DR. derham's preface. ix 



them. And as for the letters of other great men to 

 Mr. Ray, which I have not pubhshed, they being matters 

 of thanks and comphment chiefly, would have been of 

 no other use than to have shown what eminent men 

 Mr. Ray corresponded with, and how well they approved 

 of his excellent labom's ; which, being things sufficiently 

 known, or that may be presumed, I thought it needless 

 to stuff" the volume, and enhance its price by so frivolous 

 a means. 



And, as I have thus taken care to reject papers of little 

 or no consequence, and to omit in others matters of small 

 consequence, so the learned authors may think I have 

 been too bold with them : but, in answer hereto, I say 

 that I have endeavoured to do, as near as I could, what 1 

 thought they would have done themselves. I have omitted 

 for the most part (or inadvertently published) what Mr. 

 Ray or others had published before, unless in some cases, 

 as when it is joined with some other considerable matter 

 unpublished, or serves to explain, illustrate, or render 

 what is published more complete. And I have published 

 what I thought might be instructive or entertaining to 

 the curious, so far as to make a commodious volume. 

 And as for such valuable papers as are omitted, they may 

 make another volume, if this be kindly received. 



As to the chasms that may be observed between the 

 dates of some of the letters, and the want of answers to 

 some, it was not from any carelessness or omission in me, 

 but from a defect among the letters themselves, which 

 I conceive were either not preserved, or else the corre- 

 spondence might be intermitted. 



As for the method, I was in doubt whether it was best 

 to put every man's letters by themselves, or according 

 to the order of their dates. But the latter being best 



