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A History of Scientific Societies in Early Nineteenth Century Cape Town, 1824-1835

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A History of Scientific Societies in Early Nineteenth Century Cape Town, 1824-1835 “Snug Little Coteries”: A History of Scientific Societies in Early Nineteenth Century Cape Town, 1824-1835 Leigh Davin Bregman University College London Doctor of Philosophy UMI Number: U6026B4 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U602634 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract This thesis provides an account of four scientific societies in Cape Town in the early nineteenth century. The societies are the ‘first1 South African Literary Society (proposed and suppressed in 1824), the ‘second1 South African Literary Society (established in 1829), South African Institution (also established in 1829) and the South African Literary and Scientific Institution (formed from a merger of the previous two organisations in 1832). Before 1824, there had been no scientific societies in the Cape. After the decline of the Literary and Scientific Institution in the late 1830s, the colony did not support another general scientific society until the 1870s. This study links the establishment of scientific societies to the temporary ascendancy of British liberal humanitarianism in the late 1820s and early 1830s in the Cape and to changes in the organisational and structure of British science. The two Literary Societies and the two Institutions represented different scientific traditions in the colony. The Literary Societies were established by the radical Scottish newspaper editor John Fairbaim as part of an attempt to create a liberal political movement in the colony. They represented the interests of Cape Town’s emerging middle class and were led by the city’s professionals. The two Institutions emerged from the activities of the Scottish Army surgeon and naturalist Dr. Andrew Smith. He established several organisations at the Cape to further his career within the British Army’s Medical Service. The city’s official and Army elite were closely affiliated with the Institutions. Whereas Fairbaim was largely reacting to domestic political changes, Smith was reacting to the changing structure and opportunities of British science. This study reveals that science served diverse technical, professional and ideological ends at the Cape and that as a result it enjoyed widespread interest. 2 Table of Contents Abstract 2 Table of Contents 3 Acknowledgements 5 List of Abbreviations 6 List of Tables 7 Lists of Charts 8 Chapter 1: introduction The Institutionalisation of Science in Cape Town, 1824-1835 10 Chapter 2: The First South African Literary Society, 1824 2.1 Introduction 33 2.2 Previous Accounts of the First South African Literary Society 34 2.3 The Background to the Events of 1824 39 2.4 The Arrival of Pringle and Fairbaim 42 2.5 The Free Press Debate 45 2.6 The Attempted Establishment of the First South African Literary Society 49 2.7 Fairbairn’s Conception of Science 58 2.8 Membership of the First South African Literary Society 62 2.9 Conclusion 66 Chapter 3: The Second South African Literary Society, 1829-1832 3.1 Introduction 68 3.2 The Colony Between 1824 and 1829 69 3.3 The Establishment of the Second South African Literary Society 76 3.4 The Second South African Literary Society as a Challenge to the Government’s Monopoly on Science 80 3.5 Knowledge, Freedom and the 1800 Proclamation Respecting Clubs and Societies 83 3.6 The Second South African Literary Society and the Creation of a Middle Class Political Movement 90 3.7 The Activities of the Second South African Literary Society 94 3.8 The Membership of the Second South African Literary Society 104 3.9 Conclusion 113 Chapter 4: The South African Institution, 1829-1832 4.1 Introduction 116 4.2 Dr. Andrew Smith 118 4.3 Smith in Cape Town and the Museum and Library, 1825-1828 121 4.4. Smith and Scientific Societies in Cape Town, 1825-1828 128 4.5 Smith’s Other Men of Science in Cape Town 133 4.6 The Immediate Background to the Establishment of the South African Institution, Early to Mid-1829 140 4.7 The Establishment of the South African Institution, Mid-1829 142 4.8 The Monthly Meetings of the South African Institution and the Establishment of the South African Quarterly Journal 145 3 4.9 Using the South African Institution for Personal Ends 151 4.10 Miscellaneous Activities of the South African Institution 155 4.11 The South African Institution and its Conception of Science 154 4.12 The Membership of the South African Institution 161 4.13 Conclusion 166 Chapter 5: The South African Literary and Scientific Institution, 1832-1835 5.1 Introduction 169 5.2 Locating the South African Literary and Scientific Institution in Cape Society 171 5.3 The Gradual Collapse of the Second South African Literary Society and South African Institution, 1831 -1832 176 5.4 The Merger of the Second South African Literary Society and the South African Institution 180 5.5 More of the Same: The Activities of the South African Literary and Scientific Institution, 1832-1835 185 5.6 The Most Important Venture: Launching the Association for the Exploration of Southern Africa 190 5.7 Something new: Sir John Herschel and the South African Literary and Scientific Institution 202 5.8 The Membership of the South African Literary and Scientific Institution 216 5.9 Conclusion 220 Chapter 6: Conclusion 6.1 The Institutionalisation of Science After 1835 224 6.2 Science in Cape Town, 1824-1835 230 Appendices Appendix A Methodological Aspects of the Prosopographical Study 244 Appendix B Tables 246 Appendix C Charts 258 Appendix D Membership of the First South African Literary Society 281 Appendix E Membership of the Second South African Literary Society 283 Appendix F Membership of the South African Institution 287 Appendix G Membership of the South African Literary and Scientific Institution 290 Bibliography 284 4 Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been possible without the support, advice and guidance of my supervisors, Joe Cain and Janet Browne. I would also like to thank the Department of Science and Technology Studies, at UCL, for providing a wonderful environment for my research and writing. I would particularly like to thank Hasok Chang and Beck Hurst. The Centre for African Studies, at the University of Cape Town, granted me a position as Visiting Research Associate in 2002. This support made my time in Cape Town far more enjoyable and productive. A number of other people have either commented on the thesis, the research or provided information. I would like to thank, in alphabetical order: Terence Banks, Dan Bregman, Sabine Clark, Harriet Deacon, Raquel Delgado Moreira, Saul Dubow, John Heard, Rebekah Higgit, Keith Hunt, Michael Javet, Louise Jarvis, Jenny Marie, Miquel Molina, Elizabeth Green Musselman, Dawn Nell, Michael Palmer, Howard Philips, John Waller, Brian Warner and Andrew Warwick. In addition I would like to thank the staff of the libraries and archives at University College London, the Wellcome Library for the History and Understanding of Medicine, the British Library, the University of Cape Town and the South African National Archives (Cape Town). I would especially like to thank those at the National Library of South Africa (Cape Town). My friends and family have gone out of their way to support me during my studies. My mother would have been my greatest supporter, and although she died long before I started my Ph.D., she always knew that something like this would eventually happen. This thesis is dedicated to her memory. Finally, I would like to thank the University of the Witwatersrand, Annel Trust, and the Overseas Research Students Awards Scheme for financially supporting this project. London, September 2003 5 List of Abbreviations Organisations 1st SALS the first South African Literary Society 2nd SALS the second South African Literary Society SAI the South African Institution LSI the South African Literary and Scientific Institution SAMS the South African Medical Society Sources c.o. Colonial Office, South African National Archives (Cape Town) DNB Dictionary of National Biography DSAB Dictionary of South African Biography NLSA National Library of South Africa (Cape Town) Advertiser South African Commercial Advertiser Cape Almanac African Calendar and Directory Chronicle South African Chronicle and Mercantile Advertiser Cape Town Gazette Cape Town Gazette and Commercial Advertiser Literary Gazette Cape of Good Hope Literary Gazette Journal South African Journal Quarterly Journal South African Quarterly Journal 6 List of Tables Table 3.1 Initial, February 1829, Committee of the Second South African Literary Society 246 Table 3.2 Members of the Second South African Literary Society with Known Scientific and Literary Interests 247 Table 4.1 The Committee of the South African Public Library In mid-1824 248 Table 4.2 The Committee of the South African Public Library in at the end of 1825 249 Table 4.3 Signatories to the 22nd of July, 1825, Proposal for a Cape of Good Hope Literary and Philosophical Society 250 Table 4.4 The Committee of the Cape of Good Hope Horticultural Society for 1828 251 Table 4.5 The Committee
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