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 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 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 writes to his father, WJH, re. Falklands plants. Lichens are abundant, algae huge, mosses only now fruiting. He has found the same species as Gaudichaud & D'Urville & kept notes on distribution. Discusses mosses on East Falkland, incl: Andreaea, Sphangnum & Trichostoma. 30 lichens found incl Usnea melaxantha which he compares to a Kerguelen sp.. Collected 50 sp. of seaweed incl Macrocystis & Laminariae. Disagrees with Harvey re. Sphacelaria callitricha. Confervoid plants cover the bays. Fungi are scarce but Lyall will send some in spring, incl. large Agarici. Lists ferns collected, incl. a tiny new Aspidium. Asks that a contribution be made to William Burnett on his behalf. The expedition will soon leave for Cape Horn & St Martin's Cove or other port in Tierra del Fuego, allowing JDH to complete his flora of the Antarctic regions. Discusses Fagus sp. found there by Foster & Mirbel. Mentions 3 plants from sub-Antarctic islands which represent new natural orders. Mentions Niger Expedition. Discusses books on cryptogamic plants. Wants Gardner to help arrange his mosses. McLeary will collect moss for JDH in New Holland [Australia]. Discusses Quinary & circular classifications for cryptogamic plants. Mentions the sale of Bauer's drawings & Fitch illustrating GENERA FILICUM. Fielding of Staddagy Lodge has left his collection to the Botanical Society London. Describes walking from Berkeley Sound to Uranie Bay. Plants seen incl Macrocystis & Sticta. Birds observed: steamer ducks sandpiper, kelp goose, Carcara Hawk, gulls, Teal, oyster catcher & Chionis. Describes the quartz hills & the lichens that grow on them, Uranie Bay, a seaweed possibly D'urvillea, the sand hills & the sp. that grow there. Describes a Usnea. Berkeley is wrong about Darwin finding fungi on timber in the Falklands. JDH is sending a parcel to WJH, as well as plants it incls a sketch by Davis, veneer from HMS 'Terror's' rudder, kaurigum, & Tussac grass seeds to share with Edmonstone in the Shetlands.

No summary available.

JDH writes that he is sending this note to his father, William Jackson Hooker, with 'Erebus' Seaman Richard Baxter, who has been invalided home. He asks WJH to assist Baxter if he asks. Baxter has been particularly kind to JDH, helping him when he was wet or cold. Baxter has not been in the Navy long enough to claim any benefits. He is not a drunk, his disease is 'organic'. JDH describes Baxter's physical appearance to WJH in a postscript.

No summary available.