136 Transaction* of the Society. 



do by commanding but by courting her. Wherever men will go 

 beyond fancy and imagination, depending upon the conduct of Divine 

 Wisdom, they must labour, hope, and persevere. And aa the means 

 proposed are all necessary, they may in some measure prove effectual. 

 How far, I promise not ; the way is long and dark : and as travellers 

 sometimes amongst mountains, by gaining the top of one, are so far 

 from their journey's end, that they only come to see another before 

 them; so the way of Nature is so impervious, and, as I may say, so 

 down-hill and up-hill, that how far soever we go, yet the surmounting 

 of one difficulty, is wont still to give us the prospect of another. We 

 may therefore believe our attainments will be imperfect, after we have 

 done all ; but because we cannot attain to all, that therefore we 

 should do nothing, is an inference that looks so much away from the 

 practical sense of men, that it ought not to be answered. Nor with 

 better reason may we go about determining what may be done. If 

 but a little should be effected, yet to design more can do us no harm ; 

 for though a man shall never be able to hit stars by shooting at 

 them, yet he shall come much nearer to them than another that 

 throws at apples." 



' The Anatomy of Vegetables particularly prosecuted upon Roots,' 

 was read to the Royal Society in 1673, and published the same year 

 in the volume mentioned already, together with his ' Idea,' and was 

 illustrated by seven plates. 



In a letter to Malpighi dated 5th March, 1672-3, Grew says: — 

 " I have myself benefited from your writings, and am truly proud 

 so to have benefited." This can, of course, only refer to the ' Idea. r 

 He names one point for which he is indebted to Malpighi : " I 

 learnt first from your works the spiral formation of the wide tubes 

 which you call tracheae, and from them I seized the opportunity 

 of adding also a few observations on the conformation of the said 

 tubes." In this same letter he says he is just sending to the 

 printer (by desire of the Royal Society) his anatomical observations 

 on roots, to which he intends to prefix the ' Idea of Phytoloyical 

 Science,' which he says, as soon as it is published, he proposes to 

 submit to Malpighi's learned and kind perusal. 



' The Comparative Anatomy of Trunks, together with an Account 

 of their Vegetation grounded thereupon,' was presented to the Royal 

 Society in 1673 and 1674, and read in February 1674, and June 

 1675, and was published the same year in an octavo volume of 

 81 pages and 18 plates. 



Malpighi despatched from Bologna to London the first part of 

 his work on plant anatomy in August 1674. It did not reach the 

 Secretary of the Royal Society till the 28th January, 1675, when it was 

 immediately exhibited to a Meeting of the Society which was being 

 held that day. It was ordered to be printed as soon as possible in 

 the best style. The thanks of the Society were given to Malpighi, 

 and the earnest hope was sent him that his health might enable him 



