324 Mr, Macleay on certain general Laws regulating [Nov, 



Article II. 



Remarks on the Identity of certain general Laws which have been 

 lately observed to regulate the natural Distribution of Insects 

 and Fungi, By W. S. Macleay, Esq. MA. FLS * 



The naturalists of the present day have in one respect a 

 pecuhar claim to the appellation of disciples of Linnaeus ; inas- 

 much as they direct their chief attention to what this great 

 master declared to be the end of all his immortal labours in 

 botany. His admirable maxim, that the natural system is the 

 " ultimus botanicesfnisy" is now not only universally admitted, 

 but on all sides acted upon. The natural system is in fact not 

 only made the remote consequence, but the immediate aim, of 

 every modern observation in natural history ; the rule now being, 

 to commence with supposing nothing known but what has 

 actually been observed, and by comparing the affinities thus 

 collected, to search after that knowledge of natural groups 

 which in the old methods we started with supposing to be already 

 acquired. They who formerly confined themselves to artificial 

 systems, and neglected the above important maxim of Linnaeus, 

 have at least thereby lost much gratification, since, if there be 

 nothing within the whole range of human science more worthy 

 of profound meditation than the plan by which the Deity regu- 

 lated the creation ; so most assuredly no study is more calculated 

 to aduiinister pure and unmixed dehght. Thus, for example, the 

 satisfaction oi the mere gazer at a collection of animals must 

 evidently be inferior to that experienced by the comparative 

 anatomist, who understands their respective structures. And 

 again, the anatomist himself, on viewing a museum, can scarcely 

 be so much gratified by the sight, as that naturalist who, not 

 content with a bare and in some degree insulated knowledge of 

 particular organizations, endeavours to comprehend how these 

 harmonize with the rest of the creation. It is in this last mode 

 alone, if I may so express myself, that the human mind can 

 take, as far as its imperfect nature will permit, a view of the 

 universe as it was originally designed. Nor ought any person 

 to be deterred from commencing so delightful a pursuit, either 

 by the supposed difficulty of the investigation, or by the extent 

 of preparatory information which it necessarily requires ; for 

 truly has it been said, that he who questions his abihties to 

 arrange the dissimilar parts of an extensive plan, or fears to be 

 lost in a complicated system, may yet hope to adjust a few pages 

 without perplexity. 



Having such ideas both of the dignity of natural history and 

 of the importance and feasibility of a more extended research 



• From the Linnean Transactions for 1823, Part I. 



