o 



R 



G 



A 



N 



I 



C 



B 



O 



D 



I 



E 



169 



I. 



NUMBER 



O F 



SPECIES. 



VEGE- 

 TABLE 

 KINGDOM 



r ' 



From what has been faid, it appears, that the rigorous frofl la 

 the antardic regions almoft preckides the germination of plants ; 



that the countries in the temperate zones, being chiefly unculti 



vated, produce a variety of plants, which only want the affiilancc 

 of art to 'confine them within proper bounds; ajid laflly, -that the 

 tropical illes derive a luxuriance of vegetation from the advantage of 

 climate and culture. But the number of vegetables is likewife 

 commonly proportioned to the extent of the country. Continents 



A, 



have therefore, at all times, been remarkable for their immenfe bo 



J 



tanical treafures ; and, among the reft, that of New-Holland, f( 



h 



r 



lately examined by MeiTrs. Banks and Solander, rewarded thei 



r I 



L 



labors fo plentifully, that one of its harbors obtained a name fuit 



o 



ble 



this 



•- 



mflance, (Botany Bay.) lilands only produce a 



- 



greater or lefs number of fp 



their circumference is mot 



or 



lefs extenfive 



I 



this point of view, I think both New-Zeeland 



d the tropical illes rich in vegetable produdions. It would be 



difficult to determine the number 



the firft 



,th any degree of 



precifion, from the little 



opportunities we had of examining its 



riches: our acquifitions of 



new fpecies from thence amount to 



* 



120 and upwards; the known ones, recorded already in the works of 

 Linn^us, are only fix, and confequently bear a trifling proportion 



Z 



t© 



