THE NATURAL SYSTEM 311 



same or similar names. As examples may be mentioned 

 the Palmce or palms, (iramina or grasses, Orchidece or or- 

 chids, Cotnpositce or composites, Coniferce or conifers, and 

 Filices or ferns. 



During the life-time of Linnaeus, the only other important 

 attempt at a natural classification was made by Bernard 

 de Jussieu, of France, who was a correspondent of Linnaeus, 

 and was in charge of the royal botanic garden at Trianon. 

 Here he grouped the plants as far as he could in natural 

 orders, but he ])ublished nothing. In 1789, two years after 

 the death of Linnteus, Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, nephew 

 of Bernard, published a classification of genera under natural 

 orders, one hundred in number. These were carefully de- 

 fined by suitable characters, and thus constituted the first 

 thoroughgoing attempt at a natural system. Not only were 

 the genera grouped into well-defined orders, but the attempt 

 was made to group the orders into higher and higher series, 

 expressive of their degrees of likeness. 



On the foundation thus laid over a century ago the natural 

 system now in general use has been slowly developing; the 

 work of improvement is still going on, and more rapidly 

 than ever before. Eventually the science of botany may 

 boast of a systematic classification founded upon, and, in a 

 way, expressing, a full knowledge of vegetable forms. Yet, 

 as we shall hope to show in a future chapter, there are good 

 reasons for believing that such an ideal classification will 

 embody in very large part the distinctions at present recog- 

 nized, or in other words, that the main features of a truly 

 natural system are fairly well established. The next genera- 

 tion of botanists will doubtless have the advantage of a far 

 better classification, especially of cryptogams, than that in 

 use to-day; but we may well believe that their classification 

 will be essentially the same in general principle and in its 

 main features as that now used. To develop the present 

 system has been a gigantic task, beset with many difficulties; 

 and before we can rightly understand the outcome of all 

 this botanical labor, we must consider still further the diffi- 

 culties overcome, lentil we have mastered certain of these 

 ourselves we are not fitted either to appreciate or to use to 



