WILLIAM BARTRAM. 
vii 
menclature and observations, and referred to your autho- 
rity. To have you, therefore, to consult with in the 
course of this great publication, I consider a most happy 
and even auspicious circumstance; and I hope you will, on 
all occasions, be a rigid censor and kind monitor, whenever 
you find me deviating from the beauties of nature or the 
truth of description.” 
In fact, the rich fund of knowledge possessed by Mr. 
Bartram, after so many years of application and research, 
and the simple and unaffected manner in which he impart- 
ed instruction to those who sought it of him, made his so- 
ciety agreeable, and courted by the literary, scientific, 
and others on very many occasions, but by no one more 
than William Hamilton, Esq., a wealthy and highly re- 
spectable citizen of the county of Philadelphia, whose 
extensive domains bordering on the more humble resi- 
de.. ce of Mr. Bartram, offered him many opportunities of 
reaping advantages and pleasure from the instructive know- 
ledge of the latter; Mr. Hamilton himself being fond of 
the study of botany. Mr. Bartram was a source of refer- 
ence to many naturalists of his day, and there was scarce- 
ly an American or foreign writer who attempted the natu- 
ral history of this country but applied to him for informa- 
tion on their relative treatises, and in many instances his 
generous contributions were received and diffused to the 
world by other writers without giving credit to the proper 
author. 
So great was the fondness of Mr. Bartram for the works 
of nature, that at the advanced age of 65, he concluded to 
accompany Mr. Wilson on a short tour, and assist him in 
his work on ornithology; on this the latter placed much 
reliance, and his prospects of success became cheering by 
so valuable a companion; but a long course of inclement 
weather setting in, prevented the travellers from pursuing 
their journey on the appointed day. On this occasion Mr. 
Wilson composed the following stanzas, and sent them to 
his aged friend in form of a note: 
June 16, 1804. 
“ I believe we had better put off our intended jaunt until some more 
auspicious day. 
“ Clouds, from eastern regions driven, 
Still obscure the gloomy skies ; 
Let us yield, since angry heaven 
Frowns upon our enterprise. 
“ Haply some unseen disaster 
Hung impending o’er our way, 
Which our kind Almighty Master 
Saw, and sought us thus to stay. 
“ By-and-by, when fair Aurora 
Bids the drowsy fogs to fly, 
And the glorious god of Flora 
Rises in a cloudless sky, 
“ Then, in whirling chariot seated, 
With my friend I’ll gladly go: 
With his converse richly treated — 
Happy to be honoured so.” 
Mr. Bartram was a member of the Society of Friends, but 
his religious opinions inclined to Unitarianism; his dispo- 
sition was gentle, and his demeanour meek, but some- 
what reserved. Mr. Bartram never married, and there- 
fore had no parental duties to perform, but to those around 
him, he was always provident, affectionate, and kind, and 
benevolent to others. In stature he was below the mid- 
dling size; his general health was good, although his con- 
stitution was not robust. Habituated to the study of na- 
ture, he saw nothing but mildness and harmony in all her 
works, and, viewing them with that philosophy which 
exalts and leads the mind to the contemplation of the great 
first cause of all, he had imparted to his feelings the se- 
renity which was so remarkable throughout his life; this, 
supporting his constitution, and being exceedingly tempe- 
rate in all his habits, his days were numbered beyond 
the boundary common to human life. 
A few minutes before his death he wrote an article on 
the natural history of a plant, and, in rising from his desk 
to take a morning survey of the botanic grounds, he had 
proceeded only a few steps from his door when he burst a 
blood-vessel, which suddenly closed his useful life July 
22d, 1823, in the 85th year of his age. 
