PREFACE. 
The following pages, prepared during intervals 
of leisure, have served to occupy the attention 
of the author, and have constituted his amuse- 
ment amid the active engagements of business. 
He has esteemed himself fortunate in being able 
to find, in the study of Natural History, a relief 
to the over-burthened mind, a solace in trouble, 
and a protection from the all-absorbing cares 
which are incidental to mercantile pursuits. If 
to the healthful exercise of body and mind 
which he has himself enjoyed in their prepara- 
tion, he shall be able to add the approbation of 
those who are engaged in similar investigations, 
it will be as ample a recompense as he has ever 
proposed to himself. He offers them to the nat- 
uralists of the United States without any other 
