

4 



THE CACTACEAE. 



Early in 191 2 Dr. Rose went to Europe to study the collections there and to 



arrange for exchanges with various botanical institutions having collections of these 



plants. He spent considerable time at London, mainly at the Royal Botanic 



Gardens, Kew, where through the courtesy of the Director, Sir David Prain, he w^as 



able to examine the greenhouse, illustrative, and herbarium material for which this 



institution has long been famed. The collection at the British Museum of Natural 



History and that of the Linnaean Society of London were examined. At Paris he 



studied the collections at the Natural History Museum, many of which have historic 



interest; one of his interesting discoveries there was that the Pereskia bleo, collected 



by Baron Friedrich Alexander von Humboldt in Colombia, is a very different species 



from the plant which for nearly a century has been passing in our collections and 



literature under that name. He also visited the famous botanical garden of the 



late Sir Thomas Hanbury, at La Mortola, Italy, and through the courtesy of Lady 



Hanbury was given every possible facility for the study of this collection; Mr. 



Alwin Berger, who was then curator in charge, had brought together one of the most 



extensive representations of this family to be found growing in the open in any 



place in the world. Here in the delightful climate of the Riviera were grown many 



species which were apparently just as much at home as they would have been in 



their desert habitats. Dr. Rose also visited Rome, Naples, Venice, and Florence, 



where he saw smaller collections in parks and private gardens. At Munich he 



examined certain types in the Royal Botanical Museum, then under the charge of 



Dr. L. Radlkofer, and saw some interesting species in the Royal Botanical Garden 



then being organized by Dr. K. Goebel. At Berlin he examined the herbarium and 



living specimens in the "Berlin Botanical Garden, through the courtesy of Dr. A. 



Engler, and the West Indian collection through the courtesy of Dr. I. Urban. He 



then went to Halle and saw L. Quehl's collection of mammillarias; to Erfurt, where 



he saw the Haage and Schmidt, and Haage Jr. collections; to Darmstadt to see the 



Botanical Garden under Dr. J. A. Purpus; and to Antwerp to see DeLaet's private 

 collection. 



In 1913 Dr. Britton and Dr. Rose visited the West Indies. Dr. Britton, who 

 was accompanied by Mrs. E. G. Britton, Miss D. W. Marble, and Dr. J. A. Shafer, 

 collected on St. Thomas and the other Virgin Islands, Porto Rico, and Curasao. 

 At the latter island he rediscovered the very rare Cactus mammillaris , which had not 

 been m cultivation for many years. Dr. Rose, who was accompanied by William 

 R. Fitch and Paul G. Russell, also stopped at St. Thomas, and collected on St. 

 Croix, St. Christopher, Antigua, and Santo Domingo. 



J . ^ ^ , Britton again visited Porto Rico and, assisted by Mr. 



John F. Cowell and Mr. Stewardson Brown, explored the entire southwestern arid 

 coast and the small islands Desecheo, Mona, and Muertos. 



In 19 14 Dr. Rose went to the west coast of South America, making short stops 

 at Jamaica and Panama. He made extensive collections in central and southern 

 Peru,^ central Bolivia, and northern and central Chile. At Santia-o Chile he 



somTrTre ' f "^^'^^P'^ '^P^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^"^1 ^^^-"^ -^ obtained 



sXens ''''" ^"'^""''^^ ^^'^'^ '^^°^^^ '^' ^^^^^^^y «f Johannes 



and iQi^ Dr 



s 



y -c 



I 



*■ 



I. 



i 



I 



L 



\ 



i 



I 



'fL 



^.1 



t f 





n- 



S 



^r 



■^V 



''^■ 



-It: 



-.# 



: i' 



■^'■ 





■^' :s 



, 1 



K 



'i^ 



^ 



