HISTOET OF BOTAKICAL EXPLOEATION. 131 



1846 he first went to Guatemala, and thence to Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Eica, 

 Veraguas, and Panama, and on this journey made the acquaintance of Skinner and 

 CErsted, from whom he received valuable aid. He discovered many new orchids, 

 especially of the showier class, and they are included in our Enumeration. For further 

 particulars we must refer the reader elsewhere *. 



American Collectors during the war between the United States and Mexico in 1846 to 

 1848. — Major Eaton and Dr. Edwards of the United States Army collected jointly in 

 Nuevo Leon ; and Dr. Josiah Gregg, author of the ' Commerce of the Prairies/ more 

 extensively in the same State, in Coahuila, and southwards to Mexico city. There are 

 sets of these collections at Kew. But the most important of the early collections from 

 North-eastern Mexico is that made by Dr. A. Wislizenus in 1846 and 1847, and in 

 part elaborated by Dr. G. Engelmann f . Most of the novelties described belong to the 

 Coniferee (Pinus) and the Cactaeese. Only a very small set of these plants is in the 

 Kew Herbarium. 



The Botanists and Collectors of the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey. — 



Our esteemed acquaintance Dr. C. C. Parry, who has so recently, in conjunction with 



Dr. Palmer, made valuable contributions to the flora of North Mexico, was the leader 



of the botanical party of the Survey Commission, which commenced operations in 1849. 



Dr. Parry, a native of Warwickshire, England, went to the United States when quite a 



young man, and soon found congenial employment. Associated with him, or at least 



taking part in the same work in connexion with the survey, were Dr. J. M. Bigelow, 



Arthur Scott, George Thurber, Charles Wright J, and others. The collections made 



by the last-named were by far the most extensive, and were first published separately 



by Dr. Asa Gray, and afterwards incorporated by Dr. J. Torrey in his general report on 



the botany of the expedition. Dr. Parry himself contributed the " Introduction " to 



Dr. Torrey's Eeport, in which he deals with the physiognomies of the vegetation, the 



geographical distribution of the plants, and the agricultural capacities of the various 



districts. His observations on the physiognomical peculiarities of the vegetation of the 



different regions are specially interesting. The bulk of the botanical collections was 



made north of our boundary, though a good many incursions were made into Mexico, 



and perhaps more plants were found within our limits than we have been able to 



record as such, in consequence of the Kew set not being localized. For reasons set 



forth elsewhere, we have adopted the Gila and the thirty-third parallel of latitude 



thence to the Rio Grande as our northern boundary, mainly, however, on account of 



* Bonplandia, 1854, p. 95. 



t Sketch of the Botany of Dr. A. Wislizenus's Expedition from Missouri to Santa Fe, Chihuahua, Parras, 

 Saltillo, Monterey, and Matamoros, 1848. 



J S. Watson, « Botany of California,' ii. Appendix, p. 556. 



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