ANNUAL REGISTER, OR GENERAL REPOSITORY OF HISTORY, AND LITERATURE,. TO WHICH IS PREFIXED, The HISTORY of KNOWLEDGE, LEARNING, and TASTE, LONDON, Printed for G. G, and J. ROBINSON, Pater nofter-Row. MDCCXCV. PREFACE. IT was not our defign to have diverted the attention of our readers from the important events which at prefent agitate the political world, by any addrefs in the form of a preface or advertisement, farther than was neceffary to convey our thanks to the public for the very liberal encouragement which our last volume experienced. But a refpect for that public obliges us for once to relinquish our intention, as it is of fome importance, not merely to ourselves, but to the cause of truth, to expose the flagrant and abfurdfalfehoods by which we have been ignorantly and maliciously attacked by interested and venal writers. It would ill become us to pronounce our own panegyric: but if there is any one fpecies of merit which we may without arrogance affume, it is that of taking a liberal and temperate course with respect to the politics of the times. Yet, we have been unaccountably charged with a predilection for French principles. The best proof that we could offer against this accufation is, that we have been also charged by the other party with the oppofite offence, with that of inclining too much to the ariftocratic fyftem. In this inftance, however, we have only been fellow-fufferers with fome of the moft illuftrious characters of this nation; and we must remark, that it has been a fource of ferious evil to our country, that every man, who was not prepared to go every length A 2 |