102 
which was publifhed by Debure, in three 
volumes 8vo. in 1792. The two frk 
volumes of this cataiogue, entitled, Index 
Librorum abinventa Typograpbia, contained 
a moft curious relation of the original of 
the invention of printing, with a fimilar 
hiftory of engravings in wood and cop- 
per, and a prodigious number of the firft 
editions of the Greek and Latin claffics. 
The laft volume contained the moft fu- 
perb and accurate modern editions of the 
fame claflics; authors, in large paper ; 
a great number of books printed on vel- 
lum ; prayer-books by Nic. Farry, de- 
corated with flowers and miniatures ; 
feveral books of cuts; a grand eflem- 
blage of the fineft books of antiquities ; 
and a moft beautiful and complete co!- 
leétion of trave's, by Tacodore de Brie, in 
29 volumes in folio, bound ina ftyle of 
incomparable elegance. The bulk of 
this fplendid library was fold in retail, 
at the Hotel de Bouillon, many articles 
ef it having been previoufly conveyed 
abroad and difperted. 
In the farne Hotel de Bouillon was 
alfo fold by auétion, the library of the 
late famous MrraBpeau, member of the 
firft National Affembly. This collection 
was by no means fo extenfive as thefe 
of Lamoignon or Brienne, although it 
contained, like them, the moit coftly 
works, and the beft editions. It was 
rather, indeed, 4 fketch of the immenfe 
library he meant to have accumulated, 
if he had not been prevented by a pre- 
mature death. What renders its dif- 
perfion the more unfortunate, is, that it 
was made up for the moft part out of 
the fine colle€tion of the celebrated 
Count de Buffon. 
London, Feb. 4, 1797. 

Io the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
ie the prefent interruption of our po- 
litical and literary commerce with 
Irary, the following Skxxo, relative 
to the prefent ftate of literature in that 
country (which I have been at fome 
pains to colleét and tranflate from foreign 
journals and other publications) will, I 
prefume, be an acceptable morceau to 
you and yourreaders. I know not whe- 
ther the prefent fituation of the political 
circumftances of Italy may not even give 
an additional intereft to the article. 
It is well known, that in Italy, every 
city entitled toany confideration, is pro- 
vided with academies of natural hiftory, 
of architecture, antiquities, and poetry ; 
an obfervatury, a gymnafium or inftitute, - 
Prefent State of Literature in Italy. 
[ Feb. 
&c. and that the greater part of thefe 
focieties publifh their memoirs, contain- 
ing the refult of their inveftigations at 
regular and ftated periods. ‘Thefe col- 
lections, however, are for the moft part 
circumf{eribed, more or lefs, within the li-. 
mits of their own vicinage, and are fel- 
dom or ever known to pais the Alps. In 
faét, the whole ftock of Italian biblio- 
graphy, if we except the libraries | of 
Venice and Baffano, 1s rather tied down 
toa narrow retail bufinefs,-than export- 
ed in a produ€iive intercourfe with fo- 
reigners, or even expanded into a re- 
{pectable internal circulation. 
LITERARY JOURNALS. ~ = 
On the fame account it is, that the 
Italian literary journals are neither able 
to give a competent account of the peri- 
odical produétions of their country, nor 
even to fupport themfelves for any iength 
of time. Thus, the Efemerid: di Roma, 
the Novelle Litterarie di «Firenze, the 
journal publifhed every month at Ve- 
_ nice, by ANGLIETTI, ana the Grernale dt 
Pifa, by FaBRONI, three or four vo- 
lumes of which are generally publithed 
in the courfe of every year, have expe- 
rienced in their progrefs a number of 
interruptions, fo that itis, and has been, 
exceedingly difficult, and efpecially for 
foreigners, to procure complete fets of 
any of thefe works. The Giornale dela 
Litteraiura Italiana, primted at Mantua, 
and the Efemeride Encyclopediche di Na- 
joli, are the publications the moft to be 
depended upon with refpeét to the regu- 
larity of their appearance. This laf 
work, however, chiefiy furnifhes original 
pieces, although it alto gives, 0: cafional- 
ly, fome announcements and critigues 
on new publications. Of the former 
work, a volume (the fifth) appeared 
towards the end of the year 1795. Till 
lately, a volume, divided into two parts, 
was publifhed every three months; by 
a new arrangement, however, two vo- - 
lumes only are now publifhed in a year, 
that is, one every fix months (price 13 
paoli, ready money). It is not pothble 
that this journal, although by far the 
moft complete of any. fhould be able to 
preftnt a fatisfactory analyfis of all the 
new literary performances which appear 
in the courle of the fame year 3; it gives, ~ 
however, a concife preliminary notice of 
them, at the end of every year. 
MEMOIRS OF SOCIETIES. — 
Among the memoirs of literary bo- 
dies, thofe of the Florentine fociety of 
Georgipbiles deferve an honourable men- 
tion in this place. The aétive Leopold 
infuled 
