Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Part One 1800–1846 Naturals and Naturalists
- Part One Introduction
- “A Memoir on the Discovery of Certain Bones of a Quadruped of the Clawed Kind in the Western Parts of Virginia,” Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (1799)
- “Pileated Woodpecker,” American Ornithology; or the Natural History of the Birds of the United States (1801)
- “Currents,” The New American Practical Navigator (1802)
- “Account of a North American Quadruped, supposed to belong to the Genus Ovis, Rocky-Mountain Sheep, Ovis Montana,” Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (1817)
- “A Monograph of North American insects, of the genus Cincindela” (excerpt) Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (1818)
- “On the Genus Ocythoe,” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London (1819)
- “Preface,” American Entomology, or Descriptions of the Insects of North America (1824–28)
- “Preface” (excerpt), The Genera of North American Plants and a Catalogue of the Species, to the Year 1817 (1818)
- “Pileated Woodpecker,” Manual of the Ornithology of the United States and Canada (1832)
- “Introduction,” Ichthyologia ohiensis, or natural history of the fishes inhabiting the river Ohio and its tributary streams (1820)
- “Notices of Materia Medica, or new medical properties of some American Plants,” Western Minerva or, American Annals of Knowledge and Literature (1820)
- “Passenger Pigeon,” Ornithological Biography (1831)
- “On the Production of Currents and Sparks of Electricity from Magnetism,” American Journal of Science and Arts (July 1832)
- “The Contagiousness of Puerperal Fever” (excerpts), New England Quarterly Journal of Medicine (1843)
- “On the Two Storms Which Were Experienced throughout the United States, in the Month of February, 1842” (excerpt) Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (1845)
- Part Two 1846–1876 Warriors
- Part Three 1876–1900 Scientists
- Bibliography
“Preface” (excerpt), The Genera of North American Plants and a Catalogue of the Species, to the Year 1817 (1818)
from Part One - 1800–1846 Naturals and Naturalists
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Part One 1800–1846 Naturals and Naturalists
- Part One Introduction
- “A Memoir on the Discovery of Certain Bones of a Quadruped of the Clawed Kind in the Western Parts of Virginia,” Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (1799)
- “Pileated Woodpecker,” American Ornithology; or the Natural History of the Birds of the United States (1801)
- “Currents,” The New American Practical Navigator (1802)
- “Account of a North American Quadruped, supposed to belong to the Genus Ovis, Rocky-Mountain Sheep, Ovis Montana,” Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (1817)
- “A Monograph of North American insects, of the genus Cincindela” (excerpt) Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (1818)
- “On the Genus Ocythoe,” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London (1819)
- “Preface,” American Entomology, or Descriptions of the Insects of North America (1824–28)
- “Preface” (excerpt), The Genera of North American Plants and a Catalogue of the Species, to the Year 1817 (1818)
- “Pileated Woodpecker,” Manual of the Ornithology of the United States and Canada (1832)
- “Introduction,” Ichthyologia ohiensis, or natural history of the fishes inhabiting the river Ohio and its tributary streams (1820)
- “Notices of Materia Medica, or new medical properties of some American Plants,” Western Minerva or, American Annals of Knowledge and Literature (1820)
- “Passenger Pigeon,” Ornithological Biography (1831)
- “On the Production of Currents and Sparks of Electricity from Magnetism,” American Journal of Science and Arts (July 1832)
- “The Contagiousness of Puerperal Fever” (excerpts), New England Quarterly Journal of Medicine (1843)
- “On the Two Storms Which Were Experienced throughout the United States, in the Month of February, 1842” (excerpt) Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (1845)
- Part Two 1846–1876 Warriors
- Part Three 1876–1900 Scientists
- Bibliography
Summary
A desire to advance the science of Botany by any additional remarks and facts which might be in my possession, connected with an endeavour to instruct the ignorant, in this engaging science, are the motives which have induced the author to the prosecution of a laborious but gratifying task.
How much he has drawn from every popular source of information and thus advanced the merit of this little publication by the labours of others almost every page can testify.
The tacit evidence of Botanists to the accuracy of the prevailing definitions of genera and species, afford, as it were, an almost inviolable sanction to the labours of their authors, and appear to stamp with temerity every attempt at subversion. The limits of genera, however, since the times of Linnaeus, reverting in a measure to their former simplicity, have now been greatly reduced, and more particularly so, since Botany, assuming a philosophical character, lays claim to a classification by natural affinities. In this interesting and now prevailing view of the subject, a reduction of heterogenous materials to their natural types, has led the way to the construction of genera better according with the plan of nature.
One of the strongest, and perhaps most important objections urged against these improvements is the confusion which they are innocently the means of introducing into Botanical nomenclature, and indeed it must be acknowledged that the concussion of revolution whether in science or politics, even to fulfil the most important object, but little accords with our natural desire of harmony.
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- Publisher: Anthem PressPrint publication year: 2012