The completion of the sixth volume of this Flora gives me the privilege to dedicate this to the memory of ELMER DREW MERRILL, a man who has achieved more for the knowledge of the Malesian flora than any other individual botanist. It is neither my intention to give nor is it the proper place for a full biography of this most distinguished American scientist, as it would for the greater part be duplication of his own ‘Autobiographical’ (1953), the scholarly essay by ROBBINS (1958), and the vivid life sketch by SCHULTES (1957), which together give the story of his life, his ambitions, his personality, his immense drive, his multiple interests, his capacity for establishing botanical periodicals as well as successfully filling the posts of Dean of a Faculty of Agriculture, director of the Bureau of Science at Manila, director of the New York Botanical Gardens, and administrator of Botanical Collections of Harvard University.