MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN BULLETIN 3 
the name of the benefactor could be readily associated. The 
endowment of a special collection or garden, such as the 
orchids, the rose garden, or the arboretum, or for that matter 
the monthly flower shows, would not only make possible great 
expansion in these lines, but by releasing funds from income 
now devoted to these purposes would render a double service. 
Thus, it might truly be said that he who gives to the Missouri 
Botanical Garden gives twice. 
A great need at the present time is money which could be 
devoted to botanical exploration. There is not now any in- 
stitution in this country devoting special attention to secur- 
ing new and desirable plant material from other parts of the 
world suitable for our indoor and outdoor floral displays. 
Practically every other similar institution in the country, in- 
cluding the United States Department of Agriculture, has 
for a number of years devoted large sums of money to secur- 
ing economic plants, trees, and woody shrubs or herbarium ~ 
material from the tropics and other parts of the world which 
suited their particular needs. Much of their most interesting 
and valuable material is obtained in this way, and the need 
for similar exploration along a different line has been felt 
for a long time at the Garden. Indeed, situated as we are, 
it is more important for the Missouri Botanical Garden to 
engage in such explorations than it is for private estates or 
gardens located in the vicinity of large growers of plants, 
where thousands of dollars are devoted each year to acquir- 
ing unusually valuable plants. A not inconsiderable source 
of supply of material for eastern gardens is obtained by gift 
from growers and owners of private estates who have surplus 
material or plants which-they no longer desire to take care 
of. The only gift of this kind which the Missouri Botanical 
Garden has received was the notable collection of orchids 
contributed by the late D. S. Brown, and the tremendous value 
of this collection in making possible our winter orchid show is 
a slight indication of what we would be able to do could we 
but receive similar contributions from others with the same 
large public spirit. 
To cite but one more example of the possibilities for in- 
creasing the usefulness and standing of the Missouri Bo- 
tanical Garden should additional private endowments be ob- 
tained, I would call attention to the unique opportunity for 
establishing at the Garden a research institute for the study 
of plant diseases. The success of the Rockefeller Institute for 
