. HISTORY OF THE INVESTIGATION OF THE FLORA OF SURINAM. 



SO seriously ill that this latter desires to return to Paramaribo the next day. 

 They arrive there already in August and Kappler takes his abode in Host- 

 mann's house. In his work "Hollandisch Guyana, Eriebnisse und Erfahrungen 

 wahrend eines 43-jahrigen Aufenthalts in der Kolonie Surinam, Stuttgart 

 1881," Kappler gives a very amusing description of Hostmann's household 

 at that period. Hostmann did not take the least notice of his family and 

 was constantly occupied in making new schemes for his culture experiments. 

 Characteristic of Hostmann is the following sentence (p. 31): "After our 

 return from Victoria I did not find again in the doctor those animated con- 

 versations on the probable flora of Jupiter and Saturn which had so charmed 

 me before I went to Europe. Material concerns had now come in their stead." 

 While Hostmann remained occupied with his culture experiments at Para- 

 maribo, Kappler made an expedition to the Para district, collecting at Osembo, 

 near the plantation I'lnqui^tude and near the plantation Berlin. After his 

 return he collected for a time in the environs of the town and then made 

 another expedition to the Sara-creek. On this latter expedition Kappler fell 

 ill and remained for 47 days at post Mauritsburg. After his return to Para- 

 maribo he found Hostmann so absorbed by his colonisation schemes that 

 Kappler resolved to leave his house. He rented a little house himself and 

 so gathered during three years a very valuable collection of dried and live 

 plants which he sent successively to Europe and which were a good source 

 of income to him. From that time already date Kappler's schemes of coloni- 

 sation on the Marowine and accordingly he payed a visit to that river be- 

 fore his departure to Europe. He also went once more to the Para district 

 where he met Hostmann again who was then occupied with growing tobacco. 

 This is the last we hear of Hostmann. When and where Hostmann died I 

 have not been able to find out. 



In Juni 1845 Kappler returns to Germany with a collection of dried and 

 living plants and zoological objects. These latter are in the Naturalien-Ka- 

 binett at Stuttgart, about his plants Kappler does not speak. Already in 

 March 1846 he returns to the colony and settles on the Marowine where he 

 founds Albina. At first he occupied himself exclusively with the wood trade 

 but his income soon increased when he was appointed postholder. He does 

 not seem to have collected much in that time. He only mentions that he 

 sent live plants to Europe. 



In 1852 he once more undertakes the voyage to Europe, this time more 

 particularly to Holland, where he tries to obtain support for his colonisation 

 schemes at the colonial office, in which he succeeds. He also marries a 

 friend of his youth, whose name, Albina, he had already previously given 

 to the place founded by him Accompanied by his wife and some people 

 from the Schwarzwald, he sets out for Surinam in 1853 in a ship, hired for 

 the transport of wood. Colonising did not give Kappler much pleasure, how- 

 ever. To his extraordinary energy he joined a very choleric character, 

 which made him many enemies everywhere. Yet Albina grew larger and 



