REFORM OF LINNAEUS. 339 



scene, he was settled in Holland, as the curator of 

 the splendid botanical garden of George Clifford, an 

 opulent banker. Here it was' 2 that he laid the foun- 

 dation of his future greatness. In the two years 

 of his residence at Harlecamp, he published nine 

 works. The first, the Systema Natures, which con- 

 tained a comprehensive sketch of the whole domain 

 of natural history, excited general astonishment, by 

 the acuteness of the observations, the happy talent 

 of combination, and the clearness of the systematic 

 views. Such a work could not fail to procure con- 

 siderable respect for its author. His Hortus Cliffbr- 

 tianus and Musa Cliffortiana added to this impres- 

 sion. The weight which he had thus acquired, he 

 proceeded to use for the improvement of botany. 

 His Fundamenta Botanica and BiUiotheca Bo- 

 tanica appeared in 1736; his Critica Botanica 

 and Genera Plantarum in 1737 : his Classes Plan- 

 tarum in 1738 ; his Species Plantarum was not 

 published till 1753; and all these works appeared 

 in many successive editions, materially modified. 



This circulation of his works showed that his 

 labours were producing their effect. His reputation 

 grew ; and he was soon enabled to exert a personal, 

 as well as a literary, influence, on students of natu- 

 ral history. He became Botanist Royal, President 

 of the Academy of Sciences at Stockholm, and Pro- 

 fessor in the University of Upsal ; and this office he 

 held for thirty-six years with unrivalled credit ; 



2 Sprengel, ii 234. 



Z2 



