Lucien Marcus Underwood

“ If the more modern plan of imparting botanical instruction were rigidly carried out, namely, requiring the student to write in accurate botanical language the diagnostic characters of every plant studied in the preliminary course of instruction (say 50 or 75 plants) , the number of those whose early habits of study will remain a stumbling-block in the further pursuit of botanical knowledge would be vastly decreased, and the number of those who become intensely enthusiastic in the science, and capable of thorough and systematic post-graduate study would receive a corresponding increase. ”

“ There is a tendency to overlook the natural relationship of plants, growing out of the use of these keys, which can only be avoided by a careful study of the principles of classification in general and its application to botany in the morphological and structural relations of the members of the vegetable kingdom. ”

“ A "manual" for beginners is useful in proportion as it is accurate and easy of application. Some of our botanical orders containing our most common plants are difficult for beginners chiefly for the reason that the generic and specific "synopses" of the text-books are founded on characters not readily determined, or are of themselves difficult of application, requiring a vast amount of searching to find the appropriate division. ”