“Keep to Things as much as possible, and leave Persons as much as possible alone.” “Do not over-feed us with Anecdotes of Books, but give us as much Personal Anecdote as you please.” Such was the conflicting advice, by Letter, as well as by word of mouth, under which I sat down to the composition of this Work. Recollecting however that an ancient Bard of high classical authority had said that “the middle way was the safest,” I resolved to abide by his advice; and to guide my adventurous “chariot” between objects too passive on the one hand, and too active on the other. It remains to be seen with what degree of failure or success.

Dr. Johnson has somewhere told us that Auto-biographies, even of the humblest individuals, are not written without some specific benefit derivable from their perusal. I will hope therefore that from a steady and impartial examination of the contents of these pages, some profit may accrue to the Reader. It must not, however, be concealed, that the task of composition has been at times both of difficult and delicate execution. On the one hand, there has been such an excess of matter, or abundance of materials (from which to make a judicious selection), as to perplex me in the extreme; for a literary course of some thirtyfive years is not one of ordinary occurrence.