212 BEGINS CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN PLANTS 



done. He scraped my eye-ball and, the next morning, behold, I 

 was perfectly well. My son will remember that, when going 

 along the shore, we would come to little creeks and pools of water 

 and that I carried him across so that he would not get his feet 

 wet. Another thing he may remember is what happened at this 

 camp. He, while there, complained that something was biting 

 his legs, and that he thought spiders were doing it. I examined 

 his legs and found that our blankets were infested with fleas and 

 it was they that had caused the trouble. I believe it took him 

 a day, and perhaps more, to clear the blankets. 



We had many other experiences during our trip, but these 

 are the principal items I can remember. We eventually reached 

 North West Point and camped close to the light-house until our 

 schooner came around and we were taken back to Gaspe and 

 thence home to Ottawa. 



I had decided, as stated before, that I would commence a 

 catalogue of the plants of Canada as far as we knew them at 

 that time and decided to write the Polypetalae as the First Part. 

 I had made a catalogue before this of the plants mentioned in 

 the various printed lists that had been hitherto made and, at the 

 Library of Parliament, had obtained Hooker's "Flora," which was 

 the only book at that time that gave the flora of the Arctic regions 

 which I intended to include in my work. I intended that 

 all North America, north of Latitude 49°, should be included and, 

 from that to this time, I have never changed my plan and I am 

 glad to say that my son James followed on my lines. 



In the winter of 1883, besides other work, I wrote Part One 

 of my catalogue and, when I had it written, I showed it to Mr. 

 Whiteaves and he said: "If you take my advice, you will put 

 this in your drawer and keep it there for seven years and bring 

 it out then and see what you think of it." I thanked him for his 

 invitation and told him that I intended to publish it and say dis- 

 tinctly that that was all we knew about this section of the plants 

 of Canada and ask my readers to supply other information, if they 

 had it, which would be gratefully received. This I did in all the 

 years in which I have been publishing the remaining parts. 



Incidentally, I may say that the first meeting of the Royal 



