REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE. 21 



the medium of the herbarium aud its library. The herbarium has also 

 a high value for consultation by teachers and professors of botany, who 

 frequently avail themselves of the opportunities here afibrded of study- 

 ing plants from every part of the Union. 



This advantage is participated in also by educated foreigners, who in 

 visiting the capital of the country expect to find centered here a full 

 representation of its various productions. Such collections are a neces- 

 sity of the education of the times, and every country of the world, which 

 is advanced in intelligence and science, makes its capital the headquar- 

 ters for information of all kinds relating to its resources and productions 

 thus fostering that spirit of scientific research to which the highest 

 progress of the world is so much indebted. 



The heretofore crowded quarters of the herbarium have been relieved 

 by the addition of more room. 



The appointment of an assistant has been made, whose special duties 

 are to investigate the fungus diseases of plants, a line of botanical re- 

 search which has been most urgently called for and which it is expected 

 will soon show valuable results. 



A " Descriptive Catalogue of the Grasses of the United States," in- 

 tended, in part, to be explanatory of the display of grasses made at the 

 New Orleans Exposition, was prepared by this division. It was pub- 

 lished by the representative of the Department to the said exposition, 

 aud has been widely distributed to granges, agricultural colleges, and 

 persons interested in a knowledge oi' our grasses, and has received much 

 commendation from the press and from scientists. 



The report of this division shows descrij)tious and figures of a num- 

 ber of species of native medicinal plants, a subject which is now receiv- 

 ing considerable attention, and of which it is desirable that information 

 should be furnished to the people. 



This division still continues the plan of distributing duplicate speci- 

 mens of plants to such agricultural colleges as make requests for them. 



Duplicates have also been used in making exchanges with societies 

 aud institutions of science in foreign countries. The division is greatly 

 indebted to the Imperial Botanic Gardens of St. Petersburg, to the 

 Museum of i^atural Sciences at Paris, and to the Eoyal Botanic Gar- 

 dens of Great Britain, for valuable contributions to its botanical collec- 

 tions, and responses have been made as far as possible, by contributing 

 to their similar wants. 



The work of this division has been yearly increasing, and it now 

 stands in urgent need of an addition to its force, in order that proper 

 researches may be made, and that useful information on botanical sub- 

 jects may be diiTused among the people. 



DIVISION 03? FORESTRY. 



There is, perhaps, no subject in which the Dei^artment can be used 

 to greater benefit than in its attention to forestry interests ; and, con- 



