ioo Annals of the Philosophical Club 



It is undated, but as Franklin was in England from 1764 to 

 1775, and Priestley received that medal in 1772, it must 

 have been written either in or just before that year. It 

 states that the Council of the Royal Society had doubted 

 whether they could receive a paper in which Priestley gave 

 an account of experiments already published, and which had 

 been directly communicated to them by Canton instead of 

 being referred to them by the Society. They had therefore 

 decided to consult the Founders' will and reconsider the 

 matter at the next meeting of the Council, when, if the 

 one permitted and the other approved, the medal would 

 be awarded to Dr. Priestley. Thus, as Canton writes, " The 

 business ended for that time, and how it will conclude at 

 last seems an uncertainty, for I think some persons are 

 busy in an opposition to the measure. But I hope it 

 will end in favour of merit, in which case I think our 

 Friend cannot miss it." 



The Club then resolved that " Mr. R. Brown, Mr. Forbes, 

 Dr. Royle, and Mr. Wheatstone, be requested to use 

 their best endeavours to procure MS. letters relating to 

 the Royal Society to be submitted to the Philosophical 

 Club." 



Afterwards Dr. Royle exhibited specimens of tea which 

 had been grown in the Himalayas, and gave an account of 

 the introduction of that shrub from China, stating that he 

 and Dr. Falconer, the one writing in England, the other in 

 India, after considering such information as could be obtained 

 about the climate and characteristics of China, had recom- 

 mended Garhwal, with two other provinces, 1 as most suitable 

 for tea cultivation, and nurseries had been established in 

 1843, with the sanction of the Indian government. From 

 these the India House had already received specimens 

 of both black and green tea, thus settling in a great measure 

 the long-disputed question whether one or two species of 

 the tea plant were employed in making the two different 

 coloured teas. " The first and as yet one of the best speci- 

 mens of black tea was manufactured while Dr. Falconer 



1 The names are not clearly written in the Minutes. 



