153 



say, that if my account had been published twenty years 

 prior to M. Dehle's, still, if it was really M. Bojer's wish 

 that the name JoUffea should be retained in preference to 

 any other, his wishes ought most assuredly to be fulfilled. 



It will be seen, by a note appended to my descrip- 

 tion of Telfairia pedata, t. 2256 and 2257, that my account 

 and name were printed, diough not published, when I re- 

 ceived M. Bojer's description of JoUffea, and that I 

 retained the name Telfairia, " trusting that he would concur 

 with me in dedicating it to his patron and friend." 



I was, indeed, not in the least aware that JoUffea was so 

 called in compliment to a person ; but no sooner did I find 

 that it was published in France, under the last-mentioned 

 appellation, which it had received in honour of the captain 

 of the vessel who brought it to the Isle of France, than 

 I immediately wrote to M. Bojer, begging him to say 

 which name, under all these circumstances, should attach to 

 the plant, and assuring him that I should adopt, with 

 pleasure, whichever he preferred. 



His reply came in a letter, dated February 23, 1829, and 

 is as follows : — " Now allow me, my dear Sir, to touch on 

 the essential point of your letter, respecting the Cucurhita- 

 ceous plant. I know that a paper of mine, sent to my 

 inestimable correspondent. Professor Delile, at Montpellier, 

 is a copy of the same I sent to you, with a drawing under 

 the name of JoUffea ; but I never heard what M. Delile had 

 done with it. Now I am happy to say, that if it depends 

 upon me which appellation is to be retained, I prefer com- 

 memorating the name of a man, whose knowledge, love of 

 science, and universal benevolence of character, entitle him 

 to the distinction. Such a man is our excellent friend, Mr. 

 Telfair ; and I shall be very much obliged to you, to do all 

 that is necessary to prevent any change of the name 

 Telfairia. I shall write to M. Delile on the same subject." 



It now only remains for me to state that the following 

 description, and the accompanying drawings are copied from 

 those lately communicated by Professor Bojer; and that the 

 history of the introduction of this plant to^the Mauritius, is 



