From the foregoing summary, it will be seen that “The Young Student’s Library” is a remarkable book, evincing an enormous extent of reading and research, and displaying an amount of labour almost incredible. Many of the volumes analysed are quarto and folio in size, and not a few are written in foreign languages. It is impossible to determine how many of these literary condensations were made by Mr Wesley; but there can be no doubt that he was one of the principal contributors to the work, inasmuch as, from the first, he had been one of the chief members, if not _the chief_ member, of the Athenian Society; and this opinion is strengthened by the fact, that his “Essay on Learning” is placed as a sort of preliminary discourse at the very commencement of the book; while his article on the “Hebrew Points” occupies an equally prominent position in what may be considered the second section of the volume. The work was announced as “containing the substance and pith of all that is valuable in most of the best books printed in England and in the foreign journals;” whilst its object was “to provide means for improving the knowledge of those who had not the ability of purse to arrive at a learned education, and to purchase all those voluminous books which treat of those several arts and sciences which are required to the composing a scholar.”[70] The preface of the book modestly, and not untruthfully, observes: “These treatises are not only pleasant as to their variety, but useful for their brevity; there being the substance and value of a considerable part of a good library brought within the compass of this volume; which as it will spare much labour—a man being able to peruse here more of an author in half an hour, than in half a day in the author himself—so it will save a great deal of expense to such as would be master of the knowledge of many books, the performances of the authors being here epitomised.” ----- Footnote 70: _Athenian Oracle_, vol. iv. p. 56. ----- It has been already stated that, in this remarkable book, there are, besides epitomes of the works of others, two elaborate articles, the productions of Samuel Wesley’s scholarship and pen; and these are of such interest and importance as to justify further remarks respecting them.