PRELUDES TO. KNOWLEDGE—LIFE OF MOSES—LESSONS OF FENELON, &c. 453 
Agr. VI. Preludes to Knowledge; or, amusing and instructive Conversations on 
History, Astronomy, Geography, Optics, and the Division of Time in different Countries. 
Interspersed with Stories msral and entertaining 
thor of “ James Manners and his Dog Bluff.” 
THESE stories are above the capa- 
city of children to whom they are ad- 
dressed, and are too superficial for chil- 
Arr. [X. The History of Man. 
WE should think that children would 
find this little compilation duli and wea- 
"yisome: anecdotes of men and manners 
By EvizavETH SOMERVILLE: Au- 
18mo. pp. 194. 
. 
< 
dren of more advanced age. The vo- 
lume abounds in typographical errors, 
which is an unpardonable fault. 
12mo. 
are wanting to enliven dry descriptions 
ot dress. 
Arr. X. The Life of Moses ; designed for the Amusement and Instruction of Youth. By 
a Lady. 
THE writer of these pages prefers 
two claims upon the public, which are 
; never urged in vain. She is young and in 
adversity, scarcely yet entered her twenty- 
second year; she has drunk deep of the 
Svo. pp, 75. 
fountain of human afftiction, nor has hi- 
therto been permitted to refuse the bitter 
draught of keen disappointment.”’ 
This little work is not destitute of me- 
rit, either in point of plan or execution. 
Arr. XI. The Elegant Preceptor : or, an Introduction to the Knowledge of the World ; 
containing Instructions in Morality, and useful and ornamental Accomplishments, selected 
from the W orks of ihe most eminent Writers. 
SCRAPS of morality from. Blair, 
Johnson, Addison, Steel, Edgeworth, 
18mo. pp. 136. 
Rousseau, Madame Genlis, cum multis 
aliis qua nunc perscribere longum est. 
Arr. XII. Lessons of Fenelon, late Archbishop of Cambiray, selectcd from: his Works, 
| for the Instruction of Youth. 
| THE Abbé Lévisac published last 
_ year a selection from the works of the 
2 Archbishop of Cambray, entitled Legons 
de Fenelon, of which an account was given 
in our former volume, p. 587.—By trans- 
lating these * lessons’ into English, the 
whole value of the book is totally de- 
* stroyed. There is no scarcity of excel- 
~ lent books for young people in our ‘own 
» language, but the number of French 
| Aer. XIII. 
Z, , Virtue and Improvemeut. 
Re. WE have no fault to find with the 
ay moral tendency of this little volume, ex- 
cept that it now and then inculcates that 
‘sickly nervous sensibility which is too 
much the characteristic of the present 
e. In every other respect, however, 
By M. ve Levisac. The whole translated from the 
most recent Editions of the Author’s Works. 
Svo. pp. 322. 
works adapted to the same purpose, and 
from the purity of their style serving also 
as exercises in that’ language, is but 
small. ‘The explanatory notes of the 
Abbé are totally omitted in this version, 
nor do we see any use to which it can be 
applied, except that of saving idle boys 
the trouble of turning over their diction- 
ary, and thus injuring themselves and de- 
ceiving their masters and parents. 
Evenings Rationally Employed; or, Moral and Entertaining Incentives to 
By W. Heine. 8vo. pp. 270. 
the book is wholly worthless. The style 
is wretched; a large proportion of the 
facts recorded are vulgar and long ex- 
ploded errors; and the proper names of 
persons, places, and things, betray gross 
ignorance or shameful carelessness. 
Art. XIV. An Introduction to Philosophical and Physical Geography : in which all the 
Operations and Appearances of Nature are demonstrated to be the Result of natural Causes. 
Likewise the Cause and Origin of Mountains, Rivers, the Properties of the Sea, Springs, 
as a Mineral Waters, Hot Baths, Sc. explained. To which is added, an Explanation of 
the different Lengths of Days and Nights, the Vicissitudes of the Seasons, Sc. 8vo. 
' pp. 124. One plate. i 
___ IT will not be supposed that a satis- tioned in the ample title page, which we 
factory explanation of the subjects men- have just transcribed, can possibly be 
c 
xf J 
| 75a x 
