... I have given the plan of my book, and have briefly outlined for
the benefit of the Reader those features which I consider may be of value
either to him or to myself. Finally I should like to enter a plea that
men of University standing to whom God has given leisure and a suitable
education and intelligence, should spare a brief interval from other pursuits,
and, without in any way neglecting their other studies, that they should
develop the habit of examining Nature, and compile a comprehensive account
of its creatures so that they can begin to gain wisdom by their own experience
rather than from somebody else's brain, and learn to read the leaves of
plants and interpret the characters impressed on flowers and seeds.
Certainly no one need fear that such a study would be unproductive and
useless, for if I may quote the words of P. Laurembergius: "Nothing within
the compass of the whole wide world yields a richer pleasure not only to
the mind but also to the body, the servant of the mind, than the rich store
of plant life, and the copious and varied produce of things growing in
the earth." and a little further on: "I say that Man receives from plants
all the many things which life requires, whether for living simply or in
moderation or in luxury. Human frailty has need of food, drink, medicines,
clothing, housing, furniture, shipping, the pleasures of the senses and
of the mind - all of these needs plants lavish upon us for our use and
enjoyment from their store." as he shows by enumerating each item fully.
I readily admit that, as human affairs are now, such studies do not
greatly contribute to the accumulation of wealth or to the winning of the
favour of our fellow-men, nevertheless I know
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of no occupation which is more worthy or more delightful for a free
man than to contemplate the beauteous works of Nature and to honour the
infinite wisdom and goodness of God the Creator. I do not suggest that
any one should deliver and devote himself entirely to these studies, but
that he should embrace them within reason and sometimes divert himself
with them for his personal pleasure so that he can learn something thoroughly
well even in his moments of leisure and not allow any part of his life
to be completely empty.
I am quite sure that the pursuit of plants will be a pleasurable occupation
for a studious youth for I have known many scholars of every rank in Trinity
College for whom this occupation has afforded not only bodily exercise
but also mental satisfaction. I fully realise that not everyone is captivated
by the sight of flowers or of the meadows in spring, or if they are captivated,
there is something that delights them even more. Some take pleasure in
ball-games, others in drinking, gambling, money-making or popularity-hunting,
and they show themselves very diligent participants in these activities.
I am not writing Phytology for such as these for they are interested in
something quite different, but I offer a hundred banquets for the Pythagoreans,
dedicated to the true philosophy, whom kindly Nature and Titan have fashioned
from finer clay, whose concern is not so much to know what authors think
as to gaze with their own eyes on the nature of things and to listen with
their own ears to her voice, who prefer to know quality to quantity and
usefulness to pretension: to the use of such as these, in accordance with
God's glory, I dedicate this little book and all my studies. |