XIV 



Obituary Notices of Felloivs deceased. 



Service was reopened and a son of Prof. Harvey, already in a sister service * 

 threw up his commission and entered the Indian one. King decided to 

 follow young Harvey's example; after attaining his M.B. in 1865, he joined 

 the Indian Medical Service on October 2 of that year, and having spent 

 the winter at Netley, left for India in the following March. Before 

 embarking King paid a visit to Kew, and on the voyage was able to render 

 the earliest of his many services to that establishment and to India. 

 Dr. Hooker entrusted to his care the first medicinal Ipecacuanha plant sent 

 to India ; this King delivered in safety at the Boyal Botanic Garden, 

 Calcutta, when he reached that port on April 11, 1866. 



On landing, King was attached to the General Hospital, but on May 9 he 

 was transferred to the Medical College Hospital, Calcutta, and was appointed 

 house surgeon there on May 18. This post the principal advised him to 

 resign on August 20 ; in the performance of his duty he had contracted 

 fever, followed by an attack of pneumonia, which endangered his life and 

 threatened to light up the phthisical tendency of his boyhood. Already his 

 work had commended him to his seniors, who used their influence to procure 

 his transfer to the drier and healthier climate of Upper India. He was 

 posted to military duty on August 29, and reached Agra on September 4, 

 when he was attached to the 41st Bengal Infantry. On December 13, 1866, 

 he again fell ill, and on returning to duty was given medical charge, on 

 January 9, 1867, of the civil station of Muttra; but a month later his 

 administrative chief, again with the object of promoting his recovery, 

 procured his transfer to the still drier climate of Central India, where, on 

 February 17, he took over medical charge of the 1st Central India Horse at 

 Goona. This post he held till December 4, when he was transferred to the 

 Political Department in Bajputana, taking up his duties at Deoli, in Marwar, 

 on December 24, 1867. During the following year he served there and at 

 Mount Abu, and afterwards at Jodhpur, but early in September he was 

 selected to officiate as Superintendent of the Botanic Garden at Saharanpur, 

 a post which he filled from December 9, 1868, till November 22, 1869. As 

 his temporary appointment at Saharanpur drew to an end, King found 

 himself at the parting of the ways. His energy and ability impressed all 

 those with whom he came in contact, and some glimpse of his organising 

 faculty had been given in connection with famine work in Bajputana. The 

 medical authorities were anxious to secure his services as' a Deputy Sanitary 

 Commissioner, and orders to take up civil medical duty on his relief at 

 Saharanpur were issued. But the chief political officer in Bajputana had 

 been equally impressed, and, having learned that the Forest Department was 

 in need of competent officers, strongly advised the Conservator in the 

 North-west Provinces to ask for King's services. King was accordingly 

 invited in September, 1869, to accept an Assistant Conservatorship. The 

 forest appointment offered greater scope for' the utilisation of his botanical 



* Dr. R. Harvey, C.B., D.S.O., subsequently Director-General, Indian Medical Service, 

 in which capacity he died at Simla, Panjab, December 1, 1901. 



