ALSTON, Charles, M.D., a botanical and medical writer, was born in the west of Scotland in the year 1683. He began his studies at the university of Glasgow; and on the death of his father, prosecuted them under the patronage of the Duchess of Hamilton. After studying at Leyden under Boerhaave, along with Alexander Monro (1716— 19), he returned to Edinburgh, and shared with Monro, Rutherford, Sinclair, and Plummer, the honour of laying the foundation of the renowned school of medicine there. He lectured on botany and materia medica with increasing reputation till his death in November 1760. He was a man of great ability, and an assiduous student of science. His most valuable work is his Lectures on Materia Medica, 2 vols., 1770.