Description

Owing to a steamer accident, Hooker's two letters of 11 and 19 Oct arrived together. Thwaites knows Hooker's Pellaea boivinii very well, but it is a scarce species in Ceylon [Sri Lanka]: they have found it in only one locality about 10 or 12 miles from there on the rocky summit of a hill at about 4000 feet elevation. When they get a dry day, he will get a few men to collect roots of this and every other kind of fern he can find in that district. He will transmit Hooker a selection from these with anything else they can find that might prove interesting. He would be delighted to help in any way with the FILICES EXOTICAE. His next trip, which will be toward Batticaloe, will probably be too dry a locality to yield many ferns, but he shall be on the eager look out for them. He hopes afterwards to be able to visit the part of the country he wished to visit last September, where Cyathea sinuata is found. He does not think the highest part of that district has been at all explored and, judging from the results of searches made in the lower ground, it must be full of botanical novelties. If it were not so far away he would send his botanical collectors there very often. Dr de Vriese's name did not appear amongst the passengers arriving by the last steamer, but he has learned accidentally that he is on the island, though he does not know his exact whereabouts. Thwaites hopes de Vriese stays until the dry weather sets in, as botanising in their jungles is out of the question in the wet and de Vriese would be astonished at the bloodthirstiness of their forest leeches. Thwaites thinks de Vriese will want to see the Angiopteris growing and describes their recent high rainfall. He is glad the Musa textilis arrived in such good order and he hopes to hear that the box he transmitted to Hooker from Galle at the end of September containing Pandams, ferns and seeds arrived in good order. Pages 1 and 4 of 8.

Description

Owing to a steamer accident, Hooker's two letters of 11 and 19 Oct arrived together. Thwaites knows Hooker's Pellaea boivinii very well, but it is a scarce species in Ceylon [Sri Lanka]: they have found it in only one locality about 10 or 12 miles from there on the rocky summit of a hill at about 4000 feet elevation. When they get a dry day, he will get a few men to collect roots of this and every other kind of fern he can find in that district. He will transmit Hooker a selection from these with anything else they can find that might prove interesting. He would be delighted to help in any way with the FILICES EXOTICAE. His next trip, which will be toward Batticaloe, will probably be too dry a locality to yield many ferns, but he shall be on the eager look out for them. He hopes afterwards to be able to visit the part of the country he wished to visit last September, where Cyathea sinuata is found. He does not think the highest part of that district has been at all explored and, judging from the results of searches made in the lower ground, it must be full of botanical novelties. If it were not so far away he would send his botanical collectors there very often. Dr de Vriese's name did not appear amongst the passengers arriving by the last steamer, but he has learned accidentally that he is on the island, though he does not know his exact whereabouts. Thwaites hopes de Vriese stays until the dry weather sets in, as botanising in their jungles is out of the question in the wet and de Vriese would be astonished at the bloodthirstiness of their forest leeches. Thwaites thinks de Vriese will want to see the Angiopteris growing and describes their recent high rainfall. He is glad the Musa textilis arrived in such good order and he hopes to hear that the box he transmitted to Hooker from Galle at the end of September containing Pandams, ferns and seeds arrived in good order. Pages 1 and 4 of 8.

Description

Owing to a steamer accident, Hooker's two letters of 11 and 19 Oct arrived together. Thwaites knows Hooker's Pellaea boivinii very well, but it is a scarce species in Ceylon [Sri Lanka]: they have found it in only one locality about 10 or 12 miles from there on the rocky summit of a hill at about 4000 feet elevation. When they get a dry day, he will get a few men to collect roots of this and every other kind of fern he can find in that district. He will transmit Hooker a selection from these with anything else they can find that might prove interesting. He would be delighted to help in any way with the FILICES EXOTICAE. His next trip, which will be toward Batticaloe, will probably be too dry a locality to yield many ferns, but he shall be on the eager look out for them. He hopes afterwards to be able to visit the part of the country he wished to visit last September, where Cyathea sinuata is found. He does not think the highest part of that district has been at all explored and, judging from the results of searches made in the lower ground, it must be full of botanical novelties. If it were not so far away he would send his botanical collectors there very often. Dr de Vriese's name did not appear amongst the passengers arriving by the last steamer, but he has learned accidentally that he is on the island, though he does not know his exact whereabouts. Thwaites hopes de Vriese stays until the dry weather sets in, as botanising in their jungles is out of the question in the wet and de Vriese would be astonished at the bloodthirstiness of their forest leeches. Thwaites thinks de Vriese will want to see the Angiopteris growing and describes their recent high rainfall. He is glad the Musa textilis arrived in such good order and he hopes to hear that the box he transmitted to Hooker from Galle at the end of September containing Pandams, ferns and seeds arrived in good order. Pages 1 and 4 of 8.