CANADIAN BOTANY. S3 



who, in following, are to reap the benefit of hard-won victories and poorly-requited toil. 

 "We are thus brought to consider the third class, that which includes the professional 

 naturalist. 



In 1635, Jacc[ues Phillippe Cornut of Paris, published a list of Canadian plants, under 

 the title of " Canadensium Plantarum Aliarumque nondum editarum historia." This 

 constituted the first publication relative to Canadian botany. It contains descriptions of 

 a very considerable number of our common plants which are figured in admirably executed 

 plates. We here, also, meet with generic names which are still retained in our modern 

 classification, though ascribed to later botanists, such as Touruefort and Linnaeus, who 

 must have derived them from Cornut without credit. Judged from our present stand- 

 point of botanical knowledge, the descriptions are not wholly scientific, and the crude 

 attempts at classification show no scientific basis. The work was translated a century 

 later, by Charlevoix, who added many notes to it. 



The earliest physician, whose name is prominently connected with the botany of this 

 country, was Sarrasin, resident physician at the court of Quebec, in the early part of the 

 eighteenth century, a position he held until his death, in 1*734, at the age of seventy-five 

 years. He was, therefore, at Quebec at the time of Charlevoix's visit ; indeed, the latter 

 specially refers to him on more than one occasion. Although he left no special writings 

 on the Canadian flora, he sent collections of plants to Europe, and particularly to France. 

 Among others, he sent the common pitcher plant, which he had discovered, and which 

 Tournefort dedicated to him under the generic name of Sarracenia. 



Sarrasin died just as Linnœus was reaching fame. His collections, however, were 

 probably among the first of those to reach Europe, and which served as the source 

 whence Linnaeus first derived the material for his descriptions. Certain it is that, within 

 the early and middle part of the eighteenth century, many plants were described by 

 Linnaeus, in which the name of Canada is prominent. Thus the low blackberry, (Rubus 

 Canadensis, L.), the Canadian violet {Viola Canadensis, L.), the blood root {Sanguinaria Cana- 

 densis, L.), the dwarf cornel {Cornus Canadensis, L.), and many others, will remain monu- 

 ments to the zealous work of those early botanists, and memorials of our country, as long- 

 as botanical science exists. 



Boucher, who was governor of Three Rivers, and who published a work entitled 

 " Histoire Naturelle de la Nouvelle France, vulgairement dite le Canada," preceded Sar- 

 rasin by a few years. Beyond the work mentioned, he has left us nothing of importance. 



Following Dr. Sarrasin, and replacing him as Royal Physician, was Dr. Gaultier, who 

 was living at Quebec at the time of Kalm's visit. The two appear to have established an 

 intimate friendship, and though Gaultier left no writings, he seemed to have been an 

 enthusiastic botanist. His memory is perpetuated in our common little winter-green, 

 which Kalm dedicated to his friend under the generic name of GauUheria} 



' There appears to be some confusion among botanists respecting the true orthography of this name. Kalm 

 continually speaks of I>r. Gauthier as " GauZthier," and to him we doubtless owe the mistake since perpetuated. 

 Dr. Gray says, "This is written in the Quebec Eecords as Gaultier. This genus should not be written Gaul- 

 theria, . . . nor Gaulkria, Gautiera, etc. If changed at all, the right orthography w^ould be Gaullicra." (Flora 

 of North America, I. i. 29.) This statement appears to have been based upon information derived at first hand 

 from the late Abbé Brunei; yet we find the latter saying that " Some botanists have ventured to change the name 

 of this plant to Gautiera, but the true orthography of the name of its discoverer is Gauthier, as appears from the 



