be useful to them; leaving their
natural genius to mechanical and physical, or natural knowledge
uncultivated and neglected; which would be of exceeding use and pleasure
to them through the whole course of their life.

To be sure, languages are not to be despised or neglected; but things
are still to be preferred.

Children had rather be making of tools and instruments of play; shaping,
drawing, framing, and building, etc., than getting some rules of
propriety of speech by heart; and those also would follow with more
judgment and less trouble and time.

It were happy if we studied nature more in natural things, and acted
according to nature; whose rules are few, plain, and most reasonable.

Let us begin where she begins, go her pace, and close always where she
ends, and we cannot miss of being good naturalists.

The creation would not be longer a riddle to us: the heavens, earth, and
waters, with their respective, various, and numerous inhabitants: their
productions, natures, seasons, sympathies, and antipathies; their use,
benefit, and pleasure would be better understood by us: and an eternal
wisdom, power, majesty, and goodness very conspicuous to us through
those sensible and passing forms: the world wearing the mark of its
Maker, whose stamp is everywhere visible, and the characters very
legible to the children of wisdom.

And it would go a great way to caution and direct people in their use of
the world that they were better studied and known in the creation of it.

For how could man find the confidence to abuse it, while they should
find the Great Creator stare them in the face, in all and every part
thereof?

Their ignorance makes them insensible and that insensibility hardy in
misusing this noble creation, that has the stamp and voice of a Deity
everywhere, and in everything to the observing.

It is pity, therefore, that books have not been composed for youth, by
some curious and careful naturalists, and also mechanics, in the Latin
tongue, to be used in schools, that they might learn things with words:
things obvious and familiar to them, and which would make the tongue
easier to be obtained by them.

Many able gardeners and husbandmen are yet ignorant of the reason of
their calling; as most artificers are of the reason of their own rules
that govern their excellent workmanship. But a naturalist and mechanick
of this sort is master of the reason of both, and might be of the
practice, too, if his in