GENEALOGY. 139 



Dark Kora, the two strange orders of the Ophryds and 

 Agarics. 



32. Lastly will come the orders of flowers which may be 

 thought of as belonging for the most part to the Dark Kora 

 of the lower world, having at least the power of death, if not 

 its terror, given them, together with offices of comfort and 

 healing in sleep, or of strengthening, if not too prolonged, 

 action on the nervous power of life. Of these, the first 

 will be the DIONYSID^E, Hedera, Vitis, Liana ; then the 

 DRACONID.3E, Atropa, Digitalis, Linaria ; and, lastly, the 

 MOIRID2E, Conium, Papaver, Solanum, Arum and Neriunj. 



33. As I see this scheme now drawn out, simple as it is, the 

 scope of it seems not only far too great for adequate completion 

 b}' my own labour, but larger than the time likely to be given 

 to botany by average scholars would enable them intelligently 

 to grasp : and yet it includes, I suppose, not the tenth part 

 of the varieties of plants respecting which, in competitive ex- 

 amination, a student of physical science is now expected to 

 know, or at least assert on hearsay, something. 



So far as I have influence with the young, myself, I would 

 pray them to be assured that it is better to know the habits of 

 one plant than the names of a thousand ; and wiser to be hap- 

 pily familiar with those that grow in the nearest field, than 

 arduously cognisant of all that plume the isles of the Pacific, 

 or illumine the Mountains of the Moon. 



Nevertheless, I believe that when once the general form of 

 this system in Proserpina has been well learned, much other 

 knowledge may be easily attached to it, or sheltered under 

 the eaves of it : and in its own development, I believe every- 

 thing may be included that the student will find useful, or 

 may wisely desire to investigate, of properly European botany. 

 But I am convinced that the best results of his study will be 

 reached by a resolved adherence to extreme simplicity of 

 primal idea, and primal nomenclature. 



34. I do not think the need of revisal of our present scien- 

 tific classification could be more clearly demonstrated than by 

 the fact that laurels and roses are confused, even by Dr. Lind- 

 ley, in the mind of his feminine readers ; the English word 



