51G> 
ahd elegant topographical works ever pub- 
lifhed.” ~The fecond part of it confifts en- 
titely of biographical and genéalogical 
colieStions feipecting the moft. contide~ 
sable families and mdividuals: connect- 
ed with that diffridt: among thele is 
the celebrated John Law; whole family 
eftate of Liautifton, in that parifh; is ftill 
pofleffed by his defcendants. A beautiful . 
engraving of the old Caftle of Laurifton is 
inferted in that work, andthe Biographicai 
Account of Mr. Law is rendered mtereft-: 
ang from the-various details relative tohis - 
lite, as well as hts unfortanate financial 
proces, colleéted not only froma number 
of {earce publications, but from authentic 
pieces in manufcript, in particular from 
copious materials furnifhed by his nephew, 
john Lawde Laurifton, Governor of Pon- 
dicherry, and Marechal de Camp, father 
of General Laurifton. —° ..- 
From the details in this publication, can 
take it upon me to correct. a few cf the 
errors of the Man of Letters. Law was 
the fon, not of an advocate, but of a gold- 
imith or banker, in Edinburgh. He was 
Korn, not im 1638, but in April 1671. 
Bis duel was not with a Lord, but with 
Mr. Edward Willen, a fon of the houfe 
of Keythorpe in Leicefterfhire, who fell 
in the conteft, as is particularly mention- 
ed in the accurate and indefatigable 
Nicholi’s Hittory of that County, lately 
publithed. In the Anecdote from the Let- 
ters of Madame the Regent’s Mother, the 
‘ Chaife Percée is a circumftance not to be 
found in the -original. Law's fcheme, 
raf and unfortunate as it proved, appears 
to have been overturned more through the 
caballings, envy, and ignorance of the Re- 
gent, and fome of his creatures, than, 
— from the want of folidity in the fyftem it- 
feif : at leaft, there ts reafon to think, that 
had it not been for a mot foolifhearrét, 
iffued upon fome weak and groundie/s ap- 
prehenfions of the Regent, particularly 
detailed in the above work, the fyftem, if 
condu&ted agreeably to the ideas of the 
original projeGtor, miglit probably have 
Orivinal Poeiry. 
[ Jans Ty 
gone on, till, the firft madnefs of the people» 
having fubfided, it would gradually have 
fettled into fomething like aolid fyttent: 
of. public credit: Even ending as it did,’ 
there deems reafon; from what is: juftly - 
ftated in this account, to doabt whether; 
upon the whole, the remote ‘benefits at-* 
tending it did not more than counterba- 
lance its immeédiate evils. nel oT 
_ The publication I have. méntioned;’ 
‘¢ The Account of the Parith of Cra- 
mond,” contains alfo a number of intereft- - 
ing details, refpecting the tranfactions of 
John Law de Laurifton, Marechal de® 
Camp, and Governor of Pondicherry, dur- 
ing his long rehdenee in India, frony cém- 
munications by himfelf: » The eldeft for. 
of this. diftinguifhed officer failedyin 4785; 
— 
if the. unfortunate voyage of difcovery’ - 
under M. de la Péroufe; he was a hiekte= 
_ nant on board the Aftrolabe, the comman- 
der of which, the Vicomte de F Angle, was’ 
his intimate friend: Inthe Vovage of De 
la Péroufe, lately publifhed, the talents, 
zeal, and merit of M. de Laurifton are ho- 
nourably mentioned; and. the fill in af- 
tronomy of that accomplifhed young man 
#s particularly praifed. *¢ The death of M.de 
l’Angle (fays Peroufe) will not make any: 
change on board the Aftrolabe; as to the af- 
tronomieal obfervations. Forneara year,M< 
de Laurifton, who is a young officer of the 
firft merit, has had the fole care of thems 
For accuracy he may perhaps difpnte the 
prize with our profeffed aftronomers.” 
This letter was dated at Botany Bay, the 
7th of February, 17885 fhortly after 
which, M. de la Péroufe’s {quadrom left © 
New Holland, and was never more heard 
of: confequently the next brother of M. de 
Laurifton became the head of the family, 
on the death of his father. in 2796 of 
17973 and this brother'is General Lawrifs 
ton, the bearer of the Ratification of the 
Preliminaries of Peace, who is now the 
proprietor of the eftate and Caftle of Lau- 
rifton, fituated four miles to the north- 
welt of Edinburgh, HIMENEs.: 
Now. 14, 18016 
ORIGINAL POETRY. 
. 
Jo the Editor of the Menthly Magazine. 
\SIRS , 
HE following exquifite little Poem, writ- 
ten foon after the year 1418, is extracted 
from Glais’s Hiftory of the Canaries. It-cer-: 
tainly affords a very intereftimg fpecimen of 
the fimple pathos of the poetry of the rvder 
ages; a pathos, whofe cfietts on -the 
foul-all the refined arts of more polifhed'times 
have been uaable to imitate: ahd which has 
caufed it to remain in Palma, until the pre- 
fent period, a favourite national air. 
It was occafioned by the death of Guillen, 
Peraza, a young man of 2 bold and enterprif~ 
ng fpirit, who was, at the time. of his de-. 
ceafe, Governor of the Canary Hands, and _ 
- whe 
~ 
, 
