2 INTRODUCTION. 



traveller. Mungo Park, was at one period of* his 

 perilous course, fainting in the vast wilderness of 

 an African desert, naked and alone, considering his 

 days as numbered, and nothing appearing to remain 

 for him but to lie down and die. a small moss flower 

 of extraordinary beauty caught his eye. " Though 

 the whole plant." says he. ; * was not larger than one 

 of my fingers, I could not contemplate the delicate 

 conformation of its root-. ncl capsules, with- 



out admiration! Can that Reiner, who planted, 

 watered, and brought to perfection, in this obscure 

 part of the world, a tiling which appears of so small 

 importance, look with unconcern upon the situation 

 and sufferings of creatures formed after his own 

 image ? Surely not. Reflections like these would not 

 allow me to despair; I started up. and disregarding 

 both hunger and fatigue, travelled forwards, assured 

 that relief was at hand ; and I was not disap- 

 pointed*." And with the disposition to wonder and 

 adore, in like manner, can no branch of Natural 

 History be studied, without increasing that faith, 

 love, and hope, which we also, every one of us, need, 

 in our own journey through the wilderness of life. 



There are some points in which the structure and 

 powers of the winged tribe demand more attention 

 and admiration than those of any other class, inas- 

 much as the object to be attained is a more extra- 

 ordinary one. and the difficulties to be overcome, 

 such as the utmost ingenuity of man has been found 

 utterly unable to meet. Let us suppose a person to 

 have grown from infancy to manhood, without ever 

 having heard of a bird. He sees that the light 

 * Park's Travels in Africa. 



