Document information

Physical location:

RB MSS M4, Library, Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne. 67.10.19

Plant names

Preferred Citation:

George Bentham to Ferdinand von Mueller, 1867-10-19. R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora, J.H. Voigt and Monika Wells (eds), Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, <https://vmcp.rbg.vic.gov.au/id/67-10-19>, accessed June 19, 2025

25, WILTON PLACE, S.W.
London
Oct. 19 1867
My dear Sir
I was exceedingly sorry to learn by your last letters (received since last mail) from Queen's Cliff
1
M to G. Bentham, 27 July 1867 and M to G. Bentham, 26 August 1867.
that you had felt so unwell — I sincerely trust however that this mail may bring better accounts and that the short rest you have taken may have restored you completely
I have been going through
Stylidieae

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with as much care as I could and have reduced the species to 82 of Stylidium 7 of
Levenhookia

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and 1
Forstera

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total 90 — and there are several more that run so much into each other that one is very much puzzled to know what to do with them — Several of Brown's have been misunderstood and some rather unaccountably so.
2
R. Brown (1810), pp. 565-73.
Labillardière's pilosum very well described and figured is Sonders plantagineum whilst pilosum of most authors is Brown's reduplicatum. Brown's adnatum figures in the Bot Mag and Bot Reg both as adnatum and as fasciculatum though in the latter case it is expressly observed in the description that it has not what Brown gives as the essential characters of fasciculatum
3
S. adnatum: Sims (1801-26), vol. 52, t. 5298; S. Edwards (1815-28), vol. 11, t. 914.
S. fasciculatum: W.Hooker (1827-64), vol. 67, t. 3816; Lindley (1829-47), vol. 17, t. 1459.
— and so with some others I am now at
Lobelia

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and regret much that Presl's bad genera should have been admitted by A. DC. without verification
Pratia

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I suppose we must keep up though some species cannot be distinguished from corresponding ones of
Lobelia

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without the fruit
Grammatotheca

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is founded on characters which as far as I can discover are purely imaginary and many others are very bad.
I was very sorry to see that in one of your parcels of
Lobelia

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a little mould had got in apparently from one of the specimens last put in perhaps not quite dry — since they have been here they have never been out of the room I work in on the second floor with a hot sun in summer and always a good fire in winter — there is nothing hurt of any consequence and I have put the specimens into fresh paper — I only mention it that you may not be alarmed if you see slight traces of it when you open the parcels — I shall send a box back as soon as I have enough ready to fill it. I have had another interruption from a week's absence from town but expect now to go on daily and steadily till the summer.
I found no specimen amongst yours of your
Stylidium crossocephalum

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,
4
Bentham (1863-78), vol. 4, p. 8, cited M's description (B67.08.01, p. 5).
I recognised at once your S. Barleei under your ms name of S. odontophyllum
5
MS not found.
but I cannot find either amongst yours or in our more complete set of Drummonds plants anything answering to S. crossocephalum — I suppose it must be allied to S. junceum which has more or less scarious-bordered bracts and calyx lobes but never anything like the size etc. you describe — I suppose our specimens must have got astray amongst miscellanies of some other order but I should like much to see yours
If your government get over their financial dead lock I should feel very much obliged if you could get the order passed for my £100 so as to receive it in the course of next summer when I hope to get the volume out — as I have always to pay Reeve & Co immediately on publication
I trust you have received the 3d part of our Genera
6
Bentham & Hooker (1862-83).
which Hooker sent to you last month
With sincere wish that you may be quite restored to health and long enjoy it believe me
Ever yours sincerely
George Bentham
Dr F. Mueller