Retrofpett of Donieffic Literature.—Whfcellanies. 
Pontey”? are entertaining and inftructive ; 
the fame may truly be faid of ‘* The 
Stories of Senex; or, Little Hiftories of 
Little People; by E.A. Kenpat.” 
Mifs Lucy Peacock has publifhed 
a tranflation of M. La Croze’s Abrégé 
Chronologique, to which fhe has made 
an ufeful addition, in order to bring down 
the chronology to the prefent time. 
MISCELLANIES. 
Mr. Matone, the pattern of edito- 
rial induftry, has collected, ‘* The cri- 
tical and mifcel’aneous profe Works of 
John Dryden” into three clumfy volumes; 
a very copious account is given of the 
life and writings of the author, grounded 
on original and authentic documents, to- 
gether with a colleétion of his letters, the 
greate(t part of which has never before 
been publifhed. However we may {mile 
at or yawn over the prolixity of Mr. Ma- 
Jone’s narrative, the literary world is 
undoubtedly under confiderable obliga- 
tions to him for having correéted the 
many erroneous accounts which have 
been given by different writers of the 
life of Dryden, and for having thus 
colleéted the fcatrered productions of one 
of the greateft geniufes of his age, of a 
man who improved the ftyle of his native 
Tanguage no lefs by his profe than by 
his poetic compofitions. 
Mr. Dunster’s ‘ Confiderations on 
Milton’s early Reading, and the Prima 
Stamina of Paradife Loft,” are addreffed 
in a letter to Dr. Falconer, a medical 
praétitioner under whofe excellent and 
friendly care the author placed himfelfin 
a lingering illnefs, from which if he has 
not yet, we fincerely hope that he foon 
may completely recover. “ Among 
the various obligations,” fays Mr. Dun- 
fter in the commencement of his letter, 
‘© which I owe to your friendfhip, the 
advice you gave me, when I firft became 
an invalid, to have always fome literary 
object in purfuir, but not of a fatiguing 
kind, is not one of the leaft. I have found 
the beft effeéts from it; and in forming 
from defultory reading colleétions for il- 
luftrating the works of our great claffic 
and divine poet, I am confident, that | 
have paffed through many hours of inva- 
lid languor and morbid oppreffion with 
infinitely lefs fenfibility of them, than I 
fhould have done if devoid of fome men- 
tal occupation,”” We are almoft too fel- 
fifh to deplore the circumftance which 
gave rife to the prefent publication, in 
which we think Mr. Dunfter has moft 
elearly traced the prima ftamina of Mile 
Montary Mae. 
613 
ton’s Paradife Loft to Sylvefter’s Du 
Bartas: very ftrong are the circum- 
ftances which make it probable that 
Milton mx? have been acquainted with 
the Englifh tranflation of that work, and 
very numerous and ftriking are the pa- 
rallel paffages which evince that Milton 
muft have retained in his memory many 
thoughts, paflages, and expretfions, which 
occur there. 
“* Memoirs relative to Egypt, writ- 
ten in that Country during the Cam- 
paign of General Bonaparte, in the 
Years 1798 and 1799, by the learned 
and {cientific Men who accompanied the 
French Expedition.” ‘This expedition 
we hope will at leaft be produétive of 
one advantage, namely, that of render- 
ing the European literati acquainted 
with the natural productions, the anti- 
quities, ftate of fociety, &c. in Egypt. 
The prefent volume contains many inte- 
refting memoirs; but from the fcanti- 
nefs of its contents, feanty, that is to fay, 
when compared with the expectations 
which had been formed of it, our cu- 
riofity is rather excited than allayed. 
Mo of the fubjeéts treated of in thefe 
papers relate to the arts, and to natural 
hiftory. There are memoirs on the ma- 
nufaéture of gunpowder—on the wing 
of the oftrich—on Arabian horfes—on 
the prevailing ophthalmia of Egypt—on a 
new fpecies of nymphaa—on the dying 
of cotton and flax by means of the car- 
thamus—on the Coptic monafteries, &c. 
&c. which altogether render the volume 
both inftruétive and amufing. 
M. Norry, one of the architeéts at- 
tached to the expedition, has publifhed a 
very entertaining and fpirited account of 
it. The public has alfo been favoured 
with a tranflation of citizen Ripaud’s 
“¢ Report” of the Commiffion of Arts to 
the firft conful Bonaparte on the antiqui- 
ties of Upper Egypt, and the prefent 
ftate of all the temples, palaces, obelifks, 
ftatues, tombs, pyramids, &c. of Philoey 
Syene, Thebes, Tentyris, Latopolis, 
Memphis, Heliopolis, 8c. &c. from the 
cataract of the Nile to Cairo. The pre- 
fent Report (which, though called an 
abridged defcription, 1s yet more parti- 
cular in its details than the publication 
we have juft noticed) prepares us to exe 
pe&t a moft magnificent and valuable 
work, which is now preparing under the 
aufpices of the chief conful, on the anti- 
quities of Hgypt. 
Mr. DRYANDER has prepared “ A’ 
Catalogue,” in three octavo volumes, of 
4K she © 
