Cornell University The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924083755763 CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY In Compliance with current copyright law, Cornell University replacement volume on paper CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY GeooN BULLETIN of the University of South Carolina South Carolina Botanists: Biography and Bibliography By WILSON GEE ISSUED MONTHLY BY THE UNIVERSITY No. 72 Sept. 1918 COLUMBIA, §S. C. Second-Class Mail Matter De PREFACE The following pages are with slight alteration the same biographies of South Carolina Botanists as appeared in the Sunday News of Charleston at intervals during the years 1909 and 1910. The data were gathered from va- rious sources too numerous for individual acknowledge- ment. The resulting monograph was offered and accepted in 1910 as a thesis for the Master of Arts degree from the University of South Carolina. The writer claims no exhaustive or critical appreciation of their work as the result of his efforts. There has been brought together here for the first time, however, a sys- tematic arrangement of the biographies and bibliographies of the botanists of outstanding note in the state who in the past have contributed to its reputation in botanical lines. He desires to thank Prof. A. C. Moore for the inspira- tion and help which he gave to the work and Prof. Yates Snowden, that ardent and delightful devotee of things South Carolinian, for many references and valuable sug- gestions. There are due, besides, acknowledgements to many relatives for information concerning their distin- guished kinsmen. The appreciation for these favors is imperfectly expressed in the attempt to brighten some- what the lustre which already surrounds the memory of the achievements of those whom they revere. WILSON GEE. June 14, 1918. South Carolina Botanists: Biography and Bibliography By Wilson Gee JOHN LAWSON Probably the earliest attempt to catalog the plants of the Carolinas is that of John Lawson in the year 1700. While chiefly a historian, for the merging of natural his- tory in such large proportions into his description of the province, he deserves mention among the early botanists, who “attracted by the charms of our fair land, were con- tent to dwell in its midst,” at least long enough to be- come familiar with a part of its wonderful resources. John Lawson, historian, was born in Scotland. He came to this country as surveyor general of North Caro- lina and began his surveys in 1700, but fell a victim to the jealousy of the Tuscarora Indians, who confused the surveyor of their territory with those that had despoiled them of it. He was captured while exploring North Car- olina in 1712, in company with a Swiss named Graffen- reid. The latter was allowed to purchase his freedom, but Lawson was put to death in a most cruel manner. He was the author of one of the most valuable and — thoroughly interesting of our early histories of the Caro- 6 linas: ‘“‘The History of Carolina containing the exact de- scription and natural history of that country, together with the present state thereof and a journal of a thousand miles traveled through several nations of Indians, giving a par- ticular account of the customs, manners, etc.”’ ; The original edition of this volume is now very rare; It was reprinted at Raleigh, North Carolina, however, In 1860. There is in the library of the University of South Carolina a copy of the edition of 1718, an old volume of about 258 pages, octavo size, bound in half leather. The dedication is to the ‘“‘True and Absolute Lords- Proprietors of the Province of Carolina in America,” and _ he thus addresses himself to them: ‘My Lords: As debts of Gratitude ought most punctually to be paid, so, where the Debtor is uncapable of Payment, Acknowledgements ought at least to be paid. # * * * * * * “I here present Your Lordships with a Description of your Own Country; for the most part of her Natural Dress, and therefore, less vitiated with Fraud and Luxury. A Country whose Inhabitants may enjoy a Life of the greatest Ease and Satisfaction and pass away their Hours _ in Solid Contentment. * * * * * * * “Your Lordships most obliged ‘Most humble “‘and most devoted servant. . JOHN LAawson.”’ The motive for his passage to America he explains as follows in the opening lines of the introduction to his his- - tory: “In the year 1700 when people flocked from all parts of the Christian world to see the solemnity of the Grand Jubi- lee at Rome, my intention at that time being to travel, I accidentally met with a gentlemen, who had been abroad, and was very well acquainted with the ways of living in both Indies, of whom having made enquiry concerning _them he assured me that Carolina was the best country I could go to; and that there then lay a ship in the Thames 7 in which I might have my bassage: I laid hold on this opportunity. ’’ kg * _ hi Arriving in America, first at New York, which settle- ment he briefly describes, he left there ‘‘after a fort- night’s stay and in fourteen days after arrived at Charles- Town, the metropolis of South Carolina.”’ In his ‘‘A Journal of a Thousand Miles Travel among the Indians from South to North Carolina,’’ he relates further: ‘‘On December 28, 1700, I began my voyage (for North Carolina) from Charles-Town, being six Englishmen in company, with three Indian men and one woman, wife to our Indian guide.”’ With the above information on the character of the man, the date and nature of his trip, we may turn more intelli- gently to that part of his work with which we are more directly concerned. In his description of the country, he treats North and South Carolina separately, but in the portion called ‘“‘The Natural History of Carolina,’’ he considers Carolina as a whole. The following is quoted from the introduction to his history in support of this. statement: ‘‘And since the produce of South and North Carolina is the same, unless silk, which this place pro- duces great qualities of and very good, North Carolina having never made any tryal thereof, I shall: refer the natural produce of this country to that part which treats of North Carolina, whose productions are much the same. * * * * * * * I shall now proceed to relate my journey thru the country from this settlement to the other, and then treat of the Natural History of Carolina, with other remarkable cir- cumstances which I have met with during my eight years abode in that country.”’ : Under a subdivision of the natural history entitled ‘““The Vegetables of Carolina,’’ we find eighteen pages devoted: to ‘‘an account of all the spontaneous fruits of Carolina, that have come to my knowledge, excepting services, which I have seen in Indian’s hands, and eat of them, but never saw how or where they grew.”’ As indicating the subject matter dealt with in the succeeding eight pages 8 we quote: ‘‘We will proceed, in the next place, to show what exotick fruits we have that thrive in Carolina, and what others it may reasonably be supposed would do there, were they brought thither and planted.’’ To enter into this list would be beyond the scope of the present work. A statement of his method is made by Lawson himself in the preface when he refers his readers to ‘‘the natural history, in which I have been very exact, and for method’s sake ranged each species under its dis- tinct and proper head.”? There are however, very few technical terms in the whole work. The treatment of animals is even more elaborate than that of plants. This part of his work embraces forty- seven pages and is subdivided into ‘“‘The Beasts of Caro- lina;’’ ‘‘The Insects of Carolina, ’’—in which we find no true insects, but chiefly reptiles; ‘‘The Birds of Carolina;’’ and ‘‘The Fish in the Salt and Fresh Waters of Carolina.’’ Apart from its historical significance, a work of this nature is worth little to the scientists of today, yet we feel a peculiar interest in it for its age and also as repre- senting a part of the perspective in which the country was viewed in its early days. His untimely death, no doubt, deprived, us of many interesting works; for he was a writer of no mean ability, and was certainly one to main- tain the interest of his readers. _ Bibliography Lawson, John—A New Voyage to Carolina; containing the Exact Description and Natural History of the Country. London, 1709. Q. History of Carolina.—Lord Taylor, 1714. Q. History of Carolina.—Lord Warner, 1718. History of Carolina.—Raleigh, N. C., Strother and Marcom, 1860. e ; ‘Allerneuste Beschriebunz der Provints Carolina in: West- Indien. Aus dem Englischen Herr Vischer, 1712. MARK CATESBY An early naturalist of reputation, who, while not a a resident of Carolina, was one of the first to investi- gate the biological resources of our State, was Mark Catesby, an English scientist, and later a Fellow of the Royal Society. The birthplace of Catesby is not definitely known, nor the date of his birth, but it is generally record- ed that he was born in London about 1679. If so, he must have removed from the place when quite young according to a statement made in the preface of his large and best known work, ‘‘The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands.’’ For its auto- biographical value a portion of this is interesting, and the following is quoted from it: “The early inclination I had to search after plants and other productions in nature being much suppressed by my residing too far from London, the centre of all science, I was deprived of all opportunities and examples to excite me to a stronger pursuit after these things to which I was naturally bent. Yet my curiosity was such that, not being content with contemplating the products of our own coun- try, I soon imbibed a passionate desire of viewing as well the animal and vegetable productions in their native coun- tries, which were strangers to England. Virginia was the place, as I had relations there, which suited most with my convenience to go, where I arrived the 23rd of April, 1712. I thought then so little of prosecuting a design of the nature of this work that in the seven years I resided in that country, (I am ashamed to own it,) I chiefly grat- ified my inclination in observing and admiring the various productions of these countries, only sending from thence some dried specimens of plants, and some of the most specious of them in tubs of earth, at the request of some curious friends, amongst whom was Mr. Dale, cf Brain- tree, in Essex, a skilful apothecary and botanist. To him, 10 besides specimens of plants, I sent some few observations on the country, which he communicated to the late William Sherard, LLD., one of the most celebrated botanists of this age, who favored me with his friendship on my return to England, in the year 1719, and by his advice (though con- scious of my own inability) I first resolved on this under- taking, so agreeable to my inclination. But as expenses were necessary for carrying the design, There most grate- . fully acknowledge the assistance and encouragement re- ceived from several noble persons and gentlemen, whose names are hereunder mentioned. . * * # * * * “With this intention I set out again from England in the year 1722 directly for Carolina, which country, though in- habited by English above an age past, and a country in- ferior to none in fertility, and abounding in variety of the blessings of nature, yet its productions being very little known, except what barely related to commerce, such as rice, pitch and tar, was thought the most proper place to search and describe the productions of. Accordingly I ar- rived in Carolina the 23rd of May, 1722, after a pleasant, though not a short, passage. x “ok * * * * * * “Upon my arrival at: Charles-Town I waited on Gen. Nicholson, then Governor of that Province, who received me with much kindness, and continued his favors during my stay in that country. x * * * * * * “As I arrived at the beginning of the summer I unex- pectedly found this country possessed not only with all the | animals and vegetables of Virginia, but abounding with even a greater variety. The inhabited parts of Carolina extend west from the sea about sixty miles, and almost the whole length of the coast, being a level, low country. In these parts I continued the first year searching after, collecting and describing the animals and plants. I then went to the upper uninhabited parts of the country, and continued at and about Fort Moore, a small fortress on the banks of the River Savanna, which runs from thence a 11 course of three hundred miles down to the sea, and is .about the same distance from its source in the mountains.’’ It is to be noted from the above that early in the eight- eenth century he raised the means for a voyage to the New World, where he arrived in 1712. The greater part of the period of this first trip was spent in Virginia. In1719 he returned to England with a collection of plants, which was reported to have been the most complete ever before car- ried to England from the Colonies. This attracted the at- tention of men of science, especially Sir Hans Sloane and Dr. William Sherard, two of the greatest naturalists then alive. Catesby remained in England for some time arrang- ing and naming his specimens, a considerable number of -which passed into the museum of Sir Hans Sloane. Here ~ he was led and assisted by his scientific friends to revisit America, and took up his residence in South Carolina in 1722. He traversed the coast and made distant excursions into the interior, collecting materials for his work. Quoting further from the preface of this same work: “After my continuence almost three years in Carolina and the adjacent parts, (which the Spaniards call Florida, par- ticularly that province lately honored with the name of Georgia,) I went ip Providence, one of the Bahama Is- lands. * - Both in Carolina and on these Islands, I ore successive collections of dried plants and seeds, and at these islands more particularly, I collect- ed many submarine productions, as shells, corallines, fru- - tices marini, sponges, afroites, etc.”’ A better general description of his method of treatment of the plants cannot be given than that he himself gives. “T had principally a regard to forest trees and shrubs, showing their several mechanical and other uses, as in building, joynery, agriculture, food and medicine. Ihave likewise taken notice of those plants that will bear our English climate, which I have experienced from what I have - growing at Mr. Bacon’s, successor of the late Mr. Fairchitd at Haxton. e © = * * ‘As to the plants, I have given them the English and Indian names they are known by in these countries; and 12 for Latin names I was beholden to the above-mentioned learned and accurate botanist, Dr. Sherard.’’ In addition to his treatment of the plants, his work was quite extensively given to animals, and principally to the “feathered kind,’’ of which he says: ‘‘T believe very few birds have escaped my knowledge, except some water fowl and some of those which frequent the sea.’ In 1726 he returned to England and at once set ogee to work in preparing material for his magnificent and best known work, from which the above extracts have been taken. This was accompanied by a new map, constructed by himself, of the districts explored. The first volume ' appeared in 1731 and the second in 1748. There are up- wards of one hundred plates in this first volume, all the figures of the plants having been drawn and etched by Catesby himself. In recognition of the merits of this first part of his work, on the 26th of April 1733, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. A German transla- tion, with an introduction by ‘‘M. Edwards, due College Royal des Medecins de Londres,’’ was published a Nurem- berg in 1756. A third edition was required in 1771, to which a Lin- naean index was appended. An original of this edition may be found in the library of the University of South Carolina. It consists of two large folio volumes,- over fifty inches in length, and bound in calf. The plates are large and exquisitely done. Side by side, in parallel columns, we find the text in English and in French. ‘Catesby also produced (in 1787) ‘‘Hortus Britanno Americus, or a Collection of 85 Curious Trees and Shrubs, the Production of North America, adapted to the Climate and Soil of Great Britain.” Many trees and shrubs were first introduced by him, and the publication of this volume added considerably to the introduction of Ameri- can plants into England. He also produced some other works of importance, which are listed in the appended bibliography. A West Indian genus of shrubs of the order Cincho- 13 naceae was named Catesbaea in his honor by the famous. botanist Gronovius. Catesby died at his house in Old street, London, on Dec- ember 28, 1749. BIBLIOGRAPHY Catesby, Mark. ‘“‘The Natural History: of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands.’’ 2 Vols, folio, 1731. Same. Revised by M. Edwards, with an appendix, 1748. Same.’ German edition with introduction by M. Edwards, du College Royal de Londres,’’ Nuremberg, 1756. Same. Other German editions at Nuremberg in 1750, 1755, 1757 and 1770, and with Latin titie in 1750 and 1777. ‘‘The translations generally omit part of the original.”’ Same, Third English edition. With Linnaean index of plants and animals appended, 1771. 2 Vols., folio, 220, colored plates. ‘On the Migration of Birds.’’ Proceedings of the Royal Society, 1747. “Hortus Britanno-Americus, or a Collection of 85 Curi- ous Trees and Shrubs, the Production of North America, Adapted to the Climate and Soil of Great Britain.’’ Folio, seventeen engravings. (1787) “ “‘Piscium, Serpentum, Insectorum, aliorumque nonnul- lorum Animalium, nec non Plantarum quarundam Im- agines.’’ Folio, Nuremberg, 1777. 14 ‘ALEXANDER GARDEN One of the most famous physicians of Colonial times, and according to Ramsay in his history of South Carolina, ‘‘a botanist of no low degree’? was Dr. Alexander Garden. He was born in Scotland about the year 1728, and was the son of the Rev. Alexander Garden, of the Parish of Birse, in the shire of Aberdeen, a clergyman of high respecta- bility who during the rebellion of 1745 was distinguished by his exertions in favor of the family of Hanover, and still more so by his humane interposition in behalf of the followers of the house of Stuart after their defeat at Cul- loden. , Dr. Garden received his philosophical and classical edu- cation in the University of Aberdeen at the Mareschal College there. His early medical training he received un- der the celebrated Dr. John Gregory, and studied also for a year in Edinburgh. He arrived in South Carolina about the middle of the eighteenth century and began the practice of medicine in Prince William’s Parish in connection with Dr. Rose.- Here his interest for botanical studies began to assert it- self more strongly. But having lost. his health, he was obliged to take a voyage to the North for his recovery. In 1754 he went to New York, where a professorship in the college recently formed in that city was offered him. With improved health he returned to Charleston and continued the practice of medicine there for about thirty years, acquiring a considerable fortune in this way. He seems also to have attained at the same time a high dis- tinction in the literary circles of this city. Ramsay says: “He was.well acquainted with the Latin and Greek classics and was a considerable proficient in the knowledge of belles- lettres, in mathematics, philosophy, history and miscellan- eous literature, but his attention, when the duties of his profession permitted any relaxation, was chiefly directed to 15 the study of natural history and particularly that of botany.”’ His many like-minded friends in Europe and the mother country profited as the result of his investigations; for he - made sundry communications to them on the observations which he from time to time made. Linnaeus, the greatest botanist of his age, was one of these friends, and he and Garden corresponded with each other in Latin. To do honor to his friend Garden, Linnaeus gave the name of Gardenia to;a genus of most beautiful flowering shrubs. To extend his knowledge in natural history, Dr. Garden accompanied Governor James Glen in 1752, when he pen- etrated into the Indian country and made the treaty with the Cherokees. In 1764 he gave to the public an account of the virtues of pink root (Spigelia Marilandica) and at the same time a botanical description of the plant. About the year 1772 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society, and after his return to Europe in 1783 he was appointed one of its council and afterwards one of its vice presidents. His death occurred in the year 1791. Bibliography Alexander Garden—‘‘The Halesia, first described by Dr. Garden, as appears by the letter of J. "Ellis, Esq., F. R. S., read before the Royal Society, November 20, 1760.’’ Transactions of the Royal Society. “An Account of the Male and Female Cochineal Insects in a letter to John Ellis, Esq., read before the Royal So- ciety, December 23, 1762.’’ Transactions Royal Society. “‘An Account of an Amphibious Bipes (the Mud Iguana or Syren of South Carolina,) communicated in a letter to John Ellis, Esq., read before the Reyal Society.’’ Trans- actions Royal Society. 3 ; “An Account of Two New Tortoises, in a letter to Thomas Pennant, Esq., and read before the Royal Society. May 2, 1771.’’ Transactions Royal Society. “‘An Account of the Gymnatus Electricus, in a letter to 16 John Ellis Esq., read before the Royal Society, February 24, 1778.’’ Transactions Royal Society. _ “An Account of the Pink Root (Spigelia Marilandica) - with its Uses as a Vermifuge. 1764.”’ ‘Pleasure of Piety and Other Poems.”’ “Description of Table. Rock.’’ ‘“‘Anecdotes of the Revolutionary War in America,” Charleston, 1822. 17 WILLIAM BARTRAM William Bartram, botanist, was born in Kingsessing, Pennsylvania, February 9, 1739, and died there July 22, 1823. He engaged in business in Philadelphia, and after- ward in North Carolina. In 1765 he accompanied his father to Florida, and remained on the St John’s River for several years cultivating indigo. In 1771 he returned to his father’s home and devoted his attention to botany, a love for which he had inherited. He was very fortunate in having at his command the services of so eminent a botanist as his father, John Bartram, and he makes the following acknowledgment of the fact in the introduction to one of his most important works, ‘‘from the advantages the journalist enjoyed under his father, John Bartram, botanist to the King of Great Britain, and fellow of the Royal Society, it is hoped that his labors will present new as well as useful information to the botanist and the zool- ogist.’’ . From 1778 till 1778 he traveled through the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida to examine their natural products and. he made many drawings of the specimens he collected. | An account of his experiences while on this trip was pub- lished under the title, ‘‘Travels Through North and South Carolina, Georgia and East and West Florida, the Chero- kee Country, the Extensive Territories of the Muscogulges or Creek Confederacy, and the Country of the Choctaws. Containing an Account of the Soil and Natural Productions, of those Regions, together with Observations on the Man- ners of the Indians.’’ A copy of thesecond edition of this work, published in London, 1794, is to be found in the li- brary of the University of South Carolina. The first edi- tion was published in Philadelphia in 1791. The opening lines of the first chapter give us in his own words the motives which prompted him to take this trip: ‘“‘At the request of Fothergill, of London, to search the Floridas 18 and the western parts of Carolina and Georgia, for the discovery of rare and useful productions of nature, chiefly in the vegetable kingdom; in April, 1773, I embarked for Charleston, S.C.” His treatment of the plants is not systematic; but he mentions numbers of them in his description of the coun- try, giving them their correct scientific names. Nor does his description apply to all parts of the State; for he seems to have visited only the northwestern part. ; In 1782 he was appointed professor of botany In the University of Pennsylvania, which position he declined on account of impaired vision. In 1786 he became a member ° of the American Philosophical Society, and in addition to his botanical labors prepared and published the most com- plete list of American birds previous to that of Alexander Wilson, whom he greatly assisted at the outset of his ca- reer. He possessed considerable talent for drawing and made the illustrations in ‘‘Barton’s Elements of Botany,” thus making known for the first time by illustration many of the most curious and beautiful plants of North Ameri- ca. Besides this, he published several works, for a list of which see the appended bibliography. Bibliography Bartram, William—‘‘Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee Country, the Extensive Territories of the Muscogulges or Creek Confederacy, and the Country of the Choctaws. Con- taining an account of the soil and natural productions of those regions, together with observations on the manners of the Indians.’’ Philadelphia: James and Johnson, 1791. 520 pp. English editions, London, 1792, 1794; Dublin, 1793. A German edition, William Bartram’s Reisen durch Nord-und-Sud-Karolina = te Aus dem Englischen. Mit erlauternden anmerkungen von E. A. W. Zimmer- man, Hofrath und Professor in Braunschwerg, Berlin, 1798. 19 “‘A French edition: Voyage dans les parties dus de l’Amerique septrionale; savoir; les Carolines Septrionale et Meridionale - * trad. de l’angl. Par. P. V. Benorst, Paris. An. VII (1799) 2 vols. 120. pp 457. Dutch edition, Haarlem. 1794-1797, in three parts. “Some accounts of the late John Bartram:’’ Medical and Physical Journ. Philadelphia, 1804. 20 THOMAS WALTER Thomas Walter, botanist, was born in Hampshire, Eng- land, about 1740, and died near Charleston, S. C., about 1788. He received a liberal education in England, but emigrating to this country, settled on a plantation in St. Stephen’s Parish, S. C. There he followed the business of a planter and devoted his leisure to botany. In his gar- den he cultivated the plants that he subsequently describ- ed, and several species have since been named in honor of him. Relatively little in a connected way seems to be known of Walter, but here and there we find an occasiona) ref- ference. Ezra Brainerd, in an article in Volume 3, Bulle- tin of Charleston Museum, speaks of him as ‘‘an enthusi- ~ astic student of nature, who was the first to publish in his Flora Caroliniana a fairly complete account of the flower- ing plants of a definite region in North America.’’ There can be no doubt that Walter was during the time in which he lived of equal rank if not superior to any of the botanists resident in the colonies. He easily ranks foremost among all the botanists of our State previous to his own day. His principal publication is ‘‘Flora Carolin- iana Secundum Systema Vegetabilium perillustris Linnaei digesta.’’ This was published in London in 1788. Copies of this work are now very rare; but one may be found in each of the libraries of the University of South Carolina and the Charleston Museum. The following extract taken from the proceedings of the Elliot Society, Volume 1, page 53, describes a visit of Henry W. Ravenel over fifty years ago to the place of Walter’s former residence. It is of interest in that it gives us the impressions of this prominent botanist of a more recent time. ““On a late visit which I made to ‘‘Walter’s former resi- dence on the banks of the Santee, in St. John’s Parish, I found two clusters of this tree, (tallow tree of China, 21 Stilingia sebifera,) bearing the marks of age. They, with one or two other things, were the only memorials left of his botanical garden. The present trees, one of which has attained a height of about thirty feet, are off-shoots from a half decayed stump of at least one foot in diameter. That he was familiar with this plant is evident from an allusion which he makes to it in the preface to his Flora Caroliniana. For seventy years they have survived the want of culture, and resisted the inroads of surrounding native vegetation and may, therefore, lay claim to full and complete acclimation. “In the midst of this grove there stands a solitary grave stone marking the last resting place of this early pioneer of American science. It is a plain marble slab, and bears this simple record of filial love: IN MEMORY aie OF . RR . THOMAS WALTER. A native of Hampshire in England and many years a resident of this State. He died in the beginning of the year 1788. Aetatis cir 48 ann. To a mind liberally endowed by nature and refined by a liberal education he added a taste to the study of Natural History and in the department of Botany science is much indebted to his labours. At his desire he was buried on this spot once the garden in which were cultivated most of the plants of his Flora Caroliniana. | From motives of filial affection his only surviving Children ANN and MARY have placed this memorial.” v3 22 In Samuel Dubose’s “The Hugenots of South Caro- lina,” under a section entitled the “Reminiscences of St. Stephen’s Parish, Craven County and Notices of Her Old Homesteads,” we find the following: “About twenty years before the Revolutionary war the belt of land bordering on the Santee River, through the whole -extent of the parish of St. Stephen’s was the garden spot of South Carolina.” * * * * * * * * * The plantation known as “Mexico,” at the western extremity of the parish, was the residence of the late Major Samuel Porcher. * * * * * * & * * * * Northwest of Mexico and directly on the river bank was the residence of Thomas Walter, Esq., the botanist, an Englishman by birth. He embellished his seat with a botanical garden, which long commanded the admir- ation of his neighbors. His first wife was Sarah Peyre, by whom he had two daughters; his second wife was Dolly Cooper, whose daughter, Emily, their only child, married Judge Charlton, of Savannah.” Quoting further from the same work, under a portion entitled ‘Historical and Social Sketch of Craven County, South Carolina,” by Frederick A. Porcher, Esq., and published in the Southern Quarterly Review for April, 1852: “One citizen of this parish has earned for himself a reputation in the world of letters, and it is strange that Ramsay, who appears to.have sought eagerly after Carolinian celebrities, should have en- tirely ignored his existence. Thomas Walter, an Eng- lish gentleman, whose devotion to the cause of science led him to the wilds of Carolina, was attracted by the charms of Miss Peyre, of St. Stephen’s, married her and settled there. He devoted himself particularly to the pursuit of botany and the curious are still occasionally rewarded by a visit to his garden, the ruins of which may still be seen near the banks of the Santee Canal. He is the ancestor of one branch of the Porcher family, and of the Charlton family of Georgia.” é * * 23 BIBLIOGRAPHY. © Walter, Thomas—‘Flora Caroliniana, Secundum Systema Vegetabilium, perillustris Linnaei digesta.” London. J. Fraser, 1788. JOHN DRAYTON. John Drayton is little known as a botanist; he figures chiefly for his political activities. Yet he deserves mention among the botanists of South Carolina for the work which he did towards cherishing and propagating a then comparatively new science. John Drayton, known in history as Governor Dray- ton,.and at one time a Judge of the United States Dis- trict Court for South Carolina, was born in 1766, prob- ably at Charleston, S. C. He was the son of Chief Jus-_ tice William Henry Drayton, who died during a visit to Philadelphia, September 3, 1778. John Drayton was placed by his father under the instruction of the celebrated Dr. Witherspoon, at Princeton, N. J. He completed his legal education in London, was admitted to the bar and opened a law office in Charleston, S. C. In early life he was married to Miss Hester Rose, daughter of Philip Tideman. In 1798 he was elected Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina, and on the death of Governor Edward Rutledge in January, 1800, Mr. Drayton succeeded to the Governorship. At the end of his term in the following December, he was elected Governor for a term of two years. His admin- istration was a successful one, and he was said to be the first Governor of South Carolina who undertook to make a thorough personal review of the military strength of the State. While he held the executive of- fice in 1802, Governor Drayton published a book en- titled ‘A View of South Carolina,” a valuable work con- ‘taining a large amount of useful statistical information. Of this some thirty-odd pages are devoted to the plants and animals of the State, principally to the plants.” The following is quoted from that work: “Although some attempts have been made to ascer- tain the vegetable productions of South Carolina; yet JOHN DRAYTON 20 much remains still unexplored. To Catesby we are in- debted for some drawings, and but imperfect descrip- tions of plants and flowers, Bartram in his travels through the State in 1776 has added some particulars to botanical information. Walter in his “Flora Caro- liniana” has brought forward a still greater catalogue; not, however, without being suspected of stating differ- ent species where varieties only existed. And Michaux, in a work which he has lately published at Paris, has added valuable information respecting the history of American oaks. From these sources, and some others which present themselves, the following indigenous plants may be noted as flourishing within the boun- daries of this State.” He devotes twenty-four pages of the “A View of South Carolina” to a “Botanical Catalogue of the most remarkable plants, shrubs and trees, indigenous to the State of South Carolina.” The succeeding three pages are given to the “Exotic plants.” Proportionately lit- tle space applies to the fauna; this is comprised in a list of animals only four pages in length. But the work which makes Drayton worthy of men- tion among the botanists of our State is ““The Carolin- ian Florist,’’ an unpublished work dated 1807, the manuscript of which is to be found in the library of the University of South Carolina. This is in the form of a book bound in Russia leather and containing 307 pages. It follows very closely in English the “Flora Carolin- iana”’ of Thomas Walter, which was written in Latin. A clearer insight into the nature of the work can be obtained from a reprint of the exact title and the letter which it contains, addressed to the trustees of South Carolina College. “