392 LABRADOR 



from making many errors. 1 There is need, then, of indul- 



1 In a previous chapter on this subject, in a " Report of an Expedi- 

 tion to Labrador in 1900," published as a Bulletin of the Philadelphia 

 Geographical Society, I unfortunately allowed a number of errors to 

 occur, especially in exact nomenclature. I welcome this opportunity 

 to atone for them as well as is now possible. I stated there that I had 

 myself attempted only the more easy identifications, lying well within 

 the capacity of the amateur; that, aside from a few special kinds, I 

 had submitted my collection to Professor Bailey of Brown University 

 for the correct naming of specimens; and that he had submitted all 

 doubtful cases to Professors Robinson and Fernald of Harvard Uni- 

 versity for approval or revision. In making these statements, I 

 seemed to involve all these eminent authorities in responsibility for 

 the errors that were included. But, through no fault of others, I 

 received a mistaken impression as to the finality of many of Pro- 

 fessor Bailey's identifications, failing sometimes to distinguish be- 

 tween his confident namings and his mere suggestions, and as to the 

 extent to which they had received verification from the professors at 

 Harvard. I now feel it a pleasure and a duty to apologize to these 

 three men, who cannot be held accountable in any degree for mistakes 

 that were due wholly to my own misunderstandings. This case is an 

 illustration of the difficulty met with by an amateur who wishes to 

 describe strange and interesting places that he has seen, in guarding 

 himself against error, and especially in attaching correct names to 

 the objects he has observed. 



Since then Professor Fernald has kindly revised my collection, 

 and tells me: "The plants are now correctly named, I think, with the 

 exception of a few upon which I dare not venture a determination." 

 Space is lacking here to indicate all the changes that are necessary 

 in my published list. Some new names are secured, some individual 

 numbers of plants must be credited elsewhere than as given. But 

 mistaken conclusions in using the list may be largely guarded against 

 by realizing that the following names are apparently all that need to 

 be omitted entirely, or altered to another variety or species, or given 

 a more modern nomenclature: Dicentra Canadensis, Draba nivalis, 

 Lychnis apetala, Sagina procumbens, Dryas octopetala, Saxifraga 

 Hirculus, Epilobium alpinum, var. majus, Archangelica, Aster radula, 

 Taraxacum dens-leonis, Andromeda polifolia, Ledum latifolium, Pyrola 

 rotundifolia et var., V actinium Canadense, V. Vitis-Idaea, Primula 



