Letter from Manasseh Cutler to Johann Reinhold Forster, November 24, 1786

Ipswich, State of the Massachusetts, Nov. 24 1786 Sir,

Your extensive knowledge in natural history, which has so justly established your character [inserted] amongst the first [end inserted] in the literary world, has [crosssed out] made [end crossed out] induced me [inserted] to [end inserted] solicit ye honor & advantages of your correspondence. It will, possibly, be agreeable to you to receive accounts, &, perhaps, specimens of such plants & animals of the northern States in America as have not been described. We are principally indebted to Foreigners for the discriptions that have been given of our natural productions, who, from ye shortness of ye time they [coninu- ?] -ed here, had it not in their power to explore the various parts of so extensive a country. Many of our plants and animals have escaped their notice, & remain to be described. The vastly extended tracts of uncultivated plants in every parallel of latitude in the United States, open an extensive field for the researches of ye botanist, & still afford a favourable opportunity for distinguishing, with no small degree of accuracy, exotic plants from those which are indigenous.

Botany and Zoology have employed my leisure hours for several years past, &, among other [?inquires?], have endeavour-ed for ascertain, in particular, ye plants used by ye native Indians for medical or ceremonial purposes. It will give me pleasure to make you any communications [inserted] in my power which [end inserted] you shall please to request. I shall, likewise, wish to be informed with respect to several plants in your country, & to be favored with other information in natural history. My friend W. Vaughan of Philidelphia, from his personal acquaintance with you, has encouraged me to hope ye proposal, which he is so obliging as to introduce, will meet your approbation. He has requested a botanical paper, published in the I Vol. of the Memoirs of the American Academy [inserted] of Arts and Sciences [end inserted] or your perusal. It was an hasty production, which I was induced to communicate to that society, rather from the solicitation of some of my friends, than from my own inclination. Certain local circumstances led me to adopt a method, which, otherwise, I should not have chosen; particularly with respect to the plants, which are not arranged under any of the genera of Linneaus, or with regard to trivial names. In another paper, which I shall shortly communicate to that Society I have been pursued a different mode, & corrected such mistakes, in this paper, as I have been able to discover. My principal intention was to give a general idea of ye native vegetable productions of this part of America, and to convince my country men among whom this science has been much neglected, that botanical inquiries are not useless speculations.

Prof [illegible] Foster

I have the honor to be, with ye greatest respect. Sir, your most obedient honorable Servent, Manaseh Cutler

Copy

J. Rheinolds Foster Professor in L'Universite of Halle near Magdebourg in Prussia

(In pencil: Not in Dr. Cutler's Life)

This page is blank