THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 



have to call actinic assassination, began to atti-act public 

 attention. The crisis is far off yet, but we know what the 

 end must be. When a test-tube wizard can take alump of 

 coal and give j^ou not onh- d_ves of every shade, but also 

 perfumes, flavors, explosives, sugars and salts— what 

 chance does the plant have wnth its few reagents and 

 fewer retorts ? The plant-man says, "this tree knows the 

 secret of making camphor from air ; this one secretes tur- 

 pentine; behold, how wonderful!" The wnzard of the 

 laboratory saj^s, "I will put an atom of ox3'gen into this 

 molecule of turpentine and then I can sell it as camphor 

 and make money." And if he can't gain his point by liber- 

 ating nascent ox3'gen he strikes it with even more furious 



lightning. 



The desert Indian still pets his cochineal bug, the 

 plodding Hindoo still sweats in his indigo field, and the 

 French peasant may still tend his plat of madder if he has 

 nothing else to do ; but turmeric, litmus, brazil, sappan, 

 fustic, logwood, quercitron, and scores of other good old 

 dyes are going or already gone from the markets. High 

 officials reduced to the ranks ! Ex-economics. 



And the burning shame of it all is that the chemists 

 won't fight fair : they take products elaborated from the 

 soil and air by plants and add, subtract, or divide per 

 fortnulam. 



Mayaguez, Porto Rico. 



COLLECTING PLANTS FOR IDENTIFICATION. 



BY DK. WILLIAM WHITMAN BAILEY. 

 ''pHE note of H. C. Skeels in the May number of the 

 J- Botanist leads me to reinforce my former statement 

 concerning the importance of seeds. Anyone conducting a 

 large herbariun like we have at Brown, is subject to num- 

 berless questions in regard to plants. Indeed, we invite 

 and welcome these, only asking a stamp for a reply. It is, 

 however, most vexing and surprising to constantly receive 

 mere snips of inflorescence, without leaves, or roots, or 

 fruit ; often in immature bud ! For instance, I had a 



