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kind is strongly recommended to all botanists about to undertake the 

 task of compiling county Floras. For experience has shown that it 

 is almost impossible for any one person, however active, satisfactorily 

 to examine an area of more than four or five miles radius round his 

 own residence, unless he has unlimited command of time. Any county 

 therefore proposed to be examined should be divided into as many 

 districts, of from fifty to eighty square miles each on the average., as it 

 conveniently and naturally can be. Even much smaller districts than 

 this would often be desirable, if there were any reasonable probability 

 of obtaining catalogues of their productions. But as there are com- 

 paratively few botanists in any one county who are capable of form- 

 ing such catalogues, and the editor-in-chief will generally be driven 

 to rely very much on his own observations, he will be forced to dimi- 

 nish the number and increase the size of the districts beyond what 

 would be advantageous if practicable. 



It may be useful to add an account of the method pursued in cata- 

 loguing the plants of a district. A book was prepared containing the 

 county list in single columns, with twelve ruled columns on the same 

 page, corresponding to the number of districts. Some promising spot, 

 as central as possible within any district, was then repaired to, and 

 the observer started on his walk with a small vasculum in hand, in 

 which he deposited a small characteristic "pinch" (no larger than 

 was absolutely necessary for indentification) of every species that oc- 

 curred. When the box grew full, or a convenient halting-place was 

 reached, the prepared list was taken in hand and deliberately read 

 through : and as often as it occurred to the memory that such a spe- 

 cies had been gathered, a figure corresponding to the number of the 

 district was entered in the proper column opposite to its name. When 

 the list had thus been gone through seriatim, the collecting box was 

 opened, and its contents singly but rapidly removed ; and if it was 

 doubted concerning any of them whether or not it had been recorded, 

 the book was referred to. This was seldom necessary with a tolerable 

 memory, not more than 1 per cent, being generally omitted in the 

 first marking. The box being emptied, the walk was renewed and a 

 second collection made of everything not previously recorded. In 

 this manner as many as 300 species have been catalogued in a single 

 day. If two hunt together this process is much expedited, and in de- 

 fault of leisure of the principal, at any particular season, the services 

 of a beginner may be made use of, to bring or send from the district 

 a fragment of every species he may meet with. 



After a considerable number (about 400) had been catalogued, a 



