18 
cally the entire collection is represented at the public conserva- 
tories. 
A pleasant feature in the bringing together of this collection 
has been the interest shown by many members of the Garden, 
expressed in direct gifts of large and valuable specimens, many 
of them not otherwise procurable, or in the provision of funds for 
exploration purposes, by means of which many specimens, unique 
in cultivation, have been obtained. Exchanges have been ar- 
ranged with other institutions, both in this country and in Eu- 
rope, and by this means many other species have been added, 
so that up to the present time this collection, consisting of several 
hundred individuals, has been brought together wholly by gift or 
exchange. 
Before entering into a more detailed account, it may be well to 
give a somewhat general description of the palm family itself, 
stating its characters, method of blooming, distribution and eco- 
nomic importance. 
The palms form a well-marked family, their nearest relative 
being a small group of plants, the Cyclanthaceae, to which, in 
foliage and habit, they bear a strong resemblance, but are sep- 
arated by the more essential characters of flowers and fruit. 
They are also related, and not very distantly, to the aroid family, 
to which our own jack-in-the-pulpit and skunk cabbage belong. 
They are either nearly stemless, bearing their leaves close to the 
ground ; or, as is most frequently the case, the stem is developed 
into a trunk; this is smooth, or sometimes armed with stout spines ; 
in some it is over 100 feet long, in some creeping on the ground, 
in other cases slender and vine-like and climbing over tall trees by 
means of spiny leaf-stalks or special organs of a similar character ; 
but commonly it is stiff and erect. The leaves which are borne 
at the summit of the stem and often have the petioles armed with 
stout spines, are fan-shaped, as in Chamacrops humilis, with the 
ribs running from a point near the base ; entire and feather-veined, 
with the ribs running from a central rib, as in the genus Pioent- 
cophorium ; or, as is more frequent, divided into numerous seg- 
ments, giving them a plume-like appearance, a character well 
shown in the cocoanut-palm. The inflorescence is enclosed in 
