Thanks Smith for his letter and invites him to visit her and her husband [Shute Barrington, Bishop of Durham]. Interested in obtaining 'Strelitzia reginae' from the Chelsea Physic Garden.

Sending Smith eight volumes of the Royal Agricultural Society of Turin via Dr Istria, who is travelling to London with the Marquess of Moss, asks that Smith introduces Istria to the medical establishment. Also sending a dissertation on the propagation of mushrooms, work by Mr Pic and a pamphlet by Mr Bonansea on a new theory on the internal cause of the putrid fever. Has had to postpone sending dried plant specimens. Hopes in future to send the five volumes of the old Royal Academy of Sciences of Turin and the three volumes of the new Royal Academy of Sciences. Thanks Smith for the paper he sent on the "propagation of species" and seeds of 'Smithia' and welcomes his paper on ferns and on any other subject of natural history.

Smith elected Associate Foreign Member of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Turin in preference to [Peter Simon] Pallas and others by a majority of seventeen to two. Dr Istria was unable to bring to London the promised six volumes of memoirs of the Royal Agricultural Society of Turin.

Thanks for diploma of Linnean Society; local famine and distress; Gmelin.

No summary available.

Returns borrowed book [unspecified].

Discusses English 'Mentha': received 'Mentha villosa' [Hudson] "Fl[ora] Ang[lica]" from [Samuel] Goodenough which confirms that 'Mentha villosa' [Ray] "Syn[opsis methodica]" 233.1 is not the true one and is probably related to 'Mentha viridis', sends specimen to Smith and makes his own observations, asks how Linnaeus has marked it and 'Mentha verticillata' in his copy of Ray's book. Requests specimen of 'Mentha sativa'; asks if Ray's 'Mentha verticillata' is same as Linnaeus'; [John] Lightfoot found only 'Mentha gentilis' around Hackney and Peckham, encloses a Norfolk specimen of it [extant]. Lightfoot believes 'Mentha viridis' is related to 'Mentha sylvestris'. Believes botanists might be wrong to disregard the length of 'Mentha' stamina.

[On separate folio] Further observations on [William] Hudson's descriptions of 'Mentha villosa', 'M. sylvestris and 'M. rotundifolia', 'M. aquatica', 'M. gentilis', 'M. arvensis', and 'M. satvia'.

Specimen of 'Mentha gentilis', label states it is from William Sole.

Discouraged by Smith's mention of the difficulties of settling the mints, but not yet abandoning his intention; sending Smith all his specimens, discusses 'Mentha sativa', 'M. gentilis', 'M. exigua', 'M. villosa', and 'M. sylvestris'.

Compliments to [James] Sowerby, intends to take his "little work" ["English botany"], "the botanist searches in vain for something to feast upon". Compliments Smith's "Icones pictae" but unable to purchase it. Encloses two 'Squilla' for determination.

Comments on the petrified wood sent by Baron de la Turpie, who is now the King of Sardinia's ambassador to the Empress of Russia. Feels his advancing age. Introduces Mrs Langford, daughter of Thomas Sainsbury, Alderman of Billingsgate. Ippolito Durazzo's wife has recently given birth to a son. Caffarena's own youngest son wishes "serve his king and country in the navy".

Thanks for diploma of Linnean Society. Sends papers on botany and entomology. Introduces Brogniard.

Pleasure at Smith's visit; his work on plants of Provence; the Linnaean collections; 'Daphne alpina'; observations on Pliny; works of Linnaeus; copies of Linnaean letters.

Copy of letter from Linnaeus to Gérard, dated 22 June 1756, in Smith's hand [8 pp]:

Thanks for Gérard's letter of 30 November 1755, parcel of 100 dried plants, and seeds. Struggling to progress with his work on account of corrections to be made. Impressed by Gérard's progress and abilities; has learnt more from Gérard's plant collections than from many books. Numbered observations on plants sent by Gérard. Asks Gérard to investigate 'Allium' of [Pierre] Magnol's "Botanicum Monspeliense". Recent publications and dissertations, including his own. Catalogue of parcel of plants Gérard sent Linnaeus.

Copy of letter from Linnaeus to Gérard, dated 24 October 1756 [5 pp]:

Responds to queries in Gerard's letter of 15 August [1756], including: state of Cliffortian garden; Royen's departure from Leyden botanic garden; received floras from Heintzelman, Gerberius, and Messerschmidt; Gmelin produced two volume "Flora Siberica" but died last year; [John] Sibthorp will not produce biographies of Sherard and Dillenius; has not seen Gesner's "Trevisum" works; details of pupils who are travelling overseas. List of numbered plants.

Sent sprig of 'Myrtus tomentosa' via [William] Weddell to be drawn by [James] Sowerby, she and Grieg, her gardener, are unclear on it having previously only seen the specimen [Harvey] Spragg gave Smith last year.

Greig is in London to buy corn and would like to hear Smith's lecture; will stand behind a door if necessary. Grieg has had cough again for three weeks and though appetite strong his voice has altered and his face drawn, she believes these are constant indicators of consumption and asks Smith to examine him. Unless the 'Strelitzia' stays out in flower doubts whether she can come to see it.

Smith and his friend should visit on any day acceptable to them but warns neither her plants nor her buffaloes are looking their best; she lost two young bulls so diseased that they were not safe for dissection. Wishes Smith could have seen how Grieg, her gardener, divided 'Helicornia'. 'Ixora coccinca' coming into flower. [James] Lee says the 'Pancratium' [James] Sowerby sketched is the 'P. littorale' in [Nikolaus von] Jacquin and [Georg Dionysius] Ehret [(1708-1770)]. Pleased her 'Justicia' "comes to so much honour in its old age", never saw it flower before and did not know it was unusual.

Expecting [Harvey] Spragg tomorrow, he wanted Smith to come too but Smith prefers a Saturday. Grieg has not got rid of his cough. She has been ill; blistered her stomach and is now better. Would like to see Linnaeus' manuscript.

Invites Smith to come to Hillingdon, [Middlesex], tomorrow to meet a Polish Princess who would like to see her plants. Has a Jamaican plant grown from seed in flower that Grieg, her gardener, knows nothing of.

Glad Smith has returned from Norfolk in good health. The leaves of her two 'Portlandia' differ from sketch in Smith's letter, being perfectly equal at the base, and cannot be certain about 'Hedera'.

Smith mistaken about Mr Wallen's sending of 'Euphorbia' and 'Hedera'; 'E. wallenia' came living from him in 1778, but in memoranda of other Jamaican plants at the same time there is no mention of 'Hedera', although there are several without names. Dr King transcribing her opinions on it and asks Smith to postpone printing his article about the plant till next week. If Smith visits next Sunday he could see 'Lagerstroemia' and Botany Bay plant in flower, the first to do so since they came over.

Memorandum, in different hand [probably Dr King], on the introduction of 'Hedera' to England, from the recollections of gardener at Wentworth, [Yorkshire], who had been at Wimbledon on its arrival, a few years before 1780.

Apologises for any trouble Smith had with her style and titles in dedicating his book to her ["Icones pictae plantarum rariorum.."]. Dr Pictairn and [James] Lee visited yesterday. Asks if [Richard] Salisbury remembers seeing blue lily in flower on visit of five years ago and what sort of leaves and bulb it had.

Urges Smith to come early in order to see her large 'Portlandia', which now has twelve flowers in flower, and to bring [Jonas] Dryander and [Adam Afzelius].

Sent [James] Sowerby flower of 'Myrtus tomentosa', which he is painting life sized for her "in its full dignity of royal purple", it flowers "for ever" but they turn white after a few days in sun. Astonished by how much the 'Passiflora' in her hothouse has flowered, called "the Bats wing" by herself and 'P. vespertilio' by [Samuel] Goodenough, resembles the one in Smith's ["Icones pictae plantarum rariorum...", 'Passiflora lunata']; will send pressed flower, fresh flower and leaves for comparison, notes her own observations. Loddiges sent it as true 'Passiflora vespertilio' with two 'Cinnamomum', one which Loddiges insists is the true and the other the same as Mr Hastings', a mango, and white flower variety of 'Rhododendron mexicana'.

Jokes that she will soon be King's Bench Prison [debtors' prison in Southwark, London] where she "shall look for relief to some of my botanical friends".

Will let Smith decided whether her gift of ["Icones pictae plantarum rariorum.."] for [Edmund] Davall should be the large or small copy. Her 'Portlandia', in addition to the 17 flowers Smith saw on it at once, keeps flowering without signs of exhaustion and has two fruits swelling on it, though most are not, asks in what state he would like to inspect them. Asks after [James] Sowerby's drawings of 'Portlandia' and 'Myrtus tomentosa' for her.

Requests copy of lesser sized ["Icones pictae plantarum rariorum.."] for herself with both English and Latin, and Duchess of Portland [Dorothy Bentinck], Mrs [Elizabeth] Weddell, and [William Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl] Fitzwilliam [(1748-1833)] will also want copies.

Declined Mr Bromfield's drawings as Smith's information on 'Coralline' was decisive and is out of her area of interest. Much more inclined to send [Edmund] Davall the larger copy of Smith's ["Icones pictae plantarum rariorum.."].

Offers her hothouse 'Gordonia pubescens' to be drawn by [James] Sowerby; notices that Linnaeus and Kew place 'Gordonia' under different classes, hers seems 'Monogynia' but inside of flower resembles 'Camelia'. Lightning and distant thunder yesterday evening.