To John Balfour   25 January 1863

25/1/63

Dear Prof. Balfour.

I have no doubt that my record of F Gregory's plants was safely received by you; much more doubtful it is, whether the paper met with your approbation.1

Mr Bentham informed me, that the Tribulus found in F Gregory's Expedition, and alluded to by me as probably identical with T. alatus proves quite distinct. I had neither specimens of the true Tribulus alatus to compare nor access to a good figure, altho' I have such an extensive library & herbarium of extra-australian plants. It is thus more accidental than otherwise that I could not enter critically on the examination of the Tribulus. I do not know what name Mr Bentham has given to the plant.

I beg to enclose a paragraph from the Argus giving publicity of a letter of Dr Kirks, replete with interest.2 Probably your disciple & friend has conveyed much more ful intelligence to you, but to us here every spark of original information from so interesting a part of the Globe as the Zambesi regions & from so talented a man as Dr Kirk are highly welcome.

Could you kindly favor me with the rules of your Royal Society?

Our seedharvest is nearly completed & a share will be sent of these recent seeds to Edinburgh bot Garden

I have received or have to receive very soon plants from the W. part of the Great Bight, also of Stuarts Expedition & of Howitts Expedition.3 So will gradually get the vegetation of this great continent fairly brought to knowledge.

Ever my dear Professor,

yours regardfully

Ferd. Mueller

1
Published in Edinburgh, B63.13.03.
2
Probably the letter published in the Argus, 30 December 1862, p. 6. See J. Kirk to M, 28 June 1862.
3
George Maxwell had been collecting for M at the western end of the Great Australian Bight. J. Stuart's expedition of 1861-2, from Adelaide to the north coast of the continent at Chambers Bay, is described in Threadgill (1922), part 1, pp. 57-62. A. Howitt was the leader of the 1861-2 expedition to search for Bourke and Wills (Threadgill, p. 65). See B63.05.01, B64.13.05, B65.13.09.

Please cite as “FVM-63-01-25,” 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 20 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/63-01-25