Relieved that his intended trip to London has been cancelled. Glad his 'Lycoperdon' paper was well received at the Linnean Society; notes on composition and conditions of publication. Impatient to see "Linnean Transactions" vol 1. Pleased with Smith's "Spicilegium botanicum"; hopes the text will soon follow. Observes that "Spicilegium" and "English botany", by sharing same subject of mistaken or ill-figured scarce English plants, interfere with each other; favours "Spicilegium" but hopes "English botany" will not stop. Hopes that reports of [William] Curtis being almost bankrupt and forced to give up his Brompton garden are untrue.
Appreciates Smith's reasons for not engraving 'Lycoperdon coliforme' but maintains that whilst [James] Dickson's figure is very good [James] Sowerby's is also good enough for a subject; asks Smith to compare figure [of 'Lycoperdon coliforme'] in Batsch. [William] Withering wishes to join the Linnean Society. Convinced review of [John] Berkenhout's [(1726-1791), physician and naturalist] "Manual" in the "Analytical Review" was Smith's. On [Edmund] Burke [(1730-1797), politician]: "what must they be who pin their faith on the reveries of a madman"; rumoured his new book is on the British constitution, doubts it will receive the same enthusiasm as his first book. [Robert] Stone [(c 1751-1829), botanist] was disappointed by his trip to London. Has 50 specimens each of 'Carex strigosa' and 'Cinerania alpina' for [James] Dickson, latter gathered on Gogamog hills near Cambridge [for Dickson's "dried plants"].