D. The point at which the other part of the machine is to be fufpended. E. The hemifphere, to be fufpended at the abovementioned point D. Its fize fhould be fuch at the top, as to aufwer to the Balloon, its circumference being, however, a little oval; at the bottom, its diameter fhould be more contracted, capable only of containing a quantity of refifting air, which is to maintain the equilibrium between the two powers. F. The place for fixing a (mall fyringe, whofe aperture at in the fide, will admit of the entrance of external air. The pifton is raifed above this aperture, and then depreffed, in fuch manner as to force into the hemifphere through a hole in the bottom, a quantity of air, which by means of a valve placed there, is prevented from returning into the barret of the fyringe: The Balloon being now rendered capable of fupport in the air, the next object is, to give it motion and direction. This is done by the impulfe of a quantity of air, upon a fet of fails properly fitted to the hemifphere, or by the motion of the manager in friking a fufficient quantity of air, whofe refiftance hall produce the motion required. G. H. A fmall lever fixed in two points upon which it may move freely, the arm of which, on the fide of the power, fhall exceed by its length, the refiftance of the air. C. D. Two crofs pieces placed perpendicularly at each end of the lever, with which they form two ifoceles triangles. At the extremity of thofe croffes a fet of fails fhould be fixed,of Tofficient firength and largenefs,to re& the column of air to which they pre oppofed. G. R. The place where a handle is o be fixed for the purpofe of workhg the lever with the hand. 2 point a to the point 3, by the help of rings which are connected with the rod: At the end of this rod, at the point 2, fhould be fixed a small double pulley, as well as at the point 4, to anfwer to the common point 5, where fhould be placed a block, by the help of which the little fail may be furled by the rings at the point 2, defcending from this common point to the point 3, and in the fame manner from the point 4 to 3; and extended by the rings afcending from the common point 3, to the points 2 and 4, obferving that at the point 3, each of the two fails fhould be faftened. The fame difpofition fhould be made at the other end of the lever 7, 8, 9, fo, that the lever may be placed at the centre of motion in the hemifphere, whilft the man, being placed in the centre of gravity, would be able to manage the four fails with ease, according to circumftances. P. Is a fmall iron peg, which fecures a fmall ftick, in fuch manper as to admit of an eafy motion, and at the end of it fhould be fixed a rod, 12 and 13, forming two ifoceles triangles, upon each of which two fails fhould be fitted,and fpread in the fame manner as the others, to give the direction,theircommon point being atro. The fals fhould terminate in P, and care thould always be taken to proportion them in fuch manner, that the greateft poffible effect of the air may form an equilibrium with the arm of the lever, from the point P to 1; every thing will then be totally at the command of the manager, who may fteer as he hall please, with but very little labour or fatigue. Character of Shaftsbury's Style. From Dr. Blair's Leatures. baring many excellencies, have F authors, who, notwithfland PREPARATION. At the rendered their ftyle much lefs beautiful by want of fimplicity, I cannot give a more remarkable example than Lord Shaftsbury. Confiderable merit, doubtless, he has. His works might be read with profit for the ma al philofophy which they contain, had he not filled them with fo many oblique and invidious infinuations against the chriftian religion; thrown out, too, with fo much fpleen and fatire, as do no honour to his memory, either as an author or a man. His language has many beauties. It is firm, and fupported in an uncommon degree; it is rich and mufical. No English author has attended so much to the regular conftruction of his fentences, both with refpect to proprie ty, and with refpe&t to cadence. All this gives so much elegance and pump to his language, that there is no wonder it should have been fometimes highly admired. It is greatly hurt however by perpetual ftiffness and affectation. This is its capital fault. HisLordship can exprefs nothing with fimplicity. He feems to have confidered it as vulgar, and beneath the dignity of a man of quality, to fpeak like other men. Hence he is ever in bufkins; full of circumlocutions and artificial elegance. In every fentence, we see the marks of labour and art; nothing of that eafe, which expreffes a fentiment coming natural and warm from the heart. Of figures and ornament of every kind he is exceed ingly fond; fometimes happy in them; but his fondnefs for them is too vifible; and having once laid hold of fome metaphor or illufion that pleafed him, he knows not how to part with it. What is moft wonderful, he was a profeffed admirer of fimplicity; is always extolling it in the ancients, and cenfuring the moderns for the want of it; though he departs from it himself as far as any one modern whatever. Lord Shafts bury poffeffed delicacy and refinement of tafte, to a degree that we may call exceffive and fickly; but he had little warmth of paffion; few frong or vigorous feelings; and the coldness of his character led him to that artificial and flately manner which appears in his writings. He was fonder of nothing than wit and raillery; but he is far from being happy in it. He attempts it often, but always awkwardly; he is fiff. even in his pleafantry; and laughs in form, like an author, and not like a man. Character of Bolingbroke's Ayle. A From the fame. MONG English writers, the one who has mioft of the character of the Vehement in his ftyle, though mixed, indeed, with feveral defects, is Lord Bolingbroke. Bolingbroke was formed by nature to be a factious leader; the demagogue of a popular affembly. Accordingly the ftyle that runs through all his political writings, is that of one declaiming with heat, rather than writing with deliberation. He abounds with rhetorical figures; and pours himself forth with great impetuolity. He is copious to a fault; places the fame thought before us in many different views; but generally with life and ardour. He is bold, rather than correct; a torrent that flows ftrong, but often muddy. His fentences are varied as to length and hortnefs; inclining, however, moft to long periods, fometimes including parenthefes, and frequently crowding and heaping a multitude of things upon one another, as naturally happens in the warmth of fpeaking. In. the choice of his words, there is great felicity and precifion. In exact conftruction of fentences, he is much inferior to Lord Shaftsbury; but greatly fuperior to him in life and ease. Upon the whole, his merit, as a writer, would have been very confiderable, if his matter had equalled his ftyle. But whilft we find many things to commend in the latter, in the former we can hardly find any thing to commend. In his reafonings, for moft part, he is flimfy and false; in his political writings, factious; in what he calls his philofophical ones, irreligious and fophiftical in the highof degree. the duty, of all men in fociety, publicly, and at ftated feafons, to wor"thip the fupreme Being, the great "creator and preferver of the uni verfe. And no fubject shall be "hurt, molested, or reftrained, in his "perion, liberty or eftate, for wor " fhipping God, in the manner, and feafon, moft agreeable to the dic *tates of his own confcience; or for "his religious profeffion, or fenti"ments; provided he doth not dif"turb the public peace, or obftru& others in their religious worship." The firft fentiment in the article above recited is, that it is the right, as well as the duty of all men in fociety, to worship God. The idea intended to be conveyed, I take clearly to be this; that it being the duty of all men publicly to worlip, it is therefore their unalienable right to perform it. For the duty being founded in the nature of man, and refulting from his relation to his Creator and Preferver, it is an indifpenfible duty. Mau cannot lawfully withold it, nor can the government, unless they ufurp the prerogatives of the Moft High,releafe, or forbid it. Although this duty does not refult from man to man, or from an individual to a fociety of men, yet it is a matter wherein civil fociety is much interefted, becaufe, where there is an entire neglect of this, there remaine but little hopes that the citizen will pay a proper regard to thofe of focial life. As words which for a long time have been used, are by the changes incident to language, often affixed to ideas with which they originally had no relation, and too often convey a mere found to the ear, without giving the mind a precife and perfe& idea; it may be neceffary to pay a particular attention to the word WORSHIP. Man being a rational, intelligent creature, and having a greater interef in himself than in any thing else, muft feek his own happinefs as the irft object, and love and adore him moft, on whom he feels the greatest dependence, and from whom he fup poles that he receives the greatest benefits. It is not however forgotten here, that this fentiment opposes it. felf to the unnatural zeal of those religionifls, who talk of going out of themselves, and tell of martyrs who died without any view to their own happiness, and alfo to the favour of patriots, who dwell on the death of the Decii, and the hiftory of the Roman, who filled the chafm in the earth to fave his country. But could I once perfuade my felf, that those sufferers were not infligated by a regard to themselves, confidering their relation to their God, and their country, I should no longer believe them to be martyrs or patriots, but should be led to conclude, that they fell the victims of their own madness and folly. If the martyrs of the chriftian religion believed the doctrines they taught, they were not to fear hira who could only kill the body, but him who could both kill, and caft into hell; they contemplated the thortnefs of life, the duration of another ftate, where, if they denied their faith here, they would be rewarded with fhame, and infelicity. The valley of death they knew they had foon to pafs in fome way or other, and while they loved their divine Mafter, who died for them; and loved themfelves, feeking their own final happinefs, they could not hesitate whether to die, or to deny their religion. They could not have loved their Mater for dying for them, unless they had loved themselves; and the affurance they had of being made happy in the world of fpirits, by laying down their lives at that time,affords us evidence that their profeffion was fincere. I need not dwell longer on the thought of an individual, of a haughty ambitious nation, falling a willing facrifice to his country's fafety, wheu the confequence of his not doing it, would be the involving himself in a common ruin, where the moft barbarous cruelties would be exercised. "Self-love and focial are the fame," faysPope; for one to love a being because he has a relation to him & not to lovehimfelf,or for one to love a system whereof he is a part, and to exclude himfelf, is impoffible. When we realize our relation to the fupreme Being, we remember that each one of the the human race is entitled to the same bleffings we afk for ourselves. Therefore, to defire more for ourselves than for others, would be an oppofition to the government of the universal Parent. But ftill, our intereft in our own felicity, is a primary caufe of the benevolent emotions of our hearts. That affection of the heart, which, when exercifed towards a man, as a benefactor, we call gratitude; when exercifed towards the fupreme Being, I call devotion; in the first case the feeling produces a fimple principle; but in the fecond, there is a fenfe of adoration, neceffarily arifing from the idea of tranfcendent majer ty, which, mixing itfelf with, heightens, and makes exquifite the fublime affection of the heart. This affection has its origin in man's regard to his own happiness, and his relation to God, as his creator, preferver, &c. This is religion, and the only foundation of all true worship. Says Mr. Wollafton, in his religion of nature delineated, "Rational creatures ought "to keep it well impreft upon their "minds, that he is the Being, upon ❝ whom their very existence depends, "that it is he who fuperintends and "adminifters the affairs of the world "by his providence, that the effects "of his power, and influence are vifi"ble before their eyes, and round about them in all the phænomena "of nature, not one of which could "be without him. If they do this it " is easy to fee what effect it must have "upon all their thoughts, words and " actions." This affection which I call devotion, arifes from a combination of ideas already mentioned; it cannot be concealed as a latent spark, but will kindle into a flame, and form fome appearance or other. If man in his moft folitary retreat, contemplates the benefits received from the author of his nature, he forms and arranges his ideas by fome language or other, with which he is acquainted. Should thefe breathings be kept within his own breaft, or fhould they break out into whispers only, it would be folita ry worship, for as the devotion of the heart is the only true religion, fo the, arrangement of it in the mind,whether in private or public, is the dress, type, (To be continued.). To the Editors of the BOSTON MA- vations. Nobody doubts, gentle I Gentlemen, GAZINE. AM happy to find, by the fpirit of your publication, that it is your defign to pay fome attention to the ladies. They certainly form a very refpectable as well as amiable part of the community; and every man of fense will be induftrious to pleafe them. Few materials, however, seem to be furnished for the execution of your purpofe For, excepting a letyer from Sufanna, and two enigmas, nothing has yet appeared with a female fignature. And even the former of thefe I fufpect to be the production of a male hand; for though it must be allowed not to be deftitute of ingenuity, it wants that delicacy and eafy flow of expreffion which dif tinguish the ftyle of a lady. If your female readers are folicitous that the Magazine fhould be adapted to their tafte, it is their duty to make it fo. The men cannot fo eafily please them by their writings as they can pleafe each other. As our ideas are conceived with coldness and formality, it is impoffible that we should be able to produce many pieces, which will delight their fancies. I would therefore request your fair fubfcribers to take up their pens, and to embellifh the Magazine with their elegant and animated performances. It is not jenough for them to admire the works of others: We have a right to expect fome of their own invention. Many young ladies in this and the neighbouring towns, particularly in Salem, Worcester and Braintree, compofe with eafe and grace. Some of their private letters would be fufficiant to eftablish the reputation of your Magazine. As I have thus urged the fair fex o become candidates for literary ame, in order to remove an obftacle hat may ftand in their way, I would equeft you, gentlemen, to be more andid in your acknowledgments to orrefpondents. Several of my feale friends, who can write very tealingly, are deterred from fending heir performances to the prefs by an prehenfion of your farcaftic obfer men, that all of you are endowed with wit; but I would advise you to difpofe of what you have to fpare, in OBSERVATOR. Meffi'rs Printers, Randing Sanna's (prightly letter EVERAL wife criticks, notwithin your laft, ftill continue to treat determined, they fay, to damn your enigmas with great feverity; and are whole compilation, unles, in future all this kind of falfe wit be excluded This reduces you to a very difagreeable dilemma; for, by complying with the opinion of thefe gentlemen, you will not fail to difpleafe your female readers, whofe tante, dear creatures! ought, in fome measure, to be confulted. In order, therefore, to pre ferve your reputation and your fubment in this fpecies of compofition. fcribers, I will propofe an improveLet no enigmas hereafter be admitted into the Magazine, unless, in addition to the knot of difficulty, they be either defcriptive, complimentary true wit will be fo blended together, or fatirical. By thefe means falfe and that both the ladies and the criticks will be gratified. A few examples will explain my of young ladies were to be framed, mameaning. Suppofe an enigmatical lift terials might eafily be collected from the beautiful objects of nature: Pinks, lillies, rofes, tulips; doves, lambs, ermines; clouds, the rain bow, and the moon; would furnish letters to compofe the names. Old maids might be vinegar, and wormwood. The names. made out of daffodils, poppies, cats, of fops and coxcombs would fpring from butterflies, magpies, feathers, bubbles, and flummery. Even the chara&ers of grave lawyers, divines, and phyficians, might be described in demurrers, and barratry; divines, an enigma: Lawyers, by quibbles, by gravity, brimftone, and tithe pigs; and phyficians, by gallypots, catharticks, and tomb-ftones. J. C. Poetical |