The INTRODUCTORY DISCOURSES, containing the Elements of Planting, and the Outline of the Linnean System, are, as rudiments, entirely new; excepting the quotations from Linneus's work, which quotations are extracted from the Lichfield Tranflation of The Syftema Vegetabilium of that great man. The ALPHABET OF PLANTS, fo far as it relates to TIMBER-TREES, and other NATIVE PLANTS, as well as to fome of the more usɛFUL EXOTICS, is either wholly our own, or contains fuch additions as have refulted from our own obfervation and experience: fo far as it relates to ORNAMENTAL EXOTICS, it is entirely HANBURY's; excepting the quotations which are marked, and excepting the GENERAL ARRANGEMENT, which is entirely new. HANBÚRY has not lefs than fix diftinct claffes for the plants here treated of, namely, deciduous Foreft-Trees, Aquatics, evergreen Forest-Trees, deciduous Trees proper for ornament and shade, evergreen Trees proper for ornament and fhade, and hardy climbing Plants. The first three claffes are without fubordinate arrangement; in the last three the plants are arranged alphabetically, agreeably any to to their genera. This want of fimplicity in the arrangement renders the work extremely heavy and irksome to refer to ; and is productive of much unneceffary repetition, or of tirefome references from one part of his unwieldy work to another. His botanical fynonyms we have wholly thrown afide, as being burdenfome, yet uninstructive; and in their place we have annexed to each Species the trivial or specific name of LINNEUS, which in one word identifies the plant with a greater degree of certainty than a volume of SynonyOther retrenchments, and a multiplicity of corrections have taken place: however, where practical knowledge appears to arife incidentally out of our author's own experience, we have cautiously given it in his own words: likewife, where interefting information lies entangled in a fingularity of manner, from which it could not well be extricated, we have marked the paffages containing it, as literal quotations ---to diftinguish them from others, which, having been written in a manner more properly didactic, or brought to that form by retrenchment or correction, we confider as be ma. ing more fully entitled to the places we have affigned them. The articles TIMBER, HEDGES, and WOODLANDS, are altogether new, being drawn from a confiderable share of experience, and an extended obfervation. The article GROUNDS is likewife new, if any thing new can be offered on a subject upon which fo much has been already written. Tafte, however, is a fubject upon which all men will think and write differently, "even though their fources of information may have been the fame. WHEATLEY, MASON, and NATURE, with fome EXPERIENCE, and much OBSERVATION, are the principal sources from which this part of our work was drawn if we add that it was planned, and in part written, among the magnificent fcenes of nature in Monmouthshire, Herefordshire, and Gloucefterfhire, where the rich and the romantic are happily blended, in a manner unparalleled in any other part of the Ifland, we flatter ourfelves no one will be diffatisfied with the origin: of the production, let the Public fpeak. * Excepting fuch extracts and quotations as are marked, and have their respective authorities fubjoined. |