imagined that there was much danger in the experiment. Mr. Neit RYRIE, however, one of the clerks of the Devon Company, had fufficient confidence in my reprefentations to venture himfelf along with

me.

"The machine had been fopped about two hours previous to our entering the vault, and we found a dampness and miftinefs in it, which difappeared foon after the door was fut faft upon us, and the engine began to work in its ufual manner. After four or five ftrokes of the engine, we both experienced a fingular fenfation in our ears, as if they were stopped by the fingers, which continued as long as we remained in the condensed air. Our breathing was not in the least affected. I had no thermometer with me, but the temperature of the air felt to us the fame as that without the vault. Sound was much magnified, as we perceived, when we talked to each other, or ftruck any thing; particularly, the noife of the air efcaping at the blow-pipe, or wafte valve, was very loud, and feemed to return back to us. There was no appearance of wind to disturb the flame of our candles; on the contrary, I was surprised to find, that when we put one of them into the eduction pipe, which conveys the wind from the vault to the furnaces, it was not blown out. There was not the fmallest appearance of any drops of water ifiuing out of this pipe. The oozing and dropping of water from the fide of the rock, next the bank, feemed the fame as before the condenfation was made in the vault. In short, every thing appeared, in other refpects, the fame as when we were.in the common atmosphere. Having remained about an hour in the condenfed air, and fatisfied ourselves that no water, during that time, that we could in the leaft difcover, was agitated and forced out of the rock and vault by the power of the blaft, as was imagined and infifted on, we gave the fignal to ftop the engine. As foon as it ceafed to work, and the condensation abated, and before the door of the vault was unfcrewed, the whole vault, in a few feconds, became filled with a thick wapour, fo that we could hardly fee the candles at four or five yards diftance. The door being now opened, the work people, anxious to know our fituation, and what had occurred, came into the vault, and prevented any further obfervations.

"I now endeavoured to account for this curious appearance of the water, which only fhewed itfelf occafionally, in very fmall quantities, at the tweer, and at a hole' I ordered to be made in the bottom of the wind cheft to collect it more accurately, for it never was observed, but either when the engine, after working flowly, was made to work quicker, or, after having been flopped for a few minutes, was fet to work again.

"I confidered the vapour which we had difcovered in the vault to arife from the moisture of the fide of the rock next the furnace, which being expelled by the great heat of the furnace, and converted into vapour, was able to force its way through the pores of the rock into the vault, but inat being in a manner confined within the rock, by the preffure of the codented air, it found itself at liberty to come into the vault, only when the condenfation abated confiderably, or was totally removed by the going flow, or stopping of the engine. It allo occurred to me, that the air, in a state of condenfation, might poffibly

be capable of holding a greater quantity of water in folution, which night precipitate fuddenly into vapour or mift when the condenfation abated. I imagined, therefore, that the very fmall quantities of water we at times difcovered, proceeded from nothing elfe but this vapour, in its paffage to the furnace along with the blaft, being condenfed into water, by the coolness of the eduction pipe and iron wind cheft. The quantity of water did not appear to amount to a gallon twenty-four hours.

"A few days after I had made this experiment, the water ceased entirely to make its appearance, either at the tweer, or at the hole in the wind cheft; but the furnace did not come into heat for a long while after, and indeed not till the keepers let much more air into it by a larger blow pipe, and allowed lefs air to escape at the fafety valve. It is probable that the rock was now become perfectly dry by the continued heat of the furnace.

"My experiment had the good effect to remove all the prejudices against the plan I had adopted of blowing the furnaces, and likewife prevented the other partner from laying out a large fum of money, by ftopping the works, and altering the blowing machinery. Indeed, it has fince been admitted, by all who have feen it at work, to be the moft fimple and effective method of equalizing the blast of any yet put in practice." P. 33.

The perfons belonging to these iron works might not have hefitated to have ventured themselves into the air vault; nor would perhaps Mr. R. have called this the first experiment of the kind, if they had recollected that divers, and especially the late Mr. Spalding, of Edinburgh, have frequently remained for a confiderable time in their diving bells, the air of which is condenfed incomparably more than that of the above-mentioned air vault.

In the latter part of the paper an improvement is mentioned, which, we have no doubt, may prove very advantageous to works of the like fort. Mr. R. obferves, that fince the quantities of any fluid iffuing out of the fame aperture, are as the fquare roots of the preflures, it follows, that it would require four times the power to expel a double quantity of air through the fame aperture, in the fame time. Alfo, confidering that the quantity and intenfity of heat, which is produced in blast furnaces, and confequently its effects, are in proportion' to the quantity of air decompofed in the process of combuftion, without regard to its greater velocity; he concluded that by increafing the quantity of air thrown into a furnace, though its velocity fhould be diminished, they might probably increase the effect of the furnace. The propriety of his reasoning was evinced by the fuccefs of his experiments. For by increafing the bore of the blow-pipe from 2 inches diameter to 31, the produce of the furnace was increased by more than 13 tons of iron per week.

· (To be concluded in our next.)

ART.

ART. X. The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church, according to the Ufe of the United Church of England and Ireland; together with the Pfalter or Pfalms of David, pointed as they are to be fung or faid in Churches. London, publifhed for John Reeves, Efq. One of the Patentees in the Office of King's Printer. 8vo. 8s. 6d. bound. Wright, Piccadilly. 1801.

IT

Tis with peculiar pleasure that we fee Mr. Reeves diftinguishing himself by publications of the most useful kind, and particularly those which are calculated for the service of religion. We receive these works with the more peculiar fatisfaction from him, a man whom, for his fpirited political conduct, thousands have calumniated without knowing, but whom no valuable perfon ever knew without efteeming; a man, supposed by many to be only a politician, but one, in fact, in whom politics are fubfervient to nothing but a truly honeft zeal for virtue and religion, That he is learned, he has made it unne-CL ffary for us to fay, by publishing learned works*; that he is a judicious as well as an accurately informed friend to religion, appears in the present publication,

Many valuable works have been written illustrative of our excellent Liturgy; but, to unite fuch an illuftration with the Liturgy itself, in a form intended for common ufe, has not been of ten attempted; never with fuch skill and fuccefs as in the prefent inftance. In an English Prayer-Book, neatly printed by Didot at Paris, in 1791, for a London bookfellert, thort Prefaces were given to the Liturgy at large, to the Litany, to the Collects, &c. to the Communion Service, and to the Pfalms. Thefe were drawn up for the purpose by a clergyman, whofe name is not there mentioned, but is known to us, and contain very useful and inftru&tive matter. Something of a fimilar kind, but more extensive, is performed in Mr. Reeves's Introduction to the prefent volume; which, as he too modeftly fays, pretends to no merit of its own, but that of felection and brevity," being founded upon the writings of others; among whom Comber, Nichols, Wheatley, Horne, and Wells, are enumerated in the margin. It is merely juftice to affert, that the selection has been made with eminent judgment; and that the brevity, though fufficiently obferved for convenience, is not fuch as to withhold any thing of effential ufe. In selecting

See p. 341, of this umber.

+ Mr. Edwards and Co. alfo,

alfo, Mr. R. has made the matter his own, by clothing it in 413 new words, and giving it the cleareft arrangement.

The author begins with the Hiftory of the Common Prayer, in which we obferve only one deficiency, the omiffion of the names of the Commiffioners under Edward VI. and at the various revifals, which are properly, in our opinion, given in the Preface to Didor's Prayer-Book. He then takes the Services and Of fices in their order, as they stand in the book; and under every head communicates fuch information as is moft effential and inftru&tive to the general reader. We fhall give a fpecimen of this Introduction, from a part which contains peculi arly curious matter.

"OF THE FIRST RUBRIC.

"To have a clear understanding of the direction given in this firft Rubric, for the Order of Morning and Evening Prayer, the Place where they are to be faid, and the Ornaments of the Church and Minifter, it will be proper to confider thortly the following circumftances, "God appointed to his peculiar people, the Jews, their fet times of public devotion; commanding them to offer up two lambs daily, one in the morning, the other at even; Exod. xxix. 38; Numb. xxviii. 3. We find, from other paffages of Scripture, that thefe offerings were at their third and ninth hour, which correfpond with our nine in the morning and three in the afternoon. Thus these burnt offerings, being the types of the great Sacrifice, which Chrift, the Lamb of God, was to offer up for the fins of the world, were actually sacrificed at the fame hours, wherein his death was begun and finished; for about the third hour, or nine in the morning, he was delivered to Pilate, accufed, examined, and condemned to die; about the fixth hour, or noon, this Lamb of God was laid upon the altar of the crofs; and at the ninth hour, or three o'clock, he yielded up the ghoft.

"Accordingly, all Chriftian Churches have had their Morning and Evening public devotions; the Church of England, however, has not prefcribed any fixed hour, but has left the determination thereof to the minifters that officiate, who appoint it according to the circumftances of respective places, and as they judge it molt convenient and proper.

"When Chriftianity became the established religion of the Eaftern and Western empires, and Churches were built for the celebration of Divine Service, they gave to them an oblong form; which was chofen, it is faid, as refembling a ship, a common metaphor, by which the Church used to be reprefented; to remind us, that we are toffed up and down in this world, and that, out of the Church, there is no fafe paffage to Heaven, the country at which we all hope to arrive. always divided into two parts, the Nave (probably from navis, a fhip) It was or body of the Church, and the Sacrarium, fince called the Chancel because it was divided from the body of the Church by flender rails, called Cancelli. The Nave was common to all the people, and was confidered as reprefenting the vifible world; the Chancel was peculiar to the priests and facred perfons; and, in the eyes of pious fpecula

tion,

tion, was deemed to typify Heaven. This end of the Church was always to the Eaft, in which they had a refpect to Chrift, who is filed the Day Spring from on high, Luke i. 78; for, as the Eaft is the birthplace of the natural day, fo Chrift is the true fun of righteousness, who arofe upon the world with the light of truth when it fat in the darknefs of error and ignorance: fince, therefore, we mutt in our prayers turn our faces to fome quarter, it has been judged fitteft, that it should be towards the Eaft; which, for the above reafons, and from fimilar expreffions in Scripture, has been deemed fymbolically to be the peculiar refidence of God. In the Chancel always ftood the altar, or communion-table, which none were allowed to approach but fuch as were in holy orders, unless it was the Emperor, at the time he made his offerings; who was immediately thereupon to return again. In our Cathedral Churches the choir is the Chancel.

"Churches ufed to be folemnly confecrated; and the Dedications of them were celebrated with great feftivity and rejoicing. Befides the performance of divine offices, the finging of hymns and pfalms, the reading and expounding of the Scriptures, fermons, and orations, receiving the holy facrament, prayers, and thanksgiving, there were liberal alms beltowed on the poor, and great gifts made to the Church. Thefe dedications were conftantly commemorated afterwards every year; this annual folemuity ufually lafted eight days, and was one of the religious cuftoms obferved in this kingdom till the 28th of Henry VIII. when, by a decree of Convocation, confirmed by the King, Feafts of Dedication were ordered to be eftablished in all places throughout England, on one and the fame day, namely, the ift of October. The Wakes, which are still obferved in many country vil lages, and are holden upon the Sunday that follows the Saint's day, whofe name the Church bears, are the remains, not of thefe Dedications, but of the Old Church Holidays, which were feasts kept in memory of the Saint, to whofe honor the Church was dedicated, and who was therefore always called the Patron of fuch Church. Every Church being the Lord's Houfe, as the name imports, is in truth dedicated only to God; yet, at its confecration, it was generally diftinguifhed by the name of fome Angel or Saint, chiefly that the people, by frequently mentioning fuch diftinguished names, might be excited to imitate thofe virtues, which holy men may acquire, and which belong inherently to Heavenly Beings.

Nothing need be faid here upon fo extensive a fubject, as the minifterial office and character, and the diftinct orders of Bifhop, Priest, and Deacon; the Rubric goes no further than to fpeak of their ornaments, which are to be retained, as they were used in the fecond year of Edward VI. Thus we are referred to the firft Common PrayerBook of Edward VI. where we find directions for wearing various articles of ornament in drefs, which are now out of ufe, and hardly known to us; for, befides the furplice and hood, which are now used, there are the rochette or albe, cope or veftment, the paftoral staff, and tunicles. Some of thefe were deemed to retain in them too much of the Popish reverence for indifferent things; and it was accordingly, in

Kogiaan dinia, from whence, kirche, kirk, church.

the