So, after the death of the husband, the marriage shall not be drawn in queftion, though the wife be alive.

Nor, after the death of the wife, though the husband be alive.

And if a marriage was inceftuous, and a fuit commenced for it against the hufband and wife, and one of them dies, though they may proceed against the furvivor to inforce penance, yet if they proceed to baftardize the iffue, a prohibition goes.

The EFFECTS which FOLLOW.

If there be a Divorce a Vinculo Matrimonii, the iffue between them will be bastards.

And a sentence for Divorce ftands in force, till reverfed by appeal.

So, a sentence for nullity of a marriage in Caufa factitationis Maritagii.

And if the parties die, an examination will not be allowed to prove an heir, contrary to the fentence."

In this article, the analyfis is well formed, though the subject is by no means exhausted. Neither is the title MARRIAGE, of which Divorce is a fubdivifion, treated in fo ample a manner as fo copious a fubject requires. For, under this head, we find nothing of the offence of performing the ceremony without due authority or licence.-Nor of the feveral offences against the rights of marriage, of marriage brocage, contracts, &c.-Nor of elopement, criminal converfation, and many other titles which properly belong to this head.

We might extend our ftrictures to many other general titles: but, as we have already obferved, however this Digeft may fall short of our expectations, yet it contains a great deal of curious and useful matter: and when we confider, that it appears under the disadvantage of having never been revised or corrected by the Author, candour bids us overlook its defects, and prompts us to fay, Eft quodam prodire tenus.

Mifcellaneous Pieces relating to the Chinese. 2 Vols. 12mo. 5s. Dodfley.

TH

HE first tract in thefe Mifcellanies, is, a Differtation on the Language and the Writing of the Chinese, which is the only piece that has not been already published. It is fhort, but far from fuperficial, being the production of fome in

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genious

genious English Writer, who has taken confiderable pains to inform himself on this curious fubject. As no circumstance relating to this distant and extraordinary people, is more fingular than that of their language, and their arbitrary characters in writing, we fhall felect a few extracts from this entertaining differtation on them.

"Their language, according to Bayerus, contains but three hundred and fifty words; according to Du Halde, but three hundred and thirty, all of one fyllable: but then each word is pronounced with fuch various modulations, each with a different meaning, that it becomes more copious than one could imagine, and enables them to exprefs themselves on the common occafions of life very well."—Aproof and illustration of this, is referred to, in the notes annexed to this tract; where we are informed, that the word Po, is pronounced after eleven different manners, fignifying as many very different things, as rice, an old woman, glass, to winnow, to boil, to water, &c. &c. and having, according to its different accents and afpirations, the power of a verb, a fubstantive, an adjective, a participle, and an adverb. The Miffionaries who adapt the European characters, as well as they can, to the expreffion of Chinese words, have devised eleven different, and fome of them very compounded, marks, and afpirations, to fignify the various modulations, elevations, and depreffions of the voice, which diftinguish the feveral meanings of the fame monofyllable.

Having obferved the Chinese to be deftitute of an alphabet, and that their literature is all comprised in arbitrary unelemental characters, our Author ingenioufly adds-" If we reflect a moment, we fhall be convinced, that men must have acquired a habit of reafoning, as well as a deep infight into the nature of fpeech, before they could think of refolving words into all the fimple founds of which they are compofed, and of inventing a particular mark for each diftinct found. A favage would have no idea that the word STRONG, which he pronounces at once, fhould confift of fix fimple founds, S. T. R. O. N. G. and that a particular mark is to be invented for each of these; from a combination of which the word is to be expreffed in writing. He would be more apt to fubftitute fome one fimple mark, that fhould express the whole word at once. And if the word fignified any corporeal fubftance, what would be fo natural as an imitation of its figure? Nay, it is probable, that the first attempts at writing would altogether confift of fuch figures. For, fo long as men lived in a state of wild nature, their abstract ideas would doubtless be very few; corporeal objects would naturally employ their whole attention; in certain rude imitations of which the whole of their literature would be apt to confift;"

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adding

adding foon after, "But as no abftracted idea can be reprefented in picture, a fmall degree of mental improvement would foon convince men of the infufficience of these, and this would lead them, either to intermix with their pictures arbitrary figas, or to give to them arbitrary meanings; which laft feems to be the cafe in the hieroglyphics of the Egyptians. Thofe figns, once admitted, would foon take the lead, and pictures would wholly give place to characters. The conveniency of difpatch, the love of uniformity, and, as literature improved, the more frequent occafion to exprefs abftracted ideas, would naturally cause an exclufion of the former. In this ftate, adds our Author, is the present literature of China."

He goes on to obferve, that- This language being wholly addreffed to the eye, and having no affinity with their tongue, as fpoken, the latter hath ftill continued in its original rude, uncultivated ftate, while the former hath received all poffible improvements. The Chinese tongue is barren and contracted, wholly confifting of a few undeclinable and uncompounded monofyllables;-the Chinese characters, on the contrary, are amazingly numerous (about eighty thousand) and complicated.Hence, he affirms, the Chinese oral language is unfit for litera ture, and fays, all their proceffes, pleadings, and judicial examinations, are wholly tranfacted by petition and memorial; a method of proceeding beft fuited to the taciturnity of this phlegmatic people."

To the honour of one part of their police, however, in this refpect, he fays, "If the difficulty of maftering and retaining fuch a number of arbitrary marks, greatly retards the progrefs of their erudition; on the other hand, the Chinese have all poffible inducements to cultivate and pursue it. There is no part of the globe where learning is attended with fuch honours and rewards the Literati are reverenced as men of another fpecies, they are the only nobility known in China: be their birth never fo mean and low, they become Mandarins of the highest rank in proportion to the extent of their learning. On the other hand, be their birth never fo exalted, they quickly sink into poverty and obfcurity, if they neglect thofe ftudies which raised their fathers. It is a fond and groundlefs notion of fome late Writers, he fays, who ought to have known better, that there is a key to the Chinese characters, hidden from the common people, and reserved as a fecret in fome few families of the great. On the contrary, there is no nation in the world, where the firft honours of the state lie fo open to the loweft of the people, and where there is lefs of hereditary and traditional greatness."

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We recollect to have read in Du Halde, that the Chinese had not the canine found of the letter R in their language; to which our present Writer adds, nor those of B, D, X, Z: notwithftanding, he obferves, that in the Chinese word I-tfe, both the d and z seem to be pronounced, as they found it, I-dze. It must be ftrange then to us, that they cannot pronounce da, de, za, ze, &c. which he informs us is the cafe*. Europa, in their pronunciation, becomes Yeu-lo-pa; America, Ya-me-li-kya. When a Chinese Catholic Prieft confecrates the Hoft in Latin, initead of hoc eft corpus meum, he is reduced to fay, bo-ke ngefu-· tu co-ul-pu-fu me-vung. This, to a Chinefe Auditor, conveys three ftrange diverfities of Chinese words, which, having no sense, nor meaning, as they are joined, our Author does not attempt construction of the Latin words to which they correfpond, nor even arrange them in any mode or rules of fyntax.-The first of them, however, is-Fluvius poffe occiput res adfequi quifque tu non fervus pulfus Dominus.-The other two are almoft entirely different from this jargon, and from each other, being all equally abfurd, or unmeaning. We were pleased to see rather a modeft Hactenus than Finis at the bottom of this finall tract; as it gives us fome hope, that this curious and difcerning Writer may, at his leifure, favour the public with the refult of his further refearches into this peculiar fubject of the language and writing of the Chinese: which makes that people appear fo different from ourselves, that a fanciful brain might be apt to fuggeft, they had a nearer refemblance to the inhabitants of fome other planet,

The other tracts published in this collection, are chiefly taken from the Lettres Edifiantes & Curieufes, published by the Jefuits; and from Du Halde's Defcription of China. In the first volume there are, befide the original differtation of which we have now given an account, 1. "Rules of Conduct," by a Chinese Author; tranflated from the French of P. Parrenim, Jefuit. It ferves to confirm an obfervation we have often had occafion to make, that good fenfe and good manners are nearly the fame, all the world over.

The next tract is, the famous Chinefe tragedy, entitled, the Orphan of the House of Chao; of which feveral tranflations have been made, both in the French and English languages +. The

This muft greatly depend on that confiderable difference in fome of the organs of articulation between the Chinese and ourselves, which pur Author mentions, p. 22.

+ Voltaire's Orphelin de la Chine is founded on this performance: fee Review, vol. XIII. page 493, and vol. XIV. page 61. Alfo Mr. Murphy's Orphan of China, altered from Voltaire, vol. XX. page 575.

prefent

prefent Editor has given a closer verfion of it than any of the former, with a view of retaining more exactly the peculiarities of the Chinese original: for which, however, he has been, after all, obliged to depend on the French verfion published by Du Halde.

The fourth and laft piece contained in this volume, is a Criticism on the Chinese Drama, from Mr. Hurd's Discourse on poetical Imitation, printed at the end of the first edition of his Commentary on Horace's Epiftle to Auguftus, 8vo. 1751. This piece of criticism has been fuppreffed by its ingenious Author, in the later editions of the Commentary: but our Editor hath taken the liberty to reclaim it, in the name of the public.

In the fecond volume we have, firft, Authentic Memoirs of the Chriftian Church in China; from the German of J. L. de Mofheim. This was firft tranflated and published as a pamphlet, in 1750; and was mentioned in the fecond volume of our Review, page 52.-Need we mention what fort of Christianity the Jefuits have introduced into China, as well as elsewhere?

The fecond Paper is, The Art of laying out Gardens among the Chinese; extracted from Mr. Chambers's Chinese Architecture, published in 1757. This ingenious account is followed by Frere Attiret's Defcription of the Emperor of China's Gardens and Pleasure-houses near Pe-king; of which a tranflation was publifhed in 1752, by a learned Gentleman, who has fometimes affumed the name of Sir Harry Beaumont: See Review, vol. VII. page 421.

The laft article is, An Account of the Solemnities obferved at Pe-king, in honour of the Emperor's Mother. In a Letter from P. Amyot, a Jefuit-Miffionary in China. It is an ancient cuftom among the Chinese, to celebrate with great pomp the day when the Emperor's mother enters the fixtieth year of her age. The festival here described, was held in January 1752. It was extremely pompous and expenfive: the Author eftimates it at more than three hundred millions of livres. But what will moft gratify the curiofity of many Readers, is the idea here given of the footing on which the Jefuits continue at present in China; this account being the latest that hath been published concerning the affairs of the expiring Society of Jefus (as they prefumptuously ftyle themselves) in that part of the world: it was printed in the Lettres Edifiantes, &c. Paris, 1758.

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