PREFACE. 



IN the autumn of 1883 I prepared for publication the first 

 Catalogue of the Plants of Worcester County, Massachusetts, 

 containing eight hundred and twelve species and well-marked 

 varieties. In the meantime, by the kind and generous help of 

 many friends, all of whom will understand, I hope, that whether 

 their names appear in these pages or not, my sense of obliga- 

 tion to them is here fully acknowledged and gratefully remem- 

 bered, more than two hundred additions have been made. 



This Catalogue, revised and enlarged, is now issued in the 

 hope that it may serve as a basis for still further additions, so 

 that, in due time, our county may have its flora as fully re- 

 corded as possible. Its main purpose is to help and to 

 encourage the beginner and to afford pleasure to those who 

 take an interest in untamed and unpruned Nature. 



Much yet remains to be done. The mosses, lichens, fungi 

 and algae furnish a wide field for the cooperation of workers 

 in different parts of the county for some years. The yearly 

 increasing interest in such work and the greatly increased 

 facilities for prosecuting it are hopeful signs of its accomplish- 

 ment. 



