427 
SYSTEMS OF CLASSIFICATION. 
* 
himself, by repeatedly turning over the work of Jussieu, with any 
known plants in his hand, and contemplating their essential generic 
characters in the first place; and then what regards their habits and 
affinities; proceeding afterwards, to combine in his own mind, their 
several points of agreement, till he is competent to form an idea of 
those assemblages which constitute natural classes and orders.” 
Jussieu left the work unfinished, and the student was involved in 
difficulty and embarrassment. To Linnaeus then, he was obliged to 
have recourse, and thereby, he was enabled to determine the position, 
and the name of his plant. Thus things remained till an author of 
comparatively recent fame sprang up, who gave promise to illumi¬ 
nate the natural classitication, and remove those obstacles which threat¬ 
ened to prove an insurmountable bar to its general adoption. To 
Doctor Lindley we are indebted for all that has in reality been ef¬ 
fected :—without his science, his ability, and strenuous exertions, 
the Natural System of Botany would have remained a dead letter, a 
sealed book to the many. His “ Introductions ” have effected a great 
revolution, and science is deeply indebted to him. 
His task has been Herculean, and his labour enormous. The 
chief difficulty which he had to contend with was that, which must 
still form the obstacle to the general adoption of the system, the pro¬ 
digious number of orders that is required to receive the great and 
increasing volume of subjects. So anomalous are plants, so various, 
and complicated their structure, that a very considerable number of 
the orders contain but a single individual genus. Twenty-four 
classes only exist in the Linnaean, artificial system; and these com¬ 
prise all the known tribes of plauts: Above tivo hundred orders are 
already attached to the natural system , and more remains to be 
added, as new and strange plants shall be introduced. The task 
however is in worthy and able hands, and he who has done so much, 
v may effect the whole. 
A work has just appeared from the Pen of Dr. Lindley, entitled, 
Ladies’ Botany, or a Familiar Introduction to the Study of the 
Natural System of Botany. —Ridgway—8vo. 16s. It is a beau¬ 
tiful and most interesting production. The avowed object of the 
learned author is to present “ an elementary introduction to the mo¬ 
dern method of studying systematic Botany”—and ably has he ac¬ 
complished it. Difficulties will, and must remain, but he has so 
simplified the work of investigation, that they who once trembled at 
the attempt of self instruction, may now, with this book in hand, (as 
lar as it extends,) commence with assured certainty of success.* Dr. 
Lindley. has pointed out the defects of the Artificial System; and he 
