Nov. 17 /95
The Camp.
Sunningdale.
My dear Baron
Yours of 31/8
has been left too long unanswered & I have no better excuse than the old one, of
not taking advantage of the many small intervals in being busy. And now I am reminded
of you by a letter from a new (to me) correspondent; Mr Bufton of Tasmania, who writes
enthusiastically of your good offices & his own botanical proclivities. It is delightful
for me in my old age, to find myself remembered in Tasmania, & I feel very keenly
Mr Bufton's kindness in writing to me, & telling me of the progress of Tasmanian Botany
& of his aspirations as a naturalist & a Federalist!
He tells me he much desires to be a F.R.S. but I do not know if he has done any original
work, without which entry is now impossible.
I am very glad to hear of the new (9th!) Edn of Select Plants;
it must gratify you to see the work so often cited for practical purposes.
I am sending you herewith a lithograph of what I think is the best portrait of my
father, being that which recalls him best to my memory. Perhaps you have it already
if you have a copy of the "Journal of the Kew Guild" an annual brochure got up by
the staff of Gardeners &c at Kew by way of keeping up an "esprit de corps" amongst
past & present employées. I do not know whether it is on sale, but if you have it
not I will try to get you a copy. The portrait of Brown is from a small oil painting
by Pierce, made for Lady Franklin, who had a gallery of such likenesses of her friends.
It was given me by Miss Cracroft
after Lady F's death, & is an admirable likeness of the great man in extreme old
age.
I think I sent you the little Wedgewood medallion of my father that I had made at
"Etruria" — if not let me know, as I am ordering some more to be struck off.
The Geographers have good hopes of an Antarctic Expedition with this Govt. I am glad
to see that both Germany & Norway are organizing expeditions. There is room enough
for all; & danger enough God knows!
The Norwegians were highly favored by the weather, it was an awful time when we were
off Cape Adare.
Ross would have given his ears to have been able to land any where on the coast,
& if he could not I am sure that no one else could have
at
that
time
. As we experienced, the seasons vary greatly, & if we had had in 1840-1 the weather
we had in 1842-3, we should never have discovered Victoria Land, nor perhaps even
have approached it. Then too it is quite clear, from Weddell's experience, that the
pack moves its position over vast areas. Nevertheless I am inclined to think that
the route south via E. coast of Victoria Land may be always more or less open, the
currents being strong. As to wintering I extremely doubt the practicability of it,
& even if practicable, I cannot conceive any Commander undertaking the responsibility
of leaving a party in such a climate of wind fog & snow & on such a coast, any part
of which may be blockaded for years by Bergs or Pack, & remain so for an indefinite
period. Let Cape Adare be ever so acessable now, a square mile of Pack, or a couple
of Icebergs stranded off it, might seal it up in a week for years. Graham's Land is
the place to search for winter quarters.
I am still struggling with Grasses for "Flora India". The
s are inextricable & the genera hopelessly bad Hackel has done all that is possible,
& excellently well, but his book
is most difficult of consultation.
I had finished in mss. all the Indian
s (for the Flora)
in Kew Herb. by it, some years ago, for the "Flora", but I have had to collate vast
collections that have since arrived from King Duthie, Woodrow & others with much novelty
amongst them, & what is worse introducing so much dislocation of old characters. You
would hardly believe how difficult it is to name the species of even a good named
Herbarium! You are perpetually tripped up, as by looking for a
in
, or in
or some other genus, to any or all of which your plant seems really as naturally
to belong as to
. Then the incessant use of the microscope is very trying — much more I find for Grasses
than for
or
. Stapfs' aid has been & is invaluable — I hope he will stick to the whole Order.
Banks' Journal progresses, my 4th son Reginald, who was Asst Secy of the Statistical
Society, has aided me greatly in editing. He has now got a Govt. post in the Intelligence
Dept. of the Board of Agriculture, having come out at the top of the candidates in
the competitive Examn
for the post. It is an Office in which I hope he may rise. The pay at first, £150
rising by £15 annually to £300 is small for a man of his age 26
& acquirements, but there is always the chance of promotion & always a pension at
60! He is a hard worker.
I hear that Brian
has an appt
for £450 at Coolgardie,
& I await particulars impatiently. It is very gratifying to me that you keep in communication
with his wife — who owes you so much.
Very sincerely your
Jos. D Hooker
