314 HISTORY OF BOTANY. 



brigades like an army, all must be tumult and fluc- 

 tuation. And this accordingly happens in the treat- 

 ments of plants : for the mind is overwhelmed by 

 the confused accumulation of things, and thus arise 

 endless mistake and angry altercation." He then 

 states his general view, which, as we shall see, was 

 adopted by his successors. " Since all science con- 

 sists in the collection of similar, and the distinction 

 of dissimilar things, and since the consequence 

 of this is a distribution into genera and species, 

 which are to be natural classes governed by real 

 differences, I have attempted to execute this task 

 in the whole range of plants; ut si quid pro 

 ingenii mei tenuitate in hujusmodi studio profe- 

 cerim, ad communem utilitatem proferam." We 

 see here how clearly he claims for himself the credit 

 of being the first to execute this task of arrange- 

 ment. 



After certain preparatory speculations, he says 9 , 

 " Let us now endeavour to mark the kinds of plants 

 by essential circumstances in the fructification." He 

 then observes, " In the constitution of organs three 

 things are mainly important the number, the posi- 

 tion, the figure." And he then proceeds to exem- 

 plify this : " Some have under one flower, ONE seed, 

 as Amygdala, or ONE seed-receptacle, as Rosa; or 

 TWO seeds, as Ferularia, or TWO seed-receptacles, as 

 Nasturtium; or three, as the Tithymalum kind 

 have THREE seeds, the Bulbacece THREE receptacles ; 

 9 Lib. i. c. 13, 14. 



