320 
Proceedings of the Royal Society 
company myself seeing that in the course of those twenty-four pages 
my name is printed no less than 85 times ; and there are not fewer 
than 70 cases of extracts in inverted commas, from some one or 
another of my several Pyramid writings during four years past, 
besides passages, ideas, facts and numbers more numerous still, 
similarly derived, but without the commas ! 
Such a masked battery against one individual, was probably never 
before opened in the pages of a journal intended for the advance- 
ment of science alone; and yet, if its fire had been directed against 
actual and positive errors, not only might the previous masking of 
the battery under another title have been condoned, but great praise 
and extensive thanks would have been due to its engineer — so all- 
important in the present day of earnest prosecutions of science is it, 
that the pathways of knowledge should be cleared of every fault, 
slip, or mistake of each of its previous cultivators. After having, 
however, carefully read the twenty-four accusatory pages, I am 
sorry to say, that the general effect on my mind, is not admiration 
at the clear proofs of error afforded, so much as astonishment at the 
ingenious and intricate manner in which an opposite meaning is 
given to the majority of those very numerous extracts just alluded 
to, than what I had intended them to convey. 
This fact may imply, that my style of writing was imperfect ; and 
perhaps it was ; seeing that, like most scientific authors, I wrote for 
those only who were anxious to understand me. Sad loss of time too 
would it be, and needless extension of treatises, to attempt anything 
further; for we see elsewhere, that after the best lawyers of the 
land have striven to make the wording of some Act of Parliament as 
exact and stringent as possible, common report tells that other 
clever men, but of rather perverse inclinations, very soon contrive 
to find out howto drive a “coach and four horses” through 
that very, and the self-same, expensive piece of parchment. 
And if those clever men are further allowed to cut up the one 
Act of Parliament they are attacking, into quotations of any num- 
ber of words, from one, to two, three and upwards, and distribute 
them confusingly among similar shreds of certain abrogated Acts, 
and other still more extraneous matter also, — you may easily ima- 
gine what an erroneous view of the existing law of the land could 
easily be prepared ; but also how totally unusual such a method 
