Ɛpsilon

WCP2039

Letter (WCP2039.1929)

[1]

Nov 10/80

Dear Mr Wallace

I have been waiting to thank you for "Island Life"1 till I should have read it through as carefully as I am digesting the chapters I have finished; but can delay no longer, if only to say that I heartily enjoy it & believe that you have brushed away more cobwebs that have obscured the subject than any other, besides giving a vast deal that is new & admirably setting forth [2] what is old so as to throw new light on the whole subject. It is a short a first rate book.

I am writing notes for you, but hitherto have seen no defect of importance except in the matter of the Bahamas, whose flora is Floridan, not Cuban in so far as we know it.

Have you seen a copy of the flora of Algeria? which arrived this morning J. E. Wm. Matthews [illeg.] — if not I will [illeg.] ready eyes & glance through it & send [3] it to you; it seems very good.

Have you an appending I wrote to N "Travels in [illeg.] in the [illeg.] & Canaries Floras, if not I can send you a separate copy.

Vy [sincerely] yrs| Jos. D. Hooker2 [signature]

1
. Wallace, A. R. 1880. Island life: or, the phenomena and causes of insular faunas and floras, including a revision and attempted solution of the problem of geological climates. London: Macmillan & Co.
2
Hooker, Joseph Dalton (1817-1911). British botanist and explorer. Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 1865-85. President of the Royal Society 1873-78.

Editorial information

Status: Draft transcription [Letter (WCP2039.1929)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Congerton, John [2019-12-17]

Published letter (WCP2039.6396)

[1] [p. 33]

SIR J. HOOKER TO A. R. WALLACE

Royal Gardens, Kew. November 10, 1880.

Dear Mr. Wallace, — I have been waiting to thank you for "Island Life" till I should have read it through as carefully as I am digesting the chapters I have finished; but I can delay no longer, if only to say that I heartily enjoy it, and believe that you have brushed away more cobwebs that have obscured the subject than any other, besides giving a vast deal that is new, and admirably setting forth what is old, so as to throw a new light on the whole subject. It is, in sort, a first-rate book. I am making notes for you, but hitherto have seen no defect of importance except in the matter of the Bahamas, whose flora is Floridan, not Cuban, in so far as we know it.... — Very truly yours

Jos. D. Hooker.1

1
Hooker, Joseph Dalton (1817 — 1911). British botanist and explorer. Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 1865 — 1885. (This endnote is not included in the publication).

Editorial information

Status: Draft transcription [Published letter (WCP2039.6396)]

For more information about the transcriptions and metadata, see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon

Revision history

Transcribed by Lucas, Paula [2018-08-15]

Please cite as “WCP2039,” in Beccaloni, G. W. (ed.), Ɛpsilon: The Alfred Russel Wallace Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/wallace/letters/WCP2039