Tilsit. His Memoirs, if they should ever appear, will doubtless show what opinions he entertained respecting that memorable treaty, as well as how he foresaw the consequences of which it would be productive in regard to Russia.

From 1808 till 1812, he lived in retirement, at his estate of Zempelberg, between Berlin and Frankfort on the Oder. In the month of July of the latter year, he was called from his retreat by the King, placed at the head of the whole administration of affairs, whether foreign or domestic, and named Chancellor of State. The first appeal to the youth of the country, to rise en masse, was signed by him; and the promptitude with which the call was obeyed, showed that he shared the confidence of the people, as well as that of the sovereign. The events of the war having led to the deliverance and restoration of Prussia, the King, in gratitude for the eminent services of his Minister, conferred up. on him the title of Prince.

The great rule of Prince Hardenberg's internal administration was implicit compliance with the will and pleasure of his sovereign; but, as the Minister of a despotic monarch, his conduct was in general entitled to praise, on account of the moderation by which it was characterised. As a diplomatist, he was perhaps inferior to Metternich in that deep and systematic dissimulation which is somehow conceived to be an indispensable ingredient in the character; but he was sincerely devoted

to the interests of his master, whom he served with equal zeal and activity at the lowest ebb, as well as at the returning flow in the spring-tide of his fortunes; and it is generally understood that he was mainly instrumental in inducing the Congress of Vienna to accede to that geographical extension of the Prussian monarchy, which has placed it at the head of the second-rate powers. It was generally believed on the Continent, that his preference for the alliance of Britain arose from the attachment he constantly cherished for his native country; and this was frequently made a ground of accusation against him; as if the Prussian monarchy could ever have been rescued from the iron rule of France, and restored to more than its ancient power and splendour, without the aid, the co-operation, and the profusely squandered millions of England. But his memory may, with more justice, be reproached with the negociation which he carried on, in 1805, with England at Berlin, while Count Haugwitz had signed a treaty of alliance with Napoleon at Vienna, and with his constant adhesion to the system of the Austrian Cabinet, in regard to the Germanic Confederation; unless, indeed, in the former case, he himself was a dupe, and in the latter a mere passive instrument in the hands of his master.

Prince Hardenberg was thrice married, but had children only by his first wife, to whom he left a fortune of about 700,000 thalers, or L. 108,340 Sterling.

DR THOMAS BROWN.-The public, we are truly happy to observe, are about to be favoured with an account of the life and writings of this distinguished philosopher, from the pen of a gentleman who, though unknown to the literary world, has, we understand, enjoyed many advantages for the successful execution of such an undertaking; and, in particular, has had access to the very best information in regard to the personal character and private habits of this most ingenious and excellent person. Such a work, if executed in a manner at all worthy of the subject, cannot fail to prove highly interesting; as the intellectual and moral character of Dr Brown were so happily adjusted to each other, that in him the profoundest science was united to, and ennobled by the purest and most eminent virtue. In proposing, therefore, to give a brief sketch of his life, our object is not to anticipate, but rather to prepare the way for the more full and ample details which may soon be expected, as well as to repair an omission, hitherto un

Thomas Brown, the son of the Rev. Samuel Brown, and of Mary Smith, was born at the manse of Kirkmabreck, in the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, on the 9th of January 1777. His father was minister of the parish of that name, in the pastoral charge of which he had succeeded his grandfather at the age of about two or three and twenty, and was related by the mother's side to some of those who suffered at the time of the persecution; a circumstance to which his son was accustomed to allude with evident pride and satisfaction. He was a man of amiable manners and cultivated mind, fond of reading, a considerable proficient in classical literature, and particularly partial to abstruse and metaphysical speculations. But perhaps the best idea that can be given of his character, is simply to mention, that whenever his son heard it alluded to, he never failed to express, with great emotion, a hope that he might resemble his father in every thing; and, in fact, the resemblance

both in person and in mind is said to have been altogether striking.

The subject of this notice was the youngest of a family of thirteen children, and had the misfortune to lose his father when he was only about two years of age. About a year after this melancholy event, his mother removed to Edinburgh with her family. At this early period of life, when children generally seem incapable of attending to any thing, he would listen for hours to tales of fiction; and when the deeds of Wallace and Bruce were related to him, they excited in him the highest degree of enthusiasm. He was quite unhappy at not being able to read, and gave his mother no rest till she agreed to gratify his desire in this respect; but his memory was so good, and his ambition to learn so strong, that her task was an easy and a short one; for he might be said, in some measure, to have taught himself. When little more than four years old, he could read with perfect ease the most difficult words in the Bible. One day, when a lady went into the room where he was, she found him sitting with a bible before him, busy arranging it in different portions. Observing what he was about, she jocularly asked him if he was going to preach, as she saw he was looking for a text; to which he replied, that he wished to observe how far the apostles differed, as he saw they did not all give the same account of Christ. At the time when he made this remark, so strikingly illustrative of the early bias of his mind, he could not be more than four years and a half old.

About the age of six he was sent to a school at Chiswick, where he was soon distinguished by extreme gaiety and sweetness of disposition, no less than by the rapid proficiency he made in his learning. He never required to read his lesson more than once, and took great pleasure in assisting his companions, to whom the task assigned

was a matter of greater labour, and by whom he was most truly and affectionately beloved. His contemporaries will also remember how much he delighted and excelled in the recitation of dramatic poetry. From Chiswick he went to Dr Thomson's at Kensington, under whose care he remained some time, fully supporting the early promise he had given at Chiswick.

On leaving Dr Thomson's establishment, he returned to Scotland, which he had never visited from the time he left it for Chiswick School. Being now in his sixteenth year, he was entered a student at Edinburgh College, but did not attend the Greek and Latin classes, as he had made great proficiency in classical literature during his residence in England. In the philosophical classes, however, he was particularly distinguished by the great command of language he possessed, and the acuteness he displayed in arguing on abstract subjects. Both in the Literary Society and in the Academy of Physics, the eloquence and ingenuity of his essays called forth the warmest eulogiums of his contemporaries. He studied law one year; but feeling an aversion to a pursuit, where plodding industry is of more importance than genius, he abandoned it, and commenced the study of physic, in which he afterwards took his degree. After the usual examination and defence of his thesis, Dr Gregory took occasion to express, in very flattering terms, his admiration of the facility and elegance with which he had replied in Latin to the objections started to some parts of his thesis. Soon after he became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians.

His answer to Darwin's Zoonomia, containing the germ of those fine speculations on the science of mind, which were afterwards destined to form one of the most memorable epochs in the history of intellectual philosophy, was, with the exception of one or two chap

"Permit us then, Sir, to request that you will convey these sentiments of your class to Dr Brown, and that you will yourself accept of this sincere expression of gratitude, as a testimony, however feeble and inadequate, of their affectionate attachment.

J. RUSSEL.

CALTHORPE.
A. COCHRANE.
G. A. STEWART.
THOS FRANCIS KENNEDY.
H. HOLLAND.
WILLIAM FITTON."

It is superfluous to add, that Dr Brown, in whose favour such honourable exertions were made, succeeded to the Chair of Ferguson and Stewart. And here we may mention, as a literary curiosity of no common kind, that, with the exception of those he wrote when he assisted Mr Stewart, Dr Brown composed his whole series of Lectures, containing so many profound and original views of the science of mind, in the course of the first year of his incumbency; that he afterwards had occasion to make few or no alterations, and that, therefore, they are given to the world nearly, if not altogether, in the same state in which they were first delivered, fourteen years ago, to the Moral Philosophy Class. When the great variety and difficulty of the subjects treated, the depth and originality of the views disclosed, the peculiar richness and felicity of the illustrations employed, and the compass and accuracy of the learning brought to bear on every topic and discussion are duly weighed and estimated, the fact we have now mentioned will certainly be considered as one of the most remarkable in the history of abstract philosophy, and as displaying at once a fertility, energy, and readiness, probably without parallel.

As a public lecturer Dr Brown has seldom been equalled, never surpassed. Combining the most finished eloquence

with the most ardent enthusiasm, the moment he opened his lips all was deep and breathless attention. He had the rare and enviable art of imparting a certain nameless grace and fascination even to the most abstract investigations, and, at suitable moments, of relieving the attention which he had enchained, by quotations, principally from the poets, which he threw into his lectures with a felicity and effect perfectly unique. Among those who attended his lectures, some indeed complained of a certain vagueness and refinement bordering on obscurity; this, however, arose not from any real indefiniteness in his manner of treating his subject, or unnecessary involution of style, but from the profound originality, and, consequently, novelty of almost all his disquisitions, and the nice shades of distinction which he found it necessary to trace and to appreciate, in order to enucleate the errors of his predecessors, and to pave the way for the beautiful but refined system which he proposed to substitute; and, accordingly, when he came to the moral part of his course, where the call upon the attention was less severe, and the object was not so much to evolve new truths, as to illus trate and enforce those already known, he never failed to excite the highest enthusiasm for all that was elevated and noble in human nature. It was then, too, that he gave full scope to that lofty and commanding eloquence with which he was so richly endowed; it was then that the "thoughts that breathe and words that burn" were poured forth in a glorious and overmastering stream; it was then he displayed an energy and devotion in the cause of moral truth, which have not been surpassed, and will never be forgotten.

At the end of the autumn of 1819, he returned from the country to Edinburgh, in full health, and engaged, with remarkable ardour, in the composition of his text-book, which he was anxious