​Howitt, William, the well-known author, was born at Heanor, Derbyshire, in 1795, and was educated at the Quakers' School at Ackworth, Yorkshire. He married, in 1823, Miss Mary Botham; and, after a successful career of joint authorship, in 1852 visited Australia, where his brother, Dr. Godfrey Howitt, was practising with great success as a physician in Melbourne. He returned to England in 1854, and, as the result of his tour, published "Land, Labour and Gold," "Letters on Transportation," and "The History of Discovery in Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand." Mr. Howitt died at Rome on March 3rd, 1879.