PREFACE. 



sure I am, that he who studies the various 

 effects and characters of form, colour, and 

 light and shadow, and examines and com- 

 pares those characters and effects, and the 

 manner In which they are combined and 

 disposed, both in pictures and in nature, — 

 will be better qualified to arrange, certainly, 

 to enjoy, his own and every scenery, than 

 he who has only thought of the most fashi- 

 onable arrangement of objects ; or who has 

 looked at nature alone, without having ac- 

 quired any just principles of selection. 



I believe, however, that this part of my 

 Essay, and the very title of it, mayr have 

 given a false bias to the minds of many 

 of my readers : I am not surprised at such 

 an effect, for it is a very natural conclusion, 

 and often justified, that an author is par- 

 tial to the particular subject on which he 

 has written ; but mine is a particular case. 

 The two characters which Mr. Burke has 



