LIFE OF 

 SIR JOSEPH DALTON HOOKER 



CHAPTEK XXVIII /'</,- 



ECONOMIC BOTANY AND THE NEW FLORAS 



THE practical interests of Economic Botany constantly reappear 

 in the correspondence of the sixties : such as reports on the 

 Indian tea plantations (1868), the despatch of young tea plants 

 and seeds to Jamaica (1863), an interest which led him to 

 accept the dedication of a work on Tea by Mr. James Mac- 

 Pherson, to whom he writes (November 2, 1870) : 



Such a book is very much wanted indeed, and will prove 

 a great stimulus to the introduction of the Tea plant into 

 many parts of the world to which we have sent the plant from 

 Kew, and from whence I have enquiries for such a work. 



Further appear the introduction of Ipecacuanha 1 and 

 Mahogany from seed raised at Kew (1866 and 1867) to India, 

 and the boyishly cheerful note to Dr. Anderson in the latter 

 year: 



I am so jolly glad to have been the means of introducing 

 Papyrus into India ; I really am proud of that. 



Of special importance is the correspondence with Dr. 

 Anderson of the Calcutta Botanic Garden on the introduction 

 of Cinchona into India 2 at a time when the cost of quinine 



1 This was unsuccessful. 



* Mr. (afterwards Sir) Clements Markham was the actual collector who 

 pushed into the forests of Peru and Ecuador, and at great personal risk brought 

 back young plants and seeds, which were raised in thousands at Kew for 

 distribution. Anderson instituted the experiments which led to its successful 

 cultivation in India. 



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