22 PEOCEEDINGS OF THE 



" Indisputably no botanist has ever possessed a larger collection 

 of dried plants, or a richer herbarium. It is placed in order, 

 according to Genera, Orders, and Classes, and tlie Nomina 

 specifica are written on them. 



" Each of all these species I have glued wiih isinglass on half a 

 sheet of paper, and all the half-sheets that belong to one genus I 

 have put up in a Avhole sheet of paper, and on the whole sheet I 

 have written the name of the Genus, and on the half-sheet the 

 name of the Species. All these whole sheets, or Genera, I have 

 arranged according to the Orders and Classes, in two presses, 

 with partitions in them suited to the Classes, in order that, 

 when the Genus and Class are known, one may immediately 

 find out the specimen. So simple a mode of arrangement has 

 never before existed. When several specimens are required on 

 account of Varieties or some differences of a species, there are 

 several quarter-sheets placed between, and the quarter-sheets 

 belonging to the same species are fastened together with a pin 

 at the edges." (Pulteney's ' General View,' ed. Maton, pp. 574- 

 576.) 



" On the death of Linuseus his own son was obliged to buy the 

 collections and library at a price fixed by his mother. Having 

 a great desire to travel, he pawned his juvenile herbarium to 

 Baron Alstroemer for fifty-five pounds sterling, to provide himself 

 with the needful funds. He found himself received with the 

 greatest attention, as the son and successor of the great Swedish 

 naturalist, and in his jouruey was the reciijieut of many gifts 

 to enrich his herbarium. He reached London in May 17S1, 

 and was received as a guest by Sir Joseph Banks during the 

 three months he spent in England. In August he was in Paris, 

 where he was given duplicates of Commersou's plants from 

 Thouin's herbai'ium, amounting to 1100 species ; no dujilicates 

 had been before imparted to any foreigner. The spring of the 

 next year, 1782, he was in Holland, tracing the steps of his 

 father's progress, and receiving abundant presents of dried 

 plants, books, shells, and insects." (Smith in Kees's Cyclopaedia, 

 Art. Linnaeus.) 



II. Possession by Sie J. E. Smith. 



Upon the death of the younger Linnaeus, Dr. Acrel, Professor 

 of Medicine at Upsala, made the offer of the whole of the 

 collections to Sir Joseph Banks for the sum of oue thousand 

 guineas, through the agency of Dr. Eugelhart. " It appeared," 

 says Smith, " that I breakfasted with Sir Joseph upon the day 

 the letter arrived, which was the 23rd of December, 1783 ; and 

 he told me of the offer he had, saying he should decline it ; and, 

 handing me the letter to read, advised me strongly to make tlie 

 purchase, as a thing suitable to my tai-te, and which would do me 

 honour." Smitli went at once to Engelhart, whom he had 



