424 Linncean Society. 



his * Cours de I'Histoire Naturelle des Mammiferes,' of which only 

 one volume appeared in 1829, as well as over numerous notes and 

 memoirs on the structure of Marsupialia and Monotronata, published 

 at various times. To him, conjointly with Cuvier, France is indebted 

 for the elevated position in zoology which she has occupied for the 

 last half century. Following up with equal zeal and success the 

 career of anatomical investigation opened for them by Daubenton, 

 Vicq d'Azyr and others, and adding to the habits of minute inves- 

 tigation of those excellent observers a spirit of philosophical genera- 

 lization, these two great zoologists created a school in which the 

 study assumed a really scientific character. From this school have 

 emanated the most valuable contributions that zoology has received 

 in our times, and it will long continue to exercise a salutary influ- 

 ence over the labours of succeeding generations. 



Karl Bernhard von Trinius was born at Eisleben on the 7th of 

 March 1778. He devoted , himself at an early age to the study of 

 botany, and especially of the grasses, on which he published nume- 

 rous highly important works. Of these the principal separate pub- 

 lications are : * Fundamenta Agrostographise, sive Theoria construc- 

 tionis Floris Graminei, adjecta Synopsi Generum Graminum hucus- 

 que cognitorum,' 8vo, Viennse, 1820 ; * Clavis Agrostographise Anti- 

 quioris,' Coburgi, 1822; * De Graminibus unifloris et sesquifloris 

 Dissertatio Botanica,' 8vo, Petropoli, 1824 ; and ' Species Graminum 

 Iconibus et Descriptionibus illustratae,' in three vols, folio, Petropoli, 

 1828, 1829 and 1836. His contributions on the same subject to the 

 Memoirs of the Academy of St. Petersburgh were numerous and im- 

 portant, including a revision of the genera and species of Panicece in 

 the restricted sense of that tribe, of Stipece, of Bamhusece, &c. 



In these works he propounded a theory of the structure of the 

 gramineous flower, which although supported with much ingenuity, 

 has met with little acceptation among botanists. But his systematic 

 labours on the family have contributed in no small degree to its elu- 

 cidation, and his patient and elaborate investigations will ensure him 

 a distinguished position among that valuable class of observers who 

 devote themselves to the study of a single family of large extent. 



M. Trinius had long been resident at St. Petersburgh, where he 

 became a Corresponding Member of the Academy in 1810, and an 

 Eifective Member in 1823. He was also for many years Director, 

 as indeed he was in a great degree the founder, of the Botanical 

 Museum; with which in 1843 he incorporated his own collection of 

 grasses, estimated by M. Meyer to contain from 35,000 to 40,000 

 specimens belonging to 5000 species. These numbers may well be 

 regarded as enormous, when we reflect that M. Kunth's Enumera- 

 tion of the family, including a great number of doubtful species, 

 scarcely exceeds 3000. With such vast resources at his disposal, 

 we may expect from M. Ruprecht, who has been associated with 

 M. Trinius in several of his later memoirs, and who has attached 

 himself particularly to the study of the Grasses, large contributions 

 to our knowledge of this important family. 



M. Trinius was, as we are informed, an intimate friend of Chamisso, 

 and like him mingled a genius for poetry with his botanical pursuits. 



