of reafons for the ufe of advocates on the different fides of a queftion; and we may amufe ourselves with them as long as we pleafe: but when circumstances are ripe for alteration, alterations will take place, and work their way, like water, to a natural level. N. TRADE and COMMERCE. Art. 22. Wool encouraged without Exportation; or, Practical Obfervations on Wool and the Woollen Manufacture. In Two Parts. Part I. containing Strictures on Appendix, No. IV. to a Report made by a Committee of the Highland Society on the Subject of Shetland Wool*. Part II. containing a Brief History of Wool, and the Nature of the Woollen Manufactures as connected with it. By a Wiltshire Clothier, F. A. S. 8vo. pp. 72. 25. Cadell. 1791. This Wiltshire clothier animadverts on Dr. Anderfon for condemning the prohibition of the exportation of wool, with much tartnefs and afperity; which, fuppofing him to have the better of the argument, will fcarcely add to it the credit of liberality of mind. He accufes the Doctor of mifquoting history, and of mifunderstanding what he quotes. The validity of criticifms muft, in many cafes, be referred to thofe who make particular fubjects the objects of their ftudy; and credit fhould be given to them, until they are refuted by known facts, ftronger reafoning, or better authority. Thus, when the prefent writer affirms that the fine wooled theep of Spain, is a meer carrion, and never eaten † ;' we may indeed hesitate, for want of authority, but may not be able to controvert the truth of the affertion. The author gives us a very comprehenfive view of the manifold ufes of the fheep: · Amongst the various animals with which Divine Providence has ftored the world for the ufe of man, none is to be found more innocent, more useful, or more valuable than the Sheep. The Sheep fupplies us with food and clothing, and finds ample employment for our poor, at all times and feafons of the year, whereby a variety of manufactures of woollen cloth is carried on without interruption to domeftic comfort and lofs to friendly fociety or injury to health, as is the cafe with many other occupations. Every lock of wool that grows on its back becomes the means of Support to Staplers, Dyers, Pickers, Scourers, Scriblers, Carders, Combers, Spinners, Spoolers, Warpers, Queelers, Weavers, Fullers, Tuckers, Burlers, Shearmen, Preffers, Clothiers, and Packers, who, one after another, tumble and 1ofs, and twist and bake and boil this raw material, till they have each extracted a livelihood out of it; and then comes the Merchant, who, in his turn, fhips it (in its bigbeft ftate of improvement) to all quarters of the globe, from whence he brings back every kind of riches to his country, in return for the labours of these his neighbours exported with it. Befides this, the useful animal, after being deprived of his coat, grows us another against the next year; and when we are hungry • See Rev. Enlarged, vol. iii. p 199. + P. 9. and and kill him for food, he gives us his fkin to employ the Fell-mongers and Parchment-makers, who fupply us with a durable material for fecuring our Eftates, Rights, and Poffeffions; and if our enemies take the field against us, fupplies us with a powerful inftrument for roufWhen the Parchment-maker ing our courage to repel their attacks. has taken as much of the fkin as he can use, the Glue-maker comes after and picks up every morfel that is left, and therewith supplies us a material for the Carpenter and Cabinet-maker, which they cannot do without, and which is effentially neceffary before we can have elegant furniture in our houfes, tables, chairs, lookingglaffes, and a hundred other articles of convenience: and when the winter nights come on, and we are deprived of the cheering light of the Sun, the Sheep fupplies us with an artificial mode of light, whereby we preferve every pleasure of domestic fociety, and with whofe affiftance we can continue our work, or write or read, and improve our minds, or enjoy the focial mirth of our tables. Another part of the flaughtered animal fupplies us with an ingredient neceflary for making good common Soap, a ufeful ftore for producing Neither need the horns be cleanliness in every family rich or poor. thrown away, for they are converted by the Button-makers and Turners into a cheap kind of buttons, tips for bows, and many useful ornaments. From the very trotters an oil is extracted ufeful for many purposes, as well as their affording good food when baked in an oven. We have now picked the poor animal to the bones, yet these are useful alfo, for by a late invention of Dr. Higgins, they are found, when reduced to afhes, to be a useful and effential ingredient in the compofition of the finest artificial ftone in ornamental work for chimney-pieces, cornices of rooms, houses, &c. which renders the compofition more durable by effectually preventing its cracking *. If it is objected to the meek inoffenfive creature, that he was expenfive while living, in eating up our grafs, &c. it may be anfwered that it was quite the contrary, for he could feed where every other animal had been before him and grazed all they could find, and that if he took a little grafs on your downs, or in your fields, he amply repaid you (for every blade of grafs) in the richness of the I forgot to mention the fervice he manure he left behind him. yields to the ladies, whofe fair foft hands he protects from the Any curious perfon would be much entertained to fee the manufactory of Bone Afh, now carried on by Mr. Minish of Whitechapel, New Road, wherein the bones of Sheep and Cows undergo many ingenious proceffes.-1ft, There is a mill to break them;2d, a cauldron to extract their oil, marrow, and fat ;-3d, a reverbatory to heat them red hot;-4th, an oven for thofe bones to moulder to afhes;-5th, a ftill to collect the fumes of the burnt bones into a brown fluid, from whence hartfhorn is made;-6th, furnaces for making parts thereof into Glauber's falts;-7th, a fand heat containing twelve jars, for collecting a chryftallizing vapour into Sal-ammoniac.' cold cold wintry blast by providing them with the fofteft leather gloves. Every gentleman's library is alfo indebted to him for the neat binding of his books, for the fheath of his fword, and for cafes for his inftruments; in fhort, not to be tedious in mentioning the variOus ufes of leather, there is hardly any furniture or utenfil of life but the Sheep contributes to render it either more useful, convenient, or ornamental. · The prefent ftate of the wool-trade is thus fummarily exhibited: The reafon why the farmer or wool-grower became regardlefs of his wool, was not from a defpair of felling fine wool, but from his being enabled by the improving ftate of his country (arifing from its increased commerce, riches, and luxury) to make the flesh of the sheep a principal object of attention; a larger breed of sheep was therefore adopted, which naturally produced a coarfer kind of wool; but finding the natural feed of the country would not maintain this new fort, he had recourfe to artificial graffes and turnips, which latter is found very injurious to wool, but the farmer ftill made as much money from his fleece as he did before, though fold at a lefs price, because of the increafed quantity of it; and this is ftill the language of every farmer of the Weft of England, who finds his coarfe wool fell as readily as his fine formerly did; for to one man who buys a coat of fine wool, there are ten at leaft who buy inferior qualities.' Hence our author infers that, were Spain to adopt our improvements in agriculture, and to exert a fpirit of commerce, their wool would degenerate in the fame manner as with us. His reafons against the exportation of raw wool, appear cogent: A good trade, fully encouraged at home, becomes the beft poffible encouragement to the woolgrower, who, generally fpeaking, is alfo a farmer. The fubject is much misreprefented by thofe who affert that a foreign market, in our prefent fate of improvement, would benefit the wool grower. It should always be taken into the fame argument, that on every 20s. worth of wool fent abroad, there is above 60s. worth of labour taken from the community, who in lieu of that deprivation mult fubfift on jomething, and that must ultimately fall on the landholder. No circumftances can juftify the ftep but a great redundancy of wool at home, and when fuch a cafe happens, it is time enough to feek it. Let us for inftance fuppofe, that half our next year's growth of wool is exported, and it arifes to double the price, what is the confequence? the manufacturer receives his order from the merchant on the ufual terms, but finds, from the great advance of wool, he fhall not fave himself, he must therefore decline the order, unless he can get fuch a price of the merchant as to injure bim fome profit, (a little advance upon an article of manufacture will I have heard an eminent woolftapler fay, that the effects of turnip feeding are fo pernicious to fine wool, that he can distinguish it while drawing it apart in his fingers, from its acquired harfhness. This is a very ferious confideration.' turn turn the current of a trade, though no fuch effect happens on fuch articles of life as corn, fugar, groceries, &c. which must be bought) the merchant not having this in his power, returns the order to his agent abroad, and the clothier remains without a trade, accumulating a heavy stock of materials made at a dear rate: his first step to fave bimfelf and family from ruin, is to difcharge his work-folks, of which any manufacturer of confequence employs from 500 to a 1000. In confequence of this lofs of trade from rife of wool, many 100,000 people are thrown out of bread, the effect of which is univerfal diftrefs and difcontent, and God knows where the evil would end! The first object of the mob would be to procure the names of thofe who voted for the exportation of wool, and their lives would be probably the facrifice! and the next fiep would be a numerous emigration to that country to which the wool was conveyed, which no doubt would be glad to receive them; as was actually the cafe with the Brabanters under their Duke Wenceslaus in the 14th century; with the Dutch upon the introduction of the Spanish Inquifution; with the French under Louis the 14th, upon the revocation of the edict of Nante; and in Spain under Ferdinand, upon his compulfion of the Moors to change their religion, &c. &c. Further, if a leffer exportation takes place than the half, or even so much as to diftrefs the manufacturer, and induce him to lefen his trade from a doubt of advantage, the evil will be nationally felt, more or less, according to the circumflances and extent of the evil.' To this may be added, that, as the growth of wool and that of grain interfere, both cannot be cultivated for exportation. Corn is entitled to the preference; as, by undertaking to fupply foreigners, we infure plenty for ourselves:-but employment is as neceffary as food; therefore we ought not to part with wool, before it is work. ed up into fome form for ufe. Perfuaded that the views of Dr. Anderfon are as public fpirited and liberal as thofe of this nameless writer, whoever he may be; when he fo freely animadverts on a refpectable known character for difference in opinion, we leave to his reflection what an cager opponent might make of the following paragraphs: Wherever Agriculture greatly flourishes, and lands are highly cultivated and enclofed, it is impoffible to raife fine clothing wool. The lofs of Spanish wool is not fo much feared by us, from any embargo Spain may lay upon it, as from the confequences of a better Government, encouraging arts, and improving their husbandry, and the cultivation of their lands. This event may not be fo distant as we may fuppofe; and in this cafe, where fhall we obtain fine wool, unless we can rear it ourselves? 6 This is another reafon why we fhould, by all the means in our power, endeavour to cultivate the growth of fine wool in our own jland.' That is, we fhould, by all the means in our power, endeavour to perform what has been previoufly declared an impoffibility! N. POETRY, POETRY. Art. 23. Sonnets from Shakespeare. By Albert. 8vo. 2s. 6d. Debrett. pp. 76. To manufacture poetry from the poetry of Shakespeare, is no 1791. difficult atchievement. Having fuch divine materials, the production of beauties feems almoft inevitable: but to make our immortal bard lefs beautiful than he is in himself, is an undertaking entitled to no thanks; and to attempt to augment his beauties would be deemed the very acmè of poetic prefumption. The writer, who here affumes the fignature of Albert, is not fo vain as to think of the latter; and it is no more than juftice to own, that, in his tranfpofition of the language of Shakespeare, and in the expofition of his fentiments in the fonnet form, he has fhewn fome degree of tafte and elegance. The fonnets have unequal merit. The following, from the wellknown paffage in Twelfth Night, act 2, fcene 4, She never told her love, &c. we transcribe as a favourable fpecimen : Ah! how I mourn the doubly hapless maid, The pangs of hopeless paffion doom'd to prove, Who can't conceal-and dares not tell-her love. It was a blank-her love fhe would not speak; Feed on the beauties of her damafk cheek: VIOLA,' Thefe fonnets are 40 in number. The original paffages of the poet, from which they are taken, are fubjoined. number of them have already appeared in the Gazetteer and Morning The greater Chronicle. Art. 24. For the Year 1792. To the Academicians. Bad Pictures placed in a good Light. By Sir Solomon Gundy, LL. D. F.R.S. F.A.S. R.A. et M. P. 4to. pp. 18. Is. 6d. Ridgway. If, according to this imitator (O Imitatores, Servum Pecus!) of Peter Pindar, the exhibiting painters, of the year ninety-two, were but a bad fet, we may venture to hint, that few of our poets, of the fame period, have much claim to a higher character:-" D'ye understand me now?" Sir Solomon! Moo-y. Art 25. Elegy written in a London Church-yard. 4to. Is. Bell, Oxford-street. 1792. A not inelegant tribute, on the plan of Gray's elegy, to the me See p. 22. of Sir Solomon's pamphlet. mory |