19 



Kew, in common with many another establishment, mourns the 

 loss of one whose interest in its objects and work took the 

 practical form of timely gifts. 



In 1862 Lady Burdett-Coutts presented to Kew the large 

 collection of British seaweeds formed by the late Mrs. Griffiths of 

 Torquay, as it stood at that date. During her lifetime this lady 

 was one of the leading authorities on seaweeds in England. She 

 corresponded extensively with and contributed largely to th« 

 herbaria of Sir W. Hooker, Dr. Harvey, Mr. W. Borrer and other 

 contemporary algologists. But besides her presentations to fellow- 

 workers Mrs. Griffiths disposed during her life-tiine of one 

 collection of Algae to the British Museum, and presented another 

 to the Torquay Museum. On Mrs. Griffiths' death, which occurred 

 in 1857, a complete set of her collection of seaweeds was 

 acquired for the Linnean Society, in whose possession it now 

 is. The general collection from which this set had been taken 

 was purchased by Lady Burdett-Coutts and given by her to KeAV. 

 The collection was kept apart till LS'.H when it was decided to 

 incorporate as much of it as was desirable in the general collection, 

 which already contained the extensive set of specimens given by 

 Mrs. Griffiths during her life-time to Sir William Hooker. Very 

 many of these earlier specimens were removed from the general 

 collection and replaced by better specimens from the special 

 collection, all of which, with the exception of such specimens 

 as had been presented to her by other collectors, have the localities 

 and names entered in Mrs. Griffiths' own handwriting. The 

 extent and value of Lady Burdett-Coutts' gift may best be 

 gathered from the fact that when Mrs. Griffiths' collection was 

 incorporated in the general herbarium, six sets of dumicates were 

 made nn at Kew and nrespn+pri tn 



ments. 



six other botanical establish- 



In 1880 Kew was indebted to Lady Burdett-Coutts for another and 

 still more important gift. In that year she purchased and presented 



to Kew the herbarium of the late Dr. W. P. Srdii inner. Professor of 



Giimbal 



in 



six quarto volumes, with l>40 plates, giving a critical account of 

 the mosses of Europe. In recording this gift the Kew Report 

 (in 1880, p. Go), says : — " Dr. Schimper's herbarium, upon which 

 " the Bryologia was in the main founded, contains a profusion of 

 " specimens of Musci collected with unrivalled judgment and 

 " preserved and ticketed with scrupulous care. It further contains 

 the muscological collections of Brnch and other of the older 



« 



u 



"^^..■u. (;) .v,t»«. WUVl;MUHO \JL JJIULI1 unit wil^m. i^i -~~ ^.v»~» 



" botanists, who published on the group, together with a mis- 



uciianv o 



" sources." 



; 11 



In addition, it may be added, the herbarium contains the types 



corresponding to Schimper's monograph of the genus Sphagnum, 

 and a number of manuscript descriptions and exquisite drawings 

 of a large number of species of mosses not included in the 

 Bryologia. 



26873 



B2 



