82 JOHN GOODYER 



In 1648-9 the Parliamentarian Visitors, after many 

 delays, expelled all from the University who did not 

 submit to their visitation, including young Stonehouse and 

 Drope. The latter answered ' I cannot submit for fear of 

 perjury '. 



1651 



After the Civil War Goodyer was unquestionably the 

 best botanist in England. Parkinson had died in 1650; 

 and, until Morison returned in 1660 and Ray had reached 

 his full development, there was no one to approach him 

 in knowledge of our native plants or of the whole range of 

 botanical literature. 



The high reputation that he had acquired naturally 

 brought him visitors and correspondence. Elias Ashmole, 

 the antiquary, had not long ' entred upon the Study of 

 Plants'. A note in his diary is to the effect that 6 June 

 1 648 * about three of the clock was the first time I went 

 a Simpling. Dr. Canter of Reading and Mr. Watlington ^ 

 an apothecary there, accompanying me '. And on ' 19 Oct. 

 1 65 1 my Father, Backhouse,- and I went to see Mr. 

 Goodier, the great botanist, at Petersfield '. Unfortunately 

 we have no further account of the visit, but possibly 

 Ashmole's recent experiences of the virtues of Bryony may 

 have formed part of the conversation. He had fallen ill of 

 a surfeit occasioned by drinking water after venison at the 

 Astrologer's Feast in London. ' I was ', he wrote, ' greatly 

 oppressed in my stomach ; and next day ]\Ir. Saunders the 

 astrologian, sent me a piece of bryony root to hold in my 

 hand, and within a quarter of an hour my stomach was 

 freed of that great oppression, which nothing which I took 

 from Dr. Wharton could do before.' It is characteristic 

 of the writings of Goodyer that no hint of this kind of 

 quackery appears. Me was evidently able to put Ashmole 



' John Watlington. buried 2 October 1659. 



- Mr. William r>ackhouse, astrologer of Swallowfield in Berkshire, had com- 

 municated so many secrets to Ashmole that he caused his pupil to call him 

 ' Father' (Ashmole, Diary, 3 April 165 1 ). 



