FLORA OF WASHINGTON AND VICINITY. 217 



better than a two-lengtbed oue. The basal and upper sections will be 

 upright on the sheet and be nicely joined by the middle section, iorraing a 

 diagonal between them. This is as far as the process of bending usually 

 need be carried. Plants more than four ft?et high are generally too large 

 to collect entire. But sometimes it becomes important to give a speci- 

 men still a third bend, and this I very frequently do. The rule of 

 making each angle the opposite of the one next to it must, however, be 

 strictly adhered to in these as in all other cases, otherwise parts of the 

 stem will be across each other and spoil the specimen. Neither must 

 the idea be entertained that this is a matter that can be attended to 

 afterwards ; it must be correctly done in the field, and mistakes in meas- 

 urements of lengths or in direction of bending can never be properly 

 remedied in the herbarium. It is a good rule always to make speci- 

 mens ample ; there is more danger of getting them too meager than too 

 full, and any oue who tries some of these feats at collecting large plants 

 entire will, afterwards, when they are dry and put away, wonder every 

 time he sees them how small a comi)ass they have come to occupy and 

 what respectable-sized specimens they are. 



It is never a good plan to put two different plants between the 

 same two leaves of the portfolio. The leaves adhere to each other and 

 become doubled, wrinkled, and matted in the effort to separate them. 

 If the portfolio has not leaves enough to hold all the collections of a 

 day, this of course may become necessary; but this contingency should 

 be prevented in advance. An excellent idea is to have a portion of the 

 book consist of firm tissue-i)aper, which, though not convenient for 

 regular use, is far better than the doubling of specimens, and from the 

 small space it occupies may be carried in sufficient quantities for an 

 abundant reserve in any emergency. 



It is better to have a systematic method in filling the portfolio dur- 

 ing the excursion. The plants should be placed next to oue another 

 between successive leaves, and not put in at random. This, besides 

 giving an idea of the capacity of the portfolio at any time, and show- 

 ing how much has been done, is a great help in finding unoccupied 

 space, which, when the book becomes nearly full, is very difficult where 

 empty leaves are as likely to occur in one part as in another. But there 

 is still another and probably greater advantage in this systematic way 

 of collecting. It serves as an excellent memorandum of localities, etc., 

 after getting home. I do not recommend writing labels in the field, 

 although some do so, and it is really not to be condemned ; but if your 



