3/5/87.
The stems of the genuine Xanthorrhoea australis,1 dear Mr Dyer, were lifted last weeks in a sandy heath-moor about 150 miles from here; but altho’ they were brought safely to the nearest railway-station, (a good way off) they were delayed on the transit to Melbourne for 5 days, and thus they were too late for the Shannon. So the large case must go by the next steamer, thought this letter catches still the mail in Adelaide, there being now railway communication so far.
I have had a good deal expense in this getting the stems, which are ponderous, so I shall not pay the freight to London; the small incidental vote for the finance-year is quite exhausted, and my private means are for books, for office requirements, for the numerous charities of such a young and yet large place, so heavily taxed, that I find it only possible to “make both ends meet” by the strictest domestic economy.
Please, make arrangements for the receipt of these stems, which ought to arrive two or three weeks after this letter.
Regardfully
your
Ferd von Mueller
Xanthorrhoea australis
Please cite as “FVM-87-05-03a,” 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/87-05-03a