Excerpt from The Hand: Its Mechanism and Vital Endowments, as Evincing Design It was at the desire of the Lord Chancellor Brougham that the author wrote the essay on Animal Mechanics; and it was probably from a belief that the author felt the importance of the subjects touched upon in that essay, that his Lordship was led to do him the further honour of asking him to join with him in illustrating the Natural Theology of Dr. Paley. That request was especially important, as Showing that the conclusions to which the author had arrived, were not the peculiar or accidental suggestions of professional feeling, nor of solitary study, which is so apt to lead to enthusiasm but that the powerful and masculine mind of Lord Brougham was directed to the same objects; that he, who in early life was distinguished for his successful prosecution of science, and who has never forgotten her interests amidst the most arduous and active duties 'of his high station, encouraged and partook of these sentiments. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.