INTRODUCTION. 



The Work here presented to the public was undertaken 

 with the hope of supplying, in part at least, what seemed a 

 remarkable deficiency in the course of academical study 

 pursued throughout the United States, under the general, but 

 not often rigidly denned appellation of Natural History. 



In the respective departments of the Natural History of 

 Animals, exclusive of Conchology and Human Physiology, 

 in this latter science itself, in Botany with Vegetable Physio- 

 logy, and in Geology, although much remains to be done, still 

 there appears no absolute hiatus, in regard to the necessary 

 text books. I say in these respective departments; but it 

 must have occurred to every scientific man who thinks upon 

 the subject, as singular, that in a science whose very exist- 

 ence may be truly said to depend upon method, there should 

 have been no attempt made to collect the parts into a readily 

 discernible whole. The entire course of Natural History, as 

 now taught, is only gleaned by the Student from a variety of 

 distinct sources — sources differing in manner, and often (from 

 the very nature of sciences not included among "the exact") 

 discordant, and often conflicting, in the more important par- 

 ticulars of matter and arrangement. A perfect remedy for 

 this latter evil could, perhaps, be found only m a work of 

 magnitude, and consequent expense, unfitting it for general 

 dissemination. It is, however, not so much in any thing of 

 this extended character, as in a well digested and fully com- 

 prehensive Synopsis that we are deficient. 



A compendium appears to be wanting, which, discarding 



