INTEODUCTORY ESSAY. 53 



Moon's catalogue of the plants of Ceylon is also a bare list 

 of names. Many of these are evidently erroneously applied, 

 so that it is impossible to make use of them. Fortunately, 

 however, this is of little consequence, as we have no lack of 

 specimens from Ceylon. Moon's collections were excellent; 

 but he does not appear to have sent any specimens to Europe. 



Dr. Voigt's ' Hortus Suburbanus Calcuttensis,' published at 

 Calcutta in 1845, is, for the same reason, not available as a 

 work of reference, nor can we refrain from expressing our re- 

 gret that talents of so high an order should have been devoted 

 to a work of so little practical use. 



Dr. Lindley's invaluable ' Genera and Species of Orchideous 

 Plants' contains descriptions of aU the Indian Orchidese col- 

 lected by Wallich and his predecessors ; and in the published 

 parts of the ' Folia Orchidacea' (now in course of publication) 

 we have a complete account of many of the genera, drawn 

 up after a most laborious and critical examination of all the 

 materials accessible up to the latest day. Our own collections 

 are being thus published, and we consider ourselves highly 

 fortunate in their falling into such able hands*. Dr. Lindley 

 has further rendered essential service to Indian botany by nu- 

 merous descriptions and figures of Indian plants that have 

 appeared in various illustrated periodicals. He laboured in- 

 defatigably in the distribution of the great Wallichian Her- 

 barium ; his elementary books on botany, and his great work, 

 the ' Vegetable Kingdom,' are indispensable both to botanical 

 students and to proficients ; whilst, by the scientific direction 

 he has given to the study and practice of horticulture, as an 

 author and as secretary of the Horticultural Society of Lon- 

 don, he has been the means of rendering English botanists 

 familiar with the plants of India in a living state, to an ex- 

 tent that would have been thought visionary a few years ago. 



* The analysis of plants of this Order, in a dried state, is a work of the ut- 

 most difficulty ; and we would urge upon botanists in India the necessity of 

 drawing and describing the fresh specimens, and of preserving the flowers (as of 

 all plants whose parts are injured by the operation of pressing and drying) in 

 spirits or acid. 



