JDH summarises the collection he has sent home. Now in Rajmahal Hills amongst Ferns, Orchids & Hoyas. In winter he will return to Rajmahal & Parasnath for Cryptogamia & animals. He has boxes of Patna wood for the Kew museum & will get more items. JDH met Dr Gordon at Mirzapore, Fred Thomson at Benare & Wallace, Trench & others at Ghazeepore, where he saw rose garden & manufacture of rose water & Attar. At Dinapore [Danapur] missed Captain Hemchman but met Captain Doria. At Patna stayed with Irvine who went with WJH to Slaffa & collected Fucus balticus; visited the opium factory & got a set of their tools; met a son of Admiral Beaufort & through him heard of Mrs L.P. Wilson’s death. In India JDH is known from James Clark Ross's account of their voyage. Thanked Lord Dalhousie for appointing Gurney. At Morghyr he & Dr Hastings visited hot springs where they worship the Confervae, could not collect them as at Sarroukbund. At Bhungalpore [Bhagalpur] staying with Grant & Raikes, has met Clergyman Vaux & written account of Major Napleton's horticultural garden for JOURNAL OF BOTANY, the curator is named Ross. Mr Pontel cultivates flowers & has given JDH a bamboo & Bauhinia bark bow with reed arrows. JDH will return for mineral & fossil woods for Henry de la Beche. Will travel via Purnah & Titalyah. Enumerates his expenses. He has recommended the Governor protect timber trees like Walnut & Sal. Mentions poor state of materia medica & science in India. Writing from Colgong [Kahalgaon] 8 Apr adds he met Mr Alexander & is staying at an Indigo planter's house overlooking the Ganges & a landscape of Casuarina, mango groves, Tamarind milia, Ficus religiosa or 'Peepul', Borassus, Phoenix, sand flats & distant Himalayas. He anticipates luxuriant flora at Darjeeling. JDH prefers up-country India to Calcutta [Kolkata]. Mentions Thomas Thomson, Vicary, MacIvor in Madras [Chennai], Brewster's article in the N. BRITISH REVIEW, Lord Morpeth, Mr Phillippe, Lord Auckland, Lawrence Peel.

An account of the geology & vegetation in Indian Plains JDH traversed with Mr Williams' Geological Survey. Area covered was south of the Ganges along the Grand Trunk Road & Soane River encompassing Rotas Ghur & Bidjegur [Bijaigarh] hill forts, the Kymore [Kumaon] & Vindhya hills, Parasnath, Hooghly, Burdwan, Taldangah, Dunwar Pass, Bind Hills, Sultanganje & Calgong, Chunar Rock, table lands of Berbhoom [Birbhum] & Behar, Mirzapur & Bhangulpore [Bhagalpur]. Describes the topography of the landscape & common rocks incl: granite, Hornblende schist, sandstone, quartz, coal nurseries & limestone. He travelled through plains & wooded hills. Comments on extent of mountain ranges in India, one immense range comprising the Rajmahals & Sylhet hills, another the Kymaon [Kumaon] & Vindhya hills, which bounds the Soane & Nerbudda & stretches to the Arabian Sea. The positions of these ranges influence vegetation. The alluvium & kunker which covers everything, the uniform dry climate & flat land exposed to desert winds from Hindustan & solar radiation also determine vegetation. Vegetation lacks variety because of these factors, which override the influences of altitude & latitude; forms are found indicative of altitude in the Nilgherries [Nilgiris] & Ceylon. Flora is less luxuriant beyond the Ganges delta with fewer palms & grasses & more thorny shrubs. The richest areas: Parasnath & upper valleys of the Soane have only a few spp of tree, unadorned with moss or lichen. Bamboo & Ramin replace the Urticae & ferns of moister areas. Timber trees higher up are: Terminalias, Bassia & Diospyros. Lower down are mangos, Tamarind, Figs & Acacias. Soil sterility & aridity limit species of tree: Boswellia, Stercutis, Euphorbiae, & Cochlospermum gossypium will grow in rocky places, some flourish better than others but not depending on rock type. Moister climate nearer Bengal means more luxuriant flora marked by coconuts at Patna & reduction of Acacia arabica at mouth of the Soane.

JDH is sending WJH part of Niger Flora to be proofed by his mother, Jules Émile Planchon & George Bentham. Since last writing JDH has been over Darjeeling border into Sikkim, against orders of the Rajah, & to the border of Bootan [Bhutan]. He found: Cycas, India rubber tree, & Phoenix. As route descended, European genera such as: Oak, Maple, Birch, Alder Hydrangea, Violet, Hypericum & Rubiaceae became: Araliaceae, Alsophila, Urticae & scandent Leguminosa & at still lower altitude: Shorea robusta, Cedrela toona, Dalbergia sissoo, Alstonia, Pinus longifolia, Saccharum, Sterculia Fici, Rubiaceae, Gnetum etc which continue to the plains. JDH is drawing interesting plants, incl: Paris sp, Stauntonia, Convallaria, Chrysosplenium, Coptis, Sanicula, Magnolia & 3 Rhododendrons incl. a beautiful one with sweet scented white blooms. Palms are limited, Arums superb, one flowered in his tent & gave off significant stench & heat. Plans to go to Nepaul [Nepal] border & a hill only previously climbed by Captain Waugh of the Trigonometric Survey. Describes weather. Is sketching Himalayan landscape. Has found wild banana & orange. Is collecting woods & implements incl. cups made from knots of trees, a silver dagger from a Tibetan Lama, & a rosary made from amber, Cornelian, agate & vegetable beads. Not yet season for grains. Bamboo is staple product. Describes hard working Lepcha collectors & compares to lazy Bengalis. Discusses money affairs incl. salary & dealing with Barclay & with Findlay's house: McVicar Smith & Coy of Calcutta [Kolkata]. Will stay with Brian Houghton Hodgson; oriental scholar & zoologist. If allowed JDH will travel to Sikkim snows, if not to the Barrampoota [Brahmaputra], Assam & Sadiya & ascend Dapha Bum mountain. Will visit Jenkins at Gowahatty [Guwahati] & the Tea districts, Mopling fir forest, Cossya [Khasi] hills, Cherra Poonjee [Cherrapunjee] & Munneepore [Manipur] in Ava. Once back from Tongolo JDH will send live plants via Hugh Falconer at Calcutta.

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.

WH's manuscript on botany for JH's Admiralty Manual has arrived and deserves praise. JH awaits three final manuscripts.

JDH reports progress on NIGER FLORA. He thinks Napoleona is close to Gustavia, it resembles an Indian Lecythis. [Nathaniel] Wallich sends JDH news. Ava trip postponed in favour of Darjeeling. Spring flora incl.: Convallariae, Apris, viola, Oak, Chestnut, Magnoliae, Arums, Fragaria, Rhododendrons, Prunus, Pyrus & Rosa with Clematis, Gentiana, Umbelliferae, Begonias, Saniculas & autumn vegetation to follow. Insects incl. Cocinillae & Grylli. Political relations with Bootan [Bhutan] & China mean JDH probably cannot go to Thibet [Tibet] via Kumaon or any other route. At Darjeeling it is not possible to see the different flora of the low valleys during the rains. Sir F. Currie sanctioned [Thomas] Thomson's [TT] continued work. JDH hopes TT measured the height of Gilgit. JDH is collecting for the museum & Jenkins at Goalpara has some things. Discusses the palm-like plants at Darjeeling, the rattan is used to make bridges & wild Musa leaves to carry things. Explains what collections, incl. from Borneo, he has promised to share with the Calcutta Garden. [Hugh] Falconer's [HF] health is improving, he will forward JDH's Bhangulpore [Bhagalpur] plants to Kew along with first shipment of roots incl. Balsams & Gesnerioids. JDH now likes HF but still has a low opinion of Royle. The collectors JDH sent to Tonglo were stopped at the border, they should be allowed to cross but Campbell the political resident does not enforce such rights. Further discusses British relations with the Rajah of Sikkim, position of Lord Dalhousie & permission to visit the snows. Mentions native people of Sikkim: Tartars, Lepchas, Tibetans, Murinis, Limbos & Bhutanese. JDH travelled to Darjeeling via Benares from hence he will go to Assam via Gowahatty & visit Sadiya in the Mishmee [Mishmi] Hills, the tea plantations & Ava. Would like to go to Tibetan passes. Comments that Madden is a good botanist. JDH is doing sketches & writing up his journal & geographical & botanical observations of the Himalayas.

Via Calcutta [Kolkata] JDH has sent: end of NIGER FLORA, sketches, incl. many Rhododendrons, list of roots sent to RBG Kew & sample of Lepcha Boehemeria cloth. Discusses navy half pay & difficulty getting items of economic botany for the museum, he has cotton cloth & baskets & awaits bows, arrows & quiver. Mentions specimen of only large spadixed palm. Has completed [River] Soane journal & discusses publication of it by WJH & The Asiatic Society, a copy shld be sent to Robert Chambers' Journal to promote the expedition. Advises that roots sent to Sir L. Peel by Smith shld be packed better, likewise bottles sent to JDH. JDH will send home extensive collection of dried herbarium specimens on leaving Darjeeling for Mr Jenkins' in Assam, after the rains. Mentions expenses & living with [Brian Houghton] Hodgson [BHH], whose only neighbours are: Dr & Mrs Archibald Campbell [AC] & the Muller brothers, one of whom works at the Patna opium factory, the other at Calcutta mint. JDH still hopes to go North & visit the snows: border issues with Sikkim& China are complex & he is being assisted by AC, Lord Dalhousie & Colonial Office. JDH wants new species named after Mrs Campbell & Lady Dalhousie, WJH may re-name the rest. Has drawn Phaenogams &, for Berkeley, fungi. Found new Balanophoras sp. & prepared dissections for THE LINNEAN SOCIETY TRANSCATIONS. Promises descriptions of Magnolias. Mentions: assistance provided by Gurney, HF lecturing, writing to Stocks, BHH's sister Miss Colville to visit RBG Kew with Miss Edens, defending [Nathaniel Wallich], Madden's TENTAMEN FLORAE NEPALENSIS, Col. Lawrence , Griffith's synonymising, falling out with Brown over Rafflesia & fossil cones, a phosphorescent fungus resembling Belcher's Borneo one. Heard of Col. Waugh, Surveyor General, measuring Kanchenjunga as the highest mountain in the world. JDH has a view of it, one of the true Himalayas of the Chamalari rising from the plain of Tibet. Possible that Dawalgiri in Nepal maybe taller.

Comments on WJH's accident & subsequent treatment, mentioning use of ether. Has forwarded [Hugh] Falconer [HF] a lot of mss material. JDH has procured a bamboo bow, poisoned arrows & poison root from Bhotan [Bhutan]. HF sending JDH books. The rich flora of Darjeeling yielding new things: JDH draws the most important incl Orchideae. Crawfordia & other things will be in seed soon but it is hard to dry seeds & specimens. Describes drying specimens in front of fire & shortage of paper. Has sent collectors to Neapul [Nepal]. Discusses common local Streptolirion as featured in the LINNEAN SOCIETY TRANSCATIONS by Edgeworth. Comments on prospect of moving the British Museum Herbarium to RBG Kew, Brown will object. JDH is invited to stay with Jenkins [J] en route to Assam. J is collecting drugs & medicines for JDH. JDH intends to trek to snow when conditions improve in Oct. Mentions poverty of natives in Darjeeling. Has collected some insects. Of trees has collected: 1 pine, 1 yew, Abies webbiana & a Juniper & hopes to get [William] Griffith's larch. Cannot send plants in his letters: they would be ruined by damp in the post to Calcutta [Kolkata]. BHH is ill & made worse by news from Gray that a valuable collection of Tibet animals was ruined. JDH has sent collectors to the interior & pays them liberally. Discusses origins & character of the Sikkim aborigines -- the Lepchas, & the Booteas from the neighbouring country. Mentions that Sikkim Rajah is actually a Tibetan. Mentions death of Lord Burghesh, Fane's brother & Fane's character. JDH is pleased his parents are keeping Francis happy. Sends regards to Harvey, Betham, Citoyen & [Walter Hood] Fitch. Asks for stationary to be sent by overland post with the LONDON JOURNAL OF BOTANY from Reeves. Letter illustrated with sketches showing the vegetation that appears at different elevations, maps showing Punkabarrie, Kursiong, Pacheem, Darjeeling & peaks of Tonglo & Sinchal, a sketch labelled Quercus & one of JDH's Ganges boat.

JDH reports he has written to Humboldt, [Henry] de la Beche, Lord Morpeth & will write Mr Phillipp next. A gale has blown down flowers & fruits of many timber plants JDH could not previously get specimens from. His collection included: epiphyte Vaccinia, Mistletoe, ferns, branch of a new Oak sp, Loranthi & Viscaceae, 8 oaks & Edgeworth's Streptolirion. Will send batch of Orchideae to Calcutta [Kolkata], mostly Dendrobia & Coelogyne. Other things coming into fruit at Darjeeling: Rubiaceae, stinging nettles & other Urticeae. Forest species incl: Arum, Balsam, Streptolirion, Polygona, a small bamboo, large tasty figs, Laurinea, Cyrtandreae, Begonias & Magnolias. Madden has suggested he will give WJH the pick of his collections. Winterbottom has joined Strachey's brother surveying Kumaon. JDH plans to go to the snow [in Sikkim] even without permission, though the Lepchas are fearful of showing him the way without government sanction & [Archibald] Campbell is not pushing hard enough to get this. Rubiaceae & Myrtaceae & Leguminosae are rare in Darjeeling & there are no Acanthaceae, which abound 3000 ft lower. Araliaceae, Rosaceae, Aroideae, Verbenaceae & Laurinceae are common. Timber trees are remarkable, few have good wood, Walnut is one of the best. Compares fruit of the Darjeeling Walnut to the Bhutan kind. Mentions wild & cultivated plantain & wild mango. He has sent seeds of the ground Raspberry; a Rubus he advises be sown in a cool place & grown with Vaccinium. Oxycoccos & Tussack. Writes he is enclosing fragments of tree fern [not present] that resembles Alsophila gigantea.

JDH sent the most important news, re. travelling in Sikkim, in a letter to Bessie [Elizabeth Hooker]. Flowering season in Darjeeling is advancing rapidly, recent additions to the collection incl. fine Cyrtandreae, a new Balanophora & many other tree specimens. JDH is behind with his drawing & has given up doing fungi. [Archibald] Campbell [AC] has sent him a new Caryota palm & a citrus with enormous pink fruit. Palms JDH has are: Calamus rotang, Phoenix sp. & 2 Arecinae. Roots of Orchids & Cyrtandreae sent to Calcutta [Kolkata]. [Hugh] Falconer has sent JDH books for free, including vols by De Candolle, Walpas, Kunth & Royle. JDH thinks all his Rhododendrons are new species, he advises that this should be clear on examination of the numbers of cells in the ovarium, the hairiness of the filaments & the shape of the calyx. [Brain Houghton] Hodgson [BHH] & JDH are both ashamed of Royle's book, the only good part is Hope's entomology section. JDH has captured an Indian Goliathidae, an opalinus like the one he drew from 'Mr Melly's cabinet' as a boy. JDH has made a small insect collection incl. some lovely beetles. Common insects incl.: Stag--beetles; Coccinella, most commonly Penetala; a Bostrychus that kills oaks, a metallic gold Caprida & noisy Cicadas. JDH sent collectors to the Terai but they became ill, he plans to replace them with Mechis who are a race used to living in malarial places. 10 collectors have been sent Tonglo for Rhododendron roots & are bringing things back in instalments, JDH also has collectors in Sikkim but they are too far away to bring things back in good condition & will not put plants in papers. He hopes AC will also send some collectors beyond the snow. JDH asks for stationery supplies to be sent whenever WJH is sending him an overland parcel. Under date Aug 10 [1848] JDH adds that he has sent men to the Terai & still awaits the return of his Nepal men, these matters are managed for him by BHH.

ARW sending dried palm plants; describes Paxiuba palm roots; trees with buttresses to trunks; next week will explore River Tocantins. Describes “milk tree” (“Masseranduba”) whose juice is good substitute for cream, timber strong, fruit delicious, milk makes strong glue. Climate delightful. Is spending most time collecting insects.

It rains everyday at Darjeeling & the Ganges has flooded. Plant are flourishing, especially Galium, Synaphalium, Hydrocotyle nepalensis, Cyrtandraceae spp, Torenia like Asiatica, Polygona, Balsams, Hypericum, Epilobium, Urticeae, Hydrangea, Adamia, Cyanea, Ophelia, Bignonia resembling B. picta. Prevailing trees are Laurineae, Chestnut, Oaks, Alder, Birch, Bucklandia, Magnolia, Cherry & Rosaceous trees. Climbers incl Araliaceae, Hydrangea, Vitis, Polygona & an Amaranthaceous thing. There are no grasses or Ranunculaceae & 1 Crucifera: Cardamine hirsuta, Umbeliferae incl a Hydrocotyle, Mimulus semperflorens & a liquorice scented Magnolia. Collectors from Tonglo have got Meconopsis nepalensis, Clematis acuminata, Thalictrum sp & Aconitum palmatum: the source of 'Bik' poison used in Sikkim. Has poison for the museum & is getting Lepcha hats & umbrella [illustrated]. Has 9 palms: Phoenix, Caryota & Calamus spp & museum specimens of all, also specimens of a Cycas & all 8 local bamboos & rices, but no Tabasheer. Discusses wild & cultivated bananas & enormous cucumbers. Local people eat most things: fern tops, Solanum leaves, vitis, Urticae, Bolete, Polypore, berries & a Cucurbitaceae with large fruit that he describes & illustrates. Discusses: orchids in the region, a Streptolirion sent to Calcutta [Kolkata], Araliaceae incl. Helwingia, alpine plants compared to Bhotan & Nepal, relative altitude where plants such as figs & Rhododendrons are found. JDH has collectors in Tibet, Sikkim & the Terai where there is jungle flora & Sylhet spp. Discusses [Archibald] Campbell & Lord Dalhousie. & arrangements for trip to Kinchin [Kanchenjunga]. Wants to research the geographical distribution of plants in high mountains, or go to upper Assam tea districts via Gowahatty or across the Cossya to Churrra & Munneypore. & find place in Assam to grow Gutta Percha. Next year JDH may return to Kinchin or go to Sudya & Dupha-Bom. Asst Surveyor General Captain Thuillier has lent instruments.

JDH thanks his family for letters. Discusses his finances, managed by Jas. Findly of Smith McVicar & Co. Full NIGER FLORA sent. Is glad WJH sent pocket sextant with telescope, will use them to observe terra nova. Lord Dalhousie has ordered the Sikkim Rajah, at Choombi, to let JDH go to the snowy passes. JDH hopes to go over Kinchin [Kanchenjunga] to Tibet so he can describe the world's highest mountain & determine the elevation of the plateau of Central Asia. It is 11000 feet at Leh, the Lakes of Mansarowar [Manasarovar], & Rawin Chad[?] but is undetermined at Yaroo--tsampa [Yalung Tsangpo] river. Alternatively JDH may go to Jongri village, the botany will be similar & include new things. Discusses the races of people: Booteas, meaning natives of Tibet not Bootan [Bhutan] serve the Rajah & oppress the Lepchas, who are North Himalayan Tartars. JDH has collections to send to Calcutta [Kolkata]. Has sent collectors to Nepal & Lepcha parties collect locally& help JDH & Clemanze dry specimens. JDH is keeping a meteorological record measuring rainfall & barometer temperature at Hodgson's house. Mentions Lady Rolles arboretum. Critiques Griffith's publications. Has written to Stocks. Is scathing about Dr Royle. Mentions Grant & Thomas Thomson. Has piece of silk, Tibetan letter & brick of tea for RBG Kew museum & Campbell has a shield. Mentions: copy of journal for Lord D. & republication of extracts, Royal visit to RBG Kew, [John] Lindley [JH] printing JDH's letters in the GARDENERS CHRONICLE & annoying Brown, JH's disapproval of JDH travelling before finishing the FLORA OF AUSTRALIA, Lord Auckland, illness of Sir L. Peel, Doom Palm, Calami, acorns, chestnuts, walnuts, Gordonia wallichii. JDH will return to Darjeeling, the richest field except for Cathmandu [Katmandu] & the Mishmees, to collect spring flora on Kinchin. [Hugh] Falconer is lecturing & maintaining Calcutta Gardens. Discusses cost of post & Citoyen's queries about generic affinities. Gurney has gone to sea.

Still awaiting reply to Lord Dalhousie's letter from [Sikkim] Rajah. If [Archibald] Campbell finds out the Rajah intends to oppose them they will travel to Jongri on the south face of Kinchin [Kanchenjunga] rather than going via the east face to the Tibet passes.[Brian Houghton] Hodgson [BHH] too ill to accompany JDH & AC also injured. JDH sent [Hugh] Falconer [HF] his journal of trip from Bhaugalpore [Bhagalpur] to Darjeeling. HF is ill but has found JDH another Portuguese servant who he hopes will be half as good as 'Friday'. He has added to his growing collection: Balanophora typhina, B. polyandra, a Rhubarb & a new Aconite used to make 'Bikh' poison, of which he has museum specimens. Recounts story of man killed with Bikh poisoned arrow. Has sent live roots of 150 species to Calcutta [Kolkata], mostly Orchideae & Seitamineae. Has specimen of a very large tree fern for WJH. During break in rains JDH collected more roots incl. Magnolia, Helwingia & white Rhododendrons. Oaks & most other seeds are not ripe yet, Compositae are just blooming & there are relatively few grasses. Though he is obliged by expectation to embrace many disciplines in his explorations, JDH has not neglected Botany. By measuring mountains, recording weather & explaining his work locally JDH has gained credit in India. The Surveyor General was always secretive about his activities. JDH has measured Kanchenjunga & Sinchal with instruments from Captain Thuilliers & calculated height of Tonglo with Muller. JDH has sketched the flags at Ging & a panoramic view of country around Darjeeling. Also found: pink flowered Luculia, [William] Griffith's Larch & a curious little Rhododendron. Has forwarded a letter from Thomas Thomson from Karakerum range beyond Ladakh, also written to Mr Philipps. Discusses conditions for sowing some seeds he is enclosing & compares to similar sent by Edgeworth for the Gibson Craigs in Edinburgh. The Lacteraea should be in flower soon, he thinks it will be half hardy.

JDH is making arrangements for trip to the snow. Rajah of Sikkim has given permission as a result of pressure from [Archibald] Campbell & Lord Dalhousie. JDH details negotiations that led to permission to travel. Rajah of Nepal much more accommodating of JDH's travel plans. Describes audience with the Dhurma Rajah, his appearance, dress, & behaviour & that of his entourage including the Vakeel & Tibetan Seneschal, Bhotea [Bhotia] attendants, JDH's Nepalese guards [Gurkhas] & their Havildar or 'Corporal' of the Kawass tribe, the Lepcha servants, Bhootanese [Bhuntanese] subjects of Sikkim & Bhutan, & a few Musselmen [Muslims] & Hindoos [Hindus], Mrs Campbell & her children. Though JDH does not consider many of the party trustworthy he does not fear for his own safety once they start to march. He hopes his expedition into Sikkim will pave the way for others to follow with less suspicion. JDH will be careful only to take observations, e.g. with barometer, in his tent so he does not alarm his guard. They are suspicious that his every action will lead to their country being taken, but he plans to charm them & will soon have them collecting for him. The Rajah has provided a guide. JDH explains his route will go North past Kinchin [Kanchenjunga] to a village called Jongri then West to the border of Nepal & beyond to the Kangliachem pass leading to Tihibet [Tibet]. Achieving this will realize Hooker's great ambition as a botanist & traveller. He will be gone 30 days & will take any opportunity to send letters. In getting permission to travel he has defied the expectation of Lord Auckland, [Hugh] Falconer, [Brian Houghton] Hodgson & Sir Herbert Maddock. Many tried to help get him permission but did not think he would succeed. Mrs Campbell has kindly provided him with supplies & provisions. JDH asks WJH not to publicise his planned trip though he may share news from his letters with Bentham, Harvey, Berkeley et cetera & asks that this letter be forwarded to Darwin.

No summary available.

JDH has returned to Darjeeling after a trip to the mountains. The Kazi of Lingcham accompanies JDH & likes the Murwa pot. JDH's route passed the Great Rungeet & a spur of Kinchin [Kanchenjunga]. Met Archibald Campbell [AC] in Teesta valley, the former had a hard journey obstructed by Sikkim officials. JDH was welcomed at villages en route & they gave him more than enough food for his party. AC & the Sikkim Rajah camped on opposite sides of the river. The Rajah's Dewan is a rogue. Describes audience with the Rajah, his manners, appearance & gifts exchanged. The camp was in Bhomsong, a valley with tropical forests incl. palms & Sikkim Pandanus. JDH began the march to the Lachen & Lachoon [Lachung]passes, AC came as far as Pemiongchi monastery then left for the Titalya fair. Ascended forest covered Mainomchoo Mt, crowned with Abies webbiana & a wooden temple. Made sketches & meteorological observations. Collected mosses, Rhododendrons incl. R. falconeri & an alpine bamboo. Describes Lama convent at Tassiding, incl. buildings & decoration by Lhassa artists. There was no sign of Hindu religion. On the road were slabs engraved with Tibetan characters. Also visited, Yuksun [Yuksom] on the Ratong River & Doobdee [Dubdi] convents where Cypress trees used to make wreaths. Describes ascent to & view from Jongri yak port above the snow line at 13000 ft. Notes the geology & glacial features of the range & view of Pundim & Kubroo peaks. Vegetation Herbaceous but incl. Tingurisella Pine. Describes marching through snow & danger of snow blindness. Collected strong-scented dwarf Rhodo. which causes headaches, rock lichen, Andrea, a Splachnum, 46 species of fern chiefly Spheropteris. Visited holy lake & Changachelling convents where his likeness was painted onto the wall. The journey was without mishap, the Bhotheas [Bhotias] & Lepcha people were hospitable. At Darjeeling JDH is staying with Muller, whose brother Charles is at Patna, & arranging his collections & museum specimens.

Thanks WJH for information on J. D. Hooker’s progress.

J. D. Hooker promised a copy of his Galapagos paper. Can WJH forward one to the Athenaeum?

Discusses the death of his Uncle Gurney who was well respected in Calcutta [Kolkata], & the death of Williams in unhealthy jungle. Urges his father not to worry, JDH avoiding unhealthy places with the advice of [Brian Houghton] Hodgson [BHH]. Assam is unhealthy at this time of year & tensions with Nepal on the NW frontier will hamper travel to Cattmandu [Kathmandu] so Hooker will stay at Darjeeling & the Himalayas. Wants to make more geological, geographical & meteorological observations of Kinchin [Kanchenjunga] as well as collect its botany. Whilst in Darjeeling he will continue to collect specimens, draw plants, prepare his flora 'Cibaria & Economira' & send roots to Kew. He hopes to visit 'the snows' again at least as far as Jongri. JDH has received letters from home with news of Bessy's [Elizabeth Hooker] illness & recovery & Planchon's contemptible conduct. Also received instruments from Newman & Jacket & books forwarded through Colvile. Discusses publication of new Rhododendrons & the identification, characteristics & proposed names for different Rhodo. species: macrophyllum, campbelliae, wallichii or setosum, argentuem or arboretum & falconeri. Mentions Reeves & the LONDON JOURNAL OF BOTANY. Discusses the likelihood of Thomson joining him from Ferozepore [Firozpur]. Mentions Madden, Wallich & the [Calcutta Botanic] Garden, Falconer being sent to Moulmain [Mawlamyine] to report on Teak & Macrae taking over. Soane river collections not yet sent home, will be shared with the East India Company, Linnean Society & Calcutta Gardens. Bentham has taken up Vogel. Discusses running of the [RBG Kew] herbarium, including outgrowing Aiton House & needing an assistant, he suggests Mitten, not Spruce. JDH ordering instruments for Muller. Brown has been staying at Kew & JDH is willing to make amends. There is no Zallacca at Darjeeling, only Wallichia. Speculates on the future of ANNALS OF KEW & the Linnean Society incl. possibility of WJH being chair.

No summary available.