SIR HANS SLOANE. 59 



volumes in folio, and eight volumes in quarto."* 

 But these catalogues were stated, at the time of 

 Sloane's death, to be those of the whole museum 

 as then existing ; and we know that, from many 

 other sources, Sir Hans obtained augmentations ; 

 and the account he himself gives of it after the 

 purchase of Petiver's collections, compared with 

 that published immediately after his death, will 

 shew that it was constantly increasing. 



Apologizing in 1725 for the delay in publishing 

 the second volume of his Natural History of 

 Jamaica, he says " The putting into some kind 

 of order my curiosities, numbering them and 

 entering their names, and accounts received with 

 them, in books, which was necessary in order to 

 their preservation and uses, hath taken me up 

 some of the time I have had to spare from the 

 exercise of my profession ; and because some 

 people have represented me careless and negligent 

 in not giving this second volume sooner, I think 

 it proper, in my own justification, to acquaint the 

 reader, that I have entered into books, and 

 numbered these natural and artificial things 

 following." 



The numbers in the first columns are those he 

 there gives ; those in the second column, are 

 from the list as transmitted to the British Museum 

 after his death. 



* Article COURTEN, vol. x. p. 363, 



