314 BOTANY. TCh. XVII. 



spontaneous circulatory movement of the upper internodes.* 

 Pray tell me whether anything has been published on this 

 subject ? I hate publishing what is old ; but I shall hardly 

 regret my work if it is old, as it has much amused me. . . . 



He soon found that his observations were not entirely novel, 

 and wrote to Hooker : " I have now read two German books, 

 and all I believe that has been written on climbers, and it has 

 stirred me up to find that I have a good deal of new matter. It 

 is strange, but I really think no one has explained simple 

 twining plants. These books have stirred mo up, and made me 

 wish for plants specified in them." 



He continued his observations on climbing plants during the 

 prolonged illness from which he suffered in the autumn of 1863, 

 and in the following spring. He wrote to Sir J. D. Hooker, 

 apparently in March 1864 : — 



" The hot-house is such an amusement to me, and my 

 amusement I owe to you, as my delight is to look at the 

 many odd leaves and plants from Kew. . . . The only ap- 

 proach to work which I can do is to look at tendrils and 

 climbers, this does not distress my weakened brain. Ask 

 Oliver to look over the enclosed queries (and do you look) 

 and amuse a broken-down brother naturalist by answering 

 any which he can. If you ever lounge through your houses, 

 remember me and climbing plants." 



A letter to Dr. Gray, April 9, 1865, has a word or two on 

 the subject. — 



" I have began correcting proofs of my paper on Climbing 

 Plants. I suppose I shall be able to send you a copy in four 

 or five weeks. I think it contains a good deal new, and some 

 curious points, but it is so fearfully long, that no one will ever 

 read it. If, however, you do not shim through it, you will be 

 an unnatural parent, for it is your child." 



Dr. Gray not only read it but approved of it, to my father's 

 great satisfaction, as the following extracts show : — 



" I was much pleased to get your letter of July 24th. Now 

 that I can do nothing, I maunder over old subjects, and your 

 approbation of my climbing paper gives me very great satis- 

 faction. I made my observations when I could do nothing 

 else and much enjoyed it, but always doubted whether they 

 were worth publishing 



"I received yesterday your article f on climbers, and it has 



* This view is rejected by some botanists. 



t In the September number of Silliman'e Journal, concluded in the 

 January number, 1866. 



