To William Thiselton-Dyer   30 May 1884

30/5/84.¹

In accordance with your wish, dear Mr Dyer, I caused just to be shipped a number of ferntrees (24) to you.² They are just fresh from the ranges, 5-8' high, and in a growing state. It cost no more freight to send the living stems as the dead stems, as payment has to be made by measurement, not by weight. They were just in time at the very eve of the departure of the “Iberia;” but there was no time to get a bill of loading;³ as however the letters are passed on by rail from Brindisi, this letter will likely reach you before the Iberia is in the London-Port. To make doubly sure, I enclose an order on the Capt. or Chief Officer of the Iberia, which your Agent should at once put into motion.

Both the Capt. and Chief Officer received a ferntree in donation, and will doubtless take such care of them on the voyage as can be put on loose goods and speed the delivery in London. It would have added very much to the costs, had I shipped them in cases. If rats and salt water are kept from the stems, they will likely arrive mostly in vitality, and it will be better for the epiphytes, to be grown on these stems, that they should be living, and you will get at the same time, a spendid⁴ ferntree-grove! I have paid all expenses for lifting these stems in the ranges, to fetch them out by oxen-drays (horses no use on such boggy and abrupt places), to get them to Melbourne and free on board; but the freight will have to be paid in London. I really have no public nor private fund, to pay the freight also, especially as my bid⁵ of money is locked up and partly lost by the recent crushing failure of the great London Oriental Banking Corporation, at whose Melbourne-Branch I had my private current account for more than 20 years, without ever asking for an overdraft or ever having interest for my deposits. Lord Normanby suffers also by the downfall of this once so great bank.⁶

A bill of lading, concerning the 24 ferns⁷ will be sent by first Penins. & Oriental Steamer

A first portion of the plants, wanting in the Kew-herbarium will go by this post, and by the successive mails other portions will be sent; this will simplify the matter to me here, and render it less costly.⁸ You will hardly think, that freight to & fro, cartage, clea[r]ing and emballage of the 70 cases, sent by me for the Flora Australiensis to Kew has cost over £300.⁹

I may not have all the species to spare, which are wanting at Kew, nor am I sure, whether you might not have picked out some more from the Census, where the — instead of B. fl.¹⁰ is so readily indicative of what is additional.¹¹

The new gesneriaceous plant from New Guinea is a Dichrotrich[um] (D. Chalmersii), as I now see from the character of the genus in D.C.’s Monographiae,¹² unless the fruit should turn out different. It is better, that I should correct myself, than be corrected by others; so I will publish a few lines here on the subject, which does not hinder to give fuller publicity to this beautiful plant in England.¹³ I misunderstood the characteristics of the anthers in the “genera.”¹⁴ - I am almost confined to the sickbed at present.¹⁵

Regardfully your

Ferd. von Mueller.

Look besides to the two supplements of the “Census”.¹⁶

If you trust your hand down into the hollow, surrounded by the stipes, you will feel at once, which of the ferns have formed the commencement of new sound fronds, coiled up.

As my additional species are fairly well described, I never thought it of much importance that European Botanist should see originals. So my sending is more for the benefit of Kew.¹⁷

Dichrotrichum Chalmersii