357 



New Localities for Mistletoe on the Oak ; with some Remarks in 

 reference to a Paper on the Mistletoe in ' The Naturalist ' for 

 September, by Mr. Mcintosh. By Edwin Lees, Esq., F.L.S. 



When a person writes an essay upon any subject, it is advisable to 

 ascertain ^rs^ what has been done on the subject before, and by whom. 

 It would be then seen at once whether anything new can be brought 

 forward, or any old opinion sustained or controverted. 



In the last number of the ' Phytologist' (Phytol. iv. 351) are some 

 editorial remarks on a paper in ' The Naturalist ' for September, on 

 the mistletoe, by J. Mcintosh, Esq., and " the very close accordance 

 of the researches of Mr. Mcintosh with those of Mr. Lees, published 

 exactly two months previously," is suggested. It is further stated 

 " that one cannot resist the conviction that Mr. Mcintosh allowed 

 Mr. Lees the use of his MSS. ; Mr. Mcintosh cannot have copied 

 from Mr. Lees, for he makes not the least allusion to him or his book." 

 Now this idea seems rather strange. If I had been just coming out 

 of chrysalis, I might have wanted some one's aid to fly ; but having, 

 in my humble way, scribbled about matters of botany and natural 

 history for the last twenty years, I have too many MSS. of my own 

 to wish to wade through those of others ; and certainly the writings 

 of Mr. Mcintosh are quite unknown to me, at least as far as the 

 mistletoe is concerned. 



But, in fact, it is quite a mistake to suppose that we " have been 

 simultaneously labouring on the same subject;" for my account of 

 the mistletoe was actually written as far back as 1839, and read the 

 same year before the Cheltenham Literary and Philosophical Institu- 

 tion. The principal facts were incorporated in my 'Botanical Looker- 

 Out ;' and the passages quoted from the new edition of that work, ap- 

 pear also in the first edition of 1842 ! So that it does not exactly 

 follow as a logical deduction, that " Mr. Mcintosh cannot have 

 copied from Mr. Lees," merely because he makes no allusion to the 

 * Botanical-Looker-Out.' Such things have been ; and a friend showed 

 me a London newspaper, with a whole chapter from my book appear- 

 ing in the guise of an original article. Some "penny-a-liner" had 

 been thus taking the hint of extracting my juices after mistletoe 

 fashion ! I myself make no accusation against Mr. Mcintosh, who 

 may have probably seen my book and forgotten a foot-note about it ; 

 or, for the ancient history of the mistletoe he may have consulted the 

 same original sources of information as I did myself; for the Druidical 



