514 
much as it abounds with excellent phi- 
lofophical reflections, and is. written in a 
correét and manly ftyle. If che ingeni- 
ous profeffor continue the hiftory of. all 
other European ftates, with the fame 
degree of accurate difcrimination between- 
faéts and opinions, we venture to pro- 
nounce,; that he will juftly deferve the 
firftt rank among modern hiftorians. As 
he has undertaken a very arduous, and 
| fatizuing talk, we can only wifh him the 
niece flay portion of indefatigable induf- 
try, which charaéterizes his. native con- 
temporaries, and we make no doubt but 
his labours will be crowned with fuccefs. 
—We cannot better conclude this de- 
partment, than with ‘* SCHILLER’s Hif- 
torico-genealogical Almanack, for the 
Year 1798,” in which . the hiftorical 
picture of Germany, on 238 pages, 12mo. 
is the principal and moft interefting ar- 
ticle. The author is well known to the 
Englifh reader by feveral dramatic pie- 
ces,. which have been tranflated and 
read with avidity, but particularly 
that of “ The Robbers.’ Wauthin the 
compafs of a few fheets, Schiller has fur- 
nifhed us, in a mafterly manner, with 
ss A Concife-Hiftory of the Germans, 
from: the Abdication of the Emperor 
Charles V. to the reign of Francis 11; 
or, from the Reformation of Luther, and 
the fubfequent Found-tion of religious 
Liberty in Germany, down to the pre- 
fent Time, when the Critical Philofo- 
phy begins to manifeft its Influence, and 
to develope as well as to {pread pro- 
greffively the Confequences of that Re- 
volution in Church and State; 7 e. 
from the year 1556 to 1797.’ Kant, 
the profefied founder of the Crztcal Sy/- 
tem, naturally finds a warm panegyrift 
in our hiftorian;.and, in order. to give 
a fhort fpecimen, of Schiller’s didattick 
mode of writing, we ‘hall fairhfully 
tranflate the concluding: lines of this 
hiftorical fketch : ** The Germans,” 
fays he, “ muft now endeavour to fa- 
‘6 tisfy the loud and univerfal wifhes for 
s¢ ameliorating the abject condition of 
_ $© the lower claffes of fociety ; to banith 
«¢ the immoral practices carried en in 
“the political departments of their 
s¢ country ; to conciliate that opprobrious 
¢\ and increafing conteft between the 
‘s civil and religious eftablithments with 
« the fpirit of the times, and the. pre- 
<< yailing opinions and withes of nations 
to a&t and to be treated confiftenrly 
“‘ with the more correct notions and 
ideas of things they have acquired. 
“ Thus only will they pave the way 
Retrofpedt of German Literature.—Politics. 
~ [Sup. 
‘“* which leads to the higheft degree of 
‘© human happinefs; a happinefs, which 
-confifts only .in the dominion of 
reafon, in thinking juftly, and acting 
uprightly.”’ 
a nn 
nA ey wn 
POLITICS... 
It can-fcarcely be expeéted, that in a 
country, where the political interelts of 
fo great a variety of fovereign fiates are 
not cemented by one common tic, there 
fhould appear many impartial difquifi- 
tions. By far the greater number of 
books, publifhed on the fubjeét of poli- 
tics, in Germany, are tranflations from 
the French or Englifh, not unfrequently 
accompanied with notes and commen- 
taries. This circumftance, however, af- 
fords no proof, that the Germans poffefs 
no political talents, nor, that they have 
no original writers inthis favourite branch 
of Englifo literature. We have already 
mentioned the names of Schl6zer, and 
Schiller, in the preceding article, to 
which we might add a long lift of others, 
if we were not limited in our-plan. We 
muft content ourfelves with mentioning 
one or two publications, that have /ately 
appeared in this department. Mr. 
GENZ, a gentleman in a high fiation at” 
the court of Berlin, prefented the new 
king of Prufa, Frederic William III. 
on the day of his afcenfion to the throne 
(November 16th, 1797), with a very fpi- 
rited addrefs, which is now printed, 
and which, though it fills only 26 pages, 
octavo, is replete with the moft curious 
and -interefting matter, fuch as was, 
perhaps, never before exhibited to the 
view of an abfolute monarch, by a pri- 
vate individual. It is confidently re- 
ported, that the young king received 
this truly patriotic advice of Mr. Genz 
with, marks of fatisfaétion, and has not 
oply munificently rewarded him, but has 
aduaily adopted the principal fuggeftions 
of this modern Theophron. It is im- 
pofible to abridge the important truths 
conveyed in thete few pages, which: are 
already fo muchcondenfed; but we fhall 
gratify our readers with the perufal of 
one paflage only, relative to the liberty 
of the prefs, and which we deem wor- 
thy of being tranflated. ‘¢ Of all ob- 
* jedts,’’ fays Mr. G. -** that groan 
‘‘ under the deteftable weight of fet- 
ters, none are more oppreffed by it 
than the opinions of man. This fpe- 
cies of oppreffion is not merely per- 
nicious, becaufe it prevents the ‘good, 
but ‘aifo, becaufe it immediately pro- 
‘* motes the bad. Wirhont attending to 
“any other argument, there is one ef- 
“ fential 
