8 
The Presidential Address. 
who knew him personally that “the blending of intellectual 
and moral qualities made him what he was. He grudged no 
amount of costly or toilsome research to verify a fact or arrive at 
the true understanding of anything with which he had to deal. 
Few men of equal wealth can ever have taken as much pains 
to dispose of it rightfully, and the extent of his private charities 
will never be known. Plain-spoken, he was yet considerate 
for the feelings of others, and would interest himself in their 
behalf as completely as in his own affairs. So punctual was 
he in keeping engagements that at a meeting at which he 
chanced to be two minutes late it was concluded that he had 
been altogether prevented from attending.” 
As a botanist Mr. Gibson must undoubtedly take high rank 
among the pioneers of the critical study of British forms. He 
possessed a fine library of botanical as well as of other works. 
It may be doubted whether he had much of that knowledge 
of continental species that distinguishes his friend the Pro¬ 
fessor of Botany at Cambridge, but his knowledge of our own 
Flora was amply sufficient to enable him to recognise a new 
form as such, when he, with characteristic modesty, submitted 
his discoveries to the judgment of Professor Babington and 
others. Everyone who has followed in his steps in the study 
of our older botanical writers will fully endorse his remark 
that “the examination of these old works has produced a 
decided conviction that much care was exercised by” them, 
“both as regards descriptions and localities, and that they 
may generally be relied on ”; but of the cautious and scru¬ 
pulous accuracy, the completeness and acuteness of his own 
work as seen both in the Flora and in his separate papers, 
one may speak with unreserved praise. 
John Eliot Howard was born at Plaistow, December 11th, 
1807. His father, Luke Howard, the great-grandson of an 
officer who lost his fortune and estate in the cause of 
James II., was towards the end of the last century a partner 
with Mr. Allen in the Pharmacy at Plough Court, and sub¬ 
sequently founded the well-known firm of chemical manu¬ 
facturers, Howards and Sons, of Stratford. He is better 
known, however, as a meteorologist, especially for his system 
