any change will be made in the art of writing, it will be more immediately to the purpofe, to enquire how the art of reading may be improved, whilft that of writing continues in its present state."

Mr. Sheridan now proceeds to lay open the more general fource of that impropriety and badnefs of reading which is fo prevalent; and obferves that, befide the ignorance of masters, who teach the first rudiments of reading, and the want of fkill, or the negligence in that article, of those who teach the learned languages, &c. there is one fundamental error, in the method univerfally used in teaching to read, which at firft gives a wrong bias, and leads us ever after blindfold from the right path, under the conduct of a falfe guide.

He obferves, that Masters, in order to give what they call proper tones to their pupils in reading, have annexed artificial tones to the stops, which no way correfpond to those which are used in difcourfe; and which may juftly be called the reading tones, in oppofition to thofe of the fpeaking kind.

"Of thefe tones, fays he, in general there are but two ufed; one, which marks that the fenfe is not compleated; another, which fhews that the fenfe is clofed. For they have not even invented fo many tones, as there are vifible marks of pauses. The comma, femicolon, and colon, are pronounced in the fame tone; and only differ in point of time, as two or three to one; whilft the full ftop is marked by a different tone. As the one confifts in a uniform elevation, and the other in a uniform depreffion of the voice, we need no longer be at a lofs, to account for that difagreeable monotony, which fo generally prevails in reading; and which neceffarily defeats every purpose of book-delivery, as the attention of all Auditors muft, not only foon be wearied and destroyed by it, but in fuch as have any tafte, it must occafion the highest disgust."

This then, it is faid, is the chief fource of that unnatural manner of reading which fo univerfally prevails; and unless a perfon knows this, he can never amend his error; for the fight of the ftops, as naturally excites the tones which he was early taught to affociate with them, as the fight of the words excites that pronunciation; and thus the habit of reading, will only serve to confirm him, in the faulty manner which he has acquired.

The most effectual method of introducing a general good manner of reading, Mr. Sheridan fays, would be the giving.

due

due encouragement, to a fufficient number of fkilful mafters, to teach that art, by a well digefted fyftem of rules, according to the practice of the antients.

"But as a fcheme of this kind, continues he, would be of benefit only to the rifing generation, and as my prefent object is, the improvement of fuch as are more advanced in life, I fhall in the progrefs of this courfe, endeavour to point out a method, by which the adult may get the better of bad habits, and at the fame time lay down fuch rules to guide them in acquiring a juft and natural delivery, as will enable them to compafs their end, provided they take fuitable pains; and afterwards proceed in order, to pronunciation, accent, emphafis, paufes or ftops, pitch and management of the voice, tones and gefture; which will comprehend the whole of what I have to offer on that fubject."

In his fecond Lecture, Mr. Sheridan treats of articulation and pronunciation; but of these in our next number.

Aphorifmi de cognofcendis et curandis morbis nonnullis ad principia animalia accommodati. A Gulielmo Battie, M. D. Collegii regalis Medicorum Socio. 4to. 10s. 6d. Whiston.

F

ROM referring to our * accounts of the first and fecond

parts of the Principia animalia, it will appear, that if our learned medical author has a peculiar attachment to any of the antient sects in Phyfick, it is to that of the + Methodists, who were for afcribing moft Difeafes, either to a morbid excefs of ftricture, or relaxation, of the folids for as to their fuppofed combination of thefe oppofite caufes in the fame difcafe and fubject at the fame time, we had mentioned his condemning it as abfurd. Perhaps it is in confequence of this tenet, that we find these aphorifms extended only to fome difcafes, nonnullis morbis, tho' not a few indeed, and those in which Dr. Battie may fuppofe either of these causes chiefly to offend.

With this view alfo he feems to have premifed his fhort treatife, de Inflammatione, from the hint of Hoffman, which affirms, "That it is not the inflammation itself which kills,

* Review Vol. v. p. 403, and vii. p. 372.

Méthodicis ipfis meliora polliceri vifis-Aphorifm. p. 23.

but

1

but rather the fpafm that occafions it.". Hence in the difcuffion of this fubject, Dr. B. judiciously remarks, how pernicious that practice muft prove, which, merely from the naine* of Inflammation, propofes, by a very large bleeding, by other evacuations, or by any fingle unvaried method to conquer fuch different evils; as he affirms, the fpafm is very likely to be increased, by the means used to cure the inflammation; and obferves, that fuch Phyficians are operating only against the visible effects, without having any regard to the caufe. He acknowleges however, that fuch a treatment as refpects the caufe only, without a proper attention alfo to the highest fymptoms, may be equally pernicious. With regard to the caufe of inflammation, he fays, whatever remedies reftrain, increase and duly regulate mufcular motion, are certainly the moft likely to allay the offending fpafm. To fecond fuch intentions he chiefly recommends the bark and opium; the former, as it fhould feem, to increase mufcular action, the latter to regulate or even to abate it. But having obferved the principal circumftances, that fhould caution us against a free ufe of thefe potent drugs, whofe operation indeed cannot well be indifferent, he asks, are there then no remedies that may be exhibited against an inflammation with lefs difficulty and hazard? adding, if that were the cafe, it would probably be eligible to commit the patient to the medical economy and efforts of nature, rather than to hazard the confequences of fuch medicines as might be more grievous than the difeafe against which they were applied. In anfwer to tiris query, when he has obferved, that it is only against the unguarded and indeliberate ufe of the bark and of opium that he cautions young Phyficians (for whofe inftruction folely the preface informs us this book is defigned) he adds, that the neutral falts, and mild faponaceous medicines, may fafely be exhibited to abate the refiftance of the veffels, and to refolve the morbific denfity or fpiffitude [Stafis+] of the blood. That blifters alfo may be applied to divert the fpafm from a vital to a lefs noble part; befides dry cupping,

Of a remarkable error of this kind, which had nearly proved fatal, we have lately given a frong instance, in our account of the fecond volume of Medical Obfervatious and Enquiries, vol. XXVII. p. 102.

We imagine this word, being literally Greek, fhould rather have been printed in Greek characters; fince we do not recollect any truly claffical authority for Staf, as a Latin word. Nevertheless it feems allowable in a technical treatife, being as obviously derivable, by Analogy, from Sto, as from Tsum or 'Icupa

the fuction of which he thinks may remove or abate an existing fpafm, without exciting another in any part, and may free the obftructed veffels without any evacuation whatsoever. This differtation, (upon which we have been the more particular, from confidering the many and acute difeafes, resulting from, or accompanied with, inflammation) concludes with Dr. Battie's difapprobation of thofe Physicians, who practife upon any one fyftem or hypothefis; and with an elegant compliment to fuch rational and accomplished ones, as duly confider every pertinent circumftance of the patient and the difeafe, and vary their conduct judiciously in relation to them. It is very natural to fuppofe, that our Author might glance here, among other gentlemen, particularly at one, whom he could not wish to exclude from fuch good company and in this paflage we find him co-inciding with the dogmatifts or rationalists in phyfic, who founded their practice on the mutual aid of reason and experience, which were first combined in it by the great Hippocrates. This however does not neceffarily contradict his inclining to that particular tenet of the Methodists in phyfics, which is fo vifibly prevalent throughout his work; and which has probably its material confequences in many difeafes.

ence.

The Doctor's brief introduction premifes, that the art of medicine is conftructed, either upon certain and mechanical principles; upon fuch as are analogical and highly probable; or upon Empiricism, which, in a good fenfe, means ExperiIn his fections concerning the various difeafes, he confiders on which of these the cure of each malady is chiefly or folely to be conducted; and concludes, that the best practitioners exercife their art, as the cafe of the patient may require, on one, more, or all of thefe foundations.

As it cannot be expected, nor perhaps defired, that we fhould abstract, or give any formal citation from, the fubfequent part of a work of this nature, which is proposed, as infitutions, to the study of young Phyficians, we fhall briefly obferve, that these aphorifms are divided into near fifty heads or fections of a different extent, each distinguished by the name of the difenfe or difeafes, of which it treats. Sometimes indeed the fection is denominated by a title, that seems oftener a fymptom of another difeafe, than one itself, as a Tenefmus, vulgarly called a Neeling; as Sitis, or thirft; tho' we are fenfible fome practical Writers have confidered the laft as a diftinct difeafe, and treated of it under the appellation Sitis mortal. After confidering the caufe or caufes of each distemper,

distemper, many of the immediate ones being acknowleged as unknown; (especially fuch as depend on affections of either a nervous or fleshy fibre, whofe intrinfic nature and fubftance, he continually repeats, are prorfus incognita) the most general event, or various termination of the diftemper follows; and to this fucceeds the treatment or cure, according to the prevailing cause of it. Proper care is also taken to diftinguifh, in what characteristical points difeafes of confiderable likeness or affinity, as a fyncope, apoplexy, palfy and epilepfy differ, and fometimes to fpecify the phænomena in which they agree. The fymptoms from which the prognoftics are taken are often annexed. The different species of the fame difeafe, as proceeding from a different, or opposite cause, viz. the fanguine, or the pituitous apoplexy, are not omitted. Several notes, references and citations are annexed to the bottoms of above two hundred pages out of three hundred, which, if printed in the fame type with the text, would confiderably exceed it in extent. Many of them include remarks, cafes, or prefcriptions, from different and creditable Writers in Latin and English, and make, in our opinion, not the leaft agreeable, intelligible, nor the least ufeful part of the work.

With regard to the execution of this performance, the language is generally as pure and claffical as the fubject will admit; and rifes fometimes into a more ftudied elegance than a merely didactic treatife requires; whose most effential ornament feems to confift in an obvious and fimple perfpicuity. To avoid any obfcurity to young Students, Dr. B. has marked his ablative cafes which terminate in â this was certainly right, and it would have correfponded very well with the fame good purpose, if much more care had been taken in a proper punctuation of the text; especially where the periods are of a confiderable length. We confefs, that for want of this, and of this only, we were obliged to read a few of them a fecond time and as the arrangement and fucceffion of words in Latin differ greatly from those in our own language, this circumftance renders a juft punctuation of the Latin indifpenfible.

As to any apparent utility of the prefent work, we confess our apprehenfion, that it is in a great measure anticipated by the labours of Boerhaave, Van Swieten, Haller and others, who have treated the fame fubjects, in a fuller manner: which apprehenfion concurred with other circumftances and avocations. to prevent a more early review of it. Whether our learned Au

03

thor