PKEFACE 



TO THE 



PHENOMENA UNIVERSI. 



THE fragment which follows was first published by 

 Gruter in 1653, who places it among the Impetus Phil- 

 osophici. It appears to have been meant originally for 

 the commencement of the third part of the Instauratio, 

 with the design of which, as described in the Distributio 

 Operis and the Parasceve, it agrees very well as far as 

 it goes. " Tertia pars operis " (says Bacon in the Dis- 

 tributio') " complectitur Phenomena Universi ; hoc est 

 omnigenam experientiam, atque historiam naturalem ejus 

 quce pos&it esse in ordine ad condendam philo- 

 .... Neque corporum tan turn historiam ex- 

 hibemus, sed diligentiae insuper nostrae esse putavimus 

 etiam virtutum ipsaram (illarum dicimus qua3 tanquam 

 c> in finales in natura censeri possint, et in quibus naturae 

 primordia plane constituuntur, utpote naturae primis 

 passionibus ac desideriis ; viz. dense, raro ; calido, 

 frigido ; consistente, fluido ; gravi, levi ; aliisque haud 

 paucis) historiam seorsim comparare." " Quod vero " 

 (he adds in the Para&ceve^) " in distributione operis 

 nostri mention em fecimus cardinalium virtutum in na- 

 tura ; et quod etiam harum historia, antequam ad opus 

 interpretationis ventum fuerit, perscribenda esset ; hujus 



VOL. VII. 15 



