186 VEGETATION 



and at a number of landings we had time for but a few hours on shore and 

 had to avail ourselves of every moment. 



On our return, the collections were distributed among a number of special- 

 ists, who kindly undertook their determination and who are responsible for 

 the nomenclature. All of the ferns and flowering plants, with the exception 

 of the grasses, sedges and palms, were determined by Dr. X. L. Britton; the 

 grasses, by Dr. H. F. Hitchcock; the palms, by Dr. 0. F. Cook; the myxomy- 

 cetes by Dr. W. G. Farlow; the algae, by Dr. M. A. Howe; the fungi, by Dr. 

 Geo. F. Atkinson; the licliens, by Mr. W. W. Calkins; the liverworts, by Dr. 

 A. W. Evans ; and the mosses, by Mrs. N. L. Britton. To each of these I am 

 under many obligations not only for undertaking the work, but for the kind- 

 ness that they have in every case shown in furnishing information and in 

 answering my incpiiries. To Dr. X. L. Britton, Director of the Xew York 

 Botanical Garden, my thanks are particularly due for the assistance he so 

 generously offered during my stay of six weeks in the Bronx Park Museum. 

 To Mr. C. A. Shore, who aided me in collecting, and to Mr. F. M. Hanes, who 

 took the photographs, I wish to express my gratitude for faithful assistance 

 under all circumstances. 



SKETCH OF BOTANICAL EXPLORATIONS IN BAHAMAS. 



Since Mark Catesby's visit in 1725, these Islands have been frequently 

 explored by botanists; unfortunately, however, without system. Most of their 

 scientific exploration has yielded little fruit, as there are but a few publications 

 of any extent on a flora that is both abundant and attractive. Most collectors 

 have been satisfied with making herbaria without troubling themselves with 

 written observations. Some few have merely identified without collecting. 

 The Bahama plants that have been preserved are now, however, quite numerous, 

 and when thoroughly worked up, they will no doubt be found to include the 

 major part of the flora of the Islands. 



The earliest collector of whom we have any information was Mark Catesby. 

 After visiting Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida, he went to Xew 

 Providence in 1735. From there he made visits to Eleuthera, Andros, Abaco 

 and other islands. He remained in the Bahamas until 1726 and collected 

 plants from all the points he visited. His collections are now at Oxford and 

 in the British Museum. On his return to England, Catesby published two 

 large volumes of explorations which contained many illustrations.^ The first 



^ The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and The Bahama Islands, etc. 

 London, 1731-43. 



