[ 47 ] 



through all times. If natural hiflorians, or they 

 who draw for them, would carefully obferve thefe 

 rules, fome of them might, perhaps, produce 

 figures that would be deemed perfed by the 

 JcnoWing naturalifts of thefe times, and efcape 

 their cenfure ^ then might they, like the cele- 

 brated ftatues of the ancient Greeks and Ro- 

 mans, pafs down as models to future ages, as 

 things juftly and truly reprefenting nature ; but 

 thefe things are rather to be wiflied for than ex- 

 pelled. 



I have been as perfe6t in my Natural Hiftory 

 as the nature of the thing will admit of, in or-> 

 der that it may be added to a new general Orni- 

 thology (which, I think, is wanting) in cafe any 

 ^one fit for the taflc fhould undertake it. It may 

 not be here improper to give my thoughts on 

 that -fubje6t, the ftudy of which has lain dor- 

 mant for many years : I know no Englifli au- 

 thor who has wrote any thing confiderable fmce 

 Mr. Ray revifed U^illoughbyh manufcript Hiftory 

 of Birds, which was publillied anno 1678, till 

 <)f later years Mr. Ray hath added fom.e few, 

 which fee in his Synopjis Method, Avium ^ &c. 



where 



