WCP7230

[1]

Jan^y. 4th. 1874

The Dell, Grays, Essex.

My dear Sir,

I return you herewith Mr. Everett's¹ Maps. I really do not see what purpose would be served by lithographing them, as they are both too fragmentary and too meagre to interest any one in England. The fact that they are as he says — "on no particular scale" — would of course prevent the Geographical Society from having any thing to do with them. The best thing he can do is to keep them and take every means of adding to them till [2] he gets them to form a connected map from the sea coast inland. So many points on the coast & some distance up the rivers are fixed in the Admiralty Chart that he could easily connect his work to the coast & get a scale on which to lay it down. Then, with the Geological knowledge of the country he is gaining, he could write a valuable paper wh.[?] the Royal Geog[raphical]. Society would publish with [3] his map.

He has written to me about the Cave exploration, — but I fear nothing will be done. I have spoken to several geologists, but no one is inclined to take it up energetically, without which money can not be obtained for the work. I have not yet seen the letter you left with Mr. Bates, but as he seems now to have fixed employment under the Sarawak Government, I hope he may do better, as he certainly ought, by the assistance of the natives, to be able to make large & valuable collections.

Now to a personal matter. A friend tells me that he saw [4] your name in the Gardeners Chronicle (I think) offering to exchange Australian seeds. This leads me to think you may be like myself, an amateur horticulturalist, — and may perhaps be able to exchange with me such plants seeds &c. as will pass through the post. I also have a large [1 word illeg.] (about 100 species) of Australian seeds, which I am trying to raise & see what can be acclimatised here. Mine were from Sydney & Adelaide, — probably much the same as yours. I should like most, some from Tasmania, as more likely to be hardy. Some species ofPittosporum from N. Zealand have stood the recent frosts admirably

I remain | Yours very faithfully | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]

Revd. A. Jessopp DD.