186 SEASIDE DIVINITY. 



which seem to it to possess some one quality in 

 common. The principle is indispensable to the 

 acquirement of knowledge ; and in adopting what 

 at first sight appears to be a system of artificial 

 classification, the philosophic naturalist is merely 

 giving effect to the tendency of the human mind 

 as manifested even in childhood. The applica- 

 tion of scientific terms not only to the classes 

 and orders into which living beings are subdivided, 

 but even to the individual animals themselves, is 

 certainly a considerable difficulty in the way of 

 those unacquainted with the ancient languages 

 from which those terms are taken. Such terms, 

 however, are extremely convenient 1 , and may per- 

 haps be said to be indispensable to a system of 

 classification. 



We are n,ow to suppose the reader to enter 

 on the study of some of the animated beings of 

 which the sea-shore furnishes specimens, and 

 although they present themselves to him in a 

 miscellaneous manner, he will find it highly con- 

 ducive to his purpose to study them in somewhat 

 of the order in which they are placed by natu- 

 ralists. The scientific phraseology need not oc- 

 casion any alarm. It may be to some extent 

 laid aside, and can always be explained. 



Thus our reader may be presumed to classify 

 all the living forms that come under his notice 

 in one or other of the four great groups into 

 which the illustrious Cuvier and others who have 

 followed him have divided the whole animal 

 kingdom. 



