C 12 1 



and the privileges ^le gave him of infpe^ling his 

 own, and the Sherardian colledions of plants. It 

 is needlefs to fay, that he vifited Dr. Martyn^ Mr. 

 Rand^ and Mr. Miller^ and that he was in a more 

 lingular manner indebted to the friendfhip of Dr. 

 Jfaac Lawfon. He alfo " contra6ted an intimate 



friendfhip with Mr. Peter Collinson, which 

 *^ was reciprocally increafed by a multitude of 



good offices, and continued to the laft without 

 " any diminution." Dr. Boerhaave had furqifhed 

 him with letters to our great naturalift Sir Hans 

 Sloane j but, it is with regret that we muft ob- 

 ferve, they did not procure him the reception 

 which the warmth of his recommendation feemed 

 to claim. 



Dr. Boerhaave^ s letter to Sir Hans Sloane^ on this 

 occafion, is preferved in the Britifh Muleum, and 

 runs thus — " Linn^^us, qui has tibi dabit littros^ eH 



mice dignus te videre, unice dignus a te videri *, qui 

 " vos vide bit fmuU vi debit hcminum par^ cuijimile 



vix dabit orbis,''' — This encomium, howfuever 

 quaintly exprefled, yet was in fome meafure pro- 

 phetic of Linn^us's future fame and greatnels, and. 

 proves how intimately Boerhaave had penetrated 

 into the genius and abilities of our author •, and, 

 {trained as this parallel might be thought, it is 

 likely however chat the opening of the fexual fyftem, 

 fo different from Ray'Sy by which Sir Hans Sloane 

 had always known plants, and particularly the in- 

 novations, as they were then called, which Lin- 

 K^us had made in altering the names of fb many 

 genera^ were rather the caufe of that coolnefs with 

 which he was received by our excellent naturalift. 



Probably 



