C ] 
was very worthily filled by Starhelinus: That he 
began to dolled, deferibe, and compile, with fo great 
Hopes of Succefs, however remote, that he even at- 
tempted the Work before us, at a time when he was 
fcarcely acquainted with the more common Plants. 
A Work of this kind had been begun by John 
Gefner of Zurich , a Defcendant of the famous Con- 
rad GefnerSy and a Friend of our Author’s, for which 
Task he was very well qualified by his many laborious 
Relearchcsj but at length his bad State of Health 
would not permit him to proceed in a Science, 
where he mud not be confined only to his Clofet, 
but climb up almofl inacceflible Mountains, fome- 
times nearly perifhing with Cold, and, poflibly, in 
the fame. Day, almoft difled with Heat. This Gen- 
tleman not only fent our Author a great many Plants, 
but granted him whatever he had occafion for of his 
Colle&ion, which confided of a great Number of 
valuable Specimens, of which he alone was poflefled. 
Our Author fpecifies likewife, what Parts of the 
Alps have been looked over, and what remain hitherto 
unattempted 5 and then fhews how large a Field is 
yet behind, for future Botanifts to exercife their 
Genius upon j and that thefe Mountains have rather 
been curlorily palled over by Perfons travelling over 
them to remote Places, often at an improper Seafon, 
than carefully examined ; from whence it happens, 
that many not only of Modes, but of the mofl perfect 
Plants, have either been omitted, or fo negligently 
deferibed, that it is impolfible to reduce them to the 
Genus to which they belong. Add to this, that the 
Fungus’s , and the very fmall Plants, fuch as the 
Centunculus , Sc dim tetrapetalon , &c, were over- 
looked 
