Additional Instructions to Mr John Forbes, employed by the Horticultural Society of London on a mission in His Majesty's Ship Leven, commanded by Captain William Owen, to the Eastern Coast of Africa, and other places, in the Year 1822, and following years'
'Some explanations of parts of my former instructions being advisable, and some additions necessary, in consequence of the places you are to visit on your outward voyage being now known, you will consider the following as of equal authority with those lately given you' [for the first part of the instructions given to John Forbes, 3 Jan 1821, see RHS/Col/3/2/7]
Includes notes on the chain of command: 'In the event of your being separated from Captain Owen [William Fitzwilliam Owen, captain of HMS Leven], you will always consider the officer in command, wherever you may be, as the person whose directions you are to obey'
Finances: 'It is requisite that you should be furnished with some guide as to the sums of money, for which you have power to apply to Captain Owen'. Drafts up to £100 per year 'will be sufficient to cover all outgoings, jointly either for the Society's use or your own purposes'. Any money spent 'on account of the Society' to be drawn by Owen
Local networks: 'The places where you are to stop at in going out being now known, you will be supplied with letters of introduction to persons at all such places'. Unused letters to be returned to Sabine [Joseph Sabine, secretary of Horticultural Society of London]
Documentation: 'You will send home a copy of your journal made at Lisbon, from Lisbon [Portugal]; a copy of your journal made at Madeira [Portugal], and the Cape de Verd Islands [Cabo Verde], from Rio Janeiro; a copy of your journal made at Rio Janeiro [Rio de Janeiro, Brazil], immediately after you arrive at the Cape of Good Hope [South Africa]; and a copy of your journal made at the Cape, from that place, just before your departure. The despatch of copies of your subsequent journals must be left to your judgment'
Other occupations: 'Though you are instructed to attend to other scientific objects besides those connected with horticulture, you must never relinquish the attention to plants for the sake of other pursuits, except on any very particular occasion'
Communication: In the event of an opportunity to send packages on a ship bound to a port in Britain, but not London, packages to be addressed care of David Maclean at the Custom House in London, and the captain informed that the packages were to be forwarded from the port. The captain to be asked to write himself and to forward Forbes' letters on arrival. After leaving the Cape of Good Hope, 'the vessels you will fall in with will probably be those of foreign countries, especially Portuguese bound to foreign ports. You will therefore, at Lisbon, Madeira, Rio Janeiro, and at the Cape make arrangements with the British consuls, or other persons, to receive articles which you may send to them, and to forward them without delay to England'
Procedures on arrival: On arrival at a port, 'you will deliver your letters, and enquire where the objects of your attention are to be found; you will then make arrangements for the despatch of the articles which you may procure, to England. This being done and having ascertained, if you are able, the probable length of your stay, you will proceed to the examination of the objects of your mission, according to the time and means at your command'
Plants from Lisbon: Plants to be obtained from the Botanic Gardens, including different varieties of orange, citron and lemon, cultivated chestnuts and seeds of plants and vegetables, especially 'the true perennial cove tronchuda [couve tronchuda, Brassica oleracea, var. costata]; enquire also for cove murciano [couve murciana, Brassica oleracea]', different onion seeds, different fruit of the genus Citrus, apple, pear and any native bulbs
Plants from Madeira, Teneriffe [Tenerife, Spain] and Cape de Verd: Varieties of citrus fruits, with plants, seeds 'and perhaps some bulbs'
Plants from Rio de Janeiro: 'you will particularly ascertain by what means, and through whom, we can obtain the plants of the country, either as plants or seeds, as well as bulbs, by means of correspondence', collecting 'whatever may appear to you interesting or valuable. More especially you will look after bulbs'
Plants from Cape of Good Hope: 'the articles of most import to a person making a short stay are bulbs; a well-ascertained collection of them, even of the known kinds, if put up under your own eye, will be worth obtaining'. Of rarer species, 'you will send here what you can', arranging for future dispatches with the local correspondents
Communication: 'In your letters from the Cape you will enumerate all the articles which you think you shall be in want of on your return to that place after you have been up the African coast, and you will settle to whose care such things shall be addressed for your use, and your wants will be supplied from hence with due attention'
Extent
3 pages (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)