Melbourne,
12. Aug. 1881.
T. Wilson Esqr,
Acting Undersecretary.
Sir
I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your memorandum of the 10th Aug,1 accompanied by letters from the Secretary of the Humane Society and the Consul General of Italy,2 concerning the use of Typha latifolia for mattresses, able to support several people in water, and thus recommended by Capt Romano, the Commander of the Royal Italian Ship "Europa" for the use of bedding on sea-voyages. The extreme lightness of the stems of the Typha or Reed-mace combined with their softness befit them well for the use indicated, and as these mattresses may prove the means of saving human life in shipwreck, it would doubtless [be]3 of importance to bring this plant into general use also here, as already in the Royal Italian Navy. It will however not be necessary to introduce the Typha latifolia into this colony, as a closely allied species, the Typha angustifolia occurs in the swamps of many parts of Victoria, even as near to Melbourne as the Yarra-lagoons. For the purposes of the manufacture of mattresses it would be quite as valuable as T. latifolia, and I may add, that it may be abundantly obtained in all the other Australian colonies at many places, though not in every district.
As the growth of this Typha ought to be encouraged on River-banks and around Lakes for the new purpose, I would remark, that the plant can be readily multiplied by division of its thick rootstocks. It is also worthy of record, that the Typha roots are rich in a wholesome and nutritious starch, a sample of which from plants of the Yarra-lagoons was prepared by me for the Exhibition of 1867.4
I have the honor to be,
Sir,
your obedient servant
Ferd. von Mueller.
Typha angustifolia
Typha latifolia
On 5 August 1881 George Butler, Secretary, Victorian Humane Society, wrote to the Chief Secretary, Graham Berry: 'I have the honor to inform you that Captain Romano of H.I.H. War Ship "Europa" furnished to this Society a specimen Mattress that was proved on sufficient test to be capable of supporting several people in the Water. It has other valuable qualities, and at the request of this Society, a Report was obtained in regard to the Material of which it was made, through the Italian Consul, which I forward herewith. I beg to suggest that the Director of the Botanical Gardens be requested to take steps to introduce this Plant into this Colony.' The file includes the letter from the Consul of Italy giving information about Typha latifolia and its use. On 10 August, T. Wilson referred the matter to M 'for report'.
On 18 August Wilson noted: 'Ac[nowledge] with thanks for the sug[gestio]n & say that the Govt Bot[ani]st reports that a plant closely allied & quite as valuable for the purpose is already to be found in most of the swampy parts of the colonies.'
The file also contains a press cutting from the Argus, 29 August 1881, reporting on the qualties of Typha latifolia and summarizing the information in M's letter. It ends by saying that 'the Government have no intention of giving encouragement to the growth of Italian bullrushes as a novel industry' (V81/7713, unit 1287, VPRS 3391/P, PROV).
Please cite as “FVM-81-08-12a,” 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 26 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/81-08-12a