A geometrical problem 368 Bodily compliments, a treatife, with its 347, 348 348 C. An account and defcription of the Royal Remarks of the author of the Neto Critical Nor the birth of a duke of Burgundy, Nor the new road from Newcastle to Car- SPEECH of Servilius Prifcus on the other 352 Arguments against any great reduction of our army 353 354 Difference between, the quartering of foldiers here, and in France and Auftria 354, 355 Remarks on Mr. Penrofe, concerning attraction and gravitation 356 Meeting of gentlemen on the affair of Richmond New-Park Their memorial to the princefs Amelia 358 Extract of a letter from a perfon of note in Nova-Scotia Anfwer to the remarks upon the effay on fpirit 357 The life of Mr. John Milton 371 372, &c. A letter, fhewing that the bounty on the exportation of corn is prejudicial to our national wealth and trade 374 Receipt for the bite of a mad dog 375 POETRY. The happy couple, fong, fet to mufick A country dance Ode to Fancy The fpider a new Epigram on two fpiteful brothers 359 A great hail ftorm ibid. of the 360 free British fishery ibid. Marriages and Births ibid. A fummary of the most important affairs Affair between the mafler taylors and stay- We return thanks to our correspondents for several ingenious pieces received, fome of which que are obliged to omit for want of room, but shall be carefully inferted in our next.—Another aufwer to the remarks upon the effay on spirit is come to band, which shall be confidered. 13 have reccived quother letter from the remarker, but think be bad better have flaid till be bad feen the arfiers, and then if he fall offer any thing by way of reply, it will be time to confider it, the que do not care to enter much farther into the controverfy As we have given a particular Account of, that famous Ancient Monument, in Wiltmire, called STONEHENGE; and as we find by the Hiftory of the Island of MINORCA, that there is in that land a Monument of 4 funilar Nature, we hall give our Readers, together with a Cur of it, the Account which the Author of that Hiftory bas prefented to the Publick. His Words are as follow: F there the antiquities of the inland] the first place is certainly due to what the natives call Altars de ces Gentils (the Altars of the Gentiles,) and we Heathen Altars. In the center of this inclosure is a huge mafs of great, rough ftones piled on each other, without mortar, in the figure of a cone, being about 30 yards in diameter, and very near as many in height. It has a cavity at the bafe, the entrance of which is to the fouth, and easily admits of a man to enter it, though not without stooping; but as I was affured before-hand, that nothing curious was to be difcovered there, I did not provide myfelf with lights to enable me to view it. A B D There is a way near three feet broad, contrived on the outfide of the pile, by which we afcended with a great deal of eafe in a spiral line to the top, where was a flat area, capable of receiving our August, 1752. *See our Magazine før E 1752. whole company, being fix in number, at the fame time. From hence we had a noble profpect of the fea to the fouthward, and an extenfive view over the country, which way foever we turned ourfelves. Within the inclofure, at fome distance from the maffy pile I have juft defcribed, are two ftones, the one fet on edge in the ground, and the other placed horizontally, and refting on the upper edge of the first. I meafured the upper ftone, and found it to be 16 feet long, 7 broad, and 20 inches thick: The dimensions of the other differed but little from this, I mean the breadth and thicknefs; for I could not come to meafure the height, as great part of it was buried in the earth. They were both corroded by the falts, with which the air of this country is impregnated, into a good deal of irregularity; and no traces of the chiffel remained on either, to give me room to think that they had ever had any infcription, or other fculpture, bestowed on them. From the defcription I have given you, I know you will conclude, that these two ftones together compofe what was properly the Heathen Altar, to which ufe their figure and fituation were perfectly well adapted. The flat ftone was proper for offering the facrifice on, only, as it stood between 11 and 12 feet above the level of the ground; it was of an inconvenient height for the priest to attend on the circumftances of the holy ceremony: Wherefore, I fuppofe, he made ufe of fomething to exalt himfelf on, as a ladder, fcaffold, or the like; for the regular pofition of the ftones at the foot of the great ftone that fupports the altar, evinces that part to have remained as it was at first finished. You may then reasonably afk, to what purpose were thofe ftupendous piles of X x 2 great 1751, p. 392, 464, Or, 344 Of an ancient Monument in MINORCA. Aug, great ftones raifed, and why are they conftantly found in the neighbourhood of the Altars? Diodorus Siculus informs us, that the Balearians heaped ftones over the graves of their dead: But as we have no great numbers of thefe monuments in the ifland, fuppofe we are to underftand, A what this honour was done to the remains of fome eminent perfonages among the natives, and not that they were ever the common burying places; for his words plainly fignify, that the bodies. were first interred, and the ftones piled up afterwards. So that I make no doubt, but if thefe places were opened, and carefully fearched, we might find human bones in all of them, as they are occa fionally difcovered in all the barrows all over England. And thus, thefe heaps ferved as a kind of hiftories, before letters were invented, to perpetuate the memory of eminent perfons; and the fongs of the people, that were tranfmitted from father to fon, may C be conûdered as fo many comments on them. But though I think it is plain, that thee piles were erected as monuments, over the graves of fuch of their country-" men, as the ancient Tähabitants of Minorca were defrous of diftinguishing, on account of the fervices they had rendered to the publick; yet it is obvious, from feveral circumstances, that they had a fecondary view in the labour and expence, which they bestowed on them. They are ever feated on an emipence, and fo difperfed, that from each, them others are difcerned at proper D throughout the country; from I have been apt to fufpect, that E itories of the illuftrious dead le to contribute to the fafety and evation of the living, and that they were ufed by the old inhabitants as fpecula, or watch-mounts, to difcover the approaches of an enemy at a distance, and by proper fignals to warn the natives of their impending danger; by which means they had leifure to confider, whether they were strong enough to encounter the invader in the field, or to provide for their fafety by retiring with their families into the cripta, or caves, cut every where in the folid rock, in great numbers, all over the inland. One circumstance gives force to this opinion; the natives at this day calling them Arbatalas, a name that can only belong to them, on account of their ferving as fpecula. F G yoke it wore at different periods of time, you will make no difficulty to allow, that the inhabitants lived in continual terrors and alarms; and what was more natural for a people fo expofed, wha were jealous of their liberty from having been often conquered, and who lived among enterprizing neighbours (who received no law but from their ambition) than to think of the most probable means of gaining time to deliberate how they were to repulfe, or how they were to avoid the attacks, to which they were continually exposed? This was the cafe of the old inhabitants of Minorca, and these structures were of the utmost advantage to them, in propagating the alarm, on every occafion, all over the inland parts of the Country. The commodious way by which they were fo eafily afcended on the out-fde, is a ftrong argument in favour of this opinion, and the cavity below might serve to fhelter the perfons who were deftined to look out, on every fudden change of weather, to which this climate is fubject. There was a great deal of propriety in placing the altars near thefe fpecula, as I take the liberty to call them; for the holy perfons who were fet apart, for ap peafing the wrath of the offended deity by facrifices and oblations, could pitch upon no fpot to suitable to their purpose as that from whence their danger was difcovered; and their incenfe was wafted to heaven, with purer vows, and their prayers preferred with unusual fervency, whilft the enemy was in fight. As I fuppofe the whole area to have been fet apart for religious ufes, the fence of upright ftones ferved to fecure it from the unhallowed tread of man and beast. Having (atisfied myfelf, at leaft, however it may fare with you, concerning the defign of erecting thefe monuments of antiquity, I now proceed to give you the beft lights I am capable of furnishing, to enable you to judge who were their founders. In the early ages of the world, religion was incumbered with but few ceremonies; facrifices were offered to the Divinity, of the most precious things that were to be had on the place, and to reprecate his wrath, and implore his pro tection. The altars were rude and unadorned, being only compofed of fuch materials as were next at hand, whether earth or ftone, and were erected on a rifing ground. If you reflect on the fituation of this The Celtick Druids erected vaft numfand, and the different nations whofe "bers of thefe altars wherever they came and 346 LETTER from the Senate of ABDERA. and many of them are still subsisting in the Highlands of Scotland, in Ireland, and in the island of Anglesey. To this account we fhall add what we have had from feveral gentlemen of Scotland, that fuch antiquities as these are, ftill to be met with in many places in the Lowlands as well as Highlands of A Scotland, being there in many parts of the country called, ftanding stones; and wherever there are any fuch, there is generally ftill remaining a vast heap or cairn of ftones, thrown carelefly together: What is remarkable, there ftill prevails a cuftom in the country places of that kingdom, to gather together a heap of ftones upon any part of a field where B a perfon has been killed or murdered; and the common tradition to this day is, that in ancient times the way of alarming and fummoning the people together was by lighting up fires upon the tops of mountains within view of each other. It is likewife probable, that these vaft heaps or cairns of ftones, which are fo frequent in that country, are monuments of battles fought near the place, and perhaps were gathered together upon, that hole, into which the dead bodies found upon the field of battle, or near to it, were promifcuously thrown; for there are more of thefe cairns upon that part of the coaft which lies between Buchannefs and Bamf, that in any other part of equal extent; and as that part of the coaft lies more expofed to invasions from Norway than any other, it is probable, that more battles were fought there than upon any other part of the coast, as that was the country, of old called Norfe, from whence the people of Scotland were most pestered with invafions. To thefe remarks we need not add, which notion Horace has made the fub- The Senate of ABDERA, to the great Phyfician 0% UR city, Hippocrates, being like to become defolate by the indifpofition of one who has long proved an ornament to it, we cannot but have recourse to thee and thy art for rehef. Our great philofopher Democritus is fallen fick, and his C : Aug. malady is fuch, that if not (peedily remedied, we fear his continual ftudy, and great learning, may at last turn his brain. He fits up and raves both night and day, and laughs at all things of all kinds, tho' the objects be never fo melancholy or ferious Moreover, he dives into the infernal regions, and writes concerning them: Alfo affirms the air to be full of images, that the birds have a language which he understands, and that he often travels into the infinity of things, where he meets with many fuch as himself. Thus he not only deftroys his body, but impairs his mind. Wherefore having just cause to apprehend fome bad confequences, we entreat thee, Hippocrates, nay, we conjure thee, to come and preferve us and him, by thy advice. Defpife us not, for we are not inconfiderable; and tho we know you prefer learning before wealth, yet if you fucceed, which we do not doubt but you will, you must give us leave to exprefs our gratitude proportionably to what you fhall deferve. If our city were all gold, we would give it, rather than lofe Democritus. While he is fick, our laws, nay, our whole ftate, are languishing; and if he fhould die, which the gods avert, we should all expire with his breath. Come, then, thou best of men, come cure the most excellent of philofophers: Come and be not only our phyfi. cian, but founder, law-giver, preferver; for by restoring him to health, thou wilt be all these to us: Nay, thou wilt hereby recover our drooping state, and prevent its diffolution. Yet is it not our ci ty alone, but all Greece, that entreats this favour of thee. Imagine learning itself to be our interceffor, and wifdom our ambaffador, in behalf of their darling Democritus. Thou art nearly allied to Æfculapius, both by blood and profeffion. He defcended from a brother of Hercules, from whom came our founder Abderus. Therefore if no other argument can move thee, let affinity prevail with thee to come and affift us in this extremity. If you do not come, our whole nation will run Fmad, to fympathize with him, they have always fo dearly loved. Strange! that the excefs of good thould become a disease. Democritus, who is in poffeffion of the perfection of wisdom, runs mad, whilft the populace of Abdera continue to enjoy their fenfes ; and even thofe who have ever been esteemed uncapable of thinkGing, are now able to difcern errors in the D E wifeft of men. Come therefore, great Hippocrates, restore him to his intellect, who has been a common preceptor to us all. Bring along with thee all thy recipe's and drugs. As for botanick remedies, We |