ART. VIII. Literary Obituary. 1808. Dec. 5. Wm. Hawes, M. D. æt. 73. See Gent. Mag. Vol. LXXVIII p. 1121. Dec. 23. The Rev. John Brand, Rector of St. George's, Southwark, and Vicar of Wickham near Thwayte, Suffolk, distinguished as a profound mathematician; and deeply read in theology and history. There were indeed few topics in divinity and politics, that have of late years excited the public attention in which his pen was not employed. He was formerly of Caius College, Cambr. where he proceeded A. B. 1766; A. M. 1772, in which year he published Conscience, an ethical Essay, written for Seaton's prize, but sent too late. His pamphlet entitled The Alteration of the Constitution of the House of Commons, and the Inequality of the Land-tax, considered conjointly, 1793, 8vo. is a most able and profound tract. His pamphlet on the Price of Corn, as originating from the war, was in the highest degree perspicuous and conclusive. His skill in political arithmetic was indeed admirable, as may be sufficiently proved by some articles written by him in the BRITISH CRITIC; particularly if I recollect a review of a financial pamphlet by Mr. W. Morgan. See some notice of him on this account under the article of Political Arithmeticians in the first Vol. of CENS. LIT. His living in the Borough was only last year increased to a considerable value; and death has deprived his family, consisting of eight orphan children, of this advantage. Dec. 28. At Bath, in his 88th year, the Rev. John Duncan, D. D. forty-five years Rector of South Warnborough, near Odiham, Hants, author of a poetical Essay on Happiness, 1762, 8vo.; and of several single Sermons; and a writer of verses till towards the close of life. He was formerly of St. John's College, Oxford, and in 1745 and 1746, Chaplain of the King's Own Regiment. He has left a son, a student of the Law. See an account of his ancestors in Kippis's Biogr. Brit. Lately, 2 Lately, at Reading, Berks, Elizabeth Trapp, eldest of the two grand-daughters of the learned Dr. Trapp. 1809. Jan. 3. At Wetherden, Suffolk, æt. 79, Richard Shepherd, D.D. F.R.S. Archdeacon of Bedford, and Rector of Wetherden and Helmingham in Suffolk. Formerly of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. His numerous writings evince his eminence as a divine and a philosopher. His first publication was An Ode to Love, 1756; to which he added Odes Descriptive and Allegorical, 1761, 4to. and The Nuptials, a didactic poem, in three books, 1762. He also wrote some dramatic pieces. See Biogr. Dram. I. 410. He was author of many sermons; and translated Polyænus's Stratagems of War from the Greek, 1793, &c. &c. Jan. 17. At Lord Spencer's, at Wolbeding, Sussex, aged 27, Sir Francis Vincent, Bart. Under Secretary of State to Mr. Fox in the late Administration. He published in conjunction with the Hon. Mr. Hawke some periodical Essays about the time he left school. On his return from Spain, worn out with fatigue, Lieut. Col. Michael Symes, of the 76th Regt. (nominal, if not real*) author of an Account of an Embassy to Alva, which was well received by the public. He was an Irishman, and brother to the late General Symes, who died in the West Indies about 1794. Col. Symes's health had suffered by many years service in India. He married a few years ago a lady of Rochester, where he was buried. This is merely said in consequence of the late fashion for those who have passed their lives in active scenes, to cail in more practised pens to describe their voyages or travels. To Correspondents. The Favours of J. H. M. and S. which arrived too late for insertion in the present Number, are unavoidably postponed till our next. T. Bensley, Printer, CENSURA LITERARIA. NUMBER XXXIX. [Being Number XXVII. of the New Series.] ART. I. Hunting. HUNTING, according to one of the old chronicles, must have originally been pursued as a simple recreation and amusement, though sometimes followed to obtain the hide of the animal; thus "Lameth an archer, but some dele blynde, had a yonglyng yt. ledde hym whyle he hunted for playe & lykyng; other for loue of bestes skynnes: for men ete no flesshe before Noes flood." Afterwards, when flesh became the usual food and the domestic herd could no longer supply novelty to the evervarying appetite, a higher gratification to the palate appears to have been sought for in beasts of venery. "Take thy weapons, thy quiver, and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison, and make me some savoury meat," was the command of the patriarch Isaac to his son Esau, and that command has been noticed by a divine, as a proof of the lawfulness of the chace. "Perswading myselfe (he says) that the smelling of the dogge, the flying of the hawke, the antipathie amongst the creatures, howeuer it was produced by the fall of man, yet neuerthelesse that God in his mercy alloweth, VOL. X. & & in his wise prouidence disposeth euen of these contrarities and antipathies, as well as of the sympathies of the creatures, for the good and vse of man, his lieutenant & vicegerent ouer the works of his hands.* And for hunting more especially it is my opinion, if not iudgement, that Isaack would not have tollerated, much lesse commaunded Esau's hunting if it had bin sinfull. Secondly (the same writer continues), it is lawfull to kill the creature in Christian liberty, dee e or hare, or the like for meat or medicine: yea so to kill them as they may be most vsefull & behoofefull for man, which is done better by chase or course, than eyther by gins or shooting, as experience shewes; and, as some scrupulously obiect, this is not to tyrannize ouer the creature in putting it by continuance of chase or course to a more lasting paine; but rather to lessen, euen as he that dies by degrees in a consumption, or that bleeds to death, dies more easily than he that is hewn by a sword, as Samuel did Agag, al at once."+ As a custom amongst mankind the chace has proved universal, varying only from the necessity of the climate or difference of the prey. In all countries the hand of power, which it first assisted in the institution of, has appeared jealously employed "Represent to your generous reading, the natural enmity betwixt the horse and the beare, the wolfe and the lyon, the fox and the badger; such a native disagreeing remaines among these beasts, as their hatred is implacable; ever pursuing their enemy with an inveterate hate: for an enmity ingrafted by nature, cannot be suppressed by lesse than nature," p. 175. Braithwait's Nursery for Gentry. "The opinion of a worthy diuine S. ing this [hawking] and the like subiect." Falconrie." 1618. I. and composed by himselfe, concern- A circumstance thus described in Lanqvette's Chronicle. "It appereth in the Bible, that the first kingdom was begun by Nemroth among the Babylonians, whom the scripture calleth a strong hunter before the Lord, that is, a mightie prince, who by force brought people to his subiection. In that he was a hunter, is signified that he was a deceiuer of soules, an oppresser of men: and for that he withdrewe menne from the true religion of God, he was so called." Fo. 7. in in guarding the prescriptive rights and boundaries of the royal forests. Englishmen were relieved, or made secure, from the forfeiture of life, by the Charta Foresta, (which immediately followed Magna Charta, 1225,) and then it was enacted "no man from henceforth shall lose either life, or member for killing of our deer;" limiting the punishment to only fine or imprisonment. The law was further defined, whereby for an "Archbishop, Bishop, Earl or Baron, coming to us at our commandment, passing by our forest, it shall be lawful for him to take and kill one or two of our deer, by view of our forester, if he be present; or else he shall cause one to blow an horn for him, that he seem not to steal our deer; and likewise they shall do returning from us, as it is aforesaid." Next to these primary laws of the chase, may be noticed the enthusiasm of its votaries, and the apparent idleness and irreligion it created among the lower classes, that induced them to hunt" on the holydays, when good Christian people be at church, hearing divine service." To restrain such abuses, in 1389 a statute law was made" that no manner of artificer, labourer, nor any other layman, which hath not lands or tene ments to the value of xls. by year, nor any priest, nor other clerk, if he be not advanced to the value of xl. by year, shall have or keep from henceforth any grey hound, hound, nor other dog to hunt; nor shall they use ferrets, keys, nets, harepipes, nor cords, nor other engines for to take or destroy deer, hares, nor conies, nor other gentlemen's game upon pain of one year's imprisonment." A complaint, not dissimilar, is made by the divine, already referred to, as convinced of the lawfulness of the recreations of hawking and hunting. "These exercises [he asserts] are grossly and sinfully abused by many loose and licentious persons, that obserue no circumstances, which vsually make or marre the actions, they |