PREFACE. IX 



PREFACE TO THE NINTH EDITION. 



The primary object of this edition is to publish the notes 

 in the late Author's interleaved copy of the former edition, 

 but some years having elapsed since the last of these 

 entries, it has been necessary to make further additions, 

 so as to include some of the results of more recent work. 



At the urgent request of Mrs. Babington we agreed 

 to act as Editors, feeling that it would be a great mis- 

 fortune if so useful a work for more than half a century 

 practially the only critical handbook to our Flora were 

 not republished. Owing to the claims of business and in- 

 terruptions from other causes there has been a considerable 

 delay in the completion of our task. 



Of the late Professor Babington's notes, some were 

 alterations and additions ready for insertion in the book, 

 while others were merely references and memoranda for 

 further investigation. The latter class we have tried to 

 deal with as nearly as possible in the spirit of the rest of 

 the work. It was Mrs. Babington's particular wish that 

 the text as amended by the Author should not be interfered 

 with. Owing to this limitation, we have been unable to 

 make alterations in the treatment of some of the critical 

 genera which might perhaps have been desirable. 



Those species and varieties and additional characters 

 and remarks which we have inserted are printed in 

 smaller type, and, where interjected in the text, are included 

 in square brackets. Many varieties recently described 

 or indicated as British we have thought too trivial to 



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