DR. Thomas Leland was the fon of a worthy and refpectable citizen of Dublin, where he was born in 1722. The first rudiments of a claffical education he received at the fchool of Dr. Sheridan, whofe talents, and fuccefs in forming excellent fcholars, are well known; but, removing to Cavan, Dr. Leland remained under the care of the Rev. John Magill, who had been Sheridan's affiftant. In 1737 he entered a Penfioner in Trinity College; in 1741 was elected Scholar of the Houfe; commenced Batchelor of Arts in 1742; and fat as candidate for a Fellowship in 1745. He did not at this time fucceed in obtaining this high literary honour; but the next year he was again a competitor for it, and was unanimously chofen.

Dr. Leland, with strong intellectual powers and a capacious mind, did not, on being thus happily and independently fettled, refign himself to ease and indo lence: he early difcovered an ardent love of knowledge, and perfevered in the purfuit of it almoft to his laft breath.

March 1793.

Belles-Lettres he cultivated with peculiar ardour, and also theological ftudies, preparatory to his entering into holy orders, which took place in 1748.Nothing could fhew more clearly how much his mind was occupied with the importance of the facred function, than a difcourfe, which he now drew up, "On the Helps and Impediments to the Acquifition of Knowledge in Religious and Moral Subjects." This was greatly admired by thofe who read it; but, unfortunately, no copy of it is to be found.

The life of a Junior Fellow in our Univerfity, encumbered with a multiplicity of college bufinefs, is ill-calculated for clofe application to any branch of learning and this is the true reason why fo few Fellows have attained celebrity in letters. Dr. Leland's mind was too vigorous to fink under the common routine of bufinefs. In 1754, in conjunction with Dr. John Stokes, he publifhed, at the defire of the University, an edition of all the Philippic Orations of Demofthedes, with a Latin verfion Ꮓ

and

and notes, for the ufe of ftudents; and, the next year, he gave an English tranf lation of the fame work; being the first to which he prefixed his name. In 1758 he prefented the public with The Life of Philip, King of Macedon," in two volumes, 4to. His attention to the orations of Demofthenes and Æfchines, and to Grecian politics, for fome time, eminently qualified him for treating the life of Philip with copioufnefs and accuracy. To collect materials widely fcat tered, to weave them into an uniform and pleafing narrative, to delineate a very complicated character, and to throw light on an embroiled and important period of antient hiftory, required uncommon talents and labour: the tafk Dr. Leland executed with ability. After this he proceeded with tranflations of Æfchines, and other orations of Demofthenes, and completed his defign, in three volumes 8vo, in 1761. In 1762 he is fuppofed to have written, though he never formally avowed it, that ingenious hiftorical romance of "Longfword, Earl of Salisbury." He was appointed, by the board of Senior Fellows, Profeffor of Oratory in 1763. His courfe of ftudies, and particularly his tranflations, had given him a perfpicuous and energetic ftyle, which he difplayed, as well in the profeffor's chair as in the pulpit; for he was the most admired preacher in Dublin. He enjoyed this profefforfhip for eighteen years; and that he ftudied the most eminent English divines and preachers largely and accurately, appears from the critical account of their style and genius, their diftinguishing excellencies and defects, which he gave in his lectures, and which remain in MS.

Bishop Warburton having noticed, in his " Doctrine of Grace," the argument ufed, by infidel writers, against the divine infpiration of the New Teftament, from its want of purity, elegance, &c. oppofed this, in his ufual manner, by the follow ing paradoxes 1. That the Evange. lifts and Apoftles, writing in a language the knowledge of which had been mira culously infufed, could be mafters of the words only, and not of the idioms; and, therefore, muft write barbarously.

2. That eloquence was not any real quality; but fomething merely fantastical and arbitrary, an accidental abuse of human fpeech. 3. That it had no end but to deceive by the appearance of vehement inward perfuafion, and to pervert the judgment, by inflaming the paffions. 4. And, that being a deviation from the principles of logic and metaphyfics, was frequently vicious.--Dr. Leland quickly perceived the danger of these pofitions, and in 1764 published his "Differtation on the Principles of Human Eloquende." In this he fuccefs. fully refuted the Bifhop's paradoxical whimfies; and proved, that the style and language of the New Teftament were defenfible without them. The Bishop found advocates; but Dr. Leland replied with fuch force of argument, fuch spirit and addrefs, as effectually filenced the controversy.

In 1768 he was appointed chaplain to Lord Townshend, lord lieutenant of Ireland: and his friends entertained hopes, that his merits would have raised him to the epifcopal bench; but he obtained only the prebend of Rathmichael, in the cathedral church of St. Patrick, Dublin, united with the vicarage of Bray, and both of fmall value, but tenable with his fellowship: to these he was collated in 1768. He had long applied himself to compofing a History of Ireland: this he published in three volumes 4to. in London, 1773: he begins with the reign of Henry II. and ends with that of William III. Prefixed to the first volume is a flight sketch of the hiftory of Ireland previous to the introduction of chriftianity, and alfo to the arrival of the English. I call this a flight fketch, because it is evident, from works fince publifhed, that a grest deal of ufeful information might have been collected, without touching on the wild and outrageous fictions of our old mythologifts. By this publication Dr. Leland never could entertain a rational hope of extending his fame, for he never evidenced the fmalleft fpecimen of a fondness for, or researches into, Irish Antiquities; unless we call fuch his "Examination of the Arguments contained in Macpherson's

Macpherson's Introduction," printed the year before his hiftory, and afcribed to him by the Monthly Reviewers. In this hiftory, on which his friends, with illjudged fondnefs, dwell, we find very trifling intimations of the conftitution, government, and laws of Ireland; nothing of its learning, commerce, coin, or fhipping; nothing of its architecture, poetry, or mufic, though admirable fpecimens of thefe exift; nothing of the language, drefs, diverfions, diet, and cuftoms of the Irish. What then, it may be afked, does it contain? I answer, a dull monotonous detail of domeftic convulfions, a weak government, and a barbarous people. It is Cox's Hiftory of Ireland enlarged a little, and coloured with political investigations; which, how ever they may give an air of novelty, contribute nothing towards elucidating the fubject. For our author has made fcarcely any ufe of the great collection of documents to be found in Bermingham tower, the rolls-office, the furveyorgeneral's office, the council books, Harris's collection, the Broderick collection in thirty volumes, and the MSS. in Lambeth library in as many; not to in fift on the valuable materials to be found in the Bodleian library, the British mufeum, and private collections: in a word, it requires uncommon application, and a large portion of health and life, to write an impartial, judicious, and complete hiftory of Ireland. From hence it is eafy to determine, whether the foregoing animadverfions on Dr. Leland's history are well founded or not. His fame for claffical learning is unrivalled: and for this opinion, as well as others before delivered, I am happy to have the fanction of one of the beft fcholars and most elegant writers of this age :-" Of Leland," fays this author, (fuppofed to. be the celebrated Dr. Parr)" my opi nion is not founded upon hearfay evidence, nor is it determined folely by the great authority of Dr. Johnson, who always mentioned Dr. Leland with cordial regard and marked respect. It might, perhaps, be invidious for me to hazard a favourable decifion upon the Hiftory of Ireland; because the merits of that work

have been difputed by critics: but I may, with confidence, appeal to writings which have long contributed to public amufement, and have often been honoured by public approbation--to the Life of Philip, and to the Tranflation of Demofthenes; to the judicious Differtation upon Eloquence, and to the fpirited Defence of that Differtation. The Life of Philip contains many curious refearches into the principles of government established among the leading states of Greece; many fagacious remarks on their inteftine difcords; many exact defcriptions of their most celebrated characters; together with an extenfive and correct view of thofe fubtle intrigues, and thofe ambitious projects, by which Philip, at a favourable crifis, gradually obtained an unexampled and fatal maftery over the Grecian republicks. In the Tranflation of Demofthenes, Leland unites the man of taste with the man of learning; and fhews himself to have polfeffed, not only a competent knowledge of the Greek language, but that clearnefs in his own conceptions, and that animation in his feelings, which enabled him to catch the real meaning, and to preferve the genuine fpirit of the most perfect orator that Athens ever produced. Through the Differtation upon Eloquence, and the Defence of it, we see great accuracy of erudition; great perfpicuity and strength of ftyle; and, above all, a ftoutnefs of judgment, which, in traverfing the open and fpacious walks of literature, difdained to be led captive, either by the forceries of a felf-deluded vifionary (Warburton), or the decrees of a felf-created defpot." * This is a just and excellent portrait of the literary character of our illuftrious country. man.

D.

2 Life of Philip of Macedon, 2 vol. 4to. Lond. 1758

3 The other Orations of Demofthenes, Lond. 1761 4 Longfword Earl of Salisbury, Lond. and Dub. 1762 5 Differtations on Human Eloquence, and Reply to the Anfwer to ditto, 1764

6 History of Ireland, 3 vol. 4to. Lond. and Dub. 1773 7 Sermon before the University of Dublin, 13th of December, 1776, 4to. 1777 8 Ditto at St. Anne's, 10th of February, 1779, 4to. 1779 9 Sermons published after his Death, 3 vol. 8vo. Dub. 1788

For the Anthologia Hibernica.

A Defcription of the Copper Mines in the County of Kildare.

N

EXT to the animal and vegetable productions of a country, the mines and quarries undoubtedly merit the attention of the inhabitants. Ireland in this refpect may be confidered a terra incognita; for though fome mineral productions have been difcovered, and even mines wrought to advantage, they are by no means adequate to chofe valt magazines of mineral, foffil, and lithological productions, which, in various parts, feem to be contained within the bowels of this Ifland. For, fituated on an immenfe bed of granite, rifing out of the bofom of the ocean, interspersed every where with calcareous, ferrugineous, and argillaceous matter, Ireland bids fair, in procefs of time, to obtain an equal, if not fuperior, rank among the European countries, in refpect to her fubterranean

riches.

Without taking notice of the feveral mines already difcovered, or of thofe places which indicate others, I fhall, at prefent, confine my obfervations to thofe lately opened in the Red Hills, in the county of Kildare. Thefe hills, for they cannot be called mountains, are fituated between two and four miles N. W. of Kildare, in a direction nearly N. and S.

confifting of three elevations; the two northern of which are denominated Dun Murach, or Dun Murry, that is, the Red Hills; the fouthern Dun Almbain, or the Hill of Allen, feparated from Dun Murry by a valley about a mile in breadth. Dun Murry forms a kind of headland towards the north, is fertile in corn and pafturage, and compofed of limeftone rock. The loofe ftones on its furface frequently appear as if calcined in the fire, of a red purple colour, and fometimes tinctured with fulphur; whence thefe hills have, from remote periods, obtained the name of Murach, or reddish X purple. Though fuch ftones are certain indications of copper being contained in the internal parts, no fearch or difcovery was made refpecting the fact until about the year 1786, when, fome of the neighbouring farmers opening a gravelpit on the north declivity of Dun Murry, near the bafe, fomething like metallic ore was difcovered; which, upon examination, was found to be rich copper. This induced the proprietor of the foil, his Grace the Duke of Leinster, in conjunétion with James Spencer, Efq.

Evans, Efq. and fome other gen tlemen, to eftablish a small fund, in order to examine the Hill. Miners were therefore employed, and fhafts funk, on different elevations of the declivity, in the folid rock, of the depths from four to fifteen fathom. During thefe operations, quantities of yellow fulphureous copper ore were found, of near 40 per cent. purity, mixed with fulphur and calcar. Thus encouraged, levels were opened, from whence proceeds a strong vitriolic water, which indicates the mine to be copious and rich. Even the water, if not fufficiently impregnated to incruftate iron, might certainly be converted into vitriol. The principal bed of the mine feems to lie deep within the hill, and even to dip under the valley which feparates Dun Murry from the Hill of Allen. From the prefent state of the work it is impoffible to afcertain the product; but, from every appearance, wrought with fpirit, it must amount to fome thoufands annually; a branch of the grand canal running through the

if

middle