Don*s Gardening Botany. 381 



present stage. At the commencement of the undertaking, the editor arranged 

 •with them to complete it in four volumes ; but, when the present or fourth 

 volume was printed, he informed them for the first time, to their surprise, 

 that his materials had proved so much more voluminous than he anticipated, 

 that the descriptions of the remaining plants would fill more than two ad- 

 ditional volumes of the same extent. They are com])elled to add, that the 

 circulation of the work has hitherto been too limited to afford them any 

 prospect of reimbursement of the large additional expense which would be 

 incurred if they proceeded to complete the work; an expense which they had 

 not originally contemplated. As, however, the work has been compiled 

 upon the natural system, the description of that division of the science which 

 is contained in the four published volumes is complete, and the volumes are, 

 consequently', not in this respect rendered imperfect by the absence of the 

 remaining two, since they contain a complete account of the Dichlamydeous 

 plants. In justice to the editor, they feel bound to add that he has spared 

 no labour to render the work as comprehensive and perfect as possible; and 

 they are confident that no publication has hitherto appeared in this country 

 which contains nearly so large a compass of valuable information upon that 

 division of botany of which it treats. They can only account for the con- 

 fined circulation which the present work has hitherto met with in the altered 

 taste of the day for treatises of a less recondite and extensive nature. 



" The proprietors would be ready to complete the work if they could hope 

 for a sufficient encouragement from the public to induce them to proceed in 

 this unusually expensive undertaking. 



" At the end of this volume new titlepages for the four volumes are added, 

 in accordance with their contents, as a ' General History of the Dichlamydeous 

 Plants.' " 



The new title to the work is : A General History of the 

 Dichlamydeous Plants, comprising complete Descriptions of the 

 different Orders ; together xsoith the Characters of the Genera and 

 Species, and an Enumeration of the cidtivated Varieties ; their 

 Places of Growth, Time of Flonsoering, Mode of Cidture, and Uses in 

 Medicine and Do?nestic Economy ; the scientifc 'Names accentuated, 

 their Etymologies explained, and the Classes and Orders illustrated 

 by Engravings, and preceded by Introductions to the Linncean and 

 Natural Systems, and a Glossary of the Terms used : the xvhole 

 arranged according to the Natural System. By Geoi-ge Don, 

 F.L.S. In 4 vols. London, 1831 to 1838. 



Judging from our own observation, we should say that the 

 reason why this work did not succeed may be traced to the title, 

 which looked like an attempt to pass off the book for what it 

 really was not, viz. " A General System of Botany and Garden- 

 ing." It has certainly no claim to be considered either a general 

 system of botany, or a general system of gardening, but it might 

 justly have been called a general history of plants; and, if com- 

 pleted, it would have been by far the most copious and perfect 

 general history that has ever been published. We are sorry the 

 work has stopped, because we do not know another man in 

 England so well calculated for going through with it as Mr. 

 Georffe Don. 



