IV PREFACE. 



and allowed to mature their seeds. They therefore 

 appear to the casual observer to be present in greater 

 proportion than an examination and identification of 

 the roots would bear out. It is clearly evident that 

 a pasture known to be of good quality might, from 

 its general appearance, mislead the inexperienced, 

 unless it were one, such as is found in the fen 

 country of Lincoln and Cambridge, eaten down uni- 

 formly, and never permitted to run to seed. Recent 

 discussions in the agricultural press, as to the quality 

 and presence of ryegrass in old pastures, brought 

 up the subject in full force, and showed how little 

 was really known, even by the greatest authorities, 

 about the nature and composition of our pastures, 

 It therefore became a matter of necessity to find a 

 key to the mysteries of the complex herbage in 

 permanent pastures, whereby it could be readily 

 analysed at any season of the year. 



Mr M' ALPINE has made the necessary discovery ; 

 and, after all, it is a very simple matter, although a 

 considerable amount of labour was involved, in work- 

 ing out the details of the less important grasses, to 

 make the work one of value alike to the scientific and 

 to the practical man. 



The structural characters of many of the grasses 

 had been studied in both Germany and Denmark, 

 but where Mr M* ALPINE has touched upon the work 

 of others, as he was bound to do in dealing with such 



