 He acquired several hundred books, often on scientific and technical subjects; collected and described medicinal plants and other botanical specimens; and kept a detailed weather record for 34 years.He sent a detailed package to the wealthy colonial writer, Edward Long, containing these observations, but Long never acknowledged receipt in any of his writings, though they can be found among Long's unpublished manuscripts in the British Museum.The gardens at Breadnut Island were considered among the finest in western Jamaica before they were ruined in the hurricane of October 1780.