that the London Gazette contains a great many misprinted names ; and that its Index of " State Intelligence" is extremely imperfect and erroneous.

To render this new system of nomenclature of increased practical benefit, as well to the public at large, as to the junior class of British naval officers, to do justice to whose gallant exertions was my chief motive in planning it, I have caused a list to be made of all the names, with the volume, year, and page in which they occur, and the progressive rank of the officer. Pardon me, reader, if I now descend, for a moment, from the station of the author, to give expression to feelings of rather a personal nature. To an affectionate partner, who has shared my anxiety in executing this arduous and protracted work, as well as incurred some of the danger consequent upon it, I am indebted for the Index of both the present and the preceding editions. The labour of the undertaking is manifest; and its accuracy will, I trust, be equally evident when there is occasion to refer to it.

In the Index to the last three volumes of the old edition, the names of the ships, as well as of the officers, appear; and, in my Prospectus of the new edition, I promised that the ships should form part of the Index to the present work. By the time, however, that the first three volumes had been gone over the quantity of index matter was so great, that I decided to omit the ships; the rather, as no ship, no British ship at least except in a single instance or so, is named in the work without her captain or commander being also named.

For their novelty as well as their utility, the Diagrams will perhaps be considered the most important improvement in the work. I wish they had been more numerous; but I found it impracticable to extend the number, and at the same time preserve that accuracy, without which the diagram would obscure, rather than illustrate, the letter-press. Although, with one or two exceptions, not finished quite so well as I could desire, these wood-cuts have greatly increased the cost, but without adding one shilling to the price, of the book.

The greater portion of the sixth volume is made up of the operations of the late American war, which, for the want of

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