364 HISTORY OF BOTANY. 



the profoundness and precision, which I remarked 

 everywhere in the PMlosophia Botanica, (published 

 in 1751,) withdrew me from my first master, and I 

 became a decided convert to that system of botany 

 which has since been generally received. In 1753, 

 the Species Plantarum, *vhich first introduced the 

 specific names, made me a Linnsean completely." 

 In 1763, he introduced the system in his lectures 

 at Cambridge, and these were the first Linnaean 

 lectures in England. Stillingfleet had already, in 

 1757, and Lee, in 1760, called the attention of Eng- 

 lish readers to Linnaeus. Sir J. Hill, (the king's 

 gardener at Kew,) in his Flora Britannica, pub- 

 lished in 1760, had employed the classes and gene- 

 ric characters, but not the nomenclature ; but the 

 latter was adopted by Hudson, in 1762, in the Flora 

 Anglica. 



Two young Swedes, pupils of Linnaeus, Dryander 

 and Solander, settled in England, and were in inti- 

 mate intercourse with the most active naturalists, 

 especially with Sir Joseph Banks, of whom the for- 

 mer was librarian, and the latter a fellow-traveller 

 in Cook's celebrated voyage. James Edward Smith 

 was also one of the most zealous disciples of the 

 Linnsean school ; and, after the death of Linnaeus, 

 purchased his Herbariums and Collections. It is 

 related 23 , as a curious proof of the high estimation 

 in which Linnaeus was held, that when the Swedish 

 government heard of this bargain, they tried, though 



23 Trapp's Transl. of Slower' $ Life of Linnaeus, p 314 



