Matthew, Patrick

On Naval Timber and Arboriculture; with critical notes on authors who have recently treated the subject of Planting... Edinburgh: Adam Black, and London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, 1831



8vo (8 7/8 x 5 3/8 in.; 225 x 136 mm, uncut). 8 pages of advertisements, half-title, text diagrams; occasional light primarily marginal foxing and spotting, wormtrack in front board extending into ads only. Original green textured cloth, printed paper label on spine, in a ["Honeyman"] red half-morocco slipcase; upper hinge loose, rubbed, corners bumped, label defective.

Robert B. and Marian S. Honeyman (bookplate, sale Sotheby's 12 May 1980, lot 2173)

Garrison-Morton 216.3; Norman 1457

First edition, "the first clear and complete anticipation of the Darwinian theory of evolution by natural selection" (Garrison-Morton).

Matthew (1790-1874) ran his family's estate of Gourdiehill in Scotland (between Perth and Dundee). In managing his orchard of apple and pear trees, he became familiar with the problems of timber forestry, and in 1831 he published the present work, focusing on how best to grow trees for the construction of the Royal Navy's warships. Matthew noted the long-term deleterious effect on the general quality of timber from culling only the trees of highest timber quality from forests. In an appendix to the book, he elaborated on how eugenic artificial selection—the elimination of trees of poor timber quality—could be used to improve timber quality, and even create new varieties of trees (the principle is also discussed in the main body of the work, pages 307-308). He extrapolated from this what is today recognized as a description of natural selection. Although his book was reviewed in several contemporary periodicals, the significance of Matthew's insight was overlooked by his readers, as it was forgotten for nearly three decades. In 1860, Matthew read a review of Darwin's Origin of Species in the Gardeners' Chronicle, including its description of the principle of natural selection. This prompted him to write a letter to the publication, calling attention to his earlier work and its theory. Darwin freely acknowledged Matthews' anticipation of his theory, both in the Gardener's Chronicle and in later editions of the Origin.