140 SIR WILLIAM HOOKER 



service to the merchant, the manufacturer, the dyer, the chemist 

 and druggist, and the physician: or to artificers in wood and in 

 textiles. But the interests of the scientific botanist were not 

 forgotten, while a special feature from the first was the portrait 

 gallery of the leaders in the subject. Thus the museums which 

 he initiated, and were indeed the first Museums of Economic 

 Botany ever formed, are now not the least interesting and 

 certainly among the most instructive features of Kew. 



But the centre of the Garden for reference and for detailed 

 study is now the herbarium and library, housed in the large 

 building near to the entrance from Kew Green. To those familiar 

 with that magnificent mine of accumulated learning as it now 

 stands, it may be a surprise to hear that it has grown in the 

 course of less than 60 years out of the private collections of 

 Sir William Hooker, and of his friend Bentham. The story 

 of it may be gathered from the sketch of the Life and Labours 

 of the First Director, published by Sir Joseph Hooker in the 

 Annals of Botany in 1903, a work to which I have been largely 

 indebted for the materials for this lecture. The Hookerian 

 herbarium and library were already extensive before it was 

 removed from Glasgow. When the new Director of Kew took 

 up his appointment, neither books nor a herbarium were pro- 

 vided for him: but he was well equipped with those of his own. 

 They were at first lodged in his private house, till in 1853 

 he moved into the official residence. But the latter did not 

 afford the accommodation for them which the Government had 

 guaranteed. They were therefore placed in a building adjacent 

 to the Botanic Garden. It was further agreed, on condition that 

 the herbarium and library should be accessible to botanists, that 

 he should be provided with a scientific herbarium Curator. Four 

 years afterwards the Royal Gardens came into possession, by 

 gift, of the very extensive library and herbarium of G. Bentham, 

 Esq., which was second only to Hooker's own in extent, methodi- 

 cal arrangement, and nomenclature; and it was placed in the 

 same building. The two collections in considerable degree over- 

 lapped, being derived from the same sources. But one great 

 difference between them was that Bentham confined his herba- 

 rium to flowering plants, while Hooker's rapidly grew to be the 



