JDH writes to Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer to complain about the Linnean Society, he describes it as having: 'no backbone, only an os sacrum that ought to be kicked'.

JDH is determined that he & Sir William Thiselton-Dyer will not lose Currey [as a Secretary of the Linnean Society?]. JDH supports Thiselton-Dyer's plans to reform the Linnean Society. JDH will remonstrate Allman for snubbing the Linnean Society by sending his paper to the Royal Society. Thinks they can succeed in having the Council Room turned into a meeting room on a trial basis. JDH reassures Thiselton-Dyer that his sympathies are not opposed to biological botany. He thinks the work that Thiselton-Dyer was doing for him prior to the Cape flora was not advancing Thiselton-Dyer's scientific status or wealth, though it was of great use to JDH. Thiselton-Dyer's work on the Cape flora was to redress this balance, especially as it relates to his personal field of interest, geographic botany & there is an audience for it. If Thiselton-Dyer had expressed a preference for pure physiology over systematic work JDH would have been equally supportive & still urged him to seek work that was useful & paid well. JDH's opinion of the British Association [for the Advancement of Science] is that it has out lived its original purpose & is now in unnecessary competition with other societies. He concedes that [the 44th meeting of the British Association at] Belfast was exceptional as a useful British Association exercise. The Linnean Society is useful to JDH for its resources, he joined it for his own benefit as well as science's & is willing to exert some effort to preserve it, unlike the BA. JDH observes that the biological side of zoology is becoming associated with the Royal Society rather than the Linnean & thought there should be enough papers for both there is also competition from the zoology and microscopical societies. He thinks the latter should be assumed into the Linnean Society but doubts that is practical.

[Letter in French, transcript available in French and English]. JDH writes that he is sending Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer [WTTD] a corrected copy of the [KEW ANNUAL] REPORT & leaves it to WTTD's discretion when it is ready to send to the printers. JDH & his party travelled to Nimes by rail via the mountains from Clermont Ferrand & JDH was impressed by the basalt landscape, which he describes. The vegetation is not more advanced than in England but the trees coming into leaf were attractive. JDH wonders why there is so much variation in the colour of different species' young leaves but not their mature foliage. In the southern valleys JDH saw olive, wild chestnut & evergreen oak. JDH praises the Jardine de Plantes, Paris, which [Joseph] Decaisne showed them. JDH discusses [Adolphe] Brogniart's views on palaeobotany; his opinion that [William] Williamson's theories are superior to [William] Caruthers' & his belief that there are no Polypodiaceae fossils in the coal beds. The party will next visit [Jules Emile] Planchon in Montpellier then go to Pont du Gard, Arles, Cannes, to see Mr [Gustave-Adolph] Thuret in Antibes & [Daniel] Hanbury in Menton. There is an addenda to the letter, written in English, under date 30 [Apr 1874] in which JDH reiterates the places they have visited & reports that he read about the resignation of G. Russell in GALIGNANI'S MESSENGER & that he himself is still mildly ill with a cough.

JDH reports that the slightly cold weather in Cannes & Montpellier have aggravated his rheumatism. Criticises the maintenance of [Jules Emille] Planchon's garden in Montpellier & attributes this to the fact that they try to grow twice as many species as necessary on a small budget. The aging Professor Charles Martins gave a charming tour of the garden. At Montpellier station met with [Hugh Algernon] Weddell arriving from Cette [Sète], where he had been doing lichen research. Mrs [Frances] Hooker is going to Florence to stay with Miss Galton. JDH is happy 'to miss' the presidency of 'Section D' [at the Florence International Botanical Congress] & supports [John] Tyndall for a vice-presidency. Mentions the Roman ruins at Nimes & a trip from Nimes to Pont du Gard ruin, where he gather 42 species in a single spot. Tomorrow they leave for Antibes where they may see [George James] Allman if he has not left for San Remo. They then go to stay with Mr Hanbury at Mentone [Giardini Botanici Hanbury previously known as Palazzo Orengo], and on to Genoa, Pisa & Florence. JDH reports that [Geroge] Bentham is well but 'put out' to hear that Cambridge Universoty has awarded him the peculiar honour of LL.D. Adds that having met St George Jackson Mivart in Paris & found him to be a willing candidate for secretary of the Linnean Society this information has been met with enthusiasm from Frederick Currie [Currey].

[Letter in French, transcript available in French and English]. JDH writes to Sir William Thiselton-Dyer in order to practice the French he is learning. He writes that he & his party have travelled from Nimes to Arles, where he saw the Roman ruins, & from Arles to Cannes during which journey he admired the countryside & particularly the Pinus pinea groups by the sea. He compares Cannes itself to Torquay but less green. They then stayed with Mr Altmann at the Hotel du Cap in Antibes where they also met with Mr Thuret & Dr Bornet. JDH describes & praises Thuret's garden, which is full of plants from all over the world which thrive despite the extreme seasonal temperatures caused by the Mistral winds. JDH personally prefers the climate & greener vegetation of Madeira & Portugal to that in France. The cold weather in Antibes aggravated JDH's rheumatism, the season there is nearly over. He also met a Colonel Roper in Antibes who was there with his wife for her health. Colonel Roper was very well read in natural history, his wife went every night with a princess to a casino in Monaco at returned by train at midnight. JDH discusses Bornet's work on seaweeds which grow within the tissues of lichen & gives his own opinions, particularly on the 'gonidie'. He also mentions the possibility of lichens & algae with parasitic relationships, or whether it is more a case of their primordial condition. JDH continues the letter in English under the address Pegli, near Genoa. He writes that they will go next to Sestri, Spezzia & Florence & notes that [George] Bentham has had diarrhoea & JDH's own cough lingers.

JDH expects Smith has already told Thiselton-Dyer of his 'insouciance' respecting Nice. Thanks Thiselton-Dyer for correcting his [Kew Annual?] Report, he suspects the mistakes were in the record of garden arrivals as [Daniel] Oliver prepares the herbarium records & [John Reader] Jackson the museum acquisitions. He will consider Thiselton-Dyer's suggestion that [George] Nicholson prepare the garden records, as he considers him very able & thinks Smith should make more use of his talents. Mentions that Decaisne gave him Brouquarts'[?] Setewale [Curcuma zedoaria] of Carruthers. JDH will not reply to Miss Booth's letter yet as he wants to avoid visiting her in Lyons, they are trying to keep her father's botanical books together. Tells Thiselton-Dyer not to spend too long on JDH's [Royal Society Presidential?] address. Proposes that the paper on Nepenthes be a joint effort. Agrees with Thiselton-Dyer view on physiological research. Is anxious to read Sachs[?]. JDH calls Florence 'glorious'. The Horticultural Show & Botanical Congress are 'fiascos'. Filippo Parlatore is ill with whopping cough so JDH was made chair of the first session in his place, it should have been George Bentham. Lists some of the attendants. Mentions Carnel brought his Cynomoria to the congress & [Andrei Sergeyevich] Famintsyn read a paper on Myxogasters. Next JDH, Mrs [Frances] Hooker & Huxley go to Venice, then home via Munich. Allman is in Florence but will return in time for the first meeting of the Linnean Society in June.

JDH thanks Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer [WTTD] for his letter with news of the loss of the ship 'Liberia', on which their friends the Lowes were passengers. Richard Thomas Lowe's death means the Flora of Madeira will never be finished, like so many other systematic works of botany. In Filippo Parlatore's absence from the Botanical Congress, in Florence, JDH was elected to act as President. He describes how he went about organising & chairing the proceedings of the Congress. He mentions the following papers that were given: one on the Colchicaceae of Greece, [Andrei Sergeyevich] Famintsyn[?] on Myxogasters, Caruel on Cynomorium from Sardinia, Schimper on Astrophyllites from the gneiss quarries of Mont Blanc. JDH had to comment on the papers in his poor French which annoyed some attendees. A bust of [Philip Barker] Webb was invested. JDH & the Vice Presidents had an audience with the King of Italy [Victor Emmanuel II], who JDH calls 'repulsive'. JDH is now in Venice & will return home via Paris. [John] Ball & [George] Allman stayed on in Florence, but the latter must return home soon for his election to the Presidency of the Linnean Society. JDH informs WTTD that he is happy to be a President of the British Association [for the Advancement of Science] meeting but will be satisfied if he only presents the joint paper on Nepenthes. JDH & party are well, except for [George] Bentham who has had diarrhoea. JDH briefly had a cough but has recovered. Mr Harvey is also in Venice.

JDH informs Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer that Lord Hatherley has found in George Bentham's favour on all points [regarding the amendment of the Linnean Society by-laws]. JDH still hopes [Marcus Manuel] Hartog will accept the post [of Assistant Director, Peradeniya Botanic Garden] in Ceylon [Sri Lanka]. In a post script JDH briefly discusses a recent experiment with carnivorous plants: Nepenthes rafllesiana & phyllamphora & mentions the difficulty of studying Darlingtonia & Cephalotus.

JDH writes to Sir William Turner Thiselton--Dyer [WTTD] about a recent stay with General Birch at Stranraer in the company of the Whites[?] & the Hamiltons. He also visited Lord Stair's Pinetum, run by a Mr Fowler, he particularly admired the white Douglas fir & some Pinus nobilis grown from grafts. He observed that Scotch Fir & Spruce won't grow there. He complains about the late train home from Galloway & the loss of their luggage en route to Wilesden via Carlisle. [John] Smith has gone to Cornwall. [Algernon Freeman-] Mitford is coming to stay with JDH at Kew, JDH likes Mitford so far. Russell, the RBG Kew 'orchid man', wants to leave in order to work on orchid greowing on a larger scale. JDH asks WTTD to consult Moore about a replacement at salary of 25 to 28 shillings plus room. JDH complains about the time he has to take correcting Lawson's reviews. JDH has received a proof corrected by WTTD with a passage about pitchers of Nepenthes marked as illegible, JDH does not know where it came from but has corrected it & sent it to the Academy. JDH complains about misprints in some 'copies' sent to Belfast for printing. JDH expects WTTD to see Harvey's Ericeae for Flora of South Africa whilst in Dublin. He apologises that he cannot send back Barkley's[?] bottles as promised. Reports that [Daniel] Oliver has returned from France & [John Gilber] Baker is away. JDH is preparing for some disageeable work with the Trustees of the British Museum regarding the Admiralty [probably in connection with a dispute over the collections from the HMS 'Challenger' expedition]. JDH intends to lay the case before Sir Philip Egerton privately. JDH asks WTTD to return an enclosed letter from Charles Darwin [enclosure not present].

JDH asks Thiselton-Dyer if the proof of his 'address' has been sent to the publisher, Griffith. JDH describes his present location, Alderley Grange in Wotton under Edge, as 'a lovely place'. Whilst there he is working on the Royal Society address & the 'Primer' [refers to the series of 'Science Primer' books published by Macmillan, for which Hooker wrote the volume entitled BOTANY (1876)]. The following week JDH will go to Bewdley, then to stay with [George] Maw at Broseley, Shropshire, before returning to Kew. In a post script JDH adds that he has read & enjoyed CRUISE ON WHEELS [by Charles Allston Collis] & is now reading [George Eliot's] SCENES OF CLERICAL LIFE, the best thing he has read in years, either fact or fiction. He specifically mentions the story JANET'S REPENTANCE.

JDH asks Thiselton-Dyer to give his opinion on a letter JDH has drafted to the Trustees of the British Museum, concerning JDH's Antarctic collections. Daniel Oliver has already given his opinion but does not consider JDH's position regarding the Royal Society. A copy of the letter will be sent to the Archbishop of Canterbury [Archibald Tait]. JDH refers to an enclosed magnolia [not present] which Alexander MacCleay calls fuscata but which differs from the plants under that name at RBG Kew.

JDH asks for Thiselton-Dyer's opinion on an enclosed dedication [enclosure not present]. He reports that he is feeling unwell but must send off his letter to the British Museum.

JDH writes to arrange a time he & Thiselton-Dyer can confer regarding the [proposed Jodrell?] laboratory.