claims to celebrity reft upon the German genius, that of the immortal Rubens, its brightest ornament, and first fupport. Hewas born at Cologne.

Befide, where there is a fimilitude of natural, moral, and political caufes, we may conclude on a fimilitude of events. And on this ground, it were no more than reasonable to advance an argument of, or at least no preclufion from, an aptness for the fcience. And Albrecht, Durer, Mengs, and many others, rife to give authority to the remark.

In poetry they poffefs, perhaps, more force than fweetness, more of the fublime than the pathetic, more wild flights of fancy than touching softness, ideas moving fympathy, or delicacy of turn.

But take them all in all, where fhall we meet their like again!'

The author next gives a general view of the present ftate of the empire, with respect to extent and population. The tables which exhibit the statement of thefe particulars, appear to be executed upon the most authentic information. That they are perfectly accurate in every circumftance, however, it is impoffible either to affirm or deny, with any degree of certainty ; but as they are copied from the most exact obfervers and calculators, the probability is, that they come near to the truth, which is all that can be performed in fuch cases. The latter half of the volume contains a variety of obfervations on the electoral states, and gives a very fatisfactory account of thofe parts of the empire. Should this work prove fuccessful, we find it is the author's intention to prefent the public with a general furvey of the different forms of government in the world, with a particular account of all the European ftates. To execute fuch a work, in a manner fuitable to its importance, very extenfive obfervation would be neceffary; and the author ought, if poffible, to vifit the different countries, as well as to avail himself of the best information concerning them.

De l'Etat de la France, prefent & a venir. Par M. de Calonne, Miniftre de l'Etat. 8vo. 65. Spilsbury.

Tbly cuell as the various publications announced in

HE particular notice taken of this work in an auguft affem

aufwer to Mr. Burke's Reflections, render the volume before us peculiarly interefting at this time. M. de Calonne was the antagonist of M. Neckar, fupposed to be attached to the king's party, and of courfe an evidence to be heard, in the prefent circumftances, with fome diftruft, and to be admitted with referve. Reafon, experience, and facts from other fources, will fometimes limit, or occafionally oppofe his representations; but they are always to be confidered with attention, and fre

quently

quently deferve the higheft credit. We have more than once had occafion to draw fome sketches of our author's portrait, and they have not been unfavourable ones.

Whether real misfortunes may be allowed, for the fake of a contingent good, forms a political question which it is not neceflary to difcufs, because France has determined to encounter many ferious evils, in purfuit of liberty. The object of M. de Calonne is to fhow, that the future is ftill, in profpect, more dreadful than the prefent; that the new conflitution is neither fuitable to the inclinations, to the interests of the people, nor to reafon; and that it is, in other refpects, an impracticable chimera. The French cannot be more happy, he thinks, without laws and without government; taxes muft become numerous, and the abolition of the monarchy, as well as the ruin of the kingdom, must follow. On the other hand, by restoring order, by correcting what is erroneous, according to the declarations and wishes of the king, every thing, that the revolution can promife, will be immediately fecured.

The other parts of the preface, from which we have just extracted our author's account of the defign of his work, displays a litle too much ariftocratic fpirit. He speaks with great complacency of the former tranquillity, which the demagogues would call an abject fubmiffion, and feems to look forward to the re-establishment of the king's authority, with an ardour inconfiftent with his declaration, that he will never return to France. He is, however, anxious to guard his readers against the fufpicion of his wishing to be reflored to his office, or to the court, and, in animated language, boafts of his fpirit and politi cal intrepidity. The view of the conduct of the national affem. bly is brought down fo late as October; and he points out, in general terms, the impropriety, the inconfiftency, and the ab furdity of their meafures. The following addreis to the French nation on this fubject deferves to be recorded.

66

Ingenious, amiable, generous nation, who want only a little more reflection, how long will you fuffer yourfelves to be blinded? How long will you be the fport of projectors, enthu fiafts, and dupes, who act as if you had faid, on prefenting them with their deputations, Go, overturn every thing; declare war against the king, the nobility, clergy, the magilracy, the proprietors of the public funds; and fpare only the bankers and ftock-jobbers of Paris. Destroy every thing else without referve; abolith every profeffion and every engagement, con. tracted with them; compleat the ruin of the finances, and take care to let the weight of an infupportable impoft fall on the lands. But, from the midst of thefe ruins let another confti rution arife, fo new as to be like nothing that ever existed be fore. Doubtlefs, reflecting on what you were, and the buf ness of your former lives, you did not expect to become fus preme legislators, univerfal adminiftrators, politicians, fupe rior to the experience of ages, or all powerful monarchs.

'Well

Well then fancy yourselves all this, and let your reveries produce a government of which there is no model, and of which there can be no imitation.'

M. de Calonne begins with remarking that he has carefully watched the proceedings of the aflembly, and has forborn to exprefs the indignant feelings which they have excited, till it was impoffible for them to retreat. At this time, the only method of retrieving the misfortunes is for the affembly to attend to the instruction of their conflituents (cahiers nationaux). The diftreffes of France, in its prefent fate, are described with equal force and eloquence, with colours, in compariton of which thofe of Mr. Burke are almost chearful and lively; and let us at once remark, that the appearance of this work, fo near to that of the Reflections, feems not to have been accidental only. If Mr. Burke be fuppofed for a moment to be the eloquent declaimer, our author comes in aid with acute reafoning; if the author of Reflections aftonishes and terrifies, M. de Calonne ftrikes us with equal wonder and greater horror. We have had too many gloomy pictures, fo that we shall not follow our author in his defcriptions. If one half of it only be true, the fituation is much worse than ever we fufpected. The future' is fcarcely lefs diftreffing: the prefent members feem unwilling to deviate from what they have attempted, and they have already declared their defign of fanctioning their work by forbidding their fucceffors to touch it. Efto perpetua is to be no longer a pious wifh, it is to be expanded into an act of parliament, a decree of the national afsembly; but a future national convention' will, perhaps, think this decree may be as much difregarded as the inftructions of the constituents have been flighted by the prefent members. The period of their diffolution is not, however, near, and the language of their decree refpecting the late war prevents us from fuppofing that they think this crifis approaching; it is certainly far from being fo, if it is, at the fame time, the end of what they propofed to do.

The mention of the late impending war has induced M. de Calonne to fpeak of the conduct of the affembly. It was undoubtedly impolitic and improper; and if the affembly had wifhed to have induced England to interfere in their revolution, they could not have taken a more effectual method. Our author clearly thews, that,. if the family-compact was defigned only to procure affane, when either party was engaged in war, they did to much; if the alliance was to be confidered as offenfive and defentive, too little. In flot, the prefervation of peace was really owing to the extreme prudence of the court of Madrid, and the great moderation of the court of London. Our author, indeed, very clearly proves, that it is the most political ep in this country to be quiet; and thofe moil capable of influenc ng its politics,' he adds, think the fame.' Why fhould I not believe them to be fincere? I have

lived

lived three years in England, and have not been deceived by a fingle Englishman.'

In eftimating what will be the future fituation of France, M.de Calonne examines the different objects of the defigned reform. He first confiders the finances, the state of which he obferves is fo much injured by the fyftems and operations of the affembly, that it cannot be remedied by them, or their fufceffors, if the fame fyftem and the fame operations be pursued. This our author endeavours to prove by a variety of calculations, which are in general correct. But he premises, that France has unaccountably entrusted the fate of her finances to men, whofe fituation has not qualified them for the task, and that these pretended financiers have rejected all advice and affiftance. Out of 8 or 900, a few, it is obferved, have endeavoured to ac complish themselves in this new study: but they have probably had little influence; for errors have been added to errors, and accounts the least exact, ftates the most delufive, and propofitions the most ruinous, have obtained the acquiefcence of the af fembly; their hopes and their fpeculations have been founded on projects twenty times rejected by administration. The ancient deficit, our author obferves, was 15 millions, comprehending 5 millions in annuities, for a given time, and 5 millions lefs precifely determinable. The difference in the ftatement confifted in retaining or rejecting thefe annuities, and of courfe the deficiency fuppofed to be reduced to 56 or 58 millions was delufive; it really was increafed more than a hundred millions. But fuppofing it to be 56 millions, the increase of the expences, above the diminution of the reductions, is stated at above 80 millions, the diminution of the revenue a more than 119 millions; and thefe fums, added to the former d. ficit, are much above 255 millions. On examining the detail with fome care, and rejecting the exaggerated ef timations, the deficit must exceed 220 millions of livres, a vaft increase above that stated by M. Necker. If to this vast fum be added the value of annuities, not yet fallen in, the fum, in our author's calculation, will amount to 250 millions. M. de Calonne challenges the affembly to prove any error in these refpects.

2:5

Our author next confiders the increase of the capital of the public debt, during the last three years. The feries of loans from May 1787 to Auguit 1789 amounted to 785 millions of livres, to which, if debts contracted in other ways be added, the loans, for thefe are truly loans, amoent to millions. The accounts of the committee of the finances do not make it much lefs, for their fum is 1239 millions. Το pay this debt, the affignats were iffued, which our author proves to be a ruinous meafure; and, indeed, in this opini n, M. de Calonne, M. Necker, and every rational enquir r, must agree. One of the immediate effects of this measure is the diminution of fpecie; but when exchange was low, and it was a profitable fpeculation

fpeculation to import French crowns into this kingdom, even if they were fent to the melting pot, we need not to look for an additional cause of the fearcity of fpecie. This was the cafe, we know, in 1789, though we believe it is not fo at prefent.

The only circumstance which can render it probable that the public debt, converted into affignats, will ever become a part of the national domains is, the expected degradation of the value of those papers; because, in reality, the more they lofe on the fpot, the more the poffeffor will be tempted to turn them into another channel; and if this fictitious money lofes its credit, by the quantity issued, as is highly probable, it will be forcibly directed to the purchase of lands, as thefe will be the only refuge. Here appears the most striking injuftice, unworthy of a great kingdom, who is, by this plan, transformed to a gamefter, as M. Necker has obferved. It is true, in another place, he calls this a vast idea, to compel pertons to buy, by decrying the mode of payment, while, on the contrary, it is a very deep fpeculation, filled with the most iniquitous fpirit of ftock-jobbing, and proves that its authors with to fink govern ment to their own level. But, if it is base and unjust to pay in a deficient coin. in order to force those who received, to buy what you wish to fell, it is fill more unjust to fell the goods of another, and to pay the debt by a kind of ufurpation.' Our author, armed with thefe remarks, fuppofes himself in the midst of the affembly, and replies to the fancied defence which the members give of their conduct, in the moft convincing and fatisfactory manner. All this part of his work is full of clofe reafoning, and in general of irrefragable argument; after all, when every deduction is made, even this iniquitous project, as he styles it, will fail of its destined purpose. It is not even, he adds, a fplendid reverie, for it will be a piece of injustice as fatal in its confequences as impotent in its effects. He then confiders at length the new regulations of the taxes, and concludes that it is impoffible to repair the injuries that have been committed if what has been done remains; he adds, that there is no fource of hope but in an entire change.

M. de Calonne next confiders the acts of the affembly, as they are conformable to the inftructions received from their electors. Many of their decrees, he remarks, agree with the documents; fome relate to objects which the elective affemblies had not forefeen or provided for, but the greatest number, and the most important, are diametrically contrary to the unanimous inftructions. The first are undoubtedly proper; the fecond should be re-confidered; but the third are abfolutely null, and can only be established by an authentic confirmation from the whole nation.

Among the decrees, not provided for by the inftructions, are thofe relating to the permanence of the affembly, the cftablishment of martial law, the inftitution of juries in ciminal cales, the new division of the kingdom in geometrical

districts,