364 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 
compare with this. The only thing to be regretted is that it 
interrupted, at a critical period, the prosecution of a far more 
important work. 
Early in his career Dr. Torrey had resolved to undertake a 
general Flora of North America, or at least of the United 
States, arranged upon the natural system, and had asked Mr. 
Nuttall to join him, who, however, did not consent. At that 
time, when little was known of the regions west of the valley 
of the Mississippi, the ground to be covered and the materials 
at hand were of comparatively moderate compass ; and in aid 
of the northern part of it, Sir William Hooker’s Flora of 
British America — founded upon the rich collections of the 
arctic explorers, of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s intelligent 
officers, and of such hardy and enterprising pioneers as Drum- 
mond and Douglas — was already in progress. At the actual 
inception of the enterprise, the botany of eastern Texas was 
opened by Drummond’s collections, as well as that of the coast 
of California by those of Douglas, and afterwards those of 
Nuttall. As they clearly belonged to our own phyto-geo- 
graphical province, Texas and California were accordingly 
annexed botanically before they became so politically. 
While the field of botanical operations was thus enlarging, 
the time which could be devoted to it was restricted. In ad- 
dition to his chair in the Medical College, Dr. Torrey had 
felt obliged to accept a similar one at Princeton College, 
and to all was now added, as we have seen, the onerous post 
of state botanist. It was in the year 1886 or 1837 that he 
invited the writer of this notice —then pursuing botanical 
studies under his auspices and direction — to become his asso- 
ciate in the Flora of North America. In July and in Octo- 
ber, 1838, the first two parts, making half of the first volume, 
were published. The great need of a full study of the sources 
and originals of the earlier published species was now ap- 
parent ; so, during the following year, his associate occupied 
himself with this work in the principal herbaria of Europe. 
The remaining half of the first volume appeared in June, 
1840. The first part of the second volume followed in 1841; 
the second, in the spring of 1842; and in February, 1848, 
