Chap. III.] 



PLANTS OF THE COAST. 



85 



being exposed to tlie mikler influence of the soutli-west 

 wind, shows hixiuiant vegetation, the result of its humid 

 and temperate climate ; wdiilst the eastern, hke Coroman- 

 del, has a comparatively dry and arid aspect, produced 

 by the hot winds wdiich blow for half the year. The 

 Httoral vegetation of the seaborde exhibits httle varia- 

 tion from that common throusfhout the Eastern archi- 

 pelago ; but it wants the Phoeniv ]jaludosa ' , a dwarf 



^ Drs. Hooker and Thomson, iu 

 their Introductory Essay to the Flora 

 of Lid id, sj^eaking of Ceylon, state 

 that the Nipa fridicans (another 

 characteristic palm of the Gangetic 

 delta) and Cycads are also wanting 

 there, but both these exist (the 

 former abimdantly), though perhaps 

 not alluded to in any work on Ceylon 

 botany to which those authors had 

 access. In connection ■«dth this subj ect 

 it may be mentioned, as a fact which 

 is much to be regTetted, that, although 

 botanists have been appointed to 

 the superintendence of the Botanic 

 Gardens at Kandy, information re- 

 garding the vegetation of the island 

 is scarcely obtainable without ex- 

 treme trouble and reference to papers 

 scattered through innumerable pe- 

 riodicals. That the maj ority of Ceylon 

 plants are already kuo'mi to science 

 is owing to the coincidence of their 

 being also natives of India, whence 

 they have been described ; but there 

 has been no recent attempt on the 

 part of colonial or European botanists 

 even to throw into a useful form the 

 already published descriptions of the 

 commoner plants of the island. Such 

 a work woidd be the first step to a 

 Singhalese Flora. The preparation 

 of such a compendium would seem 

 to belong to the duties of the colo- 

 nial botanist, and as such it was 

 an oliject of especial solicitude to 

 the late superintendent, Dr. Gardner. 

 But the heterogeneous duties im- 

 posed upon the person holding his 

 office (the evils arising from which 

 are elsewhere alluded to), have 

 hitherto been insuperable obstacles 

 to the attainment of this object, as 



they have also be^ to the prepara- 

 tion of a s^-stematic accomit of the 

 general features of Ceylon vegeta- 

 tion. Such a work is strongly felt 

 to be a desideratum by numbers of 

 intelligent persons in Ceylon, who 

 are not accomplished botanists, but 

 who are anxious to acquire accurate 

 ideas as to the aspects of the flora at 

 difterent elevations, different seasons, 

 and different quarters of the island ; 

 of the kinds of plants that chiefly 

 conti-ibute to the vegetation of the 

 coasts, the plains, and mountains ; 

 of the general relations that subsist 

 between them and the flora of the 

 Camatic, Malabar, and the Malay 

 archipelago ; and of the more useful 

 plants in science, arts, medicine, and 

 commerce. 



To render such a work (however 

 elementary) at once accurate as well 

 as interesting, woidd require S(Aind 

 scientific knowledge ; and, however 

 skilfully and popidarly written, there 

 would still be portions somewhat 

 difficult of comprehension to the 

 ordinaiy reader ; but curiosity Avould 

 be stimulated by the very occurrence 

 of difficult^-, and tlius an impulse 

 might be given to the acquisition of 

 rudimentary botany, which would 

 eventually enable the inquirer to 

 contribute his quota to the natural 

 history of Ceylon. 



P. S. Since the foregoing passage 

 was wTitten, Mr. Thwaites has an- 

 noimced the early publication of a 

 new work on Ceylon plants, to bo 

 entitled Enumeratio Plantartim Zey- 

 lanice : with Descriptions of the new 

 and little hnoxai yenera and species , 

 and observations on their habits, uses, 



G 3 



