PREFACE. xxiii 



far the dispersion of the Aristotelian clouds which , 

 once obscured natural philosophy. Tournefort 

 was a mighty name, which, though infinitely infe- 

 rior in true value to that of Linnaeus, was never- 

 theless, fortunately for them, of sufficient import- 

 ance with his countrymen to make them call in 

 question the infallibility of any other. When there- 

 fore the majestic eloquence of Buffo n and the pro- 

 found observations of Bernard Jussieu were pub- 

 licly known, a few French naturalists became satis- 

 fied that natural history had higher objects in view, 

 than either to name the contents of a museum, to 

 describe new species, institute new genera, or even 

 to unravel the intricacy of synonyms. 



This country also has at last, under the auspices 

 of a few justly celebrated men, spurned the fetters 

 so long imposed on her, and proclaimed to the 

 world, that whatever degree of respect may be due 

 to the name of Linnaeus, (and none has paid a 

 greater,) yet nature, and nature only, is infallible. 

 It was thus onlv that England could ever have taken 

 her proper place in the annals of natural science— 

 that pre-eminent place to which her discoveries in 

 philosophy proved that she was entitled, even at the 

 moment when her naturalists were lost in prejudice, 

 if not in error. But this prejudice is, in truth, to 

 be imputed to some only of our countrymen, since 

 the whole of Europe acknowledges and admires, 



