appointed Cornelius P. Van Ness, Esq. of Vermont, commissioner, and William C. Bradly, late member of congress from the same state, as their agent. This board met at St. Andrew's on the 24th of September, 1816, but the season being then too far advanced to commence the survey, they adjourned to the first of June. At this time the necessary parties were arranged, the instructions given to them, and the summer was occupied by these parties, and the result of their proceedings will be submitted to the commissioners in May next in the city of New York.

The extent of the duty assigned to this board will necessarily consume much time before the objects of their appointment can be attained. A common opinion has prevailed, relative to this line from the head of the St. Croix to the highlands, which has not hitherto given rise to any practical evil, and has generally been represented the same in the modern maps, published both in England and America. Since this subject has been before the commissioners, two maps have been published, which trace a line of boundary essentially different from what has been supposed before to be correct: we allude to colonel Bouchette's map of Canada, and Purdy's map of Cabotia; both of them elegantly executed, and apparently not without the approbation of high authority. The lines, drawn on these maps, curtail the limits of Massachusetts on the eastern frontier, and place the whole of the river St. John's within the British domin

ion.

It is not understood, that any claim has been made by the English agent in correspondence with the new lines thus described: in fact, the official surveys have not been sufficiently advanced to permit any claim of any kind. What the English possessions may eventually be, will rest on the report of the surveyors; and the point assumed by the commissioners as the dividing line on the highlands.

The eastern boundary-line of the United States has always been drawn due north from the source of the St. Croix, crossing the St. John's at about 47° north latitude; and thence running in the same direction about forty-six miles, until it met the highlands supposed to be intended by the treaty.

There are many inconveniences in

this course. For a considerable part of the line the river St. John's is just on the border, but not within the limits, of the United States; and its waters will of course remain closed to her navigation, -if ever a settlement in that part of the district of Maine should render the use of them desirable.

The communication also between New Brunswick and Quebec is obstructed; and the passage of the English mail is over part of the territories of the United States.

This inconvenience was so great, that, at the first negotiation at Ghent, the English commissioners proposed a revision of the boundary line, so as to secure to Great Britain the desired communication; and intimated that it must be done by a cession to Great Britain of that part of the district of Maine, which intervenes between New Brunswick and Quebec, and prevents a direct communication. The inadmissibility of that proposition at the time, and under the circumstances in which it was urged, is apparent; but in the tranquillity of peace, it is not unlikely that a change of boundary might be made essentially beneficial to both parties.

Thus, if the boundary line, instead of being drawn due north to the highlands was made to meet the St. John's at the highest point above the actual English settlements; and the river, instead of an arbitrary line, become the division between the two countries to the 47° north latitude, the United States would gain an addition of territory, important in position, though not of any considerable magnitude; while the English possessions on the left bank would still have access to the water, and lose no material advantage. In exchange for this, the new boundary on the north might be drawn from some point in the river, by a straight line, to the province of Lower Canada; and thus a direct communication between her two provinces be opened to Great Britain, without any inconvenience to the United States.

The detail of such a plan would require accuracy and attention. The general principles only are stated above, on which such a negotiation might be pursued.

But, as the territory in this vicinity is of importance to Great Britain, as the means of opening a free communication

between her provinces, another object could be mentioned, for which it may possibly be considered as an equivalent in exchange.

The right of fishing within the marine league on the coast of Nova Scotia, it is maintained by Great Britain, was lost to the United States, when by the late war the treaty of 1783 was annulled. If so, this territory, or a right of way over it, may present the means of obtaining the renewal of the privilege; and the consent of Massachusetts would probably not be withheld for an equivalent in which her enterprising citizens have so deep an interest.

Some preparations are making, which indicate an attempt by Great Britain to obtain more than would be necessary for the above purposes, under the 5th article of the treaty of Ghent; and Col. Bouchette, in his History of Canada, lately published, has stated his reasons in full for the expectations of annexing the territory in question to New Brunswick, by virtue of the treaty of 1783. But little confidence can be placed on these opinions; at least several years must elapse before the questions under that article can possibly be settled.

The remaining board of commissioners established by the treaty of Ghent, were directed to run the boundary-line from the point where the 45° north latitude strikes the Iroquois or Cataraqua, to lake Superiour, as it was declared by the treaty of peace of 1783, and to decide to whom the islands in the lakes and rivers, through which the line passes, do severally belong.

General Peter B. Porter was appointed commissioner, and Samuel Hawkins, Esq. agent, for the United States; and John Ogilvie, Esq. commissioner on the part of Great Britain. They met at St. Regis, and established by accurate astronomical observation the point of the 45° north latitude, and afterwards, by careful admeasurement and surveys, described the boundary towards the lake Ontario. It is understood that no material alteration has been made in the line heretofore considered as the true boundary. The latitude line described in the treaty of 1783, to be run from the Connecticut river to the St. Lawrence, is to be protracted by the commissioners under the fourth article; who have not yet commenced that duty. This

line was supposed to have been settled soon after the peace, and divides the actual settlements of the two countries. It was formerly run with great attention and care, but, as is recently said, without the aid of good instruments; and that, of course, it is incorrect,— being a waving, and not a straight, line. If there be an error, it will now be corrected. Nor ought any party, who may, on the final admeasurement of it, lose any part of its present possessions, to be in the least dissatisfied. The true boundary is described in the treaty of peace. The location of that boundary is a work of science, diligence, and labour; and the governments of both countries will be careful that a common mistake and public misapprehension shall not produce individual injury.

UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH.

On the System of Education pursued at that University.-Literary Classes.

The sessions of Edinburgh University, like the others in Scotland, commence in October, and terminate in April; during which time every class meets at least once a-day.

At the first Latin class, which meets twice a-day, select portions of Ciceroas his Orations, two or three books of Livy, and one or two books of Virgil's Eneid, are read. Translations from English into Latin are made in the class once or twice in the course of the week. The passages, which the present professor selects for that purpose, are from the works of Blair, Johnson, Addison, and Hume.

The books chiefly read in the second or advanced Latin class are of Cicero's philosophical works, his treatises, De Officiis and De Finibus; selections from his Quæstiones Tusculana de Natura Deorum; and of his rhetorical works, his De Oratore: of Virgil, two books of the Georgics; and of Tacitus, his treatise De Moribus Germanorum, or De Vita Agricolæ.

The first Greek class, which assembles twice in the day, commences with the Grammar (Moor's); and, during the session, reads a few chapters of the New Testament, a portion of the Col lectanea Minora mentioned above, and a book of Homer.

At the second or advanced Greek class, Neilson's or Duubar's Exercises,

and part of the Analecta Majora,-a work precisely the same in arrangement as the Minora, and by the same author, but with more difficult examples,-form the books of study. At the third or highest Greek class, extracts from the second volume of the Analecta are read.

At the end of the session, in the advanced Greek and Latin classes, there are subjects in Latin and English for essays, and in Greek and Latin for odes, epigrams, &c. given out by the professor for competition; and, to the successful competitors, prizes (which consist of small sums of money, books, &c.) are awarded.

In these classes, at their meetings, five or six students, at most, are examined on the exercise delivered on the preceding day: and this arrangement is observed until the whole of the class has been examined.

In these advanced classes, once in the week, lectures are delivered by the professor of Latin on Roman antiquities, synonymous words, &c.-and by the professor of Greek on the History and Literature of the Grecians.

The punishments inflicted at the literary classes are, fines of five, ten, and twenty shillings, expulsion from the University, &c.

The number of students that annually attends each Latin and Greek class, varies from one to two hundred.

The fees paid by the student on his admission to each of these classes, is three pound eight shillings, including all expenses; and, it may here be observed, that, after an attendance of two years at any class, the ticket becomes perpetual.

Previous to a student's admission to any of the classes, he must provide himself with a matriculation-ticket, for which he pays ten shillings, and the fund accumulated from such a source, which, from the two thousand students that annually attend the University, amounts to a thousand pounds a-year, is allotted towards defraying the expenses of the library.

At the commencement and termination of the sessions, these classes, like all others of the University, are opened and closed by an introductory and valedictory lecture. The plan of study, the authors to be perused, and the advantages of the subject, form the chief topics

of the introductory lectures; and, in the valedictories, the professor takes the opportunity of commenting on the various states of proficiency which the students have displayed during the season, of congratulating those ou their success who have made creditable improvements, of rousing the indolent to a sense of their duty, and of placing before the eyes of all the splendid prospects of fame and immortality as incentives to vigorous application.

Mathematical Classes.-At the first mathematical class, the student is initiated in the principles of geometry, of algebra, and of plane trigonometry.

At the second class, the student resumes the subject at the place where on the second year he had left off; which, in algebra, is generally at quadratic equations; in geometry, at some of the books of Euclid succeeding to the sixth; to these he adds spherical trigonometry and conic-sections.

In the third mathematical class, the doctrine of loci, the theory of fluxions, the principles of fortification, gunnery, &c. form the subjects of the student's

attention.

The rewards, punishments, and fees, are the same nearly as at the literary classes.

Logic Class.-At the commencement of this course, the professor, in the form of lectures, delivers a dissertatio on the several systems of philosophy that have existed from the time of Pythagoras until the present day, with copious criticisms on the excellencies and errors of each. He then gives an abstract of human physiology. From that, he passes to what may strictly be called logic. To the student, subjects chiefly of a metaphysical nature are given once in the month for essays; and, at the end of the session, exercises of the same kind are delivered for competition, in which the successful competitors, to the number of three or four, are each rewarded with two or three guineas.

Metaphysical Class, or Class of Moral Philosophy.-The course of lectures delivered in this class, embraces that view of the subject which the learning of its professor can accumulate, or his genius suggest

Natural Philosophy Class.-Thevarious applications of the mixed mathematics in dynamics, hydraulics, hydro

statics, optics, astronomy, &c. form the subjects of the lectures delivered at this class.

The fees for attending the four last classes, are the same as in the literary.

Medical Classes.In the medical division, which comprehends the classes of anatomy, chemistry, practice of physic, botany, clinical surgery, midwifery, the same arrangement in treating these subjects is observed which is common to most of the medical lectures in the different parts of the kingdom. The terms of attendance on each of these classes amount to four pound nine shil lings, being one guinea more than what is paid at the literary and philosophical.

Law Classes.-There are three classes in which lectures are delivered on the subject of law: that of the Scotch law, that on civil law, and that on the law of nature and nations.

Almost all the students who intend to practise the law, either as advocates or attorneys, attend the first of these: the second is attended only by those who are designed for the bar; and the last, the class of the law of nature and nations, is rather an honourable sinecure for a deserving gentleman, than a laborious and useful situation.

The fees for attending the law classes are the same as those of the Medical.

Divinity, or Theological, Classes.The division of study that remains to be mentioned is the theological; and it comprehends the classes of divinity, ecclesiastical history, and oriental languages.

Every student must attend the first of these at least five years before he can take orders or obtain a license to preach. Previous to his admission into this class, however, he must produce certificates of his having completed his literary and philosophical studies.

In this class, or hall as it is named, the student reads or delivers one or two discourses annually, and on subjects, for the first year, of the professor's, and latterly of his own selection. Of these discourses, one must be in Latin.

The student in divinity, along with this class, having attended that of ecclesiastical history, and that of oriental languages, each for one year, applies to the nearest presbytery for a license.

On a day appointed by this body, and on a text of Scripture of their choosing,

the student delivers a sermon or lecture: after which, he is examined as to his knowledge in philosophy, and his proficiency in the learned languages; and, if it then appear to his examinators that his acquirements are such as qualify him for the office he is about to undertake, he is presented with a warrant to preach.

The fees for attending these classes are but small; and, in consideration of this, the professor of divinity has a salary, which exceeds that of the other professors at least by a third: it amounts to 160 a year.

DEGREES OBTAINED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH.

Master of Arts.-At this, as at the other Scotch Universities, there is no degree preceding that of Master of Arts; and this academical honor is not, as at some universities, to be claimed by the candidate's proving that his name has been so many terms or sessions upon record. It is certainly a necessary qualification for obtaining it, that the student has attended a philosophical course, and that he can produce, from his several professors, certificates as to his behaviour and proficiency. But, besides this, he must, if he be required, compose a thesis on some question in science or in literature, in Latin, and defend it in presence of the professors. If that body are pleased with the candidate's ability, he is presented with a diploma. The most of this form, however, is generally dispensed with, especially if the talents and acquirements of the candidate are known. And to this it may be added, that, at this university, a student can never obtain any academical honour defore he has completed his twenty-first year.

Doctor in Divinity and in Civil Law. -The degrees of Doctor in Divinity and in Civil Law are likewise unattainable by any period of attendance at the university. They are conferred by the Senatus Academicus, out of respect to their talents, on some popular preacher, or on some eminent literary character.

Doctor in Medicine.-The installation into the degree of a Doctor in Medicine is conducted with some ceremony. After a residence at the university for three years, and an attendance on all the medical and surgical classes, the candidate for medical hon

ours must compose a thesis, in Latin, on some professional subject; and besides defending it at whatever length his examinators please, in that language, he must undergo three examinations on his general knowledge of medical science. If he is successful in these trials, the candidate, on the second of August, is presented with a diploma.

Were the purposes of this course of study and examination answered by corresponding diligence and proficiency on the part of the student, then might the medical degree equal in respectability any other, and the University of Edinburgh deserve that high celebrity for medical science which it generally obtains. But it is a fact, and one most lamentable to be recorded, that the advantage and honour which might accrue from such preparation is generally obviated either by the ignorance or indolence of the young man intended for that profession. Many of my readers may be inclined to doubt my veracity when I make the following assertion, that, out of the eighty who graduate at one period, there are not twenty who have converted their thesis into Latin, or sixty who have composed their thesis at all.

The cause of this opprobrium is easily to be explained. At Edinburgh, there is a body of men, generally sons of Esculapius, who neither have connexion nor capital to obtain medical practice, and who find that, preparing young men for their examinations is the only way by which they can put their medical or classical knowledge to profit. To these every medical student applies, and, for a certain sum, obtains either a translation of his thesis, or a thesis er toto; and is instructed, previous to his examination, nearly in the precise questions he will be asked.

The class, fees, and college expen. ses, attending on medical graduation, amount to about sixty guineas.

Of the learned professions in Scotland, the law is the most expensive, and leads to the greatest honours.

Previous to his being called to the bar, the advocate, besides the classes that relate immediately to his profession, must have attended a philosophical course, and must compose a Latin dissertation on some point of law, and de

1. The facility with which this compact calcareous stone imbibes moisture, without its retaining it in too great a degree.

2. The penetrating power or rather the strong adherence of greasy or resinous bodies to these stones.

3. The affinity of resins and grease for all bodies of the same nature, and the antipathy of these substances to water, and all moist bodies.

From these three principles arise the same number of consequences:

First, a stroke made with a pencil or greasy ink on the stone will adhere so strongly thereto, as to require some mechanical means to remove it.

Second, all parts of the stone, that are not covered by a coat of grease, will receive, absorb, and retain water.

Third, if a layer of colored greasy substance be passed over the stone thus prepared, it will only adhere to those lines formed by the greasy ink, whilst it will be rejected by those parts that are moistened with water only.

In a word, the lythographical process depends on these two points, that the stone saturated with water should resist the ink, and that this same stone, oiled or greased, should resist the water and take up the ink; thus, by applying and pressing a sheet of paper on the stone, the greasy and resinous coloured lines will alone be transmitted on the paper, showing a counter-proof impression of that which is drawn on the stone. For this purpose the stone must first be rendered capable of imbibing water, and at the same time of receiving with facility all greasy or resinous bodies.