Phytologia(December 1993)75(6):417-421. JAIME HINTON: LETTER FROM A RABID PLANT COLLECTORIN MEXICO BillieL. Turner DepartmentofBotany, UniversityofTexas, Austin,Texas 78713 U.S.A. ABSTRACT Excerpts ofaletter fromJaime Hinton to B.L. Turner are repro- ducedtoillustratesomerecentplant collectingexperiencesinMexico. KEYWORDS: Mexico,plant collecting,Hinton The literature is replete with accounts ofearly plant collectors in North America, especially Mexico, along with their trials and tribulations {e.g., Berlandier 1805-1851; Seemann 1825-1871; Pringle 1838-1911; etc.). Indeed, George B. Hinton(1882-1943), thefatherofJaimeHintonwhoseexploits are touted here, was a renowned collectorofMexican plants; much ofthe senior Hinton'sactivityhasbeenchronicledbyHinton&Rzedowski(1972;J. Arnold Arb. 53:141-181). These early Mexican collectors were an unusual breed, often risking (and sometimeslosing!) theirlivesin thehopeorrealization that their discoveries inthefieldmightenrichallofbotanicalscience,tosaynothingofthelong-time legacyoftheirexploits,resultingeponymy,orwhatever. Inthosebygonedays when practically every plant collection stood at least a fifty-fifty chance of being undescribed, theimpetus for collectingin remote, previously unvisited areas, musthavebeenirresistibleto many,ifnot most. Butwhataboutmoderncollectors? Havetheyoutlivedtheperilsofcollect- ing, the sense adventureand discovery that accompanies the field workeron asortieto someout-of-the-way site (albeit only 10-50 kilometersalong adirt road from some paved major highway)? Obviously not, tojudge by a recent letter written to me by Jsume Hinton,giving an account ofhis and his son's attempt tocollectintheremotemountainous regionsofNuevoLeon, Mexico. Onemightarguethat "thehunt"ofpresentdaycollectorshasneverbeenmore exciting,simplybecausewhatisexpectedinthewayofnoveltiesisdrastically reduced. Thus therewardofdiscoveryis vastlyenhanced,not tomentionthe knowledge and senseofintellectualresponsibilitythat theeducated,environ- mentallyinformedcollectormustfeelashetreadsthefewremainingwilderness 417 PHYTOLOGIA 418 volume 75(6):417-421 December1993 areas looking for a last survivor ofman's pernicious onslaught upon pristine habitats, most of this brought on by the senseless rampant reproduction of mankindand theconsumptiveconsumerismthat accompaniessuchactivity,a consumptioneating at thewellsprings ofbiodiversityeverywhere. George Hinton, his son Jaime and his grandson George represent three generations of plant collectors in Mexico, all avid students of that nation's flora. Inevermetthedeceasedmemberofthistrio,butIknowpersonallyand correspond erratically with the second and third generations, both zealous collectors like their forefather George. Since this "introduction" is largely meanttoaccompanyexcerptsfromaletterwrittenbyJaime,Iwilldigresshere to attempt some encapsulation ofJaime Hinton's physiognomy, personality, character,and style. Jaime is a wiry, resilient man about 5 feet 10 inches tall with the gait of a western cowhand, what with his certain, unobtrusive, strides and his ambience ofbelonging to his particular territory. A Mexican citizen, but of Britishparents, green-eyed and greying at the temples,hefirst walked up to mewearingalargeTarascansombreroandawispofsmile,extendinghishand, "Prof.Turner,Iassume,"eyeingmynewlymarriedquitelovelywifeGayle(25 yearsormoreyoungerthaneitherofus)asifshemightbearemarkableflower to be plucked precariously off some Mexican bluff given the odd discovery, wherever. Good sensibleman, Ithought,excellenttastes. And,later,settling downashisguestatRanchoAguililla,1marveledathisconversationalabilities about plants, architecture, peoples, commerce, and world affairs. He was a consummate scholar and litterateur,and as to bearing hereminded meright off as a protagonist from one of John Huston's westerns, "Treasure of the SierraMadre",perhaps. Whatever;Iwasenthralled. Latermywifesaid, "An attractiveman,Jaime",Iknewthenthat hisperipheralglanceswereproperly catalogued. The day after our first meeting Jaime insisted that the two of us take a short field trip to the mountains east ofCerro Potosi. He took offin his souped-up Fordat 100 plusmilesperhour. Truly,thefastest I'devertraveled in an automobile. When I tactfully complained at the speed ("What's the rush?") hegrinned,likeSocratesmighthave,giventhesameadmonitionfrom hisfriendsaboutsippingtoofasthisextractofhemlock,andresponded "Hell, I can't wait to get in thefield, not much timeleft in the day", or something likethat,asifItoo werewrapped upinhisprovocativeenthusiasm. Anyway, he slowed down to 95 or so for the rest ofthe paved road, then down to 50 on dirt,and finally lurched to astop high up in the hills along an overgrown semitropical gully, taking off upslope like a botanist bewildered, collecting what was in flower or fruit, commenting on environmental degradation, the catholic condition, confessions, confusions, whatever. Ten years older than me,perhaps, he was clearlybettershod with abetterbridle. Butontoasinglelongexcerpt,fromhismost recentletter,whichIrepro- Turner: Letterfrom J. Hinton 419 duceherewithhispermission. Andonlyoverprotestationsofasort: hewould not wish ostentation or advertisement. I responded, "Me neither, but future generations ought to know the tribulations ofplant collectors working in this part ofourcentury,how they knew absolutely that this was theirlast chance todosomethingmeaningfulfor mankind'sintellectualpursuits,that someone cared about what once was here,please ...." Herelentedand theexcerptsfollow. Dear Billie: June25, 1993 ....We'rehardatworkinElViejo,wherewenoticequiteafew species that werenew when wecollectedthem atother places not solongago. Butwestillhopetofindsomeinterestingthings,espe- ciallysomeofthoseintriguinglittleorchidsnamedbyCarolTodzia. Oncedone with ElViejo,thenIcan sellthefour-wheeldrive,and buy a delightful smooth-riding turbo. Would you believeit that ourroughridinggasguzzlingfourwheeldrivingsonofabitchgot stuck up at Agua Leon last week-fora mereeighteengalling hours. Fi- nally,throughslippingandskidding,thesobwoundupattheedge of an abyss, and I was sorely tempted to pull out the stones we had under the other three wheels, and let the sob go. However, we were out in the middleofno where, and the insurance people had recentlypaidmeforatotal-lossonafour-wheel-drivingRam- charger, so wefinally got a tackle with three woodsmen, and tied to a treetrunk actually pulled the damn truck sidewise from the abyss, untilIcould coast downto anicheand turn around. But I think it does an old fart good to have the shit scared out ofhim now and then, Billie, don't you agree? Afterwards, at least for a time,anordinarylifeseems bycomparison quiteenchanting. This last trip, from which I returned last night, showed me the colossal differenceadequatechains can makeon asob. (Four- wheeldrive=sob). Duetorampagingrainstorms,nolumbertrucks hadbeenonthemoveforelevendays,sothewholerangeofElViejo was my preserve. I hate meeting those trucks coming down the mountain,and havingto back up amileortwoon thesteepscary tracks before they can pass, with thousand-meter drops nudging me. Then,ifC'swith me,Iturnthetruckovertohimforawhile. Incidentally, before the rains began, while El Viejo was dry as tinder, a forest fire broke out on the summit, burned fifteen days,andconsumedthewholetopofthemountain (utterlyfreeof grazing) before it was finally put out by a hundred men, includ- ingFederalTroops. Supposedly,thefirewasstartedbylightening, which is often blamed for our forest fires. But as you well know, we don't haveforests like those ofOregon and British Columbia, PHYTOLOGIA volume 75(6):417-421 December 1993 where you have impossiblejumbles twenty-feet deep of new and ancient humus. Our forests are open, park-like, and I think they are almost always deliberately set on fire by one Miguelito, who invariably blames "un trueno" for the fire. As you may recall Mathtasella bupleurotdes was a dominant species on the heights ofElViejo,whichledmetosolemnlypromiseDr. Constancesome seed. But nowthat it'sutterlygone,what'11 Idoabout mysolemn promise? AstheJamaicanssay-sheeeeeit,man? Maybeyou could tell Dr. Constance that I didn't get his seed because I broke my ass,orsomething. (Kiddingaside,though, I'vefound afew Math- iasella's down below, and hope they'll produce some seed for Dr. Constance-iftheperipateticassholegoat don't beat metothem.) We'vebeen trying to get a permit to collect and send herbar- ium specimens abroad, and we seem, strangely enough, to be on theright track. Amongotherthings,Ipointedout totheLords of Inexorable Reason, that thereareonly about thirty botanical col- lectors in all Mexico. Assuming that each collector makes twenty trips a year, which is a lot, and assuming that at each trip each collector takes ten kilos of specimens, which is again a lot, (and without dwelling upon the fact that much collecting is a matter of pruning, which increases growth), we have 6,000 kilos of veg- etation, a mere six tons ofherbarium specimens a year. On the other hand, we have thirty-six million head of cattle, three mil- lion horses, and twenty-one million goats, sheep and pigs, for a totalofsixtymilliongrazing beasties. Assumingthat halfofthese are properly taken care ofin adequate grazing lands, which is a lot, and that the other halfare turned out to graze the national territory helterskelter, we have thirty million cows, horses, goats, sheep and pigs eatingnot forage crops but everythingin sight,in- cluding a coupe of tourists from Topeka, Kansas. Each of these miserablemangy starving shambling slutty slattern shabby shitty shiftlessshamefulsore-assedanimalsconsumes atleasttenkilosof vegetationperday,orayearly3,650 kilos,foratotalofahundred and eighty two million tons a year. Now, I ask you, Billie, with the aid ofyour trusty computer and other secret methods you no doubt have at your distinguished disposal, if you were a bush, a tree, a terrestrialorchid, oreven an untouchable German tourist, what doyou thinkwould do more damage to ourflora, thirtycol- lectors bringing home, along with a moldy pieceofpork crackling theygnawedat but didn't finish forlunchbecauseofthreebroken teeth, six selected tons ofherbarium specimens a year, or having thirtymillionmangy starvingshittyshabby shady screwlysheddy sore-assed cattle chomping their way,just prior to dropping dead Turner; Letterfrom J. Hinton 421 ofinanition, blind staggers, aids and Almyer's disease, chomping their way through a hundred and eighty-two million tons of as- sorted but unsustaining vegetation? Ican tellyou honestly, Billie, that at thisquestion,rhetoricalasitmightseemtoyouand Guy,I couldseeablushofshamemingledwithanewandcorruscatingen- lightenmentdawninguponthefacesofourhonorablydistinguished bureaucrats. Now, before you accuse me ofslovenly thinking, by acidly pointing out that I'veskipped both the not inconsiderable multitudesofdonkeys and mulesravagingour countryside,let me hasten to assure you, Billie, that I'm saving both donkeys and mules as weapons oflast resort. In case Ieverfind myselfon the losingendoftheargumentativestick,supposing someenlightened bureaucrat weretoadvanceadisquisitiontotheeffectthat botan- ical collectors consume not ten but ten thousand kilos a trip, I could providentially throw the donkeys and mules into the gap, and still come out a winner of the scrap. But where would you placetheemphasis? Withthesixtonsofherbariumspecimenswe discriminatingmortals collecteachyear,or with thehundred and eighty-twomilliontons devoured byourwretchedscurvyscroung- ingscurrilousshittycattle? Putastarvingcowintoamixedforest, and what chanceofsurvivaldoes anythinglowerthanatreehave? Offsome trees, they'lleven eat offthe bark, girdling the trees as theydieofhunger Kindest personal regards toyou both. Jaime