154 EBYTHEA, 



i 

 \ 



the critical study of the types of Pacific Coasf plants, col- 

 lected by early explorers, which are treasured in the 

 European storehouses of botany, duplicates of which are 

 not elsewhere. Such a work has long been waiting for a 

 master's hand, and it is of the utmost importance to Ameri- 



6an 



True 



in Europe on similar 



misconceived, until late in life, the Pacific Coast flora, and 



Calif orni 



Hsenke, Menzies, EBchscholtz, Nutfall, Douglas and Hart- 

 weg were some of the early explorers. The twice-told 

 tale about the insufficiency and meagreness of early des- 

 criptions need not here be repeated. In too many cases the 

 diagnoses of their plants might as easily apply;; to any of 

 several nearly related forms. It is largely immaterial to the 

 present purpose whether certain species should be main- 

 tained or reduced to varietal rant, or referred as mere forms. 

 There may easily be honest difPerence of opinion as to the 

 valuation in such cases. But satisfactory determination can 

 result only when the types be acurately known. This is an 

 essential prerequisite to the study of difficult genera; and 

 for Pacific Coast botany it is urgent— now more than ever 

 with the increasing kno-wledge of our varied vegetation— that 

 there should be jBnal determination in each and every case, in 

 so far as it can be finally determined, as to what the authors 

 of various species had under consideration. 



Perhaps no types are of more interest to Western botanists 

 than those of Nuttall. That keen botanist was on the 

 Californian Coast as early as 1835. He recognized many 

 species in the field which, when published, were not accom- 



panied by sufficiently full descriptions. Without 



the id 



Museum 



mtification by the diagnoses alone is difficult, or 

 otherwise a matter of conjecture or surmise. Yet not a 

 few such species to this day find a place in treatises on 

 Californian botany, and it is, too, already certain that more 

 or less of his names have been misapplied. 



