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the one a Genoese, and 'he other a Flor- ] entine, among tlpse of "distinguished Americans. ' Tue cmuicncc t >i men, who I hved, three hundred years before we be came a nation, will never be received by the world, as u evidence winch cannot be rented, that, by a removal to the new world, man has sustained no deterioration, either in body or in mind and to furnish this evidence, i> the professed object OT the work. If a supposed de:n of grati tude to these illustrious navigators, in duced th\j p ??{>? ?etor to bestow u|km them the honour* of cmzensh /?, he might, wuh ec) ual jiisitce, have extended the favour, to Ferdinand and Isabella ; but f r who?e li berality, perhaps w^ should never have heat (I ot Coluni u-. Up>n he same pnn ciple v Queen L? fcabeth and Sir Walter Rawleign', t>e made to give amp e testimony, tha 41 the people of the west" are, in no way, inferiour ?? 10 tnose w.?o an-; hi-fi in ure eastern hemisphere ? UTTT we aie disposed 10 think, that *? the new world" :r.uy stand. win, out any of these extras \eo us p r >p sj if Jt cannot^ wx had better not auempi the proposed compari son. In the second place, since t lie Lives have been introduced, without repaid, ei ther to ai/ifiabeiical order, or to w<i^hc oj character , (and we commend t he proprie tor, for not having chosen either of these modes) we should have been better pleased, to have seen them arranged, according to the crd, r ot lime, in wh ch the subjects of them, Vespec. ively, flouiUhed. This ? rran^eqjt n^, besides being the most na tural w u!d have been avtentled wHlv^rev-* eral important advantages to the proprie tor; it wouM have enabled him, lioni . knowning, beforehand. what l.vcs would occupy each successive, volumes to h tve all- wed to the artist and tht btographei lull leisure for the perfoi rflance oT iheii re spective part > ; while, ai'the s uite time, i< Would have ptfclud d all suspicion oi fiur tiQlity in tlie selection Under any ar rangement, the I'orifiat and Lite of Washington, ought not to have occup.ee the place now assigned to them. Various artists of high reputation, have hi en employed in executing the n&>av inffa; but we must confess that they hfcve not, by any means, equalled the- idtas which we had formed, of the state of the fine arts in this country. We see none oi that originality and splendour of genius Which should have charactt riz d a national work, bmne ot the portraits, indeed, are executed in a style but little above medi ocrity ; particular^ that of Ames, of which the hand resembles nothing human The eij-s are also very badly done ; for, besides that they do not appear to be /cUvioas the left eye is nearly an eighth of an inch high er than the right one, giving to the face the ludicrous appearance of smiling on one side, and Irownm * on the other. T n the /mntiif liter we have the stale design of the Genius of Jm-rica, with a most unmean ing face, po uring out to the Gtniu* nj Hin /ory, who seems to look upon the Woi k assigned to her, wi?h the half suppressed, sarcastick sin le of ridicule, the busts ot Washington, Franklin, J (Terson an 1 some body eise, who, from the rr semblance, might b^ taken for the tw n b o hcr of Jefferson. I he face of vV.iinin ;too, can only oe known 10 b*4 his, from iis ,occrp - ing the most conspicuous station; f r it resemb'es that ot a baboon, much more nearly than it dqes the human countenance ; and the wh de piece i-> very far infeiiour to wlvat we have seen fi om I lie hands of the same artists, tlsewhere. The figure of History , in the title page, is stiff and awk ward beyond measure : the ftrmjfs too lar^e for the hotly ; and the right foot, which is drawn up into a most uneasy posture, has exac'ly the appearance of being nailed to the tieel o~f the tefrwittr w iron spTfce * The bust of Hamilton is the best in the book, both in point of extern ion and re semblance ; and the portrait of Kush. Which we perceive was not engraved for this work, occupies the nex? rank. We shall now make a few remarks on the Lives which accompany these Portraits. Tn the preface, the writer takes some pains to point out the 4 ' uses and advantages of biography " and, from seeming so well to understand the deficiencies of Nepos and Plutarch, leads the leader to expect, all that can be wished for, in his own produc tions. But disappointment awaits the reader, who suffe rs himself to be so mis led Instead of biogrufihie*% he will see nothing but hi^h wrought, hyperbolical eidnftirs which, mutnro numine. are the same, for every subject. Indeed, the author proves himself n perfect adept, in the Hit of exaggeration. Under the magiek touch of Ins pen, every man becomes a hero, and t very hero a god. We look, in vain, for those little foibles and weakness* whit h are inseparably attached to the na ture of man ; and we turn aw,?y, in de^ puir, from the contemplation of gieatness. which so far transcends all power, and hope, of imitation. Thus, one of the noblest uses of bi'jgra/ihy is wholly lost. h ninv, sometimes, answer a rrood purpose, to in dulge in panegyricks of ?he fivim who, j b) being made to see the difference between j their actual merits, and the picture drawn <>t litem, may learn 10 govern ihcir future co i ill U- 1 ? by the macular d of excdleuce, elected by the panegyrist. Hut tmth, iiak'-d truth, ci i v e -> itci of ail hvpeibole, is essential lq ilic hiugrafJitr ; not only, us it respects the true ^lory ot the deceased, but as it regards the moral instruction to the inurtg : which is the first, and only IcgitT muTe, object of biogiupiiy. Ifulogy, When earned to a height, not warranted by facts become* satire ; and thu^, has the effect of d climbing lIic character, which it waw in tended to exalt. Hy placing ih.tr hero on an cm nence, to wh;ch it is impossib e to climb, by human effort; by de^crib ng him, such as no man ever was, or ever can be, all emu.ation is desiro\ed ; all de sneto excel is lost, in the acknowledged impossibility ()f t|le attempt. Besides, when a biographer confines himself to the / itibiick conduct of h's hero, he cuii tell us iiOTtnllg new f he ex .il)t;s him only, s>uCh as we have been alwjys a*, customed to sfce him, reu'lj Ure sued 10 vecrivc c^rfmny. _g^1 'l is notint h ejut 1 d , i ; i i h efo . an, o on the rostrum, tn.it we can become ac quainted with the m m. We musfTollow him to his cl >set ; we must *ee him, in the l>osom of his family ; wr must know, whe ther he acts the her<* :o fiix valet de cham ? bre ; it is in these situations only, that we ran find the motives, that influence his ac ioi.s ; it is here only, that we can g una correct knowledge of the individual. .. In ihe de.ine tli<>n <i i character, it is of as much impoi tance, to poin: out faults, that ought to be shunned, as it is to depict vir tu.es*. that ought to be imitated. . Uut the eniomust, who prostitutes tiu.h, by giv mg a loose to the creative powers of a wanton imagination, confounds all distinc tion, bet w-^n .-th**- **ood--amd tin- had. and deprives the publu k of that bem fit , which > just discrimination would not fa I to pro duce. A wi i c of this Mesc; iption, is .dso u (hiced to the Irequent necessity, of con tradicting himst II c for, it is not possible, hit rvj j irulividu ds can exist, in the s:tnie -?gey a- id country, each holding the highest J'vtnu.jn t lie scale ol excellence; the su peilative degffce of praise, therefore, whu.li :s U ue, wnen applied to the one, must be la'se, when applied to the o' her. ? Ibid. To be continued. St. Domingo, or Hayti. The fodorvu if particulars rrs/iccting this /*/ and, are taken from a letter , duced ihe 1 6th ( f June , 1816. u vv lien a vessel arrives in the harbour of (.ape Henry, no person is peinnftU to iand until the ship has been visited by a Ooat from the shore. Shortly alter coming to anchor, therefore) the visiting boat came oti to us with a military officer, an inter prete r, See. ? 1 heir appearance was by no means prepossessing ; their dress consist ed ot wide checked trow^ers with boots a bove them, a long blue coat laced with red, and out at the elbows, With a huge cocked hat, with a red feather, at least two teet long, and a dragoon sabre by their s':de? give their black faces a very formidable appea ance. i hey wete however, very polite ; inquired the news from Kurope, swallowed cheese, ham, he, by the lump, washing all down with wine, gin and por <er; they then conducted ?he captain and all the passengers to the Governor the Duke de M umalade, a blackmail, about 60 > ears of uge, a native of Africa, mild in his manners, and exceeding well liked both bv natives and foreigners. He ineu ly in quired our names our business, took all our letters, paper*, fee. in order to have them translated for his majesty, and then ordered us to wait cn baron I)upuy> a man of color, abntt 50, private se< retaiy to the King, and reckoned a second Talleyrand ? He certainty is a man of addies*. I was afterwards introduced to Prince John, the King's son, who is a good young man. but Ims no abilities I was, however, much pleased with him, and received many kind ties es from him. 4 On one who has seen nrgrocs and co loured people only in the degraded situa tion in whicti they are in the colonies, it has a singular effect when he goes among them where they only have command and control ; and, although from my short re sidence in this quarter of the world, and from my general feelings towards them, as a people who are and have hern cruelly and unjustifiably ill used, still I telt some thing like an ill natured contempt for their assuming an authority over me. The de solation which surrounds you in i he town of Cape Henry serves to ke< p alive this feeling, and is, on first landing, perhaps the most impressive scene I ever witness ed. It formerly contained 60 or fO&OO inhabitants, built upon a plain, in the most regular order, ail the streets in? effecting each other at right angles, and ruining in st night lines K. and W. and NL and S. The buildings have been uniformly elegant. Picture to yourself such rpllce? the houses completely sacked, and only the outward wails and Iwilconies remaining 1 rees ind shurbs growing within and upon the walls? -and ^rass growing upon the ? treets ? and you have something almost as mc lane holy as the rvppecirar.ce of Ca'^c Henry. ?' l'o complete, iht picuue, J you must conceive a climate uniformly serene, a kind of splendour in the b.iu;..t -blazing sua, and ihe lively verdure ail around, and something so impi essivcly s.ui L?? appearance ot the ? nartiai occupa tion of t lie ruined houses, wmcti heie and FfuTi e conta'n a family of blacks and mu lattocs, that word* cannot convey uuv ade quate desci iptmn of tie scene.-? You ttt^r ctmunuaUy reminded mat others than H ose you now see in a eoilltr oi what has Ineu a pi inceiy mansion, raised Hand dwelt in it : and, tor aught you can tell, the very persons who huddle up in one corner of i'. may have cut the ihroats of the foi mei owners. The houses of the few Lnghsh and American residents are exception* lo this, as aie also ti e few occupied oy tlie nobili y. 1 hese have been completely it paitcvU and just survt- in how splendid a p. ace it must have ht en when all tlie others we i e in the same staie. 1 he same _J ! 5 rj ption w lll_apply_io the country ? had an opportuniy of travelling from Go ha.ves across the cupe a distance of 60 or 70 miles. On eve;y side I could see the luins ol fine houses and plantations, and. trom tiie appearance of the country, i have ijttie doubt but the assertion of tin 1 r? nch is coi i eel, * t < ? at their possessions in St. Domingo were once wot Mi ah the toionies in the West Indies' I had no opportunity of seeing ChrUtophe, winch was very sorry lor, for he k pt hinise.l ^o aloof from the Cape, that 1 might haw com inu< d i hfct e three inont'is without ln> being once in it; and even then perhaps not visible." . Ml.XICO. ? The tsdkors of thcMercantile Advertis er were yesterday favored with a tiansla tion ol the following interesting intelli gence Ire in Mexico. The fact here stated of the i evolutionists having taken posses sion of Matagorda, is confirmed by the repoit of Capu Fowler, fiom New-Ui leans. 4i Mrs Excellency Hon Jose Manuel de i lerrera. minister plemjKiJt ntiary from the - Republican Government of M xico, to ? he L nut d States, has coinmun'caten un del .date ot 24th Au^u->t las!, from the port of] Matagorda, to a respectable person at 1 hilade.phia, the following information : The Republican army of the piovince of Vera Cruz, under the command of Citn Vntoria laid siege on the 10th July last, to the cities of Cordova andOnz b,, which were then on the eve of surrender ing. The Cammancler in Chief of the Republican troops of the province Puebla Teran, was endeavoi ing by torced march I es to occupy ihe ports of Guazacualcos. which was without means of deleting ( :^Tt, Hastamente had been victorious over the I Hoy a lists as often as he had met them, ami | was pursuing them with all haste, (ien Arrcdondo, commandcr in chief of the interor provinces, for the (loyalists, had 1 fallen back with the few forces under his orders on Monterrey, the capital of tlu new kingdom of Leon, in consequence ol the Republicans having occupied the port ' of Matagorda, where they had foitified themselves, and where th< y were daily augmenting their strength. Subsequent | to the possession of that port has been the evacuation of St* Antonia de Bazar, capi tal of the province of Lexas which w^ garrisoned by the regiment of Estrema dura. one of the most famous corps of the Royal party. 44 I he representatives who are to com pose the next Congress, are named by tlie people, and by the present time will have oponed their session . It affords great plea --fcttre to ste the joy and enthusiasm which pervaded the Mexicans on the day of elec tion. A person who was witness to this interesting scene says, that in the province of Valadolid, there were various likeness* es of Washington and Franklin, which the people carried in their processions, ac companied with music and songs allegori cal ol the occasion* ?? Between Washington and Franklin, some carried the resemblance of the Gen. Cora Balgo, the first who had the glory and courage to raise the standard of l.ber ty, who was afterwards made prisoner, and shot by the cruel Spaniards at the age of seventy. 44 Never has the Mexican cause present eel so favourable an aspect. The next Con gress, formed of men of influefice, will remove all those difficulties* which, until the present moment, have paralized that rapid progress wh c.h was looked for in a revolution created by the unanimous and express will of the people. 1 he immence resources which our beautiful country contains, will hencefor ward l?e administered by a government, which, meriting the public confidence, will give a new impulse, and will cause it self vo be felt by the physical and moral qualities of the republic* 44 The next campaign will be an ebjeef of lively interest to all men who are really lovers of the sacred rights of humnnity ; it will complete the emancipation of that fine country fiom the oppressive band ot despotism. I l.e inhaoiiants of Mexico wdl Ivet^aiWe to enjoy and par ticipate equally the precious gifts nmiU which iu-iurc ha-. Luourvd them." By the l,a*t Mails. Sfanisb Out) live. NkW-( ) l< L h AN>, S'Jpt. 17. NV e have Ht received vuch inform a i 'ii i\ Li i\ e lo i he ou'.iu^e lately i o.omii uu n ihc Anitn.Mf) !lag bv the Spauiauis, as may !>c i\.lnd upon. Expecting to re ceiv* some ltuoi mat ion. \\c forel>orc any al.UMon to the subject in yeatetdu) 's ga zelle. I he I i< ebrand was not in com P,m> ^vi'?..i anv o: her ve^-cl wht-n ^1'e Ttr ? i in with the 3 Spanish corvetu s. When iired upon, Liem. C-unningham shcwt.il hisco _ i()| s, and hai !td I tic coin mod' h e ? mention - 4-ke? c +huth ^ e r o f ? hts \ v s vxtr ? ,A frer coivtiniuiM* i lie" fire some time, the Span iaids sent an oil c.r on hoaro tiie 1 uebranc!| Lq whom Cmimngham';, w.;* shgAvn, and aherwauW Mv* Ctmipbett, second in command of the Fit ebi and was sent en board tiie corvette, on the requi sition of the Spanish cap'ain. When Mr. C. arrived on the deck, he was insulted by ihr most opprobious abn^e, and a s ntinal was placed over him; his i>'Mt\ erewwas aUo compelled to go on board ? m media; el v put in 'urns, ni d then ruel?\ b aten. li is added, that M . Cun ,,|;,-h*m repeatedly assured the Spanish cap?. that be had struck his flap;, that h; considered the h ire brand- as a prrze^to his catholic majesty, and entteated that shv: nught I >e taken |>osse*sion of agreeably to the usages tit belligerents, I his was declined by the gallant cham pion of the inquisition ? but he still detuiii c(i Mi. Campbell aivl ^ s boat's crew. At the expiratir.n eft four hours, how ever, a sail appeaivd^at a distance ; the permitted <0 depm by the redoubtable Don, who did m* fail to load her com mander witb ihf foukst reproaches, and protested that hr had orders lt> drive every American vessel from the Gulf of Mexi co. We shall accompany the preceding facts with no observations ; the buse recital is sufficient toarouse tiie indignation of evciy man who Us an Ameitcan heart, or a heart that spunks cowardice, and its constant as sociate, cruelty. We feel confident,? knowing intimately, as we do, the (flic- is ol the Firebrand, that they offered no pro vocation to the vessels of afilendly nation, and that in whatever circumstances they be placed, they never would dishonor ei ther themselves or their cotintrV. 4 Tht Infanruiit Slave- T.a<U^-*-Ry a mc. morandum ol arrivals at the Ilavanna, it <pp ais, that j fiftem hundred *luv>a had been brought there from jijricd? from the 5th to the i2th September inclusive! ? in 4 vessels, each of them averaging above 300 Humanity shudders at this ubomina lion. 1 he spirit of the age denounces it m a voice ol thunder ? ."The Almighty has no attribute, which can lake vide" with such an aUrocious heresy ?Jitiq. _ t IMPOR T ANT. Pm 1LADKI.PHI A, Oct. 10. Arrived ship Madekna. Welden,of New. York, 36 days from Tenenfle. with wines, . 8tc. On the 27tti August, four days lie lore the M sailed, the British pat ket Bra. zil, arrived Off the port in 1 1 days from (iib tal ar. bound home ; and her commander stated, that the I)cy of Algiers find been fixit to death, and hia son proclaimed Huccm* nor ? that, on assuming the reins of gov ernmcnt the son imo.r'iiattlv annulled the treaty which his father had made with C om. Decatur? that the American and British squadrons were to unite in the at tack upon Algiers ? and confirmed the ac count of the capture of the British Pack et VValcberen, b) an Algerine cruiser. Sufi finned Bombardment of Jtfgier* Capt. Evans, of the ship Ann Maria, arrived at this port last evening in f>0 clays from Leghorn, informs, that on the 15th and I 6th of August, he heard a heavy can nonading in the direction of Aluiers, and supposed it to be Lord Exmouth's fleet bombarding that city. , Un ha fifty Cataatrnfihe.? Yesterday morn ing, between the hours of 9 and 10 o'clock,' f obi as Liar Esq. accountant of the War department, put a period to his ex istence, by shooting himself through the head. We have not as yet learnt the causes which led to the perpetration of this unhappy deed. Mr. Ltnr was na turally cheerful and pleasant , on the fatal morning, Mr. L. breakfasted with his fa mily in his usual good humor, and was proceeding as they thought to his office, when the rejmrt of a pistol was heard from the back of the yard ? Mr. Lear, son of the deceased, immediately prcceeded to the spot from \xh '*rce the sound appeared to issue, and found his father welter imj in his blood. Grorgef',v/n /a/l. Oc:, 1 3.