May 18, 1901. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
609 
When Mr. Bell heard how the travellers were situa¬ 
ted he insisted upon their staying all night with him, 
though wholly strangers to him. 
The next day found them on their way to Dum¬ 
fries, by way of Gretna Green and Annan. In this 
neighbourhood they stayed about three weeks, part 
of the time being spent with Loudon's friend, Sir 
Charles Menteath, and part at Jardine Hall, the 
residence of Sir William and Lady Jardine. After 
that they sojourned for a time at Munches and other 
family seats in Dumfries-shire, and then proceeded 
to Ayrshire, Loudon’s native county. At Ayr and 
Kilmarnock he was entertained at public dinners. 
A similar honour was being prepared for him at 
Glasgow; but while staying at Crosslee Cottage, 
Paisley, the seat of Archibald Woodhouse, Esq , one 
of Loudon’s most highly esteemed friends, he 
received a letter from Bayswater informing him of 
the severe illness of his mother, and her earnest 
desire to see him. They had been dining in the 
neighbourhood, and returning late at night found 
the letter waiting. Everything was packed up ready 
to start for Glasgow with daylight, so that they did 
not go to bed. Arrived at Glasgow Loudon dis¬ 
pensed with the horse and carriage, and both he and 
his wife proceeded to Edinburgh by coach, riding on 
the outside during rain. Loudon had not done this 
since he got the stiff knee by that experience in an 
earlier part of his history, and on this occasion had 
great difficulty in mounting the ladder. Loudon's 
conception of filial duty overpowered every other 
feeling, so he could brook no delay. It was also 
unfortunate from the fact that he had to pass through 
Edinburgh, almost without stopping, after an 
absence of nearly thirty years. On arriving at 
Edinburgh they learned that a packet was about to 
sail for London, after which there would have been 
a delay of several days. They, accordingly, hurried 
down to the pier and found the captain just going 
on board, and hiring a boat they saved their passage. 
The voyage was speedy, so that the travellers 
arrived at Bayswater only half an hour later than 
the letter written from Glasgow to give notice of 
their coming. Loudon’s mother revived somewhat 
on seeing her son again, but did not come up to the 
expectation that she would recover, though she 
lived for six weeks longer, and died in October, 
1831. 
Next year (1832) Loudon commenced his Encyclo¬ 
paedia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture, which 
was the first work published on his own account. 
He had several draughtsmen in his employ for this 
work, but Mrs. Loudon was his only amanuensis 
The work was arduous in the extreme, and the two 
used to sit up night after night, till they had only 
time for four hours’ sleep. During the small hours 
of the morning they drank strong coffee to keep 
themselves awake. The First Additional Supplement 
to the Hortus Britannicus was prepared and published 
during the same year. 
Loudon seemed to consider Cottage Architecture his 
best and most useful book. At all events it was the 
most serviceable to him, and tempted him to publish 
the Arboretum Britannicum also on his own account. 
He had long contemplated a work on the hardy trees 
of Great Britain, but he never considered the 
great expenses it would involve. After making a 
commencement he found it impossible to compress 
the matter into the space originally intended; and 
his determination to make it as comprehensive as 
possible involved him in financial difficulties, which 
hastened his death. The Arboretum was published in 
monthly numbers, and notwithstanding the immense 
expense attaching to it, he commenced The Architec¬ 
tural Magazine, the first periodical exclusively 
devoted to the subject (March 1834). Like The Gar¬ 
deners' Magazine and The Magazine of Natural History 
it only paved the way for other magazines on the 
same subjects, and which were more successful. 
It may not be out of place here to take a nearer 
glarce at Loudon’s inner life about this period of 
great exertion. He had an unbounded love of truth 
and would punish anyone for disregarding it. In 
1831 he had an amanuensis, a young man of whom 
he was very fond. One morning he sent him from 
Bayswater to take a tracing of something at the 
residence of the celebrated Mr. Telford, of West¬ 
minster. So eager was the young man to get away 
from the confinement of office, that he forgot taking 
pencils and tracing paper till his arrival at West¬ 
minster, and did not think of purchasing them. Nor 
cid he cherish the idea of returning to say he had 
forgot the materials, so made up his mind to tell his 
master a lie. " Mr. Telford was not at home," he 
said, falteringly. Loudon fixed bis keen eye upon 
him and observed, “ Did I understand you to sav 
that Mr. Telford was not at home ? ” The assistant 
replitd in the affirmative. “Very well," said 
Loudon. Ordering his phaeton, he drove direct to 
Westminster, where he found that Mr. Telford had 
been unwell for some weeks. On returning to Bays¬ 
water, he paid his amanuensis with something extra 
to pay his lodgings for a week, and discharged him 
there and then, remarking that he could not permit 
anyone to remain on his premises who had told him 
a falsehood. 
Loudon had a frequent caller in the shape of a 
character of ungentlemanly behaviour, of whom he 
desired to be rid. Hearing the bell ring about the 
usual time of this caller, he told his servant that if 
the caller were Sc-and-so, "just tell him I canDot 
see him." ". Shall I saythat you are not at home ? ” 
was the servant’s reply. "No,” replied Loudon; 
"you would then tell a falsehood, which you must 
not do. Just tell the gentleman I cannot see him.” 
He also had a great love of order, which he him¬ 
self observed, and the observance of which he im¬ 
pressed on all in his employment. His books in the 
library and manuscripts on his table were so 
arranged that he could lay his hands upon them in 
the dark. When any new clerk came his instruc¬ 
tions to him were to put everything away before 
leaving at night as if he never intended to return. 
Punctuality as to time and money matters he 
observed and insisted upon. If a cleik was behind 
time in the morning, he took no notice for a time or 
two, but if repeated, he would quietly and sarcastic¬ 
ally say, " Oh, if nine o'clock is too early for you, 
you had better come at eleven or twelve; but let 
there be just a fixed hour, that I may depend upon 
you.” 
An example of his fortitude may also be given. 
When Drs. Thompson and Lauder called upon him 
to amputate his right arm, they met him in the 
garden and asked if he had fully made up his mind 
to undergo the operation. " Oh, yes, certainly,” he 
replied ; "it was for that purpose I sent for you ; ” 
and added very coolly, " but you had better step in, 
and just have a little lunch first before you begin.” 
After lunch he walked upstairs talking to the doctors 
on general subjects. When the operation was com¬ 
pleted, Loudon was about to step downstairs to pro¬ 
ceed with bis business, and occasioned the doctors 
great trouble to induce him to go to bed. 
For industry he was not surpassed by anyone. 
During three-fourths of his literary career, he dic¬ 
tated, on an average, five and a-half printed octavo 
pages of matter daily. He frequently dictated to 
two amanuenses contemporaneously. He o'ten 
worked till 11 or 12 p m., sometimes all night. 
While his man-servant was dressing him for church 
on the day of his marriage, he was dictating to his 
amanuensis all the time. 
OBITUARY. 
Mr. Mark King. 
On Thursday last, May 9th, the grave closed over 
the mortal remains of Mr. Mark King. 
Born on December 28th, 1828, at Lilliesleaf, Rox¬ 
burghshire, Mr. King served his apprenticeship in 
the gardens of Minto House, the beautiful home of 
the Earls of Minto. After a number of years as an 
improver in various gardens and nurseries, he settled 
down as gardener at The Grove, Bonnington, Leith, 
ia 1865, to the late Wm. Kinghorn, Esq , a gentle¬ 
man to whom Stevenson, of lighthouse fame, 
entrusted much of the building of his lighthouses 
and breakwaters up and down our rocky shores. 
Mr. Kinghorn found in Mr. King a true and honest 
servant, and having a great deal of house property 
up and down the country, Mr. King acted as factor 
in such a manner as to gain the esteem of both pro¬ 
prietor aad tenants. He acted as scout to the 
servaats on Thirston estate when the first passenger 
train passed Dunbar to Berwick-on Tweed on 
Waterloo Day, June 18th, 1846. 
Since 1865 it has been to my pleasure and profit 
to have been on the best terms of fellowship with 
Mr. King, and many miles we have tramped in quest 
of plants, mcths, &c., and to get him to walk faster 
than two miles the hour was almost an impossibility, 
as he found so much to examine and admire in the 
handywork of the Creator. 
I found him well versed in poetry, chemistry, 
botany, geology, entomology, and astronomy, but 
strange to say I could not start him on music, or the 
art of saving money. Books were the world to him, 
and he possessed a well stocked library on all and 
every subject of general knowledge. 
Mr. King had a great love for all poisonous plants, 
Mr. Mark King. 
and all strange weeds to be found on railway banks, 
ballast heaps, and on the shores of the Firth of 
Forth. An old sand pit was a very “ Mecca ” to his 
soul. For upwards of thirty years, Mr. King and I 
have met on the forenoon of New Year’s Day in the 
Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh, and marked and 
moralised on the changes and improvements of those 
beautiful gardens and houses. Mr. King had a well 
stored and very retentive memory, being able to 
recite" The Seasons,” “ English Bards,” &c., &c., 
and on no subject could anyone wish to get some 
light, but Mark could give them at once a sparkling 
illustration. 
During my life, I have followed a goodly number 
of the craft to their last resting place, but at none 
did I ever witness such a diverse gathering of men of 
the best qualities. 
Mr. King was a strong believer in Job. “ And 
though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in 
my flesh shall I see God.” 
Strange to say, his youngest brother Robert 
arrived home on the day of his brother's death from 
Natal, after eighteen years travelling, and having 
been on the ambulance train since the war began, 
has seen many sights of pain and death, as well as 
the funeral of General Wauchope and many of the 
Highland Brigade at the Modder River. 
On Tuesday, May 7th, it was for the first time in 
my recolleciion that the deaths of throe of the 
prominent members of the Scottish Horticultural 
Association were announced from the chair at our 
monthly meeting, they were D. T. Fish, John 
Thomson and Mark King.— James Grieve. 
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