xiv A BARREL OF EARTH FROM BORNEO 199 



behind him, his conscience smote him, and he put the 

 ship's head about, went back and obtained the earth. 

 On his return to England, he sent it to Fothergill, who 

 had a bed of burned mould prepared in his hothouse, 

 and the earth from Borneo spread over it. In due time 

 there came up, so the story concludes, many sorts of 

 new and curious plants, some of which have been intro- 

 duced into English gardens. 1 



Although his garden was a source of much pleasure to 

 Fothergill it became rather burdensome to him in his 

 later years. He could seldom visit it except on Saturdays, 

 owing to the press of his other work. It is told of him 

 by J. H. Tuke that he drove down sometimes after dark, 

 and went round to look at some of his treasures by the 

 light of a lantern. Fifteen men were employed in the 

 garden and houses. Not content with growing the plants, 

 and giving dried specimens to Sir Joseph Banks and others, 

 some of which are still preserved in the British Museum 

 Herbarium, Fothergill employed artists to make drawings 

 on vellum when each plant was in the perfection of bloom. 

 He kept three or four such artists constantly occupied, 

 and the beautiful paintings which he obtained, it is said 

 2000 in number, were purchased after his death by the 

 Empress Catherine II. of Russia for 2300. 2 



After Fothergill 's death the contents of his garden 

 were all sold, with the frames and glass of the hothouses, 

 and collections of seeds from Siberia, the East Indies 

 and the South Seas. There were large aloes, orange and 

 lemon trees, the tea tree and many others. The hot- 

 houses contained a great number of tropical plants : 

 the bulk of these were purchased b}' Lettsom and taken 

 'to Camberwell. Lettsom drew up a list of the hothouse 

 plants, and printed it under the title Hortus Uptonensis : 

 it includes no less than sixty-eight species of mesem- 



1 See Friend, Phila., H. 221, where the story is quoted from the New Haven 

 (Conn.) Register ; Quaker Biographies, Phila., 1910, iv. 58 ; also John Bellows, 

 Letters and Memoir, 1904, p. 306. 



- Tuke, p. 40. The names of Ehret, Taylor, Harris, Miller and Ann Lee 

 are noted as his artists. Works, iii. p. liii. A series of coloured drawings 

 of fungi, once possessed by Fothergill, and probably executed for him by 

 J. Eolton, is in the hands of W. S. Fothergill of Redcar. 



