To George Bentham   22 September 1865

Melbourne bot. Garden,

22/9/65.

I have, dear Mr Bentham, your kind letter of 23 july¹ before me and am much pleased with the information it contains. It is interesting to observe that we have Xanthophyllum in Australia. It never struck me, that the plant was polygalaceous, though I now remember to have indian flowering specimens in my herbarium, but I did not recognize the fruit as polygaleous. Is not a great alliance thus between the Leguminosae & Poygaleae? I will reexamine the embryo to see whether the cotyledons are in reality foliaceous.

Your remark on Affonsea as related to the new gorgeous Australian Mimosea is highly remarkable. I have reexamined accordingly the plant & though I have unfortunately no true Affonseae in the herbarium I am well guided by your definition of the genus & by the figure to which you direct my attention. If not an error exists in calling the leaves of Affonsea simply pinnate, than² the Australian plant cannot be united with it because its leaves are truely bipinnate! I have consequently separated the plant & placed it into a new distinct genus between Affonsea & Pithecolobium, giving it the name of Archidendron (if you like the Marshalls tree) The definition of the genus is in the printers hand.³ Perhaps you may have it in time for quotation in your genera.⁴ The fruit of Archidendron I send with this letter. You will perceive, it is that of the pulpless Pithecolobia not of Affonseae. How nice it is to see the chains of affinities in many instances brought so beautifully into [contact.]

As regards Gillbeea I can neither share your opinion. At first sight I also thought the plant filiaceous, but we know as yet no genus of that order with compound leaves. That the leaves are truely pinnate cannot admit of a doubt, as you will notice when inspecting one leaf herewith sent. The leaves may accidentally be unifoliate, but they are never truely simple. So it seems better until we know the ripe fruit to leave the genus in Saxifrageae. I feel obliged for your pointing out, that already an Irvingia exists. I have within the next days when publishing my departmental report & giving a series of the genera introduced by me into the literature on the plants of Australia an opportunity of altering the name into Nothocittus Irwinngii.⁵

The relation of Geissois & Weinmannia, as defined by you is not clear to me. Brogniart⁶ (like myself) in his new essay on the plants of New Caledonia lays much stress on the winged seeds[.]⁷I will when occasion arises inquire more extensively into the subject.

I intend to send an instalment of Compositae by the "Kent" next week. Perhaps I shall however not have the bill of loading before next mail. You will receive Brachycome 3 parcels, Celmisia & a number of other asteroid genera. Olearia & Eurybia are as we long know identical Dr Hooker is right in vindicating the priority of Olearia, though this obliges us now to change the names of many more Eurybia than in a reversed case would have taken place in Olearia. But this sort of change has now been recognized as in Mallotus, Scolopia &c & is of course just.

If you draw any Compositae into the 3 vol they ought to go all.⁸ How many species the order contains I cannot say, but believe not less than 500, with numerous genera. I should have thought that 100 Eucalypti would have taken up 100 pages, as you have to [reduct] so many as varieties & each of the latter must be recorded in some way. If you find difficulties in taking in Compositae could not the 3 vol bring supplements to the 1 & 2?

The £100 are transmitted as before.⁹ I mentioned this in my last letter.¹⁰

Trusting that you enjoy unimpaired health & grateful for the attentive information I received from you I remain

your regardful

Ferd. Mueller

Mr M'Kinlay goes out again to explore the country near the new settlement in the north of Arnhem’s Land. I have asked him to bestow your name on one of the leading new geographic features.¹¹

The new Eugenia herewith sent I have not yet seen in flower.¹²

I have now a second species of Symplocos sent.¹³

I have sent the diagnosis of a new celastrinous genus from Rockinghams Bay to the press.

I have distinguished it as Hedraianthera¹⁴ on acount of its sessile anthers.¹⁵

I have since writing to you the enclosed note reexamined the seeds of the Australian Xanthophyllum and find them precisely as described in Macintyria,¹⁶ as you will perceive when inspecting the enclosed fragments. The cotyledons differ in nothing from ordinary leafy cotyledons; they are green while the albumen is pale; they are most readily separated from the latter and do not adhere to it as in Brachychiton or some other Sterculiaceous, genera.

This is the first instance, that so anomalous a structure of seed in the same genus came under my notice. Of course we all know that in many genera the presense of albumen is that of degree but I am not acquainted with any case analogous to this I am almost inclined to regard the green shining lining of the commissural face of the supposed embryo of the typical Xanthophylli as the true cotyledons & the opace hemispheric portion, which is intimately grown with it together as albuminous. I found fruit of a Ceylon Xanthophyllum in Thwaites collection & have given an opinion on this to the effect in a new account of the M'Intyria,¹⁷ which I cannot regard identical with X. flavescens, with which you are inclined to place it. Hasskarl¹⁸ finds in one Xanthophyllum from Java a scanty albumen.

Affonsea

Archidendron

Brachychiton

Brachycome

Celmisia

Compositae

Eucalyptus

Eugenia

Eurybia

Geissois

Gillbeea

Hedraianthera

Irvingia

Leguminosae

M'Intyria

Macintyria

Mallotus

Mimosa

Nothocittus Irwinngii

Olearia

Pithecolobium

Poygaleae

Saxifrageae

Scolopia

Symplocos

Weinmannia

Xanthophyllum flavescens