guage was vernacular, ftyled their The the notice of philofophers. India has in all ages excited the attention of the curious in almost every walk of life. Its rare products and manufactures, engaged that of the merchants; while the mild and in- Our limits will not allow us to foloffenfive religion of Brama, and the low major Rennell into the ancient manners inculcated by it, attracted geographical divifions, or remote being the first European who acquired the knowledge of the Sanferit language; which was that of ancient Hindooftan (or Bharata) but which ceased to be the vernacular tongue, foon after the Mahomedan conqueft, in the fourteenth century. A few years age, it was known only to the Pundits or learned Bramins, who religiously kept it from the knowledge of all but their own order; it being the facred depofit of their religious inftitutions and myfteries; and which it was inconvenient to communicate to the vulgar, otherwife than through the medium of their own comments and interpretations. The honour done Mr. Wilkins on this occafion, reminds us of the communications made to Herodotus, by the Egyptian priests; and it is a fair inference, that the perfonal merit of both these men had a principal share in obtaining fo diftinguished a preference.' *The term Lybia belonged, at first, only to the countries of Africa, that were colonized by the Greeks; but was afterward applied by them to the whole continent. The Romans, in a fimilar manner, extended the name of Africa, which originally belonged only to the territories of Carthage, to the whole continent; or, at least, to as much as they knew of it. Afia was applied, at first, only to Natolia, which took the name of Leffer Afia, afterward, when Afia was applied to all the known parts of that continent.' I historical hiftorical accounts of this country. For the most copious particulars refpecting both, we muft refer to his "Memoir,' as well as to Dr. Robertfon's Historical Difquifition into the Discoveries of the Ancients concerning India.' The ftate into which Hindoostan has fallen fince the downfall of the Mogul empire, is materially different from what it was before it was united under the Mahomedan conquerors. It was then parcelled out into several moderate kingdoms, which appear to have preferved a degree of balance among themselves: but now Hindooftan and the Deccan may be faid to confift of fix principal ftates, which hold as tributaries, or feudatories, all the inferior ones, of which there are many. These fix principal states, according to major Rennell, are the British, the two Mahratta states, the Nizam, Tippoo Sultan, and the Seiks: for, whatever verbal distinctions may be made, a compulfive alliance is at leaft a dependent, if not, in fact, a tributary fituation. I. THE BRITISH POSSESSIONS. I Bengal and Bahar, with the Zemindary of Benares. 2 The Northern Circars. The allies of the British, who may be confidered as dependent upon them, are Azuph Dowlah, nabob of Oude; Mahomed Ally, nabob of the Carnatic; and the rajahs of Travancore and Tanjore. II. THE POONAH MAHRATTAS. 1 Malwa. 2 Candeish. 3 Part of Dowlatabad. 4 Vifiapour. See a more particular account of the territories of this prince, with a plan of his capital, Seringapatam, in our laft Magazine, page 121. ΤΗ On ENTHUSIASM of CHARACTER, HE fhades of human character. energy imparted by this principle that are fo numerous, and the ad- we are to expect the formation and vantages refulting from an extenfive execution of great and noble defigns, acquaintance with them, of fo much which foar beyond the ordinary ocimportance, that few fubjects, per- currences and virtues of mankind, and haps, are more worthy of attention leave, fomething to be remembered, or fpeculation; and it would be a talk and to be admired by pofterity. of the highest advantage to fociety, could we trace the fource and caufes of the diverfities, and point out the particular advantages refulting from each. By the former of thefe, we fhould, in fome degree, be enabled to train the mind to the fashion moft amiable and really advantageous; by the latter, we should have the opportunity of directing to their proper objects of purfuit the paffions and difpofitions as they are difplayed before us. A tafk like this might afford a noble and fafcinating amufement for the fage, to whofe eye time and affiduity had unfolded the broad volume of nature, and who was poffeffed of leifure and opportunity to enter deeply into the fubject; but the humble and nameless effayift, who plans his labours for periodical circulation, is forbidden to enter into fo elaborate an enquiry. Now and then, indeed, he may flightly glance upon the fubject, and felect a prominent feature or two for the amufement of his readers; but he muft feldom venture to advance be`yond a sketch, or a fragment. A man indeed of cool paffions, and with a mediocrity of fenfibility (or perhaps without any at all) may, it is true, be a very good philofopher, an almoft blamelefs moralift, and a ftrict obferver of what we generally understand by the rules of right and wrong. But fuch a character will only thine on trifling occafions, and in ordinary actions and fituations. Where juftice (fo far as it has been defined, by the laws of civil policy, or the demonftrations of ethical reafoning) is alone required, he may never, perhaps, be found deficient ; he may be generous, wherever any pofitive precept of religion, or maxim of philofophy can be produced that may inform him he ought to be fo. But he will never extend his views to any confiderable exertions of friendfhip or benevolence: nor is it much to be expected that he should ever be fenfible of that noble delicacy--that refined philanthropy, which extends the affiffance of generous benefaction, without wounding the feelings of the perfon benefited, by a mode of conferring the obligation which must remind him of an adventitious inferiority. As far as precept and example can direct, he may be entitled to the praise and gratitude of mankind, and Among the traits of character which, amid the infinite variety I have alluded to, prefent themselves as proper objects of this curfory mode of animadverfion, appears to me particu- his virtues may keep pace with the Jarly prominent, that of enthufiafm: a character which the infipid children of fashionable refinement (incapable of feeling its fires) and the plodding fons of laborious diligence (too heavy to purfue its flights) are, at all times, fo ready to condemn, but which, in my humble opinion, is certainly entitled to the palm of honour and utility in public life. It is from the general fentiments and ideas of his age and country. But it would be idle to expect from him original fpeculations in the regions of moral duty, bold attempts to combat the riveted prejudices of the times, correct the hereditary feverity of mistaken justice, revolt at the idea of abuses which cuftom and univerfal affent had fanctioned, and boldly stand forth, in de fiance of the imputations of fingularity and vifionary frenzy, to brave the malice of venal inhumanity, and plead the caufe of an oppreffed and unpitied people. For the truth of this I might refer to the elder and the younger Cato, and, in fhort, to the whole body of the ftoic philofophers of antiquity, did not the biography and living examples of modern times furnish more ready, and equally pertinent illustrations. In short, these cold-blooded reafoners are, in the moral world, what fome blindly-idolized individuals in the political world, when brought to the touchstone of trying circumstances, are found to be, mere men of mechanism and detail. The enthusiast, on the other hand, the man of ftrong affections and exuberance of mental fenfation, never appears to advantage in the common progrefs of events. But he will shine, with fuperior refplendence, whenever his energetic feelings are roufed into action, and he is placed in fituations which call for exertions Beyond the fix'd and stated rules Of vice and virtue, in the schools, Beyond the letter of the law!' In fituations of this kind, the heart is wifer than the Academy, and warm paffions and quick fenfibility are better than volumes of ethics, and catalogues of religious maxims: not that we mean to treat with difrespect the lights of revelation, or the helps of philofophy, without the affiftance of which the generality of mankind would be left groveling for ever in the darknefs of fenfuality, or constantly stumbling, feeble and relaxed, even in the plain and level path of focial life. All I mean to fay is, that there are fituations in which we may fometimes be placed, nay, to which we ought fometimes to afpire, in which the foul is called upon to foar above the dogmas of the one, and to be actuated rather by a feeling consciousness of the genuine fpirit, than by a tame obedience of the mere letter of the other. That I may not be misunderstood, I will illuftrate this by an example, which will speak home to the feelings of the prefent era of humanity. It is certain that the mere letter neither of religion nor philofophy would dictate any exertion in behalf of that godlike and extenfive fympathy by which many amiable characters are now endeavouring to procure the abolition of a traffic which battens, if I may fo exprefs myself, on human gore, and fwells its fails with the fighs and groans of wretchedness and oppreffion; though at the fame time the whole fpirit of christianity, to those who have fenfibility enough to feel its benignant force, calls loudly against the horrors and iniquities of this trade. The mere man therefore, of ethical detail, who coldly regulates his conduct by verbal precept, could never have thought of becoming the first mover of a measure embracing fuch noble and extenfive principles. No: the man whofe humanity, coloffuslike, firft ftrode across the wide At lantic, and from the shores of Afric to those of Western-Ind endeavoured to fhed the foothing balm of atonement and peace, muft have felt the godlike glow I am defcribing, and been ftamped with characters of enthusiastic virtue far different from the mechanical honefty of a counting-house, or the half-way juftice, that dreads the pending, or the future penalty of a written law. It must not however be concealed, that, as this character has its peculiar excellencies, fo alfo it has it particular defects; which if we did not notice, the moral of my theme would be wanting. The fame energy of mind which urges to the nobleft heights of bene volence, and affifts toward the fublimeft attainments of genius, may alfo, if not properly directed, hurry us on to the wildeft extravagances of paffion, and betray into impetuofity and fully. And though I am ready to to declare, that the opinion of Longinus, refpecting the works of genius, is equally applicable to human nature, at least to the masculine character; though (fince the uniformity of the one cannot be united with the fublime virtues of the other) I fcruple not to pronounce, that the ennobled spirit and generous fenfibility of the energetic character has, notwithstanding its concomitant faults of exuberant paffions, imprudences, and follies, the moft decided preference over the mechanical innocence of the colder difpofition; yet muft the opportunity never be neglected of reminding characters of this description of the fuperior neceffity under which they labour of fortifying themselves with twofold affiduity, with the precepts of philofophy and the restraints of prudence; fince, otherwife, thofe irregularities which may be pardoned as the alloys, become the principal traits of their difpofitions; and generofity be loft in heedlefs extravagance, and fenfibility in voluptuous irritation. As I am mostly inclined to afcribe to the union of moral and physical caufes, thofe phenomena which two oppofite claffes of philofophers feem fo regularly defirous of afcribing entirely to the one, or the other, I fhould, if requested to trace the fource of this character, afcribe it equally to the original organization of the animal form, and the influence of education on the mind. That fine conftruction of the organs of sense, those caterers for internal fenfibility; that quick and vivid perception, which, those who are fond of ufing terms they do not understand, and think them fignificant, because they are fcientific, call great animal fpirits, but which in fact are the confequences of that exquifite and fubtile harmony of parts that renders the conftitution the more fufceptible of both mental and fenfible ftimuli, and frequently impels the stream of life through its currents, even in a state of health, with a velocity which, in common cafes, would be efteemed as morbid ; thefe are the ftamina of the difpontion we are tracing; and the flushed cheek-the ardent eye-the animated features-in fhort, the whole speaking countenance of the enthufait, fufficiently proclaims that it is not fancy nor hypothefis that leads us to this conclusion in favour of material organization. But, in order to produce the glowing child of fympathy and virtue, fomething more is ftill required. Nature, it is true, has furnished the exquifite materials, but it is for the artist to determine the degree of grace or deformity into which they fhall be fashioned; and the reftraints of education may, in fome degree, perhaps, even counteract the arrangements of the first forming hand, and deaden the inherent powers. That it can pervert these powers, is fufficiently evident from the aftonishing zeal with which objects deteftable in the eyes of reafon are sometimes purfued, and the vivacity, the ardour which too often gives luftre and fascination to vice. An early and folicitous fuppreffion, therefore, of the gratifications of mere appetite, frequent incitements to the more generous paffions, conftant encouragement and cultivation of the pleafures of intellect, and above all an early acquaintance with the misfortunes and miseries of mankind, will be always neceffary to the completion of the character: and, perhaps, the reason why we fo feldom have an example of the kind in the higher walks of life, is because persons in this fituation are too far removed from real diftrefs to be, either immediately, or intimately, connected with it during any period of their lives. But it has been questioned whether this difpofition, however advantageous to fociety, is even to be coveted by the individual as a fource of happinefs equal to the anxiety and infelicity to which it is fubject. The fordid children of dullness and infenfibility not only delight in expofing the failings and inconfiftencies of a character |