To Stephen Silver1    13 December 1887

COPY

Melbourne

Dec. 13th 1887

 

In accordance with the request of the Honorable A Deakin I beg to send a supply of fresh and well matured seeds of "Eucalyptus citriodora", which kind is not easily obtained, as it occurs only at a few localities in New South Wales and Queensland. In Britain it needs glass protection.

Yours etc

Ferd. von Mueller

 

Eucalyptus citriodora

The correspondent is identified as Stephen Willliam Silver, farmer and Lord of the Manor (1891 UK Census; National Archives, London, RG 12/982, p. 9), on the basis of a letter from S. W. Silver of Letcombe Manor, Wantage, Berkshire, to [D.] Morris, dated in another hand 24 January 1888, and date stamped: 'Royal Gardens Kew 2[…] Jan 1888.':

I have just received from the Honorable A Deakin Melbourne a few seeds of the Eucalyptus citriodora which I understand from the enclosed remarks of Baron v. Mueller are very precious - It has occurred to me that you may be glad of a portion.

Silver's letter is annotated '40-1888', a reference to the entry in the Kew Inwards Book, 1888-92. The copy of M's letter is also date stamped 'Royal Gardens Kew 2[…] Jan 1888'. (The second numeral in the date has not been clearly rendered on either letter.)

Please cite as “FVM-87-12-13c,” 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 28 March 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/87-12-13c