1804.] 
and which are the fubje&t of this work. 
Thele figns fomewhat refemble ours, but 
With certain changes or alterations, and 
the forms are common with thofe of the 
Anglo-Roman alphabet. The ~ punches 
of the ‘charaéters which -have fervéd for 
the impreflion of this alphabet, form 
two, different fets, and belonged to the 
pristing-office De Propaganda, in Rome. 
They have been brought frem Italy, 
and placed in the priating-office of 
the Republic, which is now in_poffef- 
fion of a very -rich colle@ion of exotic 
characters. Thefe punches, of which 
no {pecimen had appeared in the numer- 
ous colleGiion of exotic alphabets that had 
been publifhed from the year 1630 to that 
of 1797, by the printing: office De Propa- 
ganda, were, neverthelefs, exilting in 
that eftabiifhment prior to the year 1676, 
as appears from this circumftance, that 
they are actually the fame which were 
made ufe of in printing the Irifh Cate- 
chilm of O*Molloy, entitled Lucerua Fide- 
lium, and which came out in that very 
year, from the prefles of thisofiice. The 
fame charaSters were likewife employed 
in the following year, in the printing of 
a Latin- Irish Grammar, written by the 
fame author. Jt appears that they were 
defigned for the printing of eementary, 
_liturgical, or aicetical works, of .cate- 
— chifims, and other books for the ufe of the 
Casbolies_in Ireland. But whether that 
the iranfportation of them might have oc- 
cafioned any confyfon, or that amidit the 
great events of which Italy was then the 
theatre, it was not poffible to beftow on 
their prefervation, in fuch an immenfe de- 
pofitary, all the care requifite for a col- 
leétion of types fo valuable as that of the 
different exotic characters that were lodged 
in it, they have evidently been mixed 
with the punches of other characters, from 
among which it became necciiary to fiad out 
and feparate them ; ciw part was in an in- 
different condition; fome were broken or 
ftamped over again, and o:hers mutilated 
or. badly finifhed. MM. Marcel has made 
it his bufinefs to repair-and re eftablith 
whatever had fuffered. He has finifhed 
what had not been entirely completed, 
acd has mareover caufed the neceflary ma- 
trices to be itruck; fo that this charaSter 
is Now jn a condstien fit to be made ule of 
when it fhall be deemed expedient. The 
largett of the two charagters, or the firit 
fet, is that which has been made ule of 
in the text of this alphabet ; itis compofed 
of 56 punches which form 85 matrices. 
The fecond’ Irifh charaéter in the print- 
MontTuiy Mac, No, 122. 
The Itifh Alphabet. 
‘ing office of the Republic is filler, and 
40% 
contains So punches, forming g2 matr}ces. 
It has been made ofe of for the notes 
which are annexed to this little trea-~ 
tile. To the above alphabet the author 
has added the names of numbers, both car- 
dinal and ordinal, and further the names 
of the months, and of the days of the 
week. He has likewife judged ir neceflary 
to add ceytain texts, to ferve 2s an exer- 
cile of reading, and for a {pecimen of the 
typography. Thefe texts are extracted 
from the work of Andrew Doulevy, im- 
titled, Tie Catechi{m, or Chriftian Doc- 
trine, by way of Queftion and Answers 
&c. Printed at Paris, by James Gueriny 
1742. This book, and the Anglo-Irifh 
Digtionary of Begly, which proceeded, 
ten years before, from the fame prefs, are 
the only two works that were ever printed 
at Paris in Irifhchara&ters. ‘Thefe pieces, 
which comprife the Sign of the Crofs, the 
Lord’s Prayer, and the Apoft!es’ Creed, 
afford texts of which there are literal tranf- 
lations in all languages, and, of courle, 
furnith a faie and immediate means of pa- 
rallel and comparifon, waich indeed has _ 
been already performed, in the collection 
of exotic alphabets that have iffued from 
the prefies of the office De Propaganda ; 
as likewife in the curious work of Cham- 
berlayne; in that of Leibnitz, and in the 
InflruGtions for the Oriental and Wefteru 
Languages, publifhed at Leipfic. And 
laftiy, M. Marcel, to render this work 
{i111 more complete, has further added the 
fecond of the above texts, in the language 
of the Scotch Highlanders ; this text has 
been taken from the colle&tion of Lord’s 
Prayers, cited above; it will afford a 
proof as to the refemblance as well as the 
identity, which exift- between he idiom of 
Treland and’ that of the mountaineers in 
the North-welt of Scotland, ~The differ- 
ent examples of the Irith charatter, the 
beautiful charaGters with which the text 
and the motes of the work are printed, 
the perfection of the prefs-work, and the 
excellent difpofition of the matter, cannot 
but add te the reputation of the national 
printing-office, and ferve,to prove that it 
has not degenerated in the hands of M. 
Marcel. The iearned obfervations that 
he has incorporated throughout the piece, 
give a high idea of his erudition. He fur- 
ther has it in contemplation to pub. 
hifh fpecimens of the different cha- 
racters in the typographical mufeum of 
the Republic. It is much to be withed 
that this happy idea may not remain 
long without being carried into execution. 
3G RETURNS 
