4798.) — 
Tfaac firft applied his mind to putting it 
in praétice: and the w/@ of the Reflecting 
Telefcope may be faid to commence about 
t67of. The eye glafs may be either at 
the fide, or at the end, as the fimall mirror 
is placed: and the large mirror requires 
of courfe a tube far thicker and fhorter 
than the common telefcope, fo that five- 
feet length in the one is equal to one hun- 
dred and twenty-three in the other. 
It is furprifing that the popular books 
on aftronomy omit the invention of the 
Reflectmg Telefcope, the chief fource of 
modern difcoveries in aftronomy. . With- 
eut Gregory we should have had no 
- HERSCHEL. 
I thall only add, that in other refpects 
James Gregory was a werthy precurior of 
Newton, and defervesa nich between Des 
Cartes and our immortal piiulofopher. 
Gregory died at St. Andrews in Decem- 
ber 1675, aged oniy thirty-fx. Fora 
fuller account of his merits and inven- 
tions (among which fatter is the reflect- 
ing burning-giais), permit me to refer to 
the “ Biographia Britannica.” 
PHILASTER. 
woe 
TOUR OF ENGLAND. 
(Continued from page 276.) 
Journal of a Tour through almoft every county 
* in England, and partor Wales, by Mr.Joun 
Housman, of Corby, near Carlifle; who 
was engaged to make the Tour by a gentle- 
man of diftinétion, for the purpofe of col- 
JeGting authentic information relative to 
the ftate of the poor. The Journal com- 
prifes an account of the yeneral appearance 
of the country, of the foil, furface, build- 
ings, &c. with obfervations agricultural, 
commercial, &c. 
CTOBER 3:2, went from Briftel to 
! Cambridge in Gloucefterthire, 22 
miles. A good foil, and pleafant coun- 
try; the fields fmall; agreat number of 
oak and elm trees on hedge rows; the 
furface of the country contains a number 
of gentle iwells ; moft ot the land is in 
grais, and applied to the purpofes of dry- 
ing: as here the fine Gloucefter thire 
cheefe is made. Potatoes are lately begun 
tobe raifed in this diftri€t in large quan- 
tities, and are found extremely uleful and 
profitable : the recommendations of the 
Board of Agriculture to that purpote, I 
underftand, had confiderable weight with 
the farmers in promoting the culture of 
thatroot. Inthis diftri@ I alfo oblerved 


+ It was not in general ufe till A. D. 17 IQ, 
when Hadley rendered it more comimodious 
and portable. 
Mr. Howfman’s Tour continued. 
. 
423 
a number of very large orchards, loaden 
with apples: that fort of fruit is fo com- 
non here, that the owners do not find 
any neceflity of preferving it with high 
walls; on the contrary, it is very com- 
mon for public foot-paths to lead through 
orchards. Very few turnips are cultivated 
in this part of the country, nor is mueh 
grain produced. I however faw fome 
common fields in fmall parcels, which is 
the firft I remember to have ieen fince I 
left London the laft time. The road 
(which leads to Gloucefter) is in good re- 
pair; petrified fhells, &c. continue among 
the ftones and gravel, fome of which are 
large, and very curious. Buildings are 
generally neat and convenient. I continue 
in fight of the Severn moft part of this 
day’s journey, the direétion of the road 
being nearly parallel thereto ; that noble 
river is here feveral miles in breadth, and 
has more the appearance of anarm of the 
fea than a river: the ground on each fide 
has avery gentle fallto the water. Ex: 
tending my view a little to the north~ 
wards, I have a fine profpect of the hills 
in South Wales, fome of which, parti- 
cularly thoie to: the weftward, are very 
high and rugged. I purpofed going from 
Briftol directly into Wales, but the 
weather being extremely boifterous, and 
the paffage efteemed fomewhat dangerous, 
under that circumftance i preferred taking 
a rather circuitous route thither. ‘There 
is, I believe, no place in the Britith-do- 
minions where the tide rifes fo rapidly 
as in this channel, efpecially if a ftrong 
wind blows from the fame quarter, which 
is now the cafe. Wales, viewed from this 
road, has fomewhat the appearance of 
Scotland, as feen from that part of Cum- 
berland which lies between Workington 
and Bownefs, acro{s the Solway Frith. 
Cambridge is a fmall farming village, and 
built with ftone; moft of the parifh lies 
low and level, and is within the tide 
mark, which is kept out by mounds, or 
dykes: however, the uncommon flood 
which happened two nights ago, very 
unexpectedly broke through the dykes, 
and has done a great deal of damage. In 
this parifh alone it is fuppoled that soo 
fheep are drowned thereby. As it hap- 
pened in the night, the villagers were too 
long in being apprized that the fea had 
broken its bounds, fo that they only 
had time to get a part of their fheep 
driven off the ground; the cattle faved 
themfelves by fwimming out. Two men, 
in attempting to fecure the fheep, found 
themfelves furroundedwith the water before 
they were ayare, aad to fuch a depth that 
rendered 
