JDH thanks Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer [WTTD] for his letter with news of the loss of the ship 'Liberia', on which their friends the Lowes were passengers. Richard Thomas Lowe's death means the Flora of Madeira will never be finished, like so many other systematic works of botany. In Filippo Parlatore's absence from the Botanical Congress, in Florence, JDH was elected to act as President. He describes how he went about organising & chairing the proceedings of the Congress. He mentions the following papers that were given: one on the Colchicaceae of Greece, [Andrei Sergeyevich] Famintsyn[?] on Myxogasters, Caruel on Cynomorium from Sardinia, Schimper on Astrophyllites from the gneiss quarries of Mont Blanc. JDH had to comment on the papers in his poor French which annoyed some attendees. A bust of [Philip Barker] Webb was invested. JDH & the Vice Presidents had an audience with the King of Italy [Victor Emmanuel II], who JDH calls 'repulsive'. JDH is now in Venice & will return home via Paris. [John] Ball & [George] Allman stayed on in Florence, but the latter must return home soon for his election to the Presidency of the Linnean Society. JDH informs WTTD that he is happy to be a President of the British Association [for the Advancement of Science] meeting but will be satisfied if he only presents the joint paper on Nepenthes. JDH & party are well, except for [George] Bentham who has had diarrhoea. JDH briefly had a cough but has recovered. Mr Harvey is also in Venice.
Transcript
Venice
19th May [18]74
My dear Dyer*1,
Many thanks for your letter with the account of the loss of the Liberia which I had seen in a paper at Florence. No doubt Mr [Richard Thomas] & Mrs [Katherine Maria] Lowe are our friends; for I think that I lately had a letter from him saying that he was again leaving for Madeira. I am very concerned at his loss, for he was an excellent man in every point of view. He & his wife were so deeply attached, that I am really far from sorry that they both went together. The Made[i]ra Flora will now never be finished, & add another to the long list of unfinished systematic works
Venice
19th May [18]74
My dear Dyer*1,
Many thanks for your letter with the account of the loss of the Liberia which I had seen in a paper at Florence. No doubt Mr [Richard Thomas] & Mrs [Katherine Maria] Lowe are our friends; for I think that I lately had a letter from him saying that he was again leaving for Madeira. I am very concerned at his loss, for he was an excellent man in every point of view. He & his wife were so deeply attached, that I am really far from sorry that they both went together. The Made[i]ra Flora will now never be finished, & add another to the long list of unfinished systematic works
& which like Gen[era] Plant[arum] & Flora of British India are undertaken regardless of their length & sharpness of Time's tooth.
We had our first Congress on Friday*1a, when Parlatore being too ill to attend I was put into the President[']s Chair against my previous most earnest protestations to Parlatore*2-- & after a conference with De Candolle[,] Ball & Bentham himself, the two former of whom agreed with me that either an Italian or the senior Botanist was the proper man. The arrangements were nil. A list of Vice P[residents] was read out, some 50 including Moore of Sydney! & excluding Martens & scores of better men. The V[ice] P[residents] then proceeded to elect a P[resident]; & it being all fore-ordered by Parlatore I was proposed & carried on the spot. I took my place in High Dudgeon-- & Parlatore's wishes had to was then told to select a V[ice]. P[resident]. -- Parlatore's willing evidently[?] instructions were
that I should appoint Bentham. I cracked that much by refusing to have any -- Then I was told to choose my Secretaries! also from the list of V[ice] P[residents] of course I looked down the list for Italians who could speak English! & after some failures & refusals got Caruel*3 & another. Then as to the agenda there were none but the long list of papers for the congress I looked dismally around & remembering that Parlatore had told Bentham of some communications that must come on the first day, I appealed to him for the names: he immediately gave them. There were 3, of these the first two were not in the aforesaid list of communications for the Congress, & the author of the third was not ready! -- so I had to take the list as it stood & fish amongst the company for those who were present, & if present ready [1 word illeg.] gave a good paper with specimens on the Colchica[ceae]
of Greece -- [Andrei Sergeyevich] Famintsyn[?] a most interesting acc[oun]t of develop[ment]. of Myxogasters[,] Caruel a note on Cynomorium which he brought alive from Sardinia & Schimper a notice of Astrophyllites found in the Gneiss of M[on]t Blanc. I talked away about each paper after it was read, just as if I knew all about them, in execrable French, which excited the risibility of one offensively[?] ugly girl in the bench facing me -- upon whom I scowled most ungallantly. She reminded me of the portrait of Madam de Stael, & I heard afterwards that she was a splendid scholar & talked old Latin -- It was a very full meeting of ladies & gentlemen & I was glad when it was over -- I wish you had been there to appreciate the Linnaean Society & bless Currey & Staunton & perhaps even Kippist.
On Saturday we had the investing[?] the bust of Webb*4, a futile affair. On Sunday the King sent for me & gave the V[ice] P[resident]s
an audience in two batches; the Government Delegates & the non Delegates. I came in with the latter & better lot -- & had to bear the brunt of a conversation in French with the galant'uomo, the most repulsive object I ever beheld.
On Monday we left Florence for this place -- On Friday we go to Botzen [Bolzano] -- on [Thursday] Saturday over the Bremen & on to Munich. On Sunday night we go on to Paris, spend Tuesday there & cross that night & so home on Wednesday morning: you may write poste restante to Paris.
We left Ball*5 in Florence, he will be back end of June. We left Allman also at Florence, he rather wanted on account of his asthma to get off coming home for the first Linnean meeting in June, but B[entham] & I have told him that he must if elected, & he will do so.
I have not thanked you for your former letter which is full of interest. I do not quite understand whether I am to be a President § B.A., & if so, of what sort §. By the way I did mention this, & added how glad I should be that I have no Address & that the Nepenthes paper were to be a joint one.
We are all well, except Bentham who had another attack of diarrhea[sic] en
route hither from Florence & had to be left behind at a small station for 1 hour. Happily he had no pain or other complication.
I have had another bad attack of the whoops, consequent on catching cold last Sunday, but am better again. The weather here is much improved, bright & clear & hot in the sun, but very cold out of it.
Mr Harvey is here.
Mrs Hooker desires her kindest regards most since[rel]y yours | J.D. Hooker [signature]
I had quite forgotten poor Berkeley's attachment to Lowe. I think the latter intended his collection for Kew.
1. Sir William Turner Thiselton-Dyer (1843--1928). British botanist and third Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1885--1905). He succeeded Joseph Hooker in the role after serving as his Assistant Director for ten years. He previously held professorships at the Royal Agricultural College Cirencester, Royal College of Science for Ireland and Royal Horticultural Society. He married Hooker's eldest daughter Harriet in 1877.
1a. The Florence International Botanical Congress, commenced 15 May 1874.
2. Filippo Parlatore (1816--1877).Italian Botanist. Professor of botany at the museum of natural sciences in Florence, Italy, and Director of the botanical garden connected with the museum: Orto Botanico di Firenze. His lifework in botany, was Flora Italiana, of which five volumes appeared between 1848 and 1874; the next five were issued by Teodoro Caruel (to 1894) with the assistance of Parlatore's manuscript.
3. Teodoro Caruel (1830--1898). Italian botanist. Assistant to botanist Filippo Parlatore. Held positions at the scientific academy in Milan, the medical college in Florence, the Athenaeum at Pisa and was Director of the Florence Botanical Institute from 1880.
4. Philip Barker Webb (1793--1854). English botanist who left his valuable herbarium to Florence.
5. John Ball (1818--1889). Irish politician, naturalist and alpine traveller. Under Secretary of State for the Colonies from 1855--1857, in which role he advanced the natural sciences including aiding efforts to publish colonial floras. A keen naturalist he published papers on botany and glaciers but is best remembered as an alpinist. He travelled to the Atlas Mountains in Morocco with Joseph Hooker in 1871.
6. George James Allman (1812--1898). Irish ecologist, botanist and zoologist who served as Emeritus Professor of Natural History at Edinburgh University in Scotland.
Please note that work on this transcript is ongoing. Users are advised to study electronic image(s) of this document where possible.
Powered by Aetopia