14 THE HISTORY OF AITON's * HORTUS KEWENSIS ' 



names of the months, and the substitution has, with a reduction 

 of the margin, allowed room for the addition of the new column. 



The absolute identity of the contents of the pages in the two 

 editions, and the fact that the "addenda" are not incorporated, 

 lead me to the conclusion that the same setting of type was used 

 for both issues. The titlepage of the second was reset, and bears 

 the addition " with references to the figures of the plants," and a 

 "list of books quoted" (pp. v-xi) is prefixed; the paging is con- 

 tinuous to the end of the addenda, thus reaching p. 374. 



The volume of notes by Eichard Cunningham to which refer- 

 ence has already been made makes the history of the two issues 

 clear, for it includes lists of the dates at which he received the 

 proof-sheets of each. The first (pp. 187-9), contains, as has been 

 said, those of the first issue, which run regularly from Oct. 24, 

 1812, until Jan. 7, 1813 ; then, after the gap already explained, 

 from Sept. 9 to Oct. 28 of the same year. On pp. 257-8 is a 

 similar list headed " Figured Index H. K." ; the dates of this run 

 from May, 1813, to Oct. 18 of the same year. 



The conclusion at which I arrive is that the first issue was 

 considered unsatisfactory, and that it was decided to supersede it 

 by a more complete version. It is not quite easy to understand 

 why, if this were so, the superseded version was carried to com- 

 pletion, for it will be observed that, not only do the dates of the 

 latter portion overlap, but that the revised version was actually 

 completed before the original — the respective dates being Oct. 28 

 and Oct. 18. But the view as to its supersession is supported by 

 the fact that the first issue is evidently rare — the only copy I have 

 seen is that in the Kew Herbarium library. Neither Pritzel nor 

 Dr. Jackson refer to more than one impression — doubtless the 

 second, to which all the copies I have seen, including those in the 

 British Museum Library, in the Department of Botany, and in 

 the library of the Linnean Society, belong. 



In the Garden for Jan. 24, 1880, John Smith, who was con- 

 nected with the Eoyal Gardens from 1822 until his resignation of 

 the Curatorship in 1864 and who was personally acquainted with 

 the Aitons and the history of the Gardens, published an account 

 of a proposed second edition, with other particulars. The account 

 also contains other information of interest, and may fitly be 

 transcribed here. After referring to the Ejntome pubhshed in 

 1814, Smith continues : — 



"In the years following numerous new plants continued to be added 

 to the garden collection, which, after the names were correctl}' certified, 

 were entered in their respective places in an interleaved copy of the 

 Epitome, it being Mr. Aiton's intention to publish a second edition of 

 that work, and specimens of the new plants were preserved as a record 

 of their having been grown in the gardens, and, as further evidence of 

 such, Mr. Aiton in 1822 began to have drawings made of the new and 

 unfigured plants then in the garden. His first artist was Thomas 

 Duncanson (a young gardener from the Eoyal Botanic Garden, Edin- 

 burgh), who had a talent for drawing plants ; and Mr. Aiton, finding him 

 qualified to draw the plants sufficiently accurate for them to be identified, 

 in time he was entirely occupied in drawing, which he continued to do 



