Ferdinand von Mueller

1

MS is stamped and annotated 'THE TECHNOLOGICAL MUSEUM | SYDNEY | No. 513 | RECEIVED | JUN 3 1884 | Ansd. 30.0.84'. 'SUBMITTED | JUN 27 1884 | TO THE TRUSTEES'.

See J. Maiden to M, 30 June 1884 (in this edition as 84-06-30a).

Melbourne

2/6/84.

It was very pleasing to me, dear Mr Maiden, to read the valuable Report on the progress of the Technologic, Industrial and Sanitary Museum of Sydney. I thank you for alluding to myself also on this occasion.

2

Technological, Industrial and Sanitary Museum, Sydney, Report of the Committee of Management for 1883 (Supplement to the Australian Museum Report for 1883), NSW Parliamentary Papers, Session 1883-4, pp. 247-68. The report includes an acknowledgment that 'The Baron von Mueller, K.C.M.G., F.R.S., &c., Melbourne… [has] kindly aided the Committee with valuable suggestions'.

I have about half a hundred spare woodblocks, representing as many different trees of chiefly Eastern Australia. If your trustees like to acquire this small collection, which originally was intended for foreign interchanges, I can manage to send it to your institution for the mere price of putting the woods into book-shape and polishing and titling them; these preparations cost 6/ each. The woods themselves were got from various parts of Australia and would likely be most new to your Museum, at least in Book form; as the raw material was got mostly as surplus, after our own collection was supplied, no charge would be made for that, though — of course it involved much trouble, to get sound woods correct to name from a distance.

The size of the wood-books is the same as that of the samples, I gave you, when you were here.

3

The Technological Museum, Sydney register of donors ( MRS 88, Register of donors, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney) lists on pp. 224 and 225 samples of timber cut and prepared to represent books received from M. The entries are not dated, and the two entries probably represent receipt on different dates. The first entry, which also contains samples of articles made from Victorian Woods, probably refers to the samples given to Maiden in person during a visit to Victoria in 1883 (Rail passenger lists from Sydney to Melbourne, Argus , 9 August 1883, p. 8; Shipping intelligence, Gabo passenger list from Melbourne to Sydney, 7 December 1883, Bendigo advertiser , 8 December 1883, p. 2).

Please let me have an early answer.