Journal of Proceedings. clxxix
making " collectors, who disgrace the name of " botanist." A very excel-
lent paper on the subject, by Mr. A. W. Wills, was printed in the ' Mid-
land Naturalist,' vol vit, p. 209. Advertisements are constantly appear-
ing in gardening periodicals offering ferns from Devonshire, Cornwall,
Somerset, the Wye Valley, &c., at from 4s. to 7s. 6d. per 100 in named
varieties ; Hymenophyllum tunbridgense and H. unilaterale at 2s. per
root; various species of Orchis and Saxifraga at from 2s. to 5s. per
100 ; Bog Asphodel at 2s. per dozen, and tenders were once invited for
half a million, of Daffodils for autumn delivery! The operations of
" Exchange Clubs " are equally pernicious. Mr. Wills relates the ex-
perience of a botanist who applied to one of them for assistance in
filling up gaps in his herbarium, and was in reply asked to enter into
an active exchange of specimens. A long list of the rarest plants was
sent to him, with notes appended, requesting him to supply " 100 fine
plants with roots," " as much as possible, whole plants with buds,
fruit, etc.," while of special species he was modestly asked to forward
"a cart-load " of growing plants !
At the Cryptogamic Meeting of the Club, on October 3rd, Prof.
R. Meldola (on behalf of the Corresponding Societies Committee of the
British Association) directed the attention of the Club to the following
resolution, which had been submitted to the Conference of Delegates,
held in Aberdeen, by Prof. Hillhouse, of the Mason College, Birming-
ham :—
" We view with regret and indignation the more or less complete ex-
tirpation of many of our rarest or most interesting native plants. Recog-
nizing that this is a subject in which local Societies of naturalists will
take great interest, and can exercise especial influence, we urge upon the
Delegates of Corresponding Societies the importance of extending to
plants a little of that protection which is already accorded by legislature
to animals and prehistoric monuments, and of steadily discouraging, and,
where possible, of preventing, any undue removal of such plants from
their natural habitats, and we trust that they will bring these views
under the notice of their respective Societies."
This resolution was put to the meeting of over 200 members and
visitors, including many eminent botanists, and was carried unanimously.
It is doubtful whether any restrictive legislation would be feasible for
the protection of our native plants, and the end would probably be best
attained by leading all lovers of Nature to consider the matter carefully,
and to aet wisely and vigorously in the defence of our native Flora.
With a view of giving definiteness to our recommendations, we append
the excellent rules lately issued by the Council of the Midland Union of
Natural History Societies, and beg to urge the duty of adopting such
lines of conduct upon all botanists, members of Field Clubs, Natural
History and other Scientific Societies, and upon the public generally :—
" 1.—That they should rigidly abstain from encouraging or coun-
tenancing the purchase from professional plant-hunters of any native
plants, for the sake either of their rarity or of their decorative value.