50 JOURNAL OF SCIENCE. 



and Hooker's great work on the " Genera Plantarum," and the errors 

 in the naming of species, chiefly caused by the admission of names 

 that must give way to prior ones, which have been brought to light 

 by the researches of Bentham and F. von Mueller, will be corrected. 

 It is important that the synonymy should be fully worked out, but 

 in the absence of a large botanical library of reference it may be 

 doubted if this department of the work can at present be adequately 

 carried out. Difficulties of the same kind will beset another point of 

 great importance— the systematic working out of the geographical 

 distribution beyond the colony of the genera and species of plants 

 native to it. This is a task demanding for its adequate performance 

 years of patient and laborious research as well as access to large 

 libraries, and it cannot, we fear, be satisfactorily done by any botanist 

 resident in our islands. But on the principle that half a loaf is 

 better than no bread we shall welcome the incorporation of such an 

 account of the facts of floral distribution as can be made out from the 

 data available, and trust that in particular all endemic species will be 

 noted as such. 



It is usual in the Floras of Great Britain to indicate the 

 pronunciation of the names of the genera and species, and Mr. 

 Kirk will do well to follow this useful custom. The question of 

 giving native or vernacular names by which the commoner species 

 are known is beset by peculiar difficulties. In the North Island the 

 Maori names are very generally used by those who take an interest 

 in native plants, but in the South, chiefly because of the original 

 sparseness of the native population these names are little known or 

 used. Nor is this the only difficulty, for different popular names are 

 attached to the same plant in different districts of the colony and 

 even in different parts of the same district. The perversity with 

 which the true ' beeches ' have become popularly known as ' birches,' 

 and different kinds of ' mapau ' as ' maples '—a popular name which 

 includes small trees of widely distinct Natural Orders, is enough to 

 fill with despair any botanist who desires to foster a system of 

 popular names that will be free from misleading and inaccurate 

 suggestions. The Maori names are for the most part free from this 

 taint, but the settlers' names often show it in its worst form. Even 

 in naming trees of such economic importance as the native pines, 

 usage varies not only between North and South, but even within the 

 limits of so restricted an area as Otago and Southland. Many of the 

 native names are certain to pass into permanent popular use, such for 

 example as tutu, rimu, hinau, raupo, ngaio, &c. ; and the sam.3 may 

 be said of a small number of settlers' names, such as ^ear-grass, 

 ironwood, brpadleaf, pepper tree, &c. But the vast majority of con- 

 spicuous native plants are still practically destitute of vernacular 

 names, and in fixing names for these, the influence of good judgment 

 in selecting suitable names, where such exist, for such a work as a 

 new popular Flora can hardly fail to be considerable. In a good 

 many cases it should be possible to bring into popular use the 

 ordinary generic names of botanists, such as Veronica, Olearia, 

 Coprosma, &c, though there are obvious limits to this. Into this 

 maze of difficulty and confusion we hope Mr. Kirk's labours will 

 introduce some measure of order and light, and pave the way for 

 greater improvement in years to come. 



