Nations lately become Literary, 3 1 3 



chapter, as doing him great honour. The trans- 

 lator Y.erig, is supported by the academy, to 

 study the Mongolian language among that people. 

 Leontief, of the college of foreign affairs, has 

 translated a great number of works from the Chi- 

 nese language, and may be considered among the 

 most accomplished scholars in Chinese literature 

 now living in Europe. And there is no want of 

 works in Russia, for learning a large portion of 

 the modern European languages. 



Literary Journals have never had much encou- 

 ragement or circulation in Russia. Several at- 

 tempts have been made to establish them, and they 

 have obtained a slender support for a time, but the 

 state of literature in that country is not sufficiently 

 popular to render works of this kind generally 

 sought after and read. Newspapers are also few 

 in number, and comparatively confined in their 

 dissemination. The nature of the government con- 

 spires with various other disadvantageous circum- 

 stances, to impose restraints on their circulation. 



During the last four years of the century under 

 review, literature, it is believed, has received much 

 less encouragement from the governing powers in 

 Russia than for a considerable period before. And 

 indeed, after all, it must be acknowledged, that 

 the advantages of education have by no means had 

 that general and equal diffusion in the empire 

 which is to be wished, and might have been ex- 

 pected; and that a large portion of the inhabitants 

 are still sunk in a degree of ignorance and bar- 

 barism, which the exertions of another century, 

 and of another succession of enterprizing sove- 

 reigns, will perhaps not be more than sufficient to 

 remove. 



vol. it. t% 



