SOME RECENTLY INTRODUCED WEEDS. 13 



forced to number among the wild plants of New England more 

 than 600 species which have been introduced through human 

 agency since the first cutting of the forests. 



A review of the history and spread of this vagrant class of 

 plants presents many aspects which are Avell worth considera- 

 tion. John Josselyn in 1672 stated that several species of Evx- 

 ropean weeds had "sprung up since the English planted and 

 kept cattle in New England," thus implying that these plants 

 had come unbidden or at least were not purposely brought to 

 this country. According to a time-honored tradition, based per- 

 haps on fact, the first weed to spring up in the track of the 

 pioneer is plantain, and on this account it has been called by 

 some primitive races "White-man's Foot," a name of more than 

 fanciful application ; for without question the plantain and many 

 other roadside species are spread directly by the fCot of man. 

 For some years strange and outlandish weeds have been appear- 

 ing along the river below Waterbury, Connecticut. These 

 plants, upon careful- study, prove to be vagrant species from geo- 

 graphically remote portions of the world, and their ])resence 

 along the Naugatuck River has been a mystery. Eventually.. 

 however, the whole matter was cleared when the source of these 

 plants was traced to a factory which utilized old rubber shoes. 

 These shoes were collected from every available source, and, 

 before being melted for their rubber, were stripped of the cloth 

 linings which were thrown upon a rubbish heap. These linings 

 naturally contained seeds of innumerable plants from the road- 

 sides of every land, and the rains and spring freshets of the 

 Naugatuck valley gave them every opportunity to scattei- and to 

 start life anew in Connecticut soil. In this or similar ways many 

 of the plants mentioned by John Josselyn, Manasseh Cutler, and 

 Jacob Bigelow undoubtedly reached our shores ; and these emi- 

 grants are being reinforced by almost eveiy pei'son who comes to 

 us from foreign lands. 



Another source of weeds which in Josselyn's time was prob- 

 ably as great a cause of trouble as now was impure seed. Even 

 with tlie utmost exercise of caution it is apparently difficult to 

 ])ut up a bag of grass or of clover seed without including in it 

 the seed of some other and undesiral)Ie plant. Newly seeded 



