204 
Presentation of Mr. William Hancock’s Herbarium. — Mr. 
W. Hancock, F.L.S., the well-known collector of Chinese plants 
and for many years a regular correspondent of Kew, was born 
at Lurgan in Ulster in 1847. His taste for botany dates from 
his childhood when he was taught by his mother how to know, 
collect and preserve the wild flowers of Northern Ireland. He 
was sent fortunately to a private school at Lancaster where 
botanical study was encouraged. After further education at 
Queen’s College, Belfast, and a short period of business experience 
in that town, he obtained an introduction to Sir Robert Hart 
and went out to China as a member of his staff in the Chinese 
Imperial Maritime Customs. 
his appointment gave him ample opportunity in his spare 
time to pursue his chosen hobby. He originally got help as to 
the naming of his collections from Hance of Canton, and from 
Maximowicz of St. Petersburg, but soon became acquainted with 
Sir Joseph Hooker, then Director of Kew. : 
Impressed by Hancock’s keenness and by his excellent 
preparation of specimens, Sir Joseph encouraged him to 
succession of packets of plants arrived at Kew containing sets of 
all that he collected. His chief fields were, of course, China and 
Formosa, but in his periods of leave he also visited Japan, Java, 
Sumatra and later Central America and the West Indies. 
All this time Hancock was amassing a large private herbarium, 
and as it was labelled throughout with numbers corresponding 
with Kew determinations, it was one of considerable value. 
When he retired from the Chinese Imperial Service he settled 
with his sister at Bristol, where he died in 1914. 
large number of new flowering plants and ferns discovered 
by Hancock were named after him, and a new genus of orchi 
Hancockia, Rolfe, was published in 1903. 
In accordance with his wishes his whole herbarium of about 
10,000 specimens was after his death placed by Miss Hancock at 
the disposal of Kew, with the condition that the part not required 
is _ Kew Herbarium should be given to the University of 
ristol. 
bnormal Pine Stems.—A short time ago Mr. J. S. Gamble 
directed attention to the abnormal development of young pine 
trees in his plantations at Highfield, East Liss, Hants. The trees — 
had normal trunks for a distance of several feet above the ground, 
they then suddenly became bent at right angles with the trunk, 
extending outwards for a distance of 5-7 inches, then by means 
of a curve and another sharp turn regained approximately the 
original vertical plane 12 inches or so above the lower bend. 
e condition is common in some parts of the country and 
follows an injury to the young leading shoot. The injury may be 
due to a variety of causes, but frequently follows an attack by 
