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As for the ancient Greeks and Romans, their 

 drefs prevented their being • fo much in the fields as 

 we are ; or, if they heard of a rather extraordinary bird 

 in their neighbourhood, they had not a gun to fhoot 

 it : the only method of attaining real knowledge 

 in natural hiftory, depends almoft entirely upon 

 the having frequent opportunities of thus killing ani- 

 mals, and examining them when dead. 



If- they did not ftir much in their own 

 country, much lefs did they think of travellings 

 into diftant regions ; want of bills of exchange, and ; 

 of that curiofity which arifes from our being ; 

 thoroughly acquainted with what is near us at home, . 

 probably occafioned this; to which may alfo be 

 added, the want of a variety of languages : fcarcely 

 any Greek feems to have known more than his own 

 tongue, nor Roman more than two*. 



Ariftotle, indeed, began fomething like a fyftem 

 of natural hiftory, and Pliny put down, in his com-* 

 mon place-book, many an idle ftory ; but, before 

 the invention of printing, copies of their works r 

 could not be fo generally difperfed,: as to occafion i 

 much attention to what might be interfiling facls for 

 the natural hiflorian. 



In the fixteenth century, Gefner, Belon, and 

 Aldrovandus, published fome materials, which might . 

 be of ufe to future naturalifts ; but, in the feven- 

 teenth, Ray and Willoughy firft treated this exten- 

 five branch of iludy, with that clearnefs of method, 



* It need be fcarcely here mentioned alfo, that their navigation 

 was confined to the Meditexanean, from the compafs. not having 

 been then difcovered, 



perfpicuity 



