Ferdinand von Mueller

15/5/67.

I acknowledge with gratitude the permission of the honorable the President of the board of Land & Works (received this day) to reply to the unjust remarks in the Argus,

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Argus, 3 May 1867, p. 5, cols a-b; quoted in n. 1, M to J. McCulloch, 3 May 1867. See also subsequent notes to that letter.

concerning plants wished from me for the treasury-reserve. But twelve days having elapsed since I brought the misrepresentations under notice, I feel that after this interval any contradiction must have less force and will rather now tacitly suffer the injury inflicted, since moreover an other Department might so much more gracefully than myself removed the erroneous impression produced.

I avail myself of this early opportunity to ask, whether the arrangements approved of by the hon. the Chief Secretary and his Predecessors to offer weekly public memoranda on what might be interesting in the Garden or concerning the operations here, are to be continued. They were always foreign to any thing but science & wishes of progress & prosperity to the resources of our land.

I have in vain endeavoured to find a reason, why in the plan submitted by the Assistant Commissioner for Land & Survey to Parliament (without any consultation with myself) 180 specified plants should be marked as to be moved from permanent positions in a reserve planted by myself with my own resources, and why thus the Director of the botanic Garden (as remarked by the Argus) gets credit alone on the plan for the 350 plants (instead of 530 )

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(instead of 530 ) added by M in the margin, with no indication as to where it was meant to be inserted.

to be supplied from the botanic Garden. — Nor can I understand, why 180 specified trees should be recommended to be removed from my ground and from permanent positions without a prior conference, and why thus a reserve visible from all sides & largely frequented should be deprived of its upgrowing trees and thus my operations be thrown back. I would beg leave to submit to the consideration of the honorable the President, whether it would not be more equitable to remove simultaneously plants from permanent positions in Fitzroy & other metropolitan Parks. If thus 90 plants were removed from these reserves of the Board of Land & Works, the other 90 might at my own discretion be selected in the Gov House Reserve. It must be remembered that I have this season also to find, if possible, good sized plants for the ground of the stately & handsome building erected for the Commanding General of the troops.

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Plans had been developed to build a residence for the commanding officer at Victoria Barracks.

The honorable Gentleman in declining to concede to my Department any public acknowledgement for the gratuitous supply of so extensive lots of select plants (often first brought by me & sometimes solely possessed by me) can, I am quite convinced, not be aware that mainly through my scientific friends abroad or their influence and without any expense to this Government the principle means for raising the very many thousand rare plants annually are provided, nor can Mr Grant be aware, that such provision involves great toil and manyfold private expenses and sacrifices to myself, expenses which cannot be recovered. Thus by investing my private means & having spent thousands of £ in the Department, I felt myself entitled for some slight consideration, and I appeal to the honorable Gentlemans well known love for justice and fairness, if it is right to pass silently year after year the extensive contributions of my department, where no reciprocity exists , when I am placed under the disadvantage to pay even for watersupply ( not charged to the reserves of the board of Land & Works), and when the gifts of Private Donors to the Parks are acknowledged. The general public must thus be left under the impression, that the botanic Garden does not aid in the formation of these parks. The Governments Printing Office issues my works for sale in its own office (not for the benefit of my department,) and for the copies supplied a large equivalent is offered in the plates I furnish. I explained already, that Norfolk Pines are available here, but that, as they can only be obtained by me advantageously by purchase, I like to reserve them always for refilling Wardian Cases received from foreign lands. Moreton Bay figs, of which masses were supplied to the Institutions of this country for years, could not be anew raised (through the drought) last year, the seeds not germinating. I feel persuaded, that the hon the President will concede, that my knowledge of plants enables me well to forsee the future effect in grouping them, and that, out of respect to the office which I have the honor to hold, opportunities should be afforded to myself to offer my recommendations whenever metropolitan plantations are to be formed, especially if for such very extensively is to be drawn on my resources.