. resorted to the uni- 
versity, merely upon his account. 
Those branches of science which he 
taught became fashionable at this 
place, and his opinions were the 
chief topics of discussion in clubs 
and literary societies. Even the 
small peculiarities in his pronuncias 
tion or manner of speaking became 
frequently the objects of imitation, 
While Mr. Smith was thus dis- 
tinguishing himself by his zeal and 
ability, as a public teacher, he wag 
gradually laying the foundatien of a 
more extensive reputation, by pre- 
paring for the press his system of 
morals. The first edition of this 
work appeared in 1759; under the 
title of ‘* The Theory of Moral 
Sertiments.” 
Hitherto Mr. Smith had re- 
mained unknown to the world asan 
author; nor have I heard that be 
had made a trial of his powers in 
any anonymous publications, except 
in a periodical work called the Edin- 
burgh Review, which was begun 
in the year 1755, by some gentle~ 
men of distinguished abilities, but 
which they were prevented by other 
engagements from carrying farther 
than the two first numbers. To this 
work Mr. Smith contributed a re- 
view of Dr. Johnson’s dictionary of 
the English language, and also @ 
letter, addressed to the editors, con- 
taining some general observations on 
the state of literature in the different 
countries of Europe. In the former 
of these papers, he points out some 
defects in Dr. Johnson’s plan, which 
he censures as not sufficiently gram- 
matical. 
