280 NOVUM ORGANUM. 



Denique illud omnino prnecipiendum est et sacpius monen- 

 dum ; ut diligentia hominum in inquisitione et congerie Natu- 

 ralis Historias deinceps mutetur plane, et vertatur in contrarium 

 ejus quod nunc in usu est. Magna enim hucusque atque adeo 

 curiosa fuit hominum industria in notanda rerum varietate 

 atque explicandis accuratis animalium, herbarum, et fossilium 

 differentiis ; quarum pleraeque magis sunt lusus naturae quam 

 seriae alicujus utilitatis versus scientias. Faciunt certe hujus- 

 modi res ad delectationem, atque etiam quandoque ad praxin ; 

 verum ad introspiciendam naturam parum aut nihil. Itaque 

 convertenda plane est opera ad inquirendas et notandas rerum 

 similitudines et analoga, tarn in integralibus quam partibus. 

 Illae enim sunt quae naturam uniunt, et constituere scientias 

 incipiunt. 1 



Verum in his omnino est adhibenda cautio gravis et severa ; 

 lit accipiantur pro Instantiis Conformibus et Proportionatis, 

 illae quae denotant Similitudines (ut ab initio diximus) Physicas ; 

 id est, reales et substantiales et immersas in natura, non for- 

 tuitas et ad speciem ; multo minus superstitiosas aut curiosas, 

 quales naturalis magise scriptores (homines levissimi, et in rebus 

 tarn seriis quales nunc agimus vix nominandi) ubique osten- 

 tant; magna cum vanitate et desipientia, inanes similitudi- 

 nes et sympathias rerum describentes atque etiam quandoque 

 affingentes. 



Verum his missis, etiam in ipsa configuratione mundi in ma- 

 joribus non sunt negligendae Instantiae Conformes; veluti 

 Africa, et regio Peruviana cum continente se porrigente usque 

 ad Fretum Magellanicum. Utraque enim regio habet similes 

 isthmos et similia promontoria, quod non temere accidit. 2 



Item Novus et Vetus Orbis; in eo quodutrique orbes versus 



mode of development of their tissues, which, there is reason to believe, were all prima- 

 rily formed from cells. The evidence in favour of this proposition is perhaps not yet 

 quite complete. 



It is curious that, after it had been established in the case of plants, Schleiden con- 

 ceived that in this unity of original structure he had found a character peculiar to 

 vegetable life, so that the analogy between plants and animals seemed to be impaired 

 by the discovery. 



1 '* Natura in Bnita est, sed qui symbola animadverterit omnia intelliget, licet non 

 omnino," are the words of a great poet, who perhaps also is entitled to be called a great 

 philosopher. They form the motto of one of the happiest illustrations of what Bacon 

 meant by instantia conformis, the Parthenogenesis of Professor Owen. 



2 A. von Humboldt has pointed out the conformity of the opposite shores of the 

 Atlantic the approximate correspondence between the projections on each side and 

 the recesses on the other. But Bacon apparently compares not the opposite but the 

 corresponding coasts of Africa and America. C. Concepcion would correspond to 

 C. Negro ; but the parallelism is not very close. 



