* 
which explores it. 
Sg illustrate dd will be 
5 
-mountains, which further examination may prove to assimilate the geo.ogy 
of the New to that of the Old World in a rare particular, which had not 
before been discovered in either of the two Americas, Unhappily, much 
of what we had collected was lost by accidents of serious import to 
ourselves, as well as to our animals and collections. In the gorges and 
ridges of the Sierra Nevada, of the Alta California, we lost fourteen horses 
and mules, falling from rocks or precipices into chasms or rivers, bottom- 
less to us and to them, and one of them loaded with bales of plants col- 
lected on a line of two thousand miles of travel; and, when almost home, 
our camp on the banks of the Kansas was deluged by the great flood 
which, lower down, spread terror and desolation on the borders of the 
Missouri and Mississippi, and by which great damage was done to our 
remaining perishable specimens, all wet and saturated with water, and 
which we had no time to dry. Still, what is saved will be some respect- 
able contribution to botanical science, thanks to the skill and care of Dr. 
Torrey ; and both in geology and botany the maps will be of great value, 
the profile view showing the elevations at which the specimens were 
found, and the geographical map showing the localities from ie they 
con) 
* astronomical observations, taken with good ieinaaeina’s have been 
tested, where they were most important, by a three-fold computation: one 
by Professor Walker, of Philadelphia, whose astronomical reputation is so 
great; another by Mr. Joseph C. Hubbard, a promising young mathema- 
tician from Connecticut ; the third by myself; so that the correctness of 
the longitudes and latitudes may well be relied upon. ‘ 
“In sketching the topographical features of the country, a ‘branch of 
at clan 
had been my assistant in both expeditic ons }to his ex 
supported by the pleasure he felt in the execution of his F dities; I am in- 
debted for the continuous topographical sketches of the regions through 
which we passed, and —_- were never interrupted by any extremi 
fatigue or privation. 
~The barometrical and inetiarofonical observations were caret made 
with good instruments, and admit of no material error beyond the minute 
deviations inseparable from such operations. Ge 
_ The third expedition, now commencing, is underta Ken 
means than the two former ; and, being directed to a regi a 
in itself, and so new to science, can ashe f fe to requite: oP; 
The report, or narrative, 
