04 Mr. Linpsay’s. Account of the 
friend and patron Dr. Hope, late profeffor of hobisi there. But 
I did not then learn that any of thofe parts which I had feen were 
the real feeds, or capable of producing new ferns. I underftood 
that this point was ftill uncertain. 
= When 1 came to Jamaica, I obferved great numbers of fmall 
young ferns rifing after the rains in marle and gravel pits, and on 
- the fhaded banks of rivers which had been broken down by the 
floods; and indegd in every place where the earth had been dug 
into, and left fhaded and untouched for a few months, numbers of 
young ferns of different kinds generally began to appear. This I 
confidered as a fair opportunity of afcertaining from what part 
the young fern arofe. I had fome fpare time, which with pro- 
priety I could dedicate to that purpofe, being affiftant to my good 
- friend Dr. Clarke, botanift for the ifland, and I had the opportu- 
nity of a good microfcope, The minutenefs of the feeds rendered 
every attempt to difcover them, by fearching at the roots of even 
the imalleft vifible plants, entirely fruitlefs. I then thought of 
fowing the powder or duit, which falls from the fern leaves when 
drying, in a flower-pot, of keeping them in my room, and of ob- 
ferving their progrefs. ‘To enable me to do this with eafe and cer- 
tainty, I mixed fome of the powder with fome of the mould it was 
to be fown in, and by the help of the microfcope was foon able to 
diftinguifh readily the different parts of the powder, or fructification, 
from the particles of the mould in which it was fown. Having 
collected the duft of fome of thofe ferns which, from the number 
- of their young ones rifing every where, promifed to grow readily, 
_and fown it in a pot filled with the fame kind of mould in which the 
young ones grew, I placed the pot in a window of my room, wa- 
tered it daily, and every day or two examined a {mall portion of 
the mould by the microfcope. I could always readily diftinguifh 
he gun or feeds from the mould, but p no alteration till 
about 
ES 
