Retrofpelt of French Literature.—Mifcellancous. 
But the work before us, which is 
publifhed in numbers, and promifes to 
affume an impofing fize, does not ap- 
pertain to any of thefe three clafles al- 
luded to above. It is by far too volu- 
iminous for the purpofe of herboriza- 
tion; it neither indicates the duration, 
nor the blowing of plants; it mentions 
no f{pecies hitherto ufiknown; and pre- 
fents few or no ufeful obfervations. It 
is alfo extremely faulty refpecting the 
enumeration of cryptogamous plants. 
Boucher, in his Defcriptive Catalogue of 
the Department of the Somme, has in- 
dicated no lefs than five hundred and 
forty, whereas we have only one hun- 
dred and thirty-fix mentioned here ; 
and it may be truly faid upon this, as 
on many other occafions, that the mul- 
titude of books publifhed daily, under 
the idea of illuftrating the {ciences; 
father ferves to embarrafs their pro- 
grefsy than to favour their advance- 
ment. 
‘¢ Promeéenades de JAUFFERT 4 la 
Campagne, faites dans le deffein de don- 
ner aux jeunes Gens une Idée du bon- 
heur qui -peut refulter pour Homme 
de Etude de lui-niéare, & de la Con- 
tenrplation de Ja Nature. 1 vol. 18mo. 
M. JAUPFERT, the author, has at 
lensth ytelded to the withes of his pu- 
pils afid his friends, by the publication 
of thie little work now under confider- 
ation. This laborious and learned 
proteffor, has been accuitomed, for feve- 
val years ‘paft, to make excurfions into 
the country, for the purpofe of botani- 
fing; and he now prefents the fruits of 
his toils to the infpection of mankind. 
His difcourfes will be perufed with in- 
tereft, more efpecially when it is pof- 
fible either to read them in the country, 
or to tranfport onefelf thither by the 
force of imagination. They will, of 
courfe, confer new reputation on aman, 
who, without any other motive than 
the love of virtue and a zeal for 
fcience, makes annual circuits around 
Paris, accompanied by a number of 
young men, and converfés with them 
relative to nature, in the prefence of 
shatare herfelf. 
* « Mémoires du Duc dela RocnEFou- 
cauLp.’—The Memoirs of the Duke 
de RocHEFoucAULD. A new edition, 
with large additions. 
The Memoirs of the Duke la Roche- 
foucauld, after thofe of the Cardinal 
de Retz, which have always been al- 
lowed to be incomparable, are general. 
2 
679 
ly confidered as the next in point of en- 
tertainment, at leaft in refpect to the 
period of the Fronde. The part taken 
by the lover of Madame de Longueville, 
during this tragi-comedy is well: 
known, and the talents of the author 
of the Maxims, both in refpect to the 
powers of difcriminating and writing, 
have been long celebrated. 
It was almoft impoffible that an 
author fo well inftructed relative to the 
moft interefting facts, fhould not convey 
information concerning thofe events, 
in which he himfelf took an ative as 
well asa principal part. But it ought 
not to be forgotten on the other hand, 
that he who thus embarked in a quar- 
rel, in which all France was more or 
lefs engaged, would not fail to give 
the molt favourable colouring to the 
fide which he himfelf had efpoufed, 
This, indeed, -has in fome degree 
operated; and although the Duke com. 
pofed his Memoirs a long time after the 
extinétion of the Fronde, the efforts 
made by, him, in order to ,exhibit-a 
fair and impartial narrative, donot al- 
ways prove fucce(sful 3 fo thatit may be 
faid of La Rochefoucauld, what a pea- 
fant faid to Henry IV. whom he took 
for one of the adherents of the Leagué: 
“* that the cafk always fmells of the 
herring*.”” This fame prejudice, how- 
ever, may be objected to all memoirs 
written relative to recent events, more. 
efpecially thofe which detail the troubles, 
divifions, and revolutions of a great 
ftate; while the inquifitive reader al- 
ways poflefles the power of comparing 
publications of this kind with eacta 
other, of difcriminating between their 
contradictory accounts, and of finally. 
deciding in favour of thofe which pre- 
fent the neareft refemblance to truth. 
This edition of an old work is only 
mentioned here, becanfe M. Renouard, 
the editor, confiders it in fome mea- 
fure, as a new performance; for he af» 
ferts that it contains two-thirds more 
than any other which have preceded its 
He has been enabled, as he aflures us, 
to make this augmentation, in conie- 
quence of having recovered a manu- 
icript, every page of which is filled with 
additions and correétions, in the hand- 
writing of the Duke de Rochefoucauld, 
as well as a note by the Marquis de 
Surgéres, at the commencement of the 
volume, for the’ purpole of certifying. 
* ¢¢ La caque fent toujours le hareng.’”” 
that. 
