Document information

Physical location:

RB MSS M198, Library, Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne. 86.06.30a

Plant names

Preferred Citation:

Ferdinand von Mueller to Otto Tepper, 1886-06-30 [86.06.30a]. 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/86-06-30a>, accessed September 11, 2025

1
MS annotation by Tepper: 'Reply — Parcel 4.7.86. Letter 1.8.86'. Letter not found.
Privat
30/6/86
Erlauben Sie mir eine Frage, lieber Herr Tepper, aber durchaus im Vertrauen; es ist diese. Würden Sie so freundlich sein, nur Ihre Exemplare von
Trianthema humillima

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zu senden? Der Grund meiner Bitte ist folgender. Es scheinen zwei verschiedene Pflanzen von mir so gennant zu sein. Die Pflanze wurde nach Exemplare vom Lachlan Flusse beschrieben, aber merkwürdiger Weise sind die Original-Exemplare nicht zu finden im Museum zur Zeit, da ein Packet von Trianthema verlegt ist, was wohl vorkommen kann, wenn man bedenkt, dass meine Sammlungen etwa ½ Millionen Bögen umfassen!
Wie ich neulich an Trianthema Arten zu arbeiten hatte, fand ich, dass zwischen Ihren Exemplaren sich
Physcomitrium repens

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befindet, ein Moos genus neu für S.A. Ich möchte aber nicht , dass Sie dies der R.S. dort mittheilen, bis ich die Trianthema Untersuchung erledigt habe; was sonst noch neben der Pflanze Ihrer Sammlung ist, liesse sich vielleicht nach den von Ihnen zurückbehaltenen Exemplaren ermitteln. Ich hatte damals Ihre Pflanze nur nach flüchtiger Ansicht (ohne solche aufzuweichen oder zu zergliedern) benannt.
Ich werde Ihnen demnächst das 3te Suppl. des Census senden
Bestens grüssend
Ihr
Ferd. von Mueller.
Prof Tate hat lange nicht mehr geschrieben an mich, er scheint über irgend etwas unzufrieden zu sein.
Private
30/6/86
Permit me a question, dear Mr Tepper, but absolutely in confidence; it is this. Would you be so kind to send only your specimens of
Trianthema humillima

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? The reason for my request is as follows. There seem to be two different plants so named by me. The plant was described from specimens from the Lachlan River, but strangely enough the original specimens are not to be found in the museum at present, since a packet of Trianthema is mislaid, which can probably happen when you consider that my collections contain about ½ million folders!
2
M had described
Trianthema humillima

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from a tiny specimen collected by 'Mr Burkitt' (probably the pastoralist John Burkitt (c.1834-1909)) between the Lachlan and Darling Rivers, NSW, in B76.07.01, p. 72. The specimen is now among Aizoaceae indet. at MEL (MEL 589517). The species was subsequently included as a SA plant in Black (1922-9), p. 222, on the basis of specimens collected (by Tepper?) on the Yorke Peninsula, SA. However, its validity was denied in the second edition of this work, 1943-57, p. 531, where among the 'Additions' to the work, Black wrote:
Delete
Trianthema humillima

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, F. V. M. Mr. J. H. Willis, of the Melbourne Herbarium, informs me that further investigation of specimens from Maitland, Yorke Peninsula, prove that this is not a flowering plant, but a small moss, Gigaspermum repens (Hook.), Lindb. Mueller mistook the columella of the spore-case (sporocarp, sporangium) for the erect free-central placenta of Trianthema and the numerous spores for seeds.
The present letter suggests that M himself may have been having doubts about his identification but, if so, he did not air them publicly. Perhaps he had had doubts already, since he did not include T. humillima in his Census (B83.03.04).
Recently as I had to work on Trianthema species, I found that among your specimens was
Physcomitrium repens

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,
3
Species not in Australian Mosses Online (accessed 10 January 2022), but it was a recombination by C. Müller (1849-51), part 2, pp. 544-5, from Anoectangium repens described in W. Hooker (1818-20), vol. 2, t. 106 from a specimen collected by Archibald Menzies at King George Sound, WA, in 1791.
a moss genus new for South Australia. However, I would not like you to communicate this to the Royal Society there until I have completed the Trianthema investigation; what else there is besides the plant of your collection can be ascertained perhaps from the specimens retained by you. At the time I had named your plant only after a cursory glance (without softening or dissecting it).
I will soon send you the third supplement of the Census.
4
B86.06.03.
Best greetings
Your
Ferd. von Mueller.
Professor Tate has not written to me for a long time, he seems to be dissatisfied about something.