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KOBEET McLACHLAK 18371904. 



ROBERT MCLACHLAN was the son of Hugh McLachlan, a native of 

 Greenock, who in early life settled in London, and was eminently 

 successful as a chronometer maker. He resided at first near the 

 River but the waters of the St. Katherine's Dock now flow over the 

 site and afterwards at 17, Upper East Smithfield, where he died in 

 1855. Robert McLachlan, one of five children three brothers and 

 two sisters was born at the Smithfield home on the 10th April, 1837. 

 During the latter part of his life Hugh McLachlan had a small farm 

 or country house in Hainault Forest, where his children spent most of 

 their early days and were able to enjoy a country life, and it was 

 probably there that Robert McLachlan first turned his thoughts to the 

 study of nature. 



Very little is known as to his school life beyond the fact that he 

 was educated at Ilford, probably in a private school. He had a good 

 knowledge of English, French and German, and was accurate in his 

 style of writing, avoiding all redundancy of expression. 



In early life he contemplated marriage, but the engagement was 

 broken off, and soon after, in 1855, he started for a voyage to New 

 South Wales and Shanghai ; during his journey he collected plants 

 assiduously, and his journal, as also the collections he then formed, are 

 still in existence, the species determined and bearing their specific 

 names. This, it is believed, was carried out with the assistance of 

 the late Robert Brown, the well-known botanist and keeper of the 

 Botanical Department of the British Museum. This early love for 

 botany had to give way largely in later life to his entomological 

 studies; but McLachlan always retained an affection for botanical 

 science and had a good knowledge of the British flora. He delighted 

 in his small garden and greenhouse at Lewisham, where he grew many 

 rare or unusual plants obtained from horticultural friends. After his 

 return from the voyage McLachlan resided with his mother at Forest 

 Hill, and it was here that his earliest papers on Lepidoptera and 

 Neuroptera were written. At first, as with most young people, he 

 seems to have devoted himself to Lepidoptera, in the study of which 

 he doubtless received much help from his friends Stainton, Knaggs 

 Douglas, and Rye very soon, however, he was stimulated by the 

 writings of Dr. Hagen, to begin a special study of the group which 



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