From G. C. Oxenden   8 April 1872

Dear Sir

Being a mere stupid Plant hunter, I hardly take courage to write to you— The Works you have so kindly given me, have been largely in my hands this Winter—& often have I felt both enlightened & bewildered—¹

—One result of actual Observation has been this—that all such Wild Plants as dwell on the Confines of Civilization, undergo lowering & debasing process, as to their natural average standard of height & vigour—

—In the case of Wild Orchids— —Any Lady Botanist, & any Planthunting Gentleman—with the accursed Trowel in his hand, will tell you that the Average stature of Bee, & Spider, Orchis, is Six or²

—I myself, on close-bitten, sheep haunted Hills, find them so utterly dwarfed & bullied, as to be almost trailing plants—& very pretty they are—

But on such portions of our own Forest Ground as no Hoof ever invades “Arachnites” becomes a very tall upstanding Plant, with large & splendid Flowers³—and even Bee Orchis often exceeds two feet in height— I think I sent your One, a year or two since, 26 inches high—⁴

A day or two ago, by chance, I found the stem of One which grew close to my own Door almost, which last year was over 2 feet high—and I now send it to you—

—A great deal of my own Early life was spent at Downton Castle with that cleverest of V. Physiologists, Thomas Andrew Knight, so long President of the Horticult^l.—⁵

—One day he said to me, “Mr Oxenden, you are fond of Gardens, & you are young— —If you like to experimentalize, & will begin with the White Currant I will promise you that in twenty years you shall have them as large as Sweetwater Grapes, & as sweet—⁶

—This past atrocious Winter Spring has nowise injured or affected the Wild Orchids— —On the, Contrary, I have never seen them so healthy or so abundant— Of the truly wonderful & lovely “yellow Bee” I know of over 50 Plants—& only hope they may evade their Ovine Persecutors—⁷

Your’s very faithfully & obliged | G. Chichester Oxenden