22 INTRODUCTION. 



with flowers however and carefully examined 

 generically; although it is not always easy to 

 see well the minute floral characters of dry 

 specimens. As to the inside of the seeds, their 

 fallacious anatomical structures never perplex 

 me 5 I leave ihem to Anatomists with the in- 

 side of roots and fibres : microscopical observa- 

 tions are always useless for practical descrip- 

 tive Botany, as all genera and families have 

 outward evident floral forms peculiar to each. 



When plants have not been seen actually 

 alive or dry, I quote as usual the books, au- 

 thors or figures, that have imparted their 

 knowledge ; but few such plants will however 

 be mentioned here, this being rather intended 

 as a collection of my own observations : yet in 

 complete monographs or revised Genera it will 

 be needful to compare all the species and facts. 

 It is to be regretted that our botanists too of- 

 ten neglect the labors of their colleagues, by 

 not comparing all previous or proposed spe- 

 cies: whereby they can only give us imperfect 

 monographs. 



Severul authors have mistaken foreign 

 plants of distant regions for our own. Many 

 such are found in Thunberg, Gmelin, Loureiro, 

 &c. that are diflerent species from Japan, 

 Sibiria or Anam. Decandole has recommend- 

 ed to compare again every plant deemed native 

 of several remote regions, and I shall often do 

 it. 



