STUDENT YEARS 
45 
from wondering at the widely extended knowledge of 
literature, clear exposition, and able conviction of the 
correctness of his views, on the part of the twenty-two 
years old student ? 
Amongst these youthful writings there is one 
which deseryes to be spoken of somewhat at length, 
especially as it had a considerable influence on the 
career and scientific development of Linnaeus. To 
understand this rightly we must first remember that 
amongst the new principles which at that period began 
to be attacked, was that of the sexuality of plants. 
What Camerarius, Ray, Grew, Bradley and others 
had written upon the subject, was unknown to the 
young student, but nevertheless he had read in 
“ Actis Lipsiensibus,” a review of Vaillant’s tract on 
the sexes of plants, which especially pleased him. 
This was the address with which Sebastien Vaillant 
on the ioth June, 1717, at the Jardin du Roy in Paris, 
began his public lectures, and it was printed in the 
following year both in French and Latin. Herein the 
sexuality of plants was set forth as an indisputable 
fact. Linnaeus was warmly attracted by these new 
views and therefore he began to examine flowers for 
stamens and pistils, soon finding that they were not 
less different than the petals, and were the essential 
parts of the flower. 
The adoption might have been delayed a little 
before presenting his views and observations on this, 
but at the end of 1729, an academic treatise came out 
with the title “TaVo? <pvrwv. sive nuptiae arborum 
. . . praeside Georgio Wallin . . . submittit . . . 
Petrus Ugla.” [The marriage of plants . . . under 
the presidency of G. Wallin, submitted by Petrus 
Ugla.] 
Linnaeus, who had been plodding away on the 
subject, and had no chance of opposing this thesis, 
felt himself called upon to enter the lists and there¬ 
fore wrote some sheets on the true connection, accord¬ 
ing to botanic fashion. He delivered this little tract 
