(}* ' PREFACE 



to exist, it is impossible to say which may be the diagnostic characters 

 of a species and which common to others of the genus. 



The ' Flora of Tropical Africa,' forming one of the series of Floras 

 undertaken, at the instance of the late Sir "William J. Hooker, under 

 the authority of the Home or of Colonial Governments, it is neces- 

 sarily uniform in general plan with those which have been already 

 issued. 



The principal features of this plan, as settled by Sir W. J. Hooker, 

 and described in his report*, are these : — 



1st. The descriptions are drawn up in the English language. A glos- 

 sary contains the technical terms used in the descriptions, together 

 with Mr. Bentham's ' Introduction to Botany, drawn up with special 

 reference to Local Floras,' being prefixed to the work. 



2nd. The general sequence of Natural Orders adopted is that of the 

 1 Prodromus ' of De Candolle, being that which experience has shown 

 to be practically the most convenient. In accordance with this se- 

 quence, British Botanists are accustomed to arrange their Herbaria and 

 works of descriptive Botany. In the more detailed arrangement of the 

 genera, the ' Genera Plantarum ' of Messrs. Bentham and Hooker has 

 been followed, and a reference to that work is given with each genus. 



With regard to the synonymy of the species here described, while 

 the authors have endeavoured to quote all names which have been ap- 

 plied to tropical African plants, they have not, in the case of widely 

 diffused species, regarded it as either necessary or desirable to include 

 their whole synonymy, the reliable citation of which would have in- 

 volved very much more time, labour, and space than the end to be at- 

 tained would warrant, besides that it would be out of place in a special 

 work of this kind. Any new identifications of African with extra- 

 African species are of course recorded. 



Those who are unaccustomed to the use of works of descriptive Bo- 

 tany in the field, it may be well to caution in respect of the dimensions 

 of the various organs given throughout the work in English feet, inches, 

 and lines ( T V inch). The extremes quoted are simply intended to in? 

 * See ' Natural History Review,' 1861, p. 255. 





