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Zealand, where we spent eight weeks. This same New Zeahxud is not the fine coun- 

 try that the English government and land speculators crack it up to be. The climate 

 is very wet, and the soil cold and poor — consisting principally of a stiff yellow loam, 

 on great part of which nothing grows but a species of Pteris, whose roots form the prin- 

 cipal food of the natives. The surface of the country round the Bay of Islands is ve- 

 ry irregular, — high ridges and valleys succeeding each other in rapid succession. In 

 some of these valleys, from eight to ten species of Coniferous trees are found — among 

 them the Courie pine {Agathis Australis) 120 feet high. 



" Leaving New Zealand, we touched at Tongataboo on our way down to the Fiji 

 Islands — 260 in number — all which we surveyed. In doing this, two of our officers 

 were brutally murdered by the natives. We had also a proof of these islanders being 

 cannibals, as they brought in a canoe, alongside of our ship, part of a human body, 

 which they were eating. We discovered several new islands on the line in passing to 

 the Sandwich Isles. The grandest sight seen during our cruize, was the volcano on 

 the Island of Hawaii. After spending six months on the north-west coast of America, 

 our voyage lay again by the Sandwich Isles ; and searching for a near passage to the 

 China Sea, we were led among the Sooloo Isles and Straits of Balabac, then down to 

 Singapore, which is a very flourishing place. Here 1 met a cousin of Sir Walter 

 Scott's, who looks very much like what the old man was. 



"During this voyage we collected and dried upwards of 10,000 species of plants; 

 sending also a great many live ones and seeds to the National Institute at Washing- 

 ton, to which I am at present attached. To me the most interesting of these plants is 

 a species of Nepenthes from Singapore, bearing pitchers much larger every way than 

 those of the N. distillatoria, and, when perfect, capable of holding a pint of watei*. 

 There are two other species at Singapore, one with many small pitchers in bunches, on 

 a woody stem, found in pools of water, while the other covers a low sandy island in 

 the Strait, about three miles oif the road-stead. At Manilla there is a species distinct 

 from any I have seen elsewhere." 



Professor Graham exhibited some very beautiful and interesting exotics, recently 

 brought into flower in the greenhouses and stoves; and afterwards accompanied the 

 members over the garden, which presented a most charming appearance. Every sea- 

 son it is becoming more and more developed ; and the late alterations reflect much 

 credit on the learned Professor, and his able coadjutor, Mr. M'Nab. 



June S, 1843. — Professor Graham in the chair. Donations were presented to the 

 library from C. C. Babington, Esq., Cambridge, (his 'Manual of British Botany'); 

 from Dr. J. K. Maly of Gratz ; L. W. Dillwyn, Esq., and others. 



Mr. James M'Nab exhibited specimens of Laburnum, presenting some remarkable 

 anomalies. He stated that several years ago, a tree was sent from the Epsom nursery 

 to the Royal Botanic Garden here, as a curiosity, bearing three distinct varieties of 

 laburnum on the same root, without any further engrafting than that of working the 

 red laburnum on the yellow. This tree is now to be seen in flower, the yellow and red 

 flowers being predominant. Last spring he observed a tree of the red laburnum in the 

 Horticultural Garden, bearing several large tufts of Cytisus purpureus, with one small 

 shoot of the yellow. The same tree, this year, has ten distinct shoots of the yellow, 

 and a quantity of those of C. purpureus. 



On Monday last, at Dysart house, he observed two trees, one bearing Cytisus pur- 

 pureus and C. Laburnum coccineum, the other C. Laburnum and C. Laburnum coc- 

 cincum ; but neither of ihem having more than two varieties. This afternoon he ex- 



