хіх А SKETCH ОҒ THE LIFE ОҒ 
opportunity. I am happy that Sir Robert Colquhoun is a botanist, or at losst an amateur. His 
sister is married to а relation of, mine, and her son, unless I marry, will succeed me in my 
maternal inheritance of Bardowie, from whence I take my present title in this Aristocratic land. 
I have not yet seen Professor Hooker, but shall probably be in Glasgow in February mext. 
Last year when there he һай gone on а visit to his relations іп England. I do not know 
what map you mean when you ask whether his has priority. I have written to Mrs. Roxburgh 
what you mention. I remain, my dear Wallich, yours truly. 
I have seen the first volume of the Flora Indica, with which I am pleased. The greatest 
defect will be found in the specific characters which appear to me often inaccurate, І suspect 
indeed that our friend Roxburgh sometimes mistook his own plant and took his specific characters 
from a different one from what he had described. His names also are often grievously barbarous, 
owing chiefly to his ignorance of the Latin language, and his synonyms very incorrect ав е 
generally quoted merely from the figure, although this I find is a common error among botanists 
who had plenty of learning to understand the descriptions, which was not his case. The work 
will however be highly useful and I hope you will make largé additions to it; and also 
amendments,” · 
In 1822 the account of the Gangetic fishes, perhaps the ablest and most finished 
of all Hamilton’s works, was published, and for tie next five years the Hortus 
Malabaricus and Herbarium Amboinense, more particularly the former, occupied much 
of his time, as may be gathered from the letter that follows," written from Edinburgh, 
10th February 1826:— 
" About three weeks ago I had the pleasure of receiving your valuable present of the second 
volume of the Flora Indica. І had been long in vain searching for it, as it will be of great use 
in my future commentaries I have now nearly finished the tenth volume of the Hortus Matlabaricus 
and will have completed the whole in the course of the year, when I shall resume the Herbarium 
Amboinense of which I have es yet only explained the two first books. I live entirely in the 
country and enjoy excellent health. A little business has brought me to this city, but I never visit 
it except in cases of necessity, The new botanical garden here is on a grand scale, and Dr. Graham, 
the Professor of Botany, who has charge of it, is becoming a goood botanist, but I do not learn that 
he is about to publish anything. Dr. Hooker at Glasgow I see frequently as I have a property in 
that vicinity. He is more active than Graham, but I have some doubt whether or not he will be 
able to go on with his intended translation of Decandolle’s System, a very valuable work, but that 
would require very numerous corrections. Brown, 1 understand, has become a very lazy and Smith 
i the most active botanist about London, but has 
not yet acquired sufficient experience to render him at all correct. His Prodromus Flore Nepalensis 
abounds in errors. ; 
Greviile’s work on the Cryptogamia of Scotland, going on here, is а most beautiful and correct 
work, fully equal in merit to Hooker's Exotic Flora, which is saying a great deal for it. Whether 
entirely ignorant. I remain with great regard, yours faithfully.” 
In 1826 Hami'ton was made a Deputy Lieutenant of the ‘county of Perth, having 
been already on the Commission of the Peace for 
aunt quee 8 number of years. In this year 
he satisfied himself that he was the male representative of the house of Buchanan and 
‘Various letters written between 1821 and 1826 which belon 
8 to this series are omitted because they deal 
only with private matters and throw no additi nal light on Hamil: 
on’s life, 
