To George Bentham¹    29 February 1868

29/2/68

Your kind letter, dear Mr Bentham, from 19. Dec.² is for reply before me. I feel convinced that the Epacrideae, though so extensively preelaborated here, will absorb so much still of your time that you will have material enough until the last portion arrives by the Great Britain. Indeed you have from me only the roughly worked out shapeless mass to which your master chissel must give the finishing form. If not in time the remainder should arrive, you will have so much work to do for the "genera"³ that the latter far more important work will gain by the delay of the other. I do not think, that after you have examined all drupaceous Epacrideae you could form any sound genus on Leucopogon, but will confirm the accuracy of my own observations.⁴ Otherwise you will have to break up Erica and several allied genera on similar principles. What then is to be done with Cyathodes? I think there should be some equitable characteristic of a genus, no matter whether it contains one or a thousand species; there should be some general guiding principle for the value of a genus and not a fluctuating one, especially as a genus to day monotypic may to morrow be pleio- or even polytypic.

With best wishes for your health & happiness

yr

Ferd. v. Mueller

Cyathodes

Epacrideae

Erica

Leucopogon