JET. 53.] TO R. W. CHURCH. 523 



the rebellion was obstinate enough, into a determina- 

 tion to do away with slavery. Homely, honest, un- 

 gainly Lincoln is the representative man of the coun- 

 try. 



A Boston gentleman, at cost of $11,000 or more, 

 is to build a fireproof house for my herbarium, which 

 I give to the university, with my botanical library. 

 A fund of $12,000 is raising to support it, which 

 will relieve me of the expenditure of about $500 a 

 year. But I shall have double care and bother all 

 the coming spring and summer. 



Dr. Scudder has gone to Cuba, to attend an in- 

 valid, and wishes to examine orchid fertilization, and 

 asks me what in particular he should look at. 



Pray get well, dear Darwin, and believe me to be 

 ever, Yours cordially, ASA GRAY. 



TO R. W. CHURCH. 



CAMBRIDGE, April 4, 1864. 



MY DEAR MR. CHURCH, - - If you have long ago 

 written your American correspondent off your books, 

 as being a right shabby fellow, he could not com- 

 plain. 



Here is your agreeable letter of January 19th, a 

 most prompt and more than kind response to mine of 

 Christmas, still unacknowledged by me ! 



The fact simply is that I have been delaying week 

 by week in the hope of being able to announce to 

 you that the subscription for the support of our botan- 

 ical establishment was filled up. I am sorry to say 

 that this cannot yet be said. The matter has been 

 privately conducted, that is, nothing said about it in 

 the public prints ; but the two gentlemen who took 

 the matter in hand have quietly circulated the paper 



