350 MR. S. T. DUNN: А BOTANICAL 
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A Botanical Expedition to Central Fokien. By 8. T. DOA, B.A., F.L.S., 
Superintendent, Botanical and Forestry Department, Hongkong. 
[Read 6th February, 1908.] 
Тнк little explored and romantie Province of Fokien lies on the coast of 
China just to the north of the tropies half way between Hongkong and 
Shanghai. In area it is about equal to England and Wales combined. A 
large portion of its surface is traversed by ranges of mountains fairly 
covered in some parts with old forest and intersected by the deep river gorges 
which characterize the south-east regions of China and give to that part of 
the country the wild and picturesque scenery for which it is famous. 
Up to the time of the expedition of which this paper gives a short account, 
there is no record that the interior of this district had ever been visited by a 
botanist. It had several times been crossed by travellers ; Marco Polo him- 
self undoubtedly descended the Kienning River and the Min River in the 
13th century, thus traversing the centre of the province, and in recent times 
Mr. De La Touche, the ornithologist, ascended the same rivers in search 
of birds, and incidentally made a small but very interesting collection of 
plants, which he sent to Franchet at Paris, where they were described (Bull. 
Soe. Bot. France, xlvi. 204). Numerous small collections have been made 
from time to time in the more accessible country round the treaty ports of 
Foochow and Amoy ; and the following three expeditions towards the interior 
are also on record. In 1840 Fortune attempted to ascend the Min River 
from Foochow, but at Shui Kau, 80 miles from that city, turned back from 
want of funds: later in the same year he traversed the north corner of the 
province. In 1873 David penetrated into the high border mountains south- 
west of the Bohea Hills; his collections in that country proved of great 
interest and many novelties were published by Franchet. Whether Fortune 
collected plants on his two Fokien expeditions it is difficult to say with 
certainty, as few of his specimens are precisely located, but several of those 
in the Kew Herbarium agree so closely with others from Central Fokien that 
I am inclined to think that he did so. 
In 1905, being impressed with the importance of attempting to visit and 
explore this large area, the flora of which was almost totally unknown and 
very poorly represented in herbaria, and was supposed moreover to comprise 
numerous plants of first-rate commercial importance, I proposed to the 
Government of Hongkong that I should be given two months! leave of 
absence and the services of three native collectors, with the object of 
:xploring the central portion of Fokien. 
This being arranged, we accordingly started from Hongkong in the 
middle of April 1905 for Foochow by sea. Mv object was to make an 
