Elliott, Stephen, 1771-1830. Stephen Elliott papers, 1791- approximately 1947. Letters from James MacBride to Stephen Elliott, 1814 April 4-1817, undated. gra00020. Archives of the Gray Herbarium, Botany Libraries, Harvard University.

Dear Sir

I send you here with few specimens being all that the urgency of business would permit me to send by this post —

You will percieve several specimens of a rose colored flower. I found it in bloom yesterday for the first time. I can not refer it a Walter & Michaux is but a friend — The Class is Pentandria order Monogynia (I suppose).

Calyx diphyllos, persistent, increasing. Corolla. — Petals 5 oval white interspersed with red veins, from the claw of each arises a filament — Stamina — Filaments broad at the base & touching so as to appear like a tube, above smaller & diverging. Anthera red — Pistillum — Stigma infid deeply & each segment reflected — German inferior — capsule trivalvuler diaphanous — Semina — from 2 to 5 black, shining, one side convex Leaves two — subconnate — linear, long thickish — Roots bulbous — Grows in the rich swamps of Cooper river. Dr inform me what it is —

You will find the male & female flowers of the tree we saw in the medical botanic garden, seed of which I sent you [loss] a letter last winter — called Suger [Maple] by the gardener —

I send you fresh specimens of the Ranunculus I sent last spring — Near hispidus of Michx Lanuginosus of Walt. —

I send a Siliquosa found in bloom today — also a little plant resembling Spergula. It grows on the lime stone rocks. Salix [ligustrina?] is sent in seed.

I am sorry that the want of time prevents me from sending you any thing more & I am freed to send you such a this scrawl frq the [same?] cause.

I am yours with great regard JMacBride

April 4th 1814

April 4, 1814 Stephen Elliott Esq {Esquire} Charleston To the care of W. Quan.

23. April 1814

Stephen Elliott Esq {Esquire} Charleston

To the care of Mr. Quan

St Stephens, April 23 1814

Dear Sir,

Since my last I have had an opportunity of seeing the evergreen shrub in bloom. Its class is Dioecia as I had suspected. I searched in vain for a male plant. I find almost invariably that the number of the dentations of the calyx, of the petals & of the stamina is the same in each particular flower. The number varies from 7 to 10. Nine is by far most common, seven & 10 rather rare. The rudiments of the anthera are generally purplish in well blown flowers. The stigma is elliptical or oblong & not so circular as it generally is in Ilex. The stamina are in =serted into the corolla which is monopetalous but deeply divided. It is which much more persistent than in many of the species of Ilex & when bruina becomes black. You will notice that each flower is furnished with its proper pedicell 1/2 an inch or 3/4 in length. The flowers cannot be said to be borne in racemes. I should have said before that the seed of the berry invariably agree in number with the stamina &c &c The corolla is white— In the packet now sent you will see specimens marked No 1—

You will find also speciemens of the Slettaria [Stellaria] aflora of Walter Arenaria— of Michx. It is now in bloom. Grows in bogs.

I send you some leaves of a species of Ilex [diff.?] from I. opaca. The tree (at least) is disim =ilar in general aspect. The old trees bear leaves with seldom a single spine. I have never seen the berries.

I am fearful you will think I am growing idle. I am prevented partly by business & partly from not knowing what maybe a acceptable to you from sending you more specimens— Besides I expect you will soon do me the favour of a visit when I shall have the pleasure of pointing out to you our plants & ? the state most proper for investigation

The Kalmia begins to bloom & will probably continue for a month. I expect in 10 days to receive specimens of the Clarendon species.

I am Dear Sir, Yours with great esteem J MacBride

Pineville, October 25th 1814

Dear Sir,

I was obliged by the ill health of myself & family to spread the sickly season in the upper country, but my opportunity for herborizing was very limited. We did not arrive in the mountainous country until the 7th of Sept & left it a month after, consequently I could find but few plants in bloom. Whether I have been industrious you can decide when you inspect my specimens. They were sent to Charleston this morning directed to the care of Mr. J[io?]. White factor.

I had promsed myself some gratification from meeting with persons engaged in botanical pur =suits but was in a great measure disappointed. My route interested Mr. Leconte's but we did not meet. I had however the pleasure of meeting & spending a few hours with Messrs Van Vleck & Schweinitz two Moravian clergymen. The for =mer is a correspondent of Dr. Muhlenberg. From habit he has become fond of botany & has paid considerable atten =tion to some of its departments. He shewed me in a liv= ing state the Talinum with cylindrical fleshy leaves. It grows in the upper parts of N.C on bare rocks. He also had a very uncommon Ranunculus with long linear leaves — a native. The latter gentleman has not been longer than 18 months in this country. He informed me that he was intimate with Persoon & assisted him by paintings & engravings in a work on the Fungi. I saw the pain= tings & a copy of the engravings. He observed that he was very much struck with the great similarity between the Fungi of Europe & of the U.S. & that altho' he could now & then pick up a new species yet it could easily be referred to a described genus. The globular & sometimes kidney shaped fugus of our cedars he observed was an exception.

He refers our Tuckahoe or subterranean tubes to a genus of Persoons which sounds like Scleroderma tho' this is I believe not the name.