who could never gratify his longing to visit our higher mountains 
and our lake regions, wrote of a rumor current among botanists 
that Dr. Robbins’ station for Astragalus Robbinsii Gray and Ane- 
mone multifida Poir., in the chasm of the Winooski, had been oblit- 
erated. Someone had tried to find it again and had failed. The 
rumor proved unfounded, yet, alas! a prophecy. The obliteration 
did not occur, however, till there had been gathered a supply of 
these plants sufficient for all the herbaria of the world. The first 
fresh specimens taken from there made glad the heart of Asa Gray, 
the author of one of the species. So did the sight of ample speci- 
mens of Cypripedium arietinum R. Br., and the accompanying in- 
formation that it is an abundant species of Vermont pine woods, 
swamps and hills. So, too, Orchis rotundifolia Pursh, by means of 
fresh specimens, of which he was enabled to refer it back to the 
genus in which it truly belongs. And thus began relations be- 
tween that great and good master and myself which continued till 
his death—-relations which grew ever closer and more tender, until 
they became as the relations between father and son. It was often 
“tell me this” or “find me that, for you are always helpful to me.” 
It was but a few months prior to his death that he sent me away 
from his side, for the third time, fully equipped by his kind and 
thoughtful care, to explore thoroughly a vast region. Ten years 
have since passed, and still my feet falter not in reverent obedience 
to his high commission, 
In 1873 George Davenport was beginning his study of ferns. 
A letter from him asking me to lovuk for Woodsia glabella R. Br., 
started me on a fern hunt. The species had been found on Wil- 
loughby Mountain, Vermont, and at Little Falls, New York; 
might it not be growing in many places in Vermont? When I 
set out I knew, as I must suppose, not a single fern, and it was near 
the close of the summer. You can imagine what delights awaited 
me in the autumn woodlands. I made the acquaintance of not a 
few ferns, though it was too late to prepare good specimens of 
them. In this first blind endeavor I got, of course, no clue to 
Woodsia glabella. The next summer the hunt was renewed and 
persistently followed up. I found pleasure in securing one by one 
nearly all our Vermont ferns. At the time I thought it worthy of 
remembrance that a single field of diversified pasture and wood- 
