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Show The EpHUe to the Reader. the Cl'ain; to read it. 1 haw (o little AjfeRation to be i11 Print, that if I were not fiattered, thu Ejfay migl:t be of fame ufe to · others, as 1 t/Jillk,it l>as hem to me,Ijhot~ld ha-ve coll{i11ed it to the view of (ome Frinlds, "l'ho gaw the ftrft Occa(lon to it. My appearing therefore· in P~int, being on purpofe to be as ufeful M 1 m~y, I think it necejJary to make 1l>bat I haw to Jay as ea(te and imelligible to all forts of R eadm as I can. find I had much rather t1Je fpemlati)le and qtiick-ftghtcd jhould complain of my beittg in fome parts tedious, tba? that a11y one, not accufiomed to abflraa Spec11latious, or prepojfejfed unth dijferwt Notsons, jhot~ld miftake, or not comprehend my meaning. . . It "»Jill pofobly be cenfured as a grtat psece of Vamty, or In/oleuce in me, to pretend to i>zftrua thu our knowi>tg .Age, it amotlilting to little left, wlmd o1~n ' t/Jat 1 publijh it 1l>it!J hopes it may be ttfe• ful to others. !Btst if it may be permitted to fpeak freely of tho(e, "»Jho 1l>ith a feigned .:Modefiy co>ldemn as u(elejs "R>hat they themfelws "ll>rite, methin!u it favours much more of Vanity or ln(olence, to publijh a !Book for any _other end; and IJt fails· Wry much of that R efpea be o"»Jes the Publick, "ll>ho prints, and confequently ex peas .:Mm fhould read that, "»Jherei11 he intmds not they fhould mee: "ll>ith any thing of life to themfelves.or others : and fhould nothi>tg elfe be found allowable in thu Treatife, yet my 'De{tgn "ll>illnot ce.tfe to be fo; and the Goodnefs of my intention ought to be fomt Exmje for the Wortble(mefs of my Prefent. 'Tu that ciJiefly "11>/,ich fecum me from the Fear of Cenfure, which I expea not to efcape more than better Writm., .:Mm's Principles,Notions and !J?...elifhes are fo different, that it is hard to find a IJ3ook which pleafe; or difpleafts all .:Men. I ackJIO"II>ledge tiJe .Age toe li)'e in, is 110t the leafl knowing, and therefore 11ot the moft ea{te to be fatisfied ; 1vhich if I haw 110t the good luck to doe, no !Body yet ought to be ojjmded "ll>ith· me. 1 plainly tell all my IJ(eaders, except half a do:<Jn, this "J'reatije 1l>as 11ot at firrt intmded for tiJem ; and t/Jerefore tbey nud not be at the Trouble to be of that number. !Bttt yet if any one tiJinks fit to be "'!!:ry, and rail at it, he may do it fecurely : For I jhall find jome better "»Jay of [pending my time, tban in Jucb kind of Conwrfation. 1 fhall alll>ays ba)le tbe}a• tufaElion to haw aimed fincerely at Trtttb and Ujefulnejs, thougb in one of tbe meanefl ways. The Commolll~ealtiJ of Learni>tg, is not at tbu tim_e ll>itiJout.:Mafler-Builders, 1vho{e mighiy 'De[ig11s i11 ad)lancittg the Sctences, Jvtlllea"Ve lajlmg Monuments to the .Admiration of Pofterity ; !But e)lery one mufl not hope to be a Boyle, or aSydenham; a11d i11 an .ig~ tbat produc~s fuch .:Maflers, _as the 9reat --Huygenius, a11d the mcomparable Mr. Newton, w1thjome other of tiJat Strain; "tis Ambition enough to be employed as an Under• Labourer in clear it!!: the ground alJUle, and remo)lmg fome of the Rubbifh, that lies in the 1l>ay to f\.now• ledge ; "ll>htcb certamly bad lem Wry mucb more advanced in t/1e World, if The Epifile to the Reader. if tiJe Endea)lours of iltgwious and induflriotts .:Men had not been muc!1 cumbred lvitb the leamed but {ril>OlJU tift of mzco11th, ajfeRed or unintel• ligible Terms, introduced int(}.the Sciencei, alul there made a;, .Art of to that 'Degree: that Philofopby, "»Jbich i4 uotbi>!!: but the (rue f0zowledge of17>ittgs,l1w tbougbt unfit or tWCdpable to be brought into well-bred (om' pany,and polite (onwrfatimz. Vag"e az~d in(~J;nificant Forms of Speech,and .Abufe of L augMge, ha)le .fa loug paffed for .:Myfteries ofSciez1ce: find hard or mifapply;d Words,Toit/, little or >[O meaning, ha)le, by Pre{cription, fuch a !RJ.ght to be mtftr.ken Jot deep Learm>zg and he:gf,th of Spec~lation that it \viii not be eojie to pe1uade either thofe who Jptak, or thofo . lvh; hear them, tiHtt 1hey are /mt the Cowrroj Iguorancr, aud hiudrmice of true J0zo"fl>ledge1 To break Ill upon thts SanEiuary of Pcmity m1d Ignor~ nce, 1l>l{l br,l (r<ppofe, fome SerVICe to humane Uuderftanding: Tbougl; Jo jeTv are apt to lthmk, they de~et)le, or are decei)led i11 the Uje of Words ; or that tbe l.,auguage of the Sea they are of, has a>ry Faults in it1 .which otght to be qanjined or correaed, that I hope 1 foal/ he p<trdon'd if I /,,,win the 17Jir4 !Book clll>elt loJtg 011 thu $ubjea; and ellllea)ld11;.etl to ·make it fo plai11,j that ueitbcr the in)leratqnejs of the Mifchiej, uor the pre• l•almcy of the Fafhton, fh ,z/1 be any Exmft (or tf!O]e, who Toil/ 110t. take Care about the meaning of th~ir o"fl>n Word,, amiJvillnot Ji<jfer the Sig· nijicJJIICJ vf their Expre!Jions to be enquired into. . } hal>e bem tpld t!Jat a fhort Epitome of thif Tr,atifl1whic/, "»Jas printed ~bout tll>o Years fince,, lMs by .fame condelm1ed U!ith~ut reading, becaufe t>Jnate Ideas l)>ene demed m tt ; they tqo hafttly concludmg, that if innate Ideas "ll>ere not fisppofed, there "»Jot<ld be little le{f, tither of the l'(,otion or Proof of Spirits. If any one take t/}e li'ke .Oifence at the Entratice of thu Treatife, I (ball de fire him to read it through : and then I hope he 1l>tU be con)lmced, tiJat the takmg a1l>ay falfe Fouud~~tiotlS is not to the prejudice,but advmuage of Tmtb ; "ll>hic/, is n-,)ler injur'd or endanger' d Jo mtsch, as wlm1 mixed 1llith, or built 011 Falfhood. One thi'tg more I muft adwrtife my !J?...eader of, and that is, 17Jat the Summary of eac/,Seaiml is printed in Italick Charaflers,whereby the fll.!a• der may find the Contwts almofi aJ well as if it had been printed it~ tbe .!Margin by the fide, if a little allozva11ce be 111ade for tbe 9rammatical Co>zftr11Elion, "!1>/,ich in tl>e Text it ftlf cotlld not always be Jo ordere4, as to make perjea Propo(ltimls, 1l>hich yei by tbe Words pritlted in Italick maybeeajilygue!Jed at. · ' THE |