THE STUDENT'S FLOEA 85 



matter of importance to me now as the children grow up 

 and my income is yearly more inelastic. 



This was published in 1870 under the title of ' The Students' 

 ora of the British Islands ' ; it reached a second edition in 

 178, and a third in 1884. 



Its aim was to ' supply students and field botanists with a 

 Her account of the plants of the British Isles than the manuals 

 therto in use aim at giving.' Nor is this all that English 

 udents and lovers of our native plants owe to him. In 

 }87, after Bentham's death, he edited the fifth edition of 

 entham's ' Handbook of the British Flora.' To quote Pro- 

 ssor Bower, ' Both of these still hold the field, though they 

 quire to be brought up to date in point of classification 

 id nomenclature.' 



In the spring of 1867 Hooker went officially to Paris as 

 iror in the botanical section of the Exposition. Similarly 

 i 1869 he 



was threatened with being sent to St. Petersburg by Govt, 

 to represent British Botanists and Horticulturists (God help 

 them) at the approaching Congress which the Emperor has 

 taken up. I hate the sort of thing, but shall have to go. 



He goes on to tell Darwin (March 11) how he is ' mugging 

 p French as hard as he can ' with the help of a French Baron 

 'om London two hours daily, besides French novels with 

 is wife and French conversation with Miss Symonds, who was 

 paying at Kew. He was also getting three months ahead 

 ith his current duties in hopes of extending his travels from 

 t. Petersburg for a couple of months to the South-East. 



In the end, however, the Treasury refused to send him, 

 ad he went, accompanied by his wife, independently, and not 

 3 a delegate. His tour, which did not take him to any new 

 otanical regions beyond Moscow, lasted six weeks, from May 7 

 ) June 23, going by Berlin and returning by Stockholm. 



As a traveller, his delight in flowers and scenery remained 

 ivid as ever, and as of old, he pointed his descriptions of 

 orange places by references to familiar scenes. To his mother 

 e tells of the wistarias in the beautiful gardens at Brussels, 



