Document information

Physical location:

71.10.00c

Preferred Citation:

[...] Laing to Ferdinand von Mueller, 1871-10 [71.10.00c]. 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//letters/1870-9/1871/71-10-00c-final.odt>, accessed June 13, 2026

1
Letter note found. Laing not further identified. The text given here is from a report of the meeting of the Foreign Industries and Forests Commission held on 31 October 1871 ( Argus , 1 November 1871, p. 5). It is not certain that M was the addressee, but it was not uncommon for members of the Commission to report at meetings on letters that had been written to them; see, for example, M. Synnot to M, February 1872 (in this edition as 72-02-00). In its comment on the meeting, taken from the Argus , the Geelong a dvertiser , 2 November 1871, p. 3, wrote that 'Mueller has received a letter from Mr Laing'.
[Dr. von Mueller read a letter from Mr . Laing on the subject of sending grapes to England, to arrive at the time when prices are very high there, and the possibility of doing so is to be considered .]
2
No further mention of the possibility of the export of fresh grapes has been found in reports of the Commission's meetings. There are, however, occasional newspaper reports of attempts being made, with a summary in Sydney mail and New South Wales advertiser, 18 February 1882, p. 262, that was prompted by a further, carefully prepared experimental shipment. (A later story in the same paper, 3 June 1882, p. 887, reported that the experiment had proved a complete failure.)