1803. ] 
| To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
] 
HERE have been various communi- 
cations inferted in your Magazine, on 
the interefting fubje&t of theLzfe-Boat ; but 
I donot recolle&¥ that any notice has been 
taken by your Correfpondents, of a fimi- 
Jar invention by a M. Bernieres, director 
of the bridges and caufeways in France, 
in the year 1771, of which there is the 
following account inferted in Gillingwa- 
ter’s Hiltory of Loweftoft. He fays, that, 
on the rrth of Oétober, 1771, one of thefe 
boats was exhibited at Choily, to Louis 
XV. and the Dauphin; and * that, 
though eight men were in one of the 
boats, and the boat brim-full of water, 
yet, inftead of finking, it bore being row- 
ed about the river, without any danger to 
the people in it. M. Bernieres carried 
his trial ftill farther. He ordered a matt 
to be ereéted in the boat, when filled with 
water, and to the top of the maft had a 
rope faftened, and drawn till the end of 
the maft touched the water: yet, as foon 
as the men who hauled her into this fitua- 
tion, let go the rope, the boat and maft re- 
covered themfelves perfely, in lefs than 
the quarter of a fecond; a convincing 
proof, that the boat could neither be funk 
nor overfet, and that it afforded the great- 
elt poffible fecurity in every way.” It is 
added, that, in confequence of the above 
trials, the provoft of the merchants and 
the corporation of Paris gave the Sieur 
Bernieres permiffion to eftablith his boats 
on the Seine, at the port near the Pont 
Royal; and, mereover, promifed him all 
the protection and encouragement in their 
power, and the Sieur Beraieres, on his 
fide, propofed to fupply the public with 
a certain number of thefe boats, before 
the end of the next year; but, whether he 
fulfilled his engagement, or whether he 
has been fuccefsful in the fubfequent trials 
of this ufeful invention, as he was in the 
former, I have not heen able to learn, 
p- 69.” Now, Mr. Editor, wnat I hope 
is, that if any of your Correfpondents can 
give information concerning this invention 
of M. Bernieres, they will communicate it, 
that we may be enabled to judge how far 
Mr. Greathead is intitled to the claim of 
originality on this fubje&. 
April, 1803. Your’s, &c. 
E.N. 
P. S. A notion, I think, prevails, that the 
bold and decifive mancuvre of breaking the 
enemies line has been lately introduced into 
eur naval tactics ; but, in Gillingwater’s Ac- 
MONTHLY Mac. No. tor. 
French Life-boat—Drefden. 405 
count of the famous engagement off Lowes 
ftofit, June 3, 1665, between our fleet, com- 
manded by the Duke of York, and that of the 
Dutch,by AdmiralOpdam,he fays, ‘* The fight 
began about three o’clock, inthe morning, and 
for fome time vitory was doubtful; buty 
about noon, the Earl of Sandwich, with the 
blue fquadron, forced himfelf into the center 
of the Dutch fleet, divided it into two parts, 
and began that confufion which ended ina 
total defeat.” 
: ee 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
DESCRIPTION Of DRESDEN and its EN- 
ViRONS, from an accurate and exten- 
Jive WorK, which has lately appeared 
in the form of LETTERS, at BERLIN. 
HE large and fuperb avenues, which 
T lead to the elegant refidence of the 
Eleftors of Saxony, announce at the firlt 
view, the centre of Germanic urbanity, 
the amiable afylum of the Graces and of 
the Arts in the North. We enter, almoft 
on all fides, by a caufeway, more or lefs 
fuaded, acrofs fmiling plains, where the 
beauties of art difpute the palm of prece- 
dence with the charms of nature. 
On your arrival, by way of the new 
city, an extenfive alley, in perfect repair, 
conduéts you to a vaft fquare or place, 
wherein is erected a beautiful equetirian 
gilt ftatue, of graceful proportions. In 
an inftant you find yourfelf in front of the 
fineft bridge in Germany, raifed over the 
Elbe. ' 
From thence, extending your view to 
the right or left, you are ftruck with the 
richnefs of the country, watered by this 
fine river, and with te beauty of the ho- 
rizon, terminated by mountains of a mo- 
derate elevation, which prefent a happy 
mixture of cultivated lands and of forefts, 
garnifhed with the mo beautiful verdure. 
From the middle of the bridge, there 
appears, in perfpective, to the right, a 
modern church, of an elegant architecture 5 
to the left, in a retired fituation, is feen 
the fombrous majeftic dome of an ancient 
temple; in front is the Electoral-chateau, 
to which you go through a vaft but ine- 
gular place. And, lattly, you arrive be- 
tween two public buildings of confiderable 
extent, at the entrance of a beautiful ftreet, 
which leads acrofs a place {till more vaft, 
to the Hétel de Saxe, one of the grandeft 
inns of the Empire, and the fituation 
of which is ene of the moft agree- 
able. 
Would you enjoy the mof magnificeet 
view that the Florence of Germany at- 
fords, you muft afcend, ondfome fine even- 
3G \ INZy 
