402 Goodale — Development of Botany Since 1818. 



One side of botany touches agriculture and economics. 

 That side was represented even in the first volume of the 

 Journal by a study of "the comparative quantity of nutri- 

 tious matter which may be obtained from an acre of land 

 when cultivated with potatoes or wheat.' 7 Succeeding 

 volumes in this series likewise present phases which are 

 of special interest regarded from the point of view of 

 economics ; for example, those which treat of rotation of 

 crops and of enriching the soil. Probably the economic 

 paper which may be regarded as the most important, in 

 fact epoch-making, is the full account of the invention by 

 Appert of a method for preserving food indefinitely 

 (13, 163, 1828). We all know that Appert 's process has 

 revolutionized the preservation of foods, and in its mod- 

 ern modification underlies the vast industry of canned 

 fruits, vegetables and so on. There are suggestions, 

 also, as to the utilization of new foods, or of old foods in 

 a new way, which resemble the suggestions made in these 

 days of food conservation. For example, it is shown 

 that flour can be made from leguminous seeds by steam- 

 ing and subsequent drying, and pulverizing. There are 

 excellent hints as to the best ways of preparing and using 

 potatoes, and also for preserving them underground, 

 where they will remain good for a year or two. It is 

 shown that potato flour can be made into excellent bread. 

 Another method of making bread, namely from wood, is 

 described, but it does not seem quite so practicable. 

 There are interesting notes on the sugar-beet as a source 

 of sugar, and here appears one of the earliest accounts of 

 the Assam tea-plant, which was destined to revolutionize 

 the tea industry throughout the world. Cordage and tex- 

 tile fibers of bark and of wood should be utilized in the 

 manufacture of paper. In fact one comes upon many 

 such surprises in economic botany as the earlier volumes 

 of the Journal are carefully examined. 



Early numbers of the Journal present with suffi- 

 cient fulness accounts of the remarkable discovery by 

 Daguerre and others of a process for taking pictures by 

 light, on a silver plate or upon paper (37, 374, 1839; 38, 

 97, 1840, etc.). Before many years passed, the Journal 

 had occasion to show that these novel photographic 

 delineations could be made useful in the investigation of 

 problems in botany. In the pages of the Journal it would 

 be easily possible to trace the development of this art in 



