NOTES ON ZOOLOGICAL INSTITUTIONS. 341 



Medical-Botanical Garden and Museum. The work commenced 

 in 1635, and in 1640 a garden, ten acres in extent, was opened. 

 De la Brosse laid out the grounds, under the superintendentship 

 of the King's First Physician Bouvard, and assisted by the 

 botanist Vespasian Robin. Vespasian's father, John Eobin, the 

 Eoyal Botanist, helped to provide the new garden with plants. 

 De la Brosse died, in the garden he was creating, in 1643, and 

 was there buried. 



II. The Fagon period, 1671-1718. — Fagon, great-nephew of 

 Guy de la Brosse, was born and brought up in the Jardin des 

 Plantes. In 1671, on the death of Denys Jonquet (who had 

 succeeded Vespasian Eobin), Fagon was given the chair of 

 Botany, and later he became both Superintendent and Inten- 

 dant of the Institution. In 1715 he resigned his official duties, 

 but continued to live in the garden, and there died in 1718. 



It was under Fagon that the famous botanists, Joseph de 

 Tournefort and Antoine de Jussieu (uncle of Antoine Laurent de 

 Jussieu, 1748-1836) were appointed to the staff of the Jardin 

 des Plantes. 



III. The Buffon period, 1739-1788. — Buffon was only 

 thirty-two years old when he was appointed Intendant in 1739. 

 While he held office he accomplished a marvellous amount of 

 progressive administrative work, not only in the matter of 

 gardens, museums, and publications, but also in opening the 

 collections to the public. He wished to form a zoological 

 garden in the grounds, but died in 1788 without seeing the 

 realization of this plan. 



Among the men that Buffon appointed to help him in these 

 works were : — 



(i) Louis J. M. Daubenton, who, at the age of twenty-nine, 

 became Buffon's zoological assistant in 1745, and remained in 

 the Jardin des Plantes till he died there on the last day of 1799, 

 and was buried on the hill of the Labyrinth. 



(ii) The younger Daubenton, who assisted the elder, his 

 cousin, and retired on account of ill-health four years before the 

 death of Buffon. 



(iii) J. A. Thouin, Head-gardener from 1745 till his death 

 in 1768. 



(iv) Andrew Thouin, son of J. A. Thouin, born in the 



