DR. WALLICH's COLLECTIONS. 119 



bly necessary for the recovery of Dr. Wallich's health, which 

 had become greatly enfeebled by repeated attacks of fever, 

 he arrived in England in 1828, bringing with him the greater 

 part of his enormous collections, in order that he might de- 

 liver them in person to the court of directors. Two great 

 objects immediately occupied his attention. The first was 

 the arrangement of the collection ; for with a princely Hbe- 

 rality and' due appreciation of the value and importance of 

 natural science, the directors empowered him to proceed to 

 the distribution of the duplicates among the principal public 

 and private museums in Europe and America ; and this . 

 laborious yet pleasing task he proceeded at once to effect. 

 It is, however, yet more delightful to reflect, that the gene- 

 rositv of the company has been everywhere met with an 

 equally generous sentiment of gratitude, upwards of thirty 

 of the' most eminent botanists in Europe having come for- 

 ward to undertake the publication of monographs of the 

 more extensive and interesting families.* Thus will a 

 splendid series of Asiatic plants, brought together at great 

 labour and expense, be rendered available to the progress of 

 science in the shortest possible period of time. The second 

 object of Dr. Wallich's attention immediately after his arri- 

 val in this countr)-, v.-as the preparation of a magnificcHt 

 work upon Indian plants, of which two volumes in large 

 folio have already appeared under the patronage of the East 

 India Company"; and which, for scientific details and ex- 

 quisitely-coloured plates, ^re worthy of appearing under 

 such auspices, and of perpetuating the name of their most 

 estimable author.t 



We cannot terminate this brief notice without mentioning 

 another excellent friend, Dr. Richard Wight, whose name 

 will ever be associated with the cause of Indian botany. 

 Besides contributing ver>' largely to the herbarium brought 

 home by Dr. Wallich, he has for a considerable time em- 

 ployed two collectors and a draftsman at his own personal 

 cost, and has returned to his native countr}^ with a finely- 

 preserved collection of nearly 4000 species, and 100,000 

 specimens, all gathered in the presidency of Madras. It is 



* Wall. PI. Asiat. Rar., preface. 



t The -work alluded to is the Plantai Asiatica Rariores, or Descniv 

 tions and Figures of a select Number of East Indian Flants, by N. Wat- 

 Uch, M. et. Ph. D. 



