INTRODUCTION 



adopted, that a new era in botanical discovery was begun 

 which has placed the name of ' Veitch of Exeter ' among the 

 worthies of science in our own times. 



" The father of Mr. James Veitch was a native of Jedburgh, 

 in Scotland, and towards the close of the last century he came 

 to England, where he acted for many years as land-steward 

 on the property of Sir Thomas Acland, at Killerton, and there 

 the subject of the present notice was born on the 25th of 

 January 1792. 



" The success which attended the formation of the Killerton 

 nursery was so great, that, in course of time, Mr. James 

 Veitch found the distance of eight miles from Exeter disad- 

 vantageous to the interests of the establishment, as it prevented 

 him from competing with those which were nearer the city ; 

 and accordingly, in 1832, he purchased that large extent of 

 ground formerly called Mount Radford, but now converted 

 into what is better known by the name of the ' Exeter 

 Nursery,' an establishment which, by the industry and energy 

 of Mr. Veitch and his son, has attained such a position as to 

 be justly regarded as the finest of the kind ever known in 

 England. 



"In the year 1837 there were, in the Killerton nursery, two 

 young men named William and Thomas Lobb, who were 

 gardeners, and who were remaining there with a view to 

 inprovement in their profession. 



"In this same year, Mr. William Lobb was sent by Messrs. 

 Veitch as gardener to Stephen Davey, Esq., of Redruth, in 

 Cornwall, and after remaining there for three years, he was 

 appointed by Mr. Veitch to proceed to the Brazils as a 

 botanical collector, and he accordingly left England in 1840. 



" The singular success which rewarded his researches is, 

 perhaps, unparalleled in the history of botanical discovery ; 



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