THE PREFACE

TO AN

HISTORY OF THE EARTH,

AND

ANIMATED NATURE,

BY

DR. GOLDSMITH.

FIRST PRINTED IN THE YEAR 1774.

PREFACE.

NATURAL Hiftory, confidered in its utmost ex

tent, comprehends two objects. First, that of dif covering, afcertaining, and naming all the various productions of Nature. Secondly, that of defcribing the properties, manners, and relations, which they bear to us, and to each other. The firft, which is the moft difficult part of the fcience, is fyftematical, dry, mechanical, and incomplete. The fecond is more amufing, exhibits new pictures to the imagination, and improves our relifh for exiftence, by widening the profpect of Nature around us.

Both, however, are neceffary to those who would understand this pleafing science in its utmost extent. The firft care of every enquirer, no doubt, fhould be, to fee, to vifit, and examine every ob ject, before he pretends to infpect its habitudes or its hiftory. From feeing and obferving the thing itself, he is most naturally led to fpeculate upon its ufes, its delights, or its inconveniencies.

Numberlefs obftructions, however, are found in this part of his purfuit, that fruftrate his diligence and retard his curiofity. The objects in Nature are fo many, and even thofe of the fame kind are exhibited in fuch a variety of forms, that the enquirer finds himself loft, in the exuberance before him, and like a man who attempts to count the ftars unaf fifted by art, his powers are all diftracted in barren fuperfluity.

To remedy this embarrassment artificial systems have been devised, which grouping into maffes those parts of Nature more nearly refembling each other, re

fer

fer the enquirer for the name of the fingle object he defires to know, to fome one of those general distributions, where it is to be found by further examination. If, for inftance, a man fhould in his walks meet with an animal, the name and confequently the hiftory of which he defires to know, he is taught by fyftematic writers of Natural History to examine its most obvious qualities, whether a quadrupede, a bird, a fish, or an infect. Having determined it, for explanation fake, to be an infect, he examines whether it has wings; if he finds it poffeffed of thefe, he is taught to examine whether it has two or four; if poffeffed of four, he is taught to obferve, whether the two upper wings are of a fhelly hardnefs, and ferve as cafes to thofe under them; if he finds the wings compofed in this manner, he is then taught to pronounce, that this infect is one of the beetle kind; of the beetle kind there are three différent claffes, diftinguished from each other by their feelers; he examines the infect before him, and finds that the feelers are elevated or knobbed at the ends; of beetles, with feelers thus formed, there are ten kinds, and among those, he is taught to look for the precife name of that which is before him. If, for inftance, the knob be divided at the ends, and' the belly be streaked with white, it is no other than the Dor or the Maybug, an animal, the noxious qualities of which give it a very diftinguished rank in the history of the infect creation. In this manner afyftem of Natural Hiftory may, in fome measure, be compared to a dictionary of words. Both are folely intended to explain the names of things; but with this difference, that in the dictionary of words we are led from the name of the thing to its definition, whereas in the fyftem of Natural Hiftory, we are led from the definition to find out the name.

Such

Such are the efforts of writers, who have composed their works with great labour and ingenuity, to direct the learner in his progrefs through Nature, and to inform him of the name of every animal, plant, or foffil fubftance, that he happens to meet with; but it would be only deceiving the reader, to conceal the truth, which is, that books alone can never teach him this art in perfection; and the folitary student can never fucceed. Without a mafter and a previous knowledge of many of the objects in Nature, his book will only ferve to confound and difguft him. Few of the individual plants er animals that he may happen to meet with, are in that precise state of health, or that exact period of vegetation, whence their descriptions were taken. Perhaps he meets the plant only with leaves, but the fyftematic writer has defcribed it in flower. Perhaps he meets the bird before it has moulted its firft feathers, while the fyftematic defcription was made in the ftate of full perfection. He thus ranges without an inftructor, confufed and with fickening curiofity from fubject to fubject, till at last he gives up the pursuit, in the multiplicity of his disappointments. Some practice, therefore, much inftruction and diligent reading are requifite to make a ready and expert Naturalift, who fhall be able, even by the help of a fyftem, to find out the name of every object he meets with. But when this tedious, though requifite part of ftudy is attained, nothing but delight and variety attend the reft of his journey. Wherever he travels, like a man in a country where he has many friends, he meets with nothing but acquaintances and allurements in all stages of his way. The mere uninformed fpectator paffes on in gloomy folitude, but the Naturalift, in every plant, in every infect, and every pebble, finds fomething to entertain his curiofity, and excite his fpe

culation..

.. VOL. IV.