THE AUTHOR'S PREFACE. THE design of the present Work is, to bring together in a series of historical discourses, the whole of Ancient and Modern Geography, in such a manner as to furnish the reader with a lively picture of the whole terraqueous globe, with all its different countries-the memorable places which they contain-the tribes of men by which they have been successively peopled, and those which at the present moment are its inhabitants. It appears an immense undertaking, when we consider how many varied details require to be combined in a work of moderate size. It might even appear rash in its nature, when we contemplate the characters of the different subjects embraced in it-subjects which have usually been consigned to erudite rather than to elegant pens, and have been regarded as susceptible of no brilliancy of literary composition, or depth of philosophical remark. The diffidence which the prospect of so many difficulties naturally creates, has, however, yielded to a thorough conviction, that the science of geography admits of being made very different from what it now is. We have thus reasoned: Is not geography the sister and rival of history? If the one enjoys the empire of universal time, does not the other rightfully claim that of place? If the one has the power of recalling past generations, should not the other exert that of fixing in one scene the shifting pictures of history, by delineating to the mind the permanent theatre of the poor and brief transactions of mankind, strewed with the wrecks of numerous empires; and describe the course of nature, constantly occupied in repairing, by its beneficial operation, the ravages arising from human discord? Does not a description of the globe intimately connect itself with a study of human nature, human manners, and human institutions? Does it not offer information of the utmost importance to the political sciences? Is not this department always brought fully into view before a complete form can be given to any branch of natural history? And does it not supply literature with a boundless treasure of feelings and of images? These considerations have cherished in our minds the hope of raising for geography a monument not unworthy to rank along with the pleasing compositions by which history has been adorned. Many long years would indeed be requisite to confer on such a work that degree of perfection which it is natural to desire, In publishing it in a state short of this, we find ourselves excused by the urgent demands made on us for "Treatise on Geography." The attempt now laid before the public, will, we hope, with all its imperfections, satisfy the wishes of those who complain that there is an absolute want of a work by which geography may be learned, without the risk of contracting a permanent disrelish for this branch of instruction. a We presume to trust that our compend may be qualified to serve as a guide to any professor who is ambitious of teaching geography in a profitable manner;— that in the more advanced seminaries it may be put into the hands of pupils;-and that it will not be an unacceptable present to adults, who have long passed their period of tuition, and wish to acquire instruction by private reading. It is the Author's most ambitious wish, that his work may obtain the suffrages of those real philosophers, who, in every science, set even less value on its useful economical results, than on the intellectual enjoyment and the improvement which the study of it implies. The following is the arrangement of the present work: It will begin with the general theory of geography, consisting of its Mathematical, Physical, and Political principles. From astronomy we shall borrow the requisite information, respecting the figure, size, and motions of our planet; from geometry, the views which are most necessary for understanding the art of representing, in small plans, the exact form of the lands and the seas: we shall explain the method of determining the actual distances of places, and comparing with one another the measures employed in different countries. Proceeding next to the physical picture of the globe, we shall take a view of the leading features of nature; the mountains which diversify the surface of the land, the seas which bound its outline, and the rivers and the valleys by which it is intersected. We shall seek our way downward, through caverns and through mines. We shall direct over the brink of the volcanic crater an eye of interest and curiosity; and thus do our utmost to explore the structure of the globe. After inquiring into the motions of the atmosphere, and the laws of temperature, we shall distribute into their native regions the animals, the plants, and all the beings that are nourished in the exhaustless bosom of the earth. We shall conclude the picture by considering man in his natural and in his political condition. We shall classify the races of our species according to the varieties which are marked in their bodily appearance and character-according to the languages which they speak -according to the creeds by which their minds are consoled, or degraded and enslaved-and according to the laws which mark the progress of civilization, or the profound darkness of utter barbarism. What revolutions has the terrestrial globe undergone? This is a question which equally interests the history of man and that of nature. But is it a question which enters into the science of physical geography ? is it a question which, in the present state of our knowledge, we can profitably discuss? We shall not certainly undertake to resolve the problem, or series of problems, which it implies; but we shall present to our readers a view of the leading facts which geologists employ to construct their brilliant, but empty systems. This philosophical theory of geography will occupy the first volume of our work. The others, with the exception of one, will be devoted to a successive description of all the parts of the world. In that department we found it necessary to engage in |