233 Botanical Writings of Rafinesque. 



title of Flore Louisiana. This account, as Robin informs us, 

 was prepared from notes made on the living plants, and it is evi- 

 dent (although there is no direct statement on the subject,) that 

 he brought no collection of specimens to Europe, excepting a few- 

 seeds for the Jardin des Plantes. It is written in French ; and 

 the characters of the orders and genera are translated from Jus- 

 sieu, which gives the work an appearance of scientific precision 

 much beyond its just pretensions. Its value of course depends 

 altogether upon Robin's botanical knowledge and his success in 

 referring the plants he notices to their properorders and genera ; 

 and we remark that the work itself affords no evidence of his 

 competency to the task. Indeed, on Rafinesque's own showing, 

 we can place little confidence in Robin's determinations ; for, ac- 

 cording to the former, he mistook the leaf of a Sarracenia for the 

 spathe of an Arum, and described a species of Podophyllum as a 

 second species of Arum ; he took two species of something near 

 Commelina for Orchideous plants ; described a Celtis as an un- 

 known Proteaceous plant, a plant of the Cherry tribe for a true 

 Laurel, anew genus (?) of Ranunculacece for a Polygonaceous 

 plant, and the common Ceanothus for Polygonum frutescens ; he 

 mistook Amsonia and Dichojidra for species of Alenyanthes, a 

 new genus (?) of Scrophularinece for a Polygala, a Phlox for a 

 Manulea, a Justicia for an Amethystea, an Hydrolea for an Apo- 

 cytnrni, a new genus (?) intermediate between Oxycoccus and Vac- 

 cinium for a Campanula, and a species of Eryngiuin for a this- 

 tle. On the sole authority of the descriptions and determinations 

 of such a botanist, Rafinesque has established thirty new genera 

 and one hundred and ninety-six new species ; and professes to 

 reduce all his plants to their proper orders and genera, correcting 

 Robin's mistakes by his own descriptions. It is worth noticing 

 that a large portion of the one hundred and four plants which 

 are referred to old species, are merely enumerated, and scarcely if 

 at all described by Robin ; but in almost every instance in which 

 Robin has given a somewhat detailed description, Rafinesque 

 has not been able to recognize the plant, but has considered it a 

 new genus or species. From this fact, one may form a good idea 

 of the value of Robin's account, and of Rafinesque's new genera 

 and species. We do not pretend to say that Robin really made 

 the blunders which Rafinesque charges upon him, (of which the 

 specimens we have given are only some of the most striking ; ) 



