Bangor
18 July 1826
Rev d Sir,
According to your wish I now have the pleasure of sending you roots of the scarlet Anthyllis vulneraria– they were gathered yesterday morning, & I hope to dispatch them this evening; so that I have little fear of their living; especially as I have sent whole sods– By way of ensuring your object, I have also gathered ripe seeds, which you shall receive in due time– The scarlet variety is pretty common along the S.W. coast of Anglesea, it is however most abundant in the place where I gathered the roots now sent (Llangwyfan, 2 miles from Aberffraw)– It is not invariably found separate from the yellow sort, of which I observed one or two roots, when cutting up the sods; which circumstance, & the consideration that the parcel would not be more expensive for being so large as it is, induced me to send you a more liberal supply than perhaps you may think necessary, or than I should otherwise have ventured upon– There is an intermediate cream coloured variety which is pretty common, but being rather late in the season this year, I did not see it– I have dried specimens at home, some of which I will send you on my return home, which will be now in two or three days, when I shall be anxious to receive your list of desiderata as soon as soon as may prove acceptable to you.
I enclose a specimen or two of Inula Crithmoides & Statice Reticulata, which were both growing at Llangwyfan close to the Anthyllis–
My list of desiderata I have not yet completed & though am unable to send it now, as I could have wished– I however select a few of the plants from the Flora Cantabrigensis, any of which, I shall be glad to have, when you can conveniently send them– you need not fear being able to gratify me most amply in this way without having recourse to others of your botanical correspondents to assist you, tho’ indeed such an addition could not fail to enforce the obligation greatly, but as my greatest fear is that I shall not be able to supply you with novelties to the extent I hoped when I first wrote, I must for the present rest satisfied with the expectation of receiving only a few of your native varieties in exchange for mine, otherwise I shall be, I fear, more troublesome to you than serviceable– But let me, my dear Sir, beg you to understand that it is not by any means my wish to put you to the least inconvenience, in procuring me specimens – the number of your correspondents & the little leisure which you may perhaps have, will very likely prevent your attending to me, with convenience for some time to come, & in that case I shall be quite content to wait, or even to forego \altogether/ the gratification which I should have in receiving them – the subjoined list is therefore sent only with the view of furnishing you with the requisite knowledge of what will be acceptable to me, should favourable opportunities present themselves, for gathering specimens before the season is over & you should have sufficient leisure for the purpose
I remain | Rev d Sir | Yours very truly | W Wilson
[Plant list—apparently from Flora Cantabrigensis; apparently marked by JSH?]
Second column
(overleaf)
Page One top right
"The following of which Mr Roberts had specimens will also be very acceptable to me"
List from Crocus to Bromus pinnatus indicated.
Please cite as “HENSLOW-33,” in Ɛpsilon: The Correspondence of John Stevens Henslow accessed on 28 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/henslow/letters/letters_33