499 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 
for publication in your valuable journal. Those species which are presented as 
new are minutely described, and in all cases where the western specimens of 
known plants differ from the eastern, this difference is stated. By this means 
we shall become acquainted with, at least, some of the peculiarities in the 
vegetation of that interesting section of the United States. Concerning the 
more common plants, the habitats and times of flowering only are mentioned. 
The cataiogue, it is hoped will contribute somewhat to increase our stock of 
_ knowledge, and will be particularly interesting to geographical botanists, and 
to future writers upon the botany of the United States. 
This annotated list, which was continued in three volumes of Silli- 
man’s Journal, mentions about two hundred species of plants, and is 
the earliest extensive list known to the writer. Many of Beck’s plants 
are cited in Riddell’s “ Synopsis of the Flora of the Western States,” 
published in 1835, but apparently only a portion of them are so men- 
tioned. 
In 1822 Beck moved back to Albany and remained there the rest of 
his life. He held positions as professor of botany and other sciences at 
a number of institutions up to the time of his death; Rensselaer Poly- 
technic Institute, Rutgers College and Albany Medical College being 
those with which he was most prominently connected. Dr. Beck was 
well known in botanical circles, being the author of a manual of the 
botany of the northern and middle states, of which two editions were 
issued. He also published a number of botanical papers. He was a 
well-known writer on chemical and medical subjects besides; and 
published a manual of chemistry which passed through four editions. 
He seems to have been a conservative writer, as his bibliography con- 
tains but twenty-three titles. Dr. Beck died at Albany on April 20, 
After Beck closed his work in the vicinity of St. Louis there seems 
to have been a period of nearly ten years when there was no botanical 
work done. In 1831, however, there began a period of activity which 
has continued more or less regularly up to the present time. The first 
botanist to start this activity was Thomas Drummond. 
