Memorials of a private and personal kind, which relate deaths, marriages, and preferments, must always be imperfect by omiffion, and often erroneous by misinformation; but even in these there shall not be wanting care to avoid mistakes, or to rectify them whenever they fhall be found.

That part of our work, by which it is diftinguifhed from all others, is the literary journal, or account of the labours and productions of the learned. This was for a long time among the deficiences of English literature; but as the caprice of man is always ftarting from too little to too much, we have now amongst other difturbers of human quiet, a numerous body of reviewers and remarkers.

Every art is improved by the emulation of competitors; thofe who make no advances towards excellence, may ftand as warnings against faults. We fhall endeavour to avoid that petulance which treats with contempt whatever has hitherto been reputed facred. We shall reprefs that elation of malignity, which wantons in the cruelties of criticifim, and not only murders reputation, but murders it by torture. Whenever we feel ourselves ignorant we fhall at least be modeft. Our intention is not to pre-occupy judgment by praife or cenfure, but to gratify curiofity by early intelligence, and to tell rather what our authors have attempted, than what they have performed. The titles of books are neceffarily fhort, and therefore difclofe but imperfectly the contents; they are fometimes fraudulent and intended to raise falfe expectations. In our account this brevity will be extended, and thefe frauds whenever they are detected will be expofed; for though we write without intention

intention to injure, we fhall not fuffer ourselves to be made parties to deceit.

If any author fhall transmit a fummary of his work, we shall willingly receive it; if any literary anecdote, or curious obfervation, fhall be communicated to us, we will carefully infert it. Many facts are known and forgotten, many obfervations are made and fuppreffed; and entertainment and inftruction are frequently loft, for want of a repository in which they may be conveniently preserved.

No man can modeftly promife what he cannot afcertain we hope for the praise of knowledge and difcernment, but we claim only that of diligence and candour.

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Avigation, like other arts, has been perfected by degrees. It is not eafy to conceive that any age or nation was without fome veffel, in which rivers might be paffed by travellers, or lakes frequented by fishermen; but we have no knowledge of any fhip that could endure the violence of the ocean before the ark of Noah.

As the tradition of the deluge has been tranfmitted to almost all the nations of the earth; it must be fuppofed that the memory of the means by which Noah and his family were preserved, would be continued long among their defcendants, and that the poffibility of paffing the feas could never be doubted.

What men know to be practicable, a thousand motives will incite them to try; and there is reafon to believe, that from the time that the generations of the poft-diluvian race fpread to the fea fhores, there were always navigators that ventured upon the fea, though, perhaps, not willingly beyond the fight of land.

Of the ancient voyages little certain is known, and it is not neceffary to lay before the Reader fuch

A Collection of Voyages and Travels, felected from the writers of all nations, in four fmall pocket volumes, and published by Newbery; to oblige whom, it is conjectured that Johnson drew up this curious and learned paper.

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intention to injure, we shall not fuffer ourselves to be made parties to deceit.

If any author fhall transmit a fummary of his work, we shall willingly receive it; if any literary anecdote, or curious obfervation, shall be communicated to us, we will carefully infert it. Many facts are known and forgotten, many obfervations are made and fuppreffed; and entertainment and instruction are frequently loft, for want of a repository in which they may be conveniently preserved.

No man can modeftly promise what he cannot afcertain: we hope for the praise of knowledge and difcernment, but we claim only that of diligence and candour.

Bb3

John, the first king of Portugal, and Philippina, fifter of Henry the fourth of England. Don Henry having attended his father to the conquest of Ceuta, obtained, by converfation with the inhabitants of the continent, fome accounts of the interior kingdoms and fouthern coast of Africa; which, though rude and indiftinct, were fufficient to raise his curiofity, and convince him, that there were countries yet unknown and worthy of difcovery.

He therefore equipped fome fmall veffels, and commanded that they fhould pafs as far as they could along that coaft of Africa which looked upon the great Atlantic ocean, the immenfity of which ftruck the grofs and unfkilful navigators of these times with terror and amazement. He was not able to communicate his own ardour to his feamen, who proceeded very flowly in the new attempt; each was afraid to venture much farther than he that went before him, and ten years were fpent before they had advanced beyond cape Bajador, fo called from its progreffion into the ocean, and the circuit by which it must be doubled. The oppofition of this promontory to the courfe of the fea, produced a violent current and high waves, into which they durft not venture, and which they had not yet knowledge enough to avoid by standing off from the land into the open fea.

The prince was defirous to know fomething of the countries that lay beyond this formidable cape, and fent two commanders, named John Gonzales Zarco, and Tristan Vaz, in 1418, to pafs beyond Bajador, and furvey the coaft behind it. They were caught by a tempeft, which drove them out