LINNEAN SOCIETY OF LONDON. XXI 



in the Regent's Park, where he remained as a foreman till 1857, 

 when, on the recommendation of Sir W. Hooker, he was engaged 

 as Botanist to the Niger expedition, under Dr. Baikie. 



Of his energy and industry while in Africa it is impossible to 

 speak too highly. His collections, now forming part of the rich 

 Herbarium of the Eoyal Gardens, Kew, embrace upwards of 1300 

 species, about 220 of which are probably undescribed, including 

 twenty-four or twenty-five new generic types, and examples of the 

 eight following orders, not previously known in the Niger Flora ; 

 viz. Himiiriaceae, BahaminecB, PriniulacecE, Cuscutece, Myo^orinecB, 

 AristolocJiiacecB, Ci/cadacece, and Sutomecd. 



Dr. Hooker has dedicated to him, and described in the present 

 volume of the Society's ' Journal ' (Bot., p. 14, tab. 2), a very sin- 

 gular and anomalous genus of PassifloretB, allied to Smeathmannia, 

 R. Br., and detected by Barter himself at the mouth of the Niger. 

 In proposing that this interesting plant should bear the name of 

 its indefatigable discoverer, Dr. Hooker observes that his collec- 

 tions far exceed in magnitude, condition, and value, those of any 

 other explorer in those regions. 



An extract of a letter from Mr. Barter to Prof. Bentley, dated 

 Eabba, River Quorra, Sept. 29, 1857, about three months after his 

 arrival in the river, was published in vol, ii. of our ' Jommal ' (Bot., 

 p. 180), and two letters addressed by him to Sir William Hooker, 

 and dated, respectively, January 2, 1859, and March 7, 1859, are 

 printed in the fourth volume. 



Extracts from many of the letters addressed by him to Sir "W. 

 Hooker during the progress of the Expedition, appeared from time 

 to time in the ' Gardener's Chronicle ' for 1858 and 1859, and the 

 announcement of his death, which, as stated by Dr. Baikie, in a 

 letter to his brother, occurred at Rabba, on the Niger, on the 15th 

 of July, 1859, is accompanied by the following observations by the 

 editor : — " We, in common with all who knew Mr. Barter, regret 

 his untimely fate. The letters from him, published in our columns, 

 in the early part of the present year, showed him to be a man of 

 great intelligence ; and the very valuable collections of both, living 

 and dried plants sent by him to Kew proved that his intelligence 

 was accompanied by much zeal and untiring energy. We believe 

 that his death was caused by dysentery — a dreadful scourge in such 

 climates as the banks of the Niger." 



Mr. Barter was elected an Associate on the 18th of November, 

 1858, but the news of his death arrived before his name could bQ 

 inserted in the printed list. 



