Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-01-20

tum and garden would be to maintain
a collection of the wild relatives OF our
principal cultivated plants. 1t is COM
ing to be recognized that many OF the
most important of our cultivated
plants are hybrids of two or more wild
species. There is a very important
field, therefore. in the development Of
new types through breeding, including
fruits, ornamental plants and forest
trees. Most of our cultivated plants
are of European origin and are only
imperfectly adapted to the more Sc
we're continental climate OF the Cnlted
States. 1t is often necessary to breed
new races which are better fitted to
our climatic conditions, and this is &C
complished in many cases by hyprloiZ-
ing the forms we now grow Win
others more desirable from eastern
Asia or regions having similar climatic
conditions.
at is only very recently that the inn
portance of this work has been undeT,
stood, hence nearly all OF the OLD Worid
botanical gardens are not provloeo VIII
material for the work in question. 1t
can no longer be doubted in America
that the time has come for a thorough
study and rational utilization OF the
wild relatives of our culticated crop
plants in the way outlined above. This
requires the maintaining of collections
of such plants where they can pc
grown to maturity and flower freely
in order to provide the necessary mate
rial for use by the plant breeder: COL
lections of these wild relatives OF Gull
tivated plants would have great popu-
lar interest. appealing not only TO the
esthetic sense of the visitor. but also
stimulating in him an interest IN the
botanical and agricultural possi1,iia n9
lections might be made very beautl-
full and would furnish material such as
no plant breeders now possess LOT lne
improvement of some OF our pSlncipal
agricultural industries.
Wide Interest Developing.
"a wide interest is developing in this
country in such trees and shrubs as
are particularly adapted for use in ana
around cities, and such collections could
not fail to be of value to all those
interested in this feature of the oeauti-
fication of the cities, their suburbs ana
outlying roadways. At the present time
no collection of any Importance OF
trees and shrubs suitable for these pur-
poses is maintained south OF ne"
York.
"As the department is already pro.
vided with many experts capable OF
aiding in the development OF the
arboretum and garden along the lines
indicated, the expense for future de-
velopment would not be great. We be-
lieve that for the next eight or ten
years it would not be necessary to in
crease the existing appropriation LOT
the Botanic Garden, which. l under
stand, now amounts to approximately
$4,000 annually"
A brief interesting resume of the his
tory of the Botanic Garden was sub
mitted to the House with the faVoraple
report of the committee on library:
1T is the outgrowth of the likes
ion NJ 1T
the naval appropriation act of May IA,
1885 60 Stats, p 29) the President was
to send out surveying anu
exploring expedition to the Pacific ana
south seas in government vessels, ah9
for that purpose an Appropriation VI
100000 was made.
1.-THE expedition, consisting OF SIX
government ships, under command OF
Lieut. Charles Wilkes. U. S. N, sailed
from Hampton roads August Is, 1898.
1t was accompanied by a horticulturist
and potanist, W. d. Breckenridge. The
expedition returned to New York in
June, 1912, and brought large coilec-
ton of natural history specimens.
pending a more suitable provision
for the care of these specimens it was
provided by an act of Congress passed
in 1S42 that they should be deposited
and arranged in a room of the patent
office and under the general SUPERVISION
and direction of the joint committee on
the library.
Little by little. and with appropri-
ations that appear very meager indeed,
the Botanic Garden was gradually es-
tablished. Most of the legislation
the Botanic Garden has been through
in appropriation bills.
Placed in Present Site in 1850.
I'm 1850 provision was made for the
transfer of the plants. etc. to suit
able place for their preservation and
cultivation, and in that year the gar
den was placed in it's present site.
For a number of years the direc-
ton of the garden was by Mr.. Brock
enridge, referred to above, and it was
not until 1854 that we first run across
and for SO long time
was associated with it.
1T has long been recognized by
every one who has given any attention
to the Botanic Garden that in its pres
ent site it was restricted and could not
possibly develop into anything i'm
portant or be of much practical value
to the country.
1.-THE Grant monument will soon be
completed and the present site of the
garden will be needed to carry out the
landscape design in connection with it
and for the opening of the vista to the
Washington Monument and the new
Lincoln memorial. The order for the
of the fence was first made in
1899, but it's execution was prevented
largely, at least it is understood,
the influence of the late Will
liam r. Smith.
In 1911 the sundry civil act made an
order for the removal of the fence and
on n
meet charges incident to its removal.
Again the removal act was not carried