From Charles Birch to Ferdinand von Mueller   27 Apr 1889

Proserpine River 27/4/89

"Bowen" Queensland

I send you by this mail my dear Baron the fruit accompanied with the flowers of a plant of which you requested me a long time ago to get the former, also a few other specimens of the radiated stemmed plant I have not yet obtained the fruit, but if interesting I can procure it for you — there [are]¹ some ferns (small) in this locality that I have not noticed elsewhere. I shall send some hereafter when the weather clears up — I know that the spores must appear in the specimens, yet even if they are at present without spores, such as you deem worthy of collection may be secured when perfect.

I think Mr Christy Palmerston may be heard of at or near "Cairns"² a letter addressed to him "to be forwarded" would reach him —

I shall attend to your wishes as regards water weeds, I regret I am so far from the coast, but I shall nevertheless see some of fishermen near Bowen about the food of the Dugong.

I shall visit Mt Dryander³ and I believe I shall have to cut my way up, for it is densely scrubbed, I must reach the Pines — they must be very large, for although so high up I can distinguish their trunks fully 3 miles off. —

I have been searching for Snails and found some remarkably large and also some that were rare, amongst them one new — the finder has been ignored (thats me) the person to whom I sent them, submitted them to Mr Brazier F.Z.S. — he, the person to whom they were sent, has received the credit of being the discoverer, tis a lesson I shall remember to the gentlemans cost.

My results "re" Mt Dryander shall be forwarded to you alone

Yours faithfully

C. W. de Burgh Birch

Zelling

We have a Dendrobium? Bulbous and leaves like a shalot, found only on Tea trees — another with leaves like a Casuarina — another with leaves like the common white Fleur de Lys but shorter (say 6 inches long) as they flower I think I could send the plant per post if likely to be new or rare.

Casuarina

Dendrobium