THE NOVUM ORGANON, OR A TRUE GUIDE TO THE INTERPRETATION OF NATURE, BY FRANCIS BACON, LORD VERULAM, LORD CHANCELLOR OF ENGLAND. A NEW TRANSLATION BY THE REV. G. W. KITCHIN, M.A. STUDENT AND TUTOR OF CHRIST CHURCH, OXFORD. OXFORD: AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS. M.DCCC.LV. EDITOR'S PREFACE. THERE HERE are only two complete Translations of the Novum Organon already in existence: the first, that given by Dr. Shaw in his Edition of Bacon's Philosophical Works (3 vols. 4to. London, 1733); the other is to be found in Montagu's Edition of Bacon's Works (London, 1831), and was made by Mr. W. Wood. Dr. Shaw's Edition is extremely rare; Mr. Wood's Translation has been reprinted by Pickering, and is in common use; it also forms, with some corrections, the basis of a Translation published by Bohn. I cannot look on this as anything but a misfortune. Mr. Wood's English is coherent, and reads well; and so long as we read it without referring to the Latin, we believe that, though very obscure, still it must be correct. But the least comparison of the Latin discloses a most extraordinary collection of misapprehensions and mistakes. The worst of these are corrected in Bohn's Edition, but there are radical faults in Mr. Wood's work which lead me to think that it cannot be made the basis of a satisfactory translation. There is also in existence a Translation of the First Book of the Novum Organon, by Mr. Glassford, printed for private |