Chief Secretary's Office
Melbourne 5th May 1871.
Sir,
I have the honor by direction of the Chief Secretary to request that you will be good enough to inform Mr Ferguson of your Department that the papers in the matter of his being provided with quarters were referred to the Board of Inquiry on the Botanic Gardens who have not yet made any report.1
I have the honor to be,
Sir,
Your most obedient servant
W. H. Odgers
The Director Botanic Gardens
William Ferguson had requested that he be provided with a cottage in the Botanic Garden, and M had been instructed to serve notice on the gardener David Coller to vacate the one he had occupied. The cottage was apparently still occupied by Coller in December 1870 when in M to D. Coller, 29 December 1870, M wrote passing on the Chief Secretary's inquiry about occupancy. There is a minute, probably by the Chief Secretary, with the letter: 'let this matter stand over till the Board on the Botanical Gardens sends in its report'.
Please cite as “FVM-71-05-05a,” 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