AMERICAN QUARTERLY REVIEW. No. III. SEPTEMBER, 1827. ART. I.-Theorie du Navire par le MARQUIS DE POTERAT, Chevalier de l'ordre Royal et Militaire de St. Louis, Capitaine de Vaisseau, &c. &c. Paris, 1826, chez Didot, 2 vols. 4to. pp. 384 and 456. Of all the objects of art, none appears, upon the first view, to give so high an idea of the extent of human power, as the Ship. It is, indeed, the most difficult achievement of the genius of man. The very act of launching a raft upon a peaceful lake, must, in the first instance, have required an effort of courage. But how great is the interval between this rude attempt, and that state of art which constructs the Indiaman, or the first rate ship of the line! the one capable of bearing a vast cargo, of supporting the violent efforts of the winds and waves, and guided by scientific methods of pursuing its undeviating way, although for months out of sight of the land; the other, in addition, loaded with the artillery of a fortress, teeming with a legion of valiant spirits the most formidable of all offensive means furnished by the improved arts of modern warfare. One branch of nautical science may indeed be considered as having in our own days attained a state, which leaves so little apparent room for improvement, that it may almost be called perfection. We mean that part which teaches to determine the |