Text Online
From:
Alfred Russel Wallace
To:
Alfred Newton
Date:
22 August 1886
Source of text:
Cambridge University Library: Add. 9839/1W/127
Summary:
No summary available.
Contributor:
Alfred Russel Wallace Correspondence Project
Showing 141–160 of 470 items
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Sea voyage from England, a week of rough weather and seasickness followed by five days of calm; ships food; passengers, one American an accomplished comic actor and singer; charades, concerts and deck quoits; chess with ships doctor and an American passenger; New York harbour, delay at customs, Mr Browne not there to meet him; hotel recommended by Mr Wood, hotel rooms and food; meeting with Mr Browne and transfer to his house; Mrs Browne; meeting with Mayoral candidate Mr George; visit to Central Park; plans to go to Boston on Thursday; Statue of Liberty very fine.
Sea voyage from England, a week of rough weather and seasickness followed by five days of calm; ships food; passengers, one the brother of a pupil at William's school, Cranleigh, William can tell him that his brother was not seasick and has a good appetite; charades, concerts, deck quoits and chess on board; description of Statue of Liberty, New York harbour and ships, with small ink sketch of a paddle steamer; visit to Central Park with Mr Browne; autumn colours; country between New York and Boston, painted wooden houses like toys; Boston hotel and food; has telegraphed family at Hurst, will write to Violet next week.
His first public lecture, rehearsals at Loughton and Farncombe useful, cut sections following advice of Mr Marshall, enclosing a newspaper and press cuttings (not present), report on lecture brief because today is election day; tour along Hudson and to West Point Military college with Mr Browne, spectacular scenery including basalt cliffs "The Palisades" along the river (with ink sketch of cliffs with a sailing boat on the river below); colourful autumn foliage; details of hotel food including "shaker apple-sauce"; tram cars in Boston; meeting with Spiritualist doctor Nichols, invited to visit; plans to visit botanist Asa Gray at Cambridge tomorrow; discovery of a chess club and plans to play.
Lack of news from her; weather; good audiences at the four lectures so far given; portrait artist Mrs Noa; unexpected meeting with Mr and Mrs Mirlees visiting the site of their son's death with their daughter; Dr Holmes the "one-hoss-shay" man at dinner; meeting arranged with a lady spiritualist; any news of letting of house at Godlaming; requests Annie to send photos of ruined temples of Java given to ARW by Mr Woodbury, wants to compare with models and photos of similarly decorated Mexican temples at Cambridge (Massachusetts) museum; American museums the finest in the world; plans to go to Baltimore and Washington with a return to Boston in between; opinion of ARW's agent Mr Williams of earlier lecturer Mr Wood and his possible effect on ARW's potential audience; Harvard College celebration.
Lack of mail from England; success of his lectures at the Lowell Institute (Boston); returned today from visit to Williamstown, stayed with resident of College, gave two lectures, visited waterfall with Professor of Natural History, sending roots of a Lonchitis (fern) to Annie and seeds of a gentian (some for Miss Jekyll) to Mitten; any news of letting of house at Godalming; plans to be in Baltimore November 30 to December 10, contact at Peabody Institute; PS letter from his wife Annie posted 13 days ago just arrived.
Receipt of her letter after a month without news; visit to Williamstown, sending plants of fern Polystichum acrostichoides growing near a waterfall there and some moth cocoons for son William, moths should emerge in spring, instructions for care; stay with Dr Carter, President of the (Williamstown) College, and his daughter, invitation to return to view spring flowers; orchids including Cypripedum spectabile common; has sent gentian seeds to her papa (William Mitten); fears for his voice as has a cold, will wear respirator whenever going out, to travel 100 miles to lecture tomorrow; people becoming "oppressively kind and respectful.".
A séance at which he observed the ghosts of an Indian man and a baby; travel by sleeping-car from Baltimore; white and black populations in Boston and Baltimore.
Visit to Prof Morse at Salem, Morse's Japanese artefacts and books, his 15 year old son's weekly natural history club meetings and collections of flints, shells and insects; visit to Prof Marsh at Newhaven Connecticut, his fossil collection including great animal skulls and skeletons; explosion of rotten ostrich egg in Marsh's museum (Peabody Museum, Yale); ARW's lecture to ladies' college at Poughkeepsie; route of travel to Baltimore via New York. Newhaven landscape; Prof. Marsh's 10 acre grounds and house of his own design with octagonal sitting room and rooms displaying china and artefacts including American Indian scalps and heads of animals shot by Marsh; Marsh's travels in the Rocky Mountains; Baltimore park, streets and buildings; Maryland a Slave state before the war, many people black, antics of waiters in hotels.
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