186 THE BOTANISTS OF PHILADELPHIA. 



JOHN P. HEISTER. 



Dr. John P. Heister was born July 3, 1803, in the city of 

 Reading. He died September 15, 1854. When but a youth 

 he evinced a great interest in study, and eagerly perused 

 the books that came within his reach. After receiving the 

 degree of Doctor of Medicine, he located, for the practice of 

 his profession, in his native place. In order to satisfy more 

 fully his thirst for knowledge, and at the same time to 

 benefit his failing health, he determined to take a journey 

 to Europe. On the 16th day of April, 1841, he set sail, and 

 visited England, France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland. 

 After spending a year in Europe he returned to his native 

 place to resume the practice of medicine. He kept notes 

 while on his journey abroad, which were printed under the 

 title of " Notes of Travel," wherein he described the different 

 localities visited by him ; especially the different botanical 

 gardens. He described in an enthusiastic sketch his visit to 

 the Jardin des Plantes in Paris. 



Botany was his favorite study, although he was also 

 more or less attached to the science of geology. He had a 

 fine collection of specimens of the different woods of Berks 

 County. They were well arranged in library form ; a part 

 of the limb or branch formed the back to which was attached 

 a tin box to hold the seed vessels, flowers, etc.* 



THOMAS POTT JAMES. 



Thomas Pott Jamesf died in Cambridge, February 22, 

 1882, in the seventy-ninth year of his age, the greater part 

 of his life having been spent in Philadelphia, near which 

 city he was born on September 1st, 1803. His ancestors 



* This sketch was kindly furnished by Dr. William Herbst, of Trexlertown, 

 Pennsylvania. 



t Asa Gray Scientific Papers, II: 419. Also Proceedings American Academy 

 Arts and Science, XVII : 405 (1882). 



