INTRODUCTION. 
XXVil 
thousand volumes of printed books, among which 
Tire a great number of biographical tracts, many 
of them of great rarity and curiosity ; and abou! 
forty volumes of manuscripts, the greater number 
of them being an obituary kept by himself, du¬ 
ring the whole period of his active career. 
For the greatest, and though not the most The 
conspicuous, yet no doubt the most valuable of 
the accessions by gift, the public is indebted 
to the spontaneous and splendid munificence 
of a private individual, upon wdiom, were this 
a place for panegyric, the greatest encomiums 
ought in justice to be bestowed. The Rev. 
Clayton Mordaunt Cracherode, M. A. ; a gehtle- 
nian equally eminent for knowledge, taste, and 
urbanity, had, during the whole course of his 
too limited career, employed his time, talents 
and ample fortune, in forming numerous and 
choice collections of printed hooks, prints, 
coins and medals, minerals and shells. This 
treasure he, with a liberality of which there are 
few examples, was pleased to bequeath to the 
Museum, where, due preparations having been 
made for its reception, it was actually deposited 
in the year 1799 - To enumerate only the most 
considerable articles of these collections would far 
exceed the limits of this introduction ; but some 
e 2 idea 
