JDH writes to his sisters, Elizabeth [Bessy] & Mary [Mary Harriet] Hooker, describing the colony of Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania] & the town of Hobart. JDH explains the system of governance by military & civil power: a Lieutenant Governor & council subservient to Sydney, a General Officer to oversee the Army & Navy, & a Commissariat department to provide for the convicts. Describes the division of the island into districts governed by police constables & police magistrates. Describes the ships used to transport convicts, which he says are run strictly but with attention to order & health. Explains that convicts are given different duties depending on the severity of their crime with rewards or punishments depending on their behaviour. Those who aren't dangerous work in households as servants. Female convicts all work in factories. The system is vulnerable to uprisings & escapees. Escapees, known as bush rangers, often turn to murder, theft & cattle rustling. There are many colonial tails about the bush rangers, who are occasionally portrayed as romantic, popular figures like Robin Hood or Rob Roy but are mostly villains. The population has grown quickly & many of the emigrants have made their fortune by keeping sheep & buying & selling land. He describes the typical life of a poor emigrant, living in a hut with a convict servant & surviving on damper bread, kangaroo hash, salt pork, tea & sugar. He explains how they can become rich by clearing land & quickly increasing their livestock to the point they have excess to sell in rich markets such as Sydney, Port Philip, Adelaide, Swan River & New Zealand. They can then employ more people, such as a grubber to pull up tree stumps. It is also profitable to sell potatoes & wood. Shop keepers can make good money but are often 'ticket of leave' convicts & looked down on. Replies should be sent to JDH at Berkeley Sound, Falkland Islands. At the end, the letter bears a second sender address & date: Sydney, New South Wales, July 15 1841.

No summary available.

JDH congratulates his father, William Jackson Hooker, on his appointment as Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. He heard the news from Clowes & it was in the March papers. Has also heard that his sister, Mary Harriet, is still very ill. He speculates about the salary & housing arrangements for WJH & family at Kew & what will happen to [William Townsend] Aiton. Arnott & [Walter Hood] Fitch will assist WJH in the move from Glasgow. In consideration of WJH's new position JDH has asked [Ronald Campbell] Gunn to cultivate Tasmanian plants that could be sent to Kew. Gunn used to a have an amazing garden in Launceston. Mr Levy[?] has also offered to send Kew things from Port Jackson & new parts of the colony e.g. Moreton Bay, McQuarrie [Macquarie] harbour & the McLeay [Macleay] river, incl. live specimens of the moss; Dawsonia. Mr Bidwell, a merchant who has recently returned from a tour of the North Island of New Zealand, including ascent of the volcano Tongadido, has sent specimens from the expedition to Lindley & others. His specimens of Dawsonia compared to Gunn's & a figure in the MUSCI EXOTICA have made JDH wonder if there are 3 different species or not. JDH has met Captain King, who gave him a letter of introduction to [William] Colenso & told him all about [Allan] Cunningham's death. Clowes' health has improved & he plans to settle at Hunter River, he has been looked after by the McLeays. William Sharpe is engaged in horticulture & has laid out a garden of 25 acres full of Australian & East & West Indian plants growing alongside European species such as snowdrops & Jonquils. Fruits grow very well in Sydney, except for Gooseberries & Currants, as do palms, conifers & tropical Orchids. The 'Erebus' is leaving for Bay of Islands, from where JDH will write again. He does not expect to receive more mail until they reach the Falkland Islands in 8 months. He has a cabin filled with bottles & buckets of animals to work on.

JDH replies to letters from his father, William Jackson Hooker. JDH arrived at the Bay of Islands, [New Zealand] 18 Aug. At Port Jackson got 200 species incl. new Sclotheimia. Area is well known but JDH has found ferns & mosses new to Cunningham's flora. Collected animals from 400 fathoms, but no marine vegetation. In flower are: Vitex littoralis, Fuchsia excorticans & orchids incl. Pterostylis Banksii. Found a few lichens, fungi & seaweed. Met missionary, Colenso, through Captain King, they will collect Crytogammia. Describes landscape. Habitat wrong for Andraea, has found Trichostomum peridiatale, Neckera setosa & a Fissidens, looks for Dawsonia & Polytichium dendroides. Colenso will send live specimens incl. Hookeriae rotulata, pennata, quadrifaria & Leptostonum macrocarpona. Thanks Robb & Mitchell for letters. Hopes Thomson succeeds at the Calcutta Museum. Has few opportunities to botanize, is studying crustacea as a temp. alternative. Captain Ross has an excellent collection of marine zoology. Hopes that the findings of the expedition will be of scientific value & public interest. Next they go to Chatham Island, Falklands & the Cape. Hopes his sisters are well. Has concerns re. his Van Diemen's Land flora. Discusses spelling of VDL & name change to Tasmania. Points out errors in ICONES [PLANTARUM] re. Ranunc[ulus] pimpinellifolius & others. Mentions JOURNAL [OF BOTANY], Gardner's return, future plans, Arnott, completion of the Arctic Botany & 'Beechey's'. Compares Fitch's work in the GERENA FILICUM to Bauer's. Wants news from Athenaeum, Glasgow Association, Link & Klotzsch. Mentions Lindley's activities, Bentham's collections & Bagan at [Glasgow] University. JDH is sending a map & drawing in confidence. He stores collections in rum & tobacco casks. Has 20 bird skins, shells & insects for Maria. Describes a ball on the ships Erebus & Terror on Derwent [River], attended by John Franklin. Notes the Antarctica expedition has received less fanfare than Arctic ones.

JDH informs his father, William Jackson Hooker, that since last writing to the family through Captain [Francis] Beaufort he has been busy collecting in the Bay of Islands. His collection is rich in mosses & phaenogams, including some not in [Allan] Cunningham's flora. JDH has been on excursions with [William] Colenso, who is otherwise busy with printing & other missionary business. JDH has a mixed opinion of missionaries but likes Colenso. Colenso has given JDH some curiosities of New Zealand, incl. minerals & a paper nautilus. The HMS 'Erebus' will travel straight to the ice without stopping at Chatham Island. The last letters JDH received from England were on 1 Feb. JDH's letter will go via Sydney on the HMS 'Favourite' & he hopes for return letters when he is in the Falkland Islands. [Joseph] Dayman wrote to JDH from Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania] with news that the latest communication with [Joseph Henry] Kay' contained no news of the Hooker family. Lady [Jane] Franklin has written to inform Captain [James Clark] Ross that part of his journal & one of JDH's collections of plants were lost en route from Hobartown [Hobart], he hopes it is not the collection including illustrated notes from the Auckland or Cape [Verde] Islands, he suspects it is the Kerguelen Island plants & luckily he has duplicates of most, unlike Sir Stamford Raffles, [Robert] Brown or WJH who did not. JDH wonders how WJH's situation has changed since being appointed as Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew & what has become of his friend [G. A. Arnott Walker-] Arnott. JDH finds botanizing in New Zealand lonely & hopes his work is worth it. Mentions some distinctive species of New Zealand moss: a Polytrichum, a Hookeria that resembles H. cristata, a Phascum, a Splachnum, a Trematodon & a foliaceous species with similarities to Jungermannia.

JDH recounts his excursion to Tonglo Mountain, the plants observed & the collections made. Explains that cold, wet weather made many of his servants sick & unable to work. The most hard working were his Christian servant Clemanze & the Lepchas. Describes habits of Lepchas. Tonglo is 1000ft higher than JDH has been before, this was reflected in vegetation: Iris, Unciniae, 2 Arums, 2 dwarf Panax, Anagallis, Rannunculus, Aconite, Rhubarb, Thalictrum, Convallaria, above them the dwarf Bamboo forming a little jungle, Rosa, Lonicera, Holboellea, Vacciniae, Arbutus, Currant, Rubus, Daphne & Balanophora. Describes 3 new Rhododendrons & promises drawings & plants sent via Calcutta [Kolkata]. He is very keen to get them to Kew. Also collected: a Yew, scarlet Crategus, Rosa, Pyrus, Prunus, Pyrus, 3 Berberis, Wallich's Kadsura grandiflora & an epiphytic orchid. Describes new purple Magnolia. There was no grass & few ferns, lichens & mosses: Cryptogams poor in general. Got no seeds but will return. Has temperature readings for Lindley. Describes sojourn in Lama village, he stayed in the temple & observed the priests' rituals, then ate fermented barley from a woven bamboo bowl. Mentions types of bamboo grown & many useful items made from it, which he is getting for the Kew museum. Also has samples of cloth dyed with Mungeet, indigo & Elaeocarpus. Collectors have returned from Nepal, beyond the snows, where the flora is very different despite the proximity. Most of their collection is rotten, a Frittilaria & a Primrose may survive. JDH will send more collectors, relationships with China & border powers mean he may not be able to go himself despite the efforts of his political friends: Colville, Dalhousie, Elliott & Falconer. Has Carices for Boott & fungi to draw for Berkeley. Mentions: progress on the NIGER FLORA, Rose of Jericho, news of Tussack grass, observations for Humboldt, constant rain, general features of Himalayan botany & adds the letter shld be sent to Darwin at Down.

JDH apologises for not writing sooner to Mrs [Mary] Richardson [wife of Dr Sir John Richardson of the Royal Hospital at Haslar where young naval surgeons awaited assignment]. He thanks Richardson for her letter & the news of family & friends at Haslar. In answer to her query JDH states his feelings about going to sea in naval service to pursue science, & how the service suits him. The HMS 'Erebus' is currently alongside the HMS 'Favourite', JDH likes the officers but thinks the Navy offers little financial reward or future security. Mentions Richardson's account of the Daguerrotype in her letter & her account of the usefulness of the penny post to naturalists. Thanks Richardson for her congratulations to his father, William Jackson Hooker, on his appointment as Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Mentions his sisters & alludes to their uncertain state of health. JDH explains that on ship he spends more time on botany that on his actual profession: medicine, & Captain [James Clark] Ross has made comfortable provisions for his natural history work. When he can explore there are always many specimens of the lower orders of the vegetable kingdom to collect in New Zealand [moss, lichen, fungi etc] & he & Ross also make zoological collections & observations: of birds, insects, fish & shells. He notes that Dr Richardson would be interested in a kind of tunny known as a yellow tail, a beautiful salmon & several Ribband fish from the Antarctic circle. The marine life found in the towing nets is diverse, including crustacea, & has much in common with life in the Arctic seas. JDH writes of his friends Kay & Hepburn in Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania], the latter has a garden enriched with gifts from the Government Garden at Hobart Town, given by Miss Craycroft & Miss Franklin. JDH praises Sir John Franklin, the Governor, very highly & JDH is flattered by his interest in himself & the expedition: Franklin always asks for news of them from Dayman at the observatory.

JDH last wrote to his father, William Jackson Hooker, by the HMS 'Favourite' via Sydney & got replies addressed from the Athenaeum. Mentions his sister, Mary Harriet Hooker's, health. Congratulates WJH on becoming Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Dr Sinclair arrived en route to Auckland & Port Nicholson with news from home & will collect plants for WJH. JDH has sent Bay Island plants on the ship 'Jupiter'. The New Zealand specimens are still drying & notes being written up. At Bay of Islands JDH has got insects & shells for Captain Ross & minerals & bird skins for WJH incl. 'Tui' or parson birds & Columba spadicca[?]. Has found 70-80 mosses, Cunningham's Gastrodia, a new plant resembling Milligania & Gunnera, a complete set of seaweeds, & monocotyledons not mentioned by Cunningham. Describes a new sp. of Holoragaceae & a distinct Limosella. Praises Colenso, his work with the indigenous people & his botanical collecting in Paihia, the East Cape & Thames district. Mentions 2 plants collected by Colenso; a Pisonia & a Coprosma. JDH is sending a Wardian case of plants & ferns to WJH on the 'Exporter' via Mr Mcleay. He lists its contents, which incl: Corokia buddleioides, Haxtonia furfuracea, Pterostylis Banksii & Hymenophyllum sp, & describes how he packed the plants. Received letters from James Mitchell. Lady Franklin told Captain Ross that some Kerguelen Island plants sent from Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania] were lost at sea. JDH has written to: his sister Maria Hooker, Mitchell, Dr Robb, Mrs Richardson, Mr Children & Mr Ward. Expedition goes next to Chatham Islands, 'the Barrier', Deception Island, the Falkland Islands & home via the Cape. JDH is writing a Flora of New Zealand & studying German. Asks WJH to send a barometer for Gunn & a Hygrometer for him. Dayman wrote to thank Aunt Ellen & communicate that the Governor [John Franklin?] takes an interest in the Antarctica expedition. JDH sends WJH a fungus growing on a caterpillar from Rev Taylor of Waimate.

JDH last wrote to his father, William Jackson Hooker, from Bay of Islands. Expedition omitted Chatham Islands & has been in open sea for 135 days but now nears Berkeley Sound, Falkland Islands. Before reaching an ice barrier they went to a record latitude south. Discusses Sargasso weed, seaweed propagating in open sea, e.g. Macrostaysis pyrifera, & implications for plant distribution. JDH will write to Ward re. New Zealand moss. Heard from Sinclair about WJH's move to Brick Farm House, that RBG Kew is to be a public park & that Balfour got the [botany] chair at Glasgow University not Arnott. Recalls that the Hookers were shunned by most Glasgow academics but he has fond wishes for some of their true Glasgow friends. Is glad James Mitchell is working for Lord Eastnor. Discusses publication of ICONES [PLANTARUM], Gardner's return to England, MONOGRAPH OF SOUTHERN FRAGI & a new sp. found by Bidwell. Describes distribution of Ballia brunoni in Kerguelen's Land & Auckland Islands. Discusses mosses of Campbell Island: new Sclotheimias, Holomitrion perichaetiale, & an Andreaea whose unusual structure he describes. Mentions a NZ Polytricha like Dawsonia, Sprengel's Maschalocarpus ciliatus, a new Hookeria from Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania] & endemic H. cristata. Pities Swainson going to NZ, explains the shortcomings of the colony & notes some disreputable emigrants: Baron Thierry, Mr Macdonnell & Mr Polack but praises the missionaries esp. Colenso. Letter continues dated 8 Apr [1842] with a description of East Falkland incl. birds: Cormorant, Cape Pigeon, Albatross & Cook's blue nosed petrel. Describes procuring skins of birds, but says he never lets ornithology overtake botany. Has some NZ shells for his sister, Maria Hooker. Hopes to go to Rio de Janeiro & collect Cryptogamia for Harvey. Reports landing at Port Louis, a mining town in a desolate landscape where the purser met with Governor Moody. Expects to be home 1843 after crossing D'Urville's Barrier in Weddell's track.

JDH thanks his sister Elizabeth 'Bessy' Hooker for her letter & for one dictated by their dying sister Mary Harriet Hooker. It has been a long time since JDH has seen his family, he has taken to whistling tunes that remind him of them. For music the ship has an untalented fiddler & the purser plays a flute he claims was given to him by 'Peter Pindar' or Dr Wolcot. During the cruise south from Bay of Islands, [New Zealand] JDH has been making notes & learning German. The ships 'Erebus' & 'Terror' spent Christmas week tied to either side of a 2 acre piece of flat ice covered in snow, into which they carved out roads between the ships, racing grounds & a saloon with seats & dance floor. JDH describes how he & Davis sculpted ice statues of Hebe, the Sphynx, pillars & Etruscan vases. Describes their New Year's festivities on the same ice berg, incl, pig racing, raising as much noise as possible with bells, cannons, cow horns & cheering, & playing games such as 'Baste the Bear' & 'Bell the Ring'. Writes how they dined on Christmas Day, Christmas Eve, New Year's day & Twelfth Night. Discusses the animals they had on board during the cruise: cat called Phantome, goats & a tame opossum. The expedition does not get much news from home & they eagerly watch for ships heading to harbour in the Falkland Islands. They know that the Ministry has changed & wonder how it will effect their mission & William Jackson Hooker as newly appointed Director of RBG Kew. Over the last year the expedition has been successful & JDH hopes the Royal Society is pleased. JDH has worn out the muffatees his sister knitted for him but does not think she will be able to send more before they reach the Cape of Good Hope. JDH hopes the expedition will now go South in Weddell's tracks & get further than the French did under Admiral D'Urville. Wilkes' American expedition has been 'extinguished', JDH would like to talk about this with Asa Gray who he nicknames 'Bowie Knife'.

JDH writes to his Aunt, Elizabeth Palgrave, whom he last addressed from the Bay of Islands, [New Zealand]. The expedition was unable to stop at Chatham Islands & has been waiting for a chance to communicate with home whilst anchored at Berkeley Sound, Falkland Islands. He describes the expedition's most recent cruise in the Antarctica region, they spent all 2 months in the pack ice making no land stops, but did manage to get beyond the 68 degree southern latitude despite bad weather. Discusses the history of colonisation in the Falkland Islands which have recently been claimed by the English from the South American Republic. Briefly describes the landscape, geology & botany of the Falkland Islands. The vegetation is mainly a Carex grass or sedge used for fodder, JDH speculates about what crops could be grown. The population is 60 people, sappers, miners & gauchos who herd cattle. The Governor is Lieutenant Moody, & JDH has been advising him on useful plants that could be grown to improve the colony, e.g. Triticum for thatching & Poa & Agrostides for sheep lawns. Animals include geese, rabbits, snipe & wild ducks all hunted for meat, JDH lists the kill from a successful hunting party he joined. The expedition will go ashore here not at Rio de Janiero for ship repairs. JDH spends his time collecting plants & skinning birds. He has a white Petrel for his cousins shot at 78 degrees southern latitude, he mentions how the petrel is caught & skinned. The expedition is anxious to know how their success has been received at home. JDH mentions three naval promotions, those of Francis Crozier, Edward Joseph Bird & Alexander Smith. Dayman left the ship for the Hobart Town Observatory under Sir John Franklin. JDH wonders about his father, William Jackson Hooker, now that the Ministry has changed, all he knows is that WJH is still on the Council of the Royal Society. Asks if the Thames floods reached the Hooker's new home at Brick Farm, which JDH heard about from Dr Sinclair.

JDH writes to Mary Boott to thank her for her interest in him & for Dr [Francis] Boott's care of JDH's ill sister Mary [Mary Harriet Hooker]. JDH fears the returns in botany may not equal the sacrifice he has made to go on Ross's Antarctic expedition. However JDH had a good voyage, describes his satisfaction with his living quarters & mess mates on the 'Erebus'. The expedition is in the Falkland Islands waiting for news from England. Observes that the Falklands have been an object of dispute since their discovery but hardly seem worth quarrelling over. The British Government has sent Lieutenant Moodie [Richard Moody] to write a report on the colony with a view to settling it. JDH notes that there is good grass for grazing & Moody is keen to introduce this Falkland grass [Poa flabellata 'Tussac grass'] to Ireland & the Hebrides. Wild Fowl are abundant & good to eat. Mentions their first cruise to 'the ice' & compares it to the second when, despite worse weather & ice, they reached an even more southerly latitude before reaching 'the barrier' [Ross Ice Shelf] which JDH predicts will never be surmounted. Describes the scene when entering 'the ice', how the temperature drops & an ice berg look out is posted, at what latitude the first bergs are seen, also describes the harsh weather. Describes the white petrel which is only found in the pack ice. Recounts being stuck in the pack ice, including over Christmas, & how they found their way out. Reached the 'ice barrier' on 23 Feb 1842 at 78 degrees south latitude & saw 'pancake ice'. Describes beauty, majesty & vastness of the ice barrier & how pieces break off to become ice bergs. Next year they plan to go South again on the same route as Weddell & validate, despite D'Urville's protests, that Weddell could have gone as far south as he claimed. They will then return to England via the Cape. JDH tells Dr Boott he has 4 Carex species from the Falklands as well as new species from New Zealand.

JDH apologises for not writing to his Godfather, James Dalton, since leaving for Antarctica. Though he has never met Dalton JDH has fond memories of his house & church in Croft. JDH explains that he joined Captain Ross's expedition to be of service to England as well as to pursue botany & collect new species from obscure places. Describes his living situation on board ship. At sea he spends his time examining & drawing marine animals & dissecting mosses & plants. The microscope Dalton gifted to JDH is especially helpful with studying mosses, the order which Dalton also studies. The expedition has visited many islands: Madeira, Tenerife, The Cape Verde Islands, St Paul's Rock in the Atlantic, Trindade near Brazil & then St Helena before reaching the Cape of Good Hope. At each place they stopped briefly to take magnetic observations. They spent 3 months in Kerguelen's Land, previously described by Captain Cook, & set up an observatory there to take readings simultaneously with Europe, Asia & America. At sea they take meteorological readings & whenever possible use a tow net to collect sea life such as Mollusca. JDH observes that marine animals from the most southerly latitudes are similar to those from the Arctic whilst the botany of the two polar regions is very different. They spent a long time at Hobart, [New Zealand] where the Governor Sir John Franklin was very hospitable, & from there sailed into the ice. Describes the excitement of going to this unfamiliar, unexplored environment & getting so far south even though they eventually encountered a permanent ice barrier [Ross Ice Shelf]. They were also able to achieve their goal of laying down the position of the South Magnetic Pole. JDH spent some time with the Macleay family at Sydney. He discusses the natural history work of William Sharp Macleay. At the Bay of Islands JDH collected 70 species of Moss, incl: Hypnum Menziesii & Hookeria Cristata. Describes their second more arduous trip south through the ice.

JDH apologises for not writing to George Bentham sooner. Letter concerns the geographical distribution & habits of Leguminosae [Fabaceae] in Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania]. Refers to [Ronald Campbell] Gunn's collections. Discusses Tasmania Acacias: silver wattle, which he identifies as Acacia mollisima [actually A. dealbata] found on Mt Wellington, black wattle A. decurrens, A. verticillata & a sub alpine species from the Derwent falls. Acacia are most abundant genus after Eucalyptus but do not grow high in the mountains, on the plains species incl.: A. stricta & A. myrtifolia growing with Daviesias, Bossiceas, Platylobia, Indigofera australis & various Compositae & Epacrideae which he does not name. Discusses Legumes of New Zealand: Edwardsia [now Sophora], Carmichaelia, new species found by Bidwell & [William] Colenso, & the rare Cilanthus puniceus. Knows nothing about Guilandina bonduc. Legumes are not part of the Antarctic Flora not being found on sub Antarctic islands, though over 300 flowering specimens do occur in those islands. Describes the Kerguelen's Land flora as having commonalities with South America, the Aucklands & Falklands & lists the genera that occur. Lists peculiar Kerguelen's Land plants incl. the Kerguelen Cabbage & notes the profusion of ferns, mosses, lichens & seaweeds. Macrocystis pyrifera is the only true Antarctic plant, found south from 64 degrees latitude in open sea. Compares the botany of the Auckland Group with that of S. America, New Zealand, Antarctica & Tasmania. The relative proportions of Monocotyledons, especially Gramineae [grasses] to Dicotyledons indicates the severity of climate in these regions & in the Prince Edward & Crozets group, the South Georgias, South Shetlands & Antarctic. In the Falklands JDH has found species not described by De Candolle, Durvile or Gaudichard. Notes some of the musci he has collected incl. Guinardia australis, the remarkable profusion of ferns & a new Hydroctyli of the order Umbellifera.

JDH writes to his father, William Jackson Hooker, to inform him of the expedition's movements & his own activities. He has previously sent WJH some drawings & a map showing the position of Mount Erebus. They did not stop at the Chathams so JDH could not send the live New Zealand tree ferns & pines, it being too costly for Captain Ross to pay freight via Sydney. JDH has collected many new moss & lichen species, but not many new plants. He has made extensive notes & drawings of the New Zealand flora & landscape. Mentions that the New Zealand Fagus is the same Birch found in the Straits of Magellan according to Vancouver's VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY TO THE NORTH PACIFIC OCEAN. Mentions a mistake in his notes re. the number of anthers in Oreobolus. In New Zealand JDH became good friends with Dr Sinclair via whom he sends a parasitic caterpillar fungus from Rev Taylor of Waimate. It was found near Yass on the Murrumbidgee River in New Holland [Australia] by John Allan who has also provided information, which JDH transcribes. JDH also recounts what he found out about the habits of Spheria robertsii, another fungus that uses Caterpillars as a host. The letter continues under date May 3 [1842] JDH having returned from a hunt. JDH is sending letters on the ship 'Arrow' via Rio de Janeiro to his family, Bentham, Dalton & the Bootts. He also intends to write to Ward & Brown. In the Falkland Islands he has collected: Balka Brunonii, new Cardamine, some Grasses, a Halorageous Kerguelen's Land plant, a Ranunculus. Andreae are common & other Mosses are in fruit. Discusses investigation of Tussac Grass [Poa flabellata], a remarkable species of Carex Governor Moody wants information about. A Mr Wright has been botanising in the Falklands & Wilmot has been relieved at the Cape. JDH sends best wishes to Captain Beaufort & the Sabines. The expedition is in need of supplies, JDH needs spectacles & packing paper & wants to hear about RBG Kew & [George] Gardner. Sends regards from McCormick.

JDH writes this letter to his father, William Jackson Hooker, to accompany some articles ordered by JDH, Mr Gull & Lieutenant Smith. Captain Holt of the brig 'Champion' was to get the items at Valparaiso & deliver them to JDH et al back at the Falkland Islands. In the event that is not possible JDH has asked that they be forwarded to WJH with the bill.

JDH is staying with Brian Houghton Hodgson[BHH], former political resident at the Nepalese court who was forced from that position by Lord Ellenborough but continues his zoological & ethnological work & has made significant donation to the British Museum, as catalogued by [John Edward] Gray. Describes very wet climate. Praises his Lepcha servants. Discusses prospect of being allowed to travel to snows in Sikkim Rajah's kingdom given the current political situation with Bootan [Bhutan], China, Thibet [Tibet], Nepal & the Rajah's past dealings with the British, including Colonel Waugh the Surveyor General. JDH is being assisted in negotiations by Lord Dalhousie & Dr [Archibald] Campbell but cannot go now until Oct because of the season. Major Jenkins invited JDH to Bootan & the Mishmee hills of upper Assam. Will go to the Mishmees tea districts incl. plantation under Jameson at Kumaon, also to get the vegetable products & implements of the Mishmee tribes & determine the true course of the Burrampooter [Brahmaputra]. Will meet Thomas Thomson[TT] in Assam & go into Thibet towards Mansarovar Lake. The Chinese mission has broken up, Captain Cunningham recalled, Strachey in Thibet & TT to continue his researches with help of Sir Fred Currie. Falconer is ill which has delayed the transmission of the first part of the Niger Flora to WJH. JDH now working on copying out the Leguminosae for the Niger Flora. Has received various books from WJH incl. Lindley's which JDH needed to refer to for order Helwingiae. Found Balanophora at 8000 ft. Is sending live plants to Kew via Calcutta [Kolkata] incl.: Rhododendrons, Arums, Palms & Magnolias. Frederick Drummond, son of Lord Stratheden, has died of Jungle Fever caught on a tiger shooting trip & many of his servants died of Cholera. JDH is busy with his collections, making drawings & notes incl. a Journal & 'carte geognostique'. Will send WJH Ceylon [Sri Lanka] notes & Frances [Henslow's] father notes on Himalayan agriculture.

JDH writes to his sister, Maria. He wrote to others by the HMS 'Arrow' on 3 May 1842. HMS 'Champion' has stopped at the Falkland Islands & JDH met with Captain Holt, who is his 'scotch cousin' through familial links with Shelly of Barmouth & Tom Brightman's sister. The latest newspapers JDH has seen are from March with news of the Prince's christening, Queen's speech, bankruptcy of an unrelated Hooker, & death of James McCall of Daldowie. Mentions the failure of 'the African Expedition' & compares with their own Antarctic expedition. JDH has been on a trip to Port William with the Governor [Richard Clement Moody] on the HMS 'Alarm'. Describes the country around Port William. Compares a Port William grass known as 'tussac' with the 'true Tussac grass', which JDH thinks is Dactylis glomerata, & describes the habit of the latter in the Falklands. On the trip JDH collected seaweeds, lichens, new plants & few shells incl. rare Voluta magellanica. JDH has found more plants than expected in the Falklands, especially given the late season. The ship ['Erebus'] is being repaired. As it is now winter JDH's collecting will be confined to lower order plants. The days are short, the nights long & the weather stormy making life in a tent uncomfortable. He describes how they line the tent floor with gravel & sleep in 'blanket bags'. JDH likes Governor Moody, whose father was Lieutenant Governor in Guernsey. Mentions the return of Wilmot & Lefroy, Baron Humboldt & the King of Prussia visiting London. Davis is making a sketch of the ships in the ice for William Jackson Hooker, JDH will send oak to frame it. JDH would like info on the Hooker's new home at Kew. Notes that the Antarctica expedition has not been in the press. On the Queen's birthday they had a smart dinner. Wonders if Balfour or Arnott is the new Glasgow University Chair of Botany. JDH intends send Dawson a Matchero from Valparaiso. Asks Maria to send him new spectacles, an eye glass & some lichens: Cud-bear & Archill.

JDH writes to Charles Lyell about specific points of geological interest encountered on the Ross Antarctic Expedition. Thanks Lyell for giving him Darwin's book with a description of Cape Verde. Also says he values THE GEOLOGICAL RESEARCHER & the profile of Lyell, which he keeps in his cabin with his father & Baron Humboldt's. Describes the Geology of Kerguelen Island & compares it to the account of Captain Cook who knew it as Desolation Island. Rocks incl: Trass, lava, Breccia, whinstone, volcanic conglomerations, basalt configurations, Quartzes & Zeolites. McCormick sent back fossil woods. Letter includes a sketch of Christmas Harbour. Birds incl: endemic Chionis & night Petrel. 3 insects: a Curculio, apterous moth & a spider. Describes the Kerguelen climate. Found more plants than expected: seaweeds, lichens, Mosses & Jungermannia, all perennial South American types. Writes about icebergs near Kerguelen & refers to the theory of erratic boulders which Charles Lyell's son has written about. Describes an agate fossil trunk he found in Van Diemen's Land & his notes on it in TRANSACTIONS OF THE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF TASMANIA. The Auckland Island flora resembles that of New Zealand. Describes icebergs, first seen at latitude 63 degrees south. At 66°S collected black volcanic rock containing Olivine from an iceberg, which is illustrated. Describes mountainous land mass at 71°S & an island with a penguin rookery. Dredging to 300 fathoms found marine life: chiefly Mollusca, Crustacea, Corals, Bicellaria, some Ophiura & Syenite rock deposited by an ice berg. On an island 76°S observed signs of the different natural means of rock transportation & land formation. Includes a sketch of the ship 'Erebus' anchored off this island's cliffs. Describes discovery of the volcanoes 'Erebus' & 'Terror' incl. sketch. Discusses abundance of Diatoma found in the tow net & stomachs of Salpa & his belief that it is vegetable not animal. JDH has a geological collection for Lyell Jnr.

JDH informs Ward that the expedition was unable to go to Chatham Islands so he could not get Hypnum Menziesii for Ward. There are very few botanical discoveries to be made in the extreme south latitudes. The wealth of marine animals suggests there should be corresponding plant life but JDH has only found 1 sea plant within Antarctica; a Diatoma. He has found vegetation beyond the previous southern extreme of known plants: Deception Island. He discusses these southerly marine plants: Sargassum natans, Macrocystis pyrifera & a Laminaria brought on currents from New Zealand & propagated at sea by marine animals. The distribution & character of the latter is described at length. Recounts his study of the new Antarctic Diatoma identical to confervoid remains found in fossil powders, & his study of New Zealand mosses incl. a long description of the development of Theca based on dissections of Orthotichum, Dawsonia & Polytrichum & Sclotheimia sp. In general his conclusions agree with Valentine's. His description incl. detailed speculation on Sporule formation, the anatomy of the columellar e.g. in a new species of Entosthodon from Bay of Islands & in other Funaria, & the teeth which connect the peristome to the theca e.g. in Schistostega & Syrrhopodon compared to Syrrhopodon & others. His observations suggest that the distinction of genus Codonoblepharum based on its cone shaped membrane is erroneous. Quotes from his notes on a Campbell Island moss. Speculates on the nature of the annulus. Touches on the mystery of sexes in mosses. States that all this anatomical investigation should aim toward a natural arrangement of mosses, hitherto hampered by ignorance re. geographical distribution & habit. Under date 21 June records his observations on the anatomy of an Orthotrichum & a Sphagnum, incl sketches. Under date July 21 describes: dissection of Voitia, with reference to Brown's description from Parry's Voyage, also the drumhead of Polytrichnum, both incl. illustrations.