370 Revie'vos, and Notices respecting New Books. 



desirous that the other important labours on which he is engaged 

 may be speedily completed. Of Mr. Rickman's devotion to these pur- 

 suits we have had too many proofs to permit us to suppose that he 

 will ever relinquish that which lie has begun. The public eye is fixed 

 upon his labours, and the gratitude of every lover of statistics await* 

 him. He has set a splendid example for another and another gene- 

 ration to follow. 



Dr. Pearson's Introduction to Practical /Astronomy. 4to. 2 vols. 



It has been observed, and with much truth, that a great book is a 

 great evil. To those numerous works of the present day which 

 have their bulk enormously increased by a redundancy of uninter- 

 esting and superfluous matter, the severe censure implied in this 

 observation cannot be too unmercifully applied. When we were 

 favoured with a copy of the work under consideration for our pe- 

 rusal, we were under some apprehension that it might be subject to 

 the above censure. It professes to be an " Introduction to Practical 

 Astronomy;" and when we contrasted the small compass into which 

 the few existing treatises on this subject are compressed, with the 

 bulkiness of these volumes by Dr. Pearson, we were fearful that the 

 extent of the work was more than commensurate with the subject. 



A very hasty glance over the contents of the pages, however, 

 quickly convinced us that we were greatly in error, and induced 

 us to give the whole work that strict and attentive examination 

 which it so justly demands, and from which alone its merits can 

 be duly appreciated. 



The volumes before us do not consist of an oppressive accunou- 

 lation of extraneous and redundant matter, but of an extensive col- 

 lection of every thing that is curious and valuable in the history 

 and practice of the interesting science of which they treat : and in 

 addition to this valuable concentration of the labours of others, 

 there will also be found a large mass of original matter resulting 

 from the long practical experience of the learned and ingenious 

 author; who has spared no expense in furnishing himself with the 

 very best instruments that human ingenuity can contrive, and no 

 labour in conducting experiments and examining results tending in 

 any degree to illustrate the subject. 



The author has given to this work the modest title of being 

 merely an " Introduction to Practical Astronomy." We must, how- 

 ever, pronounce it to be much more. It not only brings us into the 

 subject, but leads us most carefully through all its intricacies ; nor is 

 there any part in the practical department that is not most com- 

 pletely explained and illustrated. 



To do justice to this subject manifestly requires a person not 

 only of considerable talent, but of long experience in the manage- 

 ment of instruments. No person could have been found better 

 qualified in every respect for this undertaking than our author ; and 

 we have great reason to congratulate ourselves that his inclinations 

 have led him to labour in this troublesome department of science, 

 where so little has been done, and where so much was wanted. 



