BOTAISIICAL INFORMATION. 187 



species, and a few of that of MierocarpuSy or Native Box, are mostly 

 used for fencing. No reasonable doubt however can be entertained 

 that other parts of the province are more productive than this seems to 

 be of valuable timber ; and as the Colonial Botanist has had the requi- 

 site facilities at his disposal for ascertaining this fact during his exten- 

 sive excursions, he will doubtless have succeeded far better than myself 

 in developing the economical properties of the Victoria timber-trees. 



'^ During the last year I have made various attempts and experiments 

 to discover the principles of variation amongst the Cassuarince^ vulgarly 

 called He and She Oaks, but which in reality are the true Pines of 

 Australia, It was only in June last however that this discoveiy was 

 effected, and the conviction then arrived at, that all the descriptions now 

 existing were perfectly and essentially defective, and therefore quite use- 

 less ; and that this and the genus Exocarpus are the most extraordinary 

 groups of trees yet discovered in Australia. Without being further 

 tedious (as I intend to bring this discovery before the public in another 

 shape), 1 shall merely state to your Excellency, that the facts I am pre- 

 pared to bring forward will establish the following propositions : 



^* 1. That the Australian Pines belong more to a very remote or pri- 

 meval Flora than to the present. 



" 3. That they are slowly, but surely^ disappearing from the face of the 



earth, and giving place to that comparatively recent order of vegetables 



which springs up in their stead. In this respect they offer a wonderful 



analogy to what we have ourselves witnessed in regard to the aboriginal 



tribes of Australia now giving place to those of the Caucasian race, 



" Now, of this remarkable tribe I have succeeded in determining 

 more than two Jmndred species, all still growing within a very short 

 distance of this place, besides having met with several other^ in different 

 stages of decay, but which, from their bark and other indications, con- 

 vince me were different from all those I have met witli in ?i (/rowing state. 

 They have, in fact, died from excessive age, and have left no successors. 

 " In the accompanying paper is a list of all tlic species found by me 

 up to the end of the last month; and an abundance of cones of nearly 

 aU these have been collected and sent to the curator of the Botanical 

 Garden. These your Excellency may now cause to be distributed and 

 made known over the whole civilized wwld: and thus the Botanic.d 

 Garden would probably receive from those established at the Cape, Kio 

 de Janeiro, Calcutta, Ceylon, etc. etc., more rare and coblly plants, in 



