arranged according to the Natural System. 341 



botanist. These should recollect that the greatest botanists are at best only 

 students. There was a time when Linnaeus and Jussieu were as ignorant 

 as themselves, and would have continued so had they waited for intuitive 

 knowledge. Sharp eyes and willing hands are the grand requisites for a 

 botanical collector, and, if these be once set in motion, knowledge of affi- 

 nities and structure will gradually follow as operations extend. Many of 

 the most successful collectors of plants, by whose labours in all countries 

 the science has been so extended and enriched, have been persons ignorant 

 of, or but slightly acquainted with, botany at the time of their mission. 



" There is one simple way in which all such persons may render important 

 services, and by which they may gradually acquire the experience which they 

 would fain possess at starting; namely, by collecting and drying specimens 

 of the plants of their neighbourhood indiscriminately, without favour or 

 affection, from the tall forest tree to the moss or the lichen on its trunk." 

 (Pref. p. vii.) 



The general plan of this work is taken from Beck's Botany of the Northern 

 and Midland States of North America, and Nuttall's Genera of North American 

 Plants. The characters, arrangement, and restriction of the natural orders, 

 are from the text of Dr. Walker Arnott, as already mentioned. The number 

 of genera described is 1086, distributed under 133 orders, and the estimated 

 number of species is 8500. The orders containing the greatest number of 

 species are, Geraniaceae 350, Diosmeae 110, Oxalldeae 110, Polygaleae 100, 

 Byttnen'flCdvs 100, Leguminosae 700, Crassulaceae 300, Eicoideae 500, Umbel- 

 lif'erae 120, Compositae 1000, Campanulaceae 140, -Ericaceae 450, Asclepwdece 

 240, Scrophulariaceae 250, Ferbenaceae 100, Protedcece 200, Euphorbidcece 

 100, Orchideae 150, Zrideae 300, Amaryllirfea? 100, Jsphodelese 450, 

 Cyperdcece 160, Gramineae 160, Eiliees 150, il/usci 150, Hepaticae 100, 

 yl'lgae 220. Of Lichenes and fungi there are no genera noticed, and of the 

 other Cellulares mentioned there are only 4 or 5. 



In a note to the Preface, it is stated, that M. Zeyher dries and prepares 

 collections of specimens for sale, at the moderate charge of 21. per hundred 

 species ; and that collections for European subscribers will be forwarded to 

 Sir W. J. Hooker and N. B. Ward, Esquire, who have kindly undertaken to 

 receive them. We may add that Mr. W. Pamplin, junior, of - Queen Street, 

 Soho Square, London, successor to the late Mr. Hunneman, is a very fit 

 agent for all matters of this kind. 



We shall now glance over the natural arrangement, and note down any 

 thing that we think may be interesting or instructive to the British gardener. 

 Under Cruel ferae, we find a number of British annual weeds naturalised ; and, 

 indeed, the number of naturalised plants, introduced by the settlers from 

 Europe incidentally, probably exceeds a hundred species, and in time will 

 doubtless amount to thousands ; for, comparatively speaking, all the annuals 

 of cold countries will grow and perpetuate themselves in warm countries ; as, 

 indeed, will many of the annuals of warm countries in cold countries having 

 hot summers. — Fiola arvensis, an annual introduced from Europe, is a com- 

 mon weed in all cultivated grounds, extending even to Caffreland ; and the 

 mignonette is nearly so. — Geranium. The South African species are few and 

 inconspicuous. — Erodium. " Few and weed-like." — Pelargonium." This vast 

 genus, the glory of the order, is almost exclusively South African. The 

 species are very numerous and difficult to be defined, from the very great 

 facility with which they form hybrids, running into innumerable varieties by 



seed Even in the field, the Pelargonia vary extremely, especially the 



tuberous-rooted species, and the greatest care is necessary to trace the forms 

 to their common types, and note what characters are variable and what con- 

 stant. When this shall have been fully done, (for the whole genus wants a 

 ' searching reform,' and an extensive clipping,) I feel confident that the true 

 species will be found to be very much fewer than authors generally state 

 them." ( p. 42.) 



O'xalis. A charming genus scattered over the globe, but reaching its highest 



A A 3 



