BRIFPER ARTICLES 
CHARLES EDWIN BESSEY 
(WITH PORTRAIT) 
In the history of American botany the name of CHARLES E. BESSEY 
will always hold a conspicuous place. When his first textbook (Botany 
for High Schools and Colleges) appeared in 1880, it introduced a new era 
in botanical instruction in this country. Before that date, the study of 
botany in the United States was bounded practically by the taxonomy 
of the higher plants, with such gross morphology as enabled the student 
to use a manual. Brssry’s Botany brought the atmosphere of Sacu’s 
Lehrbuch to American colleges, 
and this compelled the develop- 
ment of botanical laboratories. 
This original textbook was the 
first of a series of texts that 
continued to be very influential. 
Professor BESSEY was a 
most stimulating teacher, and 
perhaps no American botanist 
has left his mark upon so many 
students. Especially in govern- 
ment service and in agricultural 
be directed toward the public 
service. At the same time, he 
was uncompromising in his views as to the difference between botany as 
a science and its various practical applications. 
He was born in Milton, Ohio, May 21, 1845; received his Bachelor’s 
degree at Michigan Agricultural College in 1869; and subsequently 
studied at Harvard University. He held only two academic positions 
as professor of botany: the first at Iowa State College (1870-1884), 
and the second at the University of Nebraska (1884-1915), where he 
Botanical Gazette, vol. 60] [72 
