Ferdinand von Mueller

Melbourne

24/1/80.

To the honorable Graham Berry, M.L.A.

Chief Secretary.

Sir.

I have the honor to solicit, that you will be pleased to sanction the transfer of the sum of fifty pounds Sterling (£50) from the vote of "paper for lithograms" to the item "Books, instruments, collections, seeds, travelling and incidental expenses". From a former circular-letter of your Department I am aware, that you desire to reduce the system of transfers to the utmost, but still I hope, that in an exceptional case like mine you will kindly grant my request, especially as the votes under my control are so limited, and as my departmental researches involve in their progress a variety of expenditure, which can not well be calculated long in advance.

I have further the honor to enquire, whether the vote "towards the publication of an edition of the Flora Australiensis" £125, can be used for acquiring additional material for the work by travels of a collector. Two large and important districts of Australia have not yet been at all examined for plants either by myself or traversed for collecting plants by any emissary, whereas it would render the intended work incomplete, were it to be issued before these two districts were explored.

1

The final volume of Flora australiensis (Bentham (1863-78)) was published in 1878. M was evidently actively working towards completing a proposed supplementary volume.

The £125 would therefore be best employed for collecting additional material for the work, if this met with your approbation and could be done under the particular wording of the vote.