nea. Both together make one firm cafe of a proper form for the ufe of the other coats and humours. Q. What is the cornea ? A. The cornea, fo called from its fubftance resembling the horn of a lanthorn, is convex, tranfparent, and composed of various lamine, which are nourished by many blood-veffels, fo fine as not even to hinder the smallest rays of light from entering the eye. The cornea is fituated in the fore-part of the eye, furrounded by the sclerotica and albuginea; it has a moft exquifite fenfe, to the end that the tears, upon the leaft pain, may be fqueezed out of the lachrymal gland, to wash off any filth, which, by fticking to the cornea, might render it opake or dim. Q. What is the tunica choroides? • A. The tunica choroides is the fourth coat of the eye, and is fo named, on account of the multitude of blood-veffels refembling the chorion; it lies immediately under the sclerotica, and is much thinner than it, being a membrane of little firmness. It is blackish, or of a dusky brown colour, more or lefs inclining to red. This membrane, or coat, has a great number of blood-veffels which come from the sclerotica. It is open, or has a hole before, for the paffage of the rays of light, called pupil, la; the part of this coat, which makes the circumference of the hole, and lies upon the fide of the cryftalline humour, is the uvea. Q. What is the uvea, you mention ? A. The uvea is the fifth coat, and is only a white circle round the back fide of the choroides near the cornea, as has been faid. In this coat we observe, first the iris, which is a circular variously coloured part, being the anterior furface of the uvea, which furrounds the pupil; it is called the iris, because in different perfons it is of different colours; hence the denomi nation of grey, blue, brown, hafel, black eyes, &c. The iris is entirely vascular, from which arises the variety of colours in the human eyes. Secondly, the pupil, or foramen, which is round in the human eye, nearly in the middle of the iris, and is capable of dilatation and contraction. Through this aperture, the rays of light pafs to the cryftalline, in order to be painted on the retina, and caufe vifion. Thirdly, its pofterior furface, which is black, and in which, when this blackness is cleared away, there appears the fphincter of the pupil, formed of circular fibres for contraction, the ciliary fibres or proceffes, for the dilatation of the pupil; the ciliary ligament for the motion of the vitreous and cryftalline humours; the arterial and venal circles, from the veffels, are in a wonderful manner diftributed over the uvea; the choroides; the ligamentum ciliare; and the vitreous and cryftalline humours; the ductus nigri, fo called from their black colour, placed between the proceffes and the ligamentum ciliare; the space between the uvea and the cornea, called the anterior camera of the eye; and that between the uyea and cryftalline, called its pofterior camera, which is either much fmaller, or entirely wanting. Q. What Q. What is the retina ? A. The retina is a membrane which may be called the fixth tunic or coat; it lies immediately under the tunica choroides, and is a very delicate, tender, and as it were, mucous coat of the eye, or more properly, it is only an expanfion of the optic nerve at the bottom of the eye. It is the great organ of vifion, and called retina because it fomewhat refembles a net: rays of light ftriking upon this membrane, the fenfation is conveyed by the optic nerves to the common fenforium, the brain. Q. What is the aqueous humour of the eye? A. The aqueous humour lies in the fore-part of the globe, immediately under the cornea: this humour is thin and liquid, of a fpirituous nature, for it will not freeze in the greatest froft. This evinces the neceffity of a continual supply of this humour; which is manifeft it hath, because if the cornea be pricked, and this humour squeezed out, it will be again reftored in ten or twelve hours: this aqueous humour lying foremost, feems chiefly of ufe to prevent the crystalline from being easily bruifed by rubbing, or a blow; and perhaps it ferves for the crystalline humour to move forward in, while we view near objects, and backward for remoter objects. Q. What is the crystalline humour ? A. The cryftalline humour is the fecond, and diftinctly contained in a very fine coat or membrane called aranea or arachnoides, and is fufpended by means of the ciliary ligament, between the aqueous and vitreous humour, immediately behind the pupil; in this place it hangs free, and is moveable by means of the ligament juft mentioned. It is compofed of a multitude of lamellæ like the coats of an onion; and therefore alfo pellucid and vafcular. There is alfo a fmall quantity of the aqueous humour contained within or under its coat. The crystalline being a thick, compact humour, in form of a flattish convex lens, fituated in the middle of the eye, ferves to make that refraction of the rays of light neceffary to make them meet in the retina, and form an image thereon, whereby vifion may be performed. Q. What is the vitreous humour? A. The vitreous, or glaffy humour, is the third humour of the eye, fo called from its resemblance to glafs in fufion, being like a fine clear jelly in appearance; it is thicker than the aque ous, but thinner than the cryftalline; and is in greater abun dance than the other two. It lies behind the crystalline, and fills up the greatest part of the eye; its forefide is concave tor the cryftaliine humour to lodge in, and its back-fide being convex, the tunica retina is fpread over it; it ferves as a medium to keep the cryftalline humour and the retina at a due distance. QWhat are the blood-veffels and nerves of the eye? A. The eye is furnished in a most wonderful manner with nerves and blood-veffels in all its parts. The bloodveffels of the eye are branches of the carotids and jugulars, diftributed : diftributed to all parts of the eye in an amazing manner. The extreme minute ones convey only a fine and fubtile lymph thither, by which means the tunics and humours of the eye are nourished; the veins partly carry the blood back to the finufes of the dura mater, and partly to the jugulars. The nerves of the eye are very numerous; befides the optic nerves pierce the globe of the eye from the fide of the nose, a little on the infide of the optic axis or center; their external coat, which is a production of the dura mater, is continued to the sclerotis, as their internal is from the pia mater to the choroides and the medullary fibres paffing through all, are expanded on the retina, upon which the images of objects are painted. The centre of this expanfion is infenfible, and all rays which fall upon it are loft; confequently, that point of the object from which the rays come, is invisible to the eye; the reafon of this proceeds, probably, from the blood-vessels, which enter the globe of the eye with the optic nerve, and cover this part of the retina. But whatsoever the cause be, there is a manifeft advantage in the optic nerves being inferted on the infide of the optic axis. For if they had pierced the eye in the axis, the middle point of every object had been invifible, and where all things conduce to make ussee best, there we had not seen at all.' To render this compendium the more useful, a copious in dex is added; and the volume is furnished with several anatomical plates. A View of the Hard-labour Bill; being an Abstract of a Pamphlet, intituled, Draught of a Bill, to punish by Imprisonment and Hard-labour, certain Offenders; and to establish proper Places for their Reception. Interfperfed with Observations, &c. By Jeremy Bentham, Efq. 8vo. 21. Payne. IN N the account of thanks due from the community to individuals, next in order to him who ventures his life for the fervice of his fellow-creatures, ftands the man who dedicates his time and his ftudy to their benefit. In fuch a lift of benefactors, immediately after the refpectable name of Howard, will appear the name of Bentham-the gentleman to whom the public is obliged for this pamphlet. The work before us is fufficiently explained by its title. Şome inaccuracies and inelegancies of ftyle and method, which it contains, would not have escaped the author had the fhort space of time, to which he was neceffarily confined in observ ations upon a passing bill, admitted of the re-touches of a pencil which we can plainly perceive to be a mafter's.-The liberal eye of the man of humanity will not mark fuch trifling errors; errors; the man of judgment will clearly fee that he who let them flip can correct them. In our examination of this work, we fhall not feel much if we should be intelligible to thofe only who have already confidered the bill and the pamphlet. The allowance proposed, in p. 14 of these Observations, to be granted to committee-men, is exceedingly proper, and might perhaps be the very allowance mentioned-fixpence a mile, and a fum not more than ten fhillings a day, while the committee shall continue fitting-but that the distance be afcertained by the oath of the committee-man we by no means approve; he who is not to be credited in fuch a matter as this without an oath, is furely not a proper perfon to be upon any committee. When our author comes to that section of the bill which fpeaks of the dimenfions of the buildings, and directs each houfe to contain feveral cells and dungeons, he has this Sentence If the utmost degree of stillness were thought not to be abfolutely neceffary to be infifted on, a man's own lodging-room might at any time, by the contrivance above-mentioned, be fitted up for the purpose.' That is, for the purpose of a dungeon. The contrivance above mentioned is to adapt to the window a black fkuttle inflected to a right angle. But this we conceive to be no very effectual method of inflicting a feverer punishment on an offender, by-confining him to his apartment, and fitting up his own lodging room as a dungeon.'—Our author indeed does recollect himself afterwards, and adds, that fomething of the effect depends upon the ftrangeness of the place, and upon its being known to be appropriated to a penal purpose. When Mr. Bentham comes to the 39th fection of the bill, which prescribes the times of work, he makes fome very fenfible obfervations: but, fpeaking of the great difficulty of filling up the time of the offenders on Sundays, and observing that one expedient is to protract the time of divine fervice, he gives us the following paffage Another way of adding to the church fervice is by mufic This will, at any rate, be a very agreeable employment to many; and, if properly managed, may be a very useful one to all; even to thofe who have no natural relish for mufic in itfelf. The influence which church-mufic has over the generality of men, in bringing them to a compofed and ferious turn of mind, is well known. The mufic might be either vocal only, or affifted by an organ. In either cafe, the vocal part might, with a little inftruction, be performed by the congregation them. themselves; as it is at the Magdalen, and other public foun dations.' . That church-mufic has much influence over the generality of men, in bringing them to a compofed and ferious turn of mind, we do not deny-but the generality of men are not of fenders fentenced to hard-labour and confinement for crimes committed against fociety. The powers, which mufic is faid to have poffeffed in the days of old, either never exifted, or have long fince ceafed. It were as wife to think of building a hard-labour houfe, like Orpheus, with the affiftance of mufic, as to think of reforming by it the offenders confined in one. That which redeemed Eurydice from hell, would hardly redeem a fingle villain from fin. He might, at the conclufion of his confinement, be a better vocal or inftrumental performer, but would not, upon that account, be a better man.—Besides, 6 The man who hath not mufic in himself Is fit for treafons, ftratagems, and spoils;' confequently he, who has committed treasons, ftratagems or fpoils, can have no music in his foul, nor be moved with concord of fweet founds.' Upon the whole, he concludes, (as to their employments on Sundays, &c.) I can fee no better expedient at prefent than that of permitting them (not obliging them, but permitting them) to betake themselves to fome eafy fedentary employment; fuch as knitting, fpinning, or weaving, that might afford them a small profit. This profit, if made their own, would make the employment pleafant to them. Devotion, it is true, is better on fuch a day than induty; but induftry is better on every day than total idleness; that is, than defpondency or mifchief. The neceffity in this cafe feems at leaft as ftrong as that which has induced the legislature to permit the practice of certain trades on the day in queftion, and which is univerfally, underflood to authorize perfons of all defcriptions to pursue molt of their household occupations. It were hard if an institution, confeffedly no original part of the religion we profefs, but only adopted into it by early practice, and in later times fanctioned by human authority, muft, at all events, be permitted to oppoíe the main ends of religion, innocence and peace.' This is a wife and pra&icable fcheme, which cannot fail, we fheuld think, to be adopted. Are not the negroes, of whom the greateft bawlers for liberty have made beafts of burden, fuffered to employ Sunday, which fhines no fabbath day to them,' in the cultivation of a particular piece of ground fet apart for the fupport of their miferable exiftence? In the obfervations upon fection 40, which directs the apparel of the offenders to have certain obvious marks or badges upon |