The Botanii of Texas 9 



Koeiuer and Lindlicimer made numerous botanical excur- 

 sions in the vicinity of Xeu Braunfels, and when the former 

 left to return to Europe collections Avore cxchanTrod, so that 

 mnny of the species published in the Roemer collections were 

 really collected by Lindheinier. Upon his arrival in Berlin, 

 Roemer placed his collections in the hands of Adolph Schcele, 

 whose classifieation and description of them was published in 

 Linnaea (95), (96), (97), and in appendix to Roomer's '^Texas'' 



(91). 



It is quite evident tliat the work- of Roemer in so far as it 



pertains to the botany of Texas is merely incidental. Ilis col- 

 lections, although made at a later date than the early collections 

 of Pla)ita€ Lindhrimcrianac (46), were published earlier, and 

 thus were given undue prominence in the annals of Texas 

 botanv. 



Thus far botanical collections in Texas had been confined 

 to the central and southern portions of the State, it being un- 

 safe for the naturalist to venture far beyond the border of the 

 settlements. F'ollowing the annexation of Texas, however, one 

 of the first acts of the United States Government was the estab- 

 lishment of a chain of forts along the north and west frontier, 

 which became the base of a series of military explorations that 

 atforded an excellent opportunity for making a study of the 



flora of the western part of the State. 



It was in connection with the movement of troops to these 

 westerb forts that Charles Wright made his first collections in 

 this reaion. In 1S47-8 he accompanied a troop of soldiers to 

 Eag e Pass, 'Svhere he botanized on both sides of the river." (*) 

 In the summer of 1S49 he accompanied a small body of troops- 

 across the unexplored region between San Antonio and El Paso,, 

 returning again in November. The collections ox this trip, to# 

 the end of Compositae (418 species), are described in Part 1 

 of Planiae Wrightianae Texano-Xeo-Mtxicanas, Smithsoniatt 

 Contributions to Knowledge, 1852. A fact of special interest 

 connected with tliis trip is that it constitutes tlie first step 

 taken by the Smithsonian Institution toward the formation of 

 a National Ilerbariuni. The Institution contributed $150 to- 



*Scieiitific Papers of Asa Gray. II. p. 409 



