Profession: agricultural reformer

The energetic Young’s importance lies in his highly accessible writings and his promotion of progressive agricultural techniques. His wide circle of correspondents (in Britain, Europe and N. America) included Haller, Boswell, Malthus and Davy, not to mention George Washington. Coke and Bentham contributed articles. Priestley helped with his experiments with plants, while Banks was a sheep-breeding neighbour and friend. In France he visited Lavoisier and Paulze, and stayed with Guyton. The Burneys were lifelong friends, while Wilberforce became close later in life. Johnson advised against publishing a journal, and Carnot sent him the French edition of his works.