Melbourne bot & zool. Garden,
25. Dec. 1861
Dear Sir William.
I have written to your son on the Exhibition consignment2 & to Mr Bentham3 on the fascicles of the herbarium to be sent pr "Young Australian" I only trust that these treasures will not be swallowed up by the ocean. One of the finest ships of the merchant fleet "the Empress of the Seas" was burnt yesterday whilst leaving our shores and it is just a chance, that we had our specimens not in her.4 I have packed up all apocarpous and rhoeadeous Thalamiflorae for Mr Bentham, 28 fascicles (not 27) as I stated to Mr Bentham, there being 4 of Capparideae instead of 3. The box has probably to go on board to morrow; if not I may add the parietinous Thalamiflorae. I shall be rather anxious to hear, what you think of the collection. I feel much pleasure in offering you to reserve the half of such specimens as are wanting at Kew, knowing well that you will kindly bear in mind that on the completeness of the series of forms from various localities when returned to me the work of myself & my successors relies. Without my series of specimens I could not have limited the species as I have done in the "plants of Victoria".5 But in many instances the supply is good & where could we lodge better any super abundance than at Kew?
I have adopted recently a method to subject the specimens before their being entered into the herbarium to Turpentine vapor, by having a metal box constructed sufficiently spacious to lodge several fascicles in. About 6" above the base is a net wire horizontally fixed. About to the hight of 2 inches oil of turpentine is put & the fascicles are then put on the wire netting and the lid is closed. The very volatile oil of turpentine seems to me to have sufficient effect in destroying during a few days vitality of insects and their ova & larvae, a matter of much importance especially in our country, where insect life is active all throughout the year.
The wire netting-ma[t]s for drying plants against a chimney or Bivouac fire may perhaps be worthy inspection for any botanical traveller, so also the leather plant covers which I sent to the exhibition.6
Mr R. D. Perry, a Gentleman who left pr "Southhampton" lately has received from us for himself a case with chiefly Australian ferns. In this case I placed for you once more strong plants of the following: Goodenia Macmillani, Corraea aemula, Prostanthera spinosa, Sarcopetalum Harveyanum, Veronica Hulkei,7 Owenia cerasifera.8 I think it is a great error not to open occasionally in fine weather the Ward Cases during voyages. It is far more detrimental to plants to shut them up hermetically, especially when the moisture is not nicely balanced in the case, than to subject them to the little saltparticles which the sea air carries with it.
Th[is] Leeuvenhookia is very neat. I think it might be easily raised.9
With the sincere hope, that you are in the enjoyment of the best
health again,
I remain your gratefully attached humble
Ferd. Mueller
Pray give Dr Harvey my kindest regards. What is the Osmundaceous? fern I sent in the letters per despatch bag. It is new to me as an Australian plant or even genus.
Capparideae
Corraea aemula
Goodenia Macmillani
Leeuvenhookia
Owenia cerasifera
Prostanthera spinosa
Sarcopetalum Harveyanum
Thalamiflorae
Veronica Hulkei
Please cite as “FVM-61-12-25a,” in Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, edited by R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora†, J.H. Voigt† and Monika Wells accessed on 28 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/61-12-25a