BY

CAPTAIN BASIL HALL,

R.N., F.R.S.

IN THREE VOLUMES.

VOL. I.

LONDON:

EDWARD MOXON, DOVER STREET.

MDCCCXLI.

PREFACE.

WHEN this work was nearly ready for publication, it became necessary to decide upon a Title; but this, which at first sight may seem a very easy matter, proved not a little embarrassing. There were, it is true, innumerable titles for me to choose from, and sufficiently descriptive of the work ; but every one of these had been worn so utterly threadbare, as to be quite useless, or worse than useless-hurtful.

After much consideration, it occurred to me that the term PATCHWORK would not only describe the book correctly, but would carry with it, so far as I knew, the merit of novelty.

On propounding this idea to my Publisher, he opposed it stoutly, and even stated in round terms that such an appellation would inevitably "damn the work,"-alleging, among other reasons, that the word was associated only with beggars and bed-covers.