Arthur Vogan to J. Duncan   6 November 1890

Royal Geographical Society of Australasia

Nov 6 1890

J. Duncan Esqr

Wellington

 

My dear Sir,

I trust you will forgive the liberty I take in asking you to do me the following service:

Sir Thomas Elder has placed a large sum of money, for the purposes of Exploratory Work in Central Australia,1 in the hands of Baron Sir Ferd. Von Müeller K.C.B.2 FRS &c.

I am desirous of joining the party; but it will need all the influence I can bring to bear to obtain me a place on staff as there are so many good men applying.3

I was the sole representative of N. Zealand on the R.G.S.4 of Australasia's New Guinea expedition of 1885; and I want you to get me a letter to Baron Von Mueller from the Premier, or Dr Hector, or Dr Buller, asking a place for me as a N.Z. representative as well as for my past services in this line. I was artist on the expedition mentioned above; and discovered the Einsleigh river5 thermal springs — the only terraced springs yet known in Australia — in 1888 (and am credited with this & other geological discovery in Professors Jack's (Queenld Gov. Geologist) and Etheridge's (N.S.W. Gov Pathologist6) new book on Australia,7 which I have assisted to illustrate.8 Last year I made a geological report for the R.G.S. of A on 1000 miles of new country in N. W. Queensland, in the vicinity of the Herbert river, lat. 21°S.9

Any assistance you can render me in this way will be gratefully remembered.

I may mention that Sir George Grey has kindly given me an introductory letter to Sr T. Elder pressing my claims; I am also backed up by Dr Ramsay, Curator Australian Museum, Harrie Wood, Asst Secty Mines NSW; Maiden, Curator of Techl10 Museum &c as well as our branch of Society.

I trust Mrs Duncan & yourself are well — I hear your sons are doing well — and that Miss Duncan has enjoyed her trip to England. It may interest you to know that I have a book coming out in London in Jany.11

With kd regards to Mrs Duncan & yourself,

Believe me,

My dear Sir

Ever yours regardfully

Arthur J Vogan

 

P.S. As a well-known Journalist the Premier may be enclined to help me.12

1
Elder Scientific Exploring Expedition, 1891-2.
2
M’s British knighthood was K.C.M.G., not K.C.B.
3
See M to E. Ramsay, 11 November 1890.
4
Royal Geographical Society.
5
Einasleigh River, Qld.
6
Palaeontologist.
7
Jack & Etheridge (1892), p. 626.
8
There are no illustrations in vol. 1. In vol. 2, none of the 44 palaeontological plates are signed by Vogan; plates 45–58 are geological sections, none of which are signed; plate 59, a plan of the Charters Towers Goldfields, credits the engraver but not the delineator; the plates 60-68 are microscopic petrographical sections, none drawn by Vogan. Artists involved in the Geological Map are not identified, the credit being 'Drawn and lithographed at the Surveyor General's office'.
9
Not identified.
10
Technological.
11
Vogan (1891).
12
No supporting letter to M from Harry Atkinson, then in his fourth term (1887-91) as Premier of New Zealand, has been found. Vogan was not a member of the exploration party; see Lindsay (1983), p. 15, for a list of members and their roles. The medical officer was also the photographer, but no artist was included.

Please cite as “FVM-M90-11-06,” 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 4 December 2023, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/M90-11-06