PREFACE. 5 
attempt of placing a botanic school-book on such a basis, and in 
a first endeavor of reducing it at the same time to a very limited 
number of pages, it was not found easy to draw the lines of 
demarcation of the various subjects, which a book like the present 
may fairly be expected to touch on in an attractive form. Should 
the plan, adopted on this occasion, prove to answer the intended 
‘purposes, then one or more additional parts might follow, unless 
the contemplated larger work was brought out so early, as to 
render further exertions in the direction now indicated for this 
particular teaching here unnecessary. Those, who wish to use for 
instruction or study such special works, as are generally adopted 
in Britain, can have no difficulty to select even here from quite 
a host of purchasable publications, all meritorious in their way, 
some quite inexpensive, and on most of which we could not hope 
to improve extensively ; while in cheap profuseness of artistic 
illustrations the colonial publications could not possibly yet 
compete with home works. The teacher in utilizing now the 
present pages will find it convenient, to adopt each of the short 
chapters for one or more separate lessons, and to supplement by 
any additional material within his reach the means for demon- 
stration, preserving the plants, thus brought together, for a local 
school-collection, to serve permanent references. The illustrative 
figures of this little book are chiefly copied from the plates of 
the “ Plants of Victoria,” drawn under the author’s supervision. 
The anatomic drawings are original. To foster the knowledge of 
our native vegetation the author undertook since three years, to 
send out pressed and dried plants with printed notes in atlas- 
form under the title of “ Educational Collections,” the fascicles 
of which are accessible in the mechanic institutes and free libraries 
of each district, whereby an easy additional opportunity for local 
investigations by mere comparisons is offered. The writer more- 
over has ever been willing to promote by correspondence or 
