wo 
27 
nical labours. ‘Did et ego circa methodum naturalem inveni- 
endam laboravi, bene multa que adderem obtinui, perficere non 
potui, continuaturus dum vixero, interim que novi proponam ; 
qui paucas que restant bene absolvit plantas, omnibus magnus 
erit Apollo.” Classes Pl. 1747, p. 486. Also, in another 
place: “ Methodus naturalis primus et ultimus finis Botanices 
est et erit.” Phil. Bot. 
The indefatigable Gaertner, to whose immortal work, the 
produce of twenty years’ labour, the celebrated Parisian Aca- 
demy adjudged the second place amongst all modern works 
promoting the advancement of science,—Gaertner, feeling the 
importance of Carpology, thus speaks of Linnzus, it is true 
with some degree of jealous reproach :—“ Qui (Linneus) non 
solum disertis verbis declaravit florem longe preferri debere 
fructui in determinandis generibus, sed qui etiam ad tenorem 
hujus falsi dogmatis, toties genera sua alienissimis adulteravit 
speciebus, qui plurimos suos fructuum characteres, non ex 
natura, sed ex solis Tournefortii Plumieri Rheedii Commelini 
&c. iconibus ita hausit, ut simul quoque omnes eorumdem 
mendas et errores suos fecerit et subinde auxerit; aut qui sl 
tales defuere fontes, fructus seepe adeo negligenter et quasi ex 
insomnio descripsit; e. gr. in Coldenia, Eriocaulo, Scoparia, 
Cephalantho, Nauclea, Trollio, &c. ut ubique luculenta summi 
sui fructuum contemtus dederit testimonia.” (Jos. Gaertn. 
de fructib. et seminib. Plant. Vol. 2, preefat. p. 4.) 
Even in the classical composition of Linnzus, with which 
he took the greatest pains, in his Philosophia Botanica, we 
find, for example, comprised under one category of tail-like 
processes, real processes of the fruit or transformed styles in 
Pulsatilla, hairs arising from the origin of the seeds in Pop- 
lars, hairs of the fruit-bearing peduncle in Typha, and hairs 
arising from various floral organs in different Graminez : 
Lagurus, Arundo, Saccharum, &c. Who is not acquainted 
with his error in considering the monospermous capsules of 
Boraginex, Labiate, &c. as naked seeds? © 
The celebrated A. L. de Jussieu also, whilst working out 
his natural system founded on characters taken from all 
organs, but especially from the fruit and seed, even in his ad- 
mirable work, the Genera Plantarum, not having yet had in 
his hands the classical composition of Gaertner, falls into many 
errors. It is enough to adduce, as an example, the erroneous 
mixing up of the Polygale in the natural family of the Pedi- 
