416 Linnean Society. 
made rapid progress in the acquisition of botanical knowledge. The 
first public proofs that he gave of his abilities are contained in a mi- 
croscopic delineation of the structure of the wood and an analysis of the 
flower of Phytocrene gigantea, in the third volume of Dr. Wallich’s 
‘Plante Asiaticee Rariores’; and in a note on the development and 
structure of Targionia hypophylla, appended to M. de Mirbel’s Disser- 
tation on Marchantia polymorpha, both published in 1832. So highly 
were his talents as an observer appreciated at this early period, that 
Dr. Wallich speaks of him as one ‘‘ whose extraordinary talents and 
knowledge as a botanist entitle him to the respegt of all lovers of the 
science ;” and M. de Mirbel characterizes him as “‘ jeune Anglois, tres 
instruit, trés zélé et fort bon observateur.” 
His note on Targionia is dated Paris, April 2nd, 1832, and in the 
month of May of the same year, having finished his studies at the 
London University with great distinction, he sailed from England for 
India, which was destined to be the scene of his future labours. He 
arrived at Madras on the 24th of September, and immediately re- 
ceived his appointment as Assistant-Surgeon in the service of the 
East India Company. 
His first appointment in India was to the coast of Tenasserim ; but 
in the year 1835 he was attached to the Bengal Presidency, and was 
selected to form one of a deputation, consisting of Dr. Wallich and 
himself as botanists, and Mr. MacClelland as geologist, to visit and 
inspect the Tea-forests (as they were called) of Assam, and to make 
researches in the natural history of that almost unexplored district. 
This mission was for Mr. Griffith the commencement of a series of 
journeys in pursuit of botanical knowledge, embracing nearly the 
whole extent of the East India Company’s extra-peninsular posses- 
sions, and adding large collections in every brafich of natural history, 
but especially botany, to those which, under the auspices of the In- 
dian Government, had previously been formed. He next, under the 
directions of Capt. Jenkins, the Commissioner, pushed his inyestiga- 
tions to the utmost eastern limit of the Company’s territory, tra- 
versing the hitherto unexplored tracts in the neighbourhood of the 
Mishmee Mountains which lie between Suddiya and Ava. Of the 
splendid collection of insects formed during this part of his tour, some 
account has been given by Mr. Hope in the Transactions of the En- 
tomological Society and in the eighteenth volume of our own Trans- 
actions. 
His collection of plants was also largely increased on this remark- 
able journey, which was followed by astill more perilous expedition, 
commenced in February of the following year, from Assam through 
the Burmese dominions to Ava, and down the Irawaddi to Rangoon, 
in the course of which he was reported to have been assassinated. 
The hardships through which he passed during the journey and 
his excessive application produced, soon after his arrival in Calcutta, 
a severe attack of fever, on his recovery from which he was appointed 
Surgeon to the Embassy to Bootan, then about to depart under the 
charge of the late Major Pemberton. He took this opportunity of 
revisiting the Khasiya Hills, among which he formed a most exten- 
