80 THE SOUTH AND ITS SCIENTIFIC SCOPE 



themselves in each locality, as an object of primary import- 

 ance to the elucidation of Bot. Geog. and the effects 

 of climate upon the Vegetable Kingdom. Several of the 

 tabular results I have drawn out show a delightful accord- 

 ance, nor do I know of any result of this Expedition which 

 gave me such pleasure as to find how beautifully the 

 grasses rose in the scale of importance, beating even Brown's 

 published ideas, and yet they are not the only plants by 

 whose abundance or want the botanical nature of a country 

 may be judged of. As we go South, Fungi disappear, 

 Lichens increase, Pleurocarpi 1 diminish, in proportion to 

 Acrocarpi, 1 as do the proportion of Pleurocarpi which fruit 

 to the barren ones. Cyperaceae decreases, and Dicotyledons 

 bear a smaller proportion to Monocotyledons. Nothing so 

 satisfies me, that I have observed carefully in any Island, 

 as to find these laws to hold good in the collections made 

 long ago and when it is too late to remedy any defects, 

 to look for more grasses or to wonder if I have not made 

 too many species of my Cyperaceae etc. 



And to Dr. Boott 2 four days later he enlarges on the pro- 

 portion of the Eush tribe to the Grasses occurring in this region. 



The descending scale for the Southern regions is beautiful 

 and in perfect accordance with what was to be expected 

 from the climate and position of the several islands. 



Australia, 0'7:1. 



Campbell's Island, 1 : 5. 



New Zealand, 1:1. 



Auckland Island, 1 :1*9. 



Falklands, 1 : 2'5, and 



Kerguelen's Land, : 5. 



1 Two divisions of the Mosses. 



2 Francis Boott, M.D. (1792-1863). Born in Boston of British parents 

 and maintaining friendships in both countries, he took up the study of medicine 

 in 1820 (M.D. Edin.) and practised successfully in London 1825-32, with ideas 

 on fresh air in advance of his times. Another innovation Avas to discard the 

 traditional black coat and knee breeches of the physician for the ordinary dress 

 of the day blue coat with brass buttons and yellow waistcoat. But with 

 characteristic fidelity he changed no more with the fashion, and his endeavour 

 to avoid singularity in 1830 ended by making him more singular than ever 

 in 1860. Inheriting a competency, he devoted himself to botany, specialising 

 on the genus Carex, his Illustrations of which appeared 1858-67. He con- 

 tributed a monograph of 158 species to Sir W. J. Hooker's Flora Boreali- 

 Americana ; his collection he bequeathed to Kew. He became a member of 

 the Linnean Society in 1819 ; secretary 1832-9, and treasurer 1856-61. 



