William Henry Harvey

thumb|He was a keen observer and a capital describer. William Henry Harvey, Fellow of the Royal Society FRS, Linnean Society of London FLS (5 February 1811 – 15 May 1866) was an Irish botanist and Phycology phycologist, known for his 5-volume work Phycologia Australica. Quotes The name Algae Algæ is assigned by botanists to a large group or natural class of Cryptogamic or flowerless plants, which form the principal and characteristic vegetation of the waters. The sea, in no climate from the Geographical pole poles to the equator, is altogether free from them, though they abound on some shores much more than on others, a subject which will come particularly under notice when we speak of the distribution of their several tribes. Species abound likewise in fresh water, whether running or stagnant, and in mineral springs. The strongly impregnated sulphureous streams of Italy,—the eternal snows of the Alps and arctic regions,—and the hot spring boiling springs of Iceland, have each their peculiar species ; and even chemical solutions, if long kept, produce Algae. Very few, comparatively, inhabit stations which are not submerged or exposed to the constant dripping of water; and, in all situations where they are found, great dampness, at least, is necessary to their production. Introduction A Manual of the British Algæ London John Van Voorst 1841 https://books.google.com/books?id=_O9hAAAAcAAJ&pg=PR6 v–lvii (quote from pp. vi–vii; text at archive.org) So long as Natural history Natural History was encumbered with its pseudo-classical incubus its votaries were few in number. The more it grew into a science founded on observation, the more it attracted popular attention. The writings of Linnæus, composed in a clear and elegant style, and offering a systematic arrangement such as all could readily understand, contributed more than those of any other naturalist to the spread of a taste for his favourite science. He was eminently a popular writer, and, no matter what criticism may now be passed on his system, it must be admitted that to it is greatly owing the rapidity with which the natural sciences advanced in public favour in the early part of last century. The Sea-side Book: Being an Introduction to the Natural History of the British Coasts 2nd John Van Voorst 1849 https://books.google.com/books?id=i1MEAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA3 3–4 (256 pages; 1st edition 1849; text at archive.org) Quotes about William Henry Harvey He was a keen observer and a capital describer. He investigated accurately, worked easily and readily with microscope, pencil, and pen, wrote perspicuously, and where the subject permitted, with captivating grace; affording, in his lighter productions, mere glimpses of the warm and poetical imagination, delicate humour, refined feeling, and sincere goodness which were charmingly revealed in intimate intercourse and correspondence, and which won the admiration and the love of all who knew him well. Handsome in person, gentle and fascinating in manners, genial and warm-hearted but of very retiring disposition, simple in his tastes and unaffectedly devout, it is not surprising that he attracted friends wherever he went, so that his death will be sensibly felt on every continent and in the islands of the sea. Asa Gray in Makers of British Botany https://www.gutenberg.org/files/46415/46415-h/46415-h.htm Project Gutenberg Cambridge University Press 1913 In 1853 Harvey started on a prolonged tour to the East; his route included Egypt, Ceylon, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, and sundry of the islands of the Pacific, and he returned ultimately by way of South America and Panama. The journey was originally undertaken in the interests of the herbarium and resulted in a large addition to its treasures. His extensive collections contained a huge mass of material, all of which was practically new. He took all available opportunities of exploring the Algae of the different coasts to which he had access and amassed such a wealth of material that the collection was unequalled by any other of the time. The use he made of it is shown by the great Phycologia Australica which occupied him for five years after his return. Joseph Reynolds Green, A History of Botany in the United Kingdom from the Earliest Times to the End of the 19th Century London J. M. Dent & Sons 1914 https://books.google.com/books?id=W9E-AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA440 (648 pages) External links Author:William Henry Harvey Category:1811 births Category:1866 deaths Category:Academics from Ireland Category:Biologists from Ireland Category:Botanists from Ireland Category:Curators Category:Fellows of the Royal Society Category:Non-fiction authors from Ireland