WCP2901

[1]

THE CAMP.

SUNNINGDALE.

Jany 25 1908

My dear Wallace

I have been making further enquiries at the Herbarium respecting the possibility of Bentham¹ having left any further mss respecting Spruce's² collections there than you know of -: all in vain -: & when you consider the gigantic labours that Bentham was undertaking during a great part, if not all, of the time occupied by successive arrivals ^{from Spruce} you cannot wonder that he should not attempt to study them[.] There was the Flora Australiensis ^{(7 vols)}.³ the Hong Kong Flora,⁴ two I think versions of De Candolle's Prodromus⁵ the British Flora,⁶ the Genera Plantarum⁷with me, the Presidentship [2] of the Linnean Society with its learned annual addresses & perhaps above all the Herbarium of 30000 named species, culled from that the Herbarium left to him by Seemann⁸ & from his own – all systematically arranged in genus covers — all written up with his own hand for the ^{& gratuitously} presented to Cambridge University. Lastly why should not the ^{study of the} Sprucean collections be left for Spruce himself to deal with on his return.

I do not know if you have seen the notice⁹ of Bentham's life which I drew up for the Annals of Botany. I have there attempted to set forth the vast amount of work taken up & carried out by Bentham — He had enough to do in receiving & distributing gratuitously Spruce's [3] collection & acting as his accountant purser & correspondent.

Ev sincerely Yrs | Jos D Hooker¹⁰

Daydon Jackson¹¹ could possibly tell you if there is any ^numerical estimate of the Sprucean collection.