92 M. Fee's Life of LinncBus, 



a genus BauMnia, in honour of the ilhistrious brothers Bauhin, 

 all the species of zvhich have leaves consisting of two foliola. 

 Having received another genus from India, collected by sur- 

 geon Dal berg, sent by him to his brother, a banker in Copen- 

 hagen, and transmitted by him to Linneeus, he called it Dal- 

 hergia. One of the species having the fruit pointed, was named 

 the D. lanceolaris, in honour of the surgeon ; the other, ha- 

 ving the fruit rounded, was the D. monetaria, in honour of the 

 banker. 



The collections of Linnaeus were very considerable, consider- 

 ing the age in which he lived, and his herbarium was the pecu- 

 liar object of his care and affection. He himself mentions, in 

 one of his own notes, the origin of the plants which composed 

 it, and which were obtained from the most distant countries, at 

 a period when voyages were far from being so easily accom- 

 plished or so frequent as at present ; and when the voyagers, 

 too much swayed by the idea that the same plants were to be 

 found in countries of various climates, frequently neglected to 

 collect them. " My herbarium," says Linnaeus, " is indis- 

 putably the greatest that has ever been seen ;"" but although 

 this assertion may not have been very correct (as the herba- 

 riums of Vaillant and Tournefort of the same epoch seemed 

 very considerable), if it is admitted to have been so, it is evi^ 

 dent that this herbarium ought to contain about 8000 speci- 

 mens, for the works of Linnaeus contain in all a description of 

 7982 plants ; and if he procured some after their publication, 

 it is certain that there are also some mentioned in his works 

 not to be found in his herbarium. The progress which bo- 

 tany made in half a century may be imagined, and chiefly 

 owing to his influence, if we calculate the increase of the exist- 

 ing collections. There are many herbariums which contain 

 30,000 or 40,000 specimens, and at present there is one em- 

 bracing no less than 55,000 ! Sir J. Smith has sometimes 

 received more specimens in one year than Linnaeus did during 

 his whole life. The globe is explored with an activity which 

 astonishes the imagination ; and it may be justly supposed that, 

 after fifty years, a thousand species will be discovered annually. 



Although the herbarium of Linnaeus is no longer one of the 

 largest in existence, it is not the less valuable, whether on account 



