1-862.] OF FLOWERS. 273 



poor dear little man. And now I must begin the " awfullys " 

 on my own account : what a capital notice you have published 

 on the Orchids ! It could not have been better ; but I fear that 

 you overrate it. I am very sure that I had not the least 

 idea that you or any one would approve of it so much. I 

 return your last note for the chance of your publishing any 

 notice on the subject ; but after all perhaps you may not 

 think it worth while ; yet in my judgment several of your 

 facts, especially PlatantJiera hyperborea, are much too good 

 to be merged in a review. But I have always noticed that 

 you are prodigal in originality in your reviews. . . . 



[Sir Joseph Hooker reviewed the book in the Gardeners' 

 Chronicle, writing in a successful imitation of the style of 

 Lindley, the Editor. My father wrote to Sir Joseph (Nov. 12, 

 1862) : 



" So you did write the review in the Gardeners' Chronicle. 

 Once or twice I doubted whether it was Lindley ; but when 

 I came to a little slap at R. Brown, I doubted no longer. 

 You arch-rogue ! I do not wonder you have deceived others 

 also. Perhaps I am a conceited dog ; but if so, you have 

 much to answer for ; I never received so much praise, and 

 coming from you I value it much more than from any other." 



With regard to botanical opinion generally, he wrote to 

 Dr. Gray, " I am fairly astonished at the success of my book 

 with botanists." Among naturalists who were not botanists, 

 Lyell was pre-eminent in his appreciation of the book. I have 

 no means of knowing when he read it, but in later life, as 

 I learn from Professor Judd, he was enthusiastic in praise of 

 the * Fertilisation of Orchids,' which he considered " next to 

 the 'Origin,' as the most valuable of all Darwin's works." 

 Among the general public the author did not at first hear 

 of many disciples, thus he wrote to his cousin Fox in 

 September 1862: "Hardly any one not a botanist, except 

 yourself, as far as I know, has cared for it." 



VOL. III. T 



