FlUEDUlCIt EURHATIT AND HIS EXSICC.VT.E 319 



Ehrliart's papers by liIs friend Paul Usteri, wlio printed it in vol. xix. 

 (pp. 1-9) of his Xene Anmtloi tier Botanik (179G). 



Ehrhart's chief contribution to botanical literature was bis Beilrdge 

 zicr Naturhoiile (1787-92) in seven volumes, each dedicated to six of 

 " seinen Gonnern und Freunden" ; among these we Hnd " Doctor Smitb 

 in London" and " Herr l^otaniker Davall in Orbe," from whom 

 Smitli obtained bis series of the exsiceata?. In bis introductory note 

 to the autobiography, Usteri says that be bad received from Ehrhart's 

 widow sufficient material for anotber volume of the Beitrage, wbicji 

 be proposed to publish with indexes to the wbole collection. In bis 

 notice of Elirbart, I). H. Hoppe (Bot. Tascbenbuch for 1796, 

 pp. 219-225) savs that for this eightb volume botanists bad waited 

 in vain, nor does anv later reference to it appear in the Neiie 

 Annalen. In tbe preface to the first volume of tbe Beitrcu/e, 

 Ehrhart tells us that the work was undertaken in res])onse^ to the 

 request of some of bis friends, wbo, having found it "difficult to 

 buy tbe books in which my little essays [ Aufsatze] bad appeared, 

 begged me to bring these together and publisb them separately, and 

 alsTto publisb nothing more in large and expensive works, but to 

 adapt myself to the circumstances of my readers "—the reference, as 

 we learn from bis autobiography, is to papers publisbed in tbe 

 HannoDerlsches Magaziii and other periodicals. Ehrhart expresses 

 sympathy witb tbeir request, knowing by experience bow unpleasant 

 it is to be compelled to pure base large and superfluous works m order 

 to obtain a few small " Abbandlungen," and promises to comply 

 witb tbeir wisbes. Of this, the first "Band" of the Bettrage 

 is evidence ; tbe following volumes, be says, will contain all that he 

 bad already publisbed or would publisb in the future. Tbe papers 

 are reprinted in tbe order in wbicb they were written, tbe date of 

 eacb being appended ; they are largely from tbe Hannover Magazine, 

 an important exception being " Meine Beitrage zum Linneiscben 

 Supplemento Plantarum" (pp. 174-192); tbis contains tbe descrip- 

 tions contributed by Ehrbart to tbe SuppJementum, and includes tbe 

 •genera and species of mosses suppressed by Linnsmis fil. under circum- 

 stances to be dealt with when tbe Supplement comes under con- 

 sideration. The importance of tbese reprints lies in the fact that tbe 

 Hannover Magazine is extremely rare— in tbe British Museum 

 Library it is represented chiefly by odd numbers. It would appear 

 tbat writers bave been accustomed to cite tbe Beitrage for new 

 species in ignorance tbat many of these bad been publisbed m the 

 I^Iacrazine; itnd when tbe Magazine itself appears to be quoted, tbis 

 is usually at second band, Ehrhart himself having often sup])lied the 

 reference, as in the case of tbe genera of ^o^^e^— Georgia, Wehera, 

 etc. (Beitr. i. 176-180) cited by Pfeiffer {Nomenclator). 



In tbe Beifrdqe, which is described by Smith (in llees, s. v. 

 JEhrliarta) as " fiiU of excellent botanical remarks, witb some pecu- 

 liarities of opinion and style," appear most of tbe descriptions of the 

 species with which Ehrliart's name is associated and lists of the 

 ExsiccatiB with which this paper is primarily concerned. From these 

 it is evident that Ehrhart bad a wide acquaintance with botanical 

 literature, early and recent: tbe synonymy quoted, with full refcrt-nces, 



