WCP735

[1]¹

Broadstone, Wimborne.

May 9^th. 1905

My dear Fred

I got yours last week telling of your mysterious letter from San Catalina. It looks as if Venezuela is "bust up" for you; so I suppose you will have gone to your much desired [word illeg.]!²(I always forget [MS damaged] <the> name). But now I think you [MS damaged] <must> be driven to choose between Nicaragua and Brazil! I am inclined to think you might try Maranhão the next port beyond Para, and I think very little [MS damaged] <visited> by travellers or Collectors. I [MS damaged] <think> it has the same climate as Para [MS damaged] equally grand forests, — but [MS damaged] <perhaps> rather more Brazilian than [MS damaged] in its fauna. It is really [MS damaged] 100 miles nearer Trini[dad] [MS damaged] <than> [2]³Nicaragua (Bluefields), and probably quite as easy to reach, as I expect all the coast steamers from Para (& perhaps from Trinidad) call at it. I can find little information, except that it has a "fine climate" and grand forests ^{there are also Campos near}. You can no doubt learn something it of it at your city. If you had to call at Para on your way you could get all the information about cost of [MS damaged] journey up the Amazon or the Madeira to the Andes lower [MS damaged] slopes. But if that is possible ^ultimately [MS damaged] <year?> in the Maranhão district would [MS damaged] <be?> needed to get the funds.

One other alternative is, to go to [MS damaged] [Ba]rranquilla at [the] mouth of the Magdalena [MS damaged] either to the forests of the Sierra de [3]⁴ Santa Marta, or, what perhaps would be even better, the forests of the Lower Magdalena. A good locality there, if it is to be found, would be, probably, be as good as anywhere. The Magdalena is a great river for Orchid collectors, but they have to go a long way into the lofty mountainous forests ^{for the cool}[?] ^orchids. The forests on its [word illeg.] would probably be richer in insects. I had no idea that any Morpho was now so [MS damaged] <scarce> and valuable as you say M. [MS damaged] <Hecuba?> is. Still, in any really good locality you may get new things equally valuable.

So now you have 3 places to choose from, if the Orinooko [sic] Delta is from any cause impossible, but [MS damaged] perhaps the mystery may not [MS damaged] disastrous, and Cap[tai]^n. Boynton⁵ [MS damaged] have something as good to [MS damaged] <bring> to you. I wait[?] [MS damaged] [4]⁶ for your next letter to learn all about it.

⁷Yours very sincerely | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]

P.S. I hope you wrote again to the B[ritish]. Minister at Caracas saying you may go to Nicaragua, Colombia or Brazil, and that is why you want the F[oreign]. Office Passport. It mentions no country but serves for all Foreign Countries. Of course when in the Country you have to get Passports &c if necessary.

Till I know definitively that you are [MS damaged] <staying?> somewhere, or even that you have [MS damaged] <searched> that "somewhere" and find it good, [MS damaged] must make any arrangements with [MS damaged] Museum or elsewhere, and there will [MS damaged] be plenty of time, and something [MS damaged]

A.R.W. [signature]