CONTENTS OF INTRODUCTORY ESSAY 



J. Object, Scope, and Design of the Floea Indica ... 2 



Contents of the proposed Work . . . . . . . 2 



Its object relatively to the requirements of Economic Botany . . 3 



Botany too comprehensive a subject to be worked out by one indivi- 

 dual, both as an abstract science and in an economic point of view 

 — Necessity for the partial use of Latin — Desirability of a popular 

 work succeeding, not preceding, a scientific — Dr. Royle's labours 4 



Impossibility of making satisfactory progress in Economic Botany of 

 India for want of a scientific Flora ...... 5 



Eeasons for our undertaking the Flora Indica, our advantages, our 

 materials, collections, access to herbaria and libraries ... 6 



British Association recommends the undertaking — Its application to 

 the Honourable East India Company for assistance — An unfavour- 

 able answer received — Difficulties of the task thus increased . . 7 



Area included by the Flora Indica ....... 8 



II. General Consideeations connected with the Study of Sys- 

 tematic Botany 8 



Misapprehension of the objects and importance of the study . . 8 



Desirability of explaining its fundamental principles — Principles of 

 classification in the Vegetable Kingdom difficult of acquisition rela- 

 tively to those of the Animal Kingdom 9 



Necessity of philosophical definitions in framing characters of Natural 

 Orders, Genera, and Species 10 



Impossibility of defining these properly without study and compre- 

 hensive knowledge — Recklessness with which genera and species are 



proposed, and consequent confusion of Indian Botany . . .11 

 Necessity of library and herbarium — Proneness to exaggerate the 

 number of species— Defective education in Botanical science pro- 

 motes this 



Consequent disrepute into which the study is brought— Habitual 



b 



