152 CHRONOLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 



In " A. D. 1789," the accession of Selira III., the nineteenth Turkish 

 sultan who ruled Egypt, took place. Coins issued at Cairo during his 

 reign, are figured by Marcel, p. 249. 



Dahlia variabilis was sent from Mexico in the last-named year to 

 Cavanilles at Madrid. — The plant, according to Clot-Bey and Figari, 

 was introduced by the French into Egypt. 



Thalia dealbata, according to Pursh, was discovered by J. Millington 

 in Florida. — Clot-Bey and Figari mention the recent introduction of 

 the plant by the way of France into Egypt. 



On the " 1st of July, A. D. 1798" (Thiers and Ryme), the French 

 under Bonaparte, after overthrowing the independence of Malta, landed 

 near Alexandria, and obtained possession of Egypt ; where they main- 

 tained themselves for more than three years. 



Euphorbia calenduUfolia was discovered by Delile in A. D. 1799, 

 growing as a weed in cultivated fields near Cairo. — Its place of origin 

 remains unascertained. 



In "A. D. 1807," the steam engine was applied to navigation with 

 full success by Fulton ; the trial of the boat taking place in North 

 America, on the Hudson River. 



In the same year, the accession of Mustafa IV., the twentieth Turk- 

 ish sultan who ruled Egypt, took place. In this year also (Clot-Bey 

 and others), the English took possession of Alexandria; where they 

 maintained themselves for about six months ; but were finally forced 

 to re-embark.* 



In "A. D. 1808," the accession of Mahmood II., the twenty-first 

 Turkish sultan who ruled Egypt, took place. 



The breaking up of the Memluks by the French, and the measures 

 adopted for the expulsion of the latter, led to the introduction into 

 Egypt of a body of four thousand Albanians. These became the 

 source of the power of their chieftain, Mohammed Ali ; who, on the 

 "1st of March, A. D. 1811" (Clot-Bey and others), extinguished by 

 violence the remains of the Memluk Aristocracy : and who became 

 virtually independent ; and twice rendered European interference 

 indispensable to the preservation of the reigning Dynasty at Constan- 

 tinople.f 



* This year forms a convenient point of reference to the botanist, from being the date 

 of the concluding volume of the manual of Persoon. 



f Coreopsis tinctoria was discovered by Nuttall on the Arkansas River, in A. D. 1819. 

 This soon became a favourite flower, and so widely diffused, that in Brazil, I met with a 



