To William Thiselton-Dyer   17 August 1887

17/8/87

When in the latter part of the year, dear Mr Dyer, I shall have finished the “Key to the syst. of Vict. plants”,¹ I will first of all elaborate Mr Forbes dicotyledonous plants from New Guinea, a not quite complete set of which came to me in return for the subsidy, given to Mr F. (£500 - - ) by the Royal Geogr. Soc of Australia on my proposition as President of the Vict. branch. I shall then most willingly divide any specimen, admitting of division, and thus share the set with Kew.²

I should like very much, that in autumn, when this letter will arrive, your Establishment would send me in a small close box as ordinary merchandise nailed down, a plant of Vaccinium Myrtillus,³ which then will be in a dormant state.⁴ I am satisfied, if a common wooden box without metal-lining is chosen, and the plant is dried of superficial moisture and without earth is partially placed horizontally into some almost dry sphagnum, it will arrive quite alive, and I could then take it at once to our sub-alpine country.

Regardfully your

Ferd von Mueller

This experiment, even should it fail would cost little and could be recorded in your Bulletin⁵

How easy will it be to those coming after us, when they can use tens of thousands of illustrat[.]⁶

Vaccinium Myrtillus