240 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



[ September 14, 187?, 



terms to the Society, and be W3S accordingly chosen to that 

 office. He continued in this situation several years, but at 

 length finding it interfered too much with his professional 

 duties resigned it. 



Before this resignation took place Mr. Curtis had become 

 intimately acquainted with Thomas White, Esq., brother of 

 the Eev. Gilbert "White of Selborne, Hants. Mr. White was a 

 gentleman of learning, extensive reading, and much science. 

 In conjunction with him Mr. Cartis occupied a very small 

 garden for the culture of British plants near the Grange Boad, 

 at the bottom of Bermondsey Street. It was here that Mr. 

 Curtis first conceived the design of publishing his great work, 

 the "Flora Londinensis," having the good fortune to meet 

 with an artist of uncommon talent in Mr. Kilbnrn, and re- 

 ceiving from Mr. White, especially in his three first Fasciculi, 

 much and most valuable assistance. 



The Grange Boad garden was soon found too small for Mr. 

 Curtis's extensive ideas. He therefore took a larger piece of 

 ground in Lambeth Marsh, where he soon collected the largest 

 collection of British plants ever brought together into one 

 place. But there was something ungenial in the air of this 

 place, which made it extremely difficult to preserve sea plants 

 and many of the rare annuals which are adapted to an elevated 

 situation ; an evil rendered worse every year by the increased 

 number of buildings around. This led his active mind, ever 

 anxious for improvement, to inquire for a more favourable 

 soil and purer air. This at length he found at Brompton. 

 Here he procured a spacious territory, in which he had the 

 pleasure of seeing his wishes gratified to the utmost extent of 

 reasonable expectation. Here he continued to his death. 



Several years previous to this, Mr. Curtis finding it incom- 

 patible with the duties of his profession as an apothecary to 

 give up so much of his time as he wished to his favourite pur- 

 suits, first took in a partner, and soon after declined the prac- 

 tice of physic altogether, devoting himself to the study of 

 natural history. He had now nothing to depend upon for a 

 livelihood but the precarious profits of his botanic garden and 

 his publications. The " Flora LondinensiB " was an object of 

 universal admiration, and on this he bestowed unwearied care. 

 But the sale of the work never equalled its unrivalled merit, 

 the number of copies sold scarcely ever exceeded three hundred. 

 This was owing partly to the work coming out (a great ad- 

 vantage to it in point of accuracy), so Blowly ; partly to its 

 being but little known abroad in consequence of this slowness, 

 and at length to the horrid revolution of France. 



Mr. Curtis disdained to have the usual recourse to artifice 

 and increased price to enable him to carry on the sale. But 

 by a happy judgment, about the year 1787, he projected the 

 plan of his " Botanical Magazine." What the sterling merit 

 of his "Flora" could not accomplish, this comparatively 

 speaking inferior performance procured him most readily. The 

 nature of this publication had in it such a captivating ap- 

 pearance, was so easily purchaseable, and was executed with 

 so much taste and accuracy, that it at once became popular ; 

 and from its unvaried continuance in excellence and popu- 

 larity continued to be a mine of wealth to him to the very 

 day of his death, contributing at the same time not a little to 

 the increase of his botanical fame, from the number of original 

 and excellent observations interspersed through the work. 



The mode of publication adopted in the " Botanical Maga- 

 zine " held out a tempting lure to similar productions. Hence, 

 among others, the "English Botany" of Dr. Smith and Mr. 

 Sowerby took its origin. Unfortunately Mr. Curtis considered 

 the publication of this work as an act of hostility against him- 

 self, neither would he allow himself to be persuaded to the 

 contrary. It was an unfortunate circumstance, and prevented 

 him from communicating with Dr. Smith, a real friend to him, 

 and even with the Linnae-an Society, of which he was one of 

 the oldest members, and in which he had a very large number 

 of his personal friends. No mischief arose from this untoward 

 misconception, the interposition of friends at length softening, 

 if not entirely healing, the ran klin g wound. 



There was not a naturalist of any eminence who did not 

 court his acquaintance. There never was a pleasanter com- 

 panion than Mr. Curtis : he abounded in innocent mirth, and 

 good humour ever floating uppermost gave a pleasant cast to 

 everything he said or did. Few people have been known to 

 form so correct an opinion of themselves as he. " I have no 

 pretensions," said he, in the memoirs which he left with Dr. 

 Sims, " to he considered as a man of letters or of great mental 

 powers. I know myself and my imperfections. A conscious- 

 ness of my inabilities makes me diffident, and produces in 



me a shyness which some have been ready to construe into 

 pride." He was sensible that his excellence consisted in his 

 superior discernment when applied to objects of natural history : 

 in that respect he had few equals. The following circum- 

 stance bears witness to the truth of this remark: — Mr. Curtis 

 first discovered the membranous calyptra in Mosses, over- 

 looked by Dillenius. To him we owe the discovery that the 

 Violas and Oxalises produce seeds all the year through, though 

 the latter produce no petals except in the spring, the former 

 only sparingly in the autumn. The distinction between Poa 

 pratensis and trivialis by the intrafoliaceous membrane is the 

 result of Mr. Curtis's accurate discernment. Many others 

 might be mentioned. From this mode of viewing objects other 

 writers took the hint ; and, undoubtedly, the science of botany 

 was much improved by these and such like attentions. 



In ornithology Mr. Curtis was no mean adept. Although 

 his musical powers were by no means at all beyond the com- 

 mon level, yet in one respect he showed a most exact ear. No 

 bird could utter a note, whether its usual one, or that of love, 

 or that of fear and surprise, but he could from the sound de- 

 termine from what species it proceeded. 



Entomology was always a favourite study with him. Few 

 men have observed more : it is only to be regretted that he 

 committed so little to paper. He was so familiar with the 

 motions of insects that he could almost always declare what 

 was the intent of those busy and playful (as it should seem to 

 ignorant observers), actions, in which they were so perpetually 

 employed. He made a most notable discovery of the cause of 

 what is called the honeydew on plants. From repeated obser- 

 vations he determined it to be no other than the excrement of 

 aphides. 



All Mr. Curtis's ideas were turned to the benefit of mankind. 

 He was the first botanist of note in this country who applied 

 botany to the purposes of agriculture. By perpetually cul- 

 tivating plants he possessed advantages superior to any that 

 had preceded him, and was thereby enabled to point out to 

 the agriculturist the noxious as well as the useful qualities of 

 plants, a branch of agriculture rarely attended to. 



Although, as has been before stated, Mr. Curtis's education 

 was very confined, he had acquired some taste, for classic 

 literature both ancient and modern, and somewhat of elegance 

 and neatness pervaded whatever he took in hand. The form 

 of his mind was pourtrayed in his garden, his library, his 

 aviary, and even a dry catalogue of plants became from his 

 pen an amusing and iustructive little volume.. His delicacy 

 never forsook him, nor would he willingly adopt the coarse 

 vulgar names of some of the elder botanists, though sanctioned 

 by the authority of Linnasu3 himself. In short, Mr. Curtis 

 was an honest, laborious, worthy man, gentle, humane, kind 

 to everybody, a pleasant companion, a good master, and a 

 steady friend. His " Flora Londinensis" will be a monumen- 

 tum cere perennius. 



He departed this life, July 7th, 1799. The following is in- 

 scribed on his tomb : — 



" Whilo living herbs shall spring profusely wild, 

 Or gardens cherish all that's blythe and gay, 

 So long thy works shall please, dear Nature's child, 

 So long thy mem'ry suffer no decay." 



The remains of Mr. Curtis were deposited, at his own re- 

 quest, in Battersea churchyard, opposite the west entrance of 

 the church; a place selected by him, probably from its being 

 a pleasant place, adjoining the Thames, and the neighbour- 

 hood of frequent scenes of enjoyment in herborising excur- 

 sions with his pupils, for which the weedy fields of Battersea 

 were a peculiarly desirable spot. — (Gentleman's Magazine, die.) 



PROFITABLE TIMBER TREES. 

 A correspondent proposes to plant about ten acres of land 

 on a hillside, the soil being clay on chalk. He wishes to plant 

 this with trees, which muBt be cleared off in from twenty to 

 thirty years, and asks which will in that time give him the. 

 greatest return by the sale of timber ? " His proposition is to 

 plant Larch 3 feet apart each way, and some quick-growing and 

 more valuable timber at about 12 feet apart, such as Ash, Beech, 

 Acacia, Chestnut, Lime, and Sycamore," which he assumes will 

 become of more value in the time named than the Larch of 

 the same age. He further propounds the following series of 

 questions — "1, Are the trees mentioned such as you would re- 

 commend for a quick growth and value as timber, and would 

 Black Poplar do with Larch or overgrow it ? 2, Would 3 feet 

 apart be too close, and do you consider it a suitable distance ? 



