160 Ohituary Notices. 



He graduated at Edinburgli as M.B. and CM. in 1871. 

 Dr Cowan was suddenly cut off in August 1880, by heart 

 disease, at tlie age of twenty-seven. 



The death of John Scott recalls to memory the Botanical 

 Society of twenty years ago, with his and other faces of 

 then young men, such as Thomas Anderson and Lauder 

 Lindsay, now passed into the silent land. Scott w^as born 

 at Denholm, in Eoxburghshire, known as tlie birthplace 

 of Leyden, the great Oriental scholar. His father then 

 occupied a farm of J. Douglas, Esq. of Cavers, which, 

 indeed, his family had done for nearly a century. Left at 

 four years of age an orphan, Scott, with a sister now 

 married, was brought up by an aunt, and educated at the 

 parish school. During these early years he displayed a 

 passionate love of flowers, which was carefully fostered by 

 his cousin, the late Rev. James Duncan, an excellent 

 botanist. At fourteen years of age he became an apprentice 

 gardener ; and after serving in Jedburgh and Westmoreland 

 came to Mr M'Nab, becoming ultimately foreman in the pro- 

 pagating department of the Botanical Garden for seven years. 

 Mr Scott was elected an Associate on 10th July 1862. He 

 contributed largely to our Transactions during 1863 and 

 1864, and his papers show a very extensive and broad self- 

 education, besides special knowledge. They were com- 

 mended by the presidents of both years. Dr Douglas 

 Maclagan thus speaks of Mr Scott's papers on the propa- 

 gation and irritability of Drosera and Dioncea, and the 

 narrative of experiments on the fertilisation of orchids : — 

 " To the last of those papers in particular I listened with 

 very great pleasure when it was read to the Society, not 

 only because the paper was interesting in itself, but because 

 it afforded a convincing proof of the value of the school of 

 instruction which we possess in our Botanic Garden, where 

 we have in valuable combination the extensive cultural 

 establishment so ably superintended by Mr M'Nab, and the 

 scientific laboratory and class-room of Professor Balfour. 

 I cannot but think it highly creditable to the whole estab- 

 lishment, as well as most meritorious on the part of the 

 author, that such papers should emanate from one who is 

 engaged in the work of practical gardening." Such a sue- 



