1*95.] NATURAL. SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 297 



aud made :i corresponding index of classes and orders, so that any 

 genus could be found in a few seconds. All the species had 

 been alphabetically arranged in the genus covers, and an alpha- 

 betical list of the named species pasted inside. Anyone can see 

 at a glance whether the plant he is looking for is in the collec- 

 tion. Besides this, in the section of ferns, the whole collection 

 is written up in a handsome bound volume, with an index that 

 not only enables one to find at once the plant desired but also its 

 geographical range and many other facts of importance to the 

 student of pteridology. By reason of this careful cataloguing he 

 was able to tell exactly the number of species the herbarium con- 

 tained, information few care-takers of herbariums can give. A 

 careful record was kept of every donation, and the donors' names, 

 like the names of the plants themselves, could soon be given to 

 any inquirer. And yet he never seemed unduly hurried. In, ad- 

 dition to this he had formed a great herbarium of his own, and 

 had made extensive collections in other fields of natural history. 

 Moreover, he maintained to the last an interest in many other 

 branches of science and in the many fields of general intelligence 

 that commanded the attention of public spirited citizens. He was 

 fond of looking up facts in the lives of useful men, placing them 

 on record, and getting in shape for reference any go>d work 

 that they had done. He prepared for his family a full gene- 

 alogy of their ancestry. Another valuable task that he accom- 

 plished was the collection and arranging of the botanical correspon- 

 dence of Zaccheus Collins, which precious volume is kept for safety 

 in the fireproof of the Academy. The work is invaluable for the 

 light it sheds on the lives and labors of our early botanists. When 

 Michaux's Journal was discovered among the archives of the Ameri- 

 can Philosophical Society and Prof Sargent decided to translate 

 it from French to English, and have copies printed, he aided the 

 Professor in overseeing its issue from the press. He was always 

 ready for every such call. 



It seems but yesterday that I heard his last remark to me: " I 

 must lay these aside now, as I will attend the Forestry Convention 

 at 4 o'clock," and even the last letter he wrote to me on his death 

 bed was full of his work. "I felt chillier than I ought to be when 

 I was in the herbarium room on Friday, and went home. I am 

 resting in bed now, and the Botanical Section meeting to-night must 



