membrance, the principal poets of this country, who have clubbed their wits for our entertainment or edification. Now, though fome people may not be able immediately to conceive the reason why the author who has produced one good fcene, or act, might not have wrote the next, as well as his fellow-labourer, of no greater abilities than himself; yet, if there be any truth in the old proverb, that two heads are better than one, Something greater may certainly be expected from fuch a coalition. But the probability of fuperior excellence from the united efforts of two men of genius, will more fully appear, if we confider them as two painters exerting their respective talents in the production of a picture in which history and landscape, for example, were united. It is eafy to imagine how fome fine pieces of antiquity might have been greatly improved by fuch an union. But to proceed to the piece before us.

In an advertisement prefixed to the play, and alfo in the prologue, we are given to understand that Hogarth's Marriage Ala-mode furnished the hint which produced this performance. It may be fo; but as there is no refemblance in the two pieces, except the intended union between the family of a citizen and that of a nobleman, for the fake of money on one fide, and grandeur on the other, we think our poets needed not to have had recourse to a picture, when so many hints of this kind are fo frequently supplied from real life.

The principal characters are as follows:

Lord Ogleby, an old decrepid man of quality, whofe infirmities we are to fuppofe occafioned by a too liberal indulgence of his paffions, otherwife his decrepitude is an improper object of fatire. His lordship, however, becomes a fit fubject of ridicule from his foolish opinion of, and attention to, his person; as also on account of his affectation of French manners, drefs, and gallantry: but he is, nevertheless, humane and generous. We fuppofe him to be related to Lord Chalkftone, as there is a ftrong family likeness between his prefent lordship and that celebrated nobleman.

Sir John Melvil, nephew to Lord Ogleby, is the inftrument by whofe union with the daughter of a citizen, his lordship is to receive a confiderable fum of money. As to his character, it differs in nothing from that of a thousand other people in the fame fituation.

Sterling is the merchant whofe daughter is going to be married to Sir John Melvil. He is the ufual citizen of the ftage.

Lovewell, apprentice to Sterling, and privately married to his youngest daughter Fanny. He is related to Lord

Ogleby,

Canton,

Canton, a Swifs, gentleman to his lordship. His fole business through the play, is to flatter his mafter and laugh at his jokes. Our only objection to this gentleman is, that he happens to have been born in a wrong country. We are of opinion, he might with much greater propriety have been created a Frenchman.

Mrs. Heidleberg, fifter to Sterling, the rich widow of a Dutch merchant. She is a perfon of great importance in Sterling's family, on account of her riches. The entertainment which the affords the fpectators is owing chiefly to the comic talents of Mrs. Clive, by whom the part is played.

Mifs Sterling, the young lady who was to have been married. to Sir John Melvil.

Fanny, her younger fifter, married clandeftinely to Lovewell, The reft of the characters are of little importance. Let us now proceed to the ftory. Scene, Sterling's Country-house.

ACT I.

Fanny, in a private converfation with her husband, expreffes great uneafinefs at concealing their matrimonial connection any longer. The indelicacy of a fecret marriage grows every day more and more fhocking to her, and the earnestly intreats him, for very particular reafons, to difclofe the affair to her father. Sterling finds them together. She retires, and Lovewell delivers a letter to his mafter, informing him that Lord Ogleby and Sir John will certainly arrive that night. In the next scene we have a conversation between the two fifters, in which the eldest triumphs in the expectation of her approaching magnificence. The remainder of the act is taken up in giving orders for the proper reception of my lord and his nephew,

ACT II.

Opens with a fcene between his lordship's valet de chambre and a chambermaid, from which we learn, that Fanny the youngest daughter is efteemed, by the fervants, for her affability, and her fifter difliked for being proud. Lord Ogleby now crawls forth from his bed-chamber, is invited by Sterling to take a walk in the garden, where the whole family affemble, and where his lordship has an opportunity of fhewing his gallantry to the ladies, and contempt for Mr. Sterling's taste. The reft of the good folks continuing their walk, Sir John and Lovewell remain upon the ftage, where the latter is furprized by a declaration from the former, of his violent paffion for Mifs Fanny, alias Mrs. Lovewell; the happening at this moment to be walking alone in the garden, Sir John purfues her, repeats his folicitations, and at last, finding her still inflexible, falls on his knees, and feizes her fair hand. In this fituation they are unluckily furprized by Mifs Sterling. Sir John fneaks off; poor REV. March, 1766.

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Fanny

Fanny is left to be abused by her enraged fifter; and thus ends this very long act.

ACT III.

Opens with the arrival of three lawyers, who come to fettle the marriage-contract between Sir John and Mifs Sterling. Whilft thefe formal gentlemen are in converfation with Mr. Sterling concerning the particulars, they are interrupted by Sir John, who has matter of importance to communicate to his hoft. The lawyers are defired to amufe themselves in the garden, and then Sir John difclofes his paffion for the youngest daughter, imploring the father's confent to marry her instead of her elder fifter. Sterling is at first offended, but becomes reconciled on Sir John's propofing to relinquish 30,000l. of the 80,cool. which he was to have had with Mifs Sterling. This propofal is the only new incident by which the ftory advances, during this whole act, the latter part of which is employed in a fruitless attempt to obtain Mrs. Heidleberg's confent to the intended transfer.

ACT IV.

Mrs. Heidleberg, who rules the roaft in this family, refolves to fend Fanny to town next morning; to prevent which, Lovewell perfuades his wife to disclose their marriage to Lord Ogleby; who, he tells her, feems to entertain a vifible partiality for her, and from whofe influence in the family a reconciliation will moft probably be brought about. Fanny, determined to disclose the dreadful fecret, accofts his lordship in the garden. She begins her ftory; but for want of refolution, speaks fo equivocally, that his lordship, whofe vanity has ever the afcendant, miftakes the whole of her converfation for a declaration of love to himself. She retires, and my lord, fully perfuaded of her paffion for him, determines to marry her. His mistake gives rife to another scene, partly of the fame kind, between Lovewell and his lordship, who continues in his errour to the end of the act. He proposes the match to Sterling, and obtains his confent; and Lovewell is ordered immediately to London to fetch fome papers neceffary on the occafion.

ACT V.

Lovewell, confidering that he was dispatched on a needless errand, instead of fetting out for London, retires to his Fanny's bed-chamber; where, raifing his voice rather too loud, he is overheard by Mifs Sterling, liftening at the door, she having been already informed by her maid that there was a man in her fifter's chamber, which man Mifs Sterling naturally concludes to be her faithlefs Sir John Melvil. Big with this idea, fhe fallies forth, in the dark, conducting Mis. Heidleberg to the door of her fifter's room. Having no doubt but that Sir John and

ånd Mifs Fanny are together, laying a plan for their elopement in the morning, they determine, in revenge, not only to difappoint but to expose them; and therefore begin to make a horrible uproar, in order to raise the family. Sterling appears first, then Canton, then the lawyers, and then his lordship, all greatly terrified at Mrs. Heidleberg's outcry of thieves! The company being thus affembled, they are informed that Sir John is locked up with Fanny, in her bed-chamber. Lord Ogleby, having no doubt of his Fanny's affection, difbelieves the fact; and, calling aloud for Sir John Melvil, the baronet enters, not from Mifs Fanny's chamber, but on the oppofite fide of the ftage, to the great aftonishment of the whole company. Lord Ogleby now requests that Miss Fanny may be defired to come forth and difpel all their doubts. She appears, but foon faints away. This occafions a fresh alarm; on which Lovewell rushes from the fame apartment, catches her in his arms, and the recovers. They now confefs their having been four months married. Sterling threatens to turn them out of doors, upon which Lord Ogleby generously declares that he will receive and patronife them. After a little expoftulation, however, all parties are reconciled; the play concludes; and is followed by a very fingular and very entertaining Epilogue.

It may poffibly be faid, with fome appearance of juftice, that in this comedy we are prefented with no entire new characters but if that be a fault, we fhall more readily excufe it, when we confider the difficulty of finding any real character which hath not already been exhibited upon the ftage; fo that in this refpect any thing truly original is hardly to be expected. As to moral, it certainly contains none; on the contrary, the only offenders, are the only perfons made happy in the catastrophe: for, as to Mifs Fanny's fufferings, we arc of opinion there are not many young ladies who would fcruple to fuffer twice as much during the honey-moon with the man of their heart.

On the whole, however, tho' this comedy may not (in the perufal) have quite answered our expe&ation, fo greatly raised by the united names in the title-page, yet, confidering it merely as a piece of entertainment, it certainly deferves the applaufe which it has fo generally received. Some of its fcenes are truly comic, the story is well conducted, and the final event, or unravelment of the plot, judiciously brought about. We cannot, however, take leave of our ingenious Authors, without expreffing our furprize at their addrefs to the fpectators, in the laft fentence of the play; in which they have offended against a moft effential rule of the drama: which invariably fuppofes the whole action performed independent and entirely regardless of the fpectators. It is, indeed, not only injudicious, but has too obviously the appearance of being merely intended to coax the audience into good

humour.

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B...t. Philofophical

Philofophical Tranfactions, VOL. LIV. concluded. See p. 63. I this Vol, Philofophical Tranfactions,

N our Review for Dec. laft, we gave an account of the

to phyfics, natural hiftory, &c. In our number for January, thofe on medical and anatomical fubjects were mentioned; and now we proceed to the mathematical, mechanical and astronomical communications. The firft of thefe is Article

III. The defcription of a new and fofe crane, which has four different powers; invented by Mr. James Ferguson, F. R. S.

This machine, which cannot be eafily understood without the engraved figure that accompanies it, is very well adapted to prevent the many fatal accidents that often happen by using the common tread-wheel crane. But either from the multiplicity of its parts, the confiderable friction they occafion, the lofs of time, or, perhaps, from the inflexible bigotry of the perfons concerned in thefe machines, to their old methods, it has not yet been carried into execution. For we must observe, that though this piece of mechanifm has never before appeared in any printed work that we have feen, yet a model of it was fome time fince prefented by Mr. Ferguson to the fociety for the encouragement of arts, &c. and is now in their machine room; fo that the contrivance has been long enough known to mechanics for it to have been carried into execution. Indeed the machine before us does not feem calculated for raifing heavy weights with that difpatch which is neceflary on the public wharfs. For though it is well known that the force of one man may, by this, or almoft any other machinery, be fufficient for raifing the moft enormous weights; yet, as what is gained in power will always be loft in time, it becomes neceffary, where difpatch is required, to proportion the power to the weight intended to be raised; fo that the work may be performed in a reafonable time; and this is perhaps the principal reafon why our mechanical gentlemen have not attempted to introduce Mr. Ferguson's machine inftead of the common cranes now in use.

IV. Of the Moon's Distance and Parallax: a Letter to Andrew Reid, Efq; from Dr. Murdoch.

Mr. Murdoch has in this paper given an easy method for determining the moon's diftance, from the received theory of central forces.

The method is this: Sir Ifaac Newton concluded, from an investigation of the law of gravitation, that the gravitation at the earth's furface, being diminifhed as the fquare of the diftance from the earth's centre increases, would, at the distance of the moon, produce a fall from reft, in one fecond, precifely equal to that verfed fine. Or, that the gravitation of the moon toward the earth, being increafed as the fquare of that distance is diminished, would, at the earth's furface, be of the fame quantity

as