C 23 ] 
Linnaus, i patroh and protector : he founded the botanic 
garden at Oxford, ef which Dilieniils was the firll pro- 
feffor. This interview was by no means creditable to 
the profeffor, or flattering to the young ftranger. Dil- 
lenius, perceiving he did not underftand the Englifh Ian- 
guage, defcribed him to Shcrrard as the young man who 
confounded all botany. The words confound and bo- 
tany being of Roman origin, Linnaeus underftood the 
purport of his obfervariotl ; and after fome ineffectual 
attempts to conciliate the kindnefs of the profeflbr, before 
his departure, boldly aflced why he had pointed him out 
as the confounder of all botany. To juftify his affertion, 
the profeflbr produced from his library a part of the Ge- 
nera Plantarum, ^^'hich was then printing at Leyden, 
and which Gronovius had sent to Oxford without the 
knowledge of its author. In this work he had marked 
all which he conceived to be the falfe genera. ^ To re- 
fute this opinion Linnaeus challenged him to an immedi- 
^demonftration, and convinced him that all his genera 
'were accurate, and that what appeared to be wrong was 
merely the corredion of ancient and continued error. 
This fomewhat foftened the referve and aufterity of the 
profeffor, and he invited him to the infpedion of his 
own and the Sherrardian colledion, and gave him what 
plants he wanted for Clifforts’ garden. They after- 
wards correfponded, but with no great warmth of 
friendfhip on the profeffor’s fule. Too old to ftudy and 
embrace a new fyftem, and too haughty to acknowledge 
the merits 0/ his rival in fame, he would never publicly 
