A collection of previously scattered essays and short pieces gathered from periodicals and presented with editorial notes and bibliographical commentary. The writings survey developments in metaphysical thought and major theorists, while also addressing moral and political questions, literary criticism, character sketches, and personal reflection. Editors restore omitted passages, reattribute several anonymous pieces, and arrange material by original magazine provenance. The essays range from analytic accounts of belief, self-regard, and taste to informal sketches on manners, reading, and the practice of criticism, offering a varied, discursive portrait of the author’s thought and critical voice.