Ferdinand von Mueller

Letter not found. The text given here is from 'The Philosophical Institute', Argus, 6 August 1859, p. 5 ( B59.08.04).

See Herald (Melbourne), 4 August 1859, p. 4, where, under the heading 'What are our philosophers about?', it is alleged that Captain MacMeekan of the ship Omeo had arrived with a collection of carp, 'very valuable from being, we believe, the first introduced into the colony', .and presented them to the committee of the Philosophical Institute, 'by whom they were politely declined, no arrangements having been made for their reception!'

M's letter to Bleasdale is preceded by a letter of 5 August from Bleasdale to the Editor of the Argus: 'Your Melbourne contemporary devoted one of its leading articles yesterday to slandering the Philosophical Institute as a body, and ridiculing some of its more prominent members, among them myself in particular, and by name. Slander, when well and heartily done, is generally pretty harmless. I confess my first impression was to take no notice of it. On second thoughts, I resolved to contradict it in the plainest way and the fewest words. With that view I wrote the letter which I now request you to publish. I took it to the office, and finding the editor out, I called at his house and delivered it to him in person. He assured me it should be inserted to-day, and in a prominent place. Not a trace of it could I find in the issue of to-day. Having occasion to write a note to our respected president, I casually mentioned the above circumstances. In the course of the afternoon I received the letter which I now hand you for insertion. The parties responsible for the paper broke faith with both of us. The leading article in the Herald of yesterday entitled "What are our Philosophers Doing?" is one piece of slander upon the Philosophical Institute. It has been my fortune on several occasions to have to deny and correct statements in most of the public journals of this city, but I never met with any difficulty in so doing. My denial of a statement was always inserted with courtesy, and if the editor had been misled he said so. By inserting this letter I feel certain you will not be violating that etiquette which ought always to exist between public journals. I take on my own head all the blame. I should be a coward, indeed, if I were to shrink from discharging a public duty from fear of the Melbourne Herald. When a journal has openly slandered a public body of men, and asserted a thing as a fact which is no fact, it is mean to try to prevent the denial of it from appearing with the least delay. Dr. Mueller's note will tell the part he took in contradicting the article. Mine will speak my meaning pretty plainly.'

Bleasdale's letter is followed by the text of his letter dated 4 August 1859 to the Editor of the Herald: 'Sir,— The carp brought out by Captain Macmeekan, of the ship Omeo, were never offered to the Philosophical Institute in any way whatsoever, and consequently were never refused, or otherwise neglected, by that body. John J. Bleasdale, Vice-President Ph. Inst.'