i274 CHAPTER 20. 
trufted by his widow to the care of Dr. Dejr-^ 
HAM ^ who, after publifhing the His- 
TORI A Insectorum/' felefted a number 
of his letters, and printed them, in 1718, 
under the title of Philosophical Let- 
TERs between the learned Mr. Ray and 
'* feveral of his Correfpondents, natives 
and foreigners." 8*. pp. 367. 
This colled:ion contains 2 1 8 letters ^ of 
which, fixty-eight were written by Mr, 
Ray himfelf. Among his correfpondents, 
the moft frequent were Dr. Lister, Sir 
Fh'/tp Skip PON, Dr. Ta?2cred Robinson^ 
Sir Hans Sloane, Mr. Llwyd, Mr. Jes- 
sop, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Olden- 
burgh. The firft of Mr* Ray*s letters 
bears date in 1667, the laft in 1705. 
The correfpondence of learned and fcien- 
tific men, feldom fails to be a welcome pre- 
fent to thcfe of limilar literature and pur- 
fuits 'y for, befides the perfonal intereft we 
take in their concerns,, they commonly de- 
lineate, in the moft faithful colours, the 
charafters of the writers, frequently afcer- 
tain difcoveries, and enable their fuccelTors 
to trace the progrefs of knowledge in a. 
niore 
