From:
unknown
To:
Royal Society
Date:
April 1802
Source of text:
MM/2/26, Royal Society
Summary:
No summary available.
Contributor:
Royal Society
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Thanks for books. Compliments on Smith's works. Lamarck and Linneaus. 'Salis'. Asks for news.
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Has sent his 'Synopsis'; list of 44 species of mosses, lichens, etc., to be determined by the Linnaean system; wishes to make exchanges with Goodenough.
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Despite not having received responses to either the letter he wrote to Smith some time ago or specimens of flowering 'Saxifraga' he sent to [James] Sowerby and Cambridge three years ago, he now encloses 'Saxifraga' specimens [extant] for Smith's opinion.
Numbered observations on enclosed specimens [extant]: 1. 'Saxifraga' [Smith annotation: "'caespitosa'"]; 2. 'Saxifraga' [Smith annotation: "'palmata'"]; 'Saxifraga' [Smith annotation: "'hypnoides'"]; 4. nondescript 'Saxifraga'; 5. 'Saxifraga' [Smith annotation: "unknown to me"]; 6. 'Viola protea' [Smith annotation: "perhaps Mr Crowe's new one"]; 7. 'Potentilla verna' [Smith annotation: "? 'verna'"]; 8. 'Potentilla' [Smith annotation: "'verna'"]; 9. 'Potentilla' [Smith annotation: "'aurea'"]; 10. 'Potentilla' [Smith annotation: "new?"]; 11. 'Bryum'.
14 numbered specimens: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10.
Introduces Mr Simmonds, who is studying medicine in Edinburgh; he is fond of natural history and has studied marine animals. Encloses specimen of 'Poa flexuosa' in rare state, collected from Ben Nevis in June 1794, a moss believed to be 'Fontinalis capillacea', and 'Marchantia androgyna'.
Three specimens, 1 grass and two mosses.
Thanks for letter of 6 March [1802], comments on dispute with [Arthur] Bruce [(c 1725-1805), land surveyor] over discovery of 'Convallaria verticillata'.
Numbered observations on 42 enclosed moss specimens [extant], including: 1. 'Orthotrichum saxatile'; 2. 'O. piliferum'; 3. 'O. tortuaforum'; 4. 'O.striatum'; 5. 'O. rupestre'; 6. 'O. obtusifolium'; 7. like 'O. saxatile'; 8-9. two unknown 'Phascum'; 10. 'P. corvicoulor'; 11. 'P. inundatum'; 12. 'Riccia fructicosa'; 13. possible 'Bryum splachnoides'; 14. unknown 'Lepidium'; 15. 'B. fasciculare' or 'B. paucifolium'; 16. 'Hedwigia fasciulatum'; 17-18. two unknown 'Bryum'; 19. unknown 'Hypnum'; 20. 'Splachnum rugosum'; 21. unknown 'Spalchnum'; 22. 'S. breviranum'; 23. 'S. vasculosa'; 24. 'S. mnioides'; 25. 'S. breviranum'; 26. 'Bryum tenuis'; 27. 'B. brevifolium'; 28. 'B. lineare'; 29. 'B.scoparium'; 30-32. three unknown 'Bryum'; 33. 'B. septentrionale'; 34. 'Polytrichum gracile'; 35. unknown 'Polytrichum'; 36. 'B. uncoides'; 37-38. new 'Bryum'; 39 'Hypnum filiforme'; 40. unknown 'Hypnum'; 41. unknown 'Lichen'; 42. unknown 'Hypnum'.
Requests English moss specimens. Would like to purchase Smith's book on cryptogams when it is published.
42 specimens of mosses, numbered.
Sends his book on the local flora of Turin, and catalogue of the Botanical Garden at Turin. Asks for botanical correspondence with Smith on same terms Smith had with Dr [Jean Pierre Marie] Dana, who died a year ago. [Carlo] Allioni and [Carlo Antonio Ludovico] Bellardi are in good health. Requests seeds of 'Hedysarum gyrans' and 'Dinoaea muscipula'.
Pleased Smith received the items he and [Erik] Acharius sent. Thanks for 'Carex' specimens Smith sent. Lists contents of a missing parcel sent for Smith in 1800, it was largely of cryptogamous plants and hopes to make it up again. Surprise at the accumulation of 'Carex' species in the Swedish flora. [Georg] Wahlenberg [(1780-1851)], who collected many of them, is on a return expedition to the north and hopes to go as far as Nordcap, a return journey of 2400 miles. Wahlenberg has described 170 species of 'Carex' in his paper on the subject, to be published in [Swedish] Academy [of Science's] "Handlingar", lists their intentions for enhancing it. Discusses lichens: possibly sent Smith 'Urceolaria gibbosa' instead of 'Lichen cinereus', discusses both. The Upsala 'Lichen calcareus' Acharius sent is not the old 'L. calcareus' but a true 'L. verrucaria' and not different from Smith's 'L. [tessellatus]', 'multipanctatus' comes near to 'verrucaria'.
Recommends [Johann] Hedwig for settling the mosses in the cryptogamic section of "Flora Britannica", his own opinion is that inflorescene cannot serve as a character for genera, further comments on multiple genera including 'Hypnum', 'Bryum', and others. Would like to correct the errors in Hedwig's "Species muscorum". Also recommends [Heinrich Adolph] Schrader's "Journal of Botany" for its cryptogamic content, there was recently an article in it on 'Filicum', asks Smith's opinion on it and sketches what he learnt from it. Sends specimen of 'Arenaria sulcata'. [Johan Gustaf] Acrel died more than a year ago after being weakened by apoplectic fits, his place [as professor of medicine at Uppsala University] has been taken by [Adam] Afzelius' brother. Afzelius is processing the "Sierra Leone novelties somewhat slow".
This letter mentions and discusses multiple lichen, moss, and fern species.