JHC617 - Page 8
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Hooker, Sir Joseph Dalton
JHC617
The Royal Society, Burlington House, London,United Kingdom
JDH/1/14/2 f.243-253
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
[1876]
© Descendants of Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker
Voyage of HMS Challenger Letters
The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
English
Original MS
11 page letter over 11 folios
 
Transcript

of drawings, salaries of Sir W Thomson & his staff of their persons, payments of experts, Spirits, bottles, implements, packing travelling & all other objects whatsoever in connected with the work except printing & paper that incurred on account of the Stationery Office is £3500 p[er] annum for a 5yr period not exceeding 5 years*36, commencing at April 1 1877 to be thus apportioned
Sir W Thomson £500. 0 0.
Permanent assistant 400. 0 0
Secretary[?] & Artist 400. 0 0.
Trained Assistant 100. 0 0.
Payment of experts 1000. 0 0.
Supernumery other*37 Artists 500
Travelling, implements, Bottles, Spirits, packing, carriage & contingencies 600. 0 0
£3500. 0. 0
16. To enable Sir Wyville*2 & his Challenger Scientific staff who are all on full pay until March 31 1876 to commence without loss of time, a small grant will be required at once to purchase spirits & bottles for immediate use separating the specimens. For this £300 in addition to £200 of the part of £500 for contingencies for 1876--7 which is we believe unexpended will be required

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Confidential*1
Recommendations of the P[resident] & C[ouncil] of the R[oyal] S[ociety] but not required by Trea[sur]y who[?] sanctioned at Thomson's*2 requirement*3
1. The marine invertebrate animals collected during the voyage of the Challenger, together with the samples of sea-bottoms, waters & gasses to remain under the control of Sir W Thomson in Edinburgh during such time as is requisite for their examination publication & distribution, it being understood*4 Sir W Thomson pledging himself that no expense to H.M. Gov[ernmen]t shall be incurred during that period for their accommodation*5 or for that of the person engaged upon them.
2. He will be charged to prepare &*6 publish in a scientific form & in a methodical manner, the observations physical & biological relating to the above collections, revising arranging and combining them with the assistance of the scientific staff, & calling in the aid of the Hydrographic department of the Admiralty for maps &c. when necessary.*7
3. He will supervise & control the work of a staff of 3 officers to be employed permanently during the progress of the work, supplying them with such materials & duties as shall fully occupy their time. For which & for all other work what so ever connected with the work of examination description publication & distribution he shall receive a sal[ar]y of £500 p[er] ann[um].*8 The staff shall consist if possible of the

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following persons all or most of whom who held similar appointments on board the Challenger.
α A permanent Assistant (Mr Murray*9) to take charge of the collections, regulate the details of distribution amongst the authors & articles employed, & to prepare a report on the sea-bottoms & on the fish collected during the voyage. For these services he shall receive a salary of £400 per annum.
β A secretary & As[sis]t[a]nt (Mr Wild*10 or some other suitable person). Salary £400 per annum.
C A trained assistant, (Mr Peach[?]*11) to undertake manual duties -- packing &c; Salary £100 with an increase of £10 for the second year.
4. He will supervise the work of experts who will be employed in the analysis of water, gasses, & mineral matters & in the examination, illustration & preparing descriptions of invertebrate animals &c, & who will be paid, some by the sheet of printed matter, others by the piece, & others by fixed salaries for short periods. For these purposes Sir W Thomson has, with the approval of the P[resident]. & C[ouncil]., invited[?] suggested the following persons, whose great reputations for their knowledge of the several branches which they will undertake are a sufficient

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guarentee warrant for their being selected. Those [3 words illeg crossed through] having an asterisk prefixed to their names have offered are willing to give*12 their services gratuitously.
Mr Buchanan*13, late chemist on board the Challenger &*14 to report on water & gas analysis
* Mr Sorby*15 FRS ) * Mr Murray*9 ) to report on the deep sea deposits Mr [William Kitchen] Parker ) * Prof [William] Turner ) To aid Sir W Thom[son][?] in the anatomical examination of . the seals and whales * Dr Sclater F.R.S*16 Birds
* Dr Gunther F.R.S*17. Fishes
* Mr George Jeffreys FRS*18) The Revd. [Robert] Boog Watson )
Prof [William C.] M'Intosh[?] ) Molluscs
Mr G Brady FLS) Mr Claus ) Crustacea
Mr Davidson*19 Brachiopoda
Mr M'Intosh FLS*20 annelides * Messr Agassiz * Dr Carpenter FRS*21) Mr Lüttler[?] ) to aid Sir W Thomson with the Echinodermata Mr [Theodore] Lyman ) Mr Leven[?] )
* Prof Allman FRS Hydrazoa
* Mr Busk FRS*22 Polyzoa Mr Mosely*23 Deep Sea Corals

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Prof [Albert v.] Kölliker. Alcyonaria Prof [Ernst] Haeckel Radiolaria HB Brady FLS*24 Foraminifera * Dr [W.B.] Carpen[ter][?] FRS*25 Mr Schmidt ) Prof Haeckel ) Sponges rumoured[?] -- Microscopic Algae &c Dickie*26
5 Dr Thomson will direct all other matters relative to the custody & preservation of the
specimens, keeping*27 rendering a strict account of all Expenses incurred in relation
thereto, & of all payments whatsoever made to authors artists & colorists; & for spirits[,] bottles & implements of all kinds.*28 6 Dr Thomson will send to the British Museum with the least possible delay, all
specimens of the following orders properly ticketed as to locality & date of
collecting, together with all other information of value obtained with them which with & referring to them.
α The Mammals exclusive[?] of Whales & seals b Reptiles
3 Insects
4 Land mineral & geological specimens, & fossils
7 He will make over the Birds to Dr Sclater*16 in charge for examination & description & be responsible for a full & characteristic series of specimens of all, including all important characters of plumage & stages of growth, being sent to the British Museum

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properly named; & for the remainder being returned to him for distribution under the
orders of the Government.
8. He will in like manner send the Fishes to Dr Gunther*17 who will be instructed empowered to select a complete set for the British Museum, including the unique specimens & two specimens of all species of which there are more than three, & who will return the duplicates to Sir W Thomson for distribution under the order of the Government.
9. He will send to the British Museum as soon as possible after publication, or before it when this can be done without detriment to or delay of the publications, a full & complete typical series of specimens of all the objects enumerated under head art[icl]e 4, with their names & localities affixed, & all such other information as should be appended accompany Museum objects.
10. He will be responsible for all coll--

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--lections intrusted to experts for examination or publication, taking receipts for them, seeing that all are returned, & for the custody of all duplicates except those of objects enumerated in article 6 until they are distributed.
11. He will give away no duplicates except under instructions from the Government.
12. The dried collections of plants made during the voyage he will leave with the authorities at Kew to which Institution whom they were transmitted under [ 3 words illeg crossed through] from time to time du[rin]g[?] the voyage by leave of the Admiralty, under condition of reports being published of those of special interest. Instructions should be given to the Director of Kew*29 to prepare to make suggestions for the disposal of them duplicates of their placing the Herbarium of the British Museum first in the list of recipients.
With localities remarks & descriptions of new species*30
An enumeration of the whole Botanical collection should be published in some communicated to a Scientific Society for publication &c*31
The microscopic algae & other minute orders requiring being to referred to experts for their examination should & description. The small not exceeding*32 sum required for this purpose may be paid met out of contingencies[?] the total estimates &*33

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13. Sir W Thomson will carry out the whole work of superintendingvising the examination & publication of the collection & the distribution of the specimens under the general superintendence of the President & Council of the Royal Society; who he will keeping them informed as to the progress made, the experts employed & collections entrusted to them, the payment to be made to them & to the artists, & of all other matters involved in their duty as in which the President & C[ouncil] should as superintendent of the work be informed.*34 He will further make a full report of the progress made in all departments at least one month before the end of each financial year, & at such other times as the P[resident] & C[ouncil] may direct.
14. The publications should be in a quarto form with plates, of the size of page & type of the Philosophical Transactions & should be printed at the National expense through*35 by H. M. Stationery office.
15. The sum required for the whole work of examination, description, preparation

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of drawings, salaries of Sir W Thomson & his staff of their persons, payments of experts, Spirits, bottles, implements, packing travelling & all other objects whatsoever in connected with the work except printing & paper that incurred on account of the Stationery Office is £3500 p[er] annum for a 5yr period not exceeding 5 years*36, commencing at April 1 1877 to be thus apportioned
Sir W Thomson £500. 0 0.
Permanent assistant 400. 0 0
Secretary[?] & Artist 400. 0 0.
Trained Assistant 100. 0 0.
Payment of experts 1000. 0 0.
Supernumery other*37 Artists 500
Travelling, implements, Bottles, Spirits, packing, carriage & contingencies 600. 0 0
£3500. 0. 0
16. To enable Sir Wyville*2 & his Challenger Scientific staff who are all on full pay until March 31 1876 to commence without loss of time, a small grant will be required at once to purchase spirits & bottles for immediate use separating the specimens. For this £300 in addition to £200 of the part of £500 for contingencies for 1876--7 which is we believe unexpended will be required

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Sir
Referring to your letter of [space left in mss. for date to be inserted] I am instructed by the P[resident] & C[ouncil] of the R[oyal] S[ociety] to transmit for the consideration of the Lords Council of H.M. Treasury the enclosed recommendations, for for the working out zoologically & anatomically the publication, & the distribution of the collections made during the Voyage of HMS Challenger, together with an estimate of the time which will be their completion will occupyied & the cost of the whole.
With regard to the recommendations for the[sic] working out & publication, the P[resident] & C[ouncil] after a most careful consideration,consider regard them as not regard the arrangement --which they propose should be made with Sir W Thomson as not only the best but the only practicable one means of obtaining the object in view.
*38With regard to the time Estimates required to complete the work they consider it probable that 4 years may suffice but that 5 may should be estimated for required & no more.
*39 with regard to the minimum sum required, that may suffice they cannot speak with equal confidence, [word illeg crossed through] owing to the total want of any precedent and the impossibility of obtaining previous to a careful review of the whole collections an approximate estimate of the amount of novelty requiring description

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and illustration that these collections contain. Upon this head it may must be born in mind that it is to be observed In respect of the collections & observations physical & biological it is to be born[?] the P[resident] & C[ouncil] would observe that of the deep sea fauna of the temperate ocean very little is known & of that of the tropical oceans absolutely nothing beyond the notices that have appeared of the rich results operations of the Challenger Expedition. To obtain a knowledge of these[?] ocean life & its conditions at all depths & in all climates the Challenger was fitted out by Her Majesty[']s Government on an unparalleled scale & supplied with a programme of operations that included altogether unparalleled extended over three years ; that she bore five trained naturalists scientific collectors & observers[?] & she was & was fitted with chemical & geological Laboratories & a complete carried a supply of all necessary materials instruments for collecting, preserving & observing which though supposed to be sufficient ample on she her leaving England had to be augmented at various stations;& lastly that & the results which also in scientific value are known to be adequate to exceed have more than justified the expenditure in value on the Expedition have all arrived in England without loss in perfect condition, & that the distribution
It is further to be born in mind
The P[resident] & C[ouncil] would further direct my Lords['] attention to the fact that the distribution of duplicate species, the number of which cannot be approximately estimated as yet & which for scientific purposes no less than for the credit of the Nation should be distributed as widely as possible, will involve a very large expenditure for bottles, spirits, packing, carriage &c.

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In fixing therefore estimating for £3500 per annum, commencing in April 1 1877 as the probable cost for five years, the Pres[ident] & C[ouncil] have endeavoured to keep a strict economy in view[.] They would recommend that amount as a minimum reserving the with the proviso that a maximum of £4000 should with the proviso that when estimating for further years an additional sum not exceeding £500 for any one year, may be required asked for for subsequent years under the following circumstances: 1) If it can be shown that the progress*40 duration of the work will thereby be materially hastened forwarded; 2) that £3500 was, though well spent, insufficient for the current year; 3d that unavoidable causes had prevented the expenditure of the grant during the current any year.
Under no circumstances do the P[resident] & C[ouncil] recommend the expenditure of more than £4000 during any of the 5 years & they feel assured will use every endeavour feel assured that Sir Wyville Thomson will do his utmost to complete the work in 4 years at an expenditure of £3500 per annum.
The President & Council have take[n] no account of Meterological Observations (other than those involved in Sir W Thomson's special work) or the Magnetical Observations taken during the Challenger's voyage, considering that these are best dealt with by the Admiralty.
An popluar general account of the Voyage as he Sir W informs us for the instruction of the general public has with the sanction of the I. O. of the A[dmiralty][?] before the matter was referred by the L[ords] C[ommittee][?] of the T[reasury][?] to the R[oyal] Society]*41 is being prepared by Sir W Thomson & will be produced at no cost to the Government & under conditions which preclude its being a source of pecuniary profit to himself.*42
[The letter bears no valediction or signature but is written in the hand of Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker]

ENDNOTES


1 & 3. These words are written in pencil above the main text which is in ink.
2. Sir Charles Wyville Thomson (1830--1882). Scottish naturalist and marine zoologist who served as the chief scientist on the Challenger expedition (1872--1876).
4. These superscript words appear in pencil above those crossed out.
5. The words 'for their accommodation' are circled and have a caret to show they should appear after 'during that period'.
6. The words 'prepare &' appear above the crossed out words.
7. The words 'when necessary' are added in pencil.
8. The sentence 'For which & for all other work……£500 p[er] ann[um]' appears along the left hand side of the page and has a caret to show it should appear after 'occupy their time'.
9. Sir John Murray (1841--1914), marine scientist and oceanographer; naturalist on Challenger expedition.
10. JJ Wild official photographer on Challenger expedition.
11. Possibly Charles William Peach (1800--1886). Naturalist.
12. The words 'are willing to give' appear in pencil above the crossing out.
13. John Young Buchanan (1844--1925). Chemist and oceanographer.
14. '&' followed by a line appears before the words 'to report' suggesting an interlineation to be added later.
15. Henry Clifton Sorby (1826--1908). Geologist.
16. Philip Lutley Sclater (1829--1913). Zoologist.
17. Albert Charles Lewis Gotthilf Gunther [formerly Albert Karl Ludwig Gotthilf] (1830--1914). Ichthyologist and museum administrator; wrote Deep-Sea Fishes of the Challenger Expedition (1887).
18. Possibly John Gwyn Jeffreys (1809--1885). Lawyer and conchologist.
19. Thomas Davidson (1817--1885). Natural history artist and palaeontologist; published a description of the Challenger expedition brachiopod material in 1880.
20. William Carmichael M'Intosh (1838--1931). Zoologist.
21. Philip Herbert Carpenter, (1852--1891). Palaeontologist and zoologist; his two chief works were reports on the crinoids collected by the Challenger expedition and published in 1884 and 1888.
22. George Busk (1807--1886). Surgeon and naturalist; his most important work was considered to be his 2 volume report on the polyzoa collected by the Challenger expedition and published between 1884 and 1886.
23. Henry Nottidge Moseley (1844--1891). Naturalist on the Challenger expedition; author of Notes by a Naturalist on the Challenger ; to the official reports of the cruise he contributed two independent zoological reports: one On Certain … Corals, and the other On the Structure of the Peculiar Organs on the Head of Ipnops.
24. Henry Bowman Brady (1835--1891). Naturalist and pharmacist, who wrote the Report on the Foraminifera Dredged by HMS Challenger, published in 1884.
25. This name is squeezed in underneath H B Brady.
26. The name 'Dickie' has been added in pencil.
27. This amendment is made in pencil.
28. The words 'Expenses incurred …..of all kinds' are bracketed together at the side in pencil with a question mark.
29. ie himself; Hooker was Director of Kew between 1865 and 1885.
30. The words 'With localities …of new species' appear along the left hand side of the page above those noted in endnote 31. It is not obvious where Hooker intended them to appear but it was possibly at the end of article 12. They have subsequently been crossed through in pencil.
31. The words 'An enumeration …Scientific Society for publication &c' appear along the left hand side of the page below those noted in endnote 30. It is not obvious where Hooker intended them to appear but it was possibly at the beginning of the next paragraph starting 'The microscopic…' They have subsequently been crossed through.
32. The words 'not exceeding' are written in pencil above the word 'required'.
33. The words 'total estimates &' are written in pencil. All the words from 'The microscopic algae…to estimates' are crossed through with pencil cross hatching.
34. In the margin alongside the two lines: 'payment to be made to them & to the artists, & of all other matters involved' there is a vertical line and a question mark in pencil.
35. This amendment is made in pencil.
36. The words 'for a 5yr period not exceeding 5 years' have been added in pencil.
37. This amendment is made in pencil.
38. Two short lines occur here to denote a new paragraph.
39. A line is drawn across the page suggesting a new paragraph should begin here.
40. The manuscript is smudged here but the word progress appears to be crossed out in pencil
41. The words 'sanction…..R[oyal] S[ociety]' appear in pencil along the right hand edge of the page
42. The words 'by Sir W Thomson…….to himself' appear along the left hand edge of the page. Where they should be inserted is not indicated but the context suggests at the end of the page.

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