78 
f HE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [Aug. i, 1894. 
1847 he became a candidate for a Chair of Science 
in one of the new Queen's Colleges in Ireland. 
This application was powerfully supported by 
such men as Robert Brown (" bolanicorumfacJe 
princeps"), Sir W. J. Hooker, Lindley, Montagne, 
Tulasne and many others, but it was unsuccess- 
ful. Sir W. Hooker, however, still kept Thwaites 
in view, and when Or. Gardner's death here, 
in March, 1849, became known at home, the 
vacant post in Ceylon was offered by Earl Grey 
to Thwaites. This he accepted, and having sailed 
round the Cape arrived here on 28th November 
1849 during the rule of Lord Torrington. Thus 
was Ceylon so fortunate as to obtain, as superin- 
tendent of its Botanic Gardens and at a salary 
of only £300 a year, a scientific man of established 
reputation ; and it is needless to say how 
abundantly his appointment has been justified. 
Ceylon's gain, however, was England's loss ; the 
feneral feeling of regret on the part of botanists at 
'hwaites' departure is expressed by Mr. Berkeley 
at p. 117 of his classical work, the "Introduction to 
Cryptogamic Botany." To this day, in England, 
uponnoonehasThwaites' algological mantlefallen. 
With his arrival in Ceylon commenced a new- 
stage in Mr. Thwaites' scientific life. He at once 
turned his attention from the lower organisms 
to the varied and beautiful phanerogamic 
flora of the island. At that time the duties of 
the Superintendent were almost wholly of a 
scientific character, and he was undisturbed by 
other claims on his time. For the first ten years 
of his incumbency Thwaites was able to devote 
himself exclusively to the investigation of the 
flora of Ceylon. His predecessor, Dr. Gardner, 
was an indefatigable traveller and had made large 
collections, both in South America and India 
as well as Ceylon, and his sudden death had 
left everything in confusion. The first work of 
Thwaites was to separate the Ceylon plants from 
the others, for all were mixed together ; Gardner's 
collections were to be sent home and sold on 
behalf of the family by auction in London, and 
little was retained at Peradeniya.* After this 
work was finished, the sorting, arranging, and 
naming of the stores, accumulated and continually 
"being brought in from the jungle and mountains, 
was proceeded with, and Thwaites made numerous 
excursions collecting. During this period a 
number of interesting novelties was detected, 
principally in the districts of Ambagamuwa, the 
neighbourhood of Ratnapura, the Singhe Rajah 
Forest, and other parts of the wet S.-VV. of the 
island. Many of these were described by Thwaites 
in a series of papers published in Hooker's 
*' Journal of Botany " from the year 1852 to 1856, 
wherein some 25 genera new to science were 
defined and illustrated, most of them peculiar 
to Ceylon. These papers are characterized by 
the terse accuracy noticeable in all the writings 
of their author. At the same time Thwaites 
worked indefatigably at forming a numbered 
series of Ceylon plants (now known as "CP.") 
from the stores of unarranged specimens in the her- 
* There can be little doubt more was sent to 
England than should have been, including some 
Government property. It is impossible otherwise 
to understand how it is that the Peradeniya Her- 
barium now contains so few of Gardner's plants 
and scarcely one of his tickets, very little indeed 
of Moon's Herbarium which Gardner had in 1844, 
brought back from Madras where Dr. Wight had 
the loan of it for 8 years, and which is said to 
have been a fine collection, and none of the speci- 
mens of Gen. and Mrs. Walker (a most valuable 
collection) of which Gardner had selected a fine set at 
Eew, for the Ceylon Herbarium, before he came out 
barium and those collected under his own direction. 
Numerous sets of these series were made up and 
widely distributed among the principal herbaria 
and museums in Europe in exchange foi other doted 
plants, or for botanical books, ami in the course of 
a few years Ceylon plants for the first time began 
to be generally well represented in collections. 
In 1857, with an increased salary, the title of 
Superintendent was altered to Director ; and in 
the next was commenced the publication of the 
book by which Thwaites is most widely known, 
and which up to the present time is the only 
modern catalogue of the indigenous plants of 
Ceylon. This book, the " Enumeratio Pla»taruin 
Zeylani;e," was printed in London at the risk 
of a publisher there, and received no assistance 
whatever from the Government. It proceeded 
steadily, part 2 appearing in 1859, part 3 in 186<>, 
and part 4 in 1861 ; and then, after a pause, part 5, 
with copious additions and corrections, in 1864. 
Each part cost 5 shillings, the number printed wa* 
small and the book is now difficult to procure. 
This important work tirst reduced into order 
the chaotic state of knowledge and the confusion 
in nomenclature of our llora. In its preparation 
Thwaites was greatly assisted by Dr. (now Sir) 
J. D. Hooker. To the writer of a systematic 
botanical work who lives away from the great 
stores of books and specimens, a collaborates 
who can readily verify names, synonyms and 
references and consult original authorities and 
specimens, is necessary, if he would avoid 
numerous errors, omissions, wrong guesses and 
misapprehensions. The "Enumeratio" is, of 
course, essentially a botanist's book, and is of 
use to botanists only ; descriptions are given only of 
the new species, which are very numerous, and 
these in Latin ; for other plants references are 
made to various books, thus presuming an access 
to a good library. Dr. Thwaites never regarded 
it as other than a "prodromus" or forerunner 
of a full descriptive and illustrated work ; but 
the latter could of course never be undertaken 
unless large help fiom Government were forth- 
coming. But whenever such a Flora is written, 
the "Enumeratio," in spite of additions and 
changes due to the discoveries in European 
collections and in India and Ceylon, and numerous 
publications upon them during the past eighteen 
years, will form a very sure foundation. 
The publication of this book secured its 
author's reputation as a systematic botanist, and 
acknowledgments of this were received from 
several quarters. In Germany the Imperial 
Leopoldo-Carolinian Academy granted the hon. 
degree of Ph. D. to the author, and a far 
more gratifying and substantial honour was his 
election in 1865 into the Royal Society. The custo- 
mary compliment of dedicating a genus to a natura- 
list of repute had, as already noticed, been long be- 
fore bestowed upon Dr. Thwaites; but the obscure 
little Algre T/uuaitesia, was supplement ed in 1867 by 
the foundation by Dr. J. D. Hooker of Kcndrickia, 
this name being given to one of our most beautiful 
Ceylon flowering plants, of the order 3Idastaomce<z 
and which had been referred in the "Enumeratio" 
to the purely Malayan gemisPachyccntria, A very 
poor figure has since been published by Beddome 
of this splendid epiphytic climber, which he found 
to grow also in the Anam allay Hills. 
It had always been Dr. Thwaites' intention to 
publish a further part of the " Enumeratio " em- 
bodying the additions and new " C. P. " numbers, 
but this he never accomplished. Indeed, after 
this time he devoted himself almost entirely to the 
cryptogams, returning thus to Ms first love. He 
worked out and arranged all the Mosses, FuDgi 
