LINNEAN SOCIETY OP LONDON. 35 



10th Marcli, 1833, so tliat at his death he waa the Father of the 

 Society. He proceeded M.A., 3rd May, 181-5. 



Eacoura^ed by his father, in 1832 Mr. Bateman despatched 

 Colley to British Gruiana, chiefly in search of orchids : the expe- 

 dition was not very successful, Oncidium Lanceaniim being the 

 most noteworthy result; but to one of the novelties Dr. Lindley 

 gave the name Bateiiinti7ua CoUei/i, thus commemorating at 

 once the employer and his collector. Some time after this, 

 Mr. Bateman made the acquaintance of Gr. Ure Skinner, at 

 tliat time living in Gnatemala, and from him received from 

 time to time cons^ignments of living orchids, which were then 

 distributed among cultivators. 



Mr. Bateman's first book was in point of size not only his 

 greatest, but is actually the largest in any purely botanical 

 library. ' The OrchidacesB of Mexico and Guatemala' consists of 

 40 elephant folio plates and text, besides woodcuts, two of which 

 were by George Cruckshank, issued at twenty guineas, fi-om 

 1837 to 1843; the edition was limited to 125 copies. Whilst 

 this splendid but costly work was coming out the author married, 

 his wife sharing his love of plants. Hence the gardens, first at 

 Biddulph Grange and subsequently at Knypersley Hall, became 

 well known for the large number of beautiful and interesting 

 plants contained in them. 



The climate of Staffordshire proved unfavourable to the health 

 of Mrs. Bateman, and they rem.oved about the year 18G0 to 

 Kensington. The Horticultural Society was then in its palmy 

 days, and Mr. Bateman w^is in the habit of showing something 

 new or striking at the various meetings. It was at this time 

 that he drew up the text for many of the orchid novelties de- 

 scribed in the ' Botanical Magazine,' which were afterwards col- 

 lected and issued as ' A Second Century of Orchidaceous Plants,' 

 1864-70; the First Century being by Sir William Hooker. 

 Concurrently with this he produced his third important work, 

 ' A Monograph of Odontoglossum,' w^aich, if a smaller folio thiin 

 his first venture, consisted of half tiie number of plates. Four 

 parts were brought out, at a guinea apiece, from 1864-70. 



From 1862-64 he published in ' The Gardeners' Chronicle' a 

 series of 12 papers, " Dies Orchidiauae," under the pseudonym 

 of ' Serapias,' and in 1864 brought out a ' Guide to Cool Orchid- 

 growing.' In contrast to bis fellow orchidists, all his life long 

 he had a great aversion to hybrids, especially artificial hybi'ids. 



About 1885 Mr. Bateman withdrew from London and" lived at 

 "Worthing, still interested in his plants and ecclesiastical matters ; 

 indeed, he is stated for some time to have been editor of the 

 ' Ilock ' newspaper. One of his last ajjpearances in our midst 

 was to bring up the spadix of a Palm, Track i/carjjus excelsa, to 

 one of our conversazioni in 1887. 



A short time since a small volume of coloured drawings of 

 Orchids was added to the library of the Herbarium at Kevv ; no 

 name was attached, but from internal evidence it was ascertained 

 that they were the oroduction of our late Fellow, 



d2 



