136 Review of Indian Botany. [April, 



searches. He had made large collections of plants in the Carnatic, 

 and for several years previously to his appointment had retained a 

 painter constantly employed in drawing plants, which he accurately 

 described, adding such remarks on their uses as he had learned from 

 experience or collected from the natives. 



The drawings and descriptions arrived in England in 1791 and 

 1794, when the number of 500 were completed. It was from these that 

 the first selection was made. 



Sir Joseph Bankes undertook the superintendence of the engravings, 

 and Dr. Russel of the letter press, in consequence of Dr. Roxburgh's 

 intended residence in India, as he was in 1793 selected to be superin- 

 tendent of the botanical garden at Calcutta. After many years of 

 laborious investigation he was compelled to visit his native country for 

 the recovery of his health ; but he died, as we learn from his son, at 

 Edinburgh, in February, 1815. 



The work now consists of 3 volumes, in large folio, with 300 plates 

 drawn in a very superior style. They are selected chiefly for their use- 

 ful properties, as may be observed in the long account given of the 01- 

 denlandia umbellata, Chay root or East Indian madder ; the numerous 

 experiments shew the care that has been bestowed on the application of 

 botany : also in the account of the sandal-wood tree, the Catamaran 

 tree, nux vomica, cleaning nuts, the teak, several esculent species of 

 ceropagia, marking nut, Sapan-wood tree, Swieteniafebrifuga : the 

 mehwah tree, the butea frondosa, with experiments on its gum ; 

 embryopteris glutinijera, phosnix farinqfera, areca catechu, feronea 

 elephanta, JEgle marmelos, mimosa Arabica, Rottlera tinctorea. Under 

 mimosa catechu, it is observed, " but the natives have no idea of ex- 

 tracting from it, or any other, the extract called catechu (terra 

 Japonica) :" this is an inaccuracy, as large quantities of catechu are 

 made from it in the upper provinces of India. Terminalia chebula, 

 with directions for dyeing yellow : Shorea robusta, Dipterocarpus turbi- 

 natus, the Cardamum tree, Scirpus tuberosus, or water chesnut of the 

 Chinese, saccharum Sinense: the Sona tree, Gmelina arborea, for fibres : 

 observations on the different kinds of cotton. — The above list shews 

 the number of useful plants, described and figured in the great work of 

 Dr. Roxburgh, a work perhaps less known in India than in any other 

 part of the civilized world. 



It may appear that much time has been unnecessarily employed in 

 noticing a work of Dr. Roxburgh's, which has no immediate reference 

 to that now under consideration ; but the fact is, that the two works, 

 though published at such considerable intervals, are closely connected 



