118 Bibliographical Notices. 



some other means the correctness of these entries ; for it not unfre- 

 quently happened that the so-marked " common " plant was an un- 

 likely species to be "common" in that particular district ; and even, 

 in a few cases, one or more of them has been found to be altogether 

 wanting in it. There is also another class of local " Catalogues " 

 which is of very little use to the scientific botanical geographer. We 

 mean those which only profess to name the rarer species. These 

 books are often useful to collectors, and therefore deserve local en- 

 couragement ; but as works of science they rank very low. Even 

 such books as Leighton's 'Shropshire' and Bromfield's 'Isle of 

 Wight ' do not come up to the point now required. In the former 

 case the large county is not divided into districts, as has now become 

 the habit ; and therefore the distribution and more or less frequency 

 of the plants is not easily discovered from it, even if discoverable 

 at all. Dr. Bromfield's book relates to a very limited area, and 

 therefore division into districts was hardly called for ; but it is a 

 posthumous work, not very well edited, and showing most manifest 

 signs of wanting the last touches of its author. Indeed, the chief 

 value (and it is great) of these two works is that they contain very 

 many useful descriptions of plants and much elaborate critical dis- 

 cussion. The date of Leighton's work causes it to occupy a promi- 

 nent position in the history of the present movement for placing the 

 flora of Britain on a level with those of several of the Continental 

 nations. It was one of the first books where an attempt was made 

 to identify our plants with those of foreign botanists, and to submit 

 the names used by us to the laws which regulate botanical nomen- 

 clature. Previous to that time we were not much in the habit of 

 consulting the local floras of foreign countries ; and Fries's writings 

 concerning the Phanerogamic plants of Scandinavia had attracted 

 very little attention in this country. We well remember the com- 

 motion which took place amongst the botanists attending the British 

 Association Meeting at Bristol (a.d. 183C), when the lamented Edw. 

 Forbes drew from his pocket Reichenbach's ' Flora Excursoria.' It 

 was like opening a new world to those who had been previously 

 satisfied with Smith's 'English Flora' and Hooker's 'British Flora' 

 in its earlier form. 



The discovery of Reichenbach was soon followed by that of Koch's 

 * Synopsis,' and English works began immediately to show the results 

 of a study of Fries, Reichenbach, and Koch. We need not follow 

 this movement any further. It was strongly opposed in some quar- 

 ters, gained ground slowly but steadily, and is still, in spite even of 

 faintly continued opposition, making its way amongst those who 

 especially desiderate an accurate knowledge of their country's plants. 



But it may be asked. What has this to do with Gibson's ' Flora of 

 Essex' ? We answer, much ; for without the knowledge attained, 

 and the exactness of observation acquired, by a study of the modern 

 local floras of Europe, such a work could not have been produced. 



Mr. Gibson divides the county of Essex into eight districts, and 

 in effect gives a more or less complete flora of each of them. The 

 same plan had previously been followed by Babington for the county 



