( 284 ) 



NOTE COXCLUSORY. 



Thus ends a book, composed in solitude, and almost 

 without the cognisance of a single human being, for the 

 sole purpose (or as nearly so as may be) of impi'oving 

 the knowledge of mankind, and through that medium 

 their happiness. For reasons which need not be specified, 

 the author's name is retained in its original obscurit}', 

 and, in all probal)ility, will never be generally known, i 

 do not expect that any word of praise which the work 

 may elicit shall ever be responded to by me ; or that 

 any word of censure shall ever be parried or deprecated. 

 It goes forth to take its chance of instant oblivion, or 

 of a long and active course of usefulness in the world. 

 Neither contingency can be of any importance to me, 

 beyond the i-egret or the satisfaction which may be 

 imparted by my sense of a lost or a realised benefit to 

 my fellow-creatures. The book, as far as I am aware, is 

 the first attempt to connect the natural sciences into a 

 histoiy of creation. As such, it must necessarily be in 

 some measure crude and unsatisfactory, even overlooking 

 errors of detail justly attributable to my own defective 

 knowledge. Yet I have thought that the time was come 

 for attempting to weave a great generalisation out of 

 established natural truths — not that these were to be 

 held sufiicient for such a purpose, but that it is neces- 



