The PREFACE. 



Publication of any of them. And as for the Letters of 

 other great Men to Mr. Ray, which I have not pub- 

 lifhed, they being Matters of thanks and Complement 

 chiefly i yuould have been of no other ufe, than to have 

 Jhewn what eminent Men Mr. Ray correfponded with, 

 and how well they approved of his excellent Labours : 

 Which being things Sufficiently known, or that may be 

 pre fumed, I thought it needle fs to fluff the Volume, and 

 enhance its Price by fo frivolous a Means. 



And as I have thus taken care to reject Papers of lit" 

 tie or no Confequence, and to ' omit in others Matters of 



. /mall Confequence, fo the learned Authors may think I 

 have been too bold with them. But, in anfwer hereto, 

 I fay that I have endeavoured to do^ as near as I could, 

 what I thought they would have done themfelves. I 

 have omitted^ for the mofl part, (or inadvertently pub- 

 lifhed) what ^ Mr. Ray or others had publifhed before, 

 unlefs in fome Cafes, as when it is joined with fome other 

 considerable Matter unpublifhed, or ferves to explain, 

 illuflrate, or render what is publifhed more compleat. 

 And I have publifhed what I thought might be inftru- 

 ffive or entertaining to the Curious, fo far as to make a 

 commodious Volume. And as for fuch valuable Papers 

 as are oynitted, they may make another Volume, if this 



. be kindly received. 



As to the Chafms that may be obferved between the 

 Dates of fome of the Letters, and the want of Anfwer s 

 to fome, it was not from any Carelefnefs or Omifflon in 



* me, " but from a Defeft among the letters themfelves^ 

 which I conceive were either not preferved, or elfe the 

 Correfpondence might be intermitted. 



As for the Method, I was in doubt whether it was 

 beft to put every Man's Letters by themfelves^ or accord- 

 ing to the Order of their Dates. But the latter being 

 beft approved of by fome of the Authors themfelves, and 

 that which indeed I had good Reafons to efteem beft, I 

 accordingly did it as well as I could, abating for a Mi- 

 flake or two 7 where the Papers happened to be miflaid. 



Having 



