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The UNIVERSAL MAGAZINE for APRIL, 1794.

24

A DESCRIPTION of the magnificent CENOTAPH, erected in Weftminster Abbey, to the Memory of the Captains Lord Robert Manners, Bayne, and Blair: With a beautiful Reprefentation of it, engraved by Tookey.

THI

HIS magnificent monument is placed in the north aisle of Weftminster Abbey, next to that which the King and Parliament of Great Britain caused to be erected, as a teftimony of national gratitude, to the memory of the late illuftrious ftatefman and fenator William Pitt, earl of Chatham. The background is a noble pyramid of black marble veined with white. A roftrated column of white marble fupports a figure of Fame, with the wreath of victory in her right hand. Lower down, a Genius is holding three medallions, being the portraits in relievo of the three gallant officers who fell in the fervice of their country; that of captain Bayne, at leaft, being a very ftriking likeness. Round the first and highest medallion is infcribed Lord Robert Manners, aged 24;' round the second, Captain William Bayne, aged 56;' round the third, Captain William Blair, aged 41 On the right hand of this column, in the foreground, is the figure of Britannia, with a lion; and, on the other fide, is Neptune, with a feahorse. On the bafe is the following inscription:

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Captain William Bayne,
Captain William Blair,
Captain Lord Robert Manners,

Were mortally wounded,
In the course of the naval Engagements,
Under the command of Admiral Sir
George Brydges Rodney,
On the IXth and XIIth of April 1782.

In Memory of their Services, The King and Parliament of Great Britain Have caufed this Monument to be erected.

On each fide of this infcription, in relievo, are naval emblems and trophies.

This monument is the production of the celebrated Mr. Nollekens, and

VOL. XCIV

being placed, as before observed, by the fide of the earl of Chatham's monument by the no lefs celebrated Bacon, the connoiffeur has an opportunity of comparing together fome of the moft capital performances of two artifts that have been long an ornament to their country. Confidered as a whole, Mr. Nollekens' monument has a grand and impreffive effect; but fome of the parts, it has been obferved, might have been better. The figure of Neptune, in particular, may be more claffical, but is not in fo dignified a ftyle as Mr. Bacon's Thames. The left arm and hand are inimitably executed; but the right, especially near the fhoulder, is feeble. The Britannia has been thought by fome to be very stiff; but the Lion is in the very first style of art; and the manner in which all the figures are dif pofed, does great honour to the genius, tafte, and talents of the fculp tor.

It is remarkable, that although this monument was actually completed, and erected in its prefent fituation, fome years ago, it was not till upward of ten years after the glorious naval victory it commemorates, that it was opened to the inspection of the public. And the reafon alleged for this extraordinary delay is not lefs remarkable than the delay itself; namely, that the infcription was not composed.

To a perfon fond of contemplating the military glory of Great Britain, the fituation of this national monu ment of gratitude is particularly in terefting; it being next to that of the moft illuftrious war minifter of this country, the earl of Chatham; and behind it are the monuments of fir Eyre Coote and admiral Watson.

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STRICTURES ON WORDS OF COURSE.

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WORDS are often used without fignification. Befide the imperfection that is natural in language, and the obfcurity and confufion that is fo hard to be avoided in the use of words, there are feveral wilful faults and neglects, which men are guilty of, in this way of communication. The first and most palpable abufe is, the ufing of words, without clear and diftinct ideas; or, which is worfe, figns without any thing fignified. Another great abufe is, inconftancy in the ufe of words.'-Eay on the Human Understanding.

So faith the learned Mr. Locke, and his opinion may ferve as a text for a differtation on words of course. Words of course are, either words ufed without any meaning at all, or words, which are intended to convey a very different meaning from that which they properly admit of. As every word in the English language, and perhaps in all other languages, has a meaning, the first part of my definition may feem incorrect; but we ought to remember that the word which is ufed without its meaning, may be faid to be a word that has no meaning. Money can procure all the neceffaries of life, but money locked up in a mifer's cheft, or buried in the earth, can no more procure the neceffaries of life than fo many pieces of wood. It is a maxim in law and lo-, gic, de non apparentibus, et de non exiftentibus eadem eft ratio.' Words may be abused either by wholly neglecting their meaning, (a practice very common with parrots, and thofe whofe understanding rifes no higher than that of parrots) or by affixing to them a meaning which is contrary to etymology, or any other rule of explana, tion. Words thus ufed without a meaning, or abused to a wrong meaning, are to to be confidered as words of courfe, and received accordingly.

Words of courfe occur both in Speaking and in writing, but chiefly 3

in the former, there being few writings which admit them, unless the private memoirs of public men, or the friendly and affectionate epiftolary correfpondence of men of the world. No ferious work admits them. Indeed the very bufinefs of history and philofophy is to restore words that have been abused to their proper meaning, and to prevent pofterity from being deceived into false notions of men, and falfe views of their tranfactions; and upon this account it is that hiftory is rather difficult, and philofophy fomewhat scarce and unpopular.

Among words of courfe, Confcience holds a very diftinguished rank. Confcience has been defined (and is still believed by those who look to definitions) to be the knowledge or faculty, by which we judge of the goodness or wickedness of our own actions; and I have no doubt that this was the original meaning. At prefent, however, by that revolution to which kingdoms and ftates, and words of two fyllables are fubject, we find it ufed only as a kind of gentle oath ; and in this refpect, it is perhaps preferable to any coarfe oath of the St. Giles' manufacture. The ufe of this word is pretty general all the year round with a certain clafs of people, particularly thofe in trade, who find it extremely useful in felling; although it be faid, that it is not quite of fo much confequence in buying, being one of those words, which can not be employed by two people at the fame time. If two men ride on horfe back, fays the celebrated Dr. Franklin, one of them maft ride behind. There is another clafs of men, who never ufe this word above once in feven years, and then in a fort of prayer, petition, or ejaculation. At the return of this feptennial employment of confcience, it may be heard from one end of the kingdom to the other; not, indeed, alone, but in company with its guards or fatel

lites,

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lites, commonly called its derivatives. Every worthy gentleman then acts upon confcience; he is confcious of the purity of his intentions; he has difcharged his duty confcientiously; and he fcorns to demand any thing that is unconscionable. Even if unfuccefsful, he boats of a confciousness within, which fupports him under all trials, and confoles him in all loffes. Befide thefe, there are other times when confcience is of great fervice, fuch as in cafes of vacancies in public offices, or other fituations depending on popular choice. As in a churchyard, we find nothing but affectionate hufbands and tender wives, fo in fuch cafes, we can discover nothing but confcientious candidates, and confcientious voters. I know not, however, whence it comes, but the fact is, that when we fpeak of this ufe of confcience feriously, and with fome degree of confidence, our mouths are generally fhut with, Pugh! pugh! my dear fir, thofe are only words of courfe.

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Honour is another word of this clafs; and perhaps no word has fo many meanings, all at variance with the real one. Indeed, of late, confcience, except in the cafes I have mentioned, has fallen into a confiderable degree of contempt; and few men will ufe it, for fear of being laughed at, or, which is the fame thing, thought in earneft. Honour is the fubftitute, and is a much genteeler, and prettier founding word, and is confequently in univerfal ufe. That it has its ufes is very obvious; for if we were not affured upon bonour of the contrary, we should often be tempted to fufpect that we were impofed upon in the purchase of goods, deceived in the promifes of great men (a fpecies of property very fluctuating) and moft egregiously mistaken in most of the common appearances of men and things. But an implicit confidence having once been obtained, if we fhould happen to be deceived, which is not abfolutely impoffible, we have the fupreme confolation that we have

not been deceived by the contrivance of others, but by our own ignorance, and by our having taken for granted certain profeffions of fincerity, which are merely words of course.

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In polite correspondence, werds of courfe are exceedingly multiplied, afthough feldom productive of any very great mistake, unlefs in the cafe of ignorant and barbarous country people, who have, by the unhappy prejudice of education, been taught to ufe words according to their old fignification, to fpeak as they think, and to give every thing its proper name. When a perfon of fashion fays to another, that' fhe will be glad to fee her,' every well-bred lady knows that the meaning is, fhe defires that they may be as far feparated as poffible; or if fhe fays, the is glad to fee her,' it only means that he is peculiarly unfortunate in meeting with her, and longs for a feparation as foon as the rules of good-breeding will permit.' These are words of courfe; no perfon in the free exercise of reason, that is, no perfon of a proper education, and who has feen the world, can for a moment mistake or misapply fuch expreffions. Some may think an injury is done to the language by fuch a ufe of words, but this is another unhappy prejudice; for it must be acknowledged that a word which is made to bear two meanings instead of one, has its powers enlarged, and is juft twice as ufeful as before; and if tendernefs and animofity, refpect and diflike, can be expreffed by one and the fame words, a very important object is gained.

As it is ignorance alone which can induce any perfon to mistake words of courfe, fo it is to that fame ignorance we are indebted for a knowledge of words of courfe. It is indeed, and he is not afhamed to confefs it, to repeated converfations with ignorant men, and to a recollection of his own errors, that the author of thefe ftrictures is indebted for that information, which he now humbly attempts to difplay. The following anecdote, will explain how

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