Casimiro Gomez de Ortega tells Linnaeus that his uncle, José Ortega, has died. Owing to grief he has not been able to write until now. Having returned from Italy, he writes the present letter to Linnaeus.
On 31 March José Quer y Martinez, professor of the Royal Botanical Garden, died. Ortega would like to succeed him. There is hope that he will achieve this, if Linnaeus recommends him to Jeronimo, marquis of Grimaldi, once a legate in Sweden, and now the royal secretary of the Spanish King [Carlos III de Borbón].
Ortega has studied botany for five years in Bologna under Giuseppe Monti. He has also inherited a number of books from his uncle. He is an adherent of Linnaeus’s system and has begun to investigate the plants of Spain; he adorns his work with plants growing around Madrid.
On the King’s order and without payment, Ortega is arranging Pehr Löfling’s manuscripts and illustrations, adumbrated by his friends; Ortega prepares to publish an edition. There is lack of students of botany in Spain. Ortega entreats Linnaeus to write to Grimaldi and recommend him as a professor of botany and also to commend an edition of Löfling’s work.
P. S. Daniel Scheidenburg has translated the Swedish preface of Iter Hispanicum, eller resa til spanska länderna uti Europa och America] that Linnaeus has published.