4 INTRODUCTION. 



men who have succeeded each other in the esta- 

 blishment, and whose labours and fame are every 

 where recalled to his remembrance ; the curious 

 are delighted with the splendour of the collec- 

 tions, and with the view of prodigious numbers 

 of foreign plants and animals; and amid this va- 

 riety of objects, the man of letters and the artist 

 find an inexhaustible fund of ideas , and models of 

 every description. 



In the midst of this imposing spectacle , the ac- 

 tivity of peaceful industry, the variety of the plan- 

 tations, the balmy air, the over-arching walks, 

 the view which , from a rising ground covered 

 Avith ever-green trees, extends over the city and 

 the surrounding country; the number of persons 

 who forget in these retreats the cares and agita- 

 tions of the world ; all conspire to render the Mu- 

 seum an abode of tranquillity and intellectual 

 delight. 



Those who devote themselves to the study of a 

 single branch of natural history , soon learn to 

 appreciate that part of the establishment which 

 particularly interests them , but even after a lapse 



