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ment will most likely exceed the pleasure of finding the plant, and 

 seeing it growing there, before and after he knows this. To prevent 

 such disappointment as much as possible, care should be taken to 

 make known the fact of the station's being an artificial one. Against 

 the disappointment of the botanists of the day, however, is there not 

 to be placed a large amount of pleasure to be derived by future bota- 

 nists, from the possession of the naturalized plant, when the artificial 

 station shall have become a natural one ? Examples may easily be 

 adduced of the pleasure derived by ourselves from such a source. 

 Impatiens fulva, for instance, as is well known, grows in the greatest 

 luxuriance along the banks of the river Wey, from considerably above 

 Guildford down to the Thames at Weybridge, and even as low as 

 Barnes (Phytol. 814). Now it is not probable that Vegetable Geogra- 

 phy will ever be endangered by this fact, the plant being known to be 

 of American origin : on the other hand, what a pleasure is it to the 

 botanist to see this beautiful plant luxuriating in this country, and to 

 possess in his herbarium specimens of it gathered with his own hand ! 

 There may even be instances in which error as to the distribution 

 of a plant might arise by not assisting Nature. For example: the 

 only spot in Britain where Cyperus fuscus has been found, is a little 

 marshy meadow surrounded by houses, near Walham-green, Middle- 

 sex. There can be no manner of doubt that at some time hence, per- 

 haps even in one year, this meadow will be drained, and either built 

 upon or ploughed up ; and then, if no one has taken the precaution 

 of removing some of the plants of Cyperus elsewhere, there will be a 

 species lost to Britain. Are we to look on quietly aud see our species 

 become extinct before our very eyes, and not move a finger to save 

 them ? In such cases at least, may not every objection be made 

 against not meddling, which is raised by Dr. Bromfield against the 

 doing so ? Indeed it is only just to future botanists to take care that 

 we do not deprive them of pleasure in gratifying ourselves. It is, of 

 course, not desirable that botanists should make a practice of scatter- 

 ing the seeds of any but the rarer plants ; but I think we should never 

 run the risk of allowing any species to become extinct. Neither do 

 I think it would be advisable to naturalise many foreign plants : it is 

 more interesting for each country to have its own species; and as far 

 as the geographical distribution of plants is concerned, it might be- 

 come difficult to register them, and to remember that such species 

 were only naturalized, if this were done to any great extent. I can 

 however see nothing to blame in a botanist's sowing (as has been done 

 by Dr. Bromfield in the case of Urtica Dodartii) the seeds of a plant 



