my pen should be inscribed to him,
who, by proposing and facilitating my
Tour to Iceland, first gave that pen the
opportunity of being employed; the
other, because it is chiefly in obedience
to your advice that I now lay before
the public what was originally written
for the perusal only of my personal
friends. These friends have, indeed,
done me the kindness to receive this
book in a manner the most gratifying
to me; but the partiality of friends
is proverbial, and in the public I must
expect to meet with less favorable
judges: the apprehension, therefore,
which I cannot but feel of their criticism
at my first appearance before
them, makes me desirous to shield myself
under the authority of a man, to
whose judgment they are accustomed
to pay the same deference that I do.
As a farther reason for the change of
my intention, I must be allowed to alledge
the circumstance, that I found my
own withholding this book would not
prevent its actual publication; different
parts of it having already appeared in
periodical works, which have announced
their intention of continuing similar
extracts; and I consequently considered
it more respectful to the public,
if not due to myself, that, such as it
is, they should have the opportunity
of perusing it entire, instead of having
it forced upon their attention in garbled
extracts.
I have the honor to be,
M y D ear S ir ,
Your obliged friend,
and very humble Servant,
W.s J. HOOKER.
L o n d o n ,
lO th A u g u s t , 1 8 1 1 .