HISTORY OF THE PECAN — TRUE. 445 



entry in his diary for March 11, 1775, was given in much the same 

 way. In 1786 he uses the name " Illinois nut " and in 1791 ap- 

 proaches the Indian name in the term " Poccon ''^ or Illinois nut. An 

 interesting persistence of the old Indian name was in use as late as 

 1833 by Kenrick, who refers to the tree as the " pacane nut."- 



INTRODUCTION INTO EUROPE. 



As far as the writer has learned, the first sending of the pecan to 

 Europe consisted of the nuts sent to England, probably in January, 

 1761, by John Bartram, which so much puzzled Peter Collinson, 



Thomas Jefferson seems to have performed the same service in 

 France about 25 years later. In 1786, while living in Paris as Ameri- 

 can representative, he procured a small package of these nuts through 

 Francis Hopkinson, of Philadelphia. Their correspondence on this 

 matter is here sketched. Writing from Paris on January 3, 1786, 

 Jefferson makes several requests of Hopkinson. 



The third commissiou is moi'e distant. It is to procure me two or three 

 hundred paccan-nuts from the western country. I expect they can always be 

 got at Pittsburgh, and am in hopes, that by yourself or your friends, some 

 attentive person there may be engaged to send them to you. They should come 

 as fresh as possible, and come best, I believe, in a box of sand. Of this Bar- 

 tram could best advise you * * *.^ 



Hopkinson seems to have been in doubt concerning the identity 

 of the nut going under the name given by Jefferson. In answer to 

 his inquiry, Jefferson replied from Paris on December 23, 1786 : 



The paccan-nut is, as you conjecture, tlie Illinois nut. The former is the vul- 

 gar name south of the Potomac, as also with the Indians and Spaniards, and 

 enters also into the Botanical name, which is Juylans Favcan* 



This information seems to have satisfied Plopkinson who probably 

 procured the desired nuts. At all events, among the uncatalogued 

 Jefferson manuscripts in the Library' of Congress is a letter addressed 

 to Willt Delmestre & Cie, from Paris, July 13, 1787, in which the 

 writer directs that " a box of paccan nuts " be nailed up and sent by 

 diligence and without delay at local customs houses en route. These 

 instructions to this firm were designed to bring the nuts with all 

 speed from the port of landing to Paris. I am unable to say who 

 received these nuts and what the recipients may have done with them. 

 It is quite probable from the mode of packing specified that they were 

 wanted for planting and some ma}'- well have found their way to 



1 Haworth, Paul L., George Washington Farmei'. Indianapolis. P. 150. 



* Kenrick, William, The New American OrcharcTist, or an account of the most valuable 

 varieties of fruit, adapted to cultivation in the climate of the Tnited States from the 

 latitude of 25° to 45°, etc. Boston. 1833 : 359. 



^ Jefferson, Thomas, The writings of. By Thomas Jefferson Memorial Association, 

 Washington, D. C, in 20 volumes. 1904. Vol. 5 : 242. 



*Ibid. Vol. 6:21. 



