Ferdinand von Mueller

Melbourne botanic Garden,

25. Sept. 1864.

My dear Professor.

It affords me great pleasure to inform you, that I have despatched to you under care of the obliging Commander of the "Great Britain" a cag

1

keg?

with a female Echidna Hystrix and a small glass containing the minute young of the same. I received both detached, but the finder of the animals saw the young attached to the mamma of the mother, as you will observe in the letter-extract herewith transmitted. Letter 1

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Letter 1 is written in the margin with the intended position indicated by asterisk; see G. Harris to M, 31 August 1864.

Fearing that an accident might befal this sending on its way to you, I thought it prudent to institute a rough examination of the mother, before the creature was despatched, and in this examination was undertaken jointly

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Changes were made by M to this part of the sentence. Before the changes it read '... and in this examination I was aided by Dr Rudall, ...'.

by Dr J Rudall, one of the most eminent medical men of this City and myself. We do not presume thereby for a moment to anticipate any of your own observations, but since it is so excessively difficult to obtain these Monotremes in a state of pregnancy or with the young in its early state of nuturation, Dr Rudall & myself thought it best to convey what we can whilst examining (though amidst other duties hurriedly) the creatures to paper, and superficial as our inspection was we venture to submit the results to you.

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See account of dissection of the female and sketch of the young in M and J. Rudall to R. Owen, 25 August 1864, published in Owen (1865); and also their description of a dissection of a male, which accompanied either this letter or M to R. Owen, 25 August 1864 (in this edition as 64-08-25c).

After we had despatched the specimina we were rather startled by an account in one of the country-papers (herewith enclosed)

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A newspaper clipping, quoting 'The Mountaineer of the 29th' and describing the capture of a Platypus which laid two white, soft shell-less eggs while in the possession of Mr Rumley, gold receiver of Woods Point, is attached to an undated note in M's hand. The note, bound as f. 401, is given as a postscript to this letter.

according to which an Ornithorrhyncus had laid two shell-less eggs in captivity Dr Rudall & myself certainly arrived at the conclusion, that the Monotremata could not be oviparous and believe, that some error must have given rise to the paragraph in question. I then wrote to a Gentleman on the Murray-River, Mr Peter Beveridge, J.P.,

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Letter not found.

whose sheep station is frequented by the remnants of the native-tribes of the Murray, and who has great influence over them, to elicit any information obtainable on the process of generation of the Platypus from the aborigines, the Echidna not occuring in the low-lands. My friend with his usual zeal & intelligence responded to the call and the byefollowing letter of his will convey to you the results of his enquiry. Letter 2

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Letter 2 is written in the margin with the intended position indicated by asterisk; see P. Beveridge to M, 8 September 1864.

There is not the slightest doubt of Mr Beveridge having most correctly understood what the natives stated on the subject, he being so conversant with their language, nor do I think that these keen observers could have been under some misconception themselfes, as all that pertains of animal life has to them so prominent interest & is watched by them so closely; nor do I see any reason of the natives having purposely stated anything to mislead us on the subject, a bright point on their character being veracity. You will observe, that the account received from the Murray-natives bears out Dr Rudalls and my anticipation and is in absolute contradiction to the statement promulgated about the Platypus by the Gentleman at Wood's Point. I wrote to the latter

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Letter not found.

for being favored with further particulars about his observations of the Ornithorrhynchus kept by him in captivity, not merely to see how far his statements about the propagation of these animals could be reconciled with the information derived from the blacks, but also to learn how he managed to keep his Ornithorryhynchus so long alife, I having in all my efforts failed to maintain them longer than 4 or 5 weeks in captivity. But up to date I have received no answer.

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An answer was later received and transmitted to Owen, and published by him in Owen (1865); see G. Rumley to M, 25 September 1864 (in this edition as 64-09-25a).

As it appeared to me of importance to obtain from the various native tribes, before these unfortunate people fade from the globe, all the knowledge they have of the subject under discussion, I adressed several influential residents in districts where the natives are still living, asking to make the necessary or desired interrogation. The results of these shall be gladly communicated to you. It may be also possible to obtain sooner or later animals in a state, that will set the long discussed question at rest, but since all my endevours hitherto failed except in the instance, which secured the specimen now on the way to you and which is not affording conclusive evidence, I believe it will be best to gather all reliable testimony & weigh the total of its value in any subsequent conclusions.

It occurs to me, that I could afford you for your brilliant researches perhaps some additional material from here, perhaps the Phascolarctos cinereus

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Koala; M misspelled the generic name, which is Phascolarctus. This may have been deliberate, to make the ending consistent with the Greek root of the name. See for an argued case concerning terminology, M to G. Bentham, 5 February 1866, on the use of 'Flora Australiensis' .

& other animals, which hitherto have not reached Europe alife and which it is hopeless to endeavour sending. The Phascolarctos solely living on the fresh and chiefly young leaves of various species of Eucalyptus in a natural state, can I believe not readily be accustomed to other food & hence the apparently unsurmountable difficulty arises to send them out of an Eucalyptus country. At least all my trials with the young failed, but I will once more endeavour to accustom them to farinaceous food mixed with the powder of dried Eucalyptus leaves & should this prove successful I will forward the creatures to England. But I could most easily send you specimens in Alcohol, and perhaps, if you deem them desirable for the British Museum, you would be so friendly, to cause a caske of spirits mixed with some oil of turpentine to be sent for the purpose of preserving such animals. If Alcohol thus mixed was sent out of the Bond it would pay here but a trifling duty compared to the expenses, which the purchase of such an article in quantity here involves. If you will kindly point out any other animals desirable from here, they could be sent simultaneously.

The "Great Britain" left Port Phillip at the end of last month. So probably she will be in Liverpool before this letter reaches you. Under any circumstances pray arrange that some trustworthy person receives the consignment from Capt Gray, who most kindly took the things into his private Cabin. The Captain will leave the Ship almost immediately after arrival.

In regard to the Meteorite affair, which has by the feelings of right evinced by the Ministers of the Crown assumed a satisfactory aspect I have written by last mail.

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M to R. Owen, 25 August 1864 (in this edition as 64-08-25c), and M to N. Maskelyne, 25 August 1864 (in this edition as 64-08-25b). See also Lucas et al. (1994).

Accept, dear Professor Owen, the assurance of my most profound admiration & allow me to remain your deeply attached

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The following text is an undated note in M’s hand, bound in the sequence of letters received by Owen as f. 401. It is treated as an enclosure to this letter because the newspaper cutting referred to in the letter is pasted on to it. The newspaper that was the source of the clipping has not been identified, but a number of newspaper articles reprinting the same text were published in early September 1864, for example Mount Alexander mail, 1 September 1864, p. 2.

A Gentleman, who resided some time on the Murray River, Mr Henry Stevens, contends having once discovered the nest of what he took to be a Platypus on a sandy declivity close to the River Bank. This nest consisted simply of an excavation in the sand. The number of eggs was 8, their size that of pigeon-eggs, their color pale yellow. I have no doubt that Mr Stevens mistook the nest of some other animal for that of the Ornithorrhynchus