The 4th fection or chapter of the work gives us a history of the rife and progrefs of botany; it is continued to the age of Tournefort, in order to give the reader an idea of the state of botany at the period when Linnæus projected its reformation, and the introduction of his own system.

In the 5th chapter mention is made of the famous sevenheaded ferpent of Hamburgh, an anecdote well known amongst naturalists. The account of this adventure is so curious, that we cannot forbear extracting it for the entertainment of our readers.

"It had till then been univerfally believed, that Spreckelfen was poffeffed of a fingular phenomenon; but the keen eye of the young traveller replaced this pretended prodigy into the rank which it fhould never have relinquifhed, namely, that of a curiofity and fine production of art. It reprefented, and was deemed to be, a ferpent with feven heads. Upon clofe inspection Linnæus difcovered, that thofe feven and extraordinary heads, far from being natural, were merely factitious. He found that they confifted of nothing but the jaw bones of weafels artfully covered with ferpent's fkin, regardless of the palpable difference which fubfifts between the structure of the jaw bones of weafels and of ferpents.

"Thus the phenomenon of Hamburgh all on a fudden ceafed to be a wonder; a circumftance which proved fomewhat fatal both to Spreckelfen and Linnæus. The feven heads had ftamped a great value on this ferpent. It had been the pledged fecurity for a loan of ten thousand marks, and now it became fcarcely worth one hundred. This event occafioned many fchifms and embarraffments. It was finally infifted on, that Linnæus fhould prove, before an academical Forum, that the ferpent was not a phenomenon. In this crifis Dr. Jaenifch gave him the friendly advice to quit Hamburgh with all poffible fpeed, in order to avoid all ufelefs delays and litigations. Linnæus followed this advice, and was frequently after heard to fay : "I only had one friend at Hamburgh; this was Dr. Jaenisch'; for he was a true friend to me." P. 73.

An account is alfo given of Linnæus's refidence in Holland; his acquaintance with Boerhaave, Cliffort, &c. &c. His journey to England; introduction to Sir Hans Sloane, &c. with many other particulars, and the chapter concludes with his return to Sweden.

The following fection prefents us with an account of the opponents and literary contefts of Linnæus. The objections made by Profeffor Siegefbeck to the fexual fyftem, with the folemnity of Linnæus's querulous obfervations on the fubject, are fo truly ridiculous, that it is impoffible not to indulge in a momentary laugh at the expence of both parties.

"Even in the year 1737, his critical zeal brought forth a very violent pamphlet againft Linnæus, which contained few arguments, but a moft copious deal of nonfenfe and ribaldry. Fie combated in this work the New Sexual Syftem of Linnæus in a manner peculiar to himself. Linnæus had maintained in this fyftem-that in the animal as well as in the vegetable reign, there were frequently feveral males to one female:-plures mariti; una fæmina in eodem thalamo." What man in the world," declaims Siegefbeck, againft this well-expreffed propofition," will ever believe that God Almighty should have introduced fuch confufion, or rather fuch shameful whoredom for the propagation of the reign of plants. Who would inftruct young ftudents in fuch a voluptuous fyftem without scandal?"

"Linnæus having obtained a copy of this invidious production, complained of it in a letter to Haller, in the following fatyrical expreffions: I wish to God Siegefbeck had written those things before I published my first treatife! I would then have learned in my youth, what I muft now learn in my manhood, namely, not to write, to hear others and be filent myfelf. What could induce me to be fo foolish as to bestow fo much time, fo many days and nights upon a science, to reap fuch fruits-to become after all the derifion of the world! Siegefbeck affords no arguments; his whole book is one uninterrupted train of declamation. Whether I anfwer or am filent, both points would throw a ftigma upon my honour. He knows nothing of ar gument, rejects my fexes of plants, laughs at my characters, and challenges all the botanifts, to declare if they comprehend them.” P. 121.

In the next fection we find him fettled, first at Stockholm, and afterwards at Upfal: his marriage, reformation of the botanic garden: the public honours paid him by the king, &c,

The 8th chapter is entitled,, " Excurfions of the Northern. Literati, and History of the travelling pupils of Linnæus." It contains memoirs of Tornftroem, Haffelquist, Forfkall, Niebhur, Loeffling, Rolander, Solander, Sparman, Thunberg, &c.

The 9th and 10th chapters give us the remarkable events in the life of Linnæus, from the year 1760 to the time of his Death in 1778. Thefe chapters are tirefome, by their prolixity, as well as ill-conducted. Some account is given of his family, and his general manner of living.

To the work are added, by way of appendix, a variety of unconnected anecdotes relative either to the hiftory of Botany or to the family of Linnæus. The character of Madam Linnè is pourtrayed in no very favorable colours; and if the account has any pretenfions to exactnefs, fhe feems to have borne refemblance to the mother of Savage. We fhall extract the anecdotes, though we could have wished they had never been made public.

Young Linnæus, as a public man, was now as happy as poffible, but not fo in the circle of his relations, where he ought to have expe

rienced

rienced the greatest pleasure. He began to give lectures; but his diligent exertions for the benefit of the learned world, and the fondnefs for his fcience, received a check, and degenerated into difpleafure and fplenetic disgust.

"The occafion of this difguft was as fad as the thing in itfelf was extraordinary, and an unnatural oddity. The fon had the misfortune, inftead of being the delight of his mother, to become the object of her hatred. Confidering him as the only fon,-as a fon, who distinguished himfelf fo much, it appears to be a fingular phenomenon, the more fo, as her antipathy continued to laft without the least abatement. The caufes and motives of this maternal ill-will are of fuch a nature, as may well remain unnoticed by us.

It was fingular," fays profeffor Fabricius, who fpeaks as an ocular witness, "that the lady of Linnæus fhould have had fo particular an averfion to her fon. He could not have had a greater enemy in the world than his own mother. The father was obliged to fend him out of the houfe, and when he was at liberty to appoint a perfon to be his fucceffor, the forced him to pass by his own fon, and to choose Dr. Solander, who fhe thought would marry her eldest daughter: but as Solander refused to leave England, he ultimately fixed his choice upon his fon, though ftill very much against the will of his wife. After the father's death, the forced him to purchase every article of her, even the herbarium."

The truth and impartiality of this account is confirmed by the una nimity of all other collateral teftimonies. The strongest and most numerous proofs might be adduced on this fubject. Were it compati ble with the duty of veracity, which is incumbent on every hiftorian, how chearfully would we pafs in filence all particulars of this kind. We will therefore entirely confine ourselves to add the following account, by way of appendage to that given by Fabricius. It is extracted from a letter of a celebrated man, who had long been in an habit of the greatest intimacy with Linnæus and his fon.

"The lady of Linnæus was a good housewife, but in no respect a pattern of a fweet and mild mother, or of a tender fpoufe. Her only fon lived under the moft flavish restraint, and in continual fear of her. Even when he had attained the age of manhood, and bore an academical dignity, fhe compelled him to fweep his own room.

One of his kinfmen once made him a prefent of a great coat ;the alfo envied him this gift, and when it was worn out-he clandeftinely went into the garden, and there turned it himself. Thus was the fon, notwithstanding the affluence of his parents, reduced by the fingular inextinguishable antipathy of his mother, to circumftances and offices as low as thofe to which neceflity had once driven his father."

"Galled by thefe fhackles of flavery and constraint, the flower of his mind faded, and he loft that eagerness of zeal which he formerly manifested in his ftudies. His difguft leffened alfo the affections of his father, One of his German friends took leave of him, after he had completed his thirtieth year, previous to his departure from Upfal: "Ah! how I envy you and your good fortune!" faid he, penetrated with fentiments of friendship blended with melancholy difcontent.

"You are at full liberty; you return now to your country to enjoy profperity and contentment."-" How much more do I envy you,' replied his friend, "your fortune is made, and I must first go in quest of one; you are your father's fucceffor."-" Poh! my father's fucceffor," replied he; "I would rather be any thing elfe; I would even prefer being a foldier!"

"This lownefs of fpirits and depreffion of mind was fortunately removed fome time after. He was quite overjoyed when his father made him a prefent of all the duplicates of plants which his herbarium contained. He received alfo many encouragements from other quarters; and, all on a fudden, his foul was roufed from its lethargy, and shook off those ties which had fo long warped his faculties. From this moment, he continued to fhow himself the moft zealous lover and promoter of his fcience." P. 291.

To the volume is prefixed a very indifferent head of Linnæus, which most certainly conveys no highly refpectable idea of the celebrated character which it is intended to reprefent; and, were not the name of Linnæus engraved beneath it, might readily pass, to a common obferver, as a stage caricature of a country apothecary; while the figure of Linnæa ftuck in the button-hole, appears full as much to resemble a fprig of mint, or a piece of privet, as the rare northern vegetable which bears the name of the Prince of Botany. We must not omit to add, that a fhield, containing the arms of Linnæus, appears beneath, with the following motto, which, notwithstanding the apology of the tranflator, scarcely faves its distance from a fpecies of blafphemy, viz. Deus creavit, Linnaus difpofuit.

In fpeaking of the Linnæan Society of London, our author falls into an error, which it is neceflary to rectify. He reprefents the presidency of that society as being held in rotation by different perfons, and tells us that Dr. Smith held the prefidency the first year of its inftitution, and that "the honourable station then devolved on Sir Jofeph Banks." On the contrary, we beg leave to affure the writer, that the prefidentfhip of that fociety is by no means held in rotation, and that Dr. Smith, who was elected prefident at first, continues in the fame ftation; the election, (as in other focieties of the fame nature) taking place annually.

Throughout the whole work there is too great an air of importance, too much labour, too folemn a recital of circumftances in themselves trifling, and which, from the Germanic mode of expreffion in which they are detailed, almost give an air of burlefque to the whole performance. In fhort, to confefs the plain truth, we cannot but think that the fame misfortune has attended the manes of Linnæus and Johnson; and that their biographers have, with most indefatigable induftry,

collected

collected and related a variety of anecdotes of both, which with far greater propriety might have been withheld from the · public.

ART. V. Philofophical Tranfactions of the Royal Society of London. For the Year 1794. Part. II. 4to. 8s. Elmfly, 1794.

S the introductory obfervations to our review of the first part of the Tranfactions for 1794 were intended alfo to apply to the fecond, we proceed to an examination of it without further delay, after remarking that the numeration of the pages and articles is, as ufual, continued from the first part.

ART. XII. On the Converfion of Animal Mufcle into a Subfance much refembling Spermaceti. By George Smith Gibbes, B. A. of Magdalen College, Oxford. Communicated by George Shaw, M. D. F. R. S. Read March 13, 1794. p. 169.

This paper would afford an additional proof, to many that might be adduced, of the great lengths to which zeal for knowledge and a defire of investigation will carry thofe in whose minds they predominate. The endeavours of fuch men are redoubled by the appearance of difficulty, and are frequently exerted in examining fubjects, from which the bulk of mankind would turn with difguft. Of this latter defcription were the purfuits of Mr. Gibbes, recorded in the paper before us.

It was known to the celebrated Sir Thomas Brown that animal mufcle is convertible into a fatty fubftance; but the fubject does not feem to have been much attended to, till the difcovery of the bodies in the Cimetière des Innocens at Paris. Mr. G. having feen fome of the matter found in that Cimetiére, fearched the macerating tubs of anatomifts, and the receptacle at the anatomy fchool in Oxford, into which the dead bodies are put after the profeffor has finished his lectures on them, and in these he found what he expected to meet with. In moft of the tubs he found the flesh nearly changed into a kind of fat; from the receptacle he procured "at leaft 12 pounds weight of a fubftance equal in every respect to fpermaceti."

In order to ascertain the time neceffary for fuch change, Mr. G. inclosed a piece of the leanest part of a rump of beef in a box full of holes, which, being tied to a tree, was suffered

to