3 



INTRODUCTION. 



Although I am a Draftsman and can both 

 draw and paint the plants that I collect, yet the 

 expense of time in doing so, with the cost of en- 

 graving and colouring the drawings, are so 

 great that I have but seldom availed myself of 

 my talent and opportunities to publish costly 

 figures of new or rare plants. I have preferred 

 and I do now again prefer giving the specimens 

 themselves for authentic figures. This can be 

 done as cheap or cheaper than by multiplied 

 figures : many splendid works of Iconographi- 

 cal Botany are often published at much higher 

 rates. Copied figures are not always accurate, 

 nor expressing many minute characters of sur- 

 face &c, and some botanists are not satisfied un- 

 til they can examine the original specimens of 

 discoverers or improvers ; or when wishing to 

 detract from the merit of vast botanical resear- 

 ches, they deny the accuracy of whatever they 

 cannot verify. 



This Autikon of 2500 figures by specimens 

 will be the best answer to any vain attempt to 

 depreciate my discoveries and researches 

 although I have 5000 fine plants to illustrate in 

 this manner, I have selected for this work, the 

 rarest or new, else the finest or unfigured; such 

 as will illustrate my botanical works and im- 

 provements, particularly those that shall be 

 omitted in the North American Flora, lately 

 undertaken jointly by Torrey,Gray and Nuttal, 

 who have overlooked or left unnoticed many of 

 our New Genera and Species, because either 

 not met by them, or blended with others when 

 seen in fields or herbals. Whence the need of 

 giving sometimes the figures of akin species for 

 contrast. 



