that the motion of the heart is performed by the contraction of its mufcular fibres that the auricles contract first, and thereby propel the blood into the ventricles; then the ventricles contract, whereby the blood is driven into the arteries; being prevented from returning into the auricles, by the fituation and connexion of the valves. Now as by the repeated contractions of the ventricles more blood is constantly propelled into the arteries than can be fupplied by nourishment thrown into the veins (as appears upon calculation), and as moreover the arteries cannot receive blood through any other channel but the veins; it follows either that the veins mult be quickly emptied, and the arteries on the contrary every moment more and more diftended, which however is not the cafe or that the blood muft flow back again from the arteries into the veins, by certain fecret paffages, or by pores of the flesh, or by mutual anastomoses of the arteries and veins. He demonftrates that the laft-mentioned communication takes place in the lungs. Again; as along the course of the arteries more blood is fent from the heart to all parts of the body than is neceflary for the nourishment of thofe parts, he infers that the fuperfluous blood is returned by the veins (that they may not be left empty) from this fact, that no blood is found in the veins if the great artery be tied. On the other hand, if à ligature be paffed round the vena cava at the place where it joins the right auricle, it will immediately become diftended in a very furprifing manner. Moreover, it must be evident to every one (he obferves) who confiders the fituation and connexion of the valves, that the blood paffes from the fmaller branches of the veins into their trunks, and from thence to the heart. The true movement of the blood being thus difcovered, Harvey was enabled through it to account for the diftribution of nourishment and warmth to every part of the body, and to throw great light upon inany obfcure points relative to the animal economy, both in health and difeafe. No doctrine could be fupported by proofs more fimple and decifive: nevertheless they were difputed by feveral of his contemporaries, and particularly by Riolan, to whom he made an able reply. Others, instead of combating the truth of his difcovery, endeavoured to rob him of the merit of it, by pretending that it was known to Aristotle and Galen among the ancients, and to Cervetus, Columbus, and Cæfalpinus among the moderns. Some indeed of the laft mentioned authors had made confiderable progrefs towards a just conception of the blood's motion, intermingled, however, with the errors imbibed from the ancients above-mentioned; but none of the paffages quoted from their writings how that they taught or understood that the blood moved in a regular uninterrupted courfe from the heart to the arteries, and from trem through the veins back again to the heart. As for what relates to the ftory of Pauli of Venice having been acquainted with the circulation of the blood before Harvey published his account of it; this circumftance has been cleared up in Dr. Clarck's letter, inferted in the preceding part of this Abridgment, p. 248. Thus does our country man, the immortal Harvey, remain in full poffeffion of the honour of a difcovery, which has led to elucidations of fome of the most important phænomena of animal life, and is the main clue by which we have

BRIT. CRIT. VOL. XXII. NOV. 1803.

been

been conducted to a more accurate knowledge of difeafed actions, and to more fimple as well as more rational modes of counteracting them. Harvey was born at Folkftone in Kent in 1578, and died in 1658, having completed his 80th year. The London College of Phyficians published his works in 4to. 1766. Among thefe his Exercitatio de Generatione Animal, holds the next place after his treatife on the heart and circulation above-noticed."

A fhort biographical account of the celebrated Mr. John Collins, is given at p. 207; but fome fupplementary particulars, not very generally known, are added in a note at p. 338, where it is obferved, that

"He was of great benefit to the fciences in general; keeping up a conftant correfpondence with many of the most learned men of his time, both at home and abroad, and promoting the publication of feveral valuable works, which without his encouragement would never have been feen by the public; particularly Dr. Barrow's optical and geometrical lectures, alfo the doctor's abridgement of the works of Archimedes, Apollonius, and Theodofius; likewife Brounker's tranflation of Rhonius's algebra, with Dr. Pell's additions, &c. which were procured by his frequent folicitations. Some time after his death, among his papers, were found a multitude of manufcripts, on mathematical fubjects, of Briggs, Oughtred, Barrow, Newton, Leibnitz, Pell, and many others. From whofe letters, and thofe of other celebrated mathematicians, it appears that Mr. Collins fpared neither pains nor colt to procure what tended to promote real fcience. Alfo many of the discoveries in phyfical knowledge owe their chief improvement to him; for while he excited fome to disclose every new and useful invention, he employed others in improving them. Sometimes he was peculiarly useful, by fhowing where the defect lay in any branch of fcience, pointing out the difficulties attending the inquiry; at other times explaining their advantages, and keeping up a fpirit and energy for improvement. In fhort, Mr. Collins was like the register of all the new acquifitions made in the mathematical sciences; the magazine to which the curious had frequent recourfe; which acquired him the appellation of the English Merfenne. And had not fome of his correfpondents obliged him to conceal their communications, there could have been no difpute about the priority of the invention of a method of analysis, the honour of which doubtlefs belonged to Newton; as appears from the papers printed in Collins's Commercium Epitolicum; a work which was made out from the letters left in poffeflion of this author.

"Mr. Collins wrote and published himself a variety of useful works: as, An Introduction to Merchants' Accounts, &c. 1652; The Sector on a Quadrant, 1658; Geometrical Dialling, 1659; The Mariner's Plain Scale new plained, 1659; alfo feveral ingenious papers printed in the Phil. Trans. befides fome useful commercial tracts, highly acceptable to the public.

Mr. Collins's birth and early profpects, like thofe of many other great men, were but low and humble. He was born at Wood Eaton Hear Oxford in 1624, and at 16 years of age was put apprentice to a bookfeller

4

bookfeller in this city; but appearing to have a remarkable turn for the mechanical and mathematical fciences, he was taken under the protection of a Mr. Marr, a perfon who drew feveral curious dials, which were placed in different pofitions in the king's garden; and under him Mr. Collins made no fmall progrefs in mathematics. In the courfe of the civil wars he went to fea for feven years, but still profecuted his favourite study; and on his return he affumed the profeffion of an accountant and civil engineer, giving his advice and directions in nice and critical cafes, relating to matters of commerce, of accounts, and of engineering, till the time of his death, which happened in the year 1683, in the 59th year of his age."

Not long after the time of the establishment of the Royal Society, the celebrated experiment of the transfufion of the blood was made by many perfons in England, and by Monf. Denis at Paris. At that period, when many important and extraordinary discoveries were made by philofophers, it was fondly hoped that this new experiment would, in their hands, be found productive of the most beneficial effects; that it would furnish, in many cafes, an eafy method of removing difeafe, and of procuring indefinite longevity. Accordingly, we find that the bufinefs was ardently taken up in England, as well as on the Continent, and feveral inftances of transfufion are related in the earlier numbers of the Tranfactions, of which abridged accounts are given in the work before us. In a note to one of thefe, we find mention of the accurate and judicious experiments of the prefent Profeffor of Anatomy at Cambridge, Dr. Bufick Harwood,

"Thefe experiments place it beyond a doubt that, in cafes of fudden and profufe evacuations of blood, the fatal confequences which would otherwife enfue may, in the brute creation, be prevented by the immediate introduction of a proportionate quantity of fresh blood from another animal, in a healthy ftate; a fact which feems controvertible to medical ufe, in certain cafes of hemorrhage occurring in the human fubject."

All who are acquainted with the found judgment and talents of the Profeffor here mentioned, will attach great confequence to any purfuit, in which he may warmly engage, and will naturally expect that, whatever good can arife from wellconducted and reiterated experiments, will be ftruck out ultimately by a man of his energy of charafter. To detail many of his experiments would, we contefs, gratify us, but this cannot be done now without giving this article a difproportionate extent. It muft fuffice, therefore, if we extract one, as here described.

"Experiment 4. All the blood of a pointer was let out (as far as it was poffible to evacuate it) till the animal was in convulfions on the table,

002

table, and apparently expiring. The blood was then transfufed from the jugular of a fhcep into the correfpondent vein of the dog, and in lefs than half a minute after the introduction of the tube, he began to refpire, and as foon as he had received a quantity of theep's blood equal to what he had left of his own, he leaped from the table and walked home, without experiencing any apparent inconvenience either then or at any fubfequent period. This experiment was performed before a very crowded meeting at the public schools in the Botanic garden of the univerfity. It has been frequently repeated fince, and a variety of other animals have been fubjected to the fame experiments, and with equal fuccefs.

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"From all the numerous experiments which have been lately made upon this fubject, one important fact feems to be fully established, that the blood of an herbivorous animal may be substituted for that of à carnivorous animal, and vice verfa, without danger, or even inconvenience to the animal who receives it. In cafes therefore of fuch copious evacuations of blood as to threaten the death of the patient, would not transfufion be expedient? and if death fhould be inevitable with out it, does it not become a duty to make a trial?" P. 186.

Here then, for the prefent, our extracts muft end. We con ceive the work before us to be even of national importance; and, if the whole be carried through with the fpirit, taste, and judgment which are exhibited in this first volume, it will be a national honour. It will tend to convince many foreigners who have not opportunities of perufing the original Tranfactions, how much every fcience and every art owes to British improvement. It will be a means of preventing any impudent pretenders from robbing our illuftricus forefathers of the fame which is fo juftly their due. It will diffeminate more widely the principles of real and ufeful knowledge; it will how more clearly how different objects of human enquiry reciprocally illuftrate and fupport cach other; and prove the truth of that obfervation of Cicero: “Omnes artes qua ad humanitatem pertinent, habent quoddam commune vinculum, et quafi cognatione quadam inter fe continentur."

We hall think it our duty to watch the progrefs of this work, and when we find any thing which calls peculiarly for either cenfure or commendation, fhall again bring it before the pub lic. A fair eflimate, however, may be formed from what has already appeared, and, judging from this, we have no hefita tion in recommending fo useful and valuable a performance to general patronage and fupport.

Авто

ART. XI. The Hiftory of Ilium or Troy including the adjacent Country, and the oppofite Coast of the Cherfonefus of Thrace. By the Author of "Travels in Apa Minor and Greece." 4to. 4to. 167 pp. 10s. 6d. Robfon. 1802.

THIS publication, by Dr. Chandler, is a proof that the controverfy concerning Homer and his works is not drawing to a conclufion; and, to contefs the truth, while it continues under the management of fo many learned men, we enter with pleafure into every part of the debate; efpecially where we find it conducted with liberality of fentiment, or where it tends to illuftrate the character of the poet, or the excellence of the poens. But we have no hefitation in condemning petulance, arrogance, and party fpirit, wherever they appear, as totally foreign to a queftion of literary enquiry.

In this view the Hiftory of Ilium affords us much fatisfaction, for though the author is equally adverfe to Mr. Bryant's fyftem, which annihilates Troy and all that concerns it, and to Mr. Chevalier's endeavours to introduce a new Scamander into the topography of the Troad, he conducts his arguments with fo much candour and moderation, that though neither of his opponents may accede to his opinion, both will have reafon to be pleafed with his moderation.

New matter of difpute is alfo likely to arife from a recent furvey of the country by Profeffor Carlife; and the fplendid edition of the poet juft received from Göetingen, muft neceffarily fuggeft a variety of confiderations intimately connected with the fubje&t, and affording ample matter of difcuffion to all that feel interefted in the decifion of the queftion. Profeffor Heyne, indeed, has treated all our countrymen with a degree of faftidioufnefs, which may hereafter provoke that fort of reply which he fo carefully deprecates; for he afferts, that they who have vifited the Troad, and they who have written upon the subject, were not fufficiently qualified to form a judgment, and too little acquainted with Homer to deliver an opinion, while that of the commentator himself is undetermined! ́ We shall not at prefent enter further into this cenfure, nor undertake the defence of English travellers or English writers; but we wish barely to obferve, that in no country of Europe is Homer fo generally read, or his excellence fo jully ellimated and admired, as in England. We now mention this edition incidentally, as affording much matter for future controverfy; and we thall not be averfe to pursue the question through whatever channels it may deviate in its progrefs.

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