Ferdinand von Mueller

1

MS found with a specimen of Syzygium hodgkinsoniae (MEL 60176). MS annotation by M: 'Eugenia Hodgkinsoniae F.vM.'

Adraville,

Hunters Hill,

Sydney,

14th Decr 89

Dear Baron,

The drawing, which I now again send you (and which I would be obliged by your returning)

2

MS is accompanied by a watercolour drawing of leaves, shoots and fruit, copied from Fitzgerald's original by Charles H. French.

2

A close-up of a plant Description automatically generated with low confidence

was taken from a fruit found in a dense scrub on Duck Creek, Richmond River.

4

NSW.

We searched for the tree or shrub from which it had fallen, but could not make it out.

Two plants grew from the hard nut and are now about a foot high. It produces masses of scarlet buds (?) at the ends of the branches and I expected they would open into flowers but they dry up (example inclosed) and come to nothing, leaves and branchlets at length coming from just below them The drawing of the end of a branch has of course been added (to the original drawing of the fruit,) from the plants referred to. I lent the drawing to Dr Woolls who thought he could make out the species and without thinking he returned it in a letter, which accounts for its have creased I doubt whether the scarlet growths ever become flowers The upper part of the fruit, as shewn in the side view, was that attached to the stem

5

The species is also referred to in R. Fitzgerald to M, 9 December 1889, and discussed in more detail in R. Fitzgerald to M, 3 January 1891.