360 THE JOURNAL OF BOTANY 



may have been neutral or even acid, I cannot certainly say. The 

 most exact definition I can give of its likings is tliis : Its saturation 

 band is that of the lower side of the pine-oak-birch band, but it is 

 frequently found in physical circumstance of shallowness of peaty 

 soil not fitted for the trees down as low as the Nardus saturation 

 level. 



AN UNPUBLISHED LETTEK TO LINNii. 

 By B. Daydon Jackson, Ph.D., Sec. Linn. Soc. 



In the new volume of Linnean correspondence (noticed on p. 373) 

 a note appears to the following effect : In the catalogue of the 

 Linnean Society printed in 1896 there is an entry of a MS. by 

 Frederik Allamand entitled Genera plantancm Americanarum, 

 which probably accompanied a letter (3 nonis Novembris 1770) 

 to w^hich Linne repUed on the 29th November of the same year. 

 In spite of diligent search this manuscript has not been found. 



At the time w^hen this note was penned it was true that the 

 manuscript was mislaid, and the then librarian declared his 

 inability to produce it, though he remembered it. A few months 

 later it was discovered, with other Linnean books and papers, 

 locked in his desk, and the discovery of this disloyalty to the 

 Society whose servant he was hastened his dismissal. 



The manuscript consists of twelve leaves in octavo, the first 

 bearing the inscription : " Friderici Allamand Genera Plantarum 

 Americanarum nova 30 eorumque characteres naturales et species 

 37." On the verso we find the follow^ing letter, which, by its 

 date, is that to which Linne replied on November 29th, 1770 : — 

 '• Carolo Linnaeo 

 titulis majori S. 

 " Quae quondam in America de plantis observavi, diu abhinc per 

 varias terra marique peregrinationes in codice servata, dum 

 tandem vacat tibi Botanicorum principi sistenda decrevi. Scias 

 autem velim prioris olim itineris & longioris morse uberiores 

 fructus una cum Suppellectili prsedonum in manus infeliciter 

 cecidisse & quae mihi etiamnum Supersunt, in American! iterum 

 peregrinato, biennii spatio collecta fuisse, pleraque in Surinam 

 regione plantarum feracissime at vix ullo unquam diligento adita 

 Botanice. In prtesentibus, Speciminis ergo, genera ha3C tibi 

 Sisto, ex quibus judicare queas num quid utilis ex paupero 

 coeterum penu percipiendum tibi sit, quod si sic, lubenter 

 obtemperaturo impera ? Vale ! 



"F. Allamand M.D: 



& Legionis marinae, 



Tribuni Douglas Chirurg : major." 



The new genera are enumerated as in Linne's reply (op. cit. 7) ; 

 the original has a few words written by Linne, as against 

 Narthcx we find ''Panicum Crus-corvi" and Galarips ''Allamanday 

 Following the genera are two pages of criticism, or rather correc- 

 tions, regarding certain genera, and then the names of species ; 

 Galarips cathartica is now the well-known Allamanda cathartica. 



