408 Report on the progress of the Horticultural Society, 



" found that the cold region is productive of very few plants, being 

 " for the greater part barren pine and oak tracts, with scarcely any 

 " shrubs. The plains when not subject to cultivation are occupied 

 " by a long grass, growing in large tufts, which gives not the slightest 

 " chance to other plants. 



" In a few days I shall pack up for immediate transmission to 

 " England the few things I have collected here, and then proceed 

 " to the city of Guatemala. 



" A kind of Acorn of an extraordinary size I have collected, which 

 " shall be packed up in fine sand and put in the midst of some box 

 " of Epiphytes agreeably to your instructions. 



" The political state of the country is far from being settled, some 

 " of the states are still at war against each other." 



No. 37. — Guatemala, January 22nd, 1840. — "I beg to inform 

 " you that on the 20th instant the results of my researches from 

 " the neighbourhood of Quezaltenango have left this for Belize, they 

 " are packed up in six boxes, and enclosed I send you a list of their 

 " contents and of the stations of the plants. 



" I arrived here a few days ago and have as yet made only one 

 " excursion, but at a glance the country seems to be more promising 

 " than the burnt up fields near Quezaltenango." 



Four of these six boxes arrived on the 25th of April. Three 

 contained 38 species of Orchidaceous plants, for the most part in 

 good condition ; the other was filled with dried specimens and 23 

 kinds of seeds.* 



The Council cannot close this portion of their report without 



* Since this report was read the two remaining boxes arrived, and were in better 

 order than those previously received ; they contained 15 species of Orchidaceae, 

 which were all, except one Maxillaria, in a healthy state. Besides the seeds there 

 were two small cases filled with acorns of different sorts packed in sand, the whole 

 of which were dead. 



About 420 of these plants, and 520 packets of seeds, have since been distributed 

 among the Fellows of the Society. 



