479 



although nominally not holding any official position in the Society, as 

 a Member of Council or otherwise. So long as that was the case, the 

 contributors would still very justly hold me one among the persons 

 who were responsible to them for the good and efficient management 

 of the Society, in the principal department of its operations. But 

 that responsibilty now ceases. 



The Botanical Society of Loudon has been gradually brought to a 

 state of great practical efficiency, as a centre and medium for ex- 

 changes of specimens among its members. It will require far less 

 exertion of hand and head to keep it on the high level which it has 

 attained, than was required to raise the Society to its present state, 

 from the very low place which it held in public estimation and use- 

 fulness some six or eight years ago. Almost all the needful prelimi- 

 nary work of planning and preparing, in both the intellectual and the 

 manual sense, has been completed, and has become converted almost 

 into a matter of routine. So that it would be a very poor compliment, 

 indeed, to the numerous other members, on and off the staff of office- 

 bearers in London, were it now to be supposed that the operations of 

 the Society cannot still be carried on steadily, usefully, and success- 

 fully, without the watchful intermeddling of a single individual who 

 resolves to withdraw therefrom. At the same time that such a view 

 is expressed, I am very far from confessing a low self-estimate of the 

 consequences of my own past interference. On the contrary, I be- 

 lieve that the Botanical Society of London, in all likelihood, would 

 have been utterly extinct before this date, if that interference had not 

 taken place. True, my own efforts would probably have proved un- 

 availing without the unwearied exertions of my very estimable friend, 

 the Secretary of the Society. But equally so, I think, the latter 

 might have failed without the former. And the cooperation of many 

 competent botanists, as contributors, was quite as necessary to 

 success. 



My individual responsibility in the distributions of British speci- 

 mens for the current year, is limited. I have very rapidly looked over 

 the chief part of those sent in by contributors; and in so doing I 

 have removed two lots or portions of them from the rest ; namely, 

 first, those which I believed to be mis-labelled though errors of no- 

 menclature ; secondly, those which it seemed desirable to send out to 

 the members, although they might not be specially applied for as de- 

 siderata. One large parcel, that of Dr. Mateer, I refused to look at 

 on account of the bad condition of the specimens, in regard to their 

 pressing and drying, although otherwise well selected. As a general 



