297 
In 1822, the Botanic Gardens at Ayer Hitam in Penang /ere 
founded, but I am not sure whether they were on the site of CHRIS- 
TOPHER Smith’s original spice gardens, or when the latter ceased 
to exist. The Ayer Hitam Gardens were put under the charge of 
GEORGE Porter, a schoolmaster with a taste for botany, who sent 
many specimens of Penang plants to WALLICH, which were distri- 
buted in the Wallichian Collections. PORTER remained there in 
charge till 2834, when the gardens were sold by Governor MUR- 
CHISON for 1,250 rupees. The importance of Botanic Gardens in 
the early part of last century does not appear to have been under- 
stood by the Governors of Singapore and Penang, and it is stated 
that Porter had some trouble with the Governor, because the 
latter’s wife complained that he did not cultivate enough vegetables 
for her table, this being the only use conceivable by His Excellency 
of Botanic Gardens. 
With the retirement and death of Sir STAMFORD RAFFLES, pro- 
gress in agriculture commenced to dwindle and though Dr. Oxley, 
and a few other Europeans took a certain amount of interest in the 
subject, little advance was made in cultivation for many years. 
Planting certainly increased in some directions under the hands of 
the Chinese, and also under Europeans, Nutmegs, Cloves, Coco- 
nuts, Sugar, Gambir and Pepper were grown to a considerable 
extent, but only empirically and without the aid of any scientific 
botanist. The result of this method was shown in the sudden 
collapse of the Nutmeg plantations in i860, entailing enormous 
losses of capital and general despondency. Later again came the 
devastation of the Coco-nut estates by the two Coco-nut beetles, 
added to which came considerable losses of money due to various 
speculations of amateur planters, one o f which is mentioned by 
MuRTON in his first Annual Report. 
An Agricultural and Horticultural Society was founded about 1837 
in Singapore, when Dr. MONTGOMERIE was President, and Dr. 
Oxley took a leading part in it. Papers were read on Cotton plant- 
ing and other subjects, and it is said all the European gentlemen 
then in Singapore belonged to it. It seems to have died a natural 
death about 1846, about which time a similar society was founded in 
Penang under the name of the Agricultural Planters’ Association. 
In 1859, another Agri-Horticultural Society was founded in 
Singapore. This was chiefly really a Horticultural Society and 
commenced the laying out of a portion of fohat are now the pre- 
sent Botanic Gardens. The Gardens were supported by public 
subscription, aided by Fancy Bazaars and Exhibitions, but as has 
often happened in s'milar societies the subscriptions at last proved 
insufficient, and in 1874 the Gardens were taken over by the 
Government. In 1874, Mr. James CdLLlNS was appointed Economic 
Botanist and also took charge of the Raffles Museum. He is chiefly 
known for his work on Rubber published in 1879-1891, and he 
also started the Journal of East Asia, of which, however, only - a 
single number was published. He made a collection of gums, 
