To George Bentham   24 December 1870

Christmas eve

1870.

I sit lonely and cheerless in my Office this evening, dear Mr Bentham, while it is the one, above all others joyful & sacred to a German. My traducers and tormentors have succeeded in subjecting me to the humiliation of an Board of enquiry (I say this not for public notification) so that it seems all my hopes are blighted. There is not a single charge against me, but my adversaries wish to drive me out of my Directorship, after I created during the last 14 years mainly the Garden & whole Department & spent all my time and all my means in it. Thank God I remained unmarried, so that no young graceful creature is dragged into this misery of mine.

But be it enough of lamentation to you, on whom I have no claim for support in my position.

If my bodily & mental prostration admits of it, I will send you the supplemental Euphorbiaceae, Urticeae &c in time for utilisation. They will fill a good sized box.

As regards my sending a set of duplicates (as far as available) of any new species for Kew Museum from lately described by me, I will do what I can. But when I tell you that since the last 6 months the reductions in my Department have been such, that I could not even any longer employ a youth at 2/6 or 3/ a day in my Museum, you will understand that it is useless to tell you, when such supplemental new species can be sent. I am too poor, after spending all I had for my researches and in this Department and after giving my own large Collections to the Garden Museum, to pay also an attendent out of my small income for the Museum. As not even any new book is bought for the library and must be got out of my private purse, whenever it cannot be obtained in interchange, I cannot afford any private expense for Museum Work. However before 1874 not likely a supplement of the flora can appear and by that time perhaps my position is brighter, should I live.

I am gratified that your health is firm and that you will likely resume work on the flora. I failed to get the £100 promised on the estimates of 1871, though I applied urgently for it, but I will see what can be done to secure this regular subsidy towards the end of the year.

In my troubles it would have been a great support to me, if in any British periodical any notice was taken of my last double report to Parliament (1868-1869)¹ with its important tables & data. I feel it very much that the Gardeners Chronicle was quite silent thereon, while I see that two papers of mainly compilations by Schomburgk on new cultures and on forests are copied into the Chronicle.²

What horrors those of France! But entirely brought about by themselves! All Germany must be in mourning too! How the Strassburg collections must have suffered.³ I have Schimpers Palaeontology⁴ before me. Now — I suppose it will never be completed.

With my best wishes for your health & happiness.

Ferd. von Mueller.

Euphorbiaceae

Urticeae