16/2/79
I write a few lines to you, dear Dr Beccari, assuming that by this time you have quietly settled down at your post in Florence, and altho’ you will not rest on your “laurels”, you will doubtless now — after having faced so many dangers and earned so much “glory” — proceed to publish regularly your researches, and enjoy the quietness of settled literary life with — I hope — a happy household.
I look forward with much interest to the continuation of your important “Malesia”.1 Recently I have reviewed a small collection of plants from Mr Goldie and several other collections from the missionary The Reverend J. Chalmers. The specimens are mostly too imperfect for accurate examination, still I may manage to publish on them 16 pages more (No VI) of the Papuan plants.2 The species, which I recognize are nearly all known, only about 3 or 4 new ones; and as your Papuan collections came all from the N. W. and those obtained for me are all from the S. E., it is not likely that we shall clash in any minor publication of mine.
Your Sumatra & Borneo collections must also be teaming3 with so much novelty that you can well afford to leave a few novelties to me. Kindly consider, that unless I can go on with the “Papuan plants”, I shall have nothing to encourage the Missionaries to continue their sendings to me. Among the plants recently received from New Guinea are spec of the following genera not yet mentioned in my “Papuan plants”: Oxalis, Mollinedia Aristotelia Gomphrena, Coccoloba, Alphitonia, Elatostemma, Carumbium, Chloranthus, Nauclea, Eryth[rinia]4 Vittadinia Centipeda, Dichrocephala, Crepis, Eranthemum, Physalis, Diospyros, Coleus, Spathoglottis, Dianella, Tacca, Smilax, Aneilema, Habenaria, Pennisetum, Sporobolus, Chionachne, Isachne, Ophioglossum, &c, (the sp. nearly all well known).
You will be sad to learn, that our generous friend, Chev. Marinucci, died suddenly last month from intestinal inflammation.5 What a kind and excellent man he was, particularly attached to myself. I shall miss him very much indeed, and the Italian Government will find it difficult to obtain so excellent a Representative again.
With regardful remembrance your
Ferd. von Mueller.
When you send me any N. Guin, plants, then please send the Leguminosae first.6
Dr Scheffer sent a large lot of Rubiaceae of Dutch India, but they [are] all described in Miquels volumes.7
My best salutation to Dr Giglioli.8
Alphitonia
Aneilema
Aristotelia
Carumbium
Centipeda
Chionachne
Chloranthus
Coccoloba
Coleus
Crepis
Dianella
Dichrocephala
Diospyros
Elatostemma
Eranthumum
Erythrinia
Gomphrena
Habenaria
Isachne
Leguminosae
Mollinedia
Nauclea
Ophioglossum
Oxalis
Pennisetum
Physalis
Rubiaceae
Smilax
Spathoglottis
Sporobolus
Tacca
Vittadinia
Please cite as “FVM-79-02-16,” 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 25 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/79-02-16