Retrofpect of French Literature—Biography. 
“Le Livre Singulier, &c.°? The Sin- 
gular Book. Paris, 1 vol. 18mo. _ 
The motto to this little volume, is the 
fameas that worn by theKnights of theGar- 
ter; it contains x. the reveries of anEnglifh- 
man.on feeing the diffeétion of the cranium 
of a fop, and the heart of a coquette ; 
the laconic teftament of an annuitant; 
the confefion of a woman on her death- 
bed ; the pleafant hiltory of a man la- 
bouring under a fuppofitious malady ; 
the epitaph of an hermaphrodite; de- 
{cription of the palace of Fortune; the 
art of avoiding to think, &c. &c. 
BioGRAPHY. 
*¢ Memoires de Le Kain, &c.” Me- 
moirs of Le Kain, publifhed by his Son, 
1 vol. 8vo. 
Le Kain was an actor, who poffeffed 
great talents for the ftage, and acquired 
worderful celebrity ; in fhort, he might 
have been termed the French Garrick. 
On the fame day that Baron died, Le 
Kain was born, as if Nature had deter-, 
mined to reftore to the theatre all it 
had been bereaved of on this occafion. 
Before the time of Baron, the French 
ftage was far inferior to what it is at 
prefent ; for the actors, who were fanta{- 
tically clothed, fung, inftead of declaim- 
ing, and recurred to the moft extravagant 
and buriefque geltures, in order fo attain 
applaufe ; in fhort, they rather refembled 
Merry-andrevss than Comedians. It was 
he who reftored the empire of nature, and 
introduced theatrical grandeur; he en- 
tertained fuch an high opinion of his art, 
that he was accuftomed to exclaim: ‘* Uz 
bon comédien devroit avoir été élevé fur 
les genoux des princefes.”’ (A good come- 
dian fhould have been nurled upon the 
knees of princeffes.) 
Le Kain, the only aétor who has ever 
been able to rival Baron, was gifted by 
nature with the fame graces as his prede- 
ceflor; but according to the opinion of 
an ingenious obferver, ‘* the one pofleffed 
that noblenefs in bis charaéter. which the 
other exhibited in his manners.”” Le 
Kain was the fon of a gold{mith, and he 
himfelf for fome time followed the fame 
occupation ; but a rage for celebrity tor- 
mented, and at length forced him to quit 
his fhop. Nature however had refuled 
him the external appearance of an hero, 
in the fame manner that fhe had denied to 
the eloquent Athenian the firft requifite 
of an orator; Le Kain was thick and 
clumfy, as Demofthenes was timid and 
incorreét :: but art in both triumphed over 
nature. 
A mot pnexpected accident brought to. 
gether an actor and a poet, who feemed 
to be born for each other, for Le Kain 
was admirably adapted to do juftice to the 
tragedies of Voltaire, and Volraire the 
moft capable of all the poets to give fcope 
to the talents of the aétor. Struck with 
the happy difpofition of the young man, 
then not twenty years of age, the author 
of the ‘* Henriade”’ took him home to 
his houfe, gave him leffons in his art, and 
at length introduced him to the French 
flage. 
‘© De V Homme d’Etat, confidéré dans 
Alexandre Severe, &c.’? Of the Statef- 
man, confidered in the Charaéter of Alex- 
ander Severus, and compared ‘with the 
moft Virtuous of the Roman Emperors, 
by Citizen Demarsnigux, late Major 
of the German Infantry, &c. 8vo. 
With the life of Alexandr Severus, 
was extinguifhed the laft fpark of Roman 
virtue. Aurelian and Probus, having al- 
ways been in the field and conftantly en- 
gaged in wars, cannot be confidered as 
models for the imitation of monarchs ; 
as for Tacitus, he oily held the bloody 
reins of empire during the fhort period 
of fix months. Succeffor of the infamous 
Heliogabulus, Alexander Severus deferved 
to have lived during the times of Scipio 
and Paulus A®milius. 
This young Emperor, whofe foul was 
fo pure, and whofe manners were fo gentle, 
was but ill-fuited to a people who no 
longer pofleffed any thing Roman but the 
name. Czelar, by adcreffing his foldiers 
with the appellation of ¢ Quirites,”” in- 
ftead of ufing the term ‘* Commilitones,” 
induced them to return to their duty ; but 
in the time of Alexander Severus, fuch 
a conduct would have led to affaffinaticn, 
and not to cbediencé; fo true it is, that 
it is difficult to condu& a degenerate na- 
tion by means of {age principles. A 
man, indeed, is almoft tempted to defpair 
of the deftiny of empires, when he beholds 
aMaximin—a ferocious giant—triumphing 
over fo many virtues, and preferred to 
one of the moft fage and enlightened 
men that ever reigned over his fellow- 
creatures. ‘ 
Tt mutt be acknowledged, notwithftand- 
ing the work written by Citizen De- 
maifnieux contains a variety of excellent 
ideas; that it is greatly to be regretted 
that his ftyle is mot always pure and cor- 
re&t, but 1t ought to be recolle&ted on the 
other hand, that he has paffed the oreater 
part of his life underarms. He tells us, 
towards the end of his introdudtion, that 
his work has been feen by three crowned 
heads 3 having been read in 1774. to Ca- 
“Aine? tharine 
