280 ON THE GEOGRAPHICAL 



V. Madagascar and the islands in the vicinity, the inter- 

 tropical regions of Africa and of Arabia. 



VI. The intertropical regions of Asia (Arabia excepted), of 

 New Holland, the East Indies, New Guinea, New Caledonia, 

 and most of the islands in the Pacific. 



VII. The temperate portion of South America. 



VIII. The southern extremity of Africa. 



IX. Van Dieman's land, and the temperate portion of New 

 Holland. 



X. New -Zealand. 



XI. The Falkland Islands, Terra del Fuego, the South 

 Shetland Islands, and the southern extremity of South Ame- 

 rica. 



Some volcanic islands are situated in the midst of the ocean, 

 at a vast distance from land, and are so completely insulated, 

 that they cannot be referred to any of the above regions : — 

 such are the islands of Ascension, St Helena, Tristan dAc- 

 unha, in the Atlantic ; Amsterdam Island in the Indian Ocean, 

 &c. The flora of islands of this description is restricted in 

 the number of species, but highly deserving attention ; and it 

 would even appear that they possess species peculiar to them- 

 selves, an extremely interesting and important fact. 



All the plants existing in either of the eleven regions here 

 laid down are not invariably confined to it, a few being com- 

 mon to two or more of them ; and we observe that if two of 

 these regions approach each other at any point, several spe- 

 cies are common to both ; — thus, many species are to be 

 found in the northern parts of the two continents, and in the 

 intertropical parts of Africa and of Asia : — while to those 

 which are most completely separated, no phcenogamous plant 

 is common. 



As the plan refers solely to the range of plants, it is liable 

 to the objection of elevating a comparatively insignificant 

 portion of southern Africa to the rank of a distinct region, 

 while the whole of the northern and temperate part of the 

 eastern continent, comprising more than a third of all the land 

 upon the surface of the earth, forms but one : and if the in- 



