SECTION III. 
GRASSES. 
** And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed. 
And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed.” 
—Gen. i. 11-12. 
In drawing this little volume on the native plants to a 
conclusion, though many have been left unnoticed or un- 
known by me, I must say a few words respecting the grasses ; 
not, indeed, to add a botanical description of this most 
beautiful and graceful tribe of plants, which deserves a 
volume from the pen of one who has given greater attention 
to the subject, and which seems to me to require the know- 
ledge of a scientific botanist. To do justice to that I must 
confess I am not competent; any knowledge that I possess 
is simply that of an observer and a lover of the beautiful 
works of the Creator. 
The student of botany will not be content merely with 
my superficial, desultory way for acquiring a more intimate 
acquaintance with the productions of the forest and the 
field; and to such I would recommend a more particular 
study of our beautiful native wild grasses, including the 
rushes and the sedges. At present the field has not been 
entered upon fully, if even its very borders have been gleaned, 
unless by that industrious and indefatigable botanist, Pro- 
fessor John Macoun, whom we might well call the Father 
of Canadian Botany. 
But though I cannot venture to treat the subject of the 
grasses as a botanist, I cannot pass them by without intro- 
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