768 



until examples of British growth can be procured to replace them, in 

 the herbaria of members. 



Lastly, I will trespass still a few lines more, to recommend the 

 members who may have received only bad specimens, to keep mark- 

 ing the species as a desidei'atum, until they obtain others sufficiently 

 good. For a series of years, any sort of rubbish, paltry fragments, 

 wretchedly dried, used to be sent to the London Society ; and these 

 were most unwisely accepted, and distributed from the Society, as 

 botanical specimens. The improvement during the past three years 

 has been very great, though partial. Many specimens, even this win- 

 ter, must be destroyed or returned to the contributors. But there are 

 also very numerous specimens so perfect and well-dried, that I can 

 now truly say, for the first time, we have English parcels nowise in- 

 ferior to the best of the Continental parcels, as respects the condition 

 of the specimens. The names on the labels will show to which of 

 the contributors the credit of this improvement is fairly due ; and it 

 might seem obtrusive and invidious were I to mention their names 

 myself. Continental botanists have long made it matter of reproach 

 against those of Britain, that they collect fragments for specimens, 

 and dry them as badly as possible. We are improving, at last ; and 

 much of the improvement has sprung from the Bedford Street stimulus. 



H. C. Watson. 



Thames Ditton, February, 1847. 



Analysis of'-'' an Attempt to arrange the Carices of Middle Europe. 

 By Joseph Woods, Esq., F.L.S." 



The following analysis of Mr. Woods' valuable paper appears in the 

 ' Linnean Transactions,' (vol. xix. p. 499). I have taken the liberty 

 of giving a nearly literal translation of the characters of the groups ; 

 and trust that in its present form it may be acceptable to some of the 

 readers of the * Phytologist.' * 



" Mr. Woods passes in review the principal characters by means of 

 which the species of Carices may be arranged into gi'oups, and adopts 

 with some modifications the system of Koch. His arrangement is as 

 follows." The British species are printed in Italics. 



A. Spike single, simple. 

 1. DicEcious ; stigmas 2. 



L C. dioica. 2. C. Davalliana. 



