The Manual of Xefolius

A 4

will not merely occupy myself with seeking by what means certain lands were populated; first, because besides the fact that this knowledge is not necessary for our happiness, it is also that with all possible instruction and sagacity, man, in this kind of research, can never offer anything but conjectures that often destroy themselves; second, because I am no more surprised that humans were found in America than wolves, deer, dogs, bears, elk, squirrels, rabbits, etc. The question of how humans and animals reached the Americas was a major debate in the 18th century, often pitting biblical accounts of Noah's Ark against emerging scientific observations.: but what would surprise me greatly would be if this half of the globe had been found deserted until the day when descendants of the seven of each species original: "des sept de chaque espèce"—a reference to Genesis 7:2, where Noah is commanded to take seven pairs of "clean" animals into the Ark., saved from the deluge in Noah’s ark, as intrepid navigators, had gone to settle there, each with his mate. Therefore, to respond to the promptings I feel, I shall concern myself only with the science of man In the Enlightenment, the "science of man" referred to the multidisciplinary study of human nature, encompassing what we now call psychology, sociology, and ethics..

I I I.

After having considered the works of nature that were within my reach, and found in each of them so many wonders, I raised my soul toward the Master of all things, and