A Naturalist in Western China with Vasculum, Camera and Gun. Being Some Account of Eleven Years' Travel. 2 vols. 2011. (Cambridge Library Collection, Life Sciences). 1 map illus. figs. 750 p. gr8vo. Paper bd.

Errnest Henry Wilson (1876-1930) was introduced to China in 1899 whenhe was sent there by horticulturalist Henry Veitch (1840-1924) tocollect the seed of the handkerchief tree, Davidia involucrata, forpropagation in Britain. Subsequent trips saw the author bringin backhundreds of seed samples and plant collections, introducing manyChinese plants to Europe and North America. He wrote extensively abouthis travels in China, this work was published in 1913. Although much ofthe text is concerned with plant life, the author also givesa great deal of attention to the wider landscape around him. In addition, the author took a camera, and these volumes contain photographs of parts of China rarely seen by Europeans in the earlytwentieth century. In volume 1 he discusses his journey through Chinaand in Volume 2 describes the Chinese use of plants in medicine andagriculture.