THE HISTORY OF THE BOTANICAL MAGAZINE hi 
The drawings, which are mostly very good, and certainly 
superior to many published at that period, were executed by 
different artists, including Mrs. Withers, F. Cameron, 
R. Mills, W. and A. Green, Miss Clowes, and others; but 
many of the plates bear no artist’s name. If the drawing is 
good the colouring is unequal, and often weak. Another 
pictorial serial, the Birmingham Botanic Garden ov Midland 
Floral Magazine, containing “accurate delineations, with 
botanical and popular descriptions of plants” (1836-—1837), 
is attributed to the same editors; but I have not seen it, 
and have failed to find any further particulars of it. In 
1837 were commenced two costly illustrated folio Orchid 
serials, namely, Lindley’s Sertwm Orchidaceum and Bate- 
man’s Orchidacee of Mexico and Guatemala. The latter is 
an elephant folio, containing forty coloured plates by Miss 
Drake, and some facetious and clever tail-pieces by G. Cruik- 
shank, and was completed in 1843. Miss Drake was also 
the artist of the Sertwm, which contains forty-nine coloured 
plates and a frontispiece. Considerations of space hinder 
me from giving further particulars of these magnificent 
works. The Botanist, conducted by B. Maund, assisted by 
the Rev. J. S. Henslow, is of this period. There are five un- 
dated volumes, small quarto, containing 250 mostly excellent 
plates, though almost wholly of plants previously figured in 
other publications. Almost all the editors of the numerous 
rival serials of those times gave reasons for their appearance 
before the public, and some of these reasons are more 
amusing than convincing. The Botanist is not specially 
botanical, for the plants delineated are all of an ornamental 
character ; but the justification for it was that “‘ it seemed to 
the editor that there was no work which precisely combined 
accurate scientific instruction with an occasional appeal to 
the imagination, and to the moral and religious feelings.” 
However, it is well worth a place in any library. 
On Saturday, January 2nd, 1841, the first number of the 
Gardeners’ Chronicle was issued: the horticultural part by 
Dr. Lindley. It combined the functions of a general news- 
paper and matters relating to horticulture, and in 1844 
an agricultural section was added. Illustrations were few 
and far between. Since then gardening has edged out the 
other departments, and illustrations have become abundant. 
There is a most interesting paper in the first volume on 
orchidaceous epiphytes by Mr. J. Bateman, beginning on 
p. 195. Historically this is of the greatest value. Lowdon’s 
Gardeners’ Magazine ceased in 1843, simultaneously with his 
death. In 1845 the United Gardeners’ and Land Stewards’ 
