In reply to Mr. Gough, who says (Additions to Camden, Vol. III. p. 482.) It must require a warm imagination, to point out the similarity between Symeon's Pillar, and the Irish Round Tower; the one was solid, the other hollow; the one was square, the other circular;" the present author adverts to the accounts given by Mosheim, and Gibbon of the PillarHermits; and he endeavours to shew, particularly by a quota tion from Evagrius, that the pillars were hollow, instead of being solid. By supposing the pillar to have been hollow, the relations concerning these hermits are made more credible, than by imagining that they actually dwelt on the top of solid columns for several years. Indeed, Mr. K. would persuade us that Symeon's life was much more comfortable than it is generally supposed to have been ;

The mode of life adopted by Symeon Stylites, has been spoken of, with horror by writers of very different descriptions. By those, by whom he has been admired;-by certain pious Christians;-he has, with reverential horror, been considered, as one of the most suffering, self-denying, abstracted, humble, heavenly beings, of all mankind;whilst, by certain even candid, ingenuous, good minds, loathing the fetters of unreasonable superstition and still more by infidels, deriding all good intentions, he has with contemptuous horror been con. siered as most absurdly, and fanatically, flinging away all the comfor of life, and as voluntarily suffering dire imprisonment, and wretchedness, without any benefit cither to himself, or to the rest of the world. But perhaps neither the praise nor the censure, were rightly bestowed; nor were any of these conclusions just.-Human nature is a most strange compound; and under most uncommon citcumstances, finds resources in a most astonishing manner.-Retirement, and seclusion, by habit, become not only easy, but pleasant :—and abstract meditation, and contemplation, to a mind that has any ener getical powers, soon becomes most delightful -Symeon's situation, on the top of his high Pillar, placed him in a purer air, and free from the noxious filth of Eastern streets. It afforded him also, for amusement, a more enlarged, and more constant view of all that passed near the Church of Mandria, or in its environs--In an atmosphere so pure, and in such a situation, he could scarce fail of being somewhat of an observant astronomer, and of becoming a delighted spectator of the motions of the heavenly bodies, and of all the phænomena of the atmosphere. The same cord that brought him up his food, and water, might bring him up such books, and paper writings, as the age afforded. The very strange, and long-continued, repeatedly lifting up of his arms, and his prostrations, in his devotions, which have been so oddly described, might afford him exercise sufficient for health:the numerous votaries who came to consult him, and to ask for his prayers; to whom he preached; and with whom he could also cera.nly audibly converse, might prevent both what the French call e nui, and also depression of mind; whether he were a sincere, and good man; or even a crafty impostor; or a mad enthusiast.-In such

a mild climate, where people in general, even delighted to sleep exposed on the roofs of their houses, a few garments would keep him warm. And a sparing vegetable diet, would be the most wholesome. On the top of his Pillar, he was not liable to be impertinently. molested. And his very long life, induces a suspicion at least, that he lived a tolerably comfortable one. It was certainly an odd way of obtaining comfort, but it is by no means certain, that he did not obtain it, beyond his fellows beneath.

And as to the perilousness of his situation, it was most probably much less than has been apprehended;-for though, through deception of sight, to those standing on the ground, the top of his Pillar has been reported to have been only about two feet and an half in diameter, yet that must have been a mistake :-and from the very words used, in the History, of its gradual construction, it must have been large enough, the whole way up, for a dwelling, or abode ;-probably at least seven feet in diameter, within the circular wall at the top. And in such a situation a person might easily stand, in perfect safety; even though, for the sake of being seen, when preaching, he might mount himself upon an elevated little column, or pedestal, of two feet and an half in diameter, (possibly of wood, though somewhat like those on which the Statues of Trajan, and of Antoninus stood), placed in the midst of his upper flooring; which, after all, might probably be what was meant by the Pillar itself ending at the top in such small dimensions, as Raderus describes.'

To an objection of Mr. Molyneux, that these towers were built by the Danes, Mr. King thinks that it is sufficient to reply that no such buildings are known to exist in any part of Denmark. This observation is of some weight: but few of Mr. King's readers, though they may admire his ingenuity, will be satisfied with his explanation.

At the end of the work we meet with an Appendix, containing Answers to M. P. L. Dutens, in Reply to his second, third, and fourth Publications on the subject of the Invention of the Arch. A considerable degree of irritation is manifested by Mr. King in this reply. He labours hard in support of his opinion that the Arch was not in use before the time of Democritus, who, he allows, might have been the inventor of it; and with great adroitness he comments on the instances adduced by M. Dutens, in proof of the higher antiquity of the Arch. Little inaccuracies, as to dates, Mr. King admits; yet he strenuously resists the conclusions of his opponent :

'I have confined myself, (says he,) to trace, with caution, positive facts-And from the detailed consideration of the Gates, and Arches, in Rome, in the second Volume of the Munimenta (from p. 269 to p. 273); and from what has been added in the Introduction to this fourth, it appears to me, that almost every Arch in Rome may be ascertained to have been either of the very age of Augustus Casar; or constructed in some subsequent period.-It appears also

that

that no Arches are mentioned in our English translation of Holy Scrip ture, except in one chapter, and that by mistranslation; or by Homer; or by Herodotus ;-and that no Arches existed at Thebes, or elsewhere in Egypt;-or in Babylon ;—or in Persepolis ; - or even at Athens; before the time of Augustus Cæsar, or at least before that of Democritus.'

This view of the subject, provided that it were correct, would decide the controversy: but Mr. King's knowlege cannot be so complete as to justify so round an assertion. He tells us that the voûtes, noticed by travellers who have explored Egyptian Antiquities, were mere souterrains covered with flat stones; and so they may be in some instances, though not in all. He may translate the words commonly rendered vault, or arch, in a manner that is consistent with his hypothesis: but the expressions of Seneca, "Lapidum curvatura paulatim inclinatorum medio saxo alligaretur," afford an exact definition of an arch; and though Mr.K. endeavours to deprive Democritus of the invention, by referring it to a period of somewhat remoter antiquity, we cannot suppose that the use of the arch even among the Romans was not older than he imagines. His opinion also that the great arch, at the front of the Emissario of the Alban lake, was erected by one of the Roman Pontiffs, is a mere conjecture. On the whole, however, Mr. King appears to have been solicitous to arrive at the truth; and we are sorry that the great interrupter of human enterprize has deprived us of the pleasure which we expected from the remaining chapters of the Munimenta Antiqua, in which the different styles of Norman Architecture would have been fully displayed and dis

criminated.

ART. VI. Transactions of the Horticultural Society of London. Vol. I. Parts 1., II., and III. 4to. pp. 169. Hatchard, &c.

N the

I year 1804, a number of gentlemen associated together for the purpose of encouraging the improved culture of all fruits and garden vegetables, ornamental as well as useful, in order not only to render them cheaper and more abundant, but to produce them in the highest possible state of perfection; and while other public spirited individuals are employed in obtaining the best breeds of all domestic animals, the members of this body, which has lately been incorporated by royal charter, have displayed a commendable solicitude to acquire the completest breeds (if we may so express ourselves) of all esculent plants. We may consider this society as standing in the same relation to the Linnéan, as

that which was instituted for the encouragement of Arts and Manufactures bears to the Royal Society. To the Linnéan Society belong the classification and description of all the numerous objects of the vegetable world; while the Horticultural is restricted in its labours to plants that are cultivated or worthy of being cultivated in our gardens, for use or pleasure, and to the means which must be followed in advancing them to a state of superlative excellence.

Mr. Andrew Knight, who has deservedly attracted the attention of the philosophical world by his many curious experiments for the purpose of illustrating the physiology of plants, and who maintains a prominent figure in these transactions, presents us in limine with some Introductory Remarks, (which originally appeared in the form of a Report,) relative to the Objects which the Horticultural Society have in View. His enthusiasm excites an interest for this new institution ; and if we cannot view the subject illumined with all those vivid rays of hope with which he encircles it, we chearfully subscribe to the utility of the pursuit, being fully persuaded that the state of Horticulture in this country is susceptible of considerable advancement. We know that the austere crab of our woods has been converted into the golden pippin; and that the numerous varieties of the plumb can boast no other parent than our native sloe.' We know, moreover, that few experiments have been made to obtain new productions of this sort, though some, especially of the apple tribe, are evidently declining; and, since almost every ameliorated variety of fruit appears to have been the result of accident, we may fairly infer with Mr. K. that an ample field for discovery lies open. Much dependence is placed by Mr. Knight on the natural tendency of all plants to adapt their habits to every climate into which art or accident has introduced them, and he specifies instances in corroboration of this fact: but we apprehend that this principle obtains only to a certain extent; and we fear that he is too sanguine when he observes that we have some grounds of hope that the vine and peach tree may be made to adapt their habits to our climate, and to ripen their fruits without the aid of artificial heat, or the reflection of a wall.' We read, indeed, in antient records, of the Vineyards which once flourished in Britain: but the attempts of moderns to ripen grapes without the reflection of a wall have, for the most part, been abortive. The ingenious reporter seems, in the subsequent paragraph, to hint at the cause of this and similar failures; and he makes a material distinction between plants propagated by division of their parts and by seed:

• By

By the first of these methods (he says) we are enabled, to multiply an individual into many; each of which, in its leaves, its flowers, and fruit, permanently retains, in every respect, the cha racter of the parent stock. No new life is here generated; and the graft, the layer, and cutting, appear to possess the youth and vigour, or the age and debility, of the plant, of which they once formed a part. No permanent improvement has therefore ever been derived, or can be expected, from the art of the grafter, or the choice of stocks of different species, or varieties: for, to use the phrase of Lord Bacon, the graft in all cases overruleth the stock, from which it receives aliment but no motion. Seedling plants, on the contrary, of every cultivated species, sport in endless variety. By selec zion from these therefore we can only hope for success in our pursuit of new and improved varieties of each species of plant or fruit ; and to promote experiments of this kind the Horticultural Society pro pose to give some honorary premiums to those who shall produce before them, or such persons as they shall appoint, valuable new varieties of fruit, which, having been raised from seeds, have come into existence since the establishment of the institution.'

Various other suggestions are thrown out; and the writer concludes with remarking that there scarcely exists a single species of esculent plant or fruit, which (relative to the use of man) has yet attained its utmost state of perfection; nor any branch of practical horticulture, which is not still susceptible of essential improvement.' As we coincide with him in this opinion, we hope that the Society will meet with encouragement, and its object be prosecuted with spirit.

The first communication is intitled An attempt to ascertain the time when the Potatoe (Solanum Tuberosum) was first introduced into the United Kingdom; with some account of the Hill Wheat of India. By the Right Honourable Sir Joseph Banks, Bart. K.B P.R.S. &c.—It is rather unfortunate that the Society should commence its labours with a paper which, as being more agricultural than horticultural, is not strictly within its perview: but it no doubt felt itself complimented by this notice from the President of the Royal Society. Sir Joseph enters into some details, from which he infers that potatoes were first brought into Europe from the mountainous parts of South America, in the vicinity of Quito.-As to the Hill-Wheat, the account is very short, and not very satisfactory. The seeds of the Hill-Wheat from India presented to the Right Honourable Baronet were scarcely larger than those

The diseased state of young grafted trees of the golden pippin. and the debasement of the flavour of that fruit, afford one, amongst thousand instances, which may be adduced, of the decay of those varieties of fruit which have been long propagated by grafting, &c.'

of