67 
Nathaniel John Winch was born at Hampton Court in the year 
1769, and after a voyage into the Mediterranean, and travels in 
various countries in Europe, settled at Newcastle-upon-Tyne as a 
merchant. He had early paid great attention to botany, which he 
continued to cultivate during a long life, and kept up a correspond- 
ence with all the leading botanists in Europe. He was one of the 
earliest, and always one of the most active members of the Literary 
and Philosophical Society of Newcastle; and, in conjunction with 
a few of his friends, gave to that town a scientific and cultured cha- 
racter, which still distinguishes it. He was one of the honorary 
members of this Scciety ; and contributed to its meetings, in 1814, 
“ Observations on the Geology of Northumberland and Durham,” 
and in 1816, “ Observations on the Eastern Part of Yorkshire,” * 
which were printed in the fourth and fifth volumes of our Trans- 
actions. In these he stated his object to be to combine with his own 
observations much interesting information on the subjects of the 
quarries, and coal and lead mines, of those districts, which had long 
been accumulating, and was widely diffused among the professional 
conductors of the mines. And these memoirs, though not contain- 
ing much of originality in their views and researches, were, at the 
time, of considerable utility. He died May 5th, 1838, and, by his 
will, left to this Society a very considerable and valuable mineralo- 
gical collection, now in our Museum. 
Mr. William Salmond, of York, was one of the persons who was 
most zealously and actively engaged in the examination of the cele- 
brated Kirkdale Cavern. He measured and explored new branches 
of the cave in addition to those first opened, and made large collec- 
tions of the teeth and bones, from which he sent specimens to the 
Royal Institution of London, and to Cuvier at Paris. The bulk of 
* Besides these papers, Mr. Winch published: ‘’ The Botanist’s Guide 
through the Counties of Northumberland and Durham. By N. J. Winch, 
J. Thornhill, and R. Waugh.” 2 vols. 1805.—‘*‘ Flora of Northumberland 
and Durham.” In the Transactions of the Newcastle Natural History 
Society, vol. 2.—‘‘ An Essay on the Geographical Distribution of Plants 
through the Counties of Northumberland, Durham, and Cumberland.” 
First edition, 1820; second edition, 1825.—‘‘ Contributions to the Flora 
of Cumberland.’’ 1833.—‘‘ Addenda to the Flora of Northumberland and 
Durham.” 1836. 2 
