CIVIL AND NATURAL. Xlii 



membrance of mere faffs, independently of ratioci- 

 nation, which belongs to philosophy; or of imitations 

 and substitutions, which are the province of art. 



Were a superior created intelligence to delineate 

 a map of general knowledge (exclusively of that sub- 

 lime and stupendous theology, which himself could 

 only hope humbly to know by an infinite approxima- 

 tion) he would probably begin by tracing with New- 

 ton the system of the universe, in which he would as- 

 sign the true place to our little globe ; and, having 

 enumerated its various inhabitants, contents, and 

 productions, would proceed to man in his natural sta- 

 tion among animals, exhibiting a detail of all the 

 knowledge attained or attainable by the human race ; 

 and thus observing perhaps, the same order in which 

 he had before described other beings in other inha- 

 bited worlds ; but though Bacon seems to have had a 

 similar reason for placing the history of Nature before 

 that of Man, or the whole before one of its parts, yet, 

 consistently with our chief object already mentioned, 

 we may properly begin with the civil hist ory of the 

 five Asiatic nations, which necessarily comprises their 

 -Geography, or a description oi\\\z places where they 

 have acted, and their Astronomy, which may enable 

 -us to fix witli some accuracy the time of their actions; 

 we shall thence be led to the history of such other 

 animals, of such minerals, and of such vegetables as 

 they may be supposed to have found in their several 

 migrations and settlements, and shall end with the 

 uses to which they have applied, or may apply, the 

 rich .assemblage of natural substances. 



J. In 



