BANKS, John, a dramatic writer, was bred to the law, and belonged to the society of Gray’s Inn; but this profession not suiting his natural disposition, he quitted it for the service of the muses. His turn led him entirely to tragedy, in which his merit is of a peculiar kind; for at the same time that his language must be confessed to be extremely unpoetical, his numbers uncouth and unharmonious, his characters very far from being strongly marked or distinguished, and his episodes extremely irregular, yet it is impossible to avoid being deeply affected by the representation, and even by the reading, of his tragic pieces. These are, 1. Albion Queens. 2. Cyrus the Great.

3. Destruction of Troy. 4. Innocent Usurper. 5. Island Queens, which is only the Albion Queens altered. 6. Rival Kings. 7. Virtue Betrayed. 8. Unhappy Favourite. The Albion Queens was rejected by the managers in 1684, but was acted by Queen Anne’s command in 1706. Neither the time of the birth nor that of the death of this author is ascertained. His remains, however, he interred in the church of St James’s, Westminster.

Banks, Sir Joseph, for upwards of forty years the distinguished president of the Royal Society of London, was born in Argyle Street, London, on the 13th of February 1743. He was the only son of Mr William Banks, a gentleman of considerable landed property, whose father had derived his fortune principally from successful practice as a physician in Lincolnshire, who had, on one occasion, been sheriff of that county, and had for some years represented Peterborough in parliament. The family was [7:4:349]originally Swedish, though it had for several generations been settled in England.

Very few particulars are known respecting the early life of Mr Banks, which was passed principally at Revesby hall the seat of his father, in Lincolnshire. His education was for some years intrusted to a private tutor. He was afterwards sent to Harrow school, and thence was removed to Christ’s College, Oxford. He there made considerable proficiency in classical knowledge, but evinced at the same time a very decided predilection for the pursuits of natural history. Botany, in particular, was the favourite occupation of his leisure hours. The character of Linnaeus excited his admiration; and the fame of that illustrious naturalist presenting itself to his youthful mind as the noblest object of emulation, he devoted himself with enthusiastic ardour and perseverance to the cultivation of that fascinating science. An anecdote is told of his being, on one occasion, so intent in exploring ditches and secluded spots in search of rare plants, as to have excited the suspicions of some countrymen, who, conceiving that he could have no innocent design, surprised him one day, while he lay asleep, exhausted with fatigue, and brought him as a thief before a magistrate, by whom, however, he was, after a strict investigation, soon liberated; but the incident occasioned much amusement in the neighbourhood.

At the age of eighteen he lost his father, and thus succeeded to an ample inheritance at a period of life when the attractions of pleasure too often operate with irresistible force. His attachments to science and to intellectual enjoyments were fortunately sufficiently powerful to enable him to resist the fascination; and the noble bent of his ambition was happily fostered by the judicious conduct of his mother, who added the effectual motive of her encouragement, and gave the best direction to his youthful energy.

Soon after the death of her husband, Mrs Banks removed with her family, consisting of her son and daughter, from Lincolnshire, and was induced to fix her residence at Chelsea, as a spot affording peculiar advantages for the pursuit of botany, in consequence of the numerous gardens in the vicinity, appropriated to the cultivation of curious plants of every description. The garden of Sir Hans Sloane, bequeathed by him to the company of apothecaries of London, was among the number; and this, as well as the Chelsea Botanic Garden, and various nursery grounds in the neighbourhood, furnished our student with abundance of objects of research.

It was about this period that he formed an acquaintance with Lord Sandwich, contracted while enjoying together the amusement of fishing, of which they were both equally fond. To the friendship of this nobleman, afterwards appointed first lord of the admiralty, Mr Banks was, in the course of his life, indebted for essential aid in the furtherance of his numerous projects for the advancement of scientific knowledge. Mr Banks was no sooner of age than he quitted the university, and undertook a voyage to Newfoundland and the Labrador coast, for the purpose of exploring the botany of those unfrequented regions, and brought home from thence valuable collections, not merely of plants, but also of insects and other natural productions. Subsequently, through the interest of Lord Sandwich, then at the head of the admiralty, he obtained from government an appointment in the ship commanded by the great navigator Captain Cook, who had been commissioned to observe the transit of Venus in the Pacific Ocean, and to fulfil also the usual objects of a general voyage of discovery. The preparations made by Mr Banks for turning to the best account the opportunities that might present themselves during the voyage were commensu-

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rate with the magnitude of the undertaking. He provided himself with the best instruments for making all kinds of observations, and for preserving specimens of natural history. He prevailed upon Dr Solander, a distinguished pupil of Linnaeus, who had lately become resident in England, and was zealously devoted to the pursuits of science, to become his associate in this enterprise. He engaged draftsmen and painters to delineate all objects of interest that did not admit of being transported or preserved; and also other persons whose services might in various ways be wanted in the execution of his designs.

The time we are speaking of forms a remarkable epoch in the history of science, as being that in which several contemporaneous expeditions for the promotion of scientific knowledge were made by the direction of the leading sovereigns of Europe. The one intrusted to Captain Cook had for its object the alliance of navigation with astronomy, from which the nation has since reaped such important advantages. This was also the time when the empress Catharine of Russia ordered extensive expeditions in Siberia under the direction of the celebrated Pallas, the primary object of which was also the observation of the transit of Venus in that part of the world, but which gave occasion to the great advancement of natural history, and the acquisition of magnificent collections of specimens. It was also at this period that Bougainville was, by command of Louis XV., circumnavigating the globe, accompanied by Commerson, to whom science is indebted for such rich accessions of knowledge. But not the least among the valuable fruits of these researches has been the lesson they have imparted to mankind, how much more imperishable is the glory that redounds to princes and to nations from such conquests in the unexplored regions of science, than from the unprincipled extensions of empire or the barbarous triumphs of the sw ord.

The voyages of Captain Cook, and the interesting discoveries that accrued from them, have so long been justly esteemed an important accession to the fame of our country, that a portion of that reputation must be allowed to descend to all those whose exertions contributed to their success. Of this merit a considerable share must be adjudged to Mr Banks, who brought home a splendid collection of specimens, more particularly from Otaheite, New Zealand, and Australia.

This voyage occupied three years of the life of Banks; and no sooner was he returned from it than, with unabated ardour, we find him eager to undertake another of equal extent. He had engaged his passage in the second expedition under Captain Cook, and had made all the necessary preparations for embarking, when he was suddenly obliged to relinquish his design in consequence of the conduct of Sir Hugh Palliser, who, he discovered, had been using all his influence with the admiralty to thwart his views, and frustrate the accomplishment of all his objects. It is due to the memory of Cook to state, that he took no part in this intrigue, but expressed his uniform friendship for Banks, and his deep regret at being deprived of his able co-operation. Disappointed in his hopes, Mr Banks immediately directed his efforts to the equipment of a ship at his own expense; and taking with him Dr Solander, Dr Lind, De Troil, a Swedish naturalist, and others, who were to have been his companions in the second expedition with Captain Cook, he sailed for Iceland in July 1772; and after exploring, during two months, that interesting region of volcanoes, he returned enriched with valuable specimens and still more valuable information respecting its productions.

The island of Staffa, the existence of which was at that period scarcely known beyond the immediate neighbourhood, [7:4:350]was visited by our travellers on their way to Iceland, and its extraordinary groups of basaltic columns attracted much of their attention. The account of these, together with the drawings taken on the spot, was liberally communicated by Mr Banks to Pennant, for publication among his works. The information relating to Iceland was given to the world by M. de Troil, who was afterwards appointed bishop of Linkioping.

But a great part of the knowledge resulting from the various travels of Mr Banks was communicated by him, from time to time, in papers to the Royal Society of London, of which he had been elected a fellow in the year 1766, anti admitted in the following year, previous to his voyage with Captain Cook. He was a constant attendant on the meetings of that society, and took a very active part in its proceedings. On the resignation of Sir John Pringle, in the year 1778, Mr Banks was elected president of the Royal Society, an honour which he continued to enjoy till his death. A fierce dispute having arisen respecting the superiority of pointed over blunt conductors for lightning, it would appear that Sir John Pringle had the ill fortune to differ in opinion from the men then in power at court, who, to flatter the prejudices of the sovereign, arrayed themselves in opposition to the discoveries of Franklin, which, emanating from America, were supposed to have necessarily a revolutionary character. It was in vain that the honest president of the Royal Society made an humble representation that the prerogatives of his office did not extend to the control of the laws of nature; superior influence compelled him to retire from a situation which he could not retain with honour amidst the angry passions called forth during these philosophical polemics. His successor was more fortunate, and enjoyed during his whole life the favour of the court; in proof of which the title of baronet was conferred upon him in the year 1781. In 1795 Sir Joseph Banks obtained also from his majesty the order of the bath; and in 1797 he was appointed a member of the privy council. It does not appear, however, that he mingled much in politics, though he occasionally gave his opinion, when consulted on such questions of public interest as involved subjects of science. But to the honour of Sir Joseph Banks it ought certainly to be recorded, that, whilst he was unremitting in his solicitude to retain the full influence he enjoyed with those in power, he never made that influence subservient to the purposes of a selfish ambition, and invariably exerted it for the promotion of scientific objects, and the encouragement of those who pursued them. He made the most generous use of his library and collections, which were always open to every inquirer of respectability. His ample fortune enabled him to supply pecuniary assistance to useful works and enterprises; and, what was often as effectually serviceable, he freely gave to those who sought it the benefit of his counsel and experience.

As proofs of the unreserved manner in which he communicated the scientific treasures he had amassed to those capable of making a proper use of them, many works on natural history may be mentioned which have been enriched by the information derived from these collections, and which even owe their existence to the encouragement thus afforded to their authors. It was by their aid that the celebrated Fabricius was enabled to prosecute his extensive entomological researches. Broussonnet availed himself largely of Sir Joseph Banks’s specimens of fishes for his work on ichthyology. Botanists, in particular, derived the greatest assistance from the stores of his herbarium. From this source it was that Gaertner obtained the most valuable materials for his excellent history of fruits and seeds. The admirable work of Mr Robert Brown, On the Plants of New Holland, was conducted under the immediate eye of Sir Joseph Banks, and with the aid of the materials derived from his collections.

Sir Joseph Banks evinced an anxiety to diffuse over each region of the globe the productions of other climates. Thus he brought into Europe the seeds of the plants of the South Sea Islands, as he had already distributed to the latter those of Europe. We are indebted to his exertions for many of the beautiful plants which adorn our gardens and shrubberies. The sugar-cane of Otaheite was by him transplanted into the colonies; and the breadfruit tree of the Pacific was introduced into the tropical soil of America, destined perhaps to repay in a future age to its inhabitants the benefits we ourselves have derived from the potato they formerly furnished. The flax brought from New Zealand, superior in many of its qualities to that of Europe, is among the presents he has made us. The black swan and the kangaroo are among the animals from Australia, for the introduction of which into this country we are indebted to Sir Joseph Banks.

The establishment of the British colony in New South Wales was one of the results of the expedition of Captain Cook, to which the exertions of Sir Joseph Banks mainly contributed; and who will venture to predict the important consequences this event may have on the future destinies of that vast continent of which it forms a part?

At the commencement of the American war the French king, Louis XV1., had issued general orders to his officers in all parts of the world, to offer no molestation to the vessels engaged in the expedition of discovery under Captain Cook, but, on the contrary, to furnish them with every requisite assistance in the prosecution of their objects. Sir Joseph Banks, in the spirit of generous reciprocity, exerted himself successfully to obtain, that a perpetual immunity from the evils of war for those engaged in scientific enterprises should be recognised, as it now is, as one of the laws of civilized warfare. This virtuous principle, which forms an honourable exception to the demoralizing tendency of national animosities, was adhered to in the case of the expedition of La Perouse, orders being sent by the British government, in time of war, to make every inquiry respecting the fate of that unfortunate navigator, and supply every aid that might be required, in case the survivors should be discovered. After the disastrous termination of the expedition under D’Entrecasteaux, the collection of Labillardière being captured and brought to England, Sir Joseph Banks exerted himself successfully to obtain its release and delivery, untouched, to the French government. His motive for abstaining from the inspection of its contents was, as he expressed in a letter to Jussieu, lest any part of that knowledge, to the acquisition of which so eminent a botanist had devoted the best years of his life, should become alienated from its rightful owner. On ten different occasions collections addressed to the National Museums of Paris, and captured by British privateers, were in like manner restored and forwarded to their proper destination.

Sir Joseph Banks continued to fill the exalted station of president of the Royal Society, the just reward of his ardent zeal and unwearied exertions in the cause of science, for a period of more than forty years; enjoying the correspondence and confidence of most of the distinguished men of learning of this and other nations. His name was enrolled amongst the associates of almost every academy and learned society in Europe. His house and his table were ever open for the reception and entertainment of the leading members of the Royal Society, and of foreigners eminent for their scientific attainments, with that spirit of liberality which is so conducive to the union of interests and co-operation of efforts requisite for the successful cultivation of knowledge. The want of such a [7:4:351]centre of union has often led to the destruction of that harmony which should ever characterize men engaged in a common pursuit, calculated to raise them above vulgar passions; and the want of such harmony has always proved hiHily detrimental to the interests of science.

β Notwithstanding the liberality that marked the conduct of Sir Joseph Banks in his intercourse with men of science of all countries, he had many bitter enemies; and his memory, soon after his death, was assailed by virulent invective. Yθt his name will ever be remembered with gratitude by the friends of science, whom he benefited while living, and for whose use he bequeathed to the British Museum his books and botanical collections, under the care of that most distinguished botanist Mr Robert Brown. It is, however, not a little singular that, among the whole of his bequests, there is not one in favour of that society over which he had presided for above forty years, and from his connection with which he derived so much of the lustre which encompassed him; it would almost seem, indeed, as if he wished to be forgotten by them, since there is not a single syllable in his will expressive of his own recollection of that society.

Sir Joseph Banks was married, but had no family. During many of the latter years of his life he was a great sufferer from the gout, which almost totally deprived him of the use of his feet and legs. He died on the 19th of March 1820, having attained the age of 77. He was succeeded in the chair of the Royal Society for the remainder of the year by Dr Wollaston, and, at the ensuing anniversary, by Sir Humphry Davy, names that will ever remain illustrious in the annals of science. The only authentic particulars that have been yet published respecting the life of Sir Joseph Banks are contained in the Eloge Historique by the Baron Cuvier, which was read to the Royal Academy of Sciences at Paris on the 2d of April 1821, and published in the fifth volume of the Memoirs of that academy. (γ.)