/ET. 24.] THE ' EDINBURGH REVIEW/ 247 



was a very moderate classic ; he had not the smallest 

 knowledge of mathematics or of any science. He 

 could no more have edited, that is, sat in judgment 

 upon Play fair's article on f Mascheroni's Geometry/ 

 No. 17, p. 161 ; or on Delambert's paper on the 'Arc 

 of the Meridian/ No. 18, p. 373; or on Bentley's 

 'Hindu Astronomy/ No. 20, p. 455, than he could 

 have written the 'Principia/ 



He was an admirable joker; he had the art of 

 placing ordinary things in an infinitely ludicrous 

 point of view. I have seen him at dinner at Foston, 

 (his living near York) drive the servants from the 

 room with the tears running down their faces, in 

 peals of inextinguishable laughter : but he was too 

 much of a jack-pudding. On one occasion he was 

 the high -sheriff's chaplain, and had to preach the 

 assize sermon. I remember the bar, who were present 

 in York Minster, being rather startled at hearing him 

 give out as his text, " And a certain lawyer stood up 

 and tempted him!" But I am bound to say the 

 sermon was excellent and much to the purpose. 



Whatever faults he may have had, he had too much 

 good sense to be ashamed of his name ; he used jok- 

 ingly to say, " The Smiths have no right to crests or 

 coat-armour, for they always sealed their letters with 

 their thumbs!"* 



I think we owed the motto for the Eeview to the 

 painstaking and solemn Horner, who, being as in- 

 capable of understanding a joke as Smith was of 

 writing the ' Principia/ discovered in Publius Syrus, 



* See Appendix XVII. 



