Britton : Dr. Torrey as a Botanist 541 



favorably known as a botanist; in 1822, in the preface to the 

 third edition of his " Manual of Botany " Professor Eaton says : 

 " Dr. Torrey, of New York, suggested the most valuable correc- 

 tions and improvements to be found in this edition. And I be- 

 lieve I may encourage the reader with the hope that the extensive 

 collection of materials in his possession will, very soon, appear 

 before the public in the form of an enlarged system of the botany 

 of the northern States. Such an extended view of the subject 

 would be an invaluable treasure to all lecturers, private teachers, 

 and to all others who are disposed to enter deeply into the study." 

 These statements, it may be remarked, are not alone appreciative 

 of Torrey's work, but indicate considerable generosity on the part 

 of Eaton. In the second edition of " Florula Bostonensis," 1824, 

 Dr. Bigelow refers to Torrey's work as follows : "To students of 

 the present volume who may wish to extend the sphere of their 

 inquiries I have great pleasure in recommending the flora of the 

 middle and northern section of the United states, by Dr. Torrey, 

 of New York, now in the course of publication. The accuracy 

 and constancy of pursuit manifested by this gentleman entitle him 

 to all praise from those who appreciate the amount of perseverance 

 necessary to accomplish labors of this sort. 



The work thus heralded by Eaton and Bigelow was published 

 during the year 1824 under the title " A Flora of the Northern and 

 Middle States, or Systematic Arrangement and Description of all 

 the plants heretofore discovered north of Virginia." Dr. George 

 Thurber, op the occasion of his election as President of the Tor- 

 rey Botanical Club, April 29, 1873, in an inaugural address, in 

 which he presented an account of Torrey's life and work, records 

 that the last pages of this Flora were written on the morning of 

 Torrey's wedding day. 



Further appreciation of his early work is shown in the writings 

 of other contemporary botanists. In the second volume of the 

 "Sketch of the Botany of South Carolina and Georgia," 1814, 

 Dr. Stephen Elliott says, that to Dr. John Torrey, of New 

 York, he is indebted for many of the plants of New Jersey and 

 New York, for an opportunity of comparing many doubtful species, 

 and of ascertaining many of the plants of Pursh, which were to 

 him uncertain or obscure. Dr. William Darlington in " Florula 



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