4 
Spruces to Abies, a practice long abandoned on the Con- 
tinent, and which has not been adopted in America. 
And if, as I hope, the correct nomenclature will in future 
be adopted in regard to the Latin names of these genera, I 
would further urge a reform in respect of their English 
equivalents, in so far as to confine the use of the words 
Pine to the species of Finns, of Spruce to those of Picea, 
and of Silver Fir to those of Abies. We should then 
be in accordance with the universal practice throughout 
North America, which is the head-quarters of all three 
genera, where a Pine is never called a Fir, nor a Fir 
called a Spruce, nor a Spruce a Pine. 
The following historic sketch of the various essays of 
Botanists to limit the genera and species of Abietinece, 
shows how divergent have been their views. I have 
endeavoured to make it more instructive, by giving 
(where there are materials for doing so) under each 
attempt the number of species known to its author, thus 
further showing the progressive discovery of species 
during the last hundred and eighty years or thereabouts. 
Tournefort, in 1717, indicated the three genera Abies, 
Pinus, and Larix (including Cedms ) ; and his Cedrus 
is Juniperns. 
Linnmu3, in 1753, included these all under Pinus , of 
which he enumerated 10 species. 
In 1731 the first edition of Miller’s Gardeners 
Dictionary appeared, where he has Pinus, Cedrus, 
Larix and Abies, with 16 species in all. 
In 1789 A. L. de Jussieu, in his Genera Plantarum 
has only two genera. Pinus and Abies. 
In the same year the first edition of Aiton’s Hortus 
Kewensis appeared, wherein all the Abietine ce (19 
species) are included under Pinus. 
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