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But, O prefumptuous youth! forbear to tell

With what emotions thy fond breast may glow:-
Hide thee, vain youth, in fome fequefter'd fhade,

Where Walheim's waving willows weep thy woe !'

Were we to criticife thefe ftanzas, we should fay, that the fecond line of the antepenultimate is deficient both in harmony and meaning, and that the alliteration, Where Walheim's waving willows weep thy woe, is incogruous, ludicrous, and abfurd.

We cannot difmifs this performance, without one word to the preface" by the editor." In this place, the morality of the incomparable Werter is loudly arraigned, and the writer is even charged, very unjustly as we think, with diffeminating principles of infidelity. At the fame time, niuch credit is taken by the author of the prefent work, for his fcrupulous delicacy, and the regular purity of his fentiments. If this purity had not been either hypocritical or inconfequent, he must have been aware that it amounted to nothing. What! will this moral and evangelical writer tack his uncontaminated pages to the depravity of Werter? Will he lend the fublimity of his genius to buoy up a mischief, more pregnant, according to him, than war, or tyranny, or the moft atrocious villany? [vide p. viii.] But perhaps he may be difpofed modeftly to difclaim, and fay, that he had no chance for immortality, and therefore only provided an antidote, that at most would not outlaft the natural life of the poifon. Has he not then exerted all his abilities? If he has not done better, can we thank him for that? Not to say that books of unequal merit will be admired on other accounts by different claffes of readers, and that Charlotte may prove a favourite where Werter would have been difcarded. We fhould not expect to escape the cenforial judgment of our author, if we were to write a continuation of the woman of pleasure, though it fhould be as chaste as the hiftory of Jof ph.

But it feems that a young lady, who took refuge in volun. tary death, was found with the Sorrows of Werter under her pillow. This the confcientious fcrupulofity of our author has magnified into the deftruction of individuals, particularly among the other fex." And what authority has the story itself? That of the newspapers and magazines of the day. But, admit it be true, and what then? Cato perufed the Phædon of Plato immediately before his fuicide. Who ever brought this as a charge against the great academic? We have read indeed of a philofopher of antiquity, who enlarged fo pathetically upon the iniferies of human life, that his scholars, with one confent, set out for the fhore to drown themfelves. But the progeny of this man are long fince extinct; and a writer of the present day would be extremely puzzled to perfuade either you, or me, by the most eloquent harangue in the world, to the act of suicide! Enlightened

Enlightened Chriftians are now agreed to regard this action, tho' feldom juftifiable, as not including enormous guilt. Indeed, we never heard but of one argument calculated to fet it in that light, and that argument is worthy of the ordinary of Newgate's Calendar; "that it is the only fin of which a man must not expect "to have time enough to repent."

But there was a better reafon, than that affigned by our author, why he fhould not have written a continuation of the German romance. The Sorrows of Werter is in point of genius, pathos and fublimity, one of the first productions of the prefent century; and a man of moderate talents confults ill his own reputation, who tacks his production to a work of fo extraordinary eminence. The prefent writer accordingly expreffes himfelf, as we have faid, with eafe and propriety; but when he comes in competition with his original, like a twinkling and uncertain luminary," he hides his diminished head." "he In reflections he is equal and amufing, but his dialogue is the moft miferably fupported of any we remember to have read.

FOREIGN LITERATURE.
ART. XIII. Tal om Japanska Nationen, &c.

A Speech concerning the Japanese; delivered before the Royal Academy of
Sciences, by C. P. Thunberg, when he refigned the office of President.
Stockholm.

(Continued.)

THE obfervant traveller proceeds to mention some other particulars concerning the houfes of the Japanese. Each room has two or more windows, which begin near the ceiling and reach down within a couple of feet of the floor. They confift of light fafhes, which can be put in and taken out at pleafure, and flide behind each other in two grooves made for this purpose in the beams above and below. They are divided into rectangular panes, which are fometimes forty in number; on the outfide they are covered with fine white, which is feldom

never oiled, and which admits a good deal of light, though it prevents all profpect without. The roof projects far beyond the houfe, and is fometimes lengthened out with a fmall feparate roof, which covers a gallery built without the house and before the windows. From this fmaller, pass inwards and downwards fquare bits of wood, on which mats in tended for blinds made of reeds are hung; these mats can be rolled up or extended at will; they ferve partly to prevent paffengers from looking into the houfe, but chiefly to fkreen the paper windows from in. The windows are never

glazed;

glazed; nor did I ever observe mother of pearl, or glacies maria ufed for this purpose.

The floor is always cavered with mats, made of a fine fort of grafs (a juncus) and ftuffed with rice-ftraw to the thickness of three or four inches. They are always of the fame fize, viz. a fathom in length, and half one in breadth. They are adorned along the fides with a thin blue or black band. It was only in the emperor's palace at Japan that I faw mats. larger than the common fize. In the meaner houses there is a part of the room at the further end not covered with mats; it ferves instead of an antichamber for a place to take the fhoes off. Within, the floor is raised and covered with mats. This is the inhabited part of the house: it may be divided into several apartments by boards. The walls within, and the ceiling, are covered with beautiful thick paper, on which various flowers are imprinted, either of green, yellow, white, or variegated colours, and fometimes with filver and gold intermixed. The paste they use to faften it on is made of rice, and, as the fmoke during the winter foils this tapestry very much, it is renewed every third or fourth year.

The part of the house fronting the street ferves tradesmen and mechanics for their fhop, and the back part only is inhabited. In the room which ferves for a kitchen there is no other hearth than a hole in the middle, furrounded with fome ftones, which rife no higher than the furface of the mats furrounding them.

The house is blackened with fmoke, for there is no chimney except a hole in the roof, and accidents from fire often happen from the vacuity of the mats.

Every houfe has a small court, which is often adorned with portions of earth thrown up, and various trees, fhrubs, and flower-pots. Every houfe has alfo a room for bathing, commonly on one fide of the court. cities, every house has a ftore-house built of stone and secure In Jeddo, and fome other from fire, in which they can fave ther property.

Fire-places and ftoves are unknown in the whole country, though the cold is fo fevere that fires must be made in the apartments from October till March. The fire is made in pots of copper with broad projecting edges, the cavity is filled with clay or afhes, and in this is laid well-burned charcoal. This grate is fet in the middle, or at one fide of the room. They either kindle the fire feveral times a day, or keep it up conftantly, according to the ufe which is made of the room. Such fires are however fubject to many inconveniences; the charcoal fometimes fmokes and the room is difcoloured, and the eyes fuffer feverely.

The

The Japanese houfes have not, either in the cities or the country, the convenience or beauty of the European. The rooms are not so cheerful, nor in the winter fo warm, not fo fecure from fire, nor fo durable. The femi-transparent paperwindows in particular give them both within and without a mean appearance.

The public buildings are more fpacious, but in the fame ftile. The roof, which is adorned with a number of towers of a peculiar appearance, conftitutes their chief ornament.

The cities are fome of them very large. They are fometimes surrounded with a wall and foffe, efpecially those where any chief holds his court. The capital Jeddo is faid to be in circumference twenty-one hours walk, or about twenty-one French leagues. I had an opportunity to furvey from an eminence this fpacious city, which equals if it does not exceed, Pekin in fize. The ftreets are both ftraight and wide; they are divided by gates at certain diftances, as in all the other cities; at each gate there is a very high staircase, from the top of which fires, which happen very often, may be easily discovered.

Villages are diftinguished from cities by having only one ftreet, which is of an incredible length, generally exceeding a mile and half, and often fo long, that it requires several hours to traverse them. They lie fometimes fo close to one another, that nothing but a bridge or a brook, and a different name, feparates them.

Correfponding to the fimplicity of the architecture is the fcantiness of household furniture, which however is fuch as not a little to contribute to convenience, and even to the ornament of the houfe. They have no closets, bureaus, chefts, fofas, beds, tables, chairs, clock, looking-glafs, &c. Most of thefe articles are neither used nor known. The foft mats, which cover the floor, serve for chairs and beds. At meal-time a little table, a foot square, and ten inches high, is fet before each perfon. Upon holidays a foft mattress stopped with cotton is laid upon the mats. Cupboards, chefts, bureaus, and boxes are kept in a separate room. Moft of the Eaft Indian nations fit cross-legged, but the Chinese and Japanese fet their feet under their body, and fo make their heels ferve for a chair.

With respect to the variety of eatables which are found in the Japanese ifles and the furrounding fea, partly the produce of nature, and partly reared or prepared by art, the country of which I am speaking exceeds perhaps all others hitherto difcovered. The Japanese ufe not only whatever is itfelf wholefome and nourishing, but almost every article of the animal and vegetable kingdoms, even poifonous things, which are fo prepared as to be fit for ufe. All the dishes are cut into small ENG. REV. Vol. VI. April 1786.

U

picces,

pieces, well dreffed and stuffed, and mixed with proper fauce. Hence, every thing being prepared, no one at the table has the trouble of cutting large flices and diftributing them among the other guests. At the time of eating each perfon fets himself down on the foft mat in the usual manner. Before each person is placed a little fquare table, on which are fet the things that are before-hand destined in the kitchen for each gueft, on the cleaneft veffel of porcelain or japanned wood. Thefe veffels are tolerably large bafons, and always provided with a cover. The first difh is fith and fish-foup. The foup is drank out of cups, but the bits of meat are taken up with two lackered fkewers, which they hold between the fingers of the right hand, and use so dexteroufly, that they can take up the fmalleft grain of rice with them, and they ferve inftead of knife and fork. As foon as one thing is finifhed, the difh is removed and another fet in its place. The laft thing is brought in in a blue porcelain cup, which is provided. The fervant who carries in the meat falls upon his knees when he fets it down, and alfo when he removes it. When a number eat in company, they make each other profound bows before they begin. Women do not eat with the men, but by themselves. Between every remove they drink facki, or oil of rice, which is poured out of a tea-kettle into a faucer of varnished wood. At this time they eat fometimes a quarter of a hard boiled egg and with this they empty feveral faucers. They commonly eat three times a day, about eight in the morning, two in the afternoon, and again at eight. Some eat without any regular order, juft as they are hungry, fo that the meat muft ftand ready all day. Rice, which is of a very white colour and excellent tafte, fupplies the Japanese with bread; it is dreffed with the other meat. Mifo-foup, boiled with fish and onions, is univerfally eaten and commonly at each meal. Mifo is like lintfeed, it is the fmall beans of the dolichos foia.

Tea and oil of facki are the only liquors of the Japanese, a much smaller number than the thirsty Europeans can produce. They never ufe wine or fpirits, and will scarce tafte them when they are offered by the Dutch. The tafte of coffee is unknown but to a few interpreters, and brandy is not among them a neceffary of life. They have not yet allowed themfelves to be corrupted by the Europeans who vifit them. Rather than take from others what may be ufeful or convenient, they have p eferved in its purity an ancient mode of living, left they fhould unawares introduce practices that may in time become hurtful.

Sacki is a kind of oil which they prepare from rice. It is tolerably clear and not unlike wine, but has a peculiar tafte, which can scarce be accounted very agreeable. When the

liquor

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