"We shall never envy the honours which wit and learning obtain in any other cause, if we can be numbered among the writers who have given ardour to virtue, and confidence to truth."-Dr. Johnson.

TH

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

MUTY.

Major General Sir SAMUEL AUCH- the well-known trial of Sir John Burgoyne. This office he filled with HIS officer was born at New much reputation for several years with York, in America, on the 22d a liberal salary of 3,000l. per annum; of June, 1758. He is the eldest son when, being desirous of promoting of the late Rev. Samuel Auchmuty, a his military prospects, the Marquis respectable clergyman of the same sent him to Bombay as brigade-major place; and he is descended from the to the king's troops. He there joined family of Auchmuty, in Scotland. The Rev. Dr. Auchmuty had but two sons, the youngest of whom is a merchant in North America. He had also three daughters, who are all married.

the staff of General Meadows, on the removal of whom to Madras, Colonel Abercrombie succeeded to the government of Bombay, and selected Sir Samuel Auchmuty as his confidential staff officer. In this situation he served until his return to England in 1797. Sir Samuel Auchmuty was many years adjutant-general in India, and military secretary to the Commander in Chief.

When the American war broke out, that fatal error of an obstinate cabinet, Dr. Auchmuty lost his ecclesiastical preferment; and at this time his son was a student at the college of New York, in which he In the year 1799, Colonel Auchobtained the degree of bachelor of muty left England for the Red Sea, arts. It is said, that he displayed on board his Majesty's ship Romney, some power of mind while here. Captain Sir Home Popham, and at His father destined him for the the Cape of Good Hope assumed the church, but the activity of his son's command of a brigade, which he took character made him averse from such out with him to Suez. Having joina mode of lite. His wishes pointed ed the Indian army under his friend towards a military capacity; and these Sir David Baird, he crossed the desert wishes commenced in his earliest with it into Egypt, where he becaine years. In the year 1776, therefore, adjutant-general.

he joined the royal army under Sir In 1802 he returned to England, William Howe, and obtained an and at the commencement of the preensigncy in the 45th regiment, in sent war was appointed to the comwhich he saw much active service, mand of the Island of Thanet, where having been present at most of the he remained until he was ordered to actions in that and the subsequent South America. In the month of campaign. October, 1806, Sir Samuel AuchOn the return of his majesty's muty sailed from England with an troops from North America, Sir Sa- expedition destined to reinforce Gemuel Auchmuty exchanged into the neral Beresford in Buenos Ayres. 52d regiment, and accompanied that On his arrival, however, in the Rio corps to India, where he served during de la Plata, he found that city no the Mysore war, and against the longer in possession of the British Rohillas. Here he attracted the at- troops.

tention of Lord Cornwallis, by whom

The conduct of General Auchmuty,

he was appointed Deputy Judge Ad- in the assault of the important fortress vocate General of Madras, prior to of Monte Video, is universally known, UNIVERSAL MAG. VOL. IX.

3 L

and has received no less applause than my boys, my life is but that of a comso gallant an action deserved. The mon soldier."

critical situation in which he was After the disasters which succeedplaced made it necessary to adopt ed, Sir Samuel Auchmuty embarked those measures, which proved even- on board the Saracen frigate for Engtually successful. He had not powder land, where he arrived on the 12th of remaining sufficient for two days, and September, and brought the first ina formidable attack on his rear was telligence to Europe of our misforhourly expected, as an army of 7 or tunes in South America.

8000 Spaniards were approaching to Since his return to England, Sir raise the siege. These circumstances Samuel has resided at his seat in convinced the General of the neces- Kent, near Feversham, calle Syndale sity of carrying the town by assault House. On the 8th of May of the without loss of time. Though he was present year, he was promoted to the perfectly sensible that his loss would rank of major-general.

be extremely severe, and though he There are few officers in the serfelt reluctant at the sacrifice he must vice who have had the advantage of a unavoidably make, yet he saw that it more liberal education than Sir Sawas necessary by a partial evil to avert muel Auchmuty, or who possess a that fate which would in all proba- greater fund of military information. bility have awaited the whole of his in his character there is nothing subrave troops, had the assault been de- perficial, volatile, vain-glorious, or layed but another day.-(See Univer- self-sufficient; it is marked by the sal Mag. vol. vii. p. 378.) most unassuming modesty, a trait

Sir Samuel Auchmuty continued which ever accompanies true merit, to exercise the chief command in and gives additional lustre to the other Monte Video until the arrival of Ge- qualifications by which he is adorned. neral Whitelocke on the 10th of May.

I

SIR,

SON.

During the period of his government, Mr. HAYLEY a Borower from THOMhis justice and clemency gained him the affection of all the inhabitants. The grateful sense they entertained of KNOW not that it has been obhis lenity on the day of victory, and of served by any reader of Mr. Haythe mildness of his administration, ley's Life of Cowper, that the conwill be seen in the address of the Ca- cluding lines of his epitaph upon that bildo, presented to Colonel Brown poet seems to have been imitated from after the departure of Sir Samuel, and a passage in Thomson's Winter. I previous to the evacuation of the allude to the following, where, speakplace. ing of Pope, he says,

At the attack on Buenos Ayres, Sir Samuel Auchmuty headed the right wing, which advanced against the Plaza de los Toros.

For tho' not sweeter his own Homer sings,
Yet is his life the more endearing song.

Winter, I. 554. Now these lines appear to me to have been palpably imitated in the following couplet on Cowper:

In this enterprise, which was attended with such complete success, he displayed the utmost personal in- His highest honors to the heart belong, trepdity and valour. He put himself His virtues form'd the magic of his song. at the head of his grenadiers, and by his example inspired them with a resistless enthusiasm. In the midst of the hottest and most destructive fire, his gallant comrades falling around him in every direction, he continued undauntedly to rush on, exclaiming, while he waved his hat in the air, "Follow me, my brave lads, the day is ours." When they earnestly entreated him not to expose himself so much, he replied, "Think not of me, be

Life of Cowper, v. iv. p. 189. 8vo. Ed.
If this literary scrap be worth your
notice it is at your service, and
I remain, &c.

June 19, 1808. W. OBSERVATIONS on the AFFINITIES of NATURE in BIRDS and ANIMALS. By J. J. VIREY.

the ascending degrees of intelligence in quadrupeds seem to terminated by the fainily of apes,

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so in birds, parrots seem to hold- haps, the utmost extent of mind in the same rank in the scale of nature. the dog, and in the elephant; but If strength, courage, or arms alone who has ever examined that of the gave empire in nature, the lion orang outang? We have treated apes would be the king of the earth, hitherto only as slaves; we speak to the eagle the tyrant of the air, and them with the whip in our hands, the shark the lord of the ocean, and with menaces on our tongues: in But, whatever may be the power of no respect have we sought to make these depredatory animals, it disap- them familiar, domestic, or attentive. pears before the human species: to We amuse ourselves with their grihim alone belongs the sceptre of the maces and their dexterity, but have world, and the fiercest beings are never observed them with philosocompelled to submit to his yoke. phic attention. We have taught them It is less to the vigour of his body to please, not to display all the rethan to the power of his mind, that sources of their organization, all the man owes his conquests and his powers extent of their conceptions. It is not in the universe. What a disparity is possible that they should be more dull there between the strength of man than dogs, being better organized and that of an elephant or a whale! than they; for we constantly observe Yet, he tames the one and harpoons that the intellectual faculties of anithe other, even under the ice of mals are in proportion to their organithe poles. The musquet subdues zation. Because we are unacquainted the eagle in the midst of his towering with all the intellectual powers of the flight, and teaches him the inefficacy apes, are we therefore to conclude of his wings against his powerful that they are, in fact, few? They are very distant from the human We must not, therefore, consider species, it must be confessed; but living beings under the relation of they are not so distant as the dog. physical power, but under that of in- Besides, what other animals carry telligential or mental energy. Man, the imitative faculty to so high a deindeed, is so elevated and so supreme gree? This extreme pliability of above other animals, that we know their organs, supposes also a great not whom to place after him: he deal in their moral faculties which Man, in his seems out of his place in the grada- put them in motion.

enemy.

tion of the universe. But let us sup- most acute productions, in his most pose that he did not exist, and that ingenious acts, does but imitate nahe had not imparted any of his intel- ture; the ape imitates man; the ligence to the dog and to the domestic young quadruped imitates its parents, elephant, to which of the wild uncul- and each being has its education more tivated animals should we decree the or less perfect, according to its faculsuperiority of mind? Doubtless to ties. All imitation necessarily supthose which might have the greatest poses comparison, and all comparianalogies with our species: for if son becomes judgment. we consider instinct alone independ- Independently of these consideraently of intelligence, we must place tions, we meet with analogies between the bee and the beaver in the first viviparous quadrupeds and bids; rank, and man himself would descend analogies, so much the more striking, below the brute, because instinct is as they are not confined to some parless active in him than in other ani- ticular case, but extend through the mals. whole class and under different relaBut the moral qualities of living lions. It seems as if nature took beings are more perfect in proportion pleasure in tracing these reminisas they offer greater affinities with cences from one class to the other: as those of man, who is at the very top if she felt a regret at abandoning the of the scale in this particular. What- first track of her work. Thus, the ever may be the intelligence of the family of cats, panthers, leopards, dog, of the elephant, and of the beaver &c. has its counterpart in the diffe in a state of nature, their organization rent species of owls, &c. which have is not so susceptible of perfection as a large head, sparkling eyes, and that of apes. We already know, per- crooked claws. These two species、