JDH sympathises with Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer over the death of one of his relations of the Buckner family, who was in the military & known by reputation to the Hookers through a Captain Cochrane formerly of China. JDH was also sorry to hear about the illness of [Walter] Gardiner, his great niece's fiancée. The RBG Kew herbarium is running smoothly, several people are away on leave: [William Botting] Hemsley & [John Reader] Jackson, but [Otto] Stapf has returned. Herbarium visitors include Krantztin[?], who is working on Lindley's orchids, & [Arthur] Lister & Miss [Gulielma] Lister working on [Miles Joseph] Berkeley's myxomycetes & doing exquisite drawings. JDH reports that part 18 of the FLORA OF BRITISH INDIA has been published. He complains about the lack of palm specimens, which they should have received from [Odoardo] Beccari & which George King has now requested be sent to RBG Kew from the Calcutta herbarium. JDH is currently working on Pandanus & Typha, which he complains Rohrbach has made unintelligible. He wishes to encourage David Prain to work on Palms, Pandanus & Aroids & to revise William Roxburgh's Flora, irrespective of the good work he has already done on Pedicularis & other Himalayan genera. King is doing valuable work on Annonaceae, Aales & Nutmegs. JDH finds the idea of half Quaker Mrs Hanbury becoming a marchioness very funny. JDH sends his regards to the Balfours & wishes to report to them the state of various plants: Veronica, Goodyera, & JDH's Himalayan Rhododendrons which have suffered for being transplanted on the day of an early frost in 1891.