Mr. Ray to Dr. Robinfon. x6$ 



rous our felves to fee them, were at laft dire£fced to a 

 Man's Houfe, who wasfaid to have one* to whom 

 when we came, he fhewed us the Stone, which in* 

 deed at the upper Extreme had fome kihd of Knop 

 or*Protuberance of Stone, but not at all refembling 

 the Head of any Animal. Such a kind of Stone 

 might perhaps be fhewn to Mr. Camden^ whofe Fan- 

 : cy being poflefs'd with the vulgar Conceit, he might 

 without any ftri£fc View, or Examination of it, ad* 

 mit it to be what the Vulgar would have it. 



That the Species of Brontide cannot be the petri* 

 fied Shells of Echini Spatagi^ the Arguments Dr. Plot 

 alledges out of Ariflotk and Rondektius do not evince. 

 For though in fome Seas they may be mKdyioi and 

 azrdvioi yet in others are they plentiful enough. In 

 our own Seas at Llandhwyn^ in the Ifle of Angle fey ^ 

 we may reafonably conjefture they are more plentiful 

 than the common Echini any where with us 5 becaufe 

 we found more of their Shells caft up there on the 

 Shore, than of the Echini on any Shore about Eng- 

 land. And though their Briftles or Prickles were in- 

 deed but fmall, yet were they not few, or thin-fet, as 

 Rondektius faith. 



I thank you for your laft Letter, and the Informa- 

 tion and Advices therein given. As to the Particu- 

 lar of Figures, I find that others are of a different 

 Opinion from you, looking upon an Hiftory of Plants 

 without Figures as a Book of Geography without 

 Maps. A good Figure conveys that to the Mind fud- 

 denly, and with Eafe and Pleafure ; an Idea whereof 

 cannot be formed by the Help of a Defcription with- 

 out Time and Pains, and a greater Attention than 

 mod Readers have Patience to give it. And for Di- 

 re&ions to the beft Figures of known and defcribed 

 Plants in other Books to have recourfe to them, 

 would diftrad and interrupt the Reader, and it's likely 

 but few Readers would have the Books referred to : 

 So that tho' by printing this Work without Figures 



Z it 



