
346 ‘ Obfervations on Longevity. — 
tities I have marked in the above verfes, no 
notice will be taken ; but, fhould he un- 
fortunately make the falfe quantity not as 
the mafter likes, a flogging is the confe- 
quence. ‘Thus, let him read the verfe : 
IOGI ror BHeverog le 4 Evpupredwy eyatnywp, 
what an exclamation will be made by the 
mafter. ‘ yo@iuer, who ever heard of fuch 
a word ? Ip@ijs01, indeed ! 1¢diua, you fool ! 
Here, take himup! take him up!” Yet 
moderate yout rage, good mafter : :ofino 
is not a bit worfe than your ferunt, 
and novam, and nymphaé, and ten theu- 
fand other words, which you trochaize, to 
the deftruétion of al! tafte and metre. 
Two mes of merit in their refpeétive 
lines, Dr. Cooke, the late provoft of 
King’s College, and Mr. Burke, the 
orator, were fometimes in company 
togethers, the former was well ac- 
quainted with the Greek and Latin 
languages, the latter could read them 
beft through the medium of a French 
tranflation. The word wvedfigal was 
upon fome occafion ufed by the latter. 
The orator’s memory was faulty, and 
he pronounced the word with a falfe 
quantity veétigal, They who knew 
the provoft can alone conceive his 
triumph: veétigal! z as long as my 
arm, as long as your faves. The 
poor orator is faid to have been fo con- 
tounded, that he did not venture upon a 
Latin quotaticn for a year after. Poor 
erator! poor provoft ! for this one word, 
rightly corrected, how many thoufands 
did you both agree to pronounce without 
any regard to quantity. 
Strange, however, is the force of cuf- 
tom, and though I follow the Metron- 
arifton in private, yet, if I were again, 
zo addrefs a learned audience, I fhould do 
itr, I think, in as bad Latin, and with as 
bad a pronunciation, as any of the mal- 
ters of Eton or Wefiminfter. Your’s, 
Now. 35:1793- MopDULATOR. 
Ea 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
FEW years ago, Dr. A. Fothergill 
collected many infiances of uncom- 
mon longevity, in addition to thofe which 
had been given by Mr.. Whitehurft, in 
his “* Enquiry into the original State and 
Formation of the Earth,’ and communi- 
cated the fame, with fome general obler- 
_vations on longevity, tothe Literary and 
Philofophical Society of Manchefter. He 
did not, however, produce accounts of 
more than fifty perfons exceeding one hun- 
arved years of age, though, if the public 
prints and periodical publications,, from 
[ Nov. 
which many of his inflances are taken, 
are held to be fufficient authority, the lift 
might eafily have been greatly enlarged. 
I have, at different times, colleéted ae- 
counts of this kind, which, at prefent, 
form a lift of 107 petfons, who are record- 
ed to have died at the age of one hundred 
and tweniy years and upwards; and 
though fuch great ages may appear too 
far beyond the ufual term of life to afford 
many ufeful inferences, they are not un- 
worthy of fome attention, particularly as 
they appear to confirm the obfervations of 
others upon this fubjeét. It is difficult, 
and in many cafes impofflible, to afcertain 
the truth of accounts of this nature, and it 
muft be allowed very probable that fome 
inftances are exaggerated; but I believe 
the majority of thofe I have feleéted are 
not.very erroneous, and there can be little 
reafon to doubt that the age of every in- 
dividual in the lift, at leaft confiderably- 
exceeded a century. Of thefe 107 per- 
fons, two attained the age of 150 years, 
three to 152, one to 154, one to 169, and 
one is faid to have lived to upwards of 
175: the coniideration of fuch examples 
of great longevity has induced Dr. Hufe- 
land, in his work lately publithed, on the 
Art of prolonging Human Life, to fet 
down the poffible duration of life at 20e 
years. 
That longevity depends principally on 
conformity of conduét to the laws of na- 
ture, appears an indifputable faét; but 
from all thé obfervations that have been 
made, it likewife appears, that there are 
other circumftances which have canfider- 
able influence; of thefe, perhaps the 
moft certain, is defcent from long-lived 
anceftors, Dr. Ruth, of Philadelphia, ob- 
ferves, that he has not found a fingle in- 
fiance of a perfon who had lived to,be Se 
years old, of whom this was not the cafe, 
and the accounts I have met with ftrongly 
confirm this obfervation. The climate 
of fome countries has alfo been fuppofed 
to be more favourable to longevity than 
others; thus Mr. Whitehurft afferted that 
Englifhmen in general were longer lived 
than North Americans, and Mr. W. 
Barton has fince endeavoured to prove the 
contrary ; of thefe two opinions, the above 
accounts would sppear in favour of the 
former, no lefs than 78 perfons out of the 
107 being inhabitants of Great Britain or 
Ireland; but whatever inferences of this 
kind national partiality may attempt te 
fupport, more extenfive obfervations will, 
in general, confirm the conclufion, that 
although longevity evidently _ prevails 
moxe in certain diftrifis than in ethers, 
