THE 
ORIGIN OF THE BRITISH FLORA. 
CHAPTER I. 
Introduction. 
In the year 1876, happening to be engaged on the 
Geological Survey of East Norfolk, I was led to 
commence observation on the plants of the Preglacial 
‘Cromer Forest-bed.’ At first I confined my efforts to 
collecting the animals and plants, some of the latter being 
afterwards determined by Mr. Carruthers. But it soon 
became obvious that, in order to obtain any satisfactory 
knowledge of the subject, it was necessary to collect and 
study the ripe seeds and fruits of our British plants, and to 
devote much of my leisure to the work of comparison ; 
fossil seeds had seldom been collected in this country, and 
recent plants with perfectly ripe seeds were seldom to be 
found in our herbaria. 
From a study of the plants of the Cromer Forest-bed, 
the work gradually expanded into an examination of any 
Newer Tertiary plants that could be found in Britain, and 
as during the past twenty years my employment on the 
Geological Survey of England has necessitated a close 
scrutiny of our Newer Tertiary deposits, especially in the 
south and east of England, I have been brought continu- 
ally face to face with the problems of the origin of our 
B 
