166 Remarks on the antient Egyptian Government and Customs.

ing beautiful lines, defcriptive of every week he fafted a day, and

Health:

Exercife and temperance do largely contribute to health. In order to enjoy and continue this bleffing, a late writer hath given this good advice

"Let fupper little be and light: But none makes always the best night."

The late Dr Cheyne hath juftly obferved, that to die martyrs to luxury and wantonnefs is equally beneath the dignity of human nature, and contrary to the homage we owe to the Author of our being. Those who wilfully tranf. grefs felf-evident rules of health, are guilty of great ingratitude to God, in thus fighting and defpif. ing the nobleft temporal gift he can bestow upon man. This conduct in a rational creature does alfo incur great guilt upon other accounts, it being a treacherous forfaking the poft Divine Proman in, and 'vidence hath placed

rendering himfelf incapable of an
fwering the evident defigns of
God's providence over him in the
world.

I think it is fomewhere faid of
the emperor Auguftus, that for
his health he every year ufed the
bath, every month he took a puke,

every day he walked an hour.

Some have obferved that a healthful body at full growth does ordinarily weigh about two pounds and a half averdupois lefs in the fummer than in the winter feason, which is owing to the cold deffen. ing perfpiration, and the heat in fummer increafing it.

The chief end of all knowledge in the art of phyfic, is to reftore health to the fick; and practice is that part of the fcience of phyfic which teaches how to find out by undoubted natural figns in the pas tient, when there is a difeafe,what that difeafe is,-in wht. ftate, whether in its beginning, height, or declenfion; and by what method and means this cif eafe may be carried off, and health reftored.

Let those who enjoy this fa vour be thankful for it, and fhew a becoming concern to improve it ; anfwerable to their better ability, they fhould do more than others both in religion and focial life. Such fhould not be willingly want ing in any known inftance of duty to God, their neighbour, and themfelves-Let fuch as labour under diforders in the fleeting frame, leek relief in the ufe of all lawful means which Divine Providence hath put within their power; at the fame time looking to the God of nature as the great Phyfician for fuccefs.

I am, Sir, yours,

W. B.

Remarks on the ancient Egyptian
Government and Cufioms.

THE antient Egyptians were

not only famous for the in vention of arts and sciences, but are reported by feveral hiftorians

Remarks on the antient Egyptian Government and Cufloms. 167

to be the firit who underflood the true nature of government Dio dorus Siculus informs us, that although their government was monarchial and hereditary, it differed in feveral refpects from all other monarchies, and that their kings were more strictly obliged to obey the laws.

Not only flaves and foreigners were prohibited to attend about their perfons; but men of the most diftinguished birth, education, and abilities, were always chofen for that office, in order to inftil ge, nerous fentiments into their minds, and check them in their extravavagancies; which little upftarts could not take the liberty of doing; for it feldom happens that kings indulge themfelves in any vicious exceffes, unlefs the minif ters or favourites encourage them in their irregularities and paffions, The kings of Egypt were fo far from complaining of thefe re ftraints upon them, that they did not look upon it as any affront to be ftinted both in quality and quantity of their eatables and drinkables. Nay, instead of be. ing allowed by law to range abroad in pursuit of unlawfulipleafures, even the times of lying with their own queens were prefcribed to them.

However, thefe Egyptian mo narchs were allowed a little flat tery, like other kings; for it was the particular business of the high prieft, in the midst of their divine fervice, not only to pray for his Egyptian majefty, but likewife to enter into a long detail of his royal virtues; taking particular notice that he was a most gracious and religious king, mild in his government, juft in all his actions, a perfect mafter of his paffions, &c.

But the high priests of that age were not fo fulfome in their pane gyricks as fome of modern date;

for though they paid thefe fine compliments to all princes, whe ther they deferved them or not, it was with a glorious intention of exciting them to the practice of virtue, and in order to diffuade them from vice. They took the liberty of putting them in mind, at the fame time, of the faults and mifcarriages, which kings are cal pable of committing. To do this with the more decency, they always fuppofed that it was owing either to ignorance or misinforma tion; denouncing vegeance against all minifters, who gave their royal mafters ill advice, or concealed the truth from them.

But amongst all the Egyptian cuftoms, the most remarkable were their funeral ceremonies. In most other countries, and particularly in the prefent age, it is grown a received maxim, to fpeak nothing ill of the dead; but in Egypt it was not allowed to praise them in the fame indifcriminate manner. They could not have that honour, without the approbation of the public. As foon as any man died, he was brought to his trial. There was an officer appointed, on purpofe, to accufe him. If it was proved that the deceafed had behaved in a fcandalous or corrupt manner, his memory was branded, and his body denied burial. On the contrary, if he was acquitted, he had all the honours of interment paid to him. This law had fuch an effect upon the morals of the people, that every body was afraid of difgracing his own cha racter, and the reputation of his family.

What was moft furprifing, in this public court of judicature upon the dead is, that the crown itfelf was not exempted from it. The kings were spared, during their lives, for the fake of the public good; but, when dead,

were obliged to undergo the fame

Hiftorian.

ftrict enquiry; and fome of them Of Dr Birch, the Antiquarian and
have been actually denied the fu-
neral honours of their country.

All the people of Egypt were reputed noble, and did not look upon any thing as true praise, but what arofe from perfonal merit. For this reafon they infilted only on the prince's juftice, generofity, modefty, affability, fweetnefs of temper, and other amiable quali ties, which not only fecured him from cenfure, but raifed the most glorious and lafting monument to his memory.

Anecdotes from Sir John Hawkins's

life of Dr Fobufon.

Of Dr Mead.
Here add an Anecdote of no lefs

"I heard him once relate, fays Sir John, that he had the curiofity to measure the circuit of London, by a perambulation thereof, the account he gave was to this ef fect; he fet out from his house in the Strand, towards Chelfea, and having reached the bridge beyond the water-works, he directed his courfe to Marybone, from whence purfuing an eaftern direction, he fkirted the town, and croffed the Ilington road at the Angel. There was at that time no City Road, but paffing through Hoxton, he got to Shoreditch, thence to Bethnalgreen, and from thence to Stepney, where he recruited his fpirits with a glafs of brandy. From

Is perfon than Dr Mead himfelf, Stepney he paffed on to Lime

who very early in his life attained
to his ftation of eminence, and
met with all the fubfequent en
couragement due to his great
merit, who nevertheless died in a
ftate of indigence. The income
arifing from his practice I have
heard estimated at 7000l, a year,
and he had one, if not two for
tunes left him, not by relations,
but by friends no way allied to
him; but his munificence was fo
great, and his paffion for collect-
ing books, paintings, and curiofi.
ties, fo ftrong, that he had no fav-
ings. His manufcripts he parted
with in his life-time to fupply his
wants, which towards his end
were become fo preffing, that he
once requested of the late Lord
Orrery the loan of five guineas on
fome toys, viz. pieces of kennel
coal wrought into vafes and other
elegant forms, which he produced
from his pocket. This ftory in
credible as it may feem, Lord
Orrery told Johnfon, and from him
I had it.

houfe, and took into his route the
adjacent hamlet of Poplar, when
he became fenfible that to com.
plete his defign he must take in
Southwark; this put him to a
ftand; but he foon determined on
his courfe, for taking a boat, he
landed at the Red houfe at Dept.
ford, and made his way to Say's
court, where the great wet dock
is, and keeping the houses along
Rotherhithe to the right, he got
ro Bermondfey, thence by the
fouth-end of Kent-treet to New-
ington, and over St. George's
Fields to Lambeth, and croffing
over to Millbank, continued his
way to Charing-crofs, and along
The
the Strand to Norfolk-street, from
whence he had fet out.
whole of this excurfion took him
up from nine in the morning, to
three in the afternoon, and accor.
ding to his rate of walking, he
computed the circuit of London at
above twenty miles: with the
buildings erected fince, it may be

་་

Barometrical and Thermometrical Obfervations.

apposed to have encreased five miles, and if fo, the prefent circumference of this great metro polis is about half that of ancient Rome.

To the Editor of the Berwick Museum.

Your indulging me by the publishing of my laft, emboldens me to trouble you again with the following Barometrical and Thermometri. cal obfervations made at Berwick, in March, 1787,

I am, yours, &c.

SIR,

(170
( 170 )

To the Editor of the Berwick Museum.

The following moft extraordinary Problem having for many years engaged the attention of the molt eminent Mathematicians in our dominions; and though we all agree in its folubility, yet none of us have been found equal to the task: But, nothing being too arduous or refined for fome of your ingenious Correfpondents, we cannot entertain a doubt of seeing a full and explicit folution thereto in your instructive and entertaining repofitory; and that nothing may be want. ing on our part to encourage fo laudable an undertaking, we have or dered our Treasurer to prefent with 500 guineas the learned gentleman, who ihall, before the Feast of St. Michael next enfuing, exhibit the most elegant Solution; which Premim will te paid without any deduction, on his repairing to our lodgings.

A Ball being fhot from the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed on the first of January laft at noon, in a vertical direction, and with a velocity of 6.9793 miles per fecond; it is propofed to determine the point of the earth's furface to which it will be vertical on the thirty-first of December next at twelve hours P. M. with its diftance from the earth's center, and its velocity at that time, fuppofing it to move in a nonrefifting medium.

PLUTO.

Queftions.

I. I have a Garden in form of a parallelogram, whofe length exceeds its breadth by eight chains, and its area is 825 chains. Required the fides ?

J. C.

II. Given the hypothenufe of a right angled triangle 70 feet, and the legs are to each other as 5 to 6. Required the area?

An Enigmatical Lift of the Principal Ladies who danced at Mr Camp bell's Public, April 10.

1. The name of the fhallow place of a River where people usually crofs.

2. The fairest flower in the garden.

3. Three fourths of a monofylable, and two thirds of linger.

4. The beloved difciple, and the best of all materials for building. 5. A word fynonimous to facred, and the name of twenty-four hours.

Berwick.

F. S.