DR. KUNTZE AND HIS BEVIEWERS. 271 



neiit." The last clause reveals, what we fear has become 

 habitual iu the botanical miiicl in certain quarters^ the working 

 of a principle which it was to be hoped had been abandoned 

 in England, after all the mischief it has wrought tliere; I 

 mean that of suppressing one man's new genera, and giving 

 them to another under other names, for the reason that he 

 who had priority on his side, had the misfortune to be at 

 variance with him who Avas assumed to be the man of greater 

 consequence. But it is plain that the critic looks upon the 

 case of Moehring and Siegesbeck versus Linnaeus as altogether 

 exceptional; and where, if the sajne things had transpired 

 before our eyes in modern times, all the blame would have 

 been charged to Linmeus, Mr. Jackson finds no fault at all 

 baton the other side; and their fault is that of not having 

 regarded the youthful Linmeus of 1736 as a great oracle, in 

 whose presence all other botanists must, for a time, remain 

 speechless that he may perfect his great plans of reform! 

 Surely Mr. Jackson's language amounts to the placing of 

 Linnieus in a very peculiarly sacred position among botanists 

 between the years 1735 and 1753. He makes it irregiilar, or 

 at least futile, for any one to have proposed a new genus of 

 plants, or to have done anytliing else except in the spirit of 

 deference to Linnaeus, or as tributary to his fame. 



But the situation was not, we think, really so weak as to 

 have called for so great sacrifice on the part of Linnaeus' con- 

 temporaries, in order to the Linnsean success. Sijsfema 

 NatuvcB is one of the most pretentious titles that a book of 

 science ever bore. Nor would Linn^ieus have been likely him^ 

 self to have acceded to such a proposition as that ''the first 

 edition of the Systema was an outline sketch only." But had 

 it really been such how absurd would it not have been for 

 Linnaeus to have bidden botanists discontinue all research 

 from the date of its appearing, lay down their pens and wait 

 until, at the end of jierhaps eighteen years, he should be able 

 to set the crown on his own labors. And most unfortunately 

 hard-pressed does the critic seem to be who must resort to 

 such a supposition in order to dare denounce the restoration 



