36 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY , Vol. XX. 



his " Flora Indica ", which appeared 17 years after his death 

 (in 1832) brings the number of palms up to 41. At about the same 

 time Wallich's " Plantse Asiatics? Rariores " (between 1830 

 and 1832) was published by the East India Company. Though 

 valuable in other respects, the work did not add much to our 

 knowledge of Indian palms. 



It was not until Griffith with his untiring energy and enormous 

 knowledge began his botanical investigations, that the palms of India 

 became better known. As Assistant Surgeon he accompanied Wallich 

 to Assam ; he explored the tracks near the Mishmi Mountains between 

 Sudiya and Ava ; made a journey from Assam to Ava, and down the 

 Irrawadi to Rangoon ; traversed 400 miles of the Bhutan country ; 

 joined the Army of the Indus in a scientific capacity ; went from 

 Kabul to Khurasan and succumbed finally to the fatigue and sick- 

 nesses due to exposure during his long and restless journeys (1845). 

 The various papers, including many on palms which he communicat- 

 ed to the " Calcutta Journal of Natural History " and to the Linnean 

 Society of London, and his other publications, are models of scientific 

 research. His drawings, microscopic analyses and descriptions of 

 plants are evidence of astonishing industry and profound knowledge. 

 For the fruits of these labours we are indebted to J. McClelland, 

 who published in Calcutta, between 1847 and 1854, five volumes 

 with a 4to volume of illustrations : " Posthumous papers bequeathed to 

 the H. E. I. C, and printed by order of the Government of Bengal ; 

 being journals of travels by the late William Griffith, Esq., 

 arranged by John McClelland, M.D. 5 ' The most important 

 amongst these is the volume entitled : " Palms of British East India " 

 (1850). The author's preface furnishes some information regarding 

 the scope and origin of the book. " The present attempt," says 

 Griffith, " will be found to include all the Palms of British East 

 India that I have met with myself, or of which I have been able to 

 procure such knowledge, as I considered sufficient for their determina- 

 tion. I wish it merely to be viewed as a slight sketch to be filled up 

 hereafter. This subject, so far as regards systematic botany, is one of 

 considerable interest, and in order to meet the convenience of the 

 Indian public, I have written the descriptions in English, in pre- 

 ference to the common language of Botanists. This seemed to me 

 the: more proper, because English is the language through which 



