BRITISH HERBAL, 
SHESLSSSTIRILORIOTLSSSSOTLHLSS ISOS OSOOISOSIESERO 
/ 
GL A’ SS XPM 
Plants whofe fruit is a berry; confifting of a fain or rind, furrounding a 
Joft pulpy or juicy matter, within which are the Jeeds. : 
claffical charaéter ; this peculiarity of the fruit being the moft obvious, certain, and invariable 
mark that could be chofen, It happily keeps together the whole number of thefé plants, fe- 
parating them from all others: this is the defign and fole end of claffical divifions ; and it has the ad- 
vantage of being fhort, plain, and fimple; which is the beft circumftance that can attend them, _ If 
the charaéters of all claflés were as natural as this, there would be little difficulty in forrhing a good 
and perfect fyftem of botany, or in the attainment of the fcience. 
Mr. Ray, and with him the generality of writers, led by nature and by reafon, have thus confti- 
tuted the berry-bearing plants as a diftinct and feparate clafs. But it is not fo in the method of Lin- 
nexus; for they are arranged in the moft different and moft remote claffes, and fcattered over all his 
work. Any one would fay, from the flighteft obfervation, and nature would confirm it from the deepett 
fearch, that nightfhade and bryony, and lilly of the valley and Solomon’s feal, and the reft of thefe 
were allied to one another ; and the ftudent would hope he fhould find them together. It is ft he 
fhould fo find them, and he will here: but in that author he muft feek each in its feparate place, 
Linnus eftablithed a fyftem in which the charaéters of claffes were to be taken from the number 
and arrangement of the threads in the flower : therefore, where Nature, as in the prefent inftance, fixes 
the charaéter in the fruit, he rejects the diftinétion. 
Accordingly nightfhade ftands among his pentandria monogynia, becaufe the threads are five, and 
the ftyle fingle; and it is there mixed with henbane, and campanula, becaufe their threads are 
jn the fame number ; and bryony is thrown among the monecia fyngenefia, fixteen claffes off, becaufe 
there are male and female flowers in a peculiar manner on the fame plant. 
The dwarf honeyfuckle is placed among the fetrandria, becaufe its threads are only four, and it is 
there mixed with plantain. The lilly of the valley and afparagus are ranged under the bexandria, be- 
caufe'of their fix threads, and mixed among the bulbous plants. The vaccinium, becaufe its flower has 
eight threads, is joined with rue; the willow-herb is placed under the oéfandria, and the mofchatellina 
in the fame clafs, keeps company with biftort and arfmart. : 
Thefe are Englifh plants, and familiar ones: we need carry the fearch no farther. The purpofe of 
method and fyftem is to introduce regularity into a fcience; but the refult of fuch combinations can 
be only confufion. Nature fports and wantons in thefe leffer parts; and therefore, though fit to be 
regarded in defcription, they are moft improper for the conftruétion of claflical characters. No inftance 
can thew this more ftrongly than the feparation of the bacciferous plants. 
N Either the Mower, nor any other part of thefe herbs, needs to be named for eftablifhing a 
N° XXXII. ‘ 4M SSE RTE'S 
