19/2/89
I had written a letter to you, dear Mr Barnard, to excuse my absense at the Deputation
to day, as I am not quite well; but the letter, instead of being given to you at the
Lands-Office went to Kew; so I write again to be in time.
I would
not
advise, to ask for large areas in Wilson's promontory, to be reserved, because the
revenue would suffer. More over it is such a mild climate there, that many products,
not hardy in Victoria, except in frostless places, could be reared there, the equable
humidity being also advantageous for tillage there. Already 1854 I recognized at Sealers
cove the importance of many parts of Wilson's promontory for forest-purposes, and
as early as 1853 I found a cattle-station to exist on the Western side of the peninsula.
As regards reservations in the most easterly region of Gippsland, they might include
not only the two patches, where the Fan-palm grows, but also those places where the
Waratah occurs most luxuriantly and particularly the spots, where it attains 50 feet
in hight, also the particular locality, where the rare slender fern-tree,
occurs. But unless the stringenst
measures be adopted against the forest- and bush-fires, these noble but slow growing
plants might still be swept out of existence. The Patch of ground, on which the Fan-palm
grows near the Brodribb-River, was reserved on a suggestion of mine very many years
; but the other patch became only known recently. As regards the earliest discovery
of the
in Victoria, I may remark, that since our last meeting of the F. N. Club,
I had an unexpected visit of the youngest brother of the Mess. McLeod, who told me,
when I asked, that his eldest brother Norman (dead since some years,) Mr Brodribb
and an other Pioneer-Squatter came suddenly on the so called Cabbage-palm a few years
prior to my pushing to the spot in 1854, when McCleods small outstation was deserted.
The early party took no special notice of the presense of the Livistona-Palm, as they
were in search for pasture-country only, and could in those early days not even know,
whether this Palm did extend to Wilson's Promontory or even the Cape Otway Ranges.
Thus, at all events, I was the first, 35 years ago, under the danger of attacks from
then murderous natives, to
render
known
publicly the existence of this Fan-palm so far south, and to identify the genus and
species.
The Victorian Waratah I discovered only 1860 on the table-land near the sources of
the Genoa,
at an elevation of about 4000 feet. As the main-portion of East-Gippsland became
only traversed within the last few years, the Waratah also was only recently traced
over its areas, but many of the vallies, into which it probably penetrates, are never
yet trodden by civilized man.
Regardfully your
Ferd. von Mueller.
