his knowledge and power muft equally extend to (or, in other words, must be equally prefent with) every being; every part of the univerfe. The practical ufes to be made of this important article of religion, are chiefly thofe, which I have already mentioned. It fhould imprint, upon our minds, the most humble sense of human frailty; with the profoundest reverence of that amazing power, by which we are thus inceffantly furrounded and fupported. It teaches us the neceffity of keeping a perpetual guard over our whole behaviour, towards God and man; of being upright, in all our defigns; ingenuous and undifguifed, in all our tranfactions. It is, (I mean, it ought to be) the bane of all clandeftine villany. It fhews the common maxim, that "honeity is the best policy," to be univerfally true; in all cafes, in all fenfes. Since the most accomplished hypocrite upon earth, cannot conceal a thought of the heart from the eyes of Him, who fees the fecrets of all hearts, and will reward them openly. Finally. It yields the nobleft comfort to every virtuous perfon, under the troubles incident to this tranfitory life; as it demonftrates, that God exercifes an impartial government over us; and is the eternal protector of all good men whofe very fufferings therefore, are intended for their benefit; and cannot fail to end in their glory, if they bear them with that refignation to the divine will, which diftinguishes a wife and religious mind." : Our author's obfervations on the adminiftration of the facrament, during the last moments of ebbing life, are very juft. I do not mean to fpeak against this practice, in the grofs. I only wish, not to have it mifunderflood, or mifapplied.--I hope .therefore you do not imagine, that any repentance, for a few days preceding a man's death, and the receiving the facrament during that thort fpace, can wipe off the guilt, or obtain the forgiveness, of fins, which he has been unrepentedly commit ting for all his life paft. The confequence of fuch a doctrine, would be exactly the fame, as that mentioned in the last article. -It would make the gospel, a nursery of fin;-and the facrament a ceremony, calculated for the propagation of fin-to carry men to heaven, whether they will or no-to fave them, in fpite of all the pains they have taken to condemn themselves, Upon fuch a fyftem of religion, men would have nothing to do, but to indulge their vices till within an hour of their departure; -and then to take the facrament, as their abfolution from them all. Before ever you can admit an opinion like this, you must totally abandon the ufe of reafon, in facred concerns: you must fet piety, and common fenfe, at eternal variance. I beg however, to declare again, that I do not in the least object to men's receiving the facrament in the time of fick nefs, or at any other time. I would only have it received at all times, with fuch a difpofition of mind, and with fuch a knowledge of the rite itself, as may render it effectual to the great purpose intended by it.' Con Connected with the principles of revealed religion are our author's opinions in the following paffage from the fermon on thofe doctrines, that light and immortality' are brought to light by the gospel. 'Another circumftance in the Scripture-account I am confidering, is; that though God has not yet revealed the Gospel to all parts of the world, all mankind will have their portion n the future ftate of recompence. Though all men have not received Chrift's doctrine, all will be fuminoned to appear at his tribunal. He is accordingly reprefented as fitting upon the throne of his glory, with all the nations of the earth affembled before him ; as making the like final distinction between the virtuous and the wicked, in thofe who are not now of his vifible church, as in us who are more immediately his own fervants. Whence you learn, that good men, of all times or places, are beloved of God, and will be admitted into his kingdom; while the unrighteous and ungodly, of whatever denomination, will be excluded from it. But though it is undoubtedly true, that all men will be judged at the last day: do not imagine, they will all be judged by one rule, or by the fame ftandard. No! Every man will be accepted according to what he has, not according to what he has not. To us, on whom the light of the Gospel has fhone, a larger field of morals is opened, and a more extenfive fervice will confequently be expected from us. Whereas from them who never heard the name of Chrift, nothing will be required but the performance of thofe duties only, which reafon and confcience univerfally dictate. For God has not, in any region. under heaven, either left himself without witnefs; or his rational creatures without a law, by which they fhould direct themfelves. The invifible things of Him, from the creation of the world, might always clearly be feen, by the things that are made:" And every man has a rule of duty, written upon his heart; which he cannot violate, without being felf-condemned. In these paffages we have alfo given a fhort fpecimen of our author's manner of connecting the moral duties with the precepts of religion, and we have extended our quotations far enough to lead our readers to judge of the merits of thefe volumes. Perhaps they may find a want of force and of energy in the fentiments and language. Even the illuftrations are obvious, without being felect; but, if our author is not copious in explaining, it may be excufed, when he fo feldom proceeds beyond common comprehenfions. This is not, however, intended to be marked as a fault in a preacher who addresses his difcourfes to a popular audience; and, fince it is necessary to have, in a family, difcourfes fo plain and popular, as not to rife above the level of every comprehenfion, and at the same time to be truly pious and ftrictly practical, we can chearfully recommend the volumes before us. 3 Obfervations Obfervations made on a Tour from Bengal to Perfia, in the Years 1786-7. With a short Account of the Remains of the celebrated Palace of Perfepolis, and other interefting Events. By Wil liam Francklin. 8vo. 6s. Boards. Cadell. HE author of this work informs us, that being a fupernumerary officer on the Bengal establishment, and defirous of employing his leifure time by improving himself in the knowledge of the Perfian language, as well as to gain information of the history and manners of the nation, he obtained a furlough for that purpose; the result of which is the obfervations now before us. During a refidence of eight months at Shirauz, among the natives of the place, Mr. Francklin had a very favourable opportunity of becoming acquainted with the manners and cuftoms of the country; and we may well suppose, from the motives of his journey, that he was fufficiently intent on rendering it as productive as poffible of the laudable objects which he had in view. On the twenty-feventh of February 1786, he embarked for Bombay, in his way to Perfia; but in the courfe of the voyage landed on the island of Ceylon. No kind of spice, nutmegs, or any other rarities for which this island is so celebrated, are to be met with at the Point de Galle, the town where the author went on fhore: nor could the voyagers, on their approach to the island, perceive any of thofe odoriferous gales described by travellers as exhaling from the cinnamon and other spices with which this ifland abounds. Topazes, amethysts, and other precious ftones are found on the island of Ceylon, and brought to Point de Galle for fale; but we are told that it is dangerous for people not skilled in those commodities to purchase them when fet, as the perfons who fell them are very expert in making the false stones appear like true ones, by colouring them at the bottom.. The inhabitants at this place, particularly Europeans, are for the most part fickly. The author, during a few hours stay on fhore, obferved feveral perfons whofe legs were fwelled in an extraordinary manner. This the natives impute to the badness of the water, and the vapours which arife from the adjoining hills. The inhabitants of Malacca are faid to be liable to the fame disease, and from fimilar caufes. Our author, after visiting several places in his route, arrived at Shirauz, the capital of Farriftan, or Perfia Proper. It is fituated in a valley of great extent and furprifing fertility, in latitude 29° 30′ 31′′. This place is celebrated for the purity of its air. A wall encompaffes the city, five-andtwenty feet high, and ten thick, furnished with round towers Vol. LXIX. March, 1790. Y at at the distance of eighty paces from each other. Shirauz is likewife furrounded by an excellent dry ditch, fixty feet in depth, and twenty in breadth; which would alone, exclufive of other works, enable the city to hold out a long time against any power in Perfia, where artillery is but little known, and lefs ufed. The city has fix gates, which are fhut at fun-fet, and opened at fun-rife; during which interval no person is permitted to pafs in or out. Within the city, at the upper end, ftands the citadel, which is built of brick, and is a fquare of eighty yards circumference, flanked with round towers, and encompaffed with a dry foffe, of the fame breadth and depth as that of the city. Oppofite to the citadel, in a large handfome fquare, is a gallery where the khan's mufic, confifting of trumpets, kettledrums, and other inftruments, plays regularly at fun-rife and fun-fet. One fide of this fquare leads to the Dewan Khan, or chamber of audience; which is a large building, of an oblong form, with an open front. The infide, about one-third up the wall, is lined with white marble from Tauris, and the cieling and other parts are ornamented with a beautiful gold enamelled work, in imitation of the lapis lazuli. In the front of it, within a large garden, are three 'handfome fountains, with ftone bafons, which are continually playing. Shirauz has many good bazars and caravanferas. The chief of thefe, or that diftinguished by the name of the Vakeel's bazar, forms a 'ftreet, extending a quarter of a mile, built entirely of brick, and roofed in a ftyle much refembling that of the piazzas in Covent Garden. The Jews at Shirauz have a quarter of the city allotted to themfelves, for which they pay a confiderable tax to govern→ment, and are obliged to make frequent prefents. This tribe is more odious to Perfians than thofe of any other faith; and every opportunity is taken to opprefs and extort money from them; the very boys in the treet being accustomed to beat and infult them, of which treatment they dare not complain. Shirauz is adorned with many fine mofques, particularly that of Kerim Khan, which is of a fquare form. At the upper end of the building is a large dome with a cupola at top, which is the place appropriated for the devotion of the vakeel. It is lined throughout with white marble, ornamented with the blue and gold artificial lapis lazuli; and has three filver lamps fufpended from the roof of the dome. Without giving a more particular description of this, or the other mosqués, we fhall pafs to the Zoor Khana, of which our author gives the following account: There There are places in Shirauz diftinguished by the name of Zoor Khana, the house of strength or exercife; to which the Perfians refort for the fake of exercising themselves. These houses confist of one room, with the floor funk about two feet below the furface of the earth, and the light and air are admit ted to the apartment by means of several small perforated apertures made in the dome. In the centre is a large fquare terrace of earth, well beaten down, fmooth, and even; and on each fide are fmall alcoves raifed about two feet above the terrace, where the muficians and fpectators are feated. When all the competitors are affembled, which is on every Friday morning by day-break, they immediately ftrip themselves to the waift; on which each man puts on a pair of thick woollen drawers, and takes in his hands two wooden clubs of about a foot and a half in length, and cut in the fhape of a pear; these they rest upon each fhoulder, and in the mufic ftriking up, they move them backwards and forwards with great agility, ftamping with their feet at the fame time, and training every nerve, till they produce a very profufe perfpiration. After continuing this exercise about half an hour, the mafter of the house, who is always one of them, and is diftinguished by the appellation of Pehlwaùn, or wreftler, makes a fignal, upon which they all leave off, quit their clubs, and joining hands in a circle, be gin to move their feet very brifkly in union with the mufic, which is all the while playing a lively tune. Having continued this for a confiderable time, they commence wrestling; but before the trial of skill in this art begins, the matter of the house addreffes the company in a particular fpeech, in part of which he informs the candidates, that as they are all met in good fellowship, fo ought they to depart, and that in the conteft they are about entering into, they fhould have no malice or ill-will in their hearts; it being only an honourable emulation, and trial of ftrength, in which they are going to exert themselves, and not a contentious brawl; he therefore cautions them to proceed in good humour and concord: this fpeech is loudly applauded by the whole affembly. The wrestlers then turn to their diverfion, in which the mafter of the house is always the challenger; and, being accustomed to the exercife, generally proves conqueror, by throwing cach of the company two or three times fucceffively. I have fometimes, however, feen him meet with his equal, efpecially when beginning to grow fatigued. The fpectators pay each a fhahee, in money, equal to three-pence English, for which they are refreshed during the diverfion with a calcan and coffee. This mode of exercise, L fhould fuppofe, must contribute to health, as well as add strength, vigour, and a manly appearance to the frame. It ftruck me in its manner of execution to bear fome refemblance to the gymnastic exercises of the ancients.' The baths in Perfia are very commodious, and fome of them particularly beautiful. During the fpring they are de |