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ferns. So tliat they put the reader in potTeflion in a fingle 

 our, of what had coft them perhaps ten years' intenfe 

 thought and apphcation. Such were thofe books, which 

 were reputed " cedro digiii," fit to be anointed with 

 cedar-juice, and tlius rendered incorruptible, for the in- 

 ftruftion of all future ages. 



Books, for the origin of, we have nothing that is clear: 

 the books of Mofcs are doubtlefs the oldell of all that are 

 extant; but there were books before them, for Mofes cites 

 feveral. A book of Enoch is cited in the tpiftle of Jude, 

 V. 14. and 15. from which fome endeavour to prove the 

 reality of antediluvian writinp;s ; but the book cited by that 

 apoftle is generally allowed both by ancient and modern 

 ■writers to be fpurious. See Bible. 



Of proplianc books, the oldeft extant are Homer's poems, 

 which were even fo in the time of Sextus Empiricus ; though 

 we find mention in Greek writers, of about teventy others 

 prior to Homer; as Hermes, Orpheus, Daphne, Horus, 

 Linus, Mufieus, Palamcdes, Zoroafter, &c. but of the greater 

 part of thefe, there is not the leaft fragment remaining ; and 

 of the others, the pieces which go under their names are 

 generally held by the learned fuppofititious. F. Hardouin 

 goes farther ; charging all the ancient books, both Greek 

 and Latin, except Cicero, Pliny, Virgil's Georgics, Horace's 

 Satires and Epillles, Herodotus, and Homer, as fpurious, 

 and forged in the thirteenth century, by a club of perfons 

 under the direftion of one Severus Arcontius. Fab. Bib. 

 Gisec. lib. i. cap. i. ^ i. { 6. torn. i. Hardouin de Num. 

 Herod, in Proluf. Act. Eiud. IJpf. an. 1710. p. 70. 



Among the Greeks, it is to be ohferved, the oldell books 

 were in verfc, which waa prior to profe ; Herodotus's hif- 

 tory is the oldeft book extant of the profaic kind. Strabo. 

 Geog. hb. i. Heuman. Via ad Hill. Liter. § 20. p. jo. 

 ^. 21. p. 52. ■ 



Books, the mull'uude of, has been long complained of: 

 the complaint is as old as Solomon, who lived three thou- 

 fand years ago : they are grown too numerous, not only to 

 procure and read, but to fee, to learn the names of, or even 

 to number. England has more to fear on this fcore, than 

 other countries ; fince, bcfidts our own produce, we have, 

 for fome years pad, drained our neighbours. However, as bi 

 fhopCaramuel's fchememifcanied, which was, to write about 

 a hundred volumes in folio, and then prevail on the civil and 

 mihtary powers to oblige all their fubjeCts to read them, we 

 need not much regret the multitude of books. 



In reality, there are few of the immenfe number of books 

 which deferve leiioully to be ftudicd : fur the reft, part of 

 them, like this, are only to beoccalionally confulted, and the 

 reft read for amulement. A mathematician, for inllance, ought 

 not to be entirely ignorant of what is contained in the mathe- 

 matical books ; but then a general knowledge is fufficitnt, 

 which may eafily be had by running over the chief authors ; 

 out of whom references may be made, direfting to the places 

 where they may be found, when wanted. For there are 

 many things which are much better preftrved in books than 

 in the memoi-y ; as aftronomical obfervations, tables, rules, 

 theorems, proportions, and in fine, whatever does not fpon- 

 taneoufly adhere to the memory, when once known. For 

 the lefs we croud that faculty, the readier and freer will 

 the genius remain for inventing. 



Other books may be valuable in themfelves, for fome fpe- 

 cial purpofe, or in fome peculiar fcience, but are not fit to be 

 perufed except by thofe who are engaged in that particular 

 fcience, or bufinels. To what ufe is it for a divme, or a 

 phyfician, or a tradefman, to read over the huge volumes of 

 reports of adjudged cafes in the law ? Or for a lawyer to 

 learn Hebrew and read the Rabbins, unlefs his inclination 

 8 



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leads him, and his leifure allows him to employ himfelf in 

 this way ? For improvement of knowledge and faving of 

 time, it is of great importance for young perfons to have 

 the moft proper books for his reading, recommended by a 

 judicious friend. 



Books of importance of any kind, and efpecially complete 

 treatifes on any fubjeft, flioidd be firft read m a more general 

 and curfory manner, to learn in lome degree what the trea- 

 tife promifes, and what you may expect from the writer's 

 manner and flciU. For this purpofe let the pvelace be read, 

 and the table of contents, if there be any, before thij firfl 

 furvey of the book. By this means you will not only be 

 better fitted to give the book a firft reading, but be much 

 afhlled in a fecond perufal of it, wliich fhouid be done with 

 greater attention and deliberation, and you will learn with 

 more eafe and readinefs what the author proftfTes to teach. 

 In reading it will be ufeful to mark what is new or unknown 

 to you belore, and to review thofe chapters, pages, or para- 

 graphs. Unlefs a reader has an uncommon and moft re- 

 tentive memory, we may venture to affirm, that there is 

 fcarccly any book or cliapter worth reading once, that is 

 not worthy of a fecond perufal. At leaft it will be proper 

 carefully to review all the lines or paragraphs which were 

 previoufly marked, and to recolleft the feflions which were 

 thought truly valuable. There is another reafon why it 

 will be ufeful to take a fuperficiai and curfory furvey of a 

 book, before we fit down to read it, and to dwell upon it 

 with ftiidious attention ; and that is, that there may be feveral 

 difficulties in it, which we cannot eafily underftand and re- 

 folve at the firft reading, for want uf a fuller comprehenfion 

 of tiie author's whole fchenic. Many fueh difficulties 

 would be unravelled when we have proceeded farther in fuch 

 books, or would vaniih themfelves upon a fecond reading. 

 What we cannot thoroughly underftand at firft may be 

 noted down as matter of lubfequent conflderation and in- 

 quiry, if the pages that follow do not liappen to flrike a 

 complete light on thofe which went before. In perufing 

 books that treat of fubjcrts of natural, moral, or divine 

 fcience, it fhouid be confidered that it is our bufinefs, not 

 merely to know the opinion of the author, for this is but 

 the mere knowledge of hillory ; but truly to refieft, whether 

 his opinions are jull or not, and to improve our own know- 

 ledge of the lubjcdt by a careful inveftigation of it. With 

 this view we fhouid deal freely with every author whofe 

 works we read, and yield our aflent only to evidence and 

 jull reafoning. If a writer on any particular fubjecl, to 

 which your attention is directed, maintains fentiments fimilar 

 to your own, but does not explain his ideas, or prove his 

 pofitious to your fatisfaftion, mark fiis defeats, or faults, 

 and endeavour to do it belter, either in the margin of your 

 book, or rather on fome papers of your own. e. g. When 

 the author is obfcure, enlighten him ; where he is imperfedf, 

 fupply his deficiencies ; where he is too concife, amplify, 

 and fct his notion in a fairer view ; where he is redundant, 

 mark the paragraphs that ought to be retrenched ; where 

 he trifles and indulges to impertinence, abandon thofe paf- 

 fages, or pages ; where he argues, obferve whether his rea- 

 fons be conclufive ; if the conclufion be true, but the argu- 

 ment weak, endeavour to confirm it by better proofs; where be 

 deduces any propofitions obfcurely, or doubtfully, make the 

 juftnefs of the inference to appear, and add further inferences 

 or corollaries, if fuch occur to your mind ; where you fup- 

 pofe he is miftaken, propofe your objedions, and correCl 

 his errors ; what he writes fo well as to approve itfelf to 

 your judgment, as both juft and ufeful, treafure up in 

 your memory, and count it a part of your intellcftual gains. 

 If the method of a book be irregular, reduce it into form, 



by 



