Vlll. PREFACE, 



acrid nature, are of all others most frequently devour- 

 ed. Some essential oil is one of the best preservatives 

 against this misfortune ; and we thus resort to the same 

 armature which nature employs for the preservation of 

 the tender flower. And with all his care it is necessary 

 to caution the student against disappointment. Many 

 plants turn black in spite of our exertions, while others 

 retain their freshness with comparatively little care. 

 Yellow, scarlet, and green, are among the lasting col- 

 ours ; but the blue, the pale red, and the white, part 

 with their beauty and their freshness together. 



The student should also be provided vvith a magnifi- 

 er, which will enable him to inspect the flowers of the 

 Grasses, and others equally minute ; and a close tin 

 box of any convenient size and shape, will enable him 

 to preserve the specimens which he gathers, several 

 days ; and even then, they do not wither, but become 

 black and mouldy. 



But instruments will be of little use, unless he re- 

 sorts to books, for instruction. The Plants of Boston, 

 by Dr. Bigelow ; the Manual of Botany, for the Nor- 

 thern States, by Mr. Eaton ; the Flora of Philadelphia, 

 by Dr. Barton ; the American Genera, by Mr. Nutall, 

 and the Botany of the Southern States, by Dr. Elliott, 

 have all been recently published in the Urjted States. 



Nor should I omit to mention the Catalogue of North 

 American Plants by the late Dr. Muhlenburg, and the 



