44 Mr. Parkes's Hislon/ of 



Bibliotheque. Quarto, London, printed for Thomas Bennet, at 

 the Half Moon, St. Paul's Churchyard. 



The first number of this work made its appearance in August, 

 1691, with a Latin dedication to Henry Compton, Lord Bishop 

 of London. A singular address to the reader is also prefixed, 

 in which, among other things, he says, " If you judge of this 

 by the ' History of Learning,' printed with my name, you will 

 have perhaps a mean opinion of it ; but I was unluckily ingaged 

 with a bookseller who thought himself wiser than I, and would 

 overrule in every thing. As to this, things are now changed, 

 and you may be sure, (provided God preserves us in health,) 

 that during a year, the first Monday in every month, you shall 

 have a small book like this, and better I hope, if learned men 

 approve of my endeavours, and vouchsafe to send me their 

 observations, and direct them to the bookseller. If some 

 authors ask by what right I take upon me to pass a judgment 

 over their books, I answer, by the same right as they have 

 published them. Every one may take the same liberty with 

 me : if they give me wholsom advice they shall be thanked for 

 it, and I '11 mend the faults as well as possible. Otherwise I 

 don't love wrangling, and have not much time to lose ; and 

 though scribblers should write every day against me, I shall not 

 trouble the world with a word of answer. I have now to say 

 to those that shall have the civility to send me their books, 

 that I shall keep a note of the time wherein I have received 

 them, and put them in my journal according to the date of their 

 reception. But that they may not lose their time and their 

 books, they must remember that this is an account of the Works 

 OF THE Learned." 



The first volume of this undertaking, which commenced in 

 August 1691, was completed in April 1692, and was com- 

 prised in 418 quarto pages, containing a great deal of very cu- 

 rious matter, closely printed, with marginal notes. The last 

 number of the volume, however, contains the following adver- 

 tisement from the bookseller. " A monthly Journal," says he, 

 " returning too quick, to have it always filled with considerable 



