Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
June,  1906. 
London  Botanic  Gardens. 
271 
1682  "  Dr.  Herman,  of  Leyden,  visited  Chelsea  Garden,  and  pro- 
posed an  exchange  of  plants,  which  proposal  Mr.  Watts  went  to 
Holland  to  carry  into  effect."  The  system  of  exchange  thus 
inaugurated  became  the  most  important  factor  in  developing  the 
collections  at  the  Chelsea  Garden,  and  from  Pulteney's  "  Sketches  " 
we  learn  that  during  Philip  Miller's  curatorship  "  it  was  the  remark 
of  foreigners,  that  Chelsea  exhibited  the  treasures  of  both  the 
Indies."  These  acquisitions  of  rare  plants  are  mentioned  by  the 
Garden  Committee  in  1750,  and  credit  is  given  to  Philip  Miller  for 
his  "  great  diligence  in  settling  a  correspondence,  and  procuring 
seeds  and  plants  from  various  parts  of  the  world."  In  1 771  and 
1772  "  a  great  interchange  of  exotic  plants  took  place  between  the 
Society  "  and  a  number  of  "  Noblemen,  Gentlemen  and  others." 
"Her  R.  H.  the  Princess  Dowager's  garden  at  Kew  "  is  mentioned 
among  the  contributors,  and  we  also  learn  that  "  a  bag  of  seeds  was 
presented  by  Joseph  Banks,  Esq.,  and  Dr.  Solander."  The  influence 
of  Philip  Miller  is  here  clearly  perceptible,  as  Aiton  who  had  charge 
of  the  Princess  Augusta's  garden  at  Kew  was,  as  we  have  already 
seen,  a  former  pupil  of  his,  while  Banks  is  also  said  to  have  received 
his  early  training  in  botany  at  Miller's  hands.  The  policy  so  zeal- 
ously pursued  by  Philip  Miller  was  vigorously  maintained  by  the 
Society  after  his  death,  and  we  accordingly  find  that  the  Demon- 
strator of  Plants  was,  by  the  rules  of  1773,  "earnestly  recommended" 
to  4 <  cultivate  an  extensive  botanical  correspondence  both  at  home 
and  abroad."  It  is  evident  that  this  recommendation  bore  fruit,  for 
extensive  accessions  of  plants  and  seeds  from  various  parts  of  the 
world  are  recorded  in  1778,  178 1,  1790,  1793,  and  1809.  In  1815 
the  Court  of  Assistants  determined  "to  advance"  the  garden  "  t6 
as  high  a  rank  in  the  scale  of  exotic  gardening  as  the 
improved  state  of  that  science  would  require,"  and  with  the  co- 
operation of  William  Anderson,  the  new  gardener,  steps  were  taken 
to  bring  about  the  desired  result.  During  Lindley's  tenure  of  office 
as  Professor  of  Botany  and  Prcefectus  Horti  the  collections  were 
doubtless  maintained  at  a  high  level  of  excellence,  although  it  must 
be  confessed  that  details  are  wanting  on  this  point.  The  appoint, 
ment  of  Robert  Fortune  as  curator  in  1846  was  attended  with  fruit- 
ful results,  and  the  mention  of  his  name  brings  us  to  a  subject  of 
cardinal  importance  in  the  history  of  the  cultivation  of  exotic  plants. 
Fortune,  before  his  appointment  as  Curator  at  the  Chelsea  Garden, 
