[Crown Copyright Reserved. ] 
ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW. 
BULLETIN 
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 
No. 2] _ [1922 
‘VIII.—SIR JOHN KIRK. 
By the lamented death of Sir John Kirk, G.C.M.G., K.C.B., 
F.R.8., M.D., LL.D., D.Sc., D.C.L., &. on January 15th, 1922, 
in his 90th year, Kew has lost a most valued friend, keenly 
, interested in many branches of botanical science. For some 
sixty four years Sir John Kirk was in correspondence with Kew 
and he was a frequent visitor to the Gardens and the Herbarium 
whenever he was in England. By his presentations of large 
collections of Herbarium specimens of the Flora of East and 
Central Africa, Zanzibar and the Somali Coast, by many gifts of 
living plants of great interest to the Gardens and by valuable 
collections of economic products to the Museums from East 
Africa, &c., he enriched the National Collections at Kew to an 
extent that was almost unprecedented. The large and varied 
collection of economic products contributed between the years 
1858 and 1891 included a valuable and complete series of specimens 
illustrating the Zanzibar Copal Industry (1868-70); specimens of 
‘Buaze’ (Securidaca longepedunculata)—fibre and fish-nets made 
from same from the Zambesi (1860), Baobab (Adansonia 
digitata)—fibre with net used for catching large game, East 
Africa (1860); wheat from Tette (1860) and a series of Flax 
(Linum usitatissimum) specimens from Scotland (1858). Some 
further particulars of some of the East African contributions are 
given below, together with a list of the plants contributed to the 
Gardens. 
Sir John was the second son of the Rev. John Kirk of Arbirlot, 
and was born at Barry near Arbroath on December 19th, 1832. 
His earliest study was Botany, but he chose Medicine as his 
profession and, entering the University of Edinburgh before he 
was 15, graduated as M.D. and L.R.C.S. in 1854. This year 
saw the outbreak of the Crimean War and Kirk with other young 
Edinburgh graduates joined the Civil Medical Staff and served in 
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