the minifter. A feries of conftant expence, an unsuccessful war, or any confiderable exertions to restore public credit, which seem to imply its danger, may prove its ruin. If the question be taken in a more favourable view, if there be no want of lenders or taxes, the refult will not be more fatisfactory. The revenue of a nation, or the gains on its capital, in the course of a year, is the measure of its profperity. If the taxes and the expences of living confume all the gains, the profperity of the nation is ftationary; if there is a furplus, capitals are increafed, and propenfity is increafing; and the contrary, if there is a deficiency. We are at prefent in a Stationary flate; and the first war, it is fuppofed, will ruin us, if more decifive measures are not pursued than the infignificant ones of our young minifter.' In every view, therefore, the fyftem is unftable, for a combined expence will, at any time, overthrow it. If the revenue is also the measure of the power of the ftate, every defalcation of that revenue to pay taxes, is a diminution of that power.

The value of money alfo points out the profperity of a nation, and the rate of intereft fhows its progrefs. Expensive wars fink it, and bring a nation to its decline; and thus old age is only kept off, by paying the debt, or increafing the capitals by favourable ballances in commerce: and when intereft is high, in a profperous ftate, the minifter must pay a higher premium for money; fo that, wherever we turn, the public credit is injurious to the value of the public effects.

Circulation is another criterion of the population, riches, profperity, and power of a nation. This circulation confifts. in traffic, where one thing is exchanged for another; or in commerce, where the exchange is made by the affiftance of fomething else, which is either money or credit.-Truck is the lowest degree of exchange, and credit the highest: money and credit are the means by which circulation is extended. If to the regular progrefs of this machine of circulation, a confiderable addition is made, independent of labour and induftry, every thing would grow dear, and the confumption would be checked; if the fuitable increase is checked, every thing would be cheap, and this cheapnefs would difcourage their production. In either cafe, labour and indufiry would feffen, particularly if thefe increases or diminutions were irregular. The circulation fhould therefore be great, regular, and fufceptible of a gradual increafe. Money and commerce are not capable of fuch a regular increase, though, indeed, our author fuppofes, that, by ftrictly regulating the importa tion of gold and filver, Portugal, and perhaps Spain, might be brought to the highest ftate of profperity which these re

spective

Spective countries would admit of. Credit alone is the best means of extending circulation in a manner which will add to the prosperity of a nation. But public credit, our author thinks, diminishes the power of this machine of circulation. The funded contracts, or the capitals they represent, are taken from the manufacturers and merchants, to fupply an unproduc tive or unpropitious circulation in the hands of stock-jobbers. This great machine, on which fo much profperity depends, is therefore injured in the exact proportion of public debts. . M. Herrenfchwand concludes with this laft argument, and then notices fome reasoning of M. Neckar. The purport of the paffage to which he refers is, that, fince the value of gold and filver, in progreffive years, has diminished the value of a national debt, if we fuppofe the fame caufes to operate, the debt will, in future years, be alfo diminished: an opinion undoubt. edly liable to great objections; but which M. Herrenschwand treats with too much feverity. The neceffary connection which M. Neckar eftablishes between the quantity of money, and the prices of different articles, is the point of view in which our author confiders the paffage; and in his opinions, which on this fubject are often exact, he follows fir James Stewart.

Though we have once before drawn down M. Herrenschwand's indignation, by speaking too freely, we fhall continue to give our real opinion; yet we have carefully abridged his work, that this opinion may not, if erroneous, mislead our readers. The difcourfe on public credit is extremely diffuse, though, in the number of words, as fometimes happens, the meaning is not loft, for it is fufficiently perfpicuous. The author's opinions are not always juft. We have differed from a brilliant, but excentric writer, the marquis de Cafaux, and do not think a public debt a blefling; but many advantages are the confequence of it. The inconveniencies which this author points out are imaginary, and the injuries greatly exaggerated. The fituation of England is, in many refpects, mifreprefented; and the confidence in the French government our author allows is not confiderable, notwithstanding the many patriotic virtues of the king, which we were entertained with in his laft work. In fact, we look on M. Herrenschwand as a hafty, fuperficial author, whofe knowlege of France, and of political economy, is very confined. His late work on the Divifion of Lands in Agriculture, we fhall take up very foon.

Differtation on the Influence of the Paffions upon Disorders of the Body. By William Falconer, M. D. F. R. S. 8vo. 254 6d. in Boards. Dilly.

WE generally follow Dr. Falconer's fteps with great plea

fure to extenfive medical erudition, he adds a found judgment and pleafing language. It is not enough to speak of the corporeal effects which refult from peculiar influences on the mind: these are copiously detailed in almost every sys tem of phyfiology; but it is neceffary to fhow how far the mental impreffions may be ufeful in preventing or curing dif cafes it fhould alfo be pointed out, that the effects of all more active paffions are dangerous and tranfitory; that even the influence of the most powerful depreffing ones are unmanageable, and of little real affiftance to the phyfician. Hope, the chearer Hope, and its offspring Confidence, we must look for almost all the aid which we want in our practice from the mental remedies.

Το

Dr. Falconer, in this very judicious treatife, points out thofe general facts relating to the mind which are of confidence in his fubfequent enquiry, and of which one of the moit important is, that a paffion is to be conquered only by exciting different affections of the mind. Another is, that the ennui and liftleffnefs which the attainment of our wishes bring with it, may be relieved by exciting any, even the most diftreffing, paffions. Mr. Haftings will not probably look on his impeachers as his friends, yet, if he compares the misery of having nothing to look forward to with hope and expectation, even to his prefent feelings, he will find himself a gainer by the comparison. After defcribing thefe circumstances which lay the foundation of the mental therapeutics, Dr. Falconer defcribes the effects of the various paffions, as they appear in the body; and this feems to be one of the least useful parts of his work, fince it admits of little application in the fubfequent pages. Hope, which we think of great importance, is flightly mentioned; and its attendant, confidence, is crowded into a note. But we will refcue it from its difgraceful fituation.

Two other mental affections, fcarcely reducible to the clafs of paffions, are of great importance in medicine. The first of thefe is, a high degree of faith and confidence in the efficacy of remedies, Whether this operates by engroffing the mind and attention, and thereby rendering it inacceffible to other impreffions, or by imparting fuch a degree of tone, or ftrength, as enables the fyftem to refift their attacks, is difficult to deter mine. It is found most efficacious, either in fuch disorders as are apt to recur at intervals, or else in fuch as principally affect

the

the mind and fpirits. It is, however, observable that, unless the prepoffeffion be very strong, it is apt to fail in producing a cure. Another mental affection that has fometimes produced great effects, is a determined refolution of mind to refift the accefs of the complaint. However extraordinary this may feem, it has been practifed with fuccefs in feveral diforders. If appears like that laft fpoken of, to have been principally of fervice in periodical and nervous complaints. There seems to be no doubt that it acts by infpiring ftrength and tone into the fyftem,'

How many patients have found themfelves relieved by the prefence of a chearful and judicious phyfician, fo as even to give a force to Rouffeau's paradox, Bring the doctor, but let him leave his medicines behind.' It is owing to hope, and indeed, Dr. Falconer allows it, by the extenfive ufe which he makes of it. In one inftance of this kind only, we differ from him, viz. the application of the magnet in a pain of the tooth. It feems to have its chief effect from the coldness. We have used it, without any confidence, merely becaufe urged to do so; and the fenfation, perhaps the fedative im preffion of cold, feems to have been of the greatest service.

Our author then takes up Dr. Cullen's nofology, and enquires into the effects of different paffions on intermittents, typhus, including peftis, phrenitis, odontalgia, podagra, hæmorrhages, apoplexy, fyncope, hypochondriafis, chlorofis amatoria, epilepfy (cramp and hiccup from Sauvages) hyfteria, melancholia, mania, fcorbutus, icterus fpafmodicus, and postalgia.

The greatest part of these difeafes are influenced by the confidence which we have mentioned as fo useful; and by merely drawing the mind from one train of images, and fuggefting another more falutary. It is feldom that a physician would recommend violent terror to prevent a fit of intermit tent, or hyfteria; or that the patient's refolution could produce the fame effect by refolving to do fo. We have scarcely ever heard a well-attefted inftance of violent paffions producing any thing but tranfitory yellowness of the fkin, which is not a jaundice the spasmodic icterus is a term chiefly applied to jaundice from the bites of animals, which happens too fud denly to be fuppofed to arife from the abforption of the poi fon. The language of the ancients refpecting bile arose chiefly from their theory of the temperament; and is more often a poetical ornament, than a phyfiological pofition. The effect of paffions on the gout, are well known, but cannot properly be employed. The neceffity of a proper management of the mind in melancholia and mania, is fufficiently under Hh 4

flood

ftood. We fhall, however, extract a passage or two, as inftances of our author's opinions.

Opium too, which has been introduced into practice of late years in the nervous fever, and frequently adminiftred, and in pretty large dofes, is well known to exert great cordial effects on the mind and spirits'

Opium is not, he fays, an antifeptic.

Is it not probable then, that its good effects are produced by its compofing the nervous agitations, and by its introducing fenfations of an agreeable kind, which tend, of course, in the fame manner with joy, and fuch like exhilirating paffions, to excite the motion of the heart, and blood veffels, and to ftrengthen the natural functions of the fyftem in general? This conjecture will receive additional ftrength, if we reflect that the debilitating paffions, as fear, grief, &c. have been in all ages reckoned among the principal causes of the nervous fever. The fimilarity in the effect produced, renders it highly probable, that wine and opium owe the principal advantages they procure, to the fame general property. Wine, indeed, largely taken, might be useful as an antifeptic; and I by no means deny, that it may be of fervice fpecifically, when adminiftred with that intention. But if opium produces nearly the fame effects (as it is faid to do) we muft look for fome other caufe of the efficacy of wine, and refer it to fome qualities which it poffeffes in common with opium, which can be no other than thofe of a fedative and cordial kind, the action of which is confined to the nervous fyftem only.'

The ufe of fome ftrange remedies in hemorrhages our author attributes to the horror and terror with which they affect the mind. He goes on:

The above facts, though fcarcely applicable immediately to practice, fuggeft nevertheless some useful inferences. We fhould be cautious how we attempt to raise the fpirits, or agitate the minds of thofe labouring under a prefent dangerous hæmorrhage. Low fpirits, and a certain degree even of defpondency for a time, may be of fervice in retarding the impetus of the blood, and allowing a thrombus to be formed. On This account we fhould not be too forward with affurances of fafety, but rather leave them in fome degree of doubt and apprehenfion. Much injury has, I think, been done in pulmonary confumptions attended with hæmoptoe, by the affurances of fafety given by well meaning, though imprudent friends. It tends to ftimulate the fpirits, already too much agitated, and of confequence to accelerate the circulation, and increase the fever and difcharge of blood, and is farther injurious, by caufing the patient to pay lefs regard to other falutary regulations.'