62 PE0CEEDIK08 OF THE 



month before his death ; wliilst a still more recent communica- 

 tion to the Society received his final notes only a few hours pre- 

 vious to his disease. These papers, when they reach the hands of 

 the Fellows, will be seen to bear the marks of his unhasting and 

 unfailing care. 



His death, which came upon us suddenly, happened at his re- 

 sidence at Down on Wednesday, 19th April ; news having only 

 reached London on the afternoon of the next day, the Society 

 adjourned without transacting more than the necessary business. 

 The funeral in Westminster Abbey on Api'il 26th was attended 

 by a concourse of mourners, probably unequalled in its kind since 

 Liunajus was buried in the Cathedral of Upsala in January 

 1778. 



Joseph Decaisne was born at Brussels in 1807, and was tlic 

 second of a family of three brothers, who had a hard struggle 

 for the means of subsistence. His elder brother Henri showed 

 so decided a bent for painting, that his mother removed wath 

 her children to Paris. Joseph began the study of medicine ; but 

 after a short time he turned from it with dislike, and exchanged 

 objects of study ^^atli his younger brother Pierre, who had applied 

 Mmself to botany. In 1824;, when 17 years of age, Joseph 

 Decaisne was taken on as a working gardener at the same Museum 

 where he afterwards held so distinguished a position. After 

 being appointed Chef du Carre des Semis, a post which had been 

 previously held by Bernard de Jussieu and the brothers Thouiu, 

 he was placed by Adrien de Jussieu as his Assistant in the Chair 

 of Eural Botany. This was the epoch from which his fii'st pub- 

 lications took their origin. . 



His earlier works were on descriptive and geographic botany, 

 embracing the new plants brought from Japan and the East ; 

 also completing Jacquemont's account of the plants collected in 

 Asia, and a monograph of Asclepiads, done at the instigation of 

 M. DeCandolle, &c. 



In 184:7 he was elected into the Academie des Sciences, in-the 

 Section of Eural Economy ; in 1850 he was chosen to succeed 

 Mirbel in the Chair of Cultures at the Jardiu des Plantes. Tlie 

 remainder of his life was spent as assiduously as the earher por- 

 tion. With his pupil Thurct he worked at the Alga) with a view 

 of working out their entire sexual history. AVith Le Maout, he 

 produced his ' Traite geuerale do Botauique,' a work which has 

 appeared in most of the Eui'opcan languages, and owes much of 

 its extended popularity to the drawings wliich Decaisne had so 

 diligently amassed during his career. His most important work 

 perhaps was his ' Le Jardin fruitier du Museum,' of which twelve 

 4to volumes liavebeen issued. For many years he was Editor of 

 the botanical portion of the ' Aunales des Sciences naturelles.' 

 He died at Paris on February 8th last ; and w'as followed to his 

 grave by an immense concourse of people. His plants and papers 

 were bequeathed to the State Botanic Garden at Brussels. 



