. Book 
of the Scottifh epifcopal church. The 
former, whether confidered as a divine, 
as a hiftorian, or fimply. as an elegant 
writer, is indifputably one of the moft 
illufrious ornaments of the’ Britith ii- 
terature of the feventeenth century. 
Sportriswoop’s Church Hiftory is 
likewife a very valuable work. There 
is more of pedantry than of refearch or 
good writing, in DRuMMOND’s Hiftory 
of the Five Jamefes. The prefoyterian 
clergy compofed, during the fame pe- 
riod, nothing of any latting value, fave 
fome practical treatifes of Calviniftic 
theology, with fome memozrs and hifto- 
rical collefions. The works of Gu- 
THRIE, MARSHAL, and SCOUGAL, are 
excellent manuals of piety, which will 
long continue to be ufefully read. The 
political traéts of DRUMMOND, whe- 
ther grave or humorous, and thofe of 
FLETCHER, have not been fince re- 
markably excelled. NaprterR’s noble 
mathematical inventions are univerfally 
known. SAUNDERS, at St. Andrew’s, 
GREGORY, at Aberdeen, and others, 
taught, during this century, the mathe- 
matics of the ancients, and the natural 
philofophy of CopERNICus, GALILEO, 
and Des CarRTEs, with no contempti- 
ble intelligence and fuccefs, About the 
clofe of the century,the celebrated Law, 
a native of the county of Mid Lothian, 
publifhed at Edinburgh one or two 
pamphiets, in which were, for the firf 
time, unfolded fome hints which have 
been fince gradually correéted, and ex- 
panded into thofe theories of bank:ng and 
commerce which are, at prefent, univer- 
fally received. In the debates which 
arofe in the Scottifh parliament, between 
the zera of the revolution and that of the 
union; there was often difplayed an elo- 
quence highly argumentative, vigorous, 
and impaffioned. In the latter half of 
the feventeenth century, the profefiion 
of medicine began to rife to confiderable 
diftinétion among the Scots. SIBBALD, 
PiTcaiRNE, and fome other phyfi- 
cians who flourifhed in this period, at 
Edinburgh, were men of honourable 
defcent, gained large emoluments from 
their profeffional praétice, and culti- 
“yated, with zeal and fuccefs, both that 
medicine, which they profeffed, and 
thofe other phyfical fciences, which were 
the moft intimately conneéted with ir. 
"The works of S1gBaLp, illuftrative of 
‘the Natural Hifiry and the Antiquities 
of Scotland, are ftill efteemed as the 
moft yaluable we poffefs upon their re- 
264. 
Clubs. [Or] 
{pe&tive-fubjects. Befides his eminence 
in Latin poefy, Prrcairne diftinguifh- 
ed himfelf as an illuftrious improyer of 
medical theory ; and his merits were 
alike admired at home and abread. In 
the courfe of this period, the vernacular 
dialeé&t of Scotland feems to have been 
gradually impregnated with the pecu- | 
harities of that of England, tall, at laf, 
almoft every Scottifh writer became will- 
ing to difmifs, as muchas poflible, from 
his compofitions whatever might appear, 
either in phrafeology or conftruétion, to 
be peculiarly Scortifh. Their endea- 
vours after pure Anglicifm were, indeed, 
fcarcelyin any inftance completely fuccefi- 
ful ; even the beft of them wrote a fyle 
which was neither, Scottifh nor Englifh. 
During all this time, the /eéfures in the 
univerfities, and the exercife required 
from the fudents, were-ufuallyiin “Latin. 
[To be continued in our next.) 

To the Editor of the Montbly Magazine. 
SIR, ; P 
AGRE® with your correfpondent 
BENEVOLUs, p. 39, in-the high 
opinion he entertains ref{pecting the uti- 
lity of * Subfcription Reading Societies,”* 
and more efpecially, in withing that the 
beft plans for fuch inftitutions fhould be 
publifhed im your extenfively ufeful Ma- 
gazine. A plan which fhall render thefe 
focieties as ufeful as noffibie, fupprefs 
the effets cf party {pirit, and fecure to 
each member the gratification of his fa- 
vourite ftudics, without infringing upon 
thofe of others, is very much wanted. 
In the various journies which bufinefs 
has caufed me to take into moft parts of 
the kingdom, I have enquired occafionally 
among the members of thefe book-clubs, 
how their affairs are conduéted? and 
have often been told, that the committees 
are too apt to forget the nature“of the 
truft repofed in them, and feleét the 
books fo as to pleafe their own tafte or 
party humour, without a due regard to 
the wifhes and fentiments.of their con- 
ftituents. This is particularly the cafe 
where the clergy have moft influence, or 
are put upon the committees. All bocks 
upon theological or political fubjects, dif- 
fering from. their own fentiments upon 
thefe tcpics, are then admitted- with 
great relu€tance, or, indeed, generally 
rejeGted; whilft the writings of thofe 
who are in favour with our civil or ec- 
clefiaftical leaders, are voted in as a mat- 
ter of courfe. If fuch partial, pitiful 
conduct only affeéted the parties them- 
| a2 felves, 
a 
