b o o k with Angular accuracy defcribed, particularly, thole worms
— which are found in the human body.
The talents o f the author probably recommended him
very early to the favour and patronage o f the celebrated
Gaubms, at that time principal profeffor o f phyfick at L ey den;
and through his recommendation and intereft, he
feems to have obtained a fettlement at the Hague, where
we find him in 176 6 , when he publiihed a much-efteemed
work under the title o f Elenchus Zoophytorum.
The attention which Dr. Pallas had bellowed on the Zoophytes,
or animal-plants, in the inveftigation o f the worms
which infeft the human body, and particularly the uncommon
nature of the tania, or tape-worm, as he acknowledges,
feems to have led him into this line o f natural fcience, and
in which he has Ihown a great degree of accuracy, and fur-
prizing induftry. In this work, which is printed in odtavo,
pp. 4 5 1 , after having treated on the nature o f thele ambiguous
kinds o f animals in a general way, and given the various
opinions of authors, relating to the place they ought to
hold in the Syitem o f Nature, he defcribes, from his own
infpedlion, more than 270 fpecies o f thofe worms and
animalcules, which are known under the various names
o f polypes, corals, madrepores, corallines, fea-pens, tania,
or tape-worm, fponges, fea-fans, 8cc.
The free accefs which he had to the mufeum o f the prince
o f Orange, and other curious colledtions in Holland, enabled
him to enrich his work with the defcription of a great variety
o f thefe productions, which were brought from both
Indies. He has defcribed each fpecies at large, and given it
a new name charadteriltick of its real diftinftions : and what
efpecially increafes the value o f his work; he has, with wonderful
induftry, extricated, as far as poflible, the fynonyms
of
•of former authors, both ancient and modern; thus render- CHAI’<
ing his book highly ufeful to thofe who are curious in this J J L
branch o f natural hiftory.
That our author’s charatfter as a man o f fcience muft have
been well eftablilhed, even before the publication o f this
book, may fairly be inferred from his being eleéled member
o f the Royal Society o f London, on the 7 th o f June, 17 64
and o f the Imperial Academy béfore that time. ’
It is probable that the credit o f thefe works occafioned the
removal o f the author to his native city, where he was refi-
dentin 1 7 6 7 ; and in the fame year he was invited, by the
emprefs o f Ruftia, to accept the profeflbrlhip o f natural hiftory
at Peter lb urgh ; and was, at the fame time, made in-
fpector o f the mufeum.
The fovereigns o f Raffia had at various times deputed
learned and ikilful men to vifit the moft diftant provinces
of their vaft empire, with a view to enlarge the bounds o f
fcience, and extend the knowledge o f ufeful arts among
the natives. About the time o f our author’s eftabiiihment
at Peteriburgh, two o f thefe expeditions had been planned :
Dr. S. Gmelin had the condu<ft o f one; and Pallas was
IndC rn 5 2 ° f tbe other’ with Meifrs. Falk, Lepekin,
■and Guldenftaedt, as his affociates, <
. Pa! íaj f i t t e d Peteriburgh in the month o f June,
7 8, palfed through Mofcow, Volodimir, Kafimof, Murom,
r amas, to Gafan; and, having examined great part o f that
provmce, wintered at SimbirJk. From thence he departed
marsLaa 7 the following year, and penetrated through Safrefs
fimate r r Sh, aS far as Gurief’ a fmall Ruffian for-
, uated at the mouth o f the river Yaic, or Ural. There
bourin7li^heo7 tSr^i GalmUC V ol 11 Cafpian; anTd, traertyu’r 3nnindg t heth nroeÍugghh-
Y the