xni LETTERS TO LINNAEUS 175 



discarding the eulogistic terms then usual vir eruditis- 

 sime, etc. he addressed the botanist as " my dear friend." 

 In 1739 he thanked Linnaeus for attaching his name to a 

 new genus of American plants, Collinsonia (the horse 

 balm) ; scented herbs, now classed in the order Labiatae, 

 the species C. Canadensis L. having been introduced by 

 Collinson in 1735. He gave Linnaeus news of Sir Hans 

 Sloane at the age of eighty-eight years, active and 

 hearty, daily entertaining himself in his large collection ; 

 and of Catesby working at the Natural History of Carolina. 

 After Linnaeus had brought out his great work, the 

 Species Plantarum (1753), in which, with a revised nomen- 

 clature, and a single name to denote each species of a 

 genus, all plants were arranged on his famous system 

 based upon the number of stamens and pistils, Collinson 

 reported to him from time to time how it was received 

 in England. Lord Bute, an unpopular Prime Minister, 

 but a botanist of good repute, who had a fine garden at 

 Caen Wood, and counted Collinson amongst his " dear 

 friends," voiced a natural irritation at the disuse of old 

 names ; so did Alston, Philip Miller and others ; but 

 one after another of the English workers adopted the new 

 system. Miss Jane Colden, daughter of Dr. Cadwallader 

 Colden, was the first lady to make profession of it, for 

 there were women cultivators of the gentle science in 

 those days. 



In 1758 Collinson entered into a careful argument to 

 confute the belief, which was held by Linnaeus and other 

 men of science, that swallows were accustomed to retire 

 under water to spend the winter. The idea had taken 

 origin from the gathering of these birds at the time of 

 migration among the reeds, and on the banks of streams, 

 and from their bodies being occasionally found in the 

 water ; and it had come to be an article of scientific faith. 

 Collinson could not persuade his friend, who it must be 

 said was a very dilatory correspondent, to put forward 

 his proofs. He had to return to the charge again and 

 again, until at length Linnaeus replied, and emphatically 

 maintained his opinion, to which Collinson could not 



