Exchanges and correspondence are constantly maintained between Kew and the numerous botanic gardens which exist in British dependencies. This constant intercommunication is, on the one hand, indispensable to the maintenance and perfection of the Kew collections, on the other hand, it is of great advantage in facilitating the exchange from one garden to another of the vegetable products of different parts of the Empire. I am anxious, however, to see the botanic gardens establish to a greater extent than at present a chain of independent interchanges, which would increase their own usefulness and enormously facilitate the work which is done at Kew. We have attempted, for example, to send plants to Fiji, but with but little success, on account of the great distance. Any particular plant could, however, be established in Ceylon with moderate difficulty; from thence it could be sent to Singapore, and so on to Brisbane and Sydney, and finally to Fiji. At each successive stage, in case of a failure, the difficulty of renewing the attempt would be much smaller than if it were necessary to start afresh from Kew.

I am the more led to make these remarks from having had my attention repeatedly drawn by applications made to Kew from residents in the colonies to the fact that some of the most important functions of a Colonial botanic garden, are often apt to be lost sight of. Such institutions are obviously likely in most cases sooner or later to develop into the pleasure grounds of the towns and cities near which they are situated. But without disparaging their public usefulness in this respect, it is important that their primary function of promoting the botanical interests of their respective colonies should not be forgotten. That there is some risk of this happening I can only assume from the constant applications made direct to Kew for information, seeds, or plants which it is clearly the business of the botanic garden of the applicants' colony either to supply or procure.

This leads to another point. No colonial garden can discharge its functions efficiently if the superintendent does not occasionally make journeys with a view to discovering new and interesting plants for the purpose of interchange with other establishments. But the demands made upon his time often prevent the superintendent attending to this part of his duty, which is so important in keeping up an imperial system of exchange, besides promoting the interest of the garden under his charge, and varying the monotony of a life of unintelligent routine. I am afraid that this is sometimes overlooked by the local governments and managers; one superintendent is tied by meteorological observations, another by growing vegetables for sale. In every case where some obstacle of this kind is allowed to override the legitimate freedom of action of the superintendent, I am convinced the interests of his establishment suffer in a variety of ways, and that the policy is a short-sighted one.