Ss 
S14 Review of the Political State of Nations. 
alone has preferved its ancient political 
exiftence. There is no ccuntry in Eu- 
rope. England excepted, where the balance 
of powers is calculated with fo much jul- 
tice, if the expreffion may be ufed in 
{peaking of a nation where the nobles and 
the priefts are every thing, and the people, 
without liberty and witheut property, are 
mere appendages to the foil. What, then, 
is jn reality the boafted freedom of Hun- 
gary? Itis wholly confined to the nobi- 
Aity and the clergy, whovare indeed fuiii- 
ciently independent of the Emperor, while 
the buik of the people are even more en- 
flaved than in other parts of the Auftrian 
dominions. 
Confidering the long duration of this 
fate of things, the progreffion of know- 
Iedee, the Spirit of the age, and the pal- 
pabdle utility to thofe who govern, as well 
as to thole ‘who obey, of obviating by re- 
forms the neceffity of revolutions, we 
Should have expected to find the Auftrian 
cabinet indufrioufly occupied in correét- 
jng ancient abufes, and encouraging mo- 
dern i improvements. But how very diffe- 
rent is their actual conduét! Not only no 
Zmprovements of confequence are attempt- 
ed, but fome pernicious inftitutions (abo- 
Yithed by a former adminiftratien) are re- 
viving. The convents diflolved by Jo- 
feph II. are ordered to be re-eftablifhed. 
‘The monks are permitted to re-enter their 
cloifiers, to negociate the reftoration of 
the property of their monafteries from 
thofe who may have purchafed it, and to 
receive novices, Pilgrimages areagain to 
be allowed; new privileges and immu- 
nities are conferred on the ciergy, and eve- 
xy encouragement given to young men to 
enter into holy orders. 
Thus, while monachifm is banifhed 
from the reftot Europe, it finds protection 
in the Auftrian dominions. This fatal 
policy, together with a prohibition of all 
books, even the periodical publications of 
other countries, enfure the continuance of 
3gnorance, indolence, and mifery, in that 
part ot Germany, until a more enlight- 
ened adminifiration, or fome convulfion, 
operated by the extremity of the evil, fhall 
purify the political atmofphere. 
It is po.more than juttice here to re- 
mark fome traits of apparent liberality 
i which this otherwife extravagant po- 
licy is yariegated. An order has been if- 
fued to the monafteries of Austria to re- 
ceive all the monks from the fuppreffed 
convents of Bavaria, who are natives of 
the imperial dominions. ‘That individuals 
Should not fuffer from the {uppreffion of 
public inititutions, is a prineiple which 
fNov. 1,. 
we admit fhould ever be held facred 
‘The Emperor is faid alfo to have refilted 
an application made by the Bifhops of 
Hungary to fupprefs the | privileges 
granted by Jofeph II. to the Proteitants 
of that country, juftifying his refufai by 
the direction of the public fpirit. What- 
ever may be the motives of thefe mea- 
fures, their propriety gannet well be called 
in queition; and we have only to regrets 
that one or two traits of liberal poiicy 
fhould be fo inadequate a counterpoile ta 
the effects of a general fyftem of degrada-. 
tion. If Jofeph was accufed cf hav- 
ing been rather too much under the in- 
fluence of abftra&tion ; the prefent Empe- 
ror, we apprehend with more reafon, may 
be accufed of being too much under the 
influence of prieftcraft. ; 
The effe&t of this repreflive and barba- 
rous fyftem of government is, that at Vi~ 
enna, the capital of the Aufrian domi- 
nions, life is a monotonous ftate, fcarcel 
more exalted.in its nature than that of ve- 
getation. There are no amufing anec- 
cotes of the court or city. There is an 
Emperor, an Emprefs, and Archiukes, 
but no court: there are great riches, and 
great lords, but no pleafant anecdotes + 
there is fhew without tafte: people ruin 
themfelves without knowing for what: 
they vegetate without enjoyment: they do 
to-day as they did yefterday, and as they 
will do to-morrow. 
With refpect to politics, they are whol- 
ly out of the queftion ; on that fubject, you 
can only read the Oficial Gazette in Ger- 
man, or the French Journal of Frankfort, 
which contains the drieft details, or muti- 
lates the moft interefling articles of the 
journals of other countries. 
In the arts, {ciences' and literature there 
are very few confpicuous charaéters, if we 
except Muller, Imperial Librarian, by 
birth a Swifs; Jacquin, the botanift, author 
of the Hortus Botanicus Viennenfis 5 is; fome 
compolers, at the head of whom is "the ce- 
lebrated Haydn ; and Quarin and Frank, 
phylicians, &c. &c. Tirere is no literary 
academy; but there is an academy of. 
painting, in which may be diftinguithed 
Figuer, Lempi, Duvivier. The celebrated 
Cafanova has retired. 
The theatres are almoft the only ra- 
ticnal and conftant fource of amufement ; 
but their dramatic works, for want of the ~ 
chaitening hand of criticifm, are too often 
extravagant or devoid of tafte. They 
are indeed feldom confidered in a literary _ 
point of view, and the machinery only is» 
particularly attended to. - The princi- 
pal diamatic writers of Germany nla 
the 
