SEEMANN'S "FLORA VITIENSIS" (1865-73)

Abstract

ment accordingly sent a mission in 1860 to enquire into the desirability of annexation. Through the enterprise of Sir William Jackson Hooker, the Colonial Office agreed to give a free passage and a sum of money (which, as is usual on such occasions, proved quite inadequate for providing outfit, travelling expenses and maintenance) to any scientific man who would accompany this political mission. A German, Dr. Berthold Seemann (1825-71), accepted the offer, returning in 1861 with a rich haul of botanical specimens and much information about the region generally. He had been led to expect financial assist-