Letter from John Forbes to Joseph Sabine [secretary of the Horticultural Society of London]
Information
Title
Letter from John Forbes to Joseph Sabine [secretary of the Horticultural Society of London]
Record type
Archive
Original Reference
RHS/Col/3/5/26
Date
16 Sep 1822
Scope & content
Written from Algoa Bay [South Africa]
An opened seal is attached to the letter
Marked at the top of the page 'No 14'. Annotated at the top of page: 'Joseph Sabine received December 3 1822'
They arrived the previous night and intend to sail to Delagoa Bay [Maputo Bay, Mozambique] tomorrow; he has been out collecting all day; he found several plants he had not seen nearer Cape of Good Hope [South Africa], including some 'curious and beautiful' Orchideae; they have had drawings made of everything collected so far, and he will add these to the numbering system; he has found in Algoa Bay plants in blossom he had previously collected and sent to England, including 'a singular large green and purplish one, 15 inches high (I was not a little pleased to find this'), and a beautiful blush pink flower, 'a very great beauty'; he will make arrangements during their short stay to send bulbs, seeds and plants; unfortunately he will not have time to visit Mr Rivers [Henry Rivers, British colonial officer in South Africa] in Graham's Town [Grahamstown, South Africa], 110 miles from Algoa Bay, but he will forward to him Sabine's letter 'soliciting his services'; it may be several months before Sabine will hear from Forbes again; unfortunately he is unable to give Sabine the numbers of the orchids, 'for I cannot lay my hands on the copy of the lists', but there is only one plant of the large green and purple one with a spotted stem, and of the other plant there are two packages containing about half a dozen bulbs
For a copy of the letter, see RHS/Col/3/5/27
Extent
3 page letter (1 sheet)
Is part of
RHS archive: plant collector papers
Repository
Royal Horticultural Society Lindley Library
Copyright
Royal Horticultural Society
Credit Line
RHS Lindley Collections
Usage terms
Non-commercial use with attribution permitted (CC BY-NC 4.0)