But, on the other hand, it cannot be denied that reading and writing men, of moderate industry, who act on this rule for any considerable length of time, will accumulate a good deal of matter in various forms, shapes, and sizes--some more, some less legible and intelligible--some unposted in old pocket books--some on whole or half sheets, or mere scraps of paper, and backs of letters--some lost sight of and forgotten, stuffing out old portfolios, or getting smoky edges in bundles tied up with faded tape. There are, we are quite sure, countless boxes and drawers, and pigeon-holes of such things, which want looking over, and would well repay the trouble. Nay, we are sure that the proprietors would find themselves much benefited even if we were to do nothing more than to induce them to look over their own collections. How much good might we have done (as well as got, for we do not pretend to speak quite disinterestedly), if we had had the looking over and methodizing of the chaos in which Mr. Oldbuck found himself just at the moment, so agonizing to an author, when he knows that the patience of his victim is oozing away, and fears it will be quite gone before he can lay his hand on the charm which is to fix him a hopeless listener:--"So saying, the Antiquary opened a drawer, and began rummaging among a quantity of miscellaneous papers ancient and modern. But it was the misfortune of this learned gentleman, as it may be that of many learned and unlearned, that he frequently experienced on such occasions, what Harlequin calls "_l'embarras des richesses_"--in other words, the abundance of his collection often prevented him from finding the article he sought for." We need not add that this unsuccessful search for Professor Mac Cribb's epistle, and the scroll of the Antiquary's answer, was the unfortunate turning-point on which the very existence of the documents depended, and that from that day to this nobody has seen them, or known where to look for them. But we hope for more extensive and important benefits than these, from furnishing a medium by which much valuable information may become a sort of common property among those who can appreciate and use it. We do not anticipate any holding back by those whose "NOTES" are most worth having, or any want of "QUERIES" from those best able to answer them. Whatever may be the case in other things, it is certain that those who are best informed are generally the most ready to communicate knowledge and to confess ignorance, to feel the value of such a work as we are attempting, and to understand that if it is to be well done they must help to do it. Some cheap and frequent means for the interchange of thought is certainly wanted by those who are engaged in literature, art, and science, and we only hope to persuade the best men in all, that we offer them the best medium of communication with each other.